Travels in India (Tavernier) 13.6

13.6

From Cambay you come to a village which is only three coss distant, where there is a pagoda to which the majority of the courtesans of India come to make their offerings. This pagoda contains numerous nude figures, and among others a large figure like an Apollo, which has the private parts all uncovered. When the old courtesans have amassed a sum of money in their youth, they buy with it young slaves, to whom they teach dances and lascivious songs, and all the tricks of their infamous trade. When these young girls have reached the age of eleven or twelve years their mistresses take them to this pagoda, and they believe that it will be good fortune to them to be offered and abandoned to this idol. From this pagoda to Chiidabad it is 6 coss. It is one of the most beautiful houses of the Great Mogul, and a vast enclosure, where there are extensive gardens and large tanks, with all the embellishments of which the genius of the Indians is capable. From Chiidabad to Ahmadabad it is but 5 coss. I return to Baroche and the ordinary route. From Baroche to Broudra (Baroda) . 22 coss. Baroda is a large town on a good soil, where there is a considerable trade in calicoes.