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 FROM THE 
 
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 THE GIFT OF 
 
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The original of tiiis book is in 
 tine Cornell University Library. 
 
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 http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924024159661 
 
v.1-3 
 
 Folklore In southern India 
 
 3 1924 024 159 661 
 
 FOL^ORE 
 
 IN 
 
 SOUTHERN INDIA, 
 
 PART I. 
 
 BT 
 
 PANDIT S. M. NATt^A SASTRI, 
 
 QOVEBlWtENT ABCH^OIiOQICAL SUBVBT. 
 
 BOMBAY : 
 EDUCATION SOCIETY'S PRESS, BYGULLA. 
 
 1884. 
 
 LOlffiOH: raUBHER & CO. 
 
FOLKLORE 
 
 IN 
 
 SOUTHERN INDIA. 
 
 PAET I. 
 
 tAl^piT S. M. NATfigA sASTRt, 
 
 tJOVEESMENT ABCHiBOIiOQICAL SXTBVET. 
 
 BOMBAY : 
 EDUCATION SOCIETY'S PEESS, BTOITLLA, 
 
 1884. 
 LONDON; TRUBNER & CO. 
 
^.L(s>1(% 
 
FOLKLORE IN SOUTHERN INDIA 
 
 THE STOEY OF THE THREE DEAF MEN. 
 
 When any awkward blunder occurs from a 
 person acting under a mistaken notion, there is a 
 common proverb in Tamil to the effect that the 
 matter ended like the story of the three deaf 
 m.en— {Muohehevidan Tcadaiydy mudindadu). 
 The following is the story told to explain the 
 allusion : — 
 
 In a remote village there lived a husband 
 and wife. Both of them were quite deaf. 
 They had made this household arrangement, to 
 cook cabbage with tamarind and soup without 
 tamarind one day, and cabbage without tama- 
 rind and soup with tamarind on the other. 
 Thus on every alternate day the same dishes 
 were being repeated. One day, when taking his 
 3neal, the husband found the tamarind cabbage 
 so very tasteful that he wanted to have it also 
 next day, and gave instructions to that effect. 
 The deaf wife did not understand the order. 
 According to the established rule she cooked 
 cabbage without tamarind next day. The hus- 
 band when he sat down to his meal found his 
 order disregarded and, being enraged thereat, 
 
threw the cabbage against the wall, and 
 went out in a rage. The wife ate her belly- 
 ful, and prepared tamarind cabbage for her 
 husband. 
 
 The husband went out, and sat down in a 
 place where three roads crossed, to calm down 
 his anger. At that time a neatherd happened 
 to pass that way. He had lately lost a good 
 cow and caK of his, and had been seeking them 
 for some days. When he saw the deaf man 
 sitting by the way, he took him for a sooth- 
 sayer, and asked him to find out by his know- 
 ledge of Jishyam where the cow would likely be 
 found. The herdsman, too, was very deaf ; and 
 the man, without hearing what he was saying, 
 abused him, and wished to be left undisturbed. 
 In abusing him the husband stretched out his 
 hand, pointing to the neatherd's face. This 
 pointing the neatherd understood to indicate 
 the direction where the lost cow and calf would 
 be found. So thinking, the poor neatherd went 
 on in that direction, promising to present the 
 soothsayer with the calf if he found it there 
 with the cow. To his joy, and by mere chance 
 he found them. His delight knew no bounds. 
 '' That is a capital soothsayer. Surely I must 
 present him with the calf." So thought he 
 with himself, and returned with them to the 
 deaf man, and pointing to the calf requested 
 him to accept it. 
 
 Now it unfortunately happened that the calf's 
 
tail was broken, and crooked. The man thought 
 the herdsman was Warning him unreasonably 
 for having broken the calf's tail, while he knew 
 nothing about it, and so by a wave of his hand 
 denied the charge. This the neatherd mistook 
 for a refusal of the calf, and a demand for the 
 cow. The neatherd said, " How very greedy 
 you are ! I promised you only the calf, and 
 not the cow." The husband said, " Never ; I 
 know nothing of either your cow or calf. I 
 never broke the calf's tail. Some other must 
 have done it. " Thus they were quarrelling 
 without understanding each other for a long 
 time, when a third party happened to pass by. 
 Understanding the subject well, and desiring to 
 profit by their stupidity, he interfered and said 
 in a loud voice, and yet so as not to be heard 
 by the deaf husband, " Well, neatherd, you had 
 better go away with the cow. The Soothsayers 
 are always greedy. Leave the calf with me, and 
 I shall make him accept it." The neatherd, much 
 pleased to have secured the cow, walked home, 
 leaving the calf with the third person. When 
 the neatherd had gone the passenger said to the 
 deaf man, " Tou see how very unlawful it is 
 for the neatherd to charge you with an ofience 
 which you never committed. It is always the 
 case with neatherds. They are the biggest fools 
 in the world ! But never mind, so long as you 
 have a friend in me. I shall somehow explain 
 to him your innocence, and restore him the calf." 
 
6 
 
 The htLsliand, mucli pleased, ran home to escape 
 from the supposed gnilt. At the expense of 
 the stupidity and deafness of both, the third 
 passenger walked home with the calf. 
 
 The husband on his return sat down for his 
 dinner, and his wife served him the tamarind 
 cabbage. He happened to put his finger to 
 the place where the cabbage without tamarind 
 had previously been served on the leaf. On 
 applying it to his mouth he found it so very 
 sweet that he demanded that dish again. The 
 wife replied to him that she had already emptied 
 the pan. " Then at least bring me the cabbage 
 that is sticking against the wall, " said the 
 husband ; and the wife did accordingly. 
 
 Here ends the story. The latter portion is 
 also said to- be the explanation of a proverb 
 that is prevalent in Tamil, — " Sevuru Tcwaiyai 
 valichchu podudi sumihetta muH," meaning, 
 "0 thou feelingless deaf woman, give me at 
 least the cabbage that is sticking on the wall. " 
 This proverb is applied to stubborn wives who 
 would have their own way, and not obey their 
 husbands easily among unrefined society. 
 
II. 
 
 WHY BRAHMANS CANNOT EAT IN THE 
 DAM. 
 
 Among Hindus, especially among Br^hmans 
 of tlie Madras Presidency — and I now see 
 from personal observation ttat it is the same 
 in the Bombay Presidency also — there is a cus- 
 tom, while taking their meals, of leaving their 
 food uneaten when it so happens that from any 
 cause the light is blown out. Of course this 
 could occur only in the night-time. Such 
 mishaps now-a-days take place only in poor fa- 
 milies sitting down to supper with a single light. 
 Hence the following story, told as the origin of 
 this custom, is being forgotten. It runs as 
 follows : — 
 
 In a certain village there lived a Brahman 
 who had an only daughter. She was deeply 
 read in Sanskrit and was of the most charm- 
 ing beauty. He procured a husband for her 
 as deeply read as herself. The betrothal had 
 already taken place. Just after the girl at- 
 tained her puberty a day was appointed for 
 her nuptials ; and the muhurtta or auspicious 
 time was fixed at the 10th ghatikd of that 
 night. On that very evening the son-in-law 
 went to a tank to perform his Sandhyd vanda- 
 na or evening prayers. It swarmed with 
 crocodiles. People never went near it. The 
 son-in-law, being quite new to the village, 
 
8 
 
 entered the tank without knowing anything 
 of the danger. Unfortunately there was none 
 near to warn him. He had set his foot in 
 the water when a crocodile caught him by the 
 leg and began to drag him. That very night 
 was fixed for his nuptials and a crocodile was 
 taking him to feast' on his flesh. He was ex- 
 tremely vexed at the calamity, and said humbly 
 to his enemy, ' ' My f rien(J crocodile ! Listen to 
 my words first and then decide for yourself. 
 A wife, the only daughter of an old Brahman, 
 is waiting for me to-night. If you eat me 
 now yon take me away without my seeing her, 
 my father-in-law and other relatives. Their 
 hearts may break at the news of my death 
 on the very day of the wedding. They may 
 all curse you. If, on the contrary, you leave 
 me now, I shall go home, speak to my wife and 
 others about the sad calamity that has come 
 over me, and after embracing and taking leave 
 of her will come to you for your supper at the 
 Ibth gJiaiiM. Till then leave me." The cruel 
 crocodile, though very fond of human flesh and 
 himself dying of hunger, spared him for a 
 few gJiatikds at his humble request. After 
 extracting several oaths from him for his re- 
 turn in accordance to his promise the crocodile 
 went into the water. 
 
 The son-in-law also went home. All his 
 joys fled away ; how could he be pleasant after 
 his promise to the crocodile. Still, to give no 
 
uneasiness to the aged parents of Lis wife lie 
 underwent all the ceremonies and entered the 
 bed-room at the 10th ghaiihd. Only 5 more 
 ghatikds remained for him to live in the world, 
 as he thought. He in a few words explained 
 everything to his wife, and asked her permis- 
 sion. She showed no sign of sorrow, preached 
 to him about the iron hand of fate, and that 
 he must undergo what was written on his 
 forehead. She most willingly gave him per- 
 mission, and he returned to the tank even a 
 ghatihd earlier and called the crocodile, who 
 came and seized him. 
 
 At this moment a certain light glittered 
 before the eyes of the crocodile and vanished, 
 It was a woman that did it. The wife, after 
 consoling her husband and preaching to him 
 about the supremacy of fate, had accom- 
 panied him unobserved with a lighted lamp 
 concealed in a vessel. Just when the crocodile 
 applied its teeth to the leg of her husband, she 
 took the lamp out, showed it before the croco- 
 dile, and quenched it. Nor did it go without 
 its intended effect. The crocodile left the 
 husband to himself and said, " You had better go 
 now. I will never touch you after a lamp was 
 quenched when I began my meals to-day." 
 The husband was astonished at the device 
 of his wife and still more at the faithful ob- 
 servance of a rule in an unreasonable beast. 
 From that day it was fixed that men, who are 
 
10 
 
 more reasonable, should never eat when the 
 lamp is blown out. 
 
 Another story is told. In a remote village 
 there lived a poor woman who laboured from 
 morning till night in different houses and re- 
 turned to her hut with two measures of rice. 
 That quantity would serve for ten ordinary 
 persons. Being extremely poor she used to 
 keep no lamp, but cook her rice in the dark, 
 only guided by the light of the fire. When 
 she sat down for her meals even the light of 
 the fire decayed. So she had to eat in the 
 dark. Though she used the full two measures of 
 rice that she brought every day her hunger was 
 never satisfied. She was always in extreme want. 
 
 Now it so happened that she had a younger 
 sister who was somewhat richer than herself. 
 The younger came to see her elder sister. 
 The former ne ver used to be without a light, and 
 so asked her sister to buy some oil that night 
 and light a lamp. The elder was compelled 
 by necessity to do so ; for that she devoted a 
 portion of her two measures of rice and returned 
 home with great uneasiness and perplexity of 
 mind as to how less than two measures would 
 furnish their supper that night, while fall two 
 measures were found insufficient on former 
 occasions for herself alone. The lamp was 
 set for the first time in her house and she 
 cooked the remaining rice. The younger sis- 
 ter was astonished to see her using so much 
 
11 
 
 for two. The elder, thinking with herself that 
 the younger would soon see her mistake, cooked 
 everything. Two leaves were spread and 
 they sat down to their supper. Not even a 
 fourth part of the rice in the pot was con- 
 sumed, but already they were satisfied. The 
 younger sister laughed at the fooHshness of 
 her elder, who now said, " I do not know what 
 magic you have in you. Every day I cook two 
 measures of rice and fast the whole night, 
 without finding them sufficient for myself. 
 Now a fourth of less than two measures has 
 satiated both. Please explain the cause." The 
 younger sister, who was very intelligent her- 
 self, wanted to find out the cause, and asked 
 next day to serve the meals without the lamp. 
 Instead of eating she stretched her hand in 
 front and caught a lock of hair. She asked 
 the other at once to light the lamp, which 
 being done there was a devil sitting before her. 
 On being questioned how he came there he 
 said that he was used thus to go to every one 
 who ate without a lamp, and swallow his meals 
 fast without leaving him a morsel. The elder 
 sister perceived her mistake and used a lamp 
 from that day. The demon ceased to come. 
 She had abundance for herself and something 
 to spare. So when the lamp is blown out 
 devils are said to come and eat out of our 
 leaves. Hence is the custom to rise whenever 
 such mishaps occur. 
 
32 
 
 III. 
 
 THE SOOTHSAYEK'S SON. 
 
 Thus a Soothsayer when on his death-bed 
 wrote the horoscope of his second son, and 
 bequeathed it to him as his only property, leav- 
 ing the whole of his estate to his eldest son, 
 The second son pondered over the horoscope, 
 and fell into the following contemplations : — 
 
 " Alas, am I horn to this only in the world ? 
 The sayings of my father never failed. I have 
 seen them prove true to the last word while 
 he was living ; and how has he fixed my 
 horoscope ! Janma prahhriti ddridryam ! From 
 my birth poverty ! I am not to be in that 
 miserable condition alone. Dasa varshdni 
 handhanam : for ten years, imprisonment — a 
 fate harder than poverty ; and what comes 
 next ? Samudratiri maranam : death on the sea- 
 shore ; which means that I must die away from 
 home, far from friends and relatives on a sea- 
 coast. The misery has reached its extreme 
 height here. Now comes the funniest part of 
 the horoscope. Kinehit hhogam hJiavishyati — 
 that I am to have some happiness afterwards ! 
 What this happiness is, is an enigma to me: 
 To die first, to be happy for some time after ! 
 
13 
 
 What happiness ? Is it the happiness of this 
 world ? So it must be. For however clever 
 one may he, he cannot foretell what may take 
 place in the other world. Therefore it must 
 be the happiness of this world ; and how can 
 that be possible after my death ? It is im- 
 possible. I think my father has only meant 
 this as a consoling conclusion to the series o£ 
 calamities that he has prophesied. Three 
 portions of his prophecy must prove true ; the 
 fourth and last is a mere comforting statement 
 to bear patiently the calamities enumerated, 
 and never to prove true. Therefore let me go 
 to Banaras, bathe in the holy Ganga, wash away 
 my sins, and prepare myseM for my end. Let 
 me avoid sea-coasts, lest death meet me there 
 in accordance with my father's words. Come 
 imprisonment ; I am prepared for it for ten 
 years." 
 
 Thus thought he, aud after all the funeral 
 obsequies of his father were over, took leave of 
 his elder brother, and started for Banaras. He 
 went by the middle of the Dakhan^ avoiding 
 both the coasts, and went on journeying and 
 journeying for weeks and months^ till at last 
 he reached the Vindhya mountains. While pass- 
 ing that desert he had to- journey for a couple 
 of days through a sandy plain, with no signs of 
 life or vegetation. The little store of provision 
 with which he was provided for a couple of 
 days, at last was exhausted. The chombu, whiph 
 
14 
 
 te carried always full, replenisting it with 
 the sweet water from the flowing rivulet or 
 plenteous tank, he had exhausted in the heat of 
 the desert. There was not a morsel in his hand 
 to eat ; nor a drop of water to drink. Turn 
 his eyes wherever he might he found a vast 
 desert, out of which he saw no means of escape. 
 Still he thought within himself, " Surely my 
 father's prophecy never proved untrue. I must 
 survive this calamity to find my death on some 
 sea-coast." So thought he, and this thought 
 gave him strength of mind to walk fast and 
 try to find a drop of water somewhere to 
 slake his dry throat. At last he succeeded, 
 or rather thought that he succeeded. _ Heaven 
 threw in his way a mined well. He thought 
 that he could collect some water if he let down 
 his eJiomhu with the string that he always 
 carried noosed to the neck of it. Accordingly 
 he let it down ; it went some way and stopped, 
 and the following words came from the well, 
 " Oh, relieve me ! I am the king of tigers, dying 
 here of hunger. For the last three days I have 
 had nothing. Fortune has sent you here. If 
 you assist me now you will find a sure help in 
 me throughout your life. Do not think that 
 I am a beast of prey. When you have be- 
 come my deliverer I can never touch you. 
 Pray kindly lift me up." Gaiigadhara, for 
 that was the name of the Soothsayer's second 
 son, found himself in a very perplexing 
 
15 
 
 position. " Shall I take him out or not ? 
 If I take him out he m.ay make me the first 
 morsel of his hungry mouth. No ; that he 
 will not do. For my father's, prophecy never 
 came untrue. I must die on a sea-coast and 
 not by a tiger." Thus thinking, he asked the 
 tiger-king to hold tight the vessel, which he 
 accordingly did, and he lifted him up slowly. 
 The tiger reached the top of the well and felt 
 himself on safe ground. True to his word he 
 did no harm to Gangadhara. On the other 
 hand, he went round his patron three times, 
 and standing before him, humbly spoke the 
 following words : — " My life-giver, my bene- 
 factor ! I shall never forget this day, when 
 I regained my life through your kind hands. 
 In return for this kind assistance I pledge my 
 oath to stand by you in all calamities. When- 
 ever you are in any difficulty just think of me. 
 I am there with you ready to oblige yon by 
 all the means that I can. To tell you briefly 
 how I came in here : — Three days ago I was 
 roaming in yonder forest, when I saw a gold- 
 smith passing through it. I chased him. Hcj 
 finding it impossible to escape my claws, jump-r 
 ed into this well, and is living to this moment 
 in the very bottom of it. I also jumped, but 
 found myself in the first storey ; he is on the 
 last and fourth storey. In the second storey 
 lives a serpent half-famished with hunger. 
 In the third storey lies a rat, similarly half- 
 
16 
 
 famislied, and wlien you again begin to draw 
 water these may request yon first to release 
 them. In the same way the goldsmith also 
 may request. I tell yon, as your bosona 
 friend, neyer assist that wretched man, 
 though he is your relation as a human being. 
 Goldsmiths are never to be trusted. You 
 can place more faith in me, a tiger, though 
 I feast sometimes upon men, in a serpent 
 whose sting makes your blood cold the very 
 next moment, or in a rat, which does a thou- 
 sand mischiefs in your house. But never trust 
 a goldsmith. Do not release him ; and if yon 
 do, you shall surely repent of it one day or 
 other." Thus advising, the hungry tiger went 
 away without waiting for an answer. 
 
 Gangadhara thought several times of the 
 eloquent way in which the tiger addressed 
 him, and admired his fluency of speech. His 
 thirst was not quenched. So he let down his 
 vessel again, which was now caught hold of 
 by the serpent, who addressed him thus : — 
 " Oh my protector ! lift me up. I am the 
 king of serpents, and the son of Adisesha, 
 who is now pining away in agony for my dis- 
 appearance. Release me now. I shall ever 
 remain your servant, remember your assistance, 
 and help you throughout life in all possible 
 ways. Oblige me: I am dying." Gangadhara, 
 calling again to mind the Samztdratire mai-xt^ 
 iiam — death on the seashore — lifted him up. 
 
17 
 
 He, like the tiger-king, circumambulated liim 
 thrice, and prostrating himself before him spoke 
 thus : — " Oh, mj life-giver, jnj father, for so 
 I m.ust call you, as you have given me another 
 birth, I have already told you that I am 
 Adis^sha's son, and that I am the king of ser- 
 pents. I was three days ago basking myself 
 in the morning sun, when I saw a rat running 
 before me. I chased it. He fell into this well. 
 I followed him, but instead of falling on the 
 third storey where he is now lying, I fell into 
 the second. It was on the same evening that 
 the goldsmith also fell down on the fourth, 
 storey, and the tiger whom you released just 
 before me fell down into the first. What I 
 have to tell you now is — do not relieve the gold- 
 smith, though you may release the rat. As a 
 rule, goldsmiths are never to be trusted. I am 
 going away now to see my father. Whenever 
 you are in any difficulty just think of me. 
 I will he there by your side to assist you by 
 all possible means. If, notwithstanding my 
 repeated advice, you happen to release the 
 goldsmith, you shall suffer for it severely." 
 So saying, the Nagaraja (serpent-king) glided 
 away in zigzag movements, and was out of 
 sight in a moment. 
 
 The poor son of the Soothsayer who was 
 now almost dying of thirst, and was even led to 
 think that the messengers of death were near 
 him, notwithstanding his firm belief iu the 
 
18 
 
 ■words of Lis father, let down his vessel for a 
 third time. The rat canght hold of it, and with- 
 out discussing, he lifted up the poor animal at 
 once. But it would not go without showing, its 
 eloquence — " Oh life of my life, my benefactor : 
 I am the king of rats. Whenever you are in any 
 calamity just think of me. I will come to you, 
 and assist you. My keen ears overheard all 
 that the tiger-king and serpent-king told you 
 about the Svarnataskara (gold-smith), who is 
 in the fourth storey. It is nothing but a sad 
 truth that goldsmiths ought never to be trusted. 
 Therefore never assist him as yon have done 
 to us all. And if you do you shall feel it. I 
 am hungry ; let me go for the present." 
 Thus taking leave of his benefactor, the rat, 
 too, ran away. 
 
 Gangadhara for a while thought upon the re- 
 peated advice given by the three animals about 
 releasing the goldsmith, " What wrong 
 would there be in m^ assisting him. Why 
 should I not release him also." So thinking 
 to himself Gangadhara let down the vessel 
 again. The goldsmith caught hold of it, and 
 demanded help. The Soothsayer's son had no 
 time to lose ; he was himself dying of thirst. 
 Therefore he lifted the goldsmith up, who now 
 began his story : — " Stop for a while," said 
 Gangadhara, and after quenching his thirst by 
 letting down his vessel for the fifth time, still 
 •fearing that some one might remain in the well 
 
19 
 
 and demand his assistance, he listened to the 
 goldsmith, who began as follows : — " My dear 
 friend, my protector, what a deal of nonsense 
 these brutes were talking to yon about me ; I am 
 glad you have not followed their advice. I am 
 just now dying of hunger. Permit me to go 
 away. My name is Manikkasari. I live in the 
 East main street of Ujjaini, which is 20 Ms 
 to the south of this place, and so lies on your 
 way when you return from Banaras. Do not 
 forget to come to me and receive my kind 
 remembrances of your assistance, on your way 
 back to your country." So saying the gold- 
 smith took his leave, and Gangadhara also 
 pursued his way north after the above adven- 
 tures. 
 
 He reached Banaras, and lived there for 
 m.ore than ten years, spending his time in 
 bathing, prayers, and other religious ceremonies. 
 He quite forgot the tiger, serpent, rat, and gold- 
 smith. After ten years of religious life, 
 thoughts of home and of his brother rushed 
 into his mind. " Enough of the merit that I have 
 secured till now by my religious observances. 
 Let me return home." Thus thought Ganga- 
 dhara within himself, and immediately he was 
 on his way back to his country. Remembering 
 the prophecy of his father he returned by the 
 same way by which he went to Banaras ten years 
 before. While thus retracing his steps he 
 reached that ruined well where he released the 
 
20 
 
 three brute kings and the goldsmith. At once 
 the old recollections rushed into his mind, and he 
 thought of the tiger to test his fidelity. Only 
 a moment passed, and the tiger-king came rnn- 
 ning before him carrying a large crown in his 
 mouth, the glitter of the diamonds of which 
 for a time outshone even the bright rays of 
 the sun. He dropped the crown at his life-giver's 
 feet, and leaving off all his pride, humbled 
 himself like a pet cat to the strokes of his 
 protector, and began in the following words : — 
 " My life-giver ! How is it that you forgot 
 me, your poor servant, for so long a time. I am 
 glad to find that I still occupy a corner in 
 your mind. I can never forget the day when I 
 owed my life to your lotus hands. I have 
 several jewels with me of little value. This 
 crown, being the best of all, I have brought 
 here as a single ornament of great value, 
 and hence easily portable and useful to you 
 in your own country." Gaiigadhara looked at 
 the crown, examined it over and over, counted 
 and recounted the gems, and thought within 
 himself that he would become the richest of 
 men by separating the diamonds and gold, and 
 selling them in his own country. He took 
 leave of the tiger-king,and after his disappear- 
 ance thought of the kings of serpents and rats, 
 who came in their turns with their presents, 
 and after the usual formalities and exchange of 
 words took their leave. Gangadhara was ex- 
 
21 
 
 tremely delighted at' the faitMulness witli 
 whicli the brute beasts behaved themselves, and 
 went on his way to the sonth. While going 
 along he spoke to himself thus : — -" These 
 beasts have been so very faithful in their 
 assistance. Much more, therefore, must Manik- 
 kasari be faithful. I do not want anything 
 from him now. If I take this crown with me 
 as it is, it occupies much space in my bundle. 
 It may also excite the curiosity of some rob- 
 bers on the way. I will go now to Ujjaini on 
 my way. Manikkasari requested me to see 
 him without failure on my return-journey. 
 I shall do so, and request him to have the 
 crown melted, the diamonds and gold sepa- 
 rated. He raust do that kindness at least for 
 me. I shall then roll up these diamonds and 
 gold ball in my rags, and bend my way home." 
 Thus thinking and thinking he reached Ujjaini. 
 At once he enquired for the house of his gold- 
 smith friend, and found him without difficulty. 
 Manikkasari was extremely delighted to find 
 on his threshold him who ten years before, not- 
 withstanding the advice repeatedly given him 
 by the sage-looking tiger, serpent, and rat, had 
 relieved him from the pit of death. Gaiiga- 
 dhara at once showed him the crown that he 
 received from the tiger-king, told him how 
 he got it, and requested his kiud assistance 
 to separate the gold and diamonds. Manikkasari 
 agreed to do so, and meanwhile asked his friend 
 
22 
 
 to rest himself for a while to have his bath 
 and meals ; and Gangadhara, who was very 
 observant of his religious ceremonies, went 
 direct to the river to bathe. 
 
 How came a crown in the jaws of a tiger ? 
 It is not a difficult question to solve. ^ king 
 must have furnished the table of the tiger for 
 a day or two. Had it not been for that, the 
 tiger could not have had a crown with him. 
 Even so it was. The king of Ujjaini had a 
 week before gone with all his hunters on a hunt-' 
 ing expedition. All on a sudden a tiger — as 
 we know now, the very tiger-king himself — 
 started from the wood, seized the king, and 
 vanished. The hunters returned and informed 
 the prince about the sad calamity that had 
 befallen his father. They all saw the tiger 
 carrying away the king. Yet such was their 
 courage that they could not lift their weapons 
 to bring to the prince the corpse at least of 
 his father ; their courage reminds us of the 
 couplet in the Child's Story : — 
 " Four and twenty sailors went to kill a snail ; 
 The best man among them dares not touch 
 her tail." 
 When they informed the prince about the 
 death of his father he wept and wailed, and 
 gave notice that he would give half of his 
 kingdom to any one who should bring him news 
 about the murderer of his father. The prince 
 did not at all believe that his father was de- 
 
23 
 
 voured by the tiger. His belief was that some 
 huiiters, coveting the ornaments on the king's 
 person, had murdered him. Hence he had 
 issued tte notice. The goldsmith knew full 
 well that it was a tiger that killed the king, 
 and not any hunter's hands, since he had 
 heard from Gahgadhara about how he obtained 
 the crown. Still, ambition to get half the 
 kingdom prevailed, and he resolved with 
 himself to make over Gangadhara as the 
 king's murderer. The crown was lying on 
 the floor where Gangadhara left it with his 
 full confidence in Manikkasari. Before his 
 protector's return the goldsmith, hiding the 
 crown under his garments, flies to the palace. 
 He went before the prince and informed him that 
 the assassin was caught, and placed the crown 
 before him. The prince took it into his hands, 
 examined it, and at once gave half the kingdom 
 to Manikkasari, and then enquired about the 
 murderer. He is bathing in the river, and is 
 of such and such appearance, was the reply. 
 At once four armed soldiers fly to the river, 
 and bind hand and foot the poor Brahman, who 
 sits in meditation, without any knowledge of 
 the fate that hangs over him. They brought 
 Gangadhara to'the presence of the prince, who 
 turned his face away from the murderer or 
 supposed murderer, and asked his soldiers to 
 throw him into the hdrdgriham. In a minute, 
 without knowing the cause, the poor Brahman 
 
24 
 
 found himself in. the dark caves of tlie hard' 
 griham. 
 
 In old times the kdrdgiiham answered the 
 purposes of the modern jail. It was a dark 
 cellar underground, built with strong stone 
 walls, into which any criminal guilty of a capital 
 offence was ushered to breathe his last there 
 without food and drink. Into such a cellar 
 Gaiigadhara was pushed do^vn. In a few hours 
 after he left the goldsmith he found hiinself 
 inside a dark cell stinking with human bodies, 
 dying and dead. What were his thoughts 
 when he reached that place ? " It is the gold- 
 smith that has brought me to this wretched 
 state ; and, as for the prince ; Why should he 
 not enquire as to how I obtained the crown? 
 It it of no use to accuse either the goldsmith 
 or the prince now. We are all the children 
 of fate. We must obey her commands. Dasa- 
 varsMni bandhanam. This is but the first day 
 of my father's prophecy. So far his statement 
 is true. But how am I going to pass ten years 
 here ? Perhaps without anything to keep up 
 my life I may drag on my existence for a day or 
 two. But how to pass ten years ? That can- 
 not be, and I must die. Before death comes let 
 me think of my faithful brute friends." 
 
 So pondered Gangadhara in the dark cell 
 underground, and at that moment thought 
 of his three friends. The tiger-king, serpent- 
 king, and rat-king assembled at once with 
 
25 
 
 their armies at a garden near the Icdrdgriham, 
 and for a -wliile did not know what to do. A 
 common cause— how to reach their protector 
 who was now in the dark cell underneath — 
 united them all. They held their council, and 
 decided to make an underground passage from 
 the inside of a ruined well to the kdrdgrihavi. 
 The rat rdja issued an order at once to that 
 effect to his army. They with their nimble 
 teeth bored the ground a long way to the 
 walls of the prison. After reaching it they 
 found that their teeth could not work on the 
 hard stones. The bandicoots were then spe- 
 cially ordered for the business, they with their 
 hard teeth made a small slit in the wall for a 
 rat to pass and repass without difficulty. 
 Thus a passage was effected. 
 
 The rat rdja entered first to condole with his 
 protector for his calamity. The king of the 
 tigers sent word through the snake-king that 
 he sympathised most sincerely with his sorrow, 
 and that he was ready to render all help for his 
 deliverance- He suggested a means for his 
 escape also. The serpent rdja went in, and 
 gave Gaiigadhara hopes of delivery. The rat 
 king undertook to supply his protector with 
 provisions. " Whatever sweetmeats or bread 
 are prepared in any house, one and all of you 
 must try to bring whatever you can to our 
 benefactor. Whatever clothes yoa find hang- 
 ing in a house, cut down, dip the pieces in 
 
26 
 
 water and bring the wet bits to onr benefactor. 
 He will squeeze ttem and gather water for 
 drink ; and the bread and sweetmeats shall form 
 his food." Thus ordered the king of the rats, 
 and took leave of Gaiigadhara. They in obe- 
 dience to their king's order continued to 
 supply provisions and water. 
 
