Saran, in Hindu mythology, is a superlative bow belonging to Vishnu, whose arrows never fail to reach their mark and return of themselves to Vishnu.
Sarantari, in the Greek Church, are masses for the dead during forty days.
Saraph. See Sekapiiiji; Serpent.
Sa'raph (Heb. Saraph', Cl^b, burniur) ; Sept. 'Sapcif V. r. '2aia), named as one of the sons or de- scendants of Shelah the son of Judah (1 Chron. iv, 22), and he seems to have lived about the time of the Eisode, as he is said to have had the dominion in I\Ioab. B.C. cir. 1618. "Burrington (Geneal. i, 17i^) makes Saraph a descendant of Jokim, wliom he regards as the third son of Shelah. In the Targimi of K. Jose]ih, .loash and Saraph are identified with INIahlon and Chilion, 'who married (^^"3) in Moab'" (Smith).
Sarasa, Alphonse Antoine de, a Flemish Jesuit of the last century, was born at Nieuw|)oort of Spanish [larents. At the age of fifteen he entered the Society of Jesus, and afterwards taught in the College of (iaud. Later he gave himself to the study of mathematics,
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which he had studied under the famous Gregorj' de St. Vincent, and jiassed the remainder of Ids life in retire- ment. He died at An vers, July 5, l(j(i7. He wrote A rs J^empcr GaudtmU, etc., which has been translated into Frencli under the title UArt de se TrunquUiixer duns les Erem^ments de lii Vie, This work was held in hii;li ret;ard by Leibnitz, Wolf, and others of their school. — IlinlL'r. Sour. Biixj. Generals, s.\.
Saras"wrati (or Sarasvati) is, in Hindft mytholo- gy, the name of the wife, or the female energy, of the god Brahman, the tirst of the Hindu Trimurti, or triad. She is also the goddess of speech and eloquence, tlie pa- troness of music and the arts, and the inventress of the Sanscrit language and the Devanagari letters. She was induced to bestow these benefits on the human race b}' the sage Bharata, who, through his penance, causetl her to descend from heaven, and to divulge her inventions. Hence she is called Bharuti. She is also very white, hence another of her names, Mahdswetu, or Ahihtisukia (from makat, great, and siveta, white). — Chamberg's L'lici/clop. s. v.
iSu)-(isrdfi is also the name of a stream which flows into the Ganges at Hoogly. According to the myth, the goddess, being pursued, hid herself under the earth, and in the character of a stream forced her way until she reached the Ganges, her lover, with whom she was united. Another tradition makes Sarasviiti the daugh- ter of Brahma, whose beauty captivated the god him- self. As she concealed herself behind him, he assumed five heads in order to look for her; but Siva, becoming angry, cut otf one of them. She is usually represented as seated bv the side of Urahraa. — Vollmer, Wui-terb. d.
Ml/thnl. S. V.
Saiavia, Hadkiax A., classed among the English divines, although of Spanish extraction, was born at Hisdin, in Artois, France, in 1531. In ln82 he became professor of divinity and preacher to the French Church at Leyden. Influenced, doubtless, by his preference for episcopal government, he went to England in 1587, where he was well received by the prelates and divines. He tirst settled in Jersey, where he taught school and preached to his exiled countrymen there ; afterwards he was master of the free grammar-school at Southampton. He was successively pnnnoted to a prebend in the churches of Gloucester (1591), Canterbury (1505), and Westminster (IGOl). He showed great learning in de- fending the episcopacy against Beza, when the latter recommended its abolition in Scotland. He died in 1613, and was interred in Canterlniry Cathedral. A collective edition of all his works, which were in Latin, was published in IGU (Lond. 1 vol. 4to), under the title of Diversi Tractatus Theohxjia. : Dc JJiversis Gradibus Ministrornm Erangdii. See Hageiibach, Hist, of Doc- trines, ii, 1(58, 186.
Sarcerius, ISrasmus, an able practical theologian of the Kjth century, was born at Annaberg, in Saxony, in 15(11. He studied tirst at Lcipsic, then at the feet of Lutlicr and Melancthon in Wittenberg. In 1530 he left the university and became co-rector of a Latin school at Lubeck. Laboring here with some interrup- tion until 1.536, he then took charge of a similar school in Nassau. From 1538 he gave his attention exclusive- ly to the work of reforming the Church of Nassau, pre- siding at synods, instructing the clergy, and furnishing them with written works on practice and doctrine. But, unwilling to sanction the Interim (1548), he re- signeil his position, retired to Annaberg, and in 1549 became a pastor in Leipsic. In 1553 he was called to be Church superintendent in Eislel)en. In 1559 he ac- cepted a call as preacher at St. John's in Magdeburg; but tlie liigh Lntheran clergy scented heresy in his mild and g.ninl sermons, and assailed him in pamphlets. Worn out with labor, he speedily succumbed. He died in 1559 at tlie age of fifty-eight. In character, Sarce- rius was lirm, conscientious, blameless. A stranger to flattery, he walked among princes as an equal, and
never quailed before a foe. His works were highly es- teemed and much studied. We mention only, Anwei- siiitr/ die heilige Schrift zu interj^retiren (Basle, 1528) : — Tractatus de Ratione Discendce Theolor/im (1539) : — Con- ciuiies Aimuw (1541,4 vols.) : — Be Consensu Ver(B Eccle- sicn et S. Putrum: — also Loci Communes Theologies (1542 ?) :— Pastorale (1559). (J. P. L.)