he divine justice, which revenged the saint, and suffered
the wretch to be struck with that imprecation which he had wished upon
himself.

These miracles, which Xavier wrought by the means of children, raised an
admiration of him, both amongst Christians and idolaters; but so
exemplary a punishment caused him to be respected by all the world: and
even amongst the Brachmans there was not one who did not honour him. As
it will fall in our way to make frequent mention of those idol-priests,
it will not be from our purpose to give the reader a description of them.

The Brachmans are very considerable amongst the Indians, both for their
birth and their employment. According to the ancient fables of the
Indies, their original is from heaven. And it is the common opinion, that
the blood of the gods is running in their veins. But to understand how
they were born, and from what god descended, it is necessary to know the
history of the gods of that country, which in short is this:

The first, and lord of all the others, is Parabrama; that is to say, a
most perfect substance, who has his being from himself, and who gives
being to the rest. This god being a spirit free from matter, and
desirous to appear once under a sensible figure, became man; by the only
desire which he had to shew himself, he conceived a son, who came out at
his mouth, and was called Maiso. He had two others after him, one of them
whose name was Visnu, was born out of his breast, the other called Brama,
out of his belly. Before he returned to his invisibility, he assigned
habitations and employments to his three children. He placed the eldest
in the first heaven, and gave him an absolute command over the elements
and mixed bodies. He lodged Visnu beneath his elder brother, and
established him the judge of men, the father of the poor, and the
protector of the unfortunate. Brama had for his inheritance the third
heaven, with the superintendance of sacrifices, and other ceremonies of
religion. These are the three deities which the Indians represent by one
idol, with three heads growing out of one body, with this mysterious
signification, that they all proceed from the same principle. By which it
may be inferred, that in former times they have heard of Christianity;
and that their religion is an imperfect imitation, or rather a corruption
of ours.

They say that Visnu has descended a thousand times on earth, and every
time has changed his shape; sometimes appear