 The Nagaraja said: — "I sincerely condole 
 with you in your calamity ; the tiger-king also 
 fully sympathises with you, and wants me to 
 tell you so, as he cannot drag his huge body 
 here as we bare done with our small ones. 
 The king of the rats has promised to do his 
 best to keep up your life. We would now do 
 what we can for your release. From this day 
 we ahall issue orders to our armies to oppress 
 all the subjects of this kingdom. The per- 
 centage of death by snake-bite and tigers 
 shall increase from this day. And day by 
 day it shall continue to increase till your 
 release. After eating what the rats bring you 
 you had better take your seat near the entrance 
 of the hdrdcjriham. Owing to the several un- 
 natural deaths some people that walk over the 
 prison might say, 'How unjust the king has 
 turned out now. Were it not for his injus- 
 tice such early deaths "by snake-bite could 
 never occur.' Whenever you hear people 
 speaking so, you had better bawl out so as to be 
 heard by them, 'The wretched prince im- 
 prisoned me on the false • charge of having 
 
27 
 
 killed his father, while it was a tiger that killed 
 him. From that day these calamities have 
 broken out in his dominions. If I were 
 released I would save all by my powers of 
 healing poisonous wounds and by incantations.' 
 Some one may report this to the king, and if 
 he knows it, yoa will obtain your liberty.'' 
 Thus comforting his protector in trouble, he 
 advised him to pluck up courage, and took 
 leave of him. From, that day tigers and ser- 
 pents, acting under the special orders of their 
 kings, united in killing as many persons and 
 cattle as possible. Every day people were 
 being carried away by tigers or bitten by 
 eerpents. This havoc continued. GaiigA- 
 dhara was roaring as loud as he comld that he 
 would save those lives, had ha only his liberfcjr. 
 Few keard. him. The few that did took hi« 
 words for the voice of a ghost. " HowcouM he 
 manage to live without food and drink for so 
 long a time ?" «aid the persons walking over 
 his head to each other. Thus passed on months 
 and years. Gaiiga dhara sat in the dark cellar, 
 without the sun''s light falling upon him, and 
 feasted upon the bread-crnmbs and sweetmeats 
 that the rats so kindly supplied him with. 
 These circumstances had completely changed 
 his body. He had become a red, stout, huge, 
 mnwieldy lump of flesh. Thus passed full ten 
 years, as prophesied in the horoscope — Dusa- 
 var^huni bandhanam. 
 
28 
 
 Ten complete years rolled away in close im- 
 prisonment. On the last evening of the tenth 
 year one of the serpents got into the bed-cham- 
 ber of the princess and sucked her life. She 
 breathed her last. She was the only danghtep 
 of the king. He had no other issue — son or 
 daughter. His only hope was in her ; and she 
 was snatched away by a cruel and untimely 
 death. The king at once sent for all the 
 snake-bite curers. He promised haK Bis king- 
 dom, and his daughter's hand to him who 
 would restore her to life. Now it "was that 
 a servant of the king who had several times 
 overheard Gangadhara's exclamation reported 
 the matter to him. The king at once ordered 
 the cell to be examined. There was the man 
 sitting in it. How has he managed to live 
 so long in the cell ? Some whispered that he 
 must be a divine being. Some concluded that 
 he must surely win the hand of the princess 
 by restoring her to life. Thus they discussed, 
 and the discussions brought Gangadhara to the 
 king. 
 
 The king no sooner saw Gangadhara than 
 he fell on the ground. He was struck by the 
 majesty and grandeur of his person. His 
 ten years' imprisonment in the deep cell undei'- 
 ground had given a sort of lustre to his body, 
 which was not to be met with in ordinary 
 persons. His hair had first to be cut before 
 his face could be seen. The king begged for>- 
 
29 
 
 giveness for his former fault, and requested 
 him to revive his daughter. 
 
 " Bring me in a muhurta all the corpses of 
 men and cattle dying and dead, that remain 
 unburnt or unburied within the range of your 
 dominions ; I shall revive them all :" were the 
 only words that Gangadhara spoke. After it 
 he closed his lips as if in deep meditation, 
 which commanded Kim more respect in the 
 company. 
 
 Cart-loads of corpses of men and cattle began 
 to come in every minute. Even graves, it is 
 said, were broken open, and corpses buried a day 
 or two before were taken out and sent for 
 the revival. As soon as all were ready GaiigA- 
 dhara took a vessel full of water and sprinkled ' 
 it over them all, thinking upon his Nagaraja. 
 and Vyaghraraja. All rose up as if from deep 
 slumber, and went to their respective homes. 
 The princess, too, was restored to life. The joy 
 of tbe king knows no bounds. He curses the . 
 day on which he imprisoned him, accuses 
 himself for having believed the word of a gold- 
 smith, and offers him the hand of his daughter 
 and the whole kingdom, instead of half as he 
 promised. Gangadhara would not accept 
 anything. The king requested him to put a 
 stop for ever to those calamities. He agreed to 
 do so, and asked the king to assemble all his 
 subjects in a wood near the town. " I shall there 
 call in all the tigers and serpents and give them 
 
30 
 
 a s-eiieral order." So said Gangadbara, and tlia 
 king accordingly gave the order. In a couple 
 of ijhatilcas the wood near tijjaini was full of 
 people who assembled to witness the authority 
 of niHU over such enemies of human beings as 
 tigers and sei'pents. " He is no man ; be sure 
 of that. How could he have managed to live 
 for ten years without food and drink ? He is 
 surely a god. Thus speculated the mob. 
 
 When the whole town was assembled just at 
 the dusk of evening, Gangadhara sat dumb for 
 a moment and thought upon the Vyaghraraja 
 and Nilgaraja, who came running wiih all their 
 armies. People began, to take to their heels at 
 the sight of tigers. Gangadhara assured thena 
 of safety, and stopped them. 
 
 The grey light of the evening, the pumpkin 
 colour of Garigadhara, the holy ashes scattered 
 lavishly over his body, the tigers and snakes 
 humbling themselves at his feet, gave him 
 the tvue majesty of the god Gangadhara. For 
 who else by a single word couild thus command 
 vast annies of tigea-s and serpents, said som« 
 among the people. " Care not for it ; it may 
 be by magic. That is not a great thing. That 
 he revived cart-loads oif corpses makes him 
 SLTi-ely Gangadhara," said others. The scene 
 produced a very great effect upon the minds 
 of the mob. 
 
 " Why should you, my children, thus trouble 
 these poor subjects of Ujjaini ? Reply to me, 
 
31 
 
 and henceforfh desist from your ravaejevf." 
 Thus said tlie Soothsayer's son, and the fol- 
 lowing reply came from the king of the tigers ; 
 '■ Why should this base king imprison your 
 lionour, believing the mere word of a goldsmith 
 that your honour killed his father ? All the 
 hunters told him that his father was carried 
 away by a tiger. I was the messenger of death 
 sent to deal the blow on his neck. I did it, and 
 gave the croWn to your honour. The prince 
 makes no enquiry, and at once imprisons your 
 honour. How can we expect justice from 
 such a stupid king as that. Unless he adopts 
 a better standard of justice we will go on with 
 our destruction." 
 
 The king heard, cursed the day on which 
 he believed in the word of the goldsmith, 
 beat his head, tore his hair, yi'ept and wailed 
 for his crime, asked a thousand pardons, and 
 swore to rule in a just way from that day. The 
 sei'pent-king and tiger-king also promised to 
 observe their oath as long as justice prevailed, 
 and took their leave. The goldsmith fled 
 for his life. He was caught by the soldiers 
 of the king, and was pardoned by the generous 
 Gangadhara, whose voice now reigned supreme. 
 All returned to their homes. 
 
 The king again pressed Gangadhara to accept 
 the hand of his daughter. He agreed to do 
 so, not then, but some time afterwards. He 
 wished to go and see his elder brother first. 
 
32 
 
 and then to return and marry the princess. 
 The king agreed ; and Gai'igadhara left the city 
 that very day on his way home. 
 
 It so happened that unwittingly he took a 
 wrong road, and had to pass near a sea coast. 
 His elder brother was also on his way up to 
 BAniiras by that very same route. They met 
 and recognised each other, even at a distance. 
 They flew into each other's arms. Both re- 
 mained still for a time without knowing 
 anything. The emotion of pleasure (dnanda) 
 was so great, especially in Qahgadhara, that 
 it proved dangerous to his life. In a word, he 
 died of joy. 
 
 The sorrow of the elder brother could better 
 be imagined than described. He saw again his 
 lost brother, after having given up, as it were, 
 all hopes of meeting him. He had not even 
 asked him his adventures. That he should be 
 snatched away by the cruel hand of death 
 seemed unbearable to him. He wept and 
 wailed, took the corpse on his lap, sat under 
 a tree, and wetted it_ with tears. But there 
 was no hope of his dead brother coming to 
 life again. 
 
 The elder brother was a devout worshipper 
 of Ganapati. That was a Friday, a day very 
 sacred to that god. The elder brother took 
 the corpse to the nearest Gaijesa temple 
 and called upon him. The god came, and 
 asked him what he wanted. "My poor bro- 
 
33 
 
 ther is dead and gone ; and this is his 
 corpse. Kindly keep it under yonr charge till 
 I finish your worship. If I leave it anywhere 
 else the devils may snatch it away when I am 
 absent in your worship ; after finishing yoiir 
 jmju I shall burn him." Thus said the elder 
 brother, and giving the corpse to the god 
 Ganesa he went to prepare^himself forthatdeity's 
 worship. Ganesa made over the corpse to his 
 Ganas, asking them to. 'vssp.tch over it carefully. 
 
 So receives a spoiled child a fruit from its 
 father, who, when he gives it the fruit asks the 
 child to keep it safe. The child thinks within 
 itself, " Papa will excuse me if I eat a portion 
 of it." So saying it eats a portion, and when 
 it finds it so sweet, it eats the whole, saying, 
 " Come what will, what will papa do, after all, 
 if I eat it ? Perhaps give me a stroke or two on 
 the back. Perhaps he may excuse me." In 
 the same way these Gams of Ganapati first 
 ate a portion of the corpse, and when they found 
 it sweet, for we know that it was crammed up 
 with the sweetmeats of the kind rats, devoured 
 the whole, and were consulting about offering 
 the best excuse possible to their master. 
 
 The elder brother, after finishing the pnja, 
 demanded from the god his brother's corpse. 
 The belly-god called his Ganas, who came to the 
 front blinking, and fearing the anger of their 
 master. The god was greatly enraged. The 
 elder brother was highly vexed. When the 
 
34 
 
 corpse was not forthcoming he cuttingly 
 remarked, " Is this, after all, the return for 
 my deep belief in you ? Tou are unable even to 
 return my brother's corpse." Gauesa was much 
 ashamed at the remark, and at the uneasiness 
 that he had caused to his worshipper, so he by 
 his divine power gave him a living Gangadhara 
 instead of the dead corpse. Thus was the second 
 son of the Soothsayer restored to life. 
 
 The brothers had a long talk about each 
 other's adventures. They both went to Ujjaini, 
 where Gangadhara married the princess, and 
 succeeded to the throne of that kingdom. He 
 reigned for a long time, conferring several 
 benefits upon his brother. How is the horoscope 
 to be interpreted ? A special synod of Sooth- 
 sayers was held. A thousand emendations 
 were suggested. Gangadhara would not accept 
 them. At last one Soothsayer cut the knot by 
 stopping at a different place in reading, " Sa- 
 mudra tire maranam kinchit." " On the sea shore 
 death for some time. Then Bhoga-fn Ihavishyati. 
 There shall be happiness for the person con- 
 cerned." Thus the passage was interpreted. 
 ''Yes; my father's words never went wrong," said 
 Gangadhara. The three brute kings continued 
 their visits often to the Soothsayer's son, the 
 then king of Ujjaini. Even the faithless gold- 
 smith became a frequent visitor at the palace, 
 and a receiver of several benefits from the 
 royal hands. 
 
35 
 
 IV. 
 
 EANAVlRASING. 
 
 Once upon a time in the town ofVaniaim a- 
 n a g a r,^ there rnled a king, named Sivacliar, 
 lie was a most just king, and ruled so well 
 that no stone thrown up fell down, no crow 
 pecked at the new drawn milk, the lion and 
 the bull drank water from the same pond, and 
 peace and prosperity reigned throughout the 
 kingdom. Notwithstanding all these bless- 
 ings, care always sat on his face. The fruit 
 which makes life in this world sweet, the 
 redeemer to him from the horrible Naraka of 
 Put, a Putra, he had not. His days and nights 
 he spent in praying that God might bless him 
 with a son. Wherever he saw pJyaZ trees 
 (Asvatthardjas), he ordered Brahmans to cir- 
 cumambulate them. Whatever medicines the 
 doctors recommended he was ever ready to 
 swallow, however bitter they might be. " Eat 
 even ordure to get a son," says the proverb, 
 and accordingly he did everything to secure 
 that happiness, but all in vain. 
 
 ^ivachar had a minister, named Kharava- 
 dana, a most wicked tyrant as ever lived in the 
 world. The thought that the king was without 
 an heir, and had no hopes of one, awakened in 
 
 ' Classical name of Karfir, a small bnt very ancient town 
 in the Kdyambatur District of the Madras Presidency. 
 
36 
 
 his mind the ambition of securing for his family 
 the throne of Vanjaimanagar. Sivachar knew 
 this well. But what could he do. His only 
 care was to send up additional prayers to 
 frustrate the thoughts of Kharavadana, and to 
 secure for himself a good position after death, 
 without undergoing the severe torments of 
 the Put, hell. 
 
 At last fortune favoured Sivachar ; for vrhat 
 religions man fails to secure his desire ? The 
 king in his sixtieth year had a son. His joy 
 can better be imagined than described. Lacs 
 of Brahmans were fed in honour of the son- 
 birth festival, Putrotsavam , as it is technically 
 called. The state-prisons were opened, and all 
 the prisoners let loose. Thousands of kine and 
 innumerable acres of land were offered to 
 Brahmans, and every kind of charity was duly 
 practised. The ten days of the Sutikdgrihavdsa 
 (confinement) were over. On the eleventh day 
 the father saw his m^ich longed-for son's face, 
 and read on the lines of it great prosperity, 
 learning, valour, goodness, and every excellent 
 quality. 
 
 The cradle-swinging, naming, and other 
 ceremonies were duly performed, and the 
 prince grew up under the care shown to a 
 king's son. His name the elders fixed as Sun- 
 dara. The minister, whose only wish was to 
 get the throne for his family, was much dis- 
 appointed at the birth of a son to his master. 
 
37 
 
 Tke whole kingdom rejoiced at fclie event, 
 and the minister was the only man who was 
 sorry. When one is disappointed in his high 
 hopes and expectations, he devises plans to take 
 away the barrier that lies in his way. Even 
 so Kharavadana said to himself, " Let me see 
 how the affairs get on. The old king is near 
 his grave. When he dies, leaving a minor son, 
 myself must be his regent for a time. Have I 
 not then opportunity enough of securing for 
 ever for myself and my family the throne of 
 Vanjaimanagar ?" So thought he within 
 himself, and was quiet for a time. 
 
 Sivachar, who was a very shrewd man, on 
 several occasions read the minister's mind, 
 and knew very well how his intentions stood. 
 ' This cruel devil may murder my only son. 
 I care not if he nsnrps the throne. What I 
 fear is, that he may murder him, Na daivani 
 Sankardt param,, No other god but Sankara. 
 And he must have his own way. If it is so 
 written on the prince's head I cannot avoid 
 it." Thus sighed Sivachar, and this sorrow 
 (sdha), made him leaner day by day. Just ten 
 years after the birth of Sundara, the king fell 
 ill and was on his deathbed. 
 
 Sivachar had a servant, named Ranavirasing, 
 whom he had all along observed to be very 
 honest and faithful. That servant the king 
 called to his side, and asking all others except 
 Sundara, who was weeping by his father's 
 
38 
 
 pillow, to leave the room, addressed him thus : — 
 " My dear Ranavirasing, I have only a few 
 ghatihas before me. Listen to my words, and 
 act accordingly. There is one God above us 
 all, who will punish or reward us according 
 to our bad or good acts. If by avarice or 
 greed of money you ever play false to the 
 trust that I am going to repose in you that 
 God will surely punish you. It is not un- 
 known to jou what great difficulties I had 
 in getting this only son, Sundara ; how many 
 temples I built, how many Brahmans I fed, 
 how many religious austerities I iinderwent, 
 &c., &c. God after all gave me a son." Here 
 his sorrow prevented him from proceeding 
 further, and he began to cry aloud, and shed 
 tears. " Do not weep on my account, papa ! 
 We cannot wipe off what was written on our 
 heads. We must undergo happiness or misery 
 as is thereon scratched by Brahma," cried the 
 prince. Ranavirasing was melted at the sight. 
 He took the boy on his lap, and with his own 
 upper garment wiped his eyes. The old man 
 continued, " Thus you, my faithful Ranavira- 
 sing, know everything. I now wish that I 
 had not performed all that I did to get this 
 son. For when I die at this moment, who 
 is there to take care of him for the next ? 
 Kharavadana may devise plan after plan to 
 remove my boy from this world, and secure the 
 kingdom for himself. My only hope is in you. 
 
39 
 
 I give him into your hands." Here the aged 
 father, notwithstanding his illness, rose up 
 a little from his bed, took hold of his son's 
 hand, and after kissing it for the last time, 
 placed it in Raaavirasiiig's, " Care not if he 
 does not get the kingdom. If you only preserve 
 him from the wicked hands of the minister 
 whom I have all along seen to he covetous of the 
 throne, you will do a great work for your old 
 master. I make you from this moment the lord 
 of my palace. From this minute yon are father, 
 mother, brother, servant, and everything to my 
 son. Take care that you do not betray your 
 trust." Thus ended the king, and sending at 
 once for the minister, when he came he spoke to 
 him thus, " Kharavadana ! See what I am now. 
 Yesterday I was on the throne. To-day, in 
 a few minutes, I must breathe my last. Such is 
 the uncertainty of life. Man's good acts 
 alone follow him to the other world. Take 
 my signet-ring. [Here the king took the ring 
 from off his finger, and gave it to the minister]. 
 Yours is the throne for the present, as long as 
 the prince is in his minority. Govern well 
 the kingdom. When the prince attains his 
 sixteenth year kindly give him back the throne. 
 Exercise a paternal care over him. Find a good 
 and intelligent princess for his wife." Suddenly, 
 before hie speech was quite finished, the king 
 felt the last pangs of death. The sage-looking 
 minister promised him everything. 
 
40 
 
 ^ivachar breathed his last. After the usual 
 ■weeping and wailing of a Hindu funeral, his 
 corpse was burnt to ashes in a sandalwood 
 pyre. All his queens — and there were several 
 scores — -committed sati with the corpse. The 
 ceremonies were all regularly conducted, the 
 minister himself superintended everything. 
 
 Kharavadana then succeeded to the throne 
 of Vanjaimanagar. Ranavirasing became the 
 lord of the palace, and true to his promise 
 exercised all care over his trust. He was 
 always by the side of Sundara. That he might 
 not lose the sweetness of boyhood in study and 
 play, Ranavirasiiig brought to the palace 20 
 gentlemen's sons of good conduct and learning 
 and made them the prince's fellow-students. 
 A professor for every branch of learning was 
 employed to teach the prince and "his compa- 
 nions. S nndara thus received a sound and liberal 
 education, only he was never allowed to go 
 out of the palace. Ranavirasing guarded him 
 very strictly, and he had every reason to do so. 
 For Kharavadana, as soon as he became king, 
 had issued a notice that the assassin of Sun- 
 dara should have a reward of a harcr muhrs ; 
 and already every avaricious hand was in 
 search of his head. Before the issue of this 
 notice, Kharavadana found out a good girl and 
 married her to the prince. She was living 
 with her husband in the palace, and Ranavira- 
 sing strictly watched her, as she came from the 
 
41 
 
 minister. He would not allow Suiidara to 
 sleep in the same room with her. These strict 
 watches and barriers to the sweet marriage- 
 bed displeased the prince, even with his 
 faithful servant. But the lattei: could not help 
 it till he had full confidence in her. He used 
 to advise Sundara not even to take a betel-leaf 
 from her hands. Bat love is blind. So the 
 prince within himself accused his old guardian ; 
 but he could not help following his orders. 
 Thus passed on a few years. 
 
 Sundara reached his sixteenth year. Nothing 
 happened about the transference of the 
 kingdom ; the prince, almost in imprison- 
 ment in the palace, had forgot everything 
 about the kingdom, Ranavirasing wished to 
 wait till, as he thought, the prince had acquired 
 better governing faculties. Thus some time 
 passed. 
 
 Full eight years had elapsed from the death 
 of Sivachar. Sundara was already eighteen, 
 and still he had not received his kingdom. No- 
 thing was neglected in his education. Though 
 Ranavirasing exercised all paternal care over 
 him, still it was not to his liking ; for he found 
 in him a great barrier to the pleasures of 
 youth. The only pleasure for the prince, there- 
 fore, was the company of his friends. 
 
 One fine evening on the fourteenth day of 
 the dark half of Vaisakha month of the 
 Vasanta season, the prince was sitting with his 
 
42 
 
 companions in the seventh story of his mansion 
 viewing the town. The dusk of evening was 
 just throwing her mantle over the city. 
 People in their several vocations were at that 
 time ceasing work, and returning home. In 
 the eastern division of the town the prince 
 saw a big mansion, and jtist to break the silence 
 asked his friends what that was. " That is 
 the Rajasthanik Kacheri, a place you ought to 
 have been sitting in for the last two years. The 
 wretched minister, Kharavadana, has already 
 usurped your seat ; for if he had intended to 
 give you back the kingdom he would have 
 done it two years ago when you reached your 
 sixteenth year. Let us now console ourselves 
 that God has spared your life till now, not- 
 withstanding all the awards promised to the 
 taker of your head. Even that proclamation is 
 dying out of the memory of the people now." 
 So said one of his friends and ceased. 
 
 These words fell like arrows in the ear of 
 Sundara and troubled him. The shame that 
 he had been neglected brought a change of 
 colour over his face which all his friends per- 
 ceived, and they felt sorry for having touched 
 upon the subject. The prince, perceiving that he 
 had played a woman's part ajnong his friends, 
 resumed or pretended to resume his former 
 cheerful countenance, and changed the con- 
 versation to some pleasanter topics. They 
 separated very late that night. Before doing 
 
43 
 
 so, Sundara asked them all to present themselves 
 in the durbar hall early next morning. At the 
 same time he also ordered Ranavirasing to keep 
 horses ready for himself and his friends for a 
 morning ride through the town the next day. 
 " I was only waiting to hear such an order from 
 your own mouth, Mai Bab Ghalcravarti ; I was 
 thinking from your retired disposition that you 
 were not an energetic man. I will have the 
 horses ready." Ranavirasing at once issued 
 orders to his servants to keep ready saddled and 
 decked twenty-one horses for the prince and 
 his companions. He also appointed a certain 
 number of his men to ride in front of the 
 party. 
 
 The morning came. The friends assembled 
 as promised the previous evening. The prince 
 and they, after a light breakfast, mounted 
 their horses. The horsem.en rode in front and 
 behind. The prince with his friends marched 
 in the middle. Ra navirasing with drawn sword 
 rode side by side with him. The party went 
 through the four main streets of the town^ 
 Every one rose up and paid due respect to their 
 old king's son. When passing through the 
 street where the minister's mansion was, Rana- 
 virasing perceived that Kharavadana paid no 
 respect to the royal march. This seemed a most 
 unbearable insult to Ranavirasing. He bit his 
 lips, gnashedhis teeth, and wrung his hands. The 
 prince observed aU the mental pains of his faith- 
 
44 
 
 ful guardian, and laughed to himself at his 
 simplicity. About mid-day the party return- 
 ed to the palace. The friends dispersed, and 
 Sundara after the ceremonies of the new-moon 
 day had a slight dinner, and retired to rest. 
 
 The morning ride was deep in the mind of 
 the prince. Though he laughed to himself 
 at the simplicity of Ranavirasing when the 
 latter gnashed his teeth in the morning, the 
 insult had left a stronger and deeper impres- 
 sion in his heart. The day was almost spent. 
 Sundara took a very light supper, and shut 
 himself up in his bed-room before the first 
 watch was quite over. Ranavirasing, as usual, 
 watched outside. The prince found his wife 
 sound asleep in her bed, and without disturbing 
 her he went up and down the room. A thread- 
 like substance attracted his attention in a 
 corner of the bed-chamber. On examination he 
 found it to be a thread ladder. He had not 
 even time to think how it came into the bed- 
 chamber. Just then Ranavirasing had retired 
 for a few minutes to take his supper. " The 
 old fool is off now to eat ; and ParamSsvar 
 has thrown this ladder in my way. Let me 
 now escape." Thus thinking, Sundara came out 
 unobserved by his old guardian, and ascended to 
 the top of the seventh mansion. From that place 
 he cast his ladder towards a big tree in the 
 East Main street. On pulling it he found it 
 tight. "Let me get down, and Paramesvar 
 
45 
 
 will assist me." So praying, before the first 
 watch was over, the prince got down from his 
 palace, and was in a few minutes in the East 
 street. The severe watch kept over him by 
 Ranavirasing made it very difficult for him 
 to go ou,t when he liked, and now by the grace 
 of God, as he thought, he escaped that dark 
 new-moon night. 
 
 " Life is dear to every one. What can I do 
 if any of the minister's men find me out now 
 and murder me ? Na daivam. SanJeardt param. 
 No god bnt Sankara, and he will now help me." 
 Thus thinking he walked to the nearest pyal, 
 and lingered there till the bustle of the town 
 subsided. Nor was it in vain that he stopped 
 there. He overheard while there the follow- 
 ing conversation take place between the master 
 and mistress of the house at which he lin- 
 gered : — " Console yourself, my wife. What 
 shall we do ? Fate has so willed it on our 
 heads. May Brahma become without a temple 
 for the evil that he has sent us. When the 
 old king was living he appreciated my 
 merits, and at every Sankranti gave me due 
 dakshirtd for my knowledge of the Vedas. 
 Now there reigns a tyrant over our kingdom. 
 I was lingering here with the hope that the son 
 of Sivachar would one day come to the throne 
 and relieve our sufEerings. Now that such 
 hope is altogether gone, I have made up my 
 mind to leave this nasty city, and go to some 
 
46 
 
 good place wliere there reigns a king to appre- 
 ciate our ySgyatd (merit)." Of these words 
 Snndara overheard every syllable, and these 
 supplied the gM to the fire of shame and anger 
 that was already burning in his mind. " Let me 
 tvj to win back my kingdom. If I succeed, I save 
 lives. If I die, I die singly. May Paramesvar 
 help me." So saying he walked out of the 
 town, and passed the east gate. The night was 
 as dark as could be, for it was a new- moon 
 night. Clouds were gathering in the sky, and 
 there were some symptoms of rain. 
 
 There was a Ganesa temple on the way. As 
 it was already drizzling, the prince went inside 
 till the rain should cease. No sooner had he 
 entered it than he saw two men, who by their 
 conversation appeared to be shepherds, coming 
 towards that same temple. They seemed to 
 have been watching their flocks near an adjacent 
 field, and had come to shelter themselves from 
 the rain in the temple. Sundara when he 
 saw them, trembled for his life, and crept in. 
 The shepherds sat down on the verandah, and 
 taking out their bags began to chew betelnut. 
 An idle lizard began to chirp in a corner. To 
 break the silence, one said to the other, " Well, 
 RSmakon,. I have heard that you are a great 
 soothsayer and interpreter of bird sounds and 
 lizard speeches. Let me know what these 
 chits of the lizard that we heard just now 
 mean. Tell me." Riimak6n replied, " This is 
 
47 
 
 news which I would never have revealed at 
 any other time. But as no fourth person is 
 likely to be here at this time on a rainy 
 night, let me tell yoa that the prince of the 
 town is now lingering here in this temple. So 
 the lizard says. Hence I said, ' no fourth 
 person.' I am glad that no evil hand has yet 
 been tempted, though such a high price has 
 been set upon his head. The very fact that he 
 has lived up to this time unhurt in a tiger's 
 domain augurs well for his future prosperity." 
 Ramakon had scarcely finished his speech 
 when the idle lizard again made its chit, chit, 
 and Ramakon now asked his friend, Laksh- 
 manakfin, for that was the other's name, to 
 interpret those sounds. "This has rather a 
 sad meaning for the prince. The Mantri and 
 Pradhani are coming here in a few minutes 
 {nimishas), to consult on a secret topic. So says 
 the lizard," said Lakshmanakon to Ramakon, 
 and at once a light was discovered at a distance. 
 " It is the minister's carriage. Let us be off. 
 God only must save the prince." So saying, 
 they both i^n away. 
 
 The feelings of the prince inside were like 
 that of a man who was being led to the gal- 
 lows. The bitterest enemy of his- life, the 
 minister himself, was coming to that very place 
 where he was hiding. " I foolishly accused my 
 old guardian, Ranavirasing, and now I see his 
 good intentions. How I am to be spared from 
 
this calamity Sankara only knows." Thus 
 thinking, he hurriedly fled to the inmost part 
 of the temple behind the very image, and sat 
 down there, still like a stump, without even 
 breathing freely, lest his breath might reveal 
 him. He had ample time there to admire the 
 sound knowledge of the shepherds in inter- 
 preting the lizard chirps, their simplicity, their 
 honesty and truthfulness; for had they been 
 otherwise, they might at once have caught hold 
 of the prince and made him over to the tiger 
 minister. True to the interpretation of the 
 second shepherd, a carriage stopped in front of 
 the Ganesa temple, and there came out of it 
 the Mantri and the Pradhani. Excepting 
 themselves and, of course, the carriage driver 
 and, as we know, the prince behind the Gan^sa, 
 there were no others there. Kharavadana and 
 his subordinate chose that solitary place at the 
 dead of night to hold secret consultations. 
 The Mantri spoke first, and one could easily 
 perceive from his words that he was in a 
 fit of anger. "Why should the prince be 
 thus allowed to ride free through my streets ? 
 Of the innumerable servants who eat our salt 
 was there not one to cut down that impertinent 
 head ? " roared the minister. The Pradhani 
 replied, "My king, my lord, excuse me first 
 for the humble words that I am going to speak 
 before your honour. We have taken up a 
 kingdom to which we have no right. If the 
 
49 
 
 prince tad demanded tlie throne two years ago, 
 we OTiglit rightfully to have returned it to him. 
 He never asked, and we did not restore it. He 
 never troubles us with demands, but lives like 
 a poor subject of the crown in his own quarters. 
 Such being the case, why should we kill him ? 
 Why should we murder the only son of our 
 old and much-respected king Sivaohar ? What 
 I beg to suggest to your honour is, that we 
 should no more trouble ourselves about his poor 
 head." The PradhAni, as he discovered that 
 these words were not to the taste of Khara- 
 vadana, stopped at once without proceeding 
 further, though he had much to say upon that 
 subject. " Vile wretch ! Dare you preach 
 morals to your superiors. You shall see the 
 result of this, before the morning dawns," 
 bawled out the m.inister. The Fradhani saw 
 that all his excellent advice was like blowing a 
 conch in a deaf man's ears. He feared for his 
 own life, and so at once begged a thousand par- 
 dons, and pix)mised to bring the head of the 
 prince within a week. And as Kharavadana 
 wanted only that, he spared the Fradhani. 
 They then talked on different subjects, and 
 prepared to start. 
 
