Note 17 — C

21. Siunârâyanis have a meeting house known as Dhâmghar, or “House of Paradise;” Somaghar, or “House of meeting,” and Girja Ghar, or church, a word derived through the Portuguese igreja from the Greek ekklesia. It usually contains pictures of the Saints Gorakhnâth, Râêdâs, Kabîrdâs, Sûrdâs, and others. The scriptures are kept rolled up in cloth on a table at the East. They are carefully watched and never given to any one but members of their own congregation. They meet here on Friday evenings, and any educated man among them reads and expounds passages from the Gurunyâsa. The only occasion when the Santavirâsa is read is at death; it is then recited from the moment of dissolution until the corpse is buried. They are not allowed to eat meat or drink spirits before going to the weekly service, but this is the only restriction. On the Basant Panchami, or fifth light half of Mâgh, a Halwâi is called in, who cooks some halwa sweetmeat (which is known as manbhog, or “food of the mind”) in a large boiler (karhâo). This is first offered to Siunârâyana before the Scriptures of the sect, and until this is done no Chamâr is allowed to touch it. The explanation of this is that Siunârâyana was a Chhatri, and it would be defilement to him if any Chamâr touched it before dedication. An offering of the same kind is made to Guru Nânak by the Sikhs.17