position of European feudal barons of the Middle Ages. Nominally
they are dependent on some of the native princes or on the British
Government; but de facto they are perfectly independent. Their
castles are built on high rocks, and besides the natural difficulty
of entering them, their possessors are made doubly unreachable by
the fact that long secret passages exist in every such castle,
known only to the present owner and confided to his heir only at
his death. We have visited two such underground halls, one of
them big enough to contain a whole village. No torture would ever
induce the owners to disclose the secret of their entrances, but
the Yogis and the initiated Adepts come and go freely, entirely
trusted by the Takurs.

A similar story is told concerning the libraries and subterranean
passages of Karli. As for the archaeologists, they are unable
even to determine whether this temple was built by Buddhists or
Brahmans. The huge daghopa that hides the holy of holies from
the eyes of the worshippers is sheltered by a mushroom-shaped roof,
and resembles a low minaret with a cupola. Roofs of this description
are called "umbrellas," and usually shelter the statues of Buddha
and of the Chinese sages. But, on the other hand, the worshippers
of Shiva, who possess the temple nowadays, assert that this low
building is nothing but a lingam of Shiva. Besides, the carvings
of gods and goddesses cut out of the rock forbid one to think
that the temple is the production of the Buddhists. Fergusson
writes, "What is this monument of antiquity? Does it belong to
the Hindus, or to the Buddhists? Has it been built upon plans
drawn since the death of Sakya Sing, or does it belong to a more
ancient religion?"