 The prince inside, behind the Gan^savigraha, 
 was now almost stifled to death. The short 
 breaths that he inhaled and exhaled were 
 themselves enough to kill him. Add to that 
 the horrible words that fell on his ears. For 
 
50 
 
 all that he continued to hide himself. Khara- 
 vadana and the Pradhani finished their conver- 
 sation and got into the carriage. Sundara 
 called courage to his assistance, " Sankara has 
 saved nie till now ; he may so save me through- 
 out." So thinking with himself, he boldly 
 came out of the temple without making the 
 least noise and sat behind the carriage, and, as 
 it rolled on, thought again with himself : " I will 
 follow these, come what may, and find out 
 what more plans they devise against my life." 
 
 The carriage drove on to the opposite end of 
 the town. It jsassed the west gate and entered 
 a big park outside the town. The undaunted 
 pi'ince followed . In the middle of the park a 
 fine tank was discovered. The banks looked like 
 day, being lighted up profusely. In the midst of 
 the tank a small island with a gaudy mansion was 
 seen. Pillars of gold, sofas of silver and doors 
 of diamonds made it the very hidraWka itself. 
 A broad road with avenues of sweet smelling 
 flowering trees connected the island with the 
 bank. It was at that road that the carriage 
 stoj)ped. The x^rince, before that was reached, 
 had got down and hid himself under the shade 
 of a tree, to see unobserved all that passed in 
 the mansion which he had every reason to believe 
 was the destination of the minister. Kharava- 
 dana descended from the hu?>di and sent the 
 Pradhimi home. What most astonished the 
 prince was the absence of male servants in 
 
51 
 
 that garden. At tlie entrance of the road 
 twenty yonng females of the most exquisite 
 beauty waited and conducted Kharavadana 
 through the sweet bower to the mansion. 
 When it was reached, the minister sat down on 
 a most richly furnished gold couch, and ordered 
 the females there to bring the queen. Ten 
 females arranged themselves on each side of 
 an ivory palanquin, and started, apparently, 
 to bring the queen in it. " These females 
 themselves resemble Rambha Urvasi, &c. A 
 woman who has the beauty to be borne on the 
 Leads of these females must, of course, be of 
 the most unimaginable beauty in this world. 
 Let me see her." Thus thinking, the prince 
 Sundara anxiously waited the return of the 
 palanquin. In a few minutes it came. A 
 female of the most charming beauty jumped 
 briskly out of it. The minister came running 
 to give his helping hand to her. Horror of 
 horrors, what sees the prince ! It was his own 
 wife, the very girl that the minister had 
 married to him a few years before, that got down 
 from the palanquin. " Are m^y eyes deceived ? 
 Do they perform their functions aright ? Let me 
 look once more." So again and again wiping 
 his eyes to clear them a little, the prince 
 saw distinctly. It was his very wife herself. 
 " Oh, I most foolishly accused that grey-headed 
 guardian for a wicked fool, because he would not 
 allow me liberty with my wife. I now see what 
 
52 
 
 he saw a long time ago. Perhaps if I had 
 slept by her side I should have thus been 
 brought in here by some secret way that these 
 devils seem, now to have to the innaost parts of 
 the palace. If I had taken anything from 
 her hands I should have died that very day. 
 My poor old man, my Ranavirasing it is, who 
 has saved me from all these calamities." These 
 thoughts and a thousand more were passing 
 through Sundara's mind when he saw his wife 
 sitting down on the same couch with the 
 minister. She accused him of the delay in 
 m.urdering her husband, of his letting all 
 opportunities escape during the m.orning ride. 
 "Horrible! Did yon, Kharavadana, marry me 
 to such a faithful wife ! Thank God and 
 Ranavirasing that I have not fallen into her 
 snares," thought Sundara to himself. The 
 minister offered a thousand excuses, rela- 
 ted to her all that had taken place between 
 himself and the Pradhani, and of what the 
 latter had promised. Then they both retired 
 to bed. At that moment the treacherous owl 
 began [to hoot, and one of the maid-servants, 
 who happened to be a clever interpreter of owl- 
 hootings revealed, to secure the favour of the 
 minister, that the prince was lurking behind a 
 tree in that very garden. Knowing the price 
 set on Sundara's head even female hands flew 
 to cut it off. All ran with torches to search 
 the garden. 
 
53 
 
 These words, of course, fell upon the ears of 
 the prince like thunder. Before the people 
 there began their search he began his race, 
 jumped over a high wall, and flew like a kite. 
 Before the lady- racers and the minister had left 
 their sweet road to the tank-bank, Sundara found 
 himself in the north street of the town. The 
 news that the prince was out that night spread 
 like a flame from the pleasure-park outside 
 throughout the whole town, and before long 
 avaricious persons were searching in the streets 
 for his valuable head. Sundara thought it 
 dangerous to pass through the streets, and wish- 
 ed to hide himself in a safe place. Fortune con- 
 ducted him to one. It was a ruined old choultry, 
 where food, during the days of his father, was 
 distributed in charity to the beggars of the town, 
 and which was now only resorted to by them to 
 sleep, and not to receive rice. The prince en- 
 tered it, and laid himself down in the midst of 
 them, fortunately unobserved. He could hear 
 from where he was the noise of the persons 
 searching outside. In the garden the minis- 
 ter searched in vain, and accusing the 
 female for her wrong interpretation as he 
 thought, retired to bed. 
 
 Outside the north gate, at a distance of three 
 ghatilcas' walk, lived a robber. He used to 
 start out on a plundering expedition once in 
 seven years. In the houses and mansions he used 
 to rob he took only jewels of various kinds, 
 
54 
 
 Gomeda, pushjMrdga, (topaz) vajra, vaidvrija, 
 &c. ; gold and silver he rejected as being too 
 mean for his dignity. As he was a gentleman- 
 robber, he used to take a coolie with him 
 on the way to carry his booty. Of course 
 that coolie never returned from the cave. He 
 was put to death after his services were over, 
 lest he should disclose the secret of the robber. 
 Unfortunately that new-moon night hap- 
 pened to be the night of that cruel robber's 
 plundering expedition. He came out, and 
 when he saw people in search of the prince, 
 thinking that he was not in his palace, he 
 wanted to phmder it. Wishing a coolie he 
 entered the ruined choultry to pick out one 
 among the beggars there. Passing over the 
 others he came to the prince. He found him 
 stout and strong. " This beggar will do me 
 good service to-day. I shall break my custom, 
 and amply reward this man for his services." 
 So thinking to himself, the gentleman-robber 
 tapped Sundara with his cane on the back. 
 The prince had just closed his eyes. In the 
 short sleep that ensued he dreamt that the 
 minister's servants were pursuing him, and that 
 one had caug^ht him. At that very moment 
 the gentleman-robber's stroke fell upon his 
 back, giving a sort of reality to his dream. He 
 awoke with horror. " Tell me who you are," 
 asked the unknown person. "A beggar," was 
 the reply. " How does the night appear to you ?*' 
 
55 
 
 asked the robber. " As dark as dark can be," 
 replied the prince. The robber applied a sort 
 of liajjal'a to the prince's eyes, and asked, 
 '' How does the night appear now ?" "As lumi- 
 nons as if a Icaror of suns were in the sky, 
 answered Snndara. The robber applied a 
 tilaha to the intended coolie's forehead and 
 addressed him thus : " I am a robber, now 
 going to plunder the palace, from which 
 the prince is absent. Follow me. T shall 
 reward yoa richly. The leajjala has made the 
 night a day to you. The HlaJca takes you 
 unobserved wherever you wish to go." So 
 saying, and dragging the coolie or supposed 
 coolie by the hand the robber went off to the 
 palace. Wherever he found a door locked he 
 applied a leaf that he carried in his hand to the 
 fastening, and behold the lock flew back, and 
 the door opened of its own accord. The prince 
 was astonished. In a few minutes the robber 
 opened one and all of the gates and boxes, and 
 extracted all the precious stones. He tied 
 them up in a bundle, and set it ou the prince's 
 head, and asked him to follow. Sandara fol- 
 lowed. He assisted in the plunder of his own 
 palace, and carried the booty behind the rob- 
 ber, who, praised be his stupidity, never for 
 one moment suspected he was a prince, but 
 admired his coolie for the beauty of his person, 
 thonght of saving his life, and also of making 
 him his son-in-law. For the robber had 
 
56 
 
 a beautiful danghter, for whom he had long 
 been searching for a suitable husband. So 
 with this thotight he reached the cave, 
 stopped before it, and taking the bundle from 
 the prince's head ordered him to go into a large 
 cell, the mouth of which he covered with a big 
 stone which he lifted up by pronouncing au 
 incantation over it. The robber went with the 
 bundle to his wife, and described to her the 
 beauty of the coolie, and what a fair match he 
 would be for their daughter. The wife did 
 not like it, and asked her husband to do with 
 the coolie as was usual, i. e., murder him ; 
 and the robber, who, never in anything acted 
 against the will of his wife, went in to fetch 
 his weapon. 
 
 Meanwhile the robber's daughter, an excel- 
 lent girl, of the most charming beauty, over- 
 hearing all that took place between her parents, 
 came running to the cave where the coolie was 
 confined. She pronounced a single word over 
 the stone lid of the cave, and it opened, and the 
 prince, who had lost all hopes of recovery, now 
 beheld a beautiful girl coming towards him. 
 " Whoever you may be, my dear coolie, fly for 
 your life for the. present. Yon are my hus- 
 band. My father has so named you, but as 
 my mother does not like it, he has gone to fetch 
 bis weapon to murder you. Excepting we 
 three, none, not even Brahma, can open the 
 once-shut gates. After hearing you once called 
 
57 
 
 my husband, I mnst ever regard you so. Now 
 fly, and escape my father's sharp sword. If you 
 are a man, marry me in kind remembrance of the 
 assistance rendered. If you fail to do so you are 
 a beast, and I shall die a virgin." So saying she 
 conducted out in haste the supposed coolie, who 
 had only time to take a hasty embrace, whis- 
 pering in her ear that he was the prince, and 
 that he would marry her without fail. He 
 now ran for his life. Fearing the robber 
 would come after him he left the way by which 
 he reached the cave, and passing through 
 unknown fields reached the south gate of the 
 town. By that time the search for him had 
 almost abated, and the prince, praising God for 
 his delivery, reached the south street. The 
 night was almost spent. Before returning to 
 the palace he wished to take rest for a few 
 minutes, till he had recovered his breath, and 
 so he sat down on the pyal of an old and almost 
 ruined house. 
 
 That happened to be the house of a poor 
 Brahman, who had not even sufficient clothes 
 to wear. As the prince sat down in a comer 
 of the pyal the door of the house opened, 
 and the old Brahman came out. The 
 old woman, the Brahraani, was standing at 
 the door with a vessel containing water for 
 her husband. SubhalAstri, for that was 
 the Brahman's name, looked up to the sky for 
 a couple of minutes, after which he heaved 
 
58 
 
 a deep sigh, and said, " Alas, the prince, the 
 only son of our former protector, Sivachar, 
 is not to remain for more than two ffliatihas, 
 A kdlasarpa (black serpent) will sting him. 
 What shall we do ? we are poor. If we could 
 begin Sarpahoma now we could tie the mouth 
 of the snake, sacrifice it in the fire, and thas 
 save the prince." So saying the poor Brahman 
 cried. Sandara, who overheard everything, 
 Jumped down in confusion, and fell at the feet 
 of the Brahman, who asked him who he was. 
 " I am a herdsman of the palace. Preserve my 
 master's life," was the reply. Subhasastri was 
 extremely poor. He had no means to procure 
 a small quantity of cjlii even to begin the honia. 
 He did not know what to do. He begged from 
 his neighbours, who all laughed at his stupidity, 
 and ridiculed his astrology. The prince in a 
 hopeless state of anguish wrung his hands, and 
 in wringing them he felt his ring. Drawing it 
 off his finger he gave it to Subhasastri, and 
 requested him to pawn it The latter resorted 
 to the nearest bazar, and awakening the bazar- 
 keeper procured from him a little gM, by pawning 
 the ring. Running home and bathing in cold 
 water the Brahman sat down for the hovna. 
 The prince, fearing the serpent, wished to sit 
 inside the house, but at a distance from the 
 place of the ceremony. Just at the appointed 
 hour a large black serpent broke through the 
 sky, fell on the head of the prince, whom he 
 
59 
 
 was not able to bite, and gave up its life in the 
 fire. " This is no neatlierd, bat the Tery 
 prince himself, " said the Brahmaui. Sundara 
 rose np, and running circumambulated them 
 thrice, spoke to them thus : " You alone 
 are my parents and protectors. This night 
 has been a most adventurous one with me. 
 There was every possibility of my escaping 
 every other calamity, and so I did. But no 
 other power except yours could have averted 
 this snake-bite. So my rescue is due- to you 
 alone. I have no time to lose now. Before 
 daylight I must fly unobserved to the palace, 
 and you shall before long see my reward for 
 this." So saying, Sundara ran to his palace, 
 and entered. 
 
 Ranavirasing was almost dead. The rumour 
 that the prince was out reached him. He was 
 astonished at the way in which Sundara had got 
 out. He searched the whole palace. To his 
 astonishment all the rooms had previously been 
 opened and plundered. " Has the prince been 
 stolen away by some vile tricks from the 
 palace," thought Ranavirasing, and without 
 knowing what to do he was buried in the ocean 
 of sorrow, from which he gave up all hopes of 
 recovering. What was his joy, then, when he 
 saw the prince enter the palace just at dawn. 
 " Mai Bab Ghahravarti, where have you been 
 the whole night, throwing away the advice of 
 your poor slave ? How many enemies you have 
 
60 
 
 in tliis world, you have yet to know," said 
 Raaavirasiiig. " I know them all now, only 
 listen to what I say, and do as I bid. I have 
 won the crown without a blow. Thank the day 
 that gave me you as my protector, for it wag 
 only yesterday that I had ample reason to 
 verify your statements. My adventures would 
 make your hair stand on end. Thank God, I 
 have escaped from all of them unhurt. If 
 you have a few men ready now, we have won 
 the kingdom." So saying, the prince explained 
 to him every point of his adventure. " If we 
 catch hold of the minister now, we have done 
 all." " I could never for one moment think that 
 you in a single night could have seen and done 
 so much. Now that heaven has shown you 
 the way, I shall obey you," said Ranavirasiiig, 
 and Sundaraaccordingly issued the orders. He 
 described the house with the pyal on which he 
 had lingered for a while the previous night, and 
 asked a servant to bring the owner of that 
 house to the Rajasthanik office. Ranavirasiiig 
 brought in the Pradhani, who was extremely 
 delighted at the good intention of the prince. 
 He was ofEered the Mantri's place. Two 
 were sent to the shepherds. Twenty were 
 sent to the pleasure-park to have the minister 
 and his sweet paramour brought to the court 
 in chains. The female servants were also 
 ordered to be brought. The robber and his cruel 
 wife were not forgotten. The prince minutely 
 
61 
 
 described tte cave, and asked his servants 
 to catch and imprison the robher by snrprising 
 him suddenly, without giving him time to have 
 recourse to his vile tricks — lock-breaking leaf, 
 hajjala, &c. The palace palanquin was sent for 
 the robber's daughter, whom the prince had 
 firmly made up his mind to marry. The 
 palace elephants were decked and sent to fetch 
 with all pomp Subhasastri and his wife to the 
 court. Thus, without a single stroke, Sundara 
 won the kingdom. Ranavirasing was thunder- 
 struck by the excellent and bold way in which 
 the prince in one night went through the 
 series of calamities, and successfully overcame 
 them all. The Pradhani's delight knew no 
 boands. He himself broke open the court 
 and every one connected with the previous 
 night's adventare was ushered in. The prince 
 bathed, offered up his prayers, and attended 
 the council. When Subhasastri came in with 
 his wife the prince put them on the siih- 
 hclsana, and himself standing before them, 
 explained to all his previous night's adven- 
 tures, rewarded the poor Brahman and the 
 shepherds, punished by banishment the maid- 
 servant who, knowing that the prince's head 
 was coveted, revealed hia concealment, and or- 
 dered his wife, the minister, the robber, and 
 the robber's wife to be beheaded. He rewarded 
 without limit his protector, Subhasastri, and 
 married the robber's daughter, being won over 
 
62 
 
 by her sincerity. The Pradliani, as we have 
 said already, he made his minister, and with 
 his old gaardian, the faithful Ranavirasing, 
 the prince reigned for several years in the 
 kingdom of Vanjaimanagar, 
 
63 
 
 V. 
 
 "CHAEITY ALONE CONQUERS." 
 Dharmame jay am. 
 
 In the town of T e v a i' there lived a king 
 called Suguna. He had an excellent minister 
 named Dharmasila. They ruled for a long 
 time in prosperity over the kingdom. Both 
 of them had sons. The prince's name was 
 Subuddhi. He was a noble prince, and quite 
 in keeping with his name, was always bent upon 
 good to the world. The minister's son was 
 named Durbuddhi, a most wicked boy, whose 
 only delight was teasing beasts and birds from 
 his infancy, and which ripened into all sorts 
 of wickedness as he grew to boyhood. Not- 
 withstanding the difference between their 
 tempers, the prince and the minister's son were 
 the best of friends. The motto of the prince 
 was Dharmame jay am — Charity alone conquers. 
 That of the minister's son was Adkarmame 
 jayam — Absence of Charity alone conquers. 
 When rising from their beds, when beginning 
 their prayers, when sitting down for meals or 
 study, and, in fact, before beginning to do 
 
 * Terai is the classical name of the modern town of 
 ESnmad in the district of Madura. 
 
anything, each, repeated his motto. The people 
 had greathopes in Subuddhi, whom they fully 
 expected to see a good and benevolent king ; 
 but the minister's son all thoroughly hated. 
 Even the minister himself, his father, hated his 
 son for his vile turn of mind, which he found 
 impossible to change. His only friend, as we 
 have already said, was the prince, who, notwith- 
 standing all his faults loved him sincerely. 
 Both of them had grown up together from 
 their very cradle, had played in the same dust, 
 had read their lessons side by side in the same 
 school under the same teachers. Fortune so 
 ordained that the prince's mind should take 
 such a bent, while the mind of the minister's 
 son turned in a crooked way. 
 
 Nor was Dnrbuddhi insensible to the disgust 
 and dislike which every one manifested towards 
 him. He was well aware of all that was going 
 onaround. Still he would not change. "Ihave- 
 - no friend in this world excepting yourself, my 
 dear Subuddhi," exclaimed Durbuddhi one 
 day to his royal friend while they were riding- 
 together. " Fear nothing. I shall ever stand 
 by you as your true friend," replied Subud- 
 dhi. "My very father hates me. Who else 
 would like me then ? On the contrary, every 
 one likes you. You may soon get yourself 
 married to some beautiful- lady, while I must 
 remain a bachelor ; for no girl would marry me. 
 Yoa may soon rise to the place of a kiag ; but 
 
65 
 
 I cannot become yotir minister, aS the people do 
 not like me. What can I do?" So said the 
 minister's son, and hang down his head, as if 
 conscious for a time of the utter hatred with 
 which the people regarded him. Siibiiddhi 
 replied, " Heed it Jiot; I will make you my 
 minister, give you everything you want, and 
 see you well provided for." "If so, will you 
 give me your wife one day, at least, if you 
 happen to get married before me, and if I 
 remain a bachelor after you," were the words 
 which the wretched Durbuddhi shamelessly 
 uttered to the face of his only friend. These 
 words were enough in themselves to enrage 
 the prince's mind; Biit he was of so good 
 a nature that instead of beconiing angry, he 
 smiled at the stupidity of his companion, and 
 agreed that he would thus give him his wife 
 one day in case he got married first. Thus 
 took place an agreement between Subuddhi 
 and Durbuddhi when they were quite young. 
 
 Several years passed after this agreement, 
 when one day the prince went to hunt in a 
 neighbouring forest. His inseparable com- 
 panion, the miaister's son, and several hunters 
 followed him to the wood. The prince and the 
 minister's son both gave chase to a deer. They 
 rode so much in advance of the hunters that 
 they lost themselves in a thick jilngle, where 
 the latter could neither see nor follow them. 
 The hunters returned after dark, and informed 
 
63 
 
 the king and tlie minister about the disappear- 
 ance of their sons. They thought that as their 
 sons were gro"wn-np men they need not fear 
 for their safety. 
 
 The two friends chased the deer and found 
 themselves in the midst of a thick forest in the 
 evening. Except a slight breakfast in the early 
 morning they had tasted no other food. Hunger 
 was pinching them, severely. The hot chase 
 had awakened a severe thirst, to quench which 
 they were not able to find a drop of water. In 
 utter hopelessness of life they resigned them- 
 selves to the course of their steeds. The beasts 
 seemed very well to understand the wants of 
 their royal riders. They went on trotting, and 
 at last, about midnight, stopped on the banks 
 of a large tank. 
 
 The riders, who were almost dead with thirst, 
 opened their closed eyes when the horses 
 stopped. All on a sudden and to their great 
 joy they found themselves on the banks of a 
 large tank. Their joy knew no bounds. 
 " Surely God takes care of His children. 
 Had it not been for His kind care how could 
 we have come to this tank, when we had 
 resigned ourselves to the course of our horses ?" 
 thought Subuddhi to himself, and got down 
 from his horse. The minister's son, who had 
 become more exhausted by that time than his 
 companion, also alighted. Subuddhi, true to 
 the nobility of his mind, took both the steeds 
 
6t 
 
 first to water; and after satisfying tlteir thirst 
 and loosening them to graze by the side of a 
 grassy meadow he went into the water to qiiench 
 his thirst. The minister's son also followed. 
 After a short prayer Subnddhi took some hand- 
 fuls of water, and returned to the bank. Dur- 
 buddhi also returned. They chose a clean spot, 
 and sat down to rest during the remaining part 
 of the night. The prince when taking his seat 
 pronounced his usual motto, " Charity alone 
 conquers." And the minister's son also repeated 
 his — "Absence of Charity alone conquers." 
 
 These words fell like venom into the ears 
 of the prince at that time. He could not control 
 his anger then, notwithstanding his mild disposi- 
 tion. The hardships of the day, their fortu- 
 nate arrival on a tank in the dead of night 
 to have their thirst quenched, were fresh in 
 Subuddhi's mind, and the prayers that he was 
 offering to God were not yet over. That the 
 minister's son should never think of these, 
 and go on with his own stupid motto even at 
 that time became most unbearable to Su- 
 buddhi. " Vile wretch ! Detested atheist ! Have 
 you no shame to utter your wicked motto even 
 after such calamities ? It is not too late even 
 now. Mend your character. Think of the God 
 that saved you just now. Believe in Him. 
 Change your motto from this day." Thus 
 spoke the angry prince to the minister's son. 
 
 Durbuddhi, who was naturally of a wicked 
 
68 
 
 and quarrelsome temperament, flew into a rage 
 at once at the excellent advice of the prince. 
 " Stop your mouth. I know as well as you 
 do ; you cannot wag your tail here. I can 
 oppose you single-handed in this forest." 
 Thus saying, the minister's son sprang like an 
 enraged lion at Subuddhi, who, as he never 
 dreamt of any such thing, was completely 
 overpowered by the wicked Durbuddhi. The 
 prince was thrown down in the twinkling of 
 an eye, and the minister's son was upon him. 
 He severely thrashed his royal master, and 
 taking hold of a twig that was lying close by, 
 tore out the prince's two eyes, filled up the 
 sockets with sand, and ran away with his horse, 
 thinking that he had completely killed him. 
 
 Subuddhi was almost dead. His body was 
 bruised all over. His eyes were no more. 
 His physical pain was unbeai'able. " Is there a 
 G-od over us all ?" thought Subuddhi. The night 
 was almost over. The cool and sweet breeze 
 of the morning gave him some strength. He 
 rose up, and crawling on the ground, found 
 himself by touch at the entrance of a temple. 
 He crept in, shut the gates and fastened the 
 bolt. 
 
 It happened to be a temple of the fierce KclU. 
 She used to go out every morning to gather 
 roots and fruitsj and to return by evening. 
 That day when she returned she found her 
 gates shut against her. She threatened with 
 
69 
 
 destruction the usurper of her temple. A 
 voice, and we know that it was Suhuddhi's, re- 
 plied from within, " I am already dying of the 
 loss of my eyes. So if in anger yon kill me 
 it is so much the better ; for what use is there 
 in my living blind ? If, on the contrary, yoa 
 pity me, and by your divine power give me 
 my eyes, I shall open the gates." Kali was 
 in a very difficult position. She was very 
 hungry, and saw no other way of going inside 
 than by giving Subuddhi his eyes. " Open 
 the gates ; your request is granted," said 
 "Kali. No sooner were these words uttered 
 than the prince recovered his eyes. His de- 
 light may be better imagined than described. 
 He opened the gates and vowed before Kali 
 that he would from that day continue in that 
 temple as her servant and worshipper. 
 
 The wretched Durbuddhi after his horrible 
 act, rode on composedly, following the footsteps 
 of his horse, and reached the forest where he 
 was hunting the day before in company with 
 the prince. He thence returned home all 
 alone. When his father saw him coming back 
 he suspected something wrong to the prince 
 and asked his son what had become of him. 
 " We phased a deer, and he rode so much in 
 advance of me that he was out of sight, and 
 finding all search vain, I returned alone," was 
 Durbuddhi' s reply. " This I, would have believ- 
 ed from any one but yourself, Never plant 
 
70 
 
 your feet in these dominions till you bring back 
 the prince again. Bun for your life," was 
 the order of the minister, and Durbuddhi 
 accordingly ran, fearing the anger of his father. 
 
 Thus the prince Subuddhi was serving in the 
 Kali temple ; and Dnrbuddhi, fully confident 
 that he had killed his friend, roamed about from 
 place to place, as he saw no possibility of return- 
 ing to his own country without the prince. 
 
 Thus passed several months, The goddess 
 Kali was extremely delighted at the sincere 
 devotion of Subuddhi, and, calling him one day 
 to her side, said, — "My son! I am delighted 
 with your great devotion to me. Enough of 
 your menial services here. Better return now 
 to your kingdom. Tour parents are likely to be 
 much vexed at your loss. Go and console their 
 minds." Thus ended Kali, and Subuddhi re- 
 plied : " Excuse me, my goddess, my mother. I 
 no more regard them as my parents. This 
 wood is not a large place if they wished to 
 search for me. As they were so careless of 
 me I shall also from this day disregard them. 
 You are njy father and mother. Therefore 
 jiermit me to end my days here in your service." 
 So saying, Subuddhi begged Kali to allow him 
 to stay, and the goddess agreed accordingly for 
 some time at least. 
 
 After a few more months, Kali called the 
 prince again to her and addressed him thus ; — ■ 
 " My boy ! I have devised another plan. Better 
 
71 
 
 not, tliein, go to yotlr parentSj as yoa do liot Wish 
 to go now. At a short distance from this place^ 
 in the Kaverl coTlntry^ reigtis a staiinch devotee 
 of mine. His daughter had emall^'pox, and as 
 he forgot to do proper respect to mej I hare 
 blinded both her eyesi The king has issued a 
 proclamation that he will give the Whole 
 kingdom and his daughter in mart?iage to him 
 who would care her of her defect; He has hung 
 up a bell (ghanid) at which every physician 
 who wishes to try the case strikes. The king 
 comes running as soon as he hears the sound, 
 takes home the doctor and shows him the case. 
 Several persons have tried in vain ; for who 
 could repair a defect incurred by the dis- 
 pleasure of the gods ? Now I mean to send you 
 there. That king is a staunch worshipper of ■ 
 my feet. Though I had punished him first, 
 still I pity the sad calamity that has come up- 
 on his daughter. You had better go there and 
 strike the bell. He will take you and show you 
 the case. For three consecutive days apply 
 my holy ashes to her eyes. Though fools may 
 deride these ashes, still by them a true devotee 
 can work wonders. On the fourth day her 
 eyes will be perfectly restored. Then you will 
 secure her hand, and what is more the country of 
 Kavert. Reign there, for yoli are born to reign, 
 being a prince, and not to spend your time here 
 in this wood. If you do not do so you will 
 commit a sin, and what is more incur my dis- 
 
72 
 
 pleasure." Thus ended Kali, and the prince 
 could not refuse ; for he feared the anger of 
 the goddess. Agreeing to her words, and with 
 her manifold blessings, he started and reached 
 the kingdom of Kaveri. 
 
 He struck the bell. The king came running 
 to welcome the new doctor. All the previous 
 physicians had tried by medicines external and 
 internal. The new doctor — -prince Subuddhi — 
 proposed to treat the case by mantras^in- 
 cantations. The old king, who was very reli- 
 gious, fully believed that the new doctor might 
 effect the cure ; and just as he expected, on the 
 fourth day his daughter's sight was completely 
 restored. The king's joy knew no bounds. 
 He enqnired the parentage of the doctor ; and 
 when he came to know that he had princely 
 blood in his veins, that he was as honourably 
 descended as himself, his joy was greatly increas- 
 ed. He sent up a thousand prayers to the god 
 for giving him a royal son-in-law. As pro- 
 mised in his notice, he would have to give his 
 daughter to anyone, whatever he might be, who 
 effected the cure. The lowest beggar, the 
 lowest casteman, if he had only succeeded in 
 curing her would have had as much claim to 
 her hand as the prince-physician. So when 
 the person that effected the cure proved to be 
 a prince the king was -extremely delighted, and 
 at once made all arrangements for the marriage 
 of his daughter and gave her to Subuddhi ; 
 
73 
 
 and himself being very old lie gave the king- 
 dom also to the prince at the same time. 
 
 Thus by the favour of Kali, Subnddhi had 
 a princess for his wife and a kiugdom to 
 govern. Subuddhi, as we know, was an excel- 
 lent man. Though be became king now, he 
 consulted his father-in-law in all matters, and, 
 in fact, acted only as the manager for the old 
 man. Every evening he used to consult him 
 for an hour or two before disposing of intricate 
 cases. The duty of signing, too, he reserved 
 for the old man. Thus even on those days 
 when there were no cases he used to go to his 
 father-in-law to get papers signed. Thus passed 
 on a couple of years or so. 
 
 One evening, while sitting in company with 
 his wife in. the loftiest room of his palace 
 after the duties of the day, he cast his eyes to 
 the east main street and contemplated the 
 bustle of that part of the town. Carts creak- 
 ing under the load of merchandise, the flourish 
 with which the goods and wares were exposed 
 for sale, fashionable gentlemen in their fan- 
 ciful evening costumes walking to and fro, 
 the troublesome hawkers that stand by the 
 roEidside questioning every one as to what he 
 would buy, and several other things interested 
 him, and for a time made him somewhat proud 
 even that he ruled over such a rich country. 
 But sweetness is not always unaccompanied 
 with bitterness. He saw in that same street 
 
74 
 
 a man whose face was very familiar to him, taut 
 whom he could not at once make out. A 
 black man was sitting on a projecting pyal of 
 a corner of a shop, and was mending some torn 
 gunny bags. Subuddhi looked at him carefully. 
 "Is it the minister's son, Durbuddhi ? No; 
 he is not so black ; rather was not when I saw 
 him last," thought Subuddhi witji himself, 
 and examining his face, he at last exclaimed, 
 " It is he! It is he! It is my friend and 
 companion." "Who is it?" exclaimed the 
 princess, and rushed at once to his side. She 
 had most carefully watched her husband's 
 face for the past few minutes while he was 
 in deep contemplation. " It is my friend, 
 the minister's son, by name Durbuddhi. We 
 were companious from our birth, we played 
 in the same dust, read in the same school, and 
 were ever inseparable companions. I do not 
 know what has brought him to the condition 
 in which I see him now," said Subuddhi, and 
 sent some one to bring him. Of the wicked 
 and base act of the vile Durbuddhi he did not 
 care to inform his gentle wife, who now retired 
 to her inner apartments, as decorum did not 
 allow her to be in company with her husband 
 when he was receiving others. 
 
