At the commencement of their idolatry the Hindus confined their worship to visible objects, such as the sun, the moon, the stars, and the elements. In those early times they felt no need of making idols of stone, wood, or metal. But as paganism extended its dominion, and when, in imitation of other idolatrous nations, the Hindus went so far as to deify simple mortals, they had recourse to statues and images in order to perpetuate the memory of their celebrated men and to transmit their virtues to posterity.