Sun and moon course across the sky: beyond is the
abode of light and the blessed. The coursers are at one moment regarded
as barring the way to heaven; at another as outposts who may guide the
soul to heaven. In yet another mood, as they constantly, day by day,
look down upon the race of men, dying day by day, they are regarded as
picking daily candidates for the final journey. In due time Yama and his
heaven are degraded to a mere Pluto and hell; then the terrible
character of the two dogs is all that can be left to them. And the two
dogs blend into a unit variously, either a four-eyed Parsi dog, or a
two-headed--finally a plural-headed--Kerberos.
OTHER DOGS OF HELL.
The peace of mind of one or the other reader is likely to be disturbed
by the appearance of a hell-dog here and there among peoples outside of
the Indo-European (Aryan) family. So, e. g., I. G. Mueller, in his
_Geschichte der Americanischen Urreligionen_, second edition, p. 88,
mentions a dog who threatens to swallow the souls in their passage of
the river of hell.
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