 The persons sent brought in Durbuddhi. 
 Whatever might have been the cruelty that he 
 had received from the hands of the minister's 
 son, the prince began to shed tears when he 
 
75 
 
 saw his old companion ushered in, not in that 
 blooming cheerful red complexion in -which he 
 had seen him last, but in a weather-beaten dark 
 skin and dejected colour of a cooly in which he 
 saw him a few minutes ago. 
 
 " I excuse you all your faults, my dear 
 Durbuddhi. Tell me quickly what has brought 
 yflu to this wretched plight," asked Subuddhi, 
 and while asking he began to cry aloud. The 
 minister's son also shed tears copiously, and 
 cried or pretended to cry ; for be it known that 
 he was a perfect scoundrel, bom to no good in 
 the world, " My own mischief has brought 
 me to this plight. When I returned to our 
 country after putting out your eyes and think- 
 ing that I had killed you, my father banished 
 me from our dominions, and ordered me never 
 to plant my feet within their limits without 
 bringing you back. As I thought I had put an 
 end to your life I never came back to that tank 
 in search of you.. I engaged myself as a cooly 
 in the streets of iMs town after trying with 
 no success several other places, and I now stand 
 before you." Thus ended Durbuddhi, and the 
 prince quite forgot his cruelty to him. He 
 ordered his servants to get the minister's son 
 bathed, and attired in'as rich robes as he himself 
 wore. Then he related to him his own story, 
 without omitting a single point, and at once 
 made him his minister. 
 
 The whole story of Durbuddhi, excepting 
 
76 
 
 tte single point of his having put out his eyes 
 the prince related to his wife, father, and 
 mother- in- law. 
 
 Thus was Dnrbuddhi again restored to his 
 high position, through the liberal kindness of 
 Subnddhi. Snbnddhi did not stop even with 
 this. He began to send him with papers and 
 other things to the old king for signature. 
 This went on for some months. All the while 
 Durbnddhi was as obedient as might be, and 
 by his vile tricks had completely won over the 
 heart of the old king. 
 
 One evening, after the signatures were over, 
 Durbnddhi stopped for a while as if desirous 
 to speak. " What do you want," said the old 
 king. "Nothing but your favour," was the only 
 reply, after which he retired. Thus he went 
 on practising for some days and weeks. 
 Every day he stopped for a few minutes after 
 the state business was over, and when the old 
 king asked the reason for it went on giving 
 evasive answers. At last one evening the old 
 king was extremely provoked. The cunning 
 Durbuddhi had purposely intended this. 
 " What a big fool are you to stop every day as 
 if wishing to speak and never to ntter a word," 
 broke out the old king. " 1 beg pardon of your 
 honour ; I was thinking all the while whether 
 I should let out my secret or not. At last, I 
 have come to the conclusion that I will keep it 
 to myself," repUed the diabolical Durbuddhi. 
 
77 
 
 " No, you shall let it out," roared the old king, 
 whose curiosity was more roused than ahated 
 by the words, purposely obscure, of the minis- 
 ter's son. Durbuddhi, after pretending much 
 uneasiness at the disclosure of the supposed 
 secret, loudly began his harangue, "My lord, 
 ever since I came here I made enquiries about 
 the nobility of your family, about the sacrifices 
 that you and your ancestors have performed, 
 about the purifications that you and your elders 
 have undergone, and about a thousand other 
 particulars, each of which is enough to secure 
 you and your descendants the place of Achyuta 
 {Achyutapada) himself. These delighted me 
 for a time, I say for a time, for listen, please, 
 to what follows. When I compared with the 
 pure fame of your famous family, that of your 
 son-in-law's, my heart began to pain me. In- 
 deed the pain which began at that moment 
 has not yet ceased. Know, then, that your 
 son-in-law is not a prince. No doubt he has 
 royal blood in his veins, which makes him look 
 like a king. How came he to be so skilful in 
 medicine. Just enquire the cause. To be no 
 more in the dark, the king of my country — over 
 which my father is the minister — set out one 
 day on savdr. While passing a barber's street 
 he saw a beautiful damsel of that caste. 
 Bewitched by her beauty the king wanted to 
 have her as his concubine, notwithstanding her 
 low position in aociety. The fruit of that 
 
78 
 
 conciibmage is yonr son-in-law. He being the 
 son of a barber-mother acquired so very easily 
 the art of medicine. That a ting was his 
 father makes him look like a prince. If he 
 had been of pure birth why should he leave his 
 kingdom, and come here to effect the cure of your 
 daughter? Except thisprince, or supposed prince, 
 all those that came here were mere doctors by 
 caste." Thus ended the vile Darbuddhi, and 
 taking in his hand the papers, vanished out of 
 the room quickly, like a serpent that had stung. 
 The sweet words in which the minister's son 
 clothed his arguments, the rising passion at the 
 thought that he had been falsely imposed upon 
 by a barber's son, the shame or rather supposed 
 shame that he thought had come over his 
 family, and a thousand othei* feelings clouded 
 for a time the clear reason of the old king. 
 He saw no other way of putting an end to the 
 shame than by the murder of his dear daughter 
 and son-ih-law first, and of his own self and 
 queen afterwards. At once he ordered the 
 executioner, who came in. He gave him his 
 signet-ring, and commanded him to break open 
 the bed-room of his son-in-law that midnight, 
 and murder him with his wife while asleep. 
 The huJcums or orders given with signet rings 
 ought never to be disobeyed. The executioner 
 humbled himself to the ground as a sign of 
 his accepting the order, and retired to sharpen 
 his knife for his terrible duty. 
 
79 
 
 Neither Sabuddhi nor his affectionate wife 
 had any reason to suspect this terrible order. 
 The old queen and the treacherous Dnrbuddhi 
 had equally no reason to know anything about 
 it. The old man, after issuing the hukmn shut 
 himself in his closet, and began to weep and 
 wail as if he had lost his daughter from that 
 moment. Durbuddhi, after kindling the fire, as 
 says the Tamil proverb, by means of his trea- 
 chery, came back with the papers to the prince. 
 A thought occurred in his mind that Subuddhi's 
 fate was drawing near. He wanted to have 
 fulfilled the engagement that took place be- 
 tween himself and the prince about the loan 
 for a day of the latter's wife for his beastly 
 enjoyment. The excellent Subuddhi who 
 always observed oaths most strictly was confused 
 for a time. He did not know what to do. To 
 stick to the oath and surrender his wife to 
 another ; or to break it and preserve the 
 chastity of his own wife. At last, repeating in 
 his own mind, " Charity alone conquers," and 
 also thinking that heaven would somehow 
 devise to preserve his wife's purity he went to 
 her, explained to her how the matter stood, and 
 ordered her to sleep with the minister's son that 
 night in his own bed-chamber. She hesitatingly 
 consented ;for asagood wife she could not disobey 
 her husband's commands. Subuddhi then told 
 Durbuddhi that he might sleep in his bed-room 
 that night, and have his wife as his companion. 
 
80 
 
 The princess went to lier motlier crying tliat 
 lier husband had turned out mad. " Or else who 
 would promise to give his wife to another for 
 a night. He has ordered me to sleep this night 
 with the minister's son. What does he mean 
 by that P" "My daughter! Fear nothing, per- 
 haps in his boj-liood, without knowing what the 
 delicate duties of a wife are, he agreed to 
 present you as a toy to the use of another for 
 a night. The promise once made now pains 
 him. Unable to break it, and leaving it to 
 yourself to preserve your chastity, he has so 
 ordered you. And he would, nay must, excuse 
 you, if you by some means or other save your- 
 self, and apparently make good your husband's 
 promise also. A thought just comes to me 
 how to do that. There is your foster sister 
 exactly resembling you. I shall send her in 
 youi- place, ordering her to behave like yourself 
 in your bed-room." So consoling her daughter, 
 the old queen at once made all the requisite 
 arrangements. And, of course, Subuddhi had 
 no reason then to know anything about them. 
 
 The night came on and the minister's son 
 went to the prince's bed -room and slept with 
 the supposed wife of his friend, with his lovely 
 motto, " Adharmame jayaon," but he was soon 
 to learn that Adharmam never conquers. For at 
 midnight, just a few minutes after he had 
 thought that his Adharmam had fully conquered, 
 the door is forced open, and a ruffian with a 
 
81 
 
 drawn sword blazing like lightning rushes in, 
 and murders the pair. Thus in that very 
 night in which Durbuddhi had reached the 
 topmost point of his vice he was cut down by 
 the supreme hand of God, For, it is said, that 
 when crime increases, God himself cannot bear. 
 The morning dawned, Subuddhi rose from 
 his couch, and after his morning prayers was, 
 sitting in the council hall. The princess and 
 her mother rose from their beds, and were after 
 their business. A servant just at that time 
 came running to the old queen, and said, " Our 
 king is weeping in his room that his daughter 
 is now no more. I think that there is something 
 wrong with his majesty's brains to-day. Come 
 and console him." The queen, who knew 
 nothing of what had happened, ran to her 
 husband's room quite astonished at the change. 
 The husband reported everything to her, the 
 sage-looking minister's son, the barber son-in- 
 law, and everything, and then concluded that 
 their daughter and son-in-law were no more. 
 "What! compose yourself . Our son-in-law is 
 sitting in his durbar. Our daughter is just 
 adorning herself in her dressing-room. Were 
 you dreaming ? Are you in your right 
 senses ?" said the queen. The king ordered the 
 executioner to bring the heads, which, on exami- 
 nation, proved to be those of the minister's son 
 and of the foster-sister. The queen told every- 
 thing of the one-day-wife-giving engagement, 
 
82 
 
 and her own arrangements about it. The 
 old king could not understand what all this 
 meant. He drew out his sword and ran to the 
 durbar like a maddened lion, and stood armed 
 before his son-in-law, " Relate to me your true 
 origin, and everything respecting yourself. 
 Speak the truth. How came you to learn 
 medicine ? If you are a prince why should you 
 leave your own dominions and come down 
 here ? What about the beastly agreement of 
 giving your wife to another ? Who is this 
 minister's son ? " Subuddhi, without omitting a 
 single point, related everything that had taken 
 place, even to the putting out of his eyes. The old 
 man threw down his sword, took his son-in-law 
 in his arms almost, for so great was his joy at 
 the excellent way which fate had prepared for 
 his escape, and said, "My son, my life, my eye. 
 True it is, true it is. Bharma alone conquers, 
 and you that hold that motto have conquered 
 everything. The vile wretch whom notwith- 
 standing the series of rogueries that he practised 
 upon you, you protected, has at last found out 
 that his Adharmam never conquers. But he 
 never found it out. It was his Adharmam that 
 cat him off on the very night of his supposed 
 complete conquest by it." 
 
 Letters were sent at once to Tevai, inviting 
 Suguna and Dharmasila to the happy rejoicings 
 for the prince and princess's delivery, and a 
 re-marriage was celebrated with all pomp 
 
83 
 
 in honour of their lucky escape. Dharmasila, 
 as he disliked his son, never shed a single 
 tear for his loss. Subuddhi lived for a long 
 time, giving much consolation to his own and his 
 wife's parents. Through the blessings of Kali 
 they had several intelligent sons. 
 
FOLKLORE 
 
 IM 
 
 SOUTHERN INDIA. 
 
 PART II. 
 
 PANDIT S. M. NATligA sASTRt 
 
 eOVKBNUaNT ABCH^OLOaiCAL EtlBTXT. 
 
 BOMBAY : 
 EDtrCATION SOCIETY'S PRESSi BYCTILLA.. 
 
 1886.. 
 
 LOFDON: TRUBWER 4 CO. 
 
 All Bights Reserved. 
 
85 
 
 YI. 
 
 VIDAMUNDAN KODAMTJNDAN. 
 
 Mr. Won't-Give and Mr. Won't-Leave. 
 
 In a certain town there lived a clever old 
 Brahman, named Won't-Give.^ He used to go 
 out daily and to beg in all the houses round, 
 under the pretence that he had to feed several 
 Brahmans in his own house. Good people, 
 that believed in his words, used to give him 
 much rice and curry stuffs, with which he 
 would come home, and explain to his wife 
 how he had deceived such and such a gentle- 
 man by the imposition of feeding in charity 
 many persons at home. But if any hungry 
 Brahman, who had heard of his empty boast 
 of feeding Brahmans at home, came to him, he 
 was sent away with some excuse or other. In 
 this way Mr. Won't-Give brought home a 
 basketful of rice and other necessaries every 
 day, of which he only used a small portion 
 for himself and his wife, and converted the re- 
 mainder into money. And thus by imposition 
 and tricks he managed to live w^ell for several 
 years. 
 
 In an adjoining village there lived another 
 very clever Brahman, named Won't-Leave.* 
 Whenever he found any man reluctant and 
 unwilling to give him anything that he begged 
 
 1 Kodamundan. ' Yid&mundan. 
 
 H 
 
86 
 
 of him, he would persist in bothering him 
 until he had wrung from him a dole. This 
 Mr. Won't-Leave, hearing of the charity of Mr. 
 Won't-Give and his benevolent feeding of Brah- 
 mans, came to see him one day and requested 
 him to give him a meal. Mr. Won't-Give told 
 him that for that day ten Brahmans had 
 already been settled, and that- if he came the 
 next day he would have his meal without fail. 
 Mr. Won't-Leave agreed to this, and left him for 
 that day. Mr. Won't-Give had, of course, told 
 him the very lie he was accustomed to tell all 
 that occasionally begged meals of him. 
 
 Now Mr. Won't-Leave was not so stupid 
 as to be thus imposed upon. He stood be- 
 fore Mr. Won't-Give's door precisely at the 
 appointed ghaitka (hour) the next day, and 
 reminded the master of the house of his pro- 
 mise. Mr. Won't-Give had never before been 
 taken at his word, and determined to send away 
 the impertinent guest by some stronger excuse 
 than the first, and so he spoke to him thus : — 
 " Sir, I am very sorry to say that my wife fell 
 ill last night of a strong fever, from which 
 she has not yet recovered. Owing to this 
 unforeseen accident I have had to postpone my 
 charitable feedings {samdrddhana} till her 
 recovery, so do not trouble me please for some 
 days more." 
 
 Mr. Won't-Leave heard these words with 
 an expression of sincere, or rather , seem- 
 
ingly sincere, sorrow in his face, and replied : — 
 " Respected Sir, I am very sorry for the 
 illness of the mistress of the house, but to 
 give up charitable feeding of Brahmans on that 
 account is a great sin. For the last ten years 
 I have been studying the art of cooking, and 
 can now cook for even several hundreds of 
 Brahmans ; so I can assist you now in prepar- 
 ing the necessaries for the samdrudhana." 
 Mr. Won't-Give could- not refuse such a 
 request, but he deceitfully determined in his 
 mind to get Mr. Won't-Leave to cook for him, 
 and then to drive him away without giving 
 him his rice. And so he said ; — " Yes, 
 that is a very good idea. I am much obliged 
 to you for your kind suggestion. Come in. 
 Let us cook together." So saying the master 
 of the house took Mr. Won't-Leave inside and 
 they both went into the kitchen, while the 
 mistress of the house, at the command of her 
 husband, pretended illness. 
 
 Now Mr. Won't-Give was a good liver, and 
 prepared with the assistance of Mr. Won't- 
 Leave several good dishes. And then the 
 difficulty was to drive the fellow out, for the 
 long-maintained rule of never feeding a single 
 Brilhman must not be broken that day. So 
 when the cooking was all over the master of 
 the house gave to Mr. Won't-Leave a Msu 
 (copper coin) and asked him to bring some 
 leaves from the hdzdr (for plates), and he accord- 
 
ingly went. Mr. Won't-Give meanwhile came 
 to his wife and instnicted her thus : — " My 
 dearest wife, I have spared you the trouble 
 of cooking to-day. Would that we could get 
 such stupid fools as this every day to cook for 
 us ! I have now sent him out to fetch us some 
 leaves, and it won't look well if we shut our 
 doors against him, or drive him away : so we 
 must make him go away of his own accord. 
 A thought has just conle into my mind as to how 
 we can do it. As soon as he comes you should 
 commence to quarrel with me. I shall then 
 come to you and beat yon, or rather the ground 
 near you with both my hands, and you must con- 
 tinue your abuse and cries. The guest will find 
 this very disgusting, and will leave- us of his 
 ownatjcord." Mr. Won't-Give had just finished 
 his instructions when he saw Mr. Won't-Leave 
 returning with the leaves. 
 
 The wife, as prearranged, abused her husband 
 right and left for his great imprudence and over- 
 liberality in feeding the Brahmans. Said she : 
 " How are we to get on in the world if you 
 thus empty the house of everything we have 
 in feeding big-bellied Brahmans ? Must you be 
 so very strict in inviting them, even when I am 
 sick ?" These and a thousand similar expres- 
 sions were now launched at the husband's head. 
 He pretended not to hear it for a time, but 
 at last, apparently overcome by anger, he went 
 in and with his hands gave successive blows on 
 
89 
 
 the floor. At every blow on the floor the wife 
 cried out that she was being murdered, and that 
 those who had mercy in their hearts should 
 come to her rescue. 
 
 Mr. Won't-Leare from the court-yard of the 
 house listened to what was taking place inside, 
 but not wishing to interfere in a quarrel 
 between husband and wife, left matters to take 
 their own course, and got into the loft, where 
 he hid himself, fearing that he would be sum- 
 moned as a witness to the quarrel. 
 
 After a time Mr. Won't-Give came out of the 
 room where he had been beating the floor, and 
 to his joy he could not find the guest. He 
 cautiously looked round him and saw no signs 
 of Mr. Won't-Leave. Of course, having had 
 no reason to think that his guest would be 
 sitting in the loft, he did not look up there, 
 and even if hd had done so, he would not 
 have found him, for he had hidden himself out 
 of sight. 
 
 Mr, Won't- Give now carefully bolted the 
 door and his wife came out and changed her 
 dirty cloth for a clean one. Said her husband 
 to her : "At last we have succeeded in driv- 
 ing him out, come, you too must be hungry ; 
 let us have our dinner together." Two 
 leaves were spread on the ground and all the 
 dishes were equally divided into them. Mean- 
 while Mr. Won't- Leave was examining all that 
 took place below him and, being himself very 
 
90 
 
 hungry, was slyly watching for an opporttinity 
 to jump down. Mr. Won't-Give, gloating over 
 his trickery, said to his wife : " Well, my love, 
 did I not beat you without hurting yon ?" to 
 which she replied : " Did I not continue to 
 cry without shedding tears ?" when suddenly 
 there fell on their ears, " And did I not come 
 to have my dinner without going away ?' 
 and down jumped Mr. Won't-Leave from the 
 loft, and took his seat in front of the leaf 
 spread by Mr. Won't-Give for his wife. And 
 Mr. Won't-Give, though disappointed, was 
 highly pleased at the cleverness of his guest. 
 
 This story is cited as the authority for three 
 proverbs that have come into use in Tamil : 
 
 " Novdmal aditten." 
 
 " Oydmal aluden." 
 
 "■Fdhamal vanden." 
 which represent the exchanges of politeness 
 between the husband, the wife, and the guest, 
 quoted in the foregoing paragraphs. 
 
91 
 
 VII. 
 
 VAYALVALLAN KAIYAVALLA. 
 
 Mr. MigUy-of-his-mouth and Mr. Mighty- 
 of-his-hands. 
 
 In two adjoining villages there lived two 
 famous men. The one was called Mr. Mighty- 
 of-his-mouth' — one that could accomplish 
 wonders with words alone. The other was 
 called Mr. Mighty-of-his-hands'— -one who could 
 make no use of that glib instrument the 
 tongue, but was able to bear burdens, cat wood, 
 and perform other physical labour. 
 
 It so happened that they agreed to live 
 together in the house of the Mr. Mighty-of- 
 his-mouth, to try and see which of them was 
 the superior. They accordingly kept company 
 for several months, till the great feast of the 
 nine nights (navardtri) came on. On the first 
 day of the feast Mr. Mighty-of-his-hands wanted 
 to sacrifice a goat to the goddess Kaji. So he 
 said to Mr. Mighty-of-his-mouth, " My dear 
 friend, we both are mighty in our way, and so 
 it would be shameful for us to buy the goat 
 that we want to sacrifice with money. We 
 should manage to get it without payment." 
 " Yes, we must do so, and I know how," replied 
 Mr. Mighty.of-his-mouth, and he asked his 
 friend to "wait till that evening. 
 
92 
 
 Now there lived a shepherd at one ghatika's 
 (hour's) distance from their house, and the two 
 friends resolved to go to his fold that night 
 and steal away one of his goats. Accordingly 
 when it was dark they approached his fold. 
 The shepherd had. just finished his duties to 
 the mute members of his flock, and wanted 
 to go home and have his rice hot. But he 
 had no second person to watch, the flock, and 
 he must not lose his supper. So he planted 
 his crook before the fold, and throwing his 
 blanket {hamhali) over it, thus addressed it : 
 "My son, I am very hungry, and so must go 
 for my rice. Till I return do you watch 
 the flock. This wood is rich in tigers and 
 goblins (bhutas). Some mischievous thief or 
 hhuta — or fauta^ may come to steal away the 
 sheep. "Watoh over them carefully." So 
 saying the shepherd went away. 
 
 The friends had heard what the shepherd 
 said. Of course, Mr, Mighty-of.his.mouth 
 laughed within himself at this device of the 
 shepherd to impress upon would'be robbers 
 that he had left some one there to watch his 
 sheep, while really he had only planted 
 a pole and thrown a blanket over it. Mr. 
 Mighty-of.his-hands, however, did not see 
 the trick, and mistaking the stick to be an 
 
 ' There w ng auoh word as hiita in Tamil, The TamiJ 
 and other Dravidian languages allow rhyming repetl' 
 tions of a word, like this — bh-AtaMta, 
 
\)c 
 
 actual -watcHman sitting at his duty before tlie 
 fold, spoke thus to his friend, " Now what 
 are we to do ? There is a watchman sitting in 
 front of the fold." Thereon Mr. Mighty-of- 
 his-mouth cleared away his doubts by saying 
 that it was no watchman, but a mere stick, and 
 entered the fold with his friend. 
 
 It had also so happened that on that very 
 night a IMta (goblin) had come into the fold 
 to steal away a sheep. It shuddered with 
 fear on hearing the shepherd mention the 
 Mta, for having never heard of the existence 
 of Icutas, it mistook this imaginary being to 
 be something superior in strength to itself. 
 So thinking that a huta might come to the 
 fold, and not wishing to expose itself till it 
 knew well what hiitas were, the hhuta trans- 
 formed itself into a sheep and laid itself down 
 among the flock. By this time the two Mighties 
 had entered the fold and begun an examination 
 of the sheep. They went on rejecting one animal 
 after another for some defect or other, till at last 
 they came to the sheep which was none other 
 than the Ihuta. They tested it, and when they • 
 found it very heavy — as, of course, it would be 
 with the soul of the hhuta in it, — they began to 
 tie up its legs to carry it home. When hands 
 began to shake it the hhiita mistook the 
 Mighties for the Mtas, and said to itself : — 
 "Alas! the hutas have come to take me away. 
 What am I to do ? What a fool I was to come 
 
94 
 
 into the fold !" So thought the hhuta as 
 Mr. Mighty-of-his-hands waa carrying it away on 
 his head, with his friend following him behind. 
 But the bhuta soon began to work its devilish 
 powers to extricate itself, and Mr. Mighty- 
 of-his-hands began to feel pains all over 
 his body and said to his friend :" My dear 
 Mighty, I feel pains all over me. I think what 
 we have brought is no sheep!" Mr. Mighty- 
 of-his-mouth was inwardly alarmed at the 
 words of his friend, but did not like to show 
 that he was afraid. So he said, " Then put 
 down the sheep, and let us tear open its belly, so 
 that we shall each have only one-half of it to 
 carry." This frightened the hJiuta, and he 
 melted away on the head of Mr. Mighty-of-his- 
 hands, who, relieved of his devilish burden, 
 was glad to return home safe with his friend. 
 
 The hhiita too went to its abode and there told 
 its fellow-goblins how it had involved itself in 
 a great trouble and how narrowly it had 
 escaped. They all laughed at its stupidity 
 and said, " What a great fool you are ! They 
 were no hutas. In fact there are no Tcutas in 
 the world. They were men, and it was most 
 stupid of you to have got yourself into their 
 hands. Are you not ashamed to make such a 
 fuss about your escape?" The injured hhuta 
 retorted that they would not have made 
 such remarks had they seen the hutas. 
 " Then show us these hutas, as you choose to 
 
95 
 
 call them," said they, "and we will crush 
 them in the twinkling of an eye." " Agreed," 
 said the injured hhuta, and the next night 
 it took them to the house of the Mighties, and 
 said from a distance : " There is their house. 
 I cannot approach it. Do whatever you like." 
 The other bhutas were amazed at the fear of 
 their timid brother, and resolved among 
 themselves to put an end to the enemies of 
 even one of their caste. So they went in a 
 great crowd to the house of the Mighties. 
 Some stood outside the house, to see that none 
 of the inmates escaped, and some watched in 
 the back-yard, while a score of them jumped 
 over the walls and entered the court-yard. 
 
 Mr. Mighty-of-his-hands was sleeping in the 
 verandah, adjoining the courtyard, and when 
 he heard the noise of people jumping, he opened 
 his eyes, and to his terror saw some bhutas in 
 the court. Without opening his mouth he 
 quietly rolled himself along the ground, and 
 went to the room where Mr. Mighty-of-his- 
 mouth was sleeping with his wife and 
 children. Tapping gently at the door he awoke 
 his friend and said, "What shall we do now ? 
 The bhutas have invaded our house, and will soon 
 kill us." Mr. Mighty-of-his-mouth told him 
 quietly not to be afraid, but to go and sleep in 
 his original place, and that he himself would 
 make the bhutas run away. Mr. Mighty-of- 
 his-hands did not understand what his friend 
 
90 
 
 meant, but not wishing to contradict his 
 instructions rolled his way back to his original 
 place and pretended to sleep, though his heart 
 was beating terribly with fright. Mr. Mighty-of- 
 his-mouth now awoke his wife, and instructed 
 her thus : " My dearest wife, the foolish bhdtas 
 have invaded our house, but if you act accord- 
 ing to my advice we are safe, and the goblins 
 will depart harmlessly. What I want you to do 
 is, to go to the hall and light a lamp, spread 
 leaves on the floor, and then pretend to awake 
 me for my supper. I shall get up and enquire 
 what you have ready to give me to eat. You 
 will then reply that you have only pepper water 
 and vegetables. With an angry face I shall 
 say, ' What have you done with the three bhutas 
 that our son caught hold of on his way while 
 returning from school ?' Tour reply must be, 
 ' The rogue wanted some sweetmeats on coming 
 home. Unfortunately I had none in the house, 
 so he roasted the three bhutas and gobbled them 
 up.' " Thus instructing his wife Mr. Mighty- 
 of-his-mouth pretended to go to sleep. 
 
 The wife accordingly spread the leaves and 
 called her husband for his supper. During 
 the conversation that followed, the fact that 
 the son had roasted three goblins for sweet- 
 meats was conveyed to the bhutas. They 
 shuddered at the son's extraordinary ability, 
 and thought, " What must the father do for 
 his meals when a son roasts three bhutas for 
 
97 
 
 sweetmeats ?" So they at once took to their 
 heels. Then going to the brother they had 
 jeered at, they said to him that indeed the 
 hutas "were their greatest enemies, and that, 
 none of their lives were safe while they 
 remained where they were, as on that very 
 evening the son of a liuta had roasted three of 
 them for sweetmeats. They therefore all re- 
 solved to fly away to the adjoining forest, and 
 disappeared accordingly. Thus Mr. Mighty- 
 of-his-mouth saved himself and his friend on 
 two occasions from the hhutas. 
 
 The friends after this went out one day to 
 an adjoining village and were returning home 
 rather late in the evening. Darkness came 
 on them before half the way was traversed, and 
 there lay before them a dense wood infested by 
 beasts of prey : so they resolved to spend the 
 night in a high tree and go home next 
 T&orning, and accordingly got up into a big 
 pipal. Now this was the very wood into which 
 the hhutas had migrated, and at midnight 
 they . all came down with torches to catch 
 jackals and other animals to feast upon. The 
 fear of Mr. Mighty-of -his- hands may be more 
 imagined than described. The dreaded hhutas 
 were at the foot of the very tree in which 
 he had taken up his abode for the night ! 
 His hands trembled. His body shook. He 
 lost his hold, and down he came with a 
 horrible rustling of leaves. His friend, how- 
 
98 
 
 ever, was, as nsual, ready with a device, and 
 bawled out, " I wished to leave these poor beings 
 to their own revelry. But you are hungry and 
 must needs jump down to catch some of them. 
 Do not fail to lay your hands on the stoutest 
 bhuta." The goblins heard the voice which was 
 already very familiar to their ears, for was it 
 not the kilta whose son had roasted up three 
 hhutas for sweetmeats that spoke ? So they 
 ran away at once, crying out, "Alas, what 
 misery ! Our bitter enemies have followed us 
 even to this wood!" Thus the wit of Mr. 
 Mighty-of-his-mouth saved himself and his 
 friend for the third time. 
 
 The sun began to rise, and Mr. Mighty-of-his 
 hands thrice walked round Mr. Mighty-of-his- 
 mouth and said, " My dear friend, truly you 
 only of us two are mighty. Mere physical 
 strength is of no use without skill in words. 
 The latter is far superior to the former, and if a 
 man possess both, he is, as it were, a golden 
 lotus having a sweet scent. It is enough for 
 me now to have arrived at this moral ! With 
 your kind permission I shall return to my 
 village." Mr. Mighty-of-his-mouth asked his 
 friend not to consider himself under any obliga- 
 tion, and, after honouring him as became his 
 position he let him return to his village. 
 
 The moral of this short story is that in man 
 there is nothing great but mind. 
 
99 
 
 VIII. 
 
 THE MOTHER-IN-LAW BECAME AN ASS. 
 Little by little the motlier-in-law became an 
 ass — varavard mdmi Tcaludai p6l anal, is a 
 proverb among tbe Tamils, applied to those 
 who day by day go downwards in their 
 progress in study, position, or life, and based 
 on the following story : — 
 
 In a certain village there lived a Brahman 
 with his wife, mother, and mother-in-law. He 
 was a very good man, and equally kind to all of 
 them. His mother complained of nothing 
 from his hands, but his wife was a very bad- 
 tempered woman, and always troubled her 
 mother-in-law by keeping her engaged in this 
 work or that throughout the day, and giving 
 her very little food in the evening. Owing 
 to this the poor Brahman's mother was almost 
 dying of misery. On the other hand, her 
 own mother received very kind treatment, of 
 course, at her daughter's hands, by whom the 
 husband was so completely ruled over, that 
 he had no strength of mind to oppose her ill- 
 treatment of his mother. 
 
 One evening, just before sunset, the wife 
 abused her mother-in-law with such fury, 
 that the latter had to fly away to escape 
 a thrashing. Much vexed at her unhappiness 
 she ran out of the village, but the sun had 
 begun to set, and the darkness of night was 
 
100 
 
 fast overtating her. So finding a ruined 
 temple she entered it to pass the night there. 
 It happened to be the abode of the village 
 Kali (goddess), who used to come out every 
 night at midnight to inspect her village. That 
 night she perceived a woman— the mother of 
 the poor Brahman — lurking within her prdkdras 
 (boundaries), and being a most benevolent Kali 
 called out to her, and asked her what made 
 her so miserable that she should leave her home 
 on such a dark night. The old Brahmani told 
 her story in a few words, and while she was 
 speaking the cunning goddess was using her 
 supernatural powers to see whether all she 
 said was true or not, and finding it to be the 
 truth she thus replied in very soothing tones : — 
 "I pity . your misery, mother, because your 
 daughter-in-law troubles and vexes you thus 
 when yon have become old, and have no strength 
 in your body. Now take this mango," 
 and taking a ripe one from out of her hips 
 she gave it to the old Brahmani with a 
 smiling faoe — " eat it, and you will soon turn 
 out a young woman like your own daughter- 
 in-law, and then she shall no longer trouble 
 you." Thus consoling the afflicted old woman, 
 the kind-hearted Kali went away. The Brah- 
 mani lingered for the remainder of the night 
 in the temple, and being a fond mother she 
 did not like to eat the whole of the mango 
 without giving a portion of it to her son. 
 
101 
 
 Meanwhile, wlieii her sou returned home in 
 the evening he found his mother absent, but 
 his wife explained the matter to him, so as to 
 throw the blame on the old woman, as she 
 always did. As it was dark he had no chance 
 of going out to search for her, so he waited for 
 the daylight, and as soon as he saw the dawn 
 started to look for his mother. He had not 
 walked far when to his joy he found her in the 
 temple of Kali. 
 
 " How did you pass the cold night, my 
 dearest mother ?" said he. " What did you have 
 for dinner P Wretch that I am to have got 
 myself married to a cur. Forget all her faults, 
 and return home . " 
 
 His mother shed tears of joy and sorrow, 
 and related her previous night's adventure, 
 whereon he said : — 
 
 " Delay not even one nimisha (minute), but 
 eat this fruit at once. I do not want any of it. 
 Only if you become young and strong enough to 
 stand that nasty cur's troubles, v\rell and good." 
 
 So the mother ate up the divine fruit, and the 
 eon took her upon his shoulders and brought 
 her home, on reaching which he placed her on 
 the ground, when to his joy she was no longer 
 an old woman, bat a young girl of sixteen, and 
 stronger than his own wife. The troublesome 
 wife was now totally put down, and was 
 powerless against so strong a mother-in-law. 
 
102 
 
 She did not at all like the change, and 
 
 having to give up her habits of bullying, and 
 
 so she argued to herself thus — "This jade of a 
 
 mother-in-law became young through the fruit 
 
 of the Kali, why should not my mother also 
 
 do the same, if I instruct her and send her to 
 
 the same temple." So she instructed her mother 
 
 as to the story she ought to give to the goddess 
 
 and sent her there. Her old mother, agreeably to 
 
 her daughter's injunctions went to the temple, 
 
 and on meeting with the goddess at midnight 
 
 gave a false answer that she was being greatly 
 
 ill-treated by her daughter-in-law, though, in 
 
 truth, she had nothing of the kind to complain 
 
 of. The goddess perceived the lie through her 
 
 divine powers, but apparently seeming to pity 
 
 her, gave her also a fruit. Her daughter had 
 
 instructed her not to eat it till next morning 
 
 and till she saw her son-in-law. 
 
 As soon as morning approached the poor 
 henpecked Brahman was ordered by his wife 
 to go to the temple and fetch his mother-in-law 
 as he had some time back fetched away his 
 mother. He accordingly went, and invited 
 her to come home. She wanted him to eat 
 part of the fruit, as she had been instructed, 
 bat he refused, and so she swallowed it all, fully 
 expecting to become young again on reaching 
 home. Meanwhile her son-in-law took her on 
 his shoulders and returned home, expecting, 
 as his former experience had taaght him, to see 
 
103 
 
 his mother-ia-law also become a yonng woman. 
 Anxiety to see how the change came on over- 
 came him and at half way he turned his head 
 and found such part of the burden on his shoul- 
 ders as he could see to be like parts of an ass, 
 but he took this to be a mere preliminary 
 stage towards youthful womanhood ! Again he 
 turned, and again he saw the same thing several 
 times, and the more he looked the more his 
 burden became like an ass, till at last when he 
 reached home his burden jumped down bray- 
 ing like an ass and ran away. 
 
 Thns the Kali, perceiving the evil intentions 
 of the wife, disappointed her by turning her 
 mother into an ass, but no one knew of it till 
 she actually jumped down from the shoulders 
 of her son-in-law- 
 
 This story is always cited as the explanation 
 of the proverb quoted above — varavara mdmi 
 Tcaludai pol anal— Utile by little the mother-in- 
 law became an ass, to which is also commonly 
 added ur varumiodu ulaiyida talaippattd[ — 
 and as she approached the village she began to 
 bray. 
 
104 
 
 IX. 
 THE STORY OF APPAYYA.^ 
 
 rW^jq^^grf^oft II 
 
 In a remote village there lived a poor 
 Brahman and his wife. Though several years 
 of their wedded life had passed they tinf ortu- 
 nately had no children ; and so being very eager 
 for a child, and having no hope of one by his 
 first wife, the poor Brahman made up his mind 
 to marry a second. His wife would not 
 permit it for some time, but finding her 
 husband resolved, she gave way, thinking within 
 herself that she would manage somehow to do 
 away with the second wife. As soon as he 
 had got her consent the Brahman arranged for 
 his second marriage and wedded a beautiful 
 Brahman girl. She went to live with him in 
 the same house with the first wife, who, think- 
 ing that she would be making the world 
 suspicious if she did anything suddenly, waited 
 for some time. 
 
 Isvara himself seemed to favour the new 
 
 ' [Compare tie tale of Fattii, the Valiant Weaver, 
 Indian -Antiquary, Vol. XI. p. 282 ff.— B. C. T.] 
 
105 
 
 marriage, and fhe second wife, a year after her 
 wedding, becoming pregnant, went in the sixth 
 month of her pregnancy to her mother's house 
 for her confinement. Her husband bore his 
 separation from her patiently for a fortnight, 
 but after this the desire to see her again began 
 to prey upon his mind, and he was always asking 
 his first wife as to when he ought to go to 
 her. She seemed to sympathise fully with his 
 trouble and said: — 
 
 " My dearest husband, your health is being 
 daily injured, and I am glad that your love 
 for her has not made it worse than it is. 
 To-morrow you must start on a visit to her. 
 It is said that we should not go empty-handed 
 to children, a king, or a pregnant woman : so I 
 shall give you one hundred apupa cakes, packed 
 up separately in a vessel, which you mnst give 
 to her. Tou are very fond of apupas, and I 
 fear that you will eat some of them on the 
 way : but you had better not do so. And I 
 will give you some cakes packed in a cloth 
 separately for you to eat on your journey." 
 
 So the first wife spent the whole night 
 in preparing the apupa cakes, and mixed 
 poison in the sugar and rice-flour of those 
 she made for her co-wife and rival ; but as 
 she entertained no enmity against her husband 
 the ap«jia cakes for him were properly prepared. 
 By the time the morning dawned she had 
 packed up the hundred apupas in a brass 
 
106 
 
 vessel, wHch could be easily carried on a man's 
 head. 
 
 After a light breakfast — for a heavy one is 
 always bad before a journey on foot — the 
 Brahman placed the brass vessel on his head, 
 and holding in his hand the kerchief containing 
 the food for himself on the way started for 
 the village of his second wife, which happened 
 to be at a distance of two days' journey. He 
 walked in hot haste till evening approached, 
 and when the darkness of night overtook him, 
 the rapidity of his walk had exhausted him, and 
 he felt very hungry. He espied a wayside shed 
 and a tank near his path, and entered the water 
 to perform his evening ablution to the god of 
 the day, who was fast going down below the 
 horizon. As soon as this was over he untied his 
 kerchief, and did full justice to its contents 
 by swallowing every cake whole. He then drank 
 some water and, being quite overcome by fatigue, 
 fell into a deep slumber in the shed, with his 
 brass vessel and its sweet, or rather poisonous, 
 contents under his head. 
 
 Close by the spot where the Brahman slept 
 there reigned a famous king who had a very 
 beautiful daughter. Several persons demanded 
 her hand in marriage, among whom was a 
 robber chieftain, who wanted her for his only 
 son. Though the king liked the boy for his 
 beauty, the thought that he was only a robber 
 for all that prevented him from making up hia 
 
107 
 
 mind to give his daughter in marriage to him. 
 The robber-lord, however, was determined to 
 have his own way, and accordingly despatched 
 one hundred of his band to fetch away the 
 princess in the night "without her knowledge 
 ■while she was sleeping, to his palacein the woods. 
 In obedience to their chieftain's order the robbers, 
 on the night the Brahman happened to sleep in 
 the shed, entered the king's palace and stole 
 away the princess, together with the cot on which 
 she was sleeping. On reaching the shed the 
 hundred robbers found themselves very thirsty 
 — for being awake at midnight always brings 
 on thirst. So they placed the cot on the ground 
 and were entering the water to quench their 
 thirst. Just then they smelt the apupa cakes, 
 which, for all that they contained poison, had 
 a very sweet savour. The robbers searched 
 about the shed, and found the Brahman sleep- 
 ing on one side, and the brass vessel lying at a 
 distance from him, for he had pushed it from 
 underneath his head when he had stretched 
 himself in his sleep. They opened the vessel 
 and to their joy found in it exactly one hundred 
 wpupa cakes. 
 
 " We have one here for each of us, and that is 
 something better than mere water. Let us each 
 eat before we go into it," said the leader of the 
 gang, and at once each man swallowed greedily 
 what he had in his hand, and immediately 
 all fell down dead. Lucky it was that no 
 
]08 
 
 one knew of the old Brahmani's trick. Had 
 the robbers any reason to suspect it they wonld 
 never have eaten the cakes. Had the Brahman 
 known it he would never have brought them 
 with him for his dear second wife. Lucky was 
 it for the poor old Brahman and his second 
 "wife, and lucky was it for the sleeping princess, 
 that these cakes went, after all, into the stomachs 
 of the villainous robbers ! 
 
 After sleeping his fill the Brahman, who had 
 been dreaming of his second wife all night, 
 awoke in haste to pursue the remainder of 
 his journey to her house. He could not find 
 his brass vessel, but near the place where 
 he had left it he found several men of the 
 woods, whom he knew very well by their 
 appearance to be robbers, as he thought, sleep- 
 ing. Angered at the loss of his vessel he took 
 up a sword from one of the dead robbers 
 and cut oS all their heads, thinking all the 
 while that he vras killing one hundred living 
 robbers,- who were sleeping after having eaten all 
 his cakes. Presently the princess's cot fell under 
 his gaze, and he approached it and found on it 
 a most beautiful lady fast asleep. Being an 
 intelligent man he perceived that the persons 
 whose heads he had cut off, must have been 
 some thieves, or other wicked men, who had 
 carried her ofi. He was not long in doubt, 
 for not far off • he saw an army marching 
 up rapidly with a king at its head, who 
 
109 
 
 was saying, " Down with, the robber who 
 kas stolea away my daughter." The Brahman 
 at once inferred that this must be the father of 
 the sleeping princess, and suddenly waking 
 her Tip from her sleep spoke thus to her : — 
 
 " Behold before you the hundred robbers 
 that brought you here a few hours ago from 
 your palace. I fought one and all of them 
 single handed and have killed them all." 
 
 The princess was highly pleased at what she 
 heard, for she knew of all the tricks the robbers 
 had previously played to carry her off. So she 
 fell reverently at the Brahman's feet and said : 
 
 "Friend, never till now have I heard of a 
 warrior who single-handed fought one hundred 
 robbers. Your valour is unparalleled, I will 
 be your wife, if only in remembrance of your 
 having saved me from falling into the hands 
 of these ruffians." 
 
 Her father and his army was now near the 
 shed, for he had all along watched the con- 
 duct of the robber chieftain, and as soon as the 
 maidservants of the palace informed him of 
 the disappearance of the princess and her cot, 
 he marched straight with his soldiers for the 
 woods. His joy, when he saw his daughter 
 safe, knew no bounds, and he flew into his 
 daughter's arms, while she pointed to the Brah- 
 man as her preserver. The king now put a 
 thousand questions to our hero, who, being well 
 versed in matters of fighting, gave sound 
 
no 
 
 replies, and so came successfully out of his first 
 adventure. The king, astonished at his valour, 
 took him to his palace, and rewarded him with 
 the hand of the princess. And the robher 
 chieftain, fearing the new son-in-law who single- 
 handed had killed a "hundred of his robbers, 
 never troubled himself about the princess. 
 Thus the Brahman's first adventure ended in 
 making him son-in-law to a king ! 
 
 Now there lived a lioness in a wood near 
 ihe princess's country, who had a great taste for 
 human flesh, and so once a week the king used 
 to send a man into the wood to serve as -her 
 prey. All the people now collected together 
 liefore the king and said : — 
 
 '' Most honoured king, while you have a 
 son-in-law who killed one hundred robbers 
 with his sword, why should you continue to 
 send a man into the wood every week. We 
 request you to send your son-in-law next week 
 to the wood and have the lioness killed." 
 
 This seemed most reasonable to the king, 
 who called for his son-in-law and sent him 
 armed to the teeth into the wood.. 
 
 Now our Brahman could not refuse to go for 
 fear of losing the fame of his former exploit, 
 and hoping that fortune would favour him, he 
 asked his father-in-law to have him hoisted 
 up into a big banyan tree with all kinds of 
 weapons, and this was done. The appointed 
 time for the lioness to eat her prey approached, 
 
Ill 
 
 and as she saw no one coming for her, and as 
 sometimes those that had to come used to linger 
 for a short time in the tree in which the 
 Brahman had taken refuge, she went up to 
 it to see that no such trick has been played 
 upon her this time. This made the Brahmau 
 tremble so violently that he dropped the 
 sword he held in his hand. At that very 
 Inoment the lioness happened to yawn and the 
 sword dropped right into her jaws and killed 
 her. As soon as the Brahman saw the course 
 which events had taken, lie came down from 
 the tree and invented a thousand stories 
 of how he had given battle to the terrible 
 lioness and overcome her. This exploit fully 
 established his valour, and feasts and rejoicings 
 in honour of it followed, and the whole coantry 
 round blessed the son-in-law of their king. 
 
 Near this kingdom there also reigned a 
 powerful emperor, who levied tribute from all 
 the surrounding countries. To this emperor 
 the father-in-law of our most valorous Brahmau, 
 who, at one stroke, had killed one hundred 
 robbers and, at another, a fierce lioness, had also 
 to pay a certain amount of tribute ; but trusting 
 to the power of his son-in-law, he stopped the 
 tribute to the emperor, who, by the way, was 
 named Appayya Raja, and who, as soon as the 
 tribute was stopped, invaded his dominions, 
 and his father-in-law besought the Brahman 
 for assistance. 
 
112 
 
 Again the poor Brahman could not refuse ; 
 for if he did all his former fame would be 
 lost. So he determined to nndertake this 
 adventure also, and to trust to fortune rather 
 than give up the attempt. He asked for 
 the best horse and the sharpest sword and set out 
 to fight the enemy, who had already encamped 
 on the other side of the river, which flowed at 
 a short distance to the east of the town. 
 
 Now the king had a very unruly horse, which 
 had never been broken in, and this he gave 
 his son-in-law ; and, supplying him with a sharp 
 sword, asked him to start. The Brahman then 
 asked the king's servants to tie him tip with 
 cotton strings tight on to the saddle, and set 
 out on the expedition. 
 
 The horse, having never till then felt a man 
 on its back, began to gallop most furiously, and 
 flew onwards so fast that all who saw it thought 
 the rider must lose his life, and he too was 
 almost dead with fear. He tried his best to 
 curb his steed, but the more he pulled the faster 
 it galloped, till giving up all hopes of life 
 he let it take its course. It jumped into the 
 water and swam across to the other side of 
 the river, wetting the cotton cords by which 
 the Brahman was tied down to the saddle, 
 making them swell and giving him the most 
 excruciating pain. He bore it, however, with all 
 the patience imaginable. Presently the horse 
 reached the other side of the river, where there 
 
113 
 
 was a big palmyra tree, which a recent flood 
 had left almost uprooted and ready to fall at 
 the slightest touch. The Brahman, unable to 
 stop the course of the horse, held fast on to the 
 tree, hoping thus to check its wild career. 
 But unfortunately for him the tree gave way, 
 and the steed galloped on so furiously that he 
 did not know which was the safer — to leave 
 the tree or to hold' on to it. Meanwhile the wet 
 cotton cords hurt him so that he, in the hope- 
 lessness of despair, bawled out appa ! ayya .'' 
 On went his steed, and still he held on to the 
 palmyra tree. Though now fighting for his own 
 life, the people that were watching him from a 
 great distance thought him to be flying to the 
 battlefield armed with a palmyra tree ! The 
 cry of lamentation appa ayya, which he uttered, 
 his enemy mistook for a challenge because, as 
 we know, his name happened to be Appayya. 
 Horror-struck at the sight of a warrior armed 
 with a huge tree, his enemy turned and fled. 
 Yathd rdjd tathd prajdh — "As is the king so are 
 the subjects," — and accordingly his followers 
 also fled. The Brahman warrior (!) seeing the 
 fortunate course events had again taken pur- 
 sued the enemy, or rather let his courser have 
 its own furious way. Thus the enemy and hia 
 vast army melted away in the twinkling of 
 
 ' Whioli in Tamil are exclamations of lamentation, 
 meaaingi Ah ! Alas ! 
 
114 
 
 an eye and the horse, too, when it became 
 exhausted, returned towards the palace. 
 
 The old king had been watching from the 
 loftiest rooms of his palace all that had passed 
 on the other side of the river, and believing his 
 son-in-law had, by his own prowess, driven out 
 the enemy, approached him with all pomp. 
 Eager hands quickly cut the knots by which the 
 victorious (!) Brahman had been held tight in 
 his saddle, and his old father-in-law with tears 
 of joy embraced him and congratulated him 
 on his victory, saying that the whole kingdom 
 was indebted to him. A splendid triumphal 
 march was conducted, in which the eyes- of the 
 whole town were directed towards our victorious 
 hero. 
 
 Thus, on three different occasions, and in three 
 different adventures, fortune favoured the poor 
 Brahman and brought him fame. He then 
 sent for his two former wives and took them 
 into his palace. His second wife, who was 
 pregnant when he first started with the apupa 
 cakes to see her, had given birth to a male 
 child, who was, when she came back to him, 
 more than a year old. The first wife confessed 
 to her husband her sin of having given him 
 l^oisoned cakes and craved his pardon ; and it 
 was only now that he came to know that the 
 hundred robbers he killed in his first adventure 
 were all really dead men, and that they must 
 have died from the effects of the, poison in the 
 
115 
 
 cakes, and since her treaclievy had given him 
 a new start in life he forgave her. She, too, 
 gave up her enmity to the partners of her 
 husband's bed, and all the four lived in peace 
 and plenty for many a long day afterwards. 
 
THE BRAHMAN GIRL THAT MARRIED 
 A TIGER. 
 
 In a certain village there lived an old Brah- 
 man who had three sons and a daughter. The 
 girl being the yonngest was brought up most 
 tenderly and became spoilt, and so whenever 
 she saw a beautiful boy she would say to her 
 ))arents that she must be wedded to him. Her 
 parents were, therefore, much put about to 
 devise excuses for taking her away from, her 
 youthful lovers. Thus passed on some years, 
 till the girl was very near attaining her puberty 
 and then the parents, fearing that they would 
 be driven out of their caste if they failed 
 to dispose of her hand in marriage before she 
 came to the years of maturity, began to be 
 eager about finding a bridegroom for her. 
 
 Now near their village there lived a fierce tiger, 
 that had attained to great proficiency in the art 
 of magic, and had the power of assuming differ- 
 ent forms. Having a great taste for Brahman's 
 food, the tiger used now and then to frequent 
 temples and other places of public feeding in 
 the shape bf an old famished Brahman in order 
 to share the food prepared for the Brahmans. 
 The tiger also wanted, if possible, a Brahman 
 
117 
 
 wife to take to the Avoods, and there to make 
 her cook his meals after her fashion. One day 
 when he was partaking of his meals in Brah. 
 man shape at a satra^, he heard the talk about 
 the Brahman girl who was always falling in 
 love with every beautiful Brahman boy. Said 
 he to himself, " Praised be the face that I saw 
 first this morning. I shall assume the shape of 
 a Brahman boy, and appear as beautiful as 
 beautiful can be, and win tfie heart of the girl." 
 
 Next morning he accordingly became in 
 form a great Sastrin (proficient in the RdmCt- 
 yana) and took his seat near the ghat of the 
 sacred river of the village. Scattering holy 
 ashes profusely over his body he opened the 
 Bdmdyana and began to read. 
 
 " The voice of the new Sastrin is most en- 
 chanting. Let ns go and hear him," said some 
 women among themselves, and sat down before 
 him to hear him expound the great book. The 
 girl for whom the tiger had assumed this shape 
 came in due time to bathe at the river, and as 
 soon as she saw the new Sastrin fell in love 
 with him, and bothered her old mother to speak 
 to her father about him, so as not to lose her 
 new lover. The old woman too was delighted 
 at the bridegroom whom fortune had thrown 
 in her way, and ran home to her husband, who, 
 when he came and saw the Sastrin, raised 
 
 • A place of public feeding. 
 
118 
 
 up his hands in praise of the great god 
 Mah^svara. The Gastrin was now invited 
 to take his meals with them, and as he had 
 come with the express intention of marrying 
 the daughter he, of course, agreed. 
 
 A grand dinner followed in honour of the 
 Sastrin, and his host began to question him as 
 to his parentage, &c., to which the cunning 
 tiger replied that he was born in a village 
 beyond the adjacent wood. The Brahman 
 had no time to wait for better enquiry, and as 
 the boy was very fair he married his daughter 
 to him the very next day. Feasts followed for 
 a month, during which time the bridegroom 
 gave every satisfaction to his new relatives, 
 who supposed him to be human all the while. 
 He also did full justice to the Brahmanic 
 dishes, and gorged everything that was placed 
 before him. 
 
 After the first month was over the tiger- 
 bridegroom bethought him of his accustomed 
 prey, and hankered after his abode in the woods. 
 A change of diet for a day or two is all 
 very well, but to renounce his own proper food 
 for more than a month was hard. So one day 
 he said to his father-in-law, " I must go back 
 soon to my old parents, for they will be pining 
 at my absence. But why should we have to 
 bear the double expense of my coming all the 
 way here again to take my wife to my village ? 
 So if yoa will kindly let me take the girl with 
 
119 
 
 me I shall take her to her future home, and 
 hand her over to her mother-in-law, and see 
 that she is well taken care of." The old 
 Brahman agreed to this, and replied, " My 
 dear son-in-law, you are her husband and she 
 is yours and we now send her with yon, 
 though it is like sending her into the wilderness 
 with her eyes tied up. But as we take you to 
 be everything to her, we trust you to treat her 
 kindly." The mother of the bride shed tears at 
 the idea of having to send her away, but 
 nevertheless the very next day was fixed for the 
 journey. The old woman spent the whole 
 day in preparing cakes and sweetmeats for her 
 daughter, and when the time for the journey 
 arrived, she took care to place in her 
 bundles and on her head one or two margosa" 
 leaves to keep off demons. The relatives of 
 the bride requested her husband to allow her 
 to rest wherever she found shade, and to eat 
 wherever she found water, and to this he 
 agreed, and so they began their journey. 
 
 The boy tiger and his human wife pursued 
 their journey for two or three ghatikds^ in free 
 and pleasant conversation, when the girl happen- 
 ed to see a fine pond, round which the birds were 
 
 ' Among high caste Hindfls when girls leave one village 
 and go to another the old woman of the house — the 
 mother or grandmother — always places in her bundles 
 and on her head a few margoaa leaves as a talisman 
 against demons. 
 
 ' A gh/itikS, is 24 minutes. The story being HindA, 
 the HindA method of reckoning distance is used. 
 
120 
 
 Warbling their sweet notes. She requested 
 her husband to follow her to the water's 
 edge and to partake of some of the cakes 
 and sweetmeats with her. But he replied, 
 "Be quiet, or I shall show you my original shape." 
 This made her afraid, so she pursued her 
 journey in silence until she saw another pond, 
 when she asked the same question of her 
 husband, who rephed in the same tone. Now 
 she was very hungry, and not liking her 
 husband's tone, which she found had greatly 
 changed ever since they had entered the woods, 
 said to him, " Show me your original shape." 
 
 No sooner were these words uttered than 
 her husband remained no longer a man. Four 
 legs, a striped skin, a long tail and a tiger's 
 face came over him suddenly and, horror of 
 horrors ! a tiger~ and not a man stood before 
 her ! Nor were her fears stilled when the tiger 
 in human voice began as follows: — "Know 
 henceforth that I, your husband, am a tiger — 
 this very tiger that now speaks to you. If 
 you have any regard for your life you must 
 obey all my orders implicitly, for I can speak 
 to you in human voice and understand what 
 you say. In a couple of ghalikas we shall 
 reach my home, of which you will become 
 the mistress. In the front of ray house you 
 will see half a dozen tubs, each of which you 
 must fill up daily with some dish or other 
 cooked in your own way. I shall take care to 
 
121 
 
 supply you with all the provisions jou want." 
 So saying the tiger slowly conducted her to 
 his house. 
 
 The misery of the girl may more be ima- 
 gined than described, for if she ■were to object 
 she would be put to death. So, weeping all 
 the way, she reached her husband's house. 
 Leaving her there he went out and returned 
 with several pumptins and some flesh, of 
 which she soon prepared a curiy and gave it to 
 her husband. He went out again after this 
 and returned in the evening with several vege- 
 tables and some more flesh and gave her an 
 order r—'" Every morning I shall go out in 
 search of provisions and prey and bring some- 
 thing with me on my return : you mast keep 
 cooked for me whatever I leave in the house." 
 So next morning as soon as the tiger had 
 gone away she cooked everything left in the 
 house and filled all the tubs with food. At 
 the 10th ghalika the tiger returned and growl- 
 ed out, " I smell a man 3 I smell a woman in 
 niy wood." And his wife for very fear shut 
 herself up in the house. As soon as the tiger 
 had satisfied his appetite he told her to open the 
 door, which she did, and they talked together 
 for a time, after which the tiger rested awhile, 
 and then went out hunting again. Thus 
 passed many a day, till the tiger's Brahman wife 
 had a son, which also turned out to be only a 
 tiger. 
 
122 
 
 One day, after the tiger liad gone out to th® 
 woods, his wife was crying all alone in the 
 house, when a crow happened to peck at some 
 rice that was scattered near her, and seeing the 
 girl ciying, began to shed tears. 
 
 " Can yoa assist me?" asked the girl, 
 
 " Yes," said the crow. 
 
 So she brought oat a palmyra leaf and wrote 
 on it with an iron nail all her sufferings* in the 
 wood, and requested her brothers to come and 
 relieve her. This palmyra leaf she tied to the 
 neck of the crow, which, seeming to under- 
 stand "her thoughts, flew to her village and sat 
 down before one of her brothers. He untied 
 the leaf and read the contents of the letter and 
 told them to his other brothers. All the three 
 then started for the wood, asking their mother 
 to give them something to eat on the way. 
 She had not enough of rice for the three, so she 
 made a big ball of clay and stuck it over with 
 what rice she had, so as to make it look like a 
 ball of rice. This she gave to the brothers to eat 
 on their way and started them off to the woods. 
 
 They had not proceeded long before they 
 espied an ass. The youngest, who was of a 
 playful disposition, wished to take the ass with 
 him. The two elder brothers objected to this for 
 a time, but in the end they allowed him to have 
 his own way. Further on they saw an ant, 
 which the middle brother took with him. 
 Near the ant there was a big palmyra tree lying 
 
123 
 
 on the ground, which the eldest took with him 
 to keep off the tiger. 
 
 The sun was now high in the horizon and the 
 three brothers became very hungry. So they 
 sat down near a tank and opened the bundle 
 containing the ball of rice. To their utter 
 disappointment they found it to be all clay, but 
 being extremely hungry they drank all the 
 water in the pond and continued their journey. 
 'Oij leaving the tank they found a big iron tub 
 belonging to the washerman of the adjacent 
 village. This they took also with them in addi- 
 tion to the ass, the ant and the palmyra tree. 
 Following the road described by their sister in 
 her letter by the crow, they walked on and on 
 till they reached the tiger's house. 
 
 The sister, overjoyed to see her brothers 
 again, ran out at once to welcome them. " My 
 dearest brothers, I am so glad to see that you 
 have come here to relieve me after all, but the 
 time for the tiger's coming home is approach- 
 ing, so hide yourselves in the loft, and wait 
 till he is gone." So saying she helped her 
 brothers to ascend into the loft. By this time 
 the tiger returned, and perceived the presence 
 of human beings by the peculiar smell. He 
 asked his wife whether any one had come to 
 their house. She said, " No." But when the 
 brothers, who with their trophies of the way — 
 the ass, the ant, and so on — were sitting upon the 
 loft, saw the tiger dallying with their sister they 
 
324 
 
 ■were greatly frightened ; so mrtch so that the 
 yoTingest throiagh fear began to make -water,- 
 and, as he had drunk a great quantity of water 
 from the pond, he flooded the TvhoJe room. 
 The other two also followed bis example, 
 and thus there was a deluge in the tiger's 
 house. 
 
 " What is all this ?" said the terrified tiger 
 to his wife. 
 
 " Nothing," said she, " but the urine of your 
 brothers-in-law. They came here a watch* 
 ago, and as soon as you have finished your meals, 
 they want to see you." 
 
 "Can my brothers-in-law make ail this 
 water ?" thought the tiger to himself. 
 
 He then asked them to speak to him, where- 
 on the youngest brother put the ant which he 
 had in his hand into the ear of the ass, and as 
 soon as the latter was bitten, it began to hawl 
 out most horribly. 
 
 " How is it that your brothers have such a 
 hoarse voice ?" said the tiger to his wife. 
 
 He next asked them to show their legs. 
 Taking courage at the stupidity of the tiger on 
 the two former occasions, the eldest brother now 
 stretched out the palmyra tree. 
 
 "By my father, I have never seen such a 
 leg," said the tiger, and asked hishrothers-inJaw 
 to show their bellies. The second brother now 
 
 * A ' watoh* is a y&ma, or tluree hours. 
 
125 
 
 showed tlie tub,' at whicli the tiger shuddered, 
 and saying, " such a lot of urine, such a harsh 
 voice, so stout a leg and such a helly, truly I 
 have never heard of such persona as these !" he 
 ran away. 
 
 It was already dark, and the brothers, wish- 
 ing to take advantage of the tiger's terror, 
 prepared to return home with their sister at 
 once. They ate up what little food she had, 
 and ordered her to Start. Fortunately for her 
 her tiger-child was asleep. So she tore it into 
 two pieces and suspended them over the hearth, 
 and, thus getting rid of the child, she ran off 
 with her brothers towards home. 
 
 Before leaving she bolted the front door 
 from inside, and went out at the back of the 
 house. As soon as the pieces of the cub, which 
 were hung up over the hearth, began to roast 
 they dripped, which made the fire hiss and 
 sputter ; and when the tiger returned at about 
 m.idnight, he found the door shut and heard 
 the hissing of the fire, which he mistook for the 
 noise of cooking mufiins.* 
 
 " I see !" said he to himself, " how very cun- 
 ning you are ! you have bolted the door and 
 are cooking muffins for your brothers ! Let 
 us see if we can't get your mufSns," So saying 
 he went round to the back door and entered 
 his house, and was greatly perplexed to find 
 
 ' Tamil, t6iai. 
 
126 
 
 his cub toi-n in two and being roasted, his 
 house deserted by his Brahman wife, and his 
 property plundered ! For his wife, before 
 leaving, had taken with her as much of the 
 tiger's property as she could conveniently 
 carry. 
 
 The tiger now discovered all the treachery of 
 his wife, and his hieart grieved for the loss of his 
 son, that was now no more. He determined to 
 be revenged on his wife, and to bring her back 
 into the wood, and there tear her into many 
 pieces in place of only two. But how to bi-ing 
 her back ? He assumed his original shape of 
 a young bridegroom, making, of course, due 
 allowance for the number of years that had 
 passed since his marriage, and next morning 
 went to his father-in-law's house. His bro- 
 thers-in-law and his wife saw from a 
 distance the deceitful form he had assumed 
 and devised means to kill him. Meanwhile 
 the tiger Brahman approached his father-in- 
 law's house, and the old people welcomed him. 
 The younger ones too ran here and there to 
 bring provisions to feed him sumptuously, and 
 the tiger was highly pleased at the hospitable 
 way in which he was received. 
 
 There was a ruined well at the back of the 
 house, and the eldest of the brothers placed 
 some thin sticks across its mouth, over which 
 he spread a fine mat. Now it is usual to ask 
 guests to have an oil bath before dinner, and so 
 
127 
 
 his three brothers-in-law requested the tiger to 
 take his seat on the fine mat for his bath. As 
 soon as he sat on it the thin sticks being 
 unable to bear his weight gave way and down 
 fell the cunning tiger with a heavy crash ! The 
 well was at once filled in with stones and other 
 rubbish, and thus the tiger was eifectually pre- 
 vented from doing any more miseliief. 
 
 But the Brahman girl, in memory of her hav- 
 ing married a tiger, raised a pillar over the well 
 and planted a tulasi" shrub on the top of it. 
 Morning and evening, for the rest of her life, 
 she used to smear the pillar with sacred cow- 
 dung and water the tulasi shrub. 
 
 This story is told to explain the Tamil 
 provei-b " Summd iruhkiraya, suruvattai hu- 
 ttaftuma," which means — ■ 
 
 " Be quiet, or I shall show you my original 
 shape." 
 
 " A fragrant herb, held in great veneration by the 
 Hindus ; Ocymum sanctum, This herb is sapred ali^e to 
 Siva and Vishnu. Those species specially saored to Siva 
 are — Ve)^dulast ; ^iru-tulaaJ, and Siva-tulasi) those to 
 Yi8h?« are ssnMc^sl, KavviniulciiS', and ViahJ}u-tv,laa(, 
 
128 
 
 XI. 
 THE GOOD HUSBAND AND THE BAD WIFE. 
 
 In a remote village thefe lived a Brahman 
 whose good nature and charitable disiposi- 
 tion were proverbial. Equally proverbial also 
 were the ill-nature and uncharitable disposition 
 of the Brahmani — his wife. But as Paramesvara 
 (God) had joined them in matrimony, they had 
 to live together as husband and wife, though 
 their temperaments were so incompatible. 
 Every day the Brahman had a taste of his 
 wife's ill-temper, and if any other Brahman was 
 invited to dinner by him, his wife, somehow or 
 other, would nlanage to drive him away. 
 
 One fine summer morning a rather stupid 
 Brahman friend of his came to visit our hero 
 and was at once invited to dinner. He told 
 his wife to have dinner ready earlier than 
 usual, and went off to the river to bathe. His 
 friend not feeling Very well that day wanted 
 a hot bath at the house, and so did not fol- 
 low him to the river, but remained sitting in 
 the outer verandah. If any other guest had 
 come the wife would have accused him of 
 greediness to his face and sent him away, but 
 this visitor seemed to be a special friend of 
 her lord, so she did not like to say anything ; 
 but she devised a plan to make him go away 
 of his own accord. 
 
129 
 
 She proceeded to smear tlie ground before 
 her husband's friend -with cowdung, and placed 
 in the Kiidst of it a long pestle supporting 
 one end of it against the wall. She next 
 approached the pestle most solemnly and per- 
 formed worship (pujd) to it. The guest did not 
 in the least understand what she was doing, and 
 respectfully asked her what it all meant. 
 
 "This is what is called pestle worship," she 
 replied. " I do it as a daily duty, and this pestle 
 is meant to break the head of some human being 
 in honour of a goddess, whose feet are most 
 devoutly worshipped by my hugband. Every day 
 as soon as he returns from Lis bath in the river 
 he takes this pestle, which I am ordered to keep 
 ready for him before his return, and with it 
 breaks the head of any human being whom he 
 has managed to get hold of by inviting hin^ 
 for a meal. This is his tribute (dalcBhind) to 
 the goddess ; to-day you are the victim." 
 
 The guest was much alarmed. " What \ breal? 
 the head of 9, guest ! J at &ny rate shp,ll not be 
 deceived to-day, " thought he, and prepared to 
 run away. 
 
 The Prahman's wife appeared to sympathise 
 with his sad plight, and gaid : — 
 
 " Really, I do pity you. 5ut there is one 
 thing yon can do iiow to save yourself. If 
 yoii go out by the front door and walk in the 
 street my husband may follow you, so you hfid 
 better go out by the beiick ^oor," 
 
130 
 
 To this plan the guest most thankfully 
 agreed, and hastily ran off by the back dooi'. 
 
 Almost immediately our hero returned from 
 his bath, but before he could arrive his wife 
 had cleaned up the place she had prepared for 
 the pestle -worship ; and when the Brahman, not 
 finding hi.s friend in the house inquired of her 
 as to what had become of him, she said in 
 seeming anger ; — 
 
 "The greedy brnte ! he wanted me to give 
 him this pestle — this very pestle which I 
 brought forty years ago as a dowry from my 
 mother's house, and when I refused he ran 
 away by the back-yard in haste." 
 
 But her kind-hearted lord observed that he 
 would rather lose the pestle than his guest, 
 even though it was a part of his wife's dowry 
 and more than forty years old. So he ran off 
 with the pestle in his hand after his friend 
 crying out, " Oh Brahman ! Oh Brahman ! 
 Stop please, and take the pestle." 
 
 But the stoi'y told by the old woman now 
 seemed most true to the guest when he saw her 
 husband running after him, and so he said, 
 "Tou and your pestle may go where you 
 please. Never more will you catch me in your 
 house," and ran away. 
 
]31 
 
 XII. 
 THE GOOD WIFE AND THE BAD HUSBAND.^ 
 
 la a remote village there lived a man and his 
 wife, who was a stupid little woman and 
 believed everything that was told her. When- 
 ever people wanted anything from her they 
 used to come and flatter her ; but this had to be 
 done in the absence of her husband, because he 
 was a very miserly man, and would never part 
 with any of his money, for all he was exceed- 
 ingly rich. Nevertheless, without his know- 
 ledge cunning beggars would now and then 
 come to his wife and beg of her, and they used 
 genei-ally to succeed, as she was so amenable 
 to flattery. But whenever her husband found 
 her out he would come down heavily upon her, 
 sometimes with words and sometimes with 
 blows. Thus quarrels arose, till at last, for the 
 sake of peace, the wife had to give up her 
 charitable propensities. 
 
 Now there lived in the village a rogue of the 
 first water, who had many a time witnessed 
 what took place in the rich miser's family. 
 "Wishing to revive his old habit of getting what 
 he wanted from the miser's wife he watched 
 his opportunity and one day, when the miser 
 
 ' [flompare the Sinhalese folktale given at p. 62, Vol. I- 
 of the Orientalist. — En.] 
 
132 
 
 had gone out on horseback to inspect his 
 lands, he came to his wife in the middle of the 
 day and fell down at the threshold as if over- 
 come by exhaustion. She ran up to him at 
 once and asked him who he was. 
 
 "I am a native of Kailasa," said he, "sent 
 down by an old conple living there, for news 
 of their son and his wife." 
 
 " Who are those fortunate dwellers on Siva's 
 mountain ? " said she. 
 
 On this the rogue gave the names of her 
 husband's deceased parents, which he had taken 
 good care, of course, to learn from the neigh, 
 hours. 
 
 " Do you really come from them ? " said she. 
 " Are they doing well there ? Dear old people. 
 How glad my husband would be to see you, were 
 he here ! Sit down please, and take rest awhile ' 
 till he returns. How do they live there ? Have 
 they enough to eat and to dress themselves?" 
 These and a thousand other questions she put to 
 the rogue, who, for his part, wanted to get away 
 as quick as possible, as he knew full well how 
 he would he treated if the miser should return 
 while he was there, so he said :— 
 
 " Mother, language has no words to describe 
 the miseries they are undergoing in the other 
 world. They have not a rag to cover them- 
 selveSj and for the last six days they have eaten 
 nothing, and have lived on water only. It 
 would break your heart to see them." 
 
133 
 
 The rogue's pathetic words fully deceived tha 
 good woman, who firmly believed that he had 
 come down from Kailasa, sent by the old couple 
 to her. 
 
 " Why should they suffer so ? " said she, 
 " when their son has plenty to eat and to dresa 
 himself, and when their daughter-in-law wears 
 all sorts of costly ornaments ? " 
 
 With that she went into the house and came 
 out with two boxes containing all the clothes of 
 herself and her husband and gave the whole lot 
 to the rogue, with instructions to take them to 
 her poor old people in Kailasa. She also gave 
 him the jewel box to be presented to her 
 mother-in-law. 
 
 "But dress and jewels will not fill their 
 hungry stomachs," said he. 
 
 Requesting him to wait a little, the silly 
 woman brought out her husband's cash chest 
 and emptied the contents into the rogue's- 
 coat,' who now went off in haste, promising 
 to give everything to the good people iii' 
 Kailasa. Our good lady, aceordingto etiquette, 
 conducted him a few hundred yards along the- 
 road and sent news of herself through him to her 
 relatives, and then returned home. The rogue 
 now tied up all his booty in. his eoat and ran 
 in haste towards the river and crossed over it. 
 
 No sooner had our heroine reached hom» 
 than her husband returned after his inspectiom 
 
 ' Uparani or upavaetr.a, an upper gauuent. 
 1^ 
 
134 
 
 of his lands. Her pleasure at what she had done 
 was so great, that she met him at the door and 
 told him all about the arrival of the messenger- 
 from Kailasa, and how she had sent clothes 
 and jewels and money through him to her 
 husband's parents. The anger of her husband 
 knew no bounds. But he checked himself 
 for a while, and asked her which road the 
 messenger from Kailasa had taken, as he said 
 he wanted to follow him and send some more 
 news to his parents. To this she willingly- 
 agreed and pointed out the direction the rogu& 
 had gone. With rage in his heart at the 
 trick played upon his stapid wife our hero 
 rode on in hot haste and after a ride of two 
 ghaiikds he caught sight of the flying rogue, 
 who, finding escape hopeless, climbed up into a 
 big pijpal tree. Our hero soon reached the 
 bottom of the tree and shouted to the rogue to 
 come down. 
 
 " No, I cannot, this is the way to Kailasa," 
 said the rogue, and climbed up on the top of the 
 tree. Seeing no chance of the rogue's coming 
 down and as there was no third person present 
 to whom he could call for help, our hero tied 
 his horse to an adjacent tree and began climb- 
 ing up the pipal tree himself. The rogue 
 thanked all his gods when he saw this, and 
 waited till his enemy had climbed nearly up 
 to him, and then, throwing down his bundle of 
 booty, leapt quickly from branch to branch till 
 
135 
 
 he reached the bottom. He then got upon his 
 enemy's horse and with his bundle rode into a 
 dense forest in which no one was likely to find 
 him. Our hero being much older in years was no 
 match for the rogue. So he slowly came down, 
 and cursing his stupidity in having risked his 
 horse to recover his property, returned home at 
 his leisure. His wife, who was waiting his 
 arrival, welcomed him with a cheerful counte- 
 nance and said, 
 
 " I thought as much. You have sent away 
 your horse to Kailasa to be used by your 
 father." 
 
 Vexed as he was at his wife's words, our hero 
 replied in the affirmative to conceal his own 
 stupidity. 
 
 Thus, some thei-e are in this world, who, 
 though they may not willingly give away any- 
 thing, pretend to have done so when by accident 
 or stupidity they happen to lose it. 
 
FOLKLORE IN SOUTHERN INDIA. 
 
 BT 
 
 PANDIT NAT^SA SASTBt, 
 
 QOVBBNMENI AeCHjBOLOGICAL SuBTBT. 
 
 Price, 1 Kupee ; postage, &c., 1 Anna. 
 
 OplxxlorLB of -tlaie X^xresa. 
 
 TJndbr the above title we have received from Mr. Nat6?» 
 Sastri a small collection of Indian Fables which forcibly 
 call to mind the legendary tales with which bright 
 memories of our early years are stored. The tales con- 
 tained in this little book, however, difEer considerably in 
 one respect from those with which our youthful hours over 
 the home- fire-side were beguiled. Both alike amuse, and 
 yet point a moral or proclaim a truth, but these fairy tales 
 of an Eastern land, unlike our own, have blended with 
 them peculiar mythological allusions which lend them 
 
piquancy. The East has ever been the home of legendary 
 lore, but unfortunately ignorance of the language of this 
 country on our part, and of ours on the part of the native, 
 has for some time prevented the European from learning 
 the style of fairy tale with which the Indian grand-dame 
 beguiles the evening hour, seated among her dusky off. 
 spring, or the way-side improvisator rivets the attention 
 of the passer-by with his stories of quaint imagery, and 
 half historical, half fictitious, or half probable and half 
 improbable tales. It is the love of the marvellous with 
 which the Eastern mind is so deeply imbued, that has to a 
 great extent clouded the early history of this land. To 
 trace the story of the good old days when Pandyapand 
 Chola strove for mastery in Southern India is, owing to 
 this, rendered well-nigh impossible. So intimately are 
 copioils myths blended with a little truth, that history 
 has degenerated into fable, even in times so recent that in 
 European history they seem but as yesterday. The little 
 book before ns goes far to show to the English reader 
 what has hitherto been a closed bobk to many, the style of 
 fiction which has thus impregnated the history of this 
 part of the world. Historical allusions there are, but all 
 blended, as we have said, with myth forming a quaint whole. 
 In many instances the origin of proverbs and the reasons 
 tor certain Hindu customs are explained. Thus in one 
 Btory we learn the legend on account of which the Brahman 
 will not eat his food in the dark, while another explains 
 the origin of the Tamil proverb, " Charity alone conquers." 
 The English in which the tales are written is very good, 
 and seldom does the author betray that the language in 
 which he writes is any other than his own mother-tongue. 
 
We find in it few indeed of those Indian peculiarities of 
 language or composition from which native productions 
 are seldom free. It is throughout most readably written, 
 and we should strongly recommend any one who takes an 
 interest in the literature of the East to peruse its fairy 
 tales. — The Madras Times. 
 
 It is due to the patient researches of a class of savants 
 and investigators that the Folklore of so many countries 
 constitute an agreeable part of the literature of the world. 
 Men of the highest intellect have addressed themselves, 
 with more or less credit, to the task of collecting those 
 legendary tales, myths, and sipiilar things founded on some 
 incident or tradition about which there is no historic 
 certainty, and which are coloured by the glow of an 
 imagination that runs riot. Every nationality in India has 
 its. Folklore, but it is only a small part of it that has been 
 explored and brought to light, and there yet remains a 
 large field for the industry of those who will take the 
 trouble to discover the sort of legends that are retailed 
 and believed in by the great mass of the people, legends 
 the recital of which in prose or verse amuse the untutored 
 fancy in numberless households or on the way-side. The 
 late' Mr. Gover published a work giving an interesting 
 account of the Folklore in the Madras Presidency, and 
 especially that in vogue among the Tamil-speaking popula. 
 tion. Had he not been cut off in the prime of life and 
 from amidst his useful municipal labours, this work would 
 have been greatly extended. We have received a brochure 
 of eighty-three pages, entitled " Folklore in Southern 
 India "by a learned Pandit (S. M, Natesa Sastrl,) of the 
 
4 
 
 Madi'M Preiidency, employed in th» GoTornment ArchsBO- 
 logical Survey. It is -written in English in a pleasing 
 manner, and is only the first part of the tales that make up 
 the folklore in Southern India. — The Madras Standard, 
 
 To he had from 
 
 Thk superintendent, 
 
 Education Socibtt's Peess, Btculla, 
 
 BOMBAY, 
 
 or 
 Mr. V. SAMBAMURTI ATTAR, 
 
 Tank Ageahakam NunqambIkam, 
 
 MADRAS. 
 
FOLKLORE 
 
 IN 
 
 SOUTHERN INDIA. 
 
 PART III. 
 
 BY 
 
 PANDIT S. M. NATESA SASTRI. 
 
 MEMBEK OF THE COUNCIL OP THE LONDON 
 FOLKLORE SOCIETY. 
 
 BOMBAY : 
 EDUCATION SOCIETY'S PRESS, BYCULLA. 
 
 1888. 
 All Mdghts Reserved. 
 
 Price 1 Rupee 8 annas 
 
FOLKLORE 
 
 SOUTHERN INDIA 
 
 PART III. 
 
 PANDIT S. M. NATeSa SiSTBt. 
 
 MBMBEE OF THE COTJlfCIL OP THE LONDOIf 
 FOLELOBE SOCIETY. 
 
 BOMBAY : 
 
 EDUCATION SOCIETY'S PEESS, BYCULLA. 
 
 1888. 
 All Bdghts Reserved. 
 
TO 
 
 1^icHy^i\D j!!ai\j^ac Jemple, 
 
 Captain, Bengal Staff Corps, 
 
 WHOSE WOEKS FIRST SUGGESTED TO THE WBITEE 
 
 THE IDEA OF COLLECTING 
 
 THESE TALES 
 
 AND WHO HAS DONE SO MUCH 
 
 FOR THE CAUSE OP INDIAN FOLE-LORB, 
 
 THIS LITTLE BOOK 
 
 IS INSCRIBED. 
 
CONTENTS, 
 
 PAGE. 
 
 1. The Three Deaf Men , S 
 
 2. Why Brfi:tmaiis cannot eat in the dark. , 7 
 
 3. The Soothsayer's son 12 
 
 4. Bianavirasiag 35 
 
 5. Charity alone conquers 63 
 
 6. Mr. Won't-Give and Mr. "Won't-Leave... 85 
 
 7. Mr. Mighty-of-his-mouth and Mr. 
 
 Mighty-of -his -hands 91 
 
 8. The Mother-in-law became an Ass 99 
 
 9. Appayya 104 
 
 10. The Brahman Girl that married a Tiger. 116 
 
 11. The Good Husband and the Bad Wife... 128 
 
 12. The Good Wife and the Bad Husband... 131 
 
 13. The Four Good Sisters 138 
 
 14. The Monkey with the Tom-tom 182 
 
 15. Good will grow out of Good 185 
 
 16. Pride goeth before a Fall 193 
 
 17. Light makes Prospeiity 197 
 
 18. TheFiveCups 205 
 
 19. The Brahmar&kshasa 214 
 
 20. The Satchet-bearer 221 
 
 21. The Brahmar&kshasa and the Hair 272 
 
 22. The Beggar and the Five Muffins 277 
 
 23. The Br4hman Priest who became an 
 
 AmUdar 282 
 
 24. The Gardener's Wife 291 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 As many of my friends have suggested that 
 I should state the source from which and the 
 part of the country in which I heard the 
 stories narrated in this volume, I have thought 
 it advisable to give, in a few prefatory remarks, 
 some details of my private life which throw 
 light on the subject. 
 
 I am a native of the Trichinopoly District 
 and was in my early days brought up in the 
 villages of Lalgudi and Kulitalai, where my 
 parents lived. From my Childhood, stories and 
 tales had a great fascination for me, and I was 
 therefore a favourite with every old dame in my 
 family who, being disabled by age from doing 
 any household work, was glad to beguile her 
 hours by playing upon my sense of the mar- 
 vellous. Moreover having had the misfortune 
 to lose my ifaother at a very early age, I was 
 probably regarded as a fit object of compassion, 
 and every story-teller in the village would 
 
VIU PREFACE. 
 
 readily comply with the poor orphan's request 
 for a story. I, thus, early acquired an 
 aptitude for tales and this was considerably 
 improved from the fact that my father's 
 second wife happened to be a great repository 
 of this kind of learning. Unlike the step- 
 mother of fiction, she was very kind to 
 me, and used to spend all her leisure mo- 
 ments in amusing her step-son. So, before I 
 had reached the age of ten my taste for stories 
 had become largely developed, and I had heard 
 almost all that any man or woman in the vil- 
 lage had to tell. By constant repetition and 
 narration these tales became firmly rooted in 
 my memory, and it was the greatest pleasure 
 of my boyhood to amuse knots of eager liste- 
 ners of about the same age as myself with side - 
 splitting tales. Soon however my story-hear- 
 ing and story-telling propensity had to lie 
 dormant, for more serious studies intervened, 
 and, until I had passed through college, I gave 
 but little thought as to the use to which I 
 could turn the peculiar knowledge acquired 
 in my younger days. Afterwards, in 1881, I 
 entered the Archseological Survey Department, 
 and became a regular reader of the Indian 
 
PREFACE. IX 
 
 Antiquary. The perusal of Captain Tem- 
 ple's excellent contributions in tliat journal 
 made me coascious for the first time that I 
 could utilize my early knowledge of folk-tales in 
 the advancement of folklore literature. I first 
 wrote the Tales I remembered in Tamil, and 
 then through the kind encouragement afforded 
 me by Captain Temple, to whom I feel very 
 much indebted, I was able to publish an 
 English edition of the same. 
 
 Such is the short history of the source from 
 which my tales are derived, and this is the origin 
 of my humble work, which I now respectfully 
 beg to place before the public. 
 
 S. M. N. 
 
 Brodie's Boad, Mylapore — Madras, 
 December 1887. 
 
FOLKLORE IN SOUTHERN INDIA. 
 
 xni. 
 
 THE FOUR GOOD SISTERS. 
 
 In the town of TaBjai there reigned a king 
 named Hariji, who was a very good and 
 charitable sovereign. In his reign the tiger 
 and bull drank out of the same pool, the 
 serpent and peacock amused themselves 
 under the same tree ; and thus even birds and 
 beasts of a quarrelsome and inimical character 
 lived together like sheep of the same flock. 
 While the brute creation of the great God was 
 thus living in friendship and happiness, need 
 it be said that this king's subjects led a life of 
 peace and prosperity unknown in any other 
 country under the canopy of heaven ? 
 
 But, for all the peace which his subjects en- 
 joyed, Hariji himself had no joy. His face -was 
 always drooping, his lips never moved in laugh- 
 ter, and he was as sad as sad could be, because 
 he had no son. After trying in vain the various 
 distributions of charitable gifts, which his elders 
 and priests recommended, he resolved within 
 himself to retire into the wilderness, there to 
 propitiate Mahesvara, the great god of gods, 
 hoping thus to have his desires fulfilled. 
 Xo sooner had this thought entered into his 
 
138 
 
 mind than he called his ministers to his side, 
 and, informing them of his intention, made over 
 to them the kingdom of Tanjai. He gave 
 strict orders to them to look after the interests 
 of his subjects, vs'arning them that, if they failed 
 in this, they would have to pay forfeit with their 
 heads. Thus appointing his ministers in his 
 place, to order his realm- during his absence^ 
 Hariji retired to the nearest jangle as a hermit. 
 The monarch of Tanjai, who had been atten- 
 ded with innumerable servants, now became his 
 own servant and master. He removed all his 
 royal garments and clothed himself with the 
 bark of trees. To him, whose bed had been till 
 then the softest of cushions made of the finest 
 and most delicate cotton, the dried leaves now 
 furnished a mattress. Roots and fruits were 
 now his only food, in the place of a thousand 
 different dishes, which had at one time 
 been daily spread before him. Every morning 
 lie rose from his bed of leaves, bathed in 
 i he coldest water, and sat meditating on 
 ]\Iaheivara till about the twentieth glmtiku} 
 Then he would rise up and taste something of 
 the roots or fruits he hajjpened to see near 
 him. In the evening again he would bathe 
 and sit meditating till midnight. Then thrice 
 sipping water only he would retire to rest (if 
 
 ^ li p.m. ; a ghatilci is twenty-four minutes, 30 g}iatil;6s 
 make one day, and 30 one night. Thus 60 ghatihas 
 make a day and night. 
 
189 
 
 rest it deserves to be called) for ten cjhatikds^ 
 Such was his daily routine, and in this most 
 severe penance he wasted away by degrees for 
 nearly two years. All his ribs began to pro- 
 ject from his sides, his skin dried up, and one 
 could count his nerves and veins. For all 
 that, he never wavered in his penance. 
 
 On the first day of the third year after 
 Hariji commenced his penance, the great god 
 Mahesvara came to recognize the monarch in 
 his devotee. Mounting his bull, with Parvati, 
 his goddess, on his left, he appeared before the 
 royal hermit who literally danced with joy at 
 the sight of his long-looked-for god ! 
 
 "Thy prayers and praises, my good son, 
 have been rising before our throne in Kailasa,^ 
 for the past two years, like a pillar of virtue, 
 and have brought me down to thee to grant 
 thy boon. Ask and thou shalt have." Thus 
 spake Mahesvara with a smile on his face and 
 his right arm raised to bless. 
 
 "My great God," replied the king, "lan- 
 guage has no words to express the great joy 
 and pleasure I have had to-day in that thou 
 in thy holiness hast condescended to visit thy 
 poor dog. This slave of thy most divine 
 righteousness has had no child conferred upon 
 him, though his beard has whitened with age. 
 To gain this boon, and thus sweeten the few 
 
 ' Four hours. ' The abode of Siva. 
 
140 
 
 more years lie lias to drag oat in this 
 world, he lias been propitiating tliy divine 
 holiness." 
 
 "All men must undergo the miseries of a 
 former life in this one," replied the god. 
 " However, for thy long penance we have been 
 pleased with thee, and grant thee this request. 
 Choose then : — A son who shall always be with 
 thee till death, but who shall be the greatest fool 
 in the whole world ; or four daughters who shall 
 live with thee for a short time, then leave thee 
 and return before thy death, but who shall 
 be the incarnation of learning. To thee is 
 left to choose between the two." Thus spake 
 Mahesvara; and Hariji the hermit chose the 
 daughters. The god gave him a mango-fruit 
 to be presented to his ' queen, and dis- 
 appeared. 
 
 The fruit of his long penance Hariji thus held 
 in his hand. He cared nothing for the prospect 
 of having only daughters. Daughters or sons, 
 he wanted to have children, and so his desire 
 had been crowned with success. A thousand 
 times happy he felt himself in the prospect before 
 him, as he returned to his country. Great was 
 the joy of his subjects and ministers, to see 
 among them again their beloved sovereign. 
 
 The king called for his priests, and, fixing an 
 auspicious hour for the presentation of the 
 fruit, gave it to his queen. She became preg- 
 nant, and in due course gave birth to four 
 
141 
 
 daughters as beautiful as Rati.* And thus 
 Harijl obtained four daughters by the grace 
 of God in his old age. Their names were 
 Gaiigabai, Tamunabai, Kamalabai, and Nilabai. 
 
 He left no stone unturned to give them a 
 liberal education. Professors for every branch 
 of learning were appointed, and the girls, 
 before they were in their tenth year, had been 
 taught the four Vedas, the six Sdstras, the 
 the sixty-four kinds of learning, and all the 
 rest of it. They became great Panditds, and 
 were like four great jewels among the woman- 
 kind of those days. 
 
 One day the old king was seated in the first 
 storey of his palace to be rubbed over with oil.'' 
 The oil-rubber began to apply the oil to his 
 head so irregularly and in such a stupid 
 way, that his daughters, who were looking on at 
 a distance, were highly vexed, and calling to 
 their mother asked her to interfere, and send 
 the man away. Then they themselves applied 
 the oil to their father's head, in so delicate a 
 way that the old king did not in the least 
 feel that anything was being rubbed over it. 
 He was exceedingly pleased with them, and 
 after sending them away finished his bath. 
 
 He now bethought him of Mahesvara's con- 
 dition when granting his desire for children, — 
 
 ' The wife of KSma (the god of Love) and goddesa of 
 beauty. 
 ' A South Indian custom, corresponding to a bath. 
 
142 . 
 
 that his intelligent dangliters should leave him 
 before they had been long with liim. " How 
 will they leave me ? If I give them, away in 
 marriage, then, of course, they will leave me : 
 but if I prevent this, and make some other 
 arrangement for them I shall avert the 
 unhappy prophecy of the god !" So thought 
 Hariji, and so has many another fool thought, 
 only to bring down swift retribution on his head- 
 After finishing his ablutions the king did not 
 go into the dining hall, but retired to his conch 
 and lay down sulkily. According to the ancient 
 customs of Hindu monarchs this was a sign 
 of a great uneasiness of mind, and the news that 
 the king had not taken even a grain of rice 
 after his oil-bath spread throughout the palace. 
 The queen came flying to know the reason 
 of her lord's displeasure. " Call my minister 
 at once," was his order, and the queen sent 
 word to that officer. 
 
 As soon as the minister arrived the king 
 ordered him to summon a great council within a 
 (jliatilcu, as he had an important question which 
 could be solved only by that learned body. 
 
 The assembly was hastily called, and the 
 members collected, anxiously waiting for the 
 matter to be set before them. The king came 
 and took his seat, and after looking gravely 
 round him rose up and said — "My learned 
 councillors that have met here to-day, I have 
 a great question to put before you for your 
 
143 
 
 opinion. Many of you are traders, and occa- 
 sionally, for varioas reasons, travel to different 
 countries. When you procure a rare object, or 
 a very precious jewel, or a valuable ornament, 
 do you keep it for your own use, or do you 
 give it away to somebody else ? Kindly think 
 over the matter well before you give me your 
 answer." 
 
 Thus spoke Hariji, and all present ex-- 
 claimed that, if the object were very rare 
 they would prefer keeping it to themselves. 
 
 "Exactly ! well said !" vociferated the king. 
 "Even so do I wish to act ! After great hard- 
 ship and severe penance I obtained through the 
 grace of Mahesvara four daughters. They are 
 my gems, my jewels, and my ornaments. 
 Why should I give them away in marriage to 
 another ? Why should I not myself marry 
 them and retain them under me ? If you-would 
 keep the rare things you acquire to yourselves, 
 why should not I also do the same ?" 
 
 All his councillors hung their heads for very 
 shame. They were disgusted at the turn 
 which their generalization had been made to 
 take and saying, "As it pleases Tour Majesty," 
 took leave of their sovereign, all thinking that 
 their king had gone mad. 
 
 It was not from any insane tendency that 
 the old king spoke in that shameless manner 
 before so learned and respectable an assembly. 
 He had firmly resolved within himself to 
 
144 
 
 marry all his four daughters himself ; and as 
 soon as his councillors had left him, he called 
 his minister to his side, and asked him to go 
 and constilt his daughters about it. By this 
 means the king foolishly thought that he 
 would reverse Mahesvara's prediction that his 
 daughters should leave him early, and see him 
 no more till just before his death. 
 
 The minister was in a delicate position. If 
 he objected to take the news to his daughters, 
 the old king might be enraged and punish him : 
 and if he boldly stood before the girls and 
 spoke to them shamelessly about their father's 
 intention to marry them himself, they might 
 become enraged and murder him ! Of the two 
 alternatives he chose death at the innocent 
 hands of the princesses, rather than at the 
 guilty hands of a king, who had become so mad 
 as to be in love with his own daughters. So 
 he went to them. 
 
 The princesses had as great a regard for 
 their father's minister as they had for their 
 father ; and when they saw him approach- 
 ing their mansion they welcomed him, and, 
 making him sit in their midst, wished to 
 hear whether he had any special reason for his 
 visit that day. When he heard the innocent 
 talk of these children, who had not even com- 
 menced their teens, his eyes began to swim 
 with tears at the thought of the unwelcome 
 news he had to communicate to them. The 
 
145 
 
 girls, who were naturally intelligent, at once 
 guessed from his tearful countenance, that 
 it must be some very bad news that he had 
 to tell, and so the eldest broke silence by sweet 
 and well chosen words : — 
 
 " Our kind father, for so we regard you, what 
 is the matter with you, that you have put on 
 such a dismal face ? Disclose to us the burden 
 of your heart, that we also may share in your 
 woes." 
 
 The minister could no longer contain his 
 sorrow. He sobbed aloud and told them all the 
 proceedings that had taken place during the 
 day, and how very sorry he was that they 
 should have that morning showed their skill to 
 their father in the oil-bath affair. The 
 girls were greatly affected at what they 
 heard, and the eldest, Gangabai, spoke as 
 follows : — 
 
 " From this minute our father is no more our 
 father, since he has become so depraved as you 
 represent him to be. We all now regard you as 
 our father, and request you to oblige us in this 
 delicate business. It is of no use to you to say 
 ' no' to the king's question. I shall give my con- 
 sent to the marriage, and tell him at the same 
 time that I have vowed to undergo a penance 
 for six months, after which the marriage may 
 be duly performed. For the present I request 
 you to oblige us with a seven-storied mansion 
 made of lacquered wood. In each stprey I 
 
146 
 
 request you to store up provisions sufficient 
 for all of us for six years. The seventh storey 
 must contain water : the sixth, vegetables ; 
 the fifth, rice; and so on: while we must 
 occupy the first two stories and proceed to carry 
 on our penance. You must come here with the 
 king on the first day of the seventh month, and 
 then you shall see a wonderful thing ! For the 
 present, please go and inform the king of our 
 consent to the marriage and of the penance we 
 have resolved on for six months, during which 
 period we must be allowed to live unobserved." 
 The minister was delighted to see that the 
 princesses, though they were young in years, 
 had a very sound knowledge of the world. He 
 promised to oblige them most willingly, and 
 gave orders, with the permission of Hariji the 
 king, for the building of the lacquered mansion 
 and for the storage of provisions. As for the 
 king, when he heard that his daughters had 
 given their consent, he was overjoyed, and 
 eagerly waited for the seventh month to come. 
 He even took special care to see the mansion was 
 built without delay. The minister, too, left no 
 stone unturned to supply the provisions requi- 
 site for half a dozen years. The mansion was 
 built, and the princesses took up their abode in 
 it for their penance. As soon as they entered 
 they bolted the door inside, and began to 
 meditate upon the boon-conferring goddess, 
 Varalakshmi. For six months they meditated. 
 
147 
 
 and on tlie last daj' of the last montli secured her 
 favour. She appeared before them in a dream, 
 robed in pure white silk, and applied huhhuma 
 (red powder) to their foreheads in token 
 that she had favoured them, and that from 
 that day they might depend upon her for 
 assistance. 
 
 Now outside this mansion, which had been 
 built in the city of Taiijai, Hariji was 
 counting the days, and, to occupy his time 
 meanwhile, had decorated the city for the 
 coming wedding of himself with his daughters, 
 and had sent invitations to all the corners 
 of the world. Several kings, out of simple 
 curiosity to see the mad performance — for the 
 old Sovereign had proclaimed to the world 
 that he was going to marry his own daugh- 
 ters ! — came to Taiijai, and were waiting for 
 the wedding day. 
 
 At last, the long expected first morning 
 of the seventh month arrived, and Hariji 
 sent his minister again to his daughters 
 to ascertain their wishes. Again the daughters 
 returned word that they gave their full consent 
 to the marriage. Hariji was overjoyed at the 
 second intimation of compliance, and decorated 
 himself with all his choicest ornaments. With 
 music before him he marched towards the 
 lacquered mansion, the kings and the other 
 guests following him to see how matters would 
 terminate. When the processional music fell 
 
148 
 
 upon the ears of the princesses, they contem- 
 plated Varalakshmi and prayed : — 
 
 " benign Goddess, if thou wouldst have us 
 become the wives of a suitable husband, — a 
 noble prince, — let this mansion rise from its 
 jiresent position and fall again in the midst of a 
 jungle untrodden by human feet ! Let the 
 gates of this mansion be shut to all that may 
 desire to open them, except to him only whom 
 thou hast appointed to be our husband !" 
 
 The eldest led the prayer, and had scarcely 
 finished, when the procession stopped before 
 the mansion. And lo ! a crack was heard and 
 the lacquered mansion, as if it had wings, 
 began to soar into the sky ! In a moment it 
 vanished out of the sight of the sinful father ; 
 and all around him with one voice cried out 
 that he was well repaid for his wicked 
 thoughts. At last Hariji saw the guilt of his 
 intentions, the just punishment with which 
 the god visited him, the fulfilment of his pro- 
 phecy, and his personal share in the early ful- 
 filment of it. He was buried in the ocean of 
 shame and sorrow, till those around him con- 
 soled him with that part of the prophecy, 
 which promised that his daughters should come 
 back to him before his death. 
 
 Within the mansion the four sisters con- 
 tinued to live as if it were their home. They had 
 everything they could desire, and, excepting 
 the time they were obliged to spend in cooking 
 
149 
 
 and eating, spent their days in study and music. 
 Their evenings they invariably ■ spent most 
 happily in playing the sitctr, and thus forget- 
 ting, their sorrows. In this wa-y they lived 
 a life of innocent enjoyment,, in the expectation 
 that the goddess Varalakshnu would soon 
 relieve them of their troubles by sending 
 them a suitable husband. 
 
 At a distance of a hundred kos from where 
 the princesses' mansion had been located by the 
 will of Varalakshmi, was a kingdom named 
 Sivapuri. In it reigned a most just king named 
 Isabhaji. He had an only son named Thaniiji, 
 who was twenty years old, — an age which fitted 
 him for taking the reins of the kingdom into his 
 own hands. His royal father wished, there- 
 fore, to have his marriage celebrated. The 
 bride chosen was the daughter of Isabhaji's 
 own sister,, and therefore Thanuji's first cousin. 
 All liked the proposed marriage, except the 
 prince ; for though the bride was as beautiful as 
 the moon, she was blind of one eye ! 
 
 " A one'.eyed wife I will never marry !" was 
 his reply to the several representations his 
 relatives made to him. 
 
 Isabhaji was already very old, and his sole- 
 object in life was to see his son married, and to 
 dandle a grand-child before his death. He had 
 tried his best previously, on several occasions, 
 to choose a young lady of noble family as a bride- 
 for his son, but Thanuji would, have, none oil 
 
150' 
 
 them. Ho-wever, tlie Mng''s sister, tsmng^ 
 great influence witli him, compelled her brother 
 to fix on an auspicious day for the marriage of 
 his son to her one-eyed d'ai;ighter Knrudi. 
 Finding it hopeless to convince his father of his 
 disinclination to marry a lady who was defective 
 by nature, Thanuji outwardly consented, and the 
 preparations for the celebration of the marriage 
 were commenced on an enormous scale. 
 
 Two days before the time appointed for the 
 marriage the prince desired to go out hunting 
 iji a neighbouring forest. His, object was not 
 really to hunt, but to disappear in the thick 
 wilderness, and to run away in order to evade 
 the marriage." The hunting expedition started 
 in the«arly morning and reached the forest by 
 about the sixth ghalihu. The hunting pro- 
 ceeded as usual till about the eighteenth gTia- 
 tiku, when the prince was seen to run to a 
 corner of the hunting ground, to disappear for 
 a time, and then to emerge again from ' his 
 place of concealment. The hunters, thinking 
 that it was his pleasure, left him to himself, and 
 engaged themselves in a different portion of 
 the forest., Thanuji now found it a good- 
 opportunity tO' eseapej and changing his horse 
 for a fresh one, galloped towards the East and 
 vanished from the sight of his vast army of 
 
 " [This is a notable incident, as giving a rational ex- 
 planation of the common disappearance of a prince on a 
 hunting expedition in Oriental folktales. It usually 
 takes place in a miraculous manner. — Ed.] 
 
151 
 
 hunters. Jast about this time the hunt was 
 brought to a close, " Where is the prince ? Have 
 you seen His Highness P " were the questions 
 which the hunters put to each other. But the 
 prince was nowhere to be found ! They 
 searched for hiro. in the wood till darkness over- 
 came them, and at last returned to Sivapuri, 
 late at night, without him ! 
 
 The old king was waiting the return of the 
 prince with a sumptncms dinner ; and when 
 the huQters informed him of his disappearance 
 he fell down in a swoon, as it were a tree cut 
 at the roots ! His sister and other relatives 
 flew to his side to console him, and he was 
 slowly brought back to his senses. It now 
 became more than plain to him that he was 
 himself the cause of the prince's flight, by 
 having tried to force him to marry Kurudi 
 against his will. He cursed Kurudi and her 
 mother, he cursed himself, and he cursed 
 every one involved in the proposed marriage ! 
 He at once sent for the palace soothsayer 
 to consult him as to the safety of his son, and 
 as to the probable date of his return. The 
 soothsayer made his appearance and took his 
 seat before the king with a palm-leaf book on his 
 left and a square dice of sandal-wood on his 
 right. When His Majesty explained to him the 
 disappearance of the prince, and wished to know 
 all about him, the soothsayer contemplated 
 Ganesa, cast the sandal- wood dice thrice, and 
 
152 
 
 turned up a leaf of He palm-book, guided to 
 the particular page by the jmmber thrown by 
 the dice. He then proclaimed : — 
 
 Snkra' now reigns supreme ; and Sukra's 
 course is a happy course ! A marriage will 
 be gained in the East ! Be cheerful, my son, for 
 the lost thing will surely be found within the 
 space of two years. Meanwhile give sumptuous 
 dinners and fees to several Brahmans every day; 
 and Paramesvara will help you !" 
 
 The faces of the king and of every one 
 present glowed with joy as the soothsayer 
 proceeded in his reading of the secret lore. 
 
 " A pair of shawls for the good soothsayer !" 
 cried oat Isabhaji ; and the present was accord- 
 ingly given. The king fully believed that his 
 son was to return to him in two years, and 
 in this belief he forgot all his sorrow at his 
 disappearance. 
 
 Let us now see what happened to the prince 
 after his escape from the hunters. He left 
 them about noon and galloped towards the 
 East. By about twilight fortune conducted 
 him towards the mansion of lacquer. The 
 appearance of the splendid building made of 
 strange materials, and not of brick or stone 
 or chunam,^ awakened his curiosity, and made 
 him approach it. In addition to this, he was 
 already dying of hunger, and wished for at 
 
 ' The planet Venus, which is male in India. 
 ' A strong plaster made of sea-shell lime. 
 
153 
 
 least a mouthful of water. Being sure that 
 he had left his hunters far behind, he 
 approached the mansion and sat down in the 
 marbled lacquer pavement of the outer verandah- 
 The god of day was sinking down in the 
 West, and the golden rays of his evening 
 beauty seemed a thousand times more beautiful 
 than he had ever seen them as they glittered 
 on the lacquered covering of the grand palace, 
 which by its loneliness struck awe into his 
 mind. Before the mansion ran a rivulet from 
 which our hero drank a handful' or two of 
 water, and overcome by fatigue stretched 
 himself on the cool surface of the palace ve- 
 randah, leaviag his horse to get his water and 
 grass himself. 
 
 It has been already said that the princesses 
 inside the mansion used to spend their evenings 
 in playing upon sweet musical instruments 
 and in singing. Now as soon as Thanuji 
 had stretched himsplf on the verandah to 
 sleep, sounds of sweet music fell upon his ear. 
 They were the most exquisite notes he had 
 aver heard in his life. Like evening zephyrs 
 in the spring they came gently to soothe his 
 weariness. He sat up and listened for a while 
 to the sweet flow of music above. 
 
 " Is there a heaven in this life ?" said he to 
 himself ; " have some nymphs from the divine 
 
 ° Allusion to the native method of drinking water 
 out of the hands by hollowing them into a sort of cup. 
 
154 
 
 world made this mansion their abode ? or do 
 wicked devils dwell here to feast liipon night- 
 stricken passengers P^" However, whether they 
 be good or bad, I must see thej inhabitants 
 of this palace, and leave to fate what it may 
 bring upon me ! " 
 
 The musio now suddenly ceased, for it so 
 happened that the sitdr had to be adjusted for 
 a different tune. Meanwhile the prince rose, and 
 went round the mansion to see whether there 
 were any gates to it. On the North side" of it he 
 discovered a large gate-way, and inside it a gate. 
 This he approached and gently touched, to 
 see if it was shut or not. Now, since Vara- 
 lakshmi had fixed upon prince Thanuji as the 
 husband of the fbur princesses, the gate of the 
 mansion flew open, — as the gates of a river dam 
 unlock to the rapid rush of released waters, — 
 and discovered to him four beautiful maidens 
 made a thousand times more beautiful by the 
 strange and unexpecteij meeting, by their 
 evening attire, and by the lovely sitdrs in^their 
 hands. 
 
 When the princesses saw the door open and 
 their handsome visitor standing outside it, fear- 
 ing to enter in, they breathed a thanksgiving to 
 their goddess for the fair gift, and laying down 
 their sitdrs, approached Thanuji with due 
 
 '° [The allusion here is to the oommou Indian idea of 
 the personal beauty of maEgnant female ghosts, who 
 live by devouring human beings. See Folklore of the 
 Headless Sorseman : Calcutta Review, 1884. — Ed.J 
 
155 
 
 respect. All fonr humbly prostrated them- 
 selves before him and then rose up. The 
 eldest began to speak, while the other three 
 sisters eagerly watched the movements of the 
 visitor's face. 
 
 "Lord and husband of us all," said she, 
 " glorious is this day to us as it has brought here- 
 our partner in life. Strange and sad is our 
 history, but nevertheless we are all mortals, 
 warmed by the same human blood that circu- 
 lates through your Lordship's veins and equally 
 affected by the same joys and sorrows. We 
 will reserve our story, however, till your Lord- 
 ship has dined, as we see plainly by your face- 
 that yoa are greatly tired. Accept us as your 
 Lordship's wives, and we for our part have 
 earned the richest treasure the world can give 
 us by having met you." 
 
 His vague fears about the mansion and its 
 inmates suddenly melted away like snow before 
 a powerful sun, when Thanuja saw the princesses 
 and stood listening to the speech of the eldest., 
 He also considered that day the most glorious 
 of his life, and took leave of them for a few- 
 seconds to secure his horse, which for all the 
 delight that had com-e to him he did nofr 
 forget. He then bathed hastily in the hot 
 water the ladies prepared for him, and after- 
 praying to the great God, who had been so 
 bountiful to him that day,, sat down with thre& 
 of the ladies to- take- his dinner. The fourth. 
 
156 
 
 attended to the leaf-plates, and supplied fresh 
 courses as each dish was consumed. They 
 then related their previous stories to each 
 other, and copiously did the prince shed tears, 
 when he heard how it was that the princesses 
 came to perform penance to secure the favour 
 of Varalakshmi; — and the ladies, too, when 
 they heard how king Isabhaji had worried 
 their husband to marry his one-eyed cousin, 
 and how he had run away from the hunting 
 party to avoid the marriage which so disgusted 
 him. All were glad at the fortanate turn 
 their lives had taken, and from that evening 
 the prince and the princesses began to live 
 most happily together as husband and wives 
 entirely forgetting their former homes. 
 
 Thus, hidden in an ocean of joy, Thanuji lived 
 for two full years in the lacquered palace, in 
 the company of the four princesses to whom 
 fortune had conducted him ; while they were 
 one and all grateful to their goddess Vara- 
 laJcshmi for having sent them so noble and 
 beautiful a prince as their partner in life. 
 After two full years had been thus passed, the 
 prince one day thought of his old father, and 
 the usual cheerfulness left his face. His 
 wives noticed the change and desired to be 
 informed of the thoughts which were passing 
 throagh his mind. He, noble in mind as in 
 body, told them outright that he was thinking 
 of his father, and that the idea of not having 
 
157 
 
 seen him for two years made him sad. The 
 eldest princess as usual was the first to speak : — 
 
 " My dearest lord, it has been our misfortune 
 to have lost a father, and we do not wish to 
 see him again if -we can help it. But we do 
 not see any reason, therefore, why you should 
 lose yours, who is also a father to us. Nor do 
 we see why we should continue to live for ever 
 in this wilderness, while you have a kingdom 
 to govern. My advice is, that you go now to 
 oivapuri, see your old father, and interest him in 
 our behaK, so that you may be able to take us 
 where we shall have a home, a father-in-law to 
 worship, and such society as becomes our posi- 
 tion. Yon will thus be able to arrange for our 
 living in the world like other people, without 
 wasting our youth in this desert." 
 
 The prince thanked Ms queens for their 
 sound advice, wiho began to make preparations^ 
 for sending their husband back to his parents. 
 They snppKed him with fine sweetmeats for 
 the way, and, with the good wishes of his wives, 
 Thanuji started for Sivapuri. 
 
 He reached the town on the second evening 
 after he left the lacquered palace, but the 
 inhabitants were not able to recognize him, as 
 it was already twilight. He arrived at the 
 palace at about the third ghatihd of the 
 night, and prostrated himself before his father. 
 The old king had been counting the days and 
 the hours for Ms son's return, and as the second 
 
158 
 
 year rolled a^ay and the prince did not mate 
 bis appearance, lie liad been greatly enraged 
 -against the soothsayer whose prophecy had thus 
 nearly proved untrue. The cunning soothsayer 
 had been daily predicting one week more 
 when, fortunately for him, — or the old king's 
 wrath would have known no bounds, — and for- 
 unately for the old king himself, considering 
 his advanced age, — the prince suddenly turned 
 up, Isabhaji wept for mingled joy and sorrow ; 
 joy at having recovered hi* son, and sorrow at 
 that son's neglect of his old father for so long. 
 But all is well that ends well, so the old king 
 praised his honeehold gods for having given 
 him back his son, and merely inquired into his 
 history for the past two years. 
 
 When Isabhaji found out that by good for- 
 tune his son had won the love of the four 
 princesses of Tanjai, he wished his son every 
 prosperity ia the world, and gave him per- 
 mission to make every arrangement to bring 
 them ±0 the palace at Sivapuri, and to marry 
 them regularly. But Thanuji wished to wait 
 s, while, and his father allowed him his way. 
 
 If ow the news that Thauuii had won the love 
 of the four fair princesses of Tanjai reached his 
 aunt, the sister of Isabhaji, and his cousin, the 
 one-eyed Kurudi, His aunt's dearest ambition 
 had always been to unite her daughter to the 
 prinoe, but she now thought that she must 
 banish all hopes of its fulfilment, as long as 
 
159 
 
 tlie four fair princesses lived. Her daughter, 
 however, was a scheming sort of girl, and: 
 determined somehow to get one of the four 
 princesses of Tanjai into- her own quarters, and 
 there to murder her. 
 
 "^Then the- other three ladies will spurn the- 
 prince," thought Kurudi, " and he will have 
 no other course open to him but to marry me."' 
 
 For this ta;sk she engaged a doubled-up old 
 woman, instructed her as to the position of the- 
 lacquei'ed palace, and told her that she was to 
 try her best to get into the good graces of the 
 princesses. 13-he was to serve them for a time as- 
 a faithful servant, and wait her opportunity to 
 bring one of them away. Should she succeed 
 in this, Kurudi promised her ample rewards. 
 
 The doubled-up old witch started with provi- 
 sions for a month, and erected for herself a 
 temporary hut in the forest at the gate of the- 
 lacquered mansion. Her nights she spent on a 
 platform on a tree for fear of beasts of prey, and 
 her days- in her hut. After cooliing and eating 
 a little rice in the morning she would take her 
 stand near the gate of the mansion and bawl 
 out : — 
 
 ' ' iSlj children !' Have you all forgotten me, 
 your poor old foster-mother ?• Oh, how tenderly 
 I brought you all up in your earliest days !' 
 And remembering you, I have deserted all 
 my relations, children and friends at Tanjai,. 
 and have traced you to this wood. If you wauld 
 
160 
 
 take me into yoar service, I shall still continue 
 to render you what help I can, in washing 
 your clothes, in preparing your meals, in comb- 
 ing your hair, and other domestic duties, which 
 it was once my delight to perform while I had 
 the charge of you all till your seventh year. 
 What a foolish old king he was to think of 
 marrying you to himself, and thus ta have lost 
 you!" 
 
 These and a thousand mournful tales of the 
 past, which she had carefully learnt from the 
 one-eyed Kurudi and her mother, she would 
 bawl out. But the ladies would never do any- 
 thing without the consent of their husband, 
 and their doors, too, would never open to- any 
 one except their lord. 
 
 After living with his father for a month, 
 Thanuji returned to the lacquered mansion. 
 He noticed the hut in front of the palace 
 gates, but did not care to enquire who lived in 
 it, and went on and touched the gate, which 
 opened to him. He entered in and gave his 
 wives all their father-in-law's presents, for the 
 old king had sent them through his son several 
 costly ornaments and cloths. The ladies put him 
 a thousand questions as to how he spent the 
 month, and were eager to see oivapnri, and to live 
 there as Thanuji's queens, under the kind pro- 
 tection of their good father-in-law. But the 
 prince told them to wait for a few more months 
 till his aunt could dispose of Kurudi ia 
 
161 
 
 marriage to some one, for he hated the idea of 
 taking them to the palace while his cousin and 
 enemy dwelt in it, — that cousin whose hand 
 he had repeatedly refused, and whom he could 
 never hereafter marry as long as he lived. 
 
 The prince's wives then told him about the 
 old woman, and Thanuji had great doubts as 
 to the wisdom of admitting her into the 
 mansion. Having studied tricks at courts and 
 elsewhere, he suspected that the old woman 
 came from his one-eyed enemy ; but she left 
 nothing unaccomplished on her part. Her 
 repeated cries, with which the serene palace of 
 the wilderness began to echo, at last aroused 
 some pity for her in the heart of the prince. 
 
 "Nevermind," said he at last, " let us admit 
 her and watch her character. If it is sus- 
 picious, we will punish her ; if on the contrary 
 it is good, we shall be glad of having secured 
 her services." 
 
 Thus with his permission the old hag was 
 entertained, and from that moment, it was as if 
 a serpent had been entertained to sting its own 
 master, who fed it with milk and fruits. Deep, 
 tricky, and a trained witch, the old hag pretend- 
 ed to do all sorts of kindnesses to the Tanjai 
 princesses and their affectionate husband. 
 
 There was nothing which she would not do 
 with her own hands. Early she rose, bathed 
 and cooked, and attended to the wants of the 
 ladies, who after pleasant nights of singing and 
 
162 
 
 dancing slept very late in tlie mornings. The 
 princesses found lier invaluable, and this 
 necessity for her services, in addition to the 
 assumed kindness of the hag, increased their 
 liking for her. The ladies loved her, and 
 their lord Thanuji saw no reason, for the five 
 months he remained for the second time in the 
 forest, to observe anything bad in the character 
 of the old woman. Again, he remembered 
 his old father, and so, recommending his 
 queens to the kind care of the old dame, he 
 again went to Sivapuri for a month, taking 
 with him his wives' gifts to his father. 
 
 The old woman was only waiting for the 
 return of the prince Thanuji to Sivapuri. 
 The second day after he had left the palace, 
 she induced the princesses to take an oil-bath, 
 and in the oil she mixed a herb which was 
 able to produce insensibility lasting for three 
 days in the strongest constitution. While the 
 oil was being applied to the heads of the 
 princesses, they felt giddy, and before the bath 
 was over one and all of them were in a dead 
 swoon. The wicked old woman now took the 
 eldest on hejr back, and leaving the others to 
 themselves to live or perish, flew away to Siva- 
 puri with the nimbleness of a vixen. 
 
 She placed her burden before Knrudi, who 
 amply rewarded her and sent her away. This 
 one-eyed devil in woman's form now proceeded 
 to take full vengeance on one whom she 
 
163 
 
 regarded as the chief of her enemies. She sent 
 for a barber and had the hair of Gangabal's 
 head cut off, the insensibility that still over- 
 came the poor girl making her unconscious 
 of the loss of woman's most precious jewel. 
 Knrudi, next proceeding to torture her enemy, 
 sent for needles and thrust one into each 
 pore of her skin. The pain caused by the 
 needles made Gangabai open her eyes, and 
 being very intelligent, she at once guessed the 
 calamity that had come upon her. Not caring 
 for herself, she asked her enemy, the one-eyed 
 Kurudi, whether her sisters were all safe. 
 
 " Yes they are, and you shall pay for all the 
 mischief they have done and for your own to 
 boot !" roared Kurudi gnashing her teeth. 
 
 Gangabai then closed her eyes, never to open 
 them again her enemy thought ; for the effects 
 of the drag, and pain caused by the needles, 
 made her almost a corpse. Kurudi next tore 
 out her eyes, and told two of her maid-servants 
 to throw the now mutilated body into a ruined 
 well at a short distance from the palace. They 
 did so accordingly, 'and then went about their 
 duties. 
 
 The whole of one day and one night Ganga- 
 bai floated on the water in that ruined well, 
 without recovering from her swoon, and not 
 until the morning of the fourth day after the 
 oil had been applied to her head, did she fully 
 come to her senses. At first she felt herself to be 
 
164 
 
 floating on the surface of tte water, but as soon 
 as she began to recover her faculties her body 
 began to sink. She caught hold of a step in 
 tlie well, guided to it by instinct, for her eyes 
 were gone, and she remained immersed in the 
 water with only her face above the surface. 
 The needle operation, her questions to a one- 
 eyed lady about the safety of her own sisters, 
 and that lady's aflBrmative reply-v-all came 
 back to her recollection as if it were a dream. 
 She row came to understand her misfortune. 
 
 " Ah ! that I should have had confidence in 
 that old woman," she cried, "she must have 
 given me some drug, made me insensible, and 
 given me over to my enemy of the one-eye, of 
 whom Thanuji used so often to speak. Alas ! 
 Thanuji, you are passing your days merrily with 
 your father, not knowing the fate that has 
 come over your wives, fully believing that 
 the old woman, whom you recommended to 
 them, is properly discharging her duties ! I 
 do not know what has become of my sisters ! 
 I -do not know where I am ! My eyes are 
 gone !" 
 
 The needles embedded in her body gave her 
 the most excruciating pain, and she was unable 
 «ven to weep. At last she began to pant as if 
 suffocated. 
 
 The well in which she was struggling for 
 life belonged to a neatherd, and round it he 
 kept a garden, in which there were half a dozen 
 
165 
 
 beds containing tender cabbages. He camo 
 to -water bis vegetables, and on approaching 
 the well with his pitcher he heard a voice as 
 if in great pain, slowly issuing from it, but the 
 water was too deep for him to see what 
 was in the well. Now neatherds have queer 
 notions as to devils and witchcraft, and he 
 imagined that the sounds in the well emanated 
 from a devil that must have taken up a tem- 
 porary abode therein. So, he shouted out, 
 looking down the mouth of the well, — 
 
 " you devil ! If you do not tell me who 
 you are, and why you have thus invaded 
 my possessions, I will throw rubbish into 
 this already half-ruined well, and cover you 
 up!" 
 
 Gangabai, who was only waiting to hear 
 some person's voice, spoke slowly, in pain 
 . though she was, as she was afraid that silence 
 would mean burial in the well, — 
 
 " Kind and noble gentleman ! I am too weak 
 to tell you the whole story. I am a lady born 
 of noble parents and have come to this wretched 
 condition through my sins in a former life. If 
 you will kindly take me up, regard me as one 
 of your daughters, and restore me to health, I 
 shall reward you amply." 
 
 The neatherd, whose name was Govinda, 
 was a man of very kind disposition, and his 
 heart melted at the idea of calamity befallen 
 one of the fairisex born of noble parents. So 
 
166 
 
 he got down into the well, took Gangabai trp, 
 and shed tears to see so noble a form cruelly 
 deprived of eyes and hair, and suffering from 
 cruel tortures from needles. 
 
 " Cover my body with your cloth," said the 
 princess, '' and take me to your home at once. 
 I greatly fear my enemy may watch me and 
 try to kill me again." 
 
 So the neatherd, trembling at her words, 
 took her home in haste. As soon as the princess 
 felt herself safe in the house of the kind neat- 
 herd, she spoke to him thus : — 
 
 "My respected protector, my father, — for so 
 do I regard you for taking me out of the well, — 
 J am a princess and a virtuous lady. This is 
 enough for yon to know for the present. More 
 I shall relate to you after I recover from my 
 pain. If you begin to pull out the needles as 
 lam, I should die, I think, before half a dozen 
 were removed. You will do better by cooking 
 rice in a large vessel, emptying it on the ground 
 and holding me over the steam while yon pull 
 them out. Kee^) on doing this till the last 
 needle is removed, and I shall get well." 
 
 The princess then closed her lips, and her 
 body was like that of one in deep slumber. 
 The neatherd, who already respected the 
 princess for the majesty of her form, now 
 began the treatment according as she had said. 
 That so noble a creature should have come to 
 such calamity, aroused in his heart greater and 
 
167 ' 
 
 greater pity. Tlie treatment went on for a week, 
 during which, now and then, Gafigabai would 
 relate to the old neatherd, who never left her 
 bed-side, parts of her story. Thus by degrees 
 Govinda came to know the whole of it. The 
 princess, too, recovered, except that her eyes 
 were gone, and her head still shaven. These 
 defects had to be remedied before her health 
 could be said to be really restored. For this 
 she propitiated the boon-conferring goddess 
 Varalakshmi, and then she sneezed, when 
 lo ! there dropped from her nostrils seven 
 precious gems ! She called to Govinda and 
 addressed him thus : — 
 
 " My respected Govinda, my kind protector, 
 I have to trouble you still more. These seven 
 gems has Varalakshm} just given me. Take 
 six for yourself, convert the seventh one into 
 money, and buy some cows. Milk all the cows 
 morning and evening, boil down the whole of 
 the milk into only two measures, and give them 
 to me." 
 
 The neatherd took the gems, locked six of 
 them in his box and went with the seventh to 
 the hdadr. When he showed it to the gem- 
 assayers they estimated its value at seven lakhs 
 of mShars, for which enormous sum he disposed 
 of it to a rich merchant. He could have pur- 
 chased all the cows in Sivapuri for that amount, 
 but instead of doing so, be bought only a hun- 
 dred fine milch cows, and brought home the 
 
168 
 
 other portion of the money. Govinda truth- 
 fully told what he had done to Gangabiii, and 
 she was delighted at his uprightness. The 
 neatherd, for his part, now began to regard her 
 as a goddess. The milk of the one hundred 
 cows he boiled down into two measures as 
 directed, and placed them before her morning 
 and evening. She used this milk in her food 
 and daily improved in health. 
 
 We must here leave Gangabai under the 
 kind protection of our neatherd, and turn to 
 inquire about her other sisters. It has been 
 already said that all the four sisters fell into a 
 swoon, when the old woman applied the oil to 
 their heads. Gangaba! only was removed to 
 Kurudi's palace, while the other three con- 
 tinued insensible for three days, coming to 
 their senses on the fourth morning. What 
 was their astonishment when they missed their 
 eldest sister and the old woman ! They began 
 to suspect their husband. 
 
 " Has our lord played this trick upon us to 
 take our eldest sister to his palace at Sivapuri 
 and to leave us all here, in everlasting banish- 
 ment ? Shan't we be angry with him when 
 he comes ? For our sister will never forget us, 
 and will soon bring him back." 
 
 Thus resolved they in their minds, and, being 
 very innocent and timid, passed their days 
 patiently waiting till their husband and their 
 sister should return. They would soon return 
 
169 
 
 together they thouglit, but they were doomed 
 to be disappointed. 
 
 After staying with his father for a month, 
 the prince returned to the forest with great 
 eagerness to meet his dear wives, for he knew 
 nothing of the calamity that had befallen them. 
 When he entered he found no joy in the palace, 
 but the three sisters lying down each by herself 
 with no mirth or welcome in their counte- 
 nances. He was greatly vexed, and missed his 
 eldest queen, whom he loved best, and as to 
 whom the other queens suspected him. 
 
 " Where is my Grangabai, my dears ? And 
 why have you all got such dismal faces ?" 
 asked Thauuji. 
 
 Till then they had thought that their sister 
 was safe with their husband at Sivapuri, but 
 when the prince enquired after her, they fell 
 off their couches, and, weeping and wailing, 
 inquired what had happened to their sister ! It 
 was now plain that some trick had been played 
 upon them all by the old woman. The prince 
 asked them to relate what had taken place in 
 the palace since he had left it, and they told 
 him everything. It then became as clear as 
 the day to ThAnuji, that the old woman, who 
 pretended such affection for them, was a rogue, 
 and that she had taken his love Gangabai to 
 Kurudi for some foul purpose. He consoled 
 his three other wives, cursed the day on which 
 ha took in the old woman, and started at once 
 
170 
 
 in searcli of his lost love. Her sisters were 
 equally ansious about her, and promised to be 
 careful during his absence, 
 
 "The door shall open to none except to 
 yourself, my Lord, and that, too, only when 
 you bring us back our sister," said the youngest 
 of the sisters. And our hero, buried in the 
 ocean of sorrow, and not knowing how to find 
 his lost love, returned to Sivapuri. 
 
 He informed his old father Isabhaji of what 
 had happened, and they both sent courtiers to 
 different parts of the kingdom to make a care- 
 ful search for Gangabai. The prince also 
 secretly made all the requisite enquiries in the 
 palace where Kurudi and her mother were 
 living. For six months the search went 
 on, and yet no trace was found of the lost 
 princess. Meanwhile Isabhaji was drawing day 
 by day nearer to his grave, and again began to 
 trouble his son about marrying the one-eyed 
 Kurudi. But the prince would never agree 
 to it. 
 
 While a whole army of courtiers were thus 
 searching for Gangabai in the various parts 
 of the kingdom, she was living comfortably 
 in Govinda's house, and her diet consisted 
 daily of the two measures of milk, morning and 
 evening. Now G6vinda had a daughter named 
 Gopi, and she and Gangabai became very good 
 friends. Gangabai related to her her whole 
 history one morning, and was anxious to do 
 
171 
 
 something in revenge to Kurndi before joining 
 her sisters in their palace. With a scheme for 
 this in her head she addressed Gopi thus : — 
 
 " My dear G-opi, my story is as yon have heard, 
 and my heart burns within me when I think of 
 my treatment at the hands of that one-eyed 
 witch. I ask you now to help me to repeat 
 Kurudi's acts on herself. Convert the milk 
 which your father brings to me at night into 
 curds. Take the curds with you and cry out 
 in the streets — ' Good curds to sell ! Never 
 have neatherds sold such curds ! Fine curds, 
 one hundred m,6hars per measure ! Good curds ! 
 Good curds !' Every one will call you a fool for 
 putting such a price on your curds ; but go to 
 the palace and Kurudi will send for you and ask 
 you the price of your curds. Demand as before 
 one hundred mohars. She will give the money 
 and buy your curds, and finding them very 
 sweet will offer to buy some from you every 
 day. Go on giving her the curds, but do not 
 take money for them. Only cultivate her 
 friendship. And then I shall let you know 
 what we must do." 
 
 Gopi obeyed Gangabai exactly and in this 
 way secured the friendship of Kurudi. Then 
 said Gangabai to her: — 
 
 " My dear Gopi, when you go to-morrow to 
 the palace put on a sad countenance, and, when 
 Kurudi comes and asks you the reason for it, 
 tell her that you have a sister who has had lately 
 
172 
 
 small-pox and lost her eyes. Ask her to give 
 you a pair of haman eyes. She has with her my 
 two eyes which she will give you. Bring them 
 to me." 
 
 Gopi did as she was told, and when the eyes 
 came into Gangabai's hands she put them into 
 the empty sockets and meditated on the boon- 
 conferring goddess Varalakshmi, when her 
 sight was completely restored. She now for 
 the first time beheld Gopi and her father the 
 neatherd. She thanked them again and again 
 a thousand times and asked Gopi to beg her 
 hair from Kurudi under the same pretence of 
 having a sister who had lost hers. Gopi, who 
 who had now fully secured the affections of 
 Kurudi, brought back Gangabai's hair, and the 
 princess put it on her head, and meditated on 
 "Varalakshmi ; when lo ! every hair returned to 
 its proper place ! Thus, through the neatherd 
 and his daughter, and by the divine help of 
 Varalakshmi, Gangabai croesed the ocean of 
 misery; and came back to her former self. 
 
 The news that Isabhaji was trying to compel 
 his son Thanuji to marry Kurudi, was commu- 
 nicated by the one-eyed lady to her friend Gopi. 
 She also informed the neatherd's daughter 
 that, though the prince was not agreeable 
 to the match, he would be soon compelled 
 to give his consent to it, to oblige his father 
 and his aunt. These bits of information 
 were duly passed on to Gangabai, who now 
 
173- 
 
 thought this a good opportunity to wreak her 
 vengeance on Karudi. So she asked Gopi to 
 go to the palace next morning with curds, 
 and to sit down rubbing her hair on the 
 ground. 
 
 "My dear Gopi," said she, "if you will 
 keep on rubbing your beautiful hair on the 
 ground, Kurudi will call yon mad, for thus in- 
 sulting an ornament that nature has granted 
 you. You must then tell her that a doctor has 
 given yon a prescription for making the hair 
 grow quickly, that ever since you have applied 
 it your haii- has been growing at the rate of a 
 cubit a day, and that as you are not able to take 
 care of so great a quantity, , you are rubbing 
 it on the ground to check its growth. She will 
 then ask yon for some of the prescription, and 
 you must agree to give it, and come to me." 
 
 Gopi agreed to all that Gaiigabai asked her 
 to do, and went to the palace. She pretended 
 to rub her bair on the ground until Kurudi 
 came and asked her the reason, when she replied 
 as she had been instructed. .Kurudi was 
 naturally somewhat bald-headed,*' and as Isa- 
 bhaji had just made his son consent to marry 
 her, her wedding day, for which she had been 
 
 " Long and flowing hair is considered one of the best 
 personal adornments of the softer sex among the Hiudiis. 
 
 [It may be noted here that the name of the one-eyed 
 Kurudi is a Kanarese word, meaning ' a blind woman.' — 
 Ed.] In Tamil also it means ' a blind woman' and hence 
 her name as she had not one eye, — S.M.N. 
 
1-74 
 
 so long waiting, was at last approaching. To 
 make herself, therefore,^ as beautiful as possible 
 by adding flowing hair to her charms, was an 
 important point ; so she said to Gopi : — 
 
 " My dear Gopi, I thank the day which first 
 made ns friends ! My hair is a weak point 
 with me, and if you can make your hair grow at 
 the rate of a cubit a day, I should much like to 
 see your doctor,' and show him my head also. 
 Will you kindly bring him to me ?" 
 
 Gopi, as instructed, said — " Undoubtedly he 
 shall be here with me to-morrow, my noble 
 lady ;" and returned home. 
 
 Gangabai was anxiously expecting to hear 
 what had taken place in the palace between 
 her friend Gopi and her bitter enemy Kurudi, 
 and, when the latter came home, she related 
 how she had promised to bring the imaginary 
 doctor next day to the palace. Gangabai 
 could have leapt for joy. 
 
 " My end is attained," said she in great joy, 
 eagerly waiting for the next day to come. 
 
 As already said, the old king had made his 
 son Thanuji consent to marry Kurudi, and the 
 wedding day had been fixed for the tenth day 
 of the bright half of that very month. It was 
 just ten days before the happy event was to 
 take place that Kurudi was expecting to see 
 the doctor with the wonderful power of breed- 
 
175 
 
 ing hair. That morning Gangabal changed 
 her female attire for the first time in her life 
 for a man's and wore a doctor's robes, and so 
 well did she carry out the disguise that her 
 friend Gopi was hardly able to distinguish in 
 the young doctor her friend Gangabai. Thus 
 metamorphosed and followed by Gopi, Ganga- 
 bai reached Kurudi's house, where she was 
 welcomed, and given a seat near its mistress. 
 
 " Can you indeed make hair grow very 
 quickly?" asked Kurudi. 
 
 "Madam," replied the sham doctor, "I have, 
 ever since I began practising the art, been 
 most successful in it. On no occasion has the 
 hair I have manipulated grown less than a cubit 
 a day. I shall try the best of my medicines 
 on your head. Only the old hair must be 
 entirely removed, and the surface of the head 
 must be turned over with a sharp knife for 
 a day, before the medicine can be applied. In 
 the case of tender constitutions there may be 
 slight pain for a day, but on the second day the 
 pain will go away, and shoots begin to appear. 
 After that every day your hair will increase 
 by a cubit, and a time will soon come when 
 you will have to cut off a portion daily." 
 
 Kurudi listened to the doctor's plan, and 
 thought to herself, that, out of the ten days that 
 remained to her before the marriage, — making 
 allowance for the time required for the shooting 
 
176 
 
 of the hair, — she might have eight cubits'^ 
 length on her head on her wedding day, S© 
 she at once sat down for a clean shave. 
 
 Gangabai now wreaked full vengeance npon 
 her enemy. Kurudi's head was shaved clean ! 
 The skin was then cut in all directions, and pow- 
 dered pepper rubbed in — a soothing balm to a 
 scored pate ! Said the doctor : — 
 
 "Madam, the medicine has now been applied : 
 you may feel a little burning sensation, but it 
 will be all right in a day. To-morrow, or the 
 day after, in the mornings the shoots will begin 
 to sprout." 
 
 Kurudi, in expectation of the fulfilment of 
 her wishes, patiently bore the pain. A full 
 day and night elapsed, but still the burning 
 did not cease. Fearing that if the balm were 
 removed the medicine would lose its effect, 
 she patiently bore the pain for a second day, and 
 on the third day as soon as the morning dawned 
 she put her hand to her head to see if there 
 were any signs of the sprouts. " The shoots have 
 begun really to sprout," thought she, for her 
 fingers felt the worms which had already began 
 to breed in the matter formed on her head ! 
 Several of her servants, who had been ordered 
 not to see her till then, were now called in to 
 examine her head. Her mother, too, made her 
 appearance. What they found was this : — Kurudi 
 with her head shaved, ploughed up and pasted 
 over with powdered pepper 1 They washed heir 
 
177 
 
 tead with warm water and began to treat the 
 wounds. But they were past all treatment ; for 
 two days' exposure to such treatment had 
 caused corruption to set in ! Still the fond 
 heart of Knrudi's mother left no stone un- 
 turned to restore her daughter. She sent 
 servants to Gopi to look for the doctor, but 
 neittier doctor nor Gopi were to be found ; 
 for the sagacious Gangabai had removed her 
 protector Govinda and her friend Gopi to 
 a village outside the town on the night she tried 
 her treatment on her one-eyed enemy. 
 
 Neither the old king Isabhaji nor his son 
 Thanuji, of course, knew anything of what had 
 passed in the pa,lace where Kurudi was living ; 
 and, in honour of his raarriage, the prince 
 wished to have his rooms adorned with paint- 
 ings, the better to receive his visitors during 
 the ensuing wedding. He therefore proclaimed 
 that he would greatly reward any good painter 
 that would come forward. Gangabai, who was 
 now living outside Sivapuri, came to know of 
 Thanuji's proclamation, and dressed herself up 
 as a painter, and appeared before the prince. 
 He was charmed with the fair face of the 
 painter; and Gafigabai's disguise was so com- 
 plete that he failed to discover his lost love in 
 the painter. He tested the sham artist's skill, 
 but as Gangabai had learnt the fine arts in her 
 younger days she easily stood the test. Then 
 the artist put the following condition on 
 
178 
 
 his undertaking the task, — that no one, not 
 even the prince, should see him while at work, 
 and that the prince must be the first to 
 examine the pictures when finished. Thanuji, 
 who was much taken by the painter, agreed to 
 everything and left him to his work. 
 
 Gangabai now bolted the door, and mixing 
 her colours proceeded to represent her whole 
 story on the walls, from the time that Thanuji 
 went the second time to Sivapuri, to the point 
 of her appearing before her lord as a painter. 
 She drew the old woman flying with her to 
 Kurudi ; the torture she underwent at Kurudi's 
 cruel hands ; the scene at the ruined well ; the 
 portraits of Govinda and Gopi, her protectors in 
 her calamity ; her revenge on Kurudi, in £he 
 disguise of a doctor ; and lastly her appearance 
 in the attire of a painter. She not only 
 painted the scenes, but also added explanatory 
 notes.*" On the third day she came out of 
 the room, and sent the messengers on watch 
 outside to inform the prince that the painter 
 had finished his work, and wanted to take his 
 leave. When the prince came to examine the 
 painter's work, he said : — 
 
 "My Lord, I shall come for my reward on 
 Tour Highness's wedding day. You had 
 better examine the pictures in my absence at 
 
 " [A very necessary proceeding where native pictures 
 are oonoern«d ! — Eb.J 
 
179 
 
 the fifteenth ghatikd this afternoon, for that, 
 the soothsayers told me, is the auspicious 
 ghatikd (hour). Kindly, therefore, do not exa- 
 mine them before that time, or I fear evil stars 
 will make you judge ill of my powers of 
 execution." 
 
 Gangabai said this to gain time in order to 
 reach her home before her lord should come to 
 recognize her in the painter. The prince 
 accepted these new conditions, for the painter's 
 face exercised a wonderful influence over him. 
 His misfortune in not recovering his lost love, 
 his approaching wedding with one whom he 
 hated from the very bottom of his heart, his 
 unfaithfulness to his former wives in agreeing 
 to marry Kurudi, — all these were passing and 
 repassing through his mind every moment, as 
 he waited impatiently for the time when he 
 could examine this work. 
 
 At last the hour arrived. Thanuji entered 
 his apartment to look over the paintings, and 
 exclaimed: — 
 
 " My dear wives are painted here ! Did the 
 painter ever see them ? Ah ! My dearest 
 Gangabai is dying here ! Most horrible ! Oh 
 wicked enchantress Kurudi !■ Oh kindly neat- 
 herd Govinda ! I shall well repay for your 
 assistance." 
 
 Then like a mad man Thanuji wept and 
 laughed, and laughed and wept, till he came to 
 the end. 
 
180 
 
 " After all my love is living !" exclaimed he, 
 as he staggered ahout the floor, and fell heavily. 
 His servants, who had been listening to all his 
 ravings, at last dared to approach their lord, and 
 flew to his assistance. They took him up and 
 brought him round. "My carriage," was all 
 he said to them ; and they at once got it ready. 
 He then drove outside the town to where the 
 painter had told him he was living ; and there 
 Grangabai, who had rightly expected her hus- 
 band to come to her directly he saw the pictures, 
 was waiting to receive him. They flew into 
 each other's arms. 
 
 " I have at last found my lost gem, and never 
 again while I live shall I lose it in the forest !" 
 said the prince ; " God has given me back my 
 lost gem !" ' 
 
 The princess only replied by her tears, for 
 she could not open her lips. Presently, after 
 the first excitement was over, they questioned 
 each other as to their history during this 
 calamitous period, and again wept over their 
 misfortunes. 
 
 With Gangabai by his side,' Thanuji now 
 drove to the lacquered mansion, sending word to 
 his old father that he had discovered his lost 
 love, and was going to the forest to bring all 
 his dear wives to Sivapuri, and that, on the day 
 originally fixed for the wedding, he would be 
 married to them and never to Kurudi ! 
 
 Alas for Kurudi ! No medicines had any 
 
181 
 
 effect on her. She died on the day before that 
 appointed for her wedding, unable to bear up 
 against her pains, external and internal. For 
 remorse, at the torture she had inflicted on her 
 enemy, overcame her mind before she breathed 
 her last ! 
 
 To return to the lacquered mansion. The 
 prince met his other wives and gave them their 
 lost sister, and returned to Sivapuri, relating 
 stories all the way home, some of the calamities 
 that had befallen him and GangabM, owing to 
 their having entertained the old woman in 
 their palace. When they reached Sivapuri, 
 all excepting Kurudi's mother, were happy on 
 the marriage day, on which Thanuji, with the 
 consent of his father, properly married all his 
 four wives. 
 
 After the princesses had thus lived for a 
 short period with their husband, they heard 
 that their father was daijgerously ill. So, 
 accompanied by Thanuji, they went and visited 
 him before his death. The father had only 
 time to beg their pardon before he breathed his 
 last, leaving his large kingdom to his daugh- 
 ters. The princesses, remembering theminister's 
 kindness to them, gave him their kingdom, and 
 returning home to their husband's cou,ntry, 
 lived with him for many years in peace and 
 prosperity, during which they did not forget 
 the kindne.=!ses that Govinda and Gopi had 
 done to Gangabai. 
 
XIV- 
 THE MONKEY WITH THE TOM-TOM^ 
 
 In a remote wood there lived a monkey, 
 and one day while he was eating wood-apples, 
 a sharp thorn from the tree ran into the tip of 
 his tail. He tried his best to get it out but 
 could not. So he proceeded to the nearest 
 village, and calling the barber asked him to 
 oblige him by removing the thorn. 
 
 " Friend barber," said the monkey, "a thorn 
 has run into my tail. Kindly remove it and I 
 will reward you." 
 
 The barber took up his razor and began to 
 examine the tail : but as he was cutting out 
 the thorn he cut off the tip of the tail. The 
 monkey was greatly enraged and said — 
 
 " Friend barber, give me back my tail. If 
 yon cannot do that, give me your razor." 
 
 The barber was now in a difficulty, and as 
 he could not replace the tip of the tail he had 
 to give up his razor to the monkey. 
 
 The monkey, went back to the wood with his 
 razor thus trickishly acquired. On the way 
 he met an old woman, who was cutting fuel 
 from a dried-up tree. 
 
 ' [Compare the story of " The Eat's Wedding" from 
 the PafijSb Indian Antiquary, Tol. XI, p. 226ff : where 
 however, a better moral from the tale is drawn. — Ed.] 
 
183 
 
 " Grandmother, grandmother," said the mon- 
 key, "the tree is very hard. You had better 
 use this sharp razor, and you will cut your fuel 
 easily." 
 
 The poor woman was very pleased, and took 
 the razor from the monkey. In cutting the 
 wood she, of course, blunted the razor, and 
 the m.onkey seeing his razor thus spoiled, 
 said — 
 
 " Grandmother, you have spoiled my razor. 
 So you must either give me your fuel or 
 get me a better razor." 
 
 The woman was not able to procure another 
 razor. So she gave the monkey her fuel and 
 returned to her house bearing no load that 
 day. 
 
 The roguish monkey now put the bundle 
 of dry fuel on his head and proceeded to 
 a village to sell it. There he met an old 
 woman seated by the roadside and making 
 puddings. Said the monkey to her — 
 
 " Grandmother, grandmother, you are making 
 puddings and your fuel is already exhausted. 
 Use mine also and make more cakes." 
 
 The old lady thanked him for his kindness 
 and used his fuel for her puddings. The 
 cunning monkey waited till the last stick of 
 his fuel was burnt up, and then he said to the 
 old woman — 
 
 " Grandmother, grandmother, return me my 
 fuel or give me all your puddings." 
 
184 
 
 She was unable to return tim the fuel, and 
 so had to give him all her puddings. 
 
 The monkey with the basket of puddings 
 on his head walked and walked till he met a 
 Paraiya' coming with a tom-tom towards him. 
 
 ' ' Brother Paraiya, ' ' said the monkey ; " I have 
 a basketful of puddings to give you. Will 
 you in return present me with your tom-tom ?'' 
 
 The Paraiya gladly agreed, as he was then 
 very hungry, and had nothing with him to eat. 
 
 The monkey now ascended with the tom-tom 
 to the topmost branch of a big tree and there 
 beat his drum most triumphantly, saying in 
 honour of his several tricks — 
 
 " I lost my tail and got a razor ; dum, ' dum." 
 
 "I lost my razor and got a bundle of fuel; 
 d/um, dum." 
 
 " I lost my fuel and got a basket of puddings, 
 dum, dum," 
 
 " I lost my puddings and got a tom-tom ; dum, 
 dum." 
 
 Thus there are rogues in this innocent world, 
 who live to glory over their wicked tricks. 
 
 ' A low oaate man ; Pariah. 
 
 ' In response to the sound of the tom-tom. 
 
XV. 
 GOOD WILL GROW OUT OF GOOD. 
 In a certain town there reigned a king 
 named Patnipriya,* to whose court a poor old 
 Brahman, named PiSpabhiru,* cam© every 
 morning, with a yellow lime in his hand, 
 and presenting it to the king, pronounced a 
 benediction in Tamil :— 
 
 Nanmai vidaittdl, nanmaivitaiyum: 
 Tvmai vidaittdl, tmiai viiaiyum : 
 NantnaiyH'm timai^um pinvafa kdnaldm^ 
 " If good is sown, then good will grow : 
 If bad is sown, then bad will grow ; 
 Thus good or bad the end will show." 
 The king respected as much the noble 
 benediction of the Brahman as he did, his grey 
 hairs. 
 
 In this way the presentation of the fruit 
 was daily continued, though the Brahman had 
 nothing to request from the king, but simply 
 wished to pay his respects. On observing that 
 he had no ulterior motives, but was merely 
 actuated by rujasevana, or duty to his king, the 
 king's admiration to his old morning visitor 
 the more increased. 
 
 After presenting the fruit the Brahman 
 waited upon his sovereign till his pujd^ was 
 over, and then went home where his wife kept 
 
 ' i. e. Lover of his wife. 
 
 » t. e. A Bhudderer at sin. 
 
 » Worship of the household goda. 
 
 1 
 
186 
 
 ready for him all the requisites for his own pilja. 
 Papabhiru then partook of what dinner his wife 
 had prepared for him. Sometimes, however, a 
 Brahman neighbour sent him an invitation to 
 dinner, which he at once accepted. For his 
 father, before he breathed his last, had called 
 him to his bedside, and, pronouncing his last 
 benediction, had thus advised him in Tamil — 
 Kdlai sdttai taUdde, 
 Kannil kandadai solldde. 
 Bdjaniikku payandu nada." 
 " Morning meal do thou never spurn, 
 Nor say thou what thine eyes discern. 
 But serve thy king for fame to earn." 
 Thus it was that Fapabfairn began his visits to 
 the king, nor did he ever reject an invitation 
 to dinner, though it might come at a very 
 inconvenient time. 
 
 Now on a certain ekddasi* morning, Papabhiru 
 went to the king to pay his respects as usual, 
 with the lime and the benediction, but found 
 that he had gone to his pujd and so followed 
 him there. On seeing the Brahman, the king's 
 face glowed with pleasure and he said : — 
 
 " My most revered god on earth,' I 
 thought that some ill must have befallen 
 you, when I missed you in the council-hall 
 
 ' The eleventh lunar day of every fortnight, on which 
 a fast is obserTed by orthodox Hindus. 
 ' bhUsura, iMdSia ; a generic name for a Bratanan. 
 
187 
 
 this morning ; but praised be ParamSsvara for 
 having sent you to me, though it is a little late. 
 I never do my pujd without placing my scimitar 
 by the side of the god, but last night I left it 
 in my queen's room. It is under the pillow 
 of the couch on which I usually sleep. Until 
 you came I could find no suitable person to 
 fetch it for me, and ^o I have waited for you. 
 Would you kindly take the trouble to fetch it 
 for me P' 
 
 The poor Brahman was only too glad of the 
 opportunity thus presented to him of serving 
 his king, and«o he ran to iheharam and into 
 the room where the king usually slept. 
 
 Now, Patnipriya was very fond of his queen ; 
 but she was not faithful to him, and allowed the 
 king's minister to pay visits to her. The most 
 convenient time for such meetings was during 
 the king's pujd. Of course the poor Brahman, 
 Papabhiru, knew nothing of this, and when he 
 entered the room, a shocking scene met his 
 eyes. He closed them for horror, and lifting up 
 the pillow, felt for the scimitar, and then 
 turning his back on Hhe couch, he retraced his 
 steps, placed the sword before the king, and 
 took hie leave. True, however, to hie father's 
 last words, " Nor say thou what thine eyes 
 <iiscern," he never opened his lips, and went 
 his way with a heavy heart. 
 
 The queen and her wicked visitor w«r© 
 greatly alarmed. 
 
188 
 
 "That rogue of an old Brahman has seen 
 US and may report ns to the king at the first 
 opportunity," faltered the minister. 
 
 But the queen, as bold in words as in sin, 
 said : " I will have him murdered before the 
 sun rises. Wait you here. I shall inform the 
 king of what is to be done and report the 
 result to you, and them you may go home." 
 
 So saying, she assumed the guise of a most 
 chaste lady that had resisted the temptations 
 of a wicked man, and stood before her royal 
 husband who was at his worship. Patnipriya 
 rose up and asked her the reason for her 
 sudden appearance. 
 
 Said she: — "Tour Majesty seems to think 
 the whole world as innocent as yourself. That 
 wretched old Brahman, though his hair is as white 
 as milk, has riot forgotten his younger days. 
 Fortunately for us there were several maids by 
 me when he approached me, and so he fled 
 away without his vile intentions being fulfilled. 
 If you do not order his death before to-morrow 
 morning, I shall kill myself." 
 
 The king was much vexed with what he 
 heard, and all the regard he had for the Brah- 
 man disappeared at onee. He called two of his 
 executioners and spoke to them thus before 
 his wife : — • 
 
 "Take to the east gate of the town a large 
 iron caldron, and keep it boiling to the brim 
 
189 
 
 with gingely oil." A certain person shall come 
 to yon in the morning and ask you, ' Is it all 
 done ?' Without observing who he is, tie his 
 hands and feet and throw him into the boiling 
 oil. When he has been boiled to death, put 
 out the fire and empty out the oil." 
 
 The executioners received the order and 
 went away to perform their terrible duty. 
 The queen, too, glad at heart at having thus 
 successfully arranged for the murder of the 
 Brahman, reported the fact to the Minister, 
 but said nothing about the special question 
 to be put by the victim. The Minister, much 
 pleased, went to his palace and waited for 
 the news of the Brahman'e death. 
 
 When his pujd was over the king sent for 
 Papabhiru, and the poor Brahman, never having 
 before been sent for at such a time, made his 
 appearance with a beating heart. When he 
 arrived the king, in order to arouse no suspicion 
 in his mind, said gently to him: "My dear 
 Brahman, to-morrow morning, when you go to 
 make your ablutions, pass by the east gate. 
 There you will see two persons seated by the 
 side of a large caldron. Ask them, ' Is it all 
 done ? ' And whatever reply they gi^ve you, 
 come and communicate to me." 
 
 Thu« spoke the king, firmly believing that 
 
 • Oil of aeaamum : til and gingely oil are the ordinary 
 uames ior tbis common product of India. 
 
190 
 
 Papabhiru would never return to him ; while 
 the Brahman, glad to be able to serve the king 
 a second time next morning, went home and 
 slept soundly. Early in the morning, even a 
 ghatikd before his usnal time, he got up, and, 
 placing on his head a bag containing dry 
 clothes, proceeded to the river for his morning 
 bath. He took the road to the eastern gate 
 as he had been ordered, but had not walked 
 far when a friend invited him to a dvddasi'' 
 breakfast. 
 
 " My poor old mother did not taste even a drop 
 of water the whole of the ekadasi, (yesterday) . 
 Rice and hot water for a bath are ready. Pour 
 a little of the water over your head,* pronounce 
 one gdyatri,' and taste a handful of rice. 
 Whatever may be the urgency of your business, 
 oblige me for my poor mother's sake." Thus 
 spoke his friend, and Piipabhiru, out of regard 
 to his father's order never to spurn a morning 
 meal, ran in haste into his friend's house to 
 oblige him ; the king's order all the while 
 sitting heavily on his mind. 
 
 Meanwhile the Minister was most anxious to 
 hear the news of the BrahmaD's death, but was 
 afraid to send any one to iiiq[nire about it, 
 
 ' Dv&daH is the twelfth lunar day, on which early in 
 the morning, before even the fifth ghaiiM is over, eirerj- 
 orthodox Hindu is obliged by his religious codes to break 
 the previous day's fast. 
 
 " Lit. a ' ehombuJull ': the ehombv, is a small vessei. 
 
 ' A sacred hymn. 
 
191 
 
 lest he should rouse suspicion. So he -went 
 himself to the east gate, as soon as the sun 
 had risen, and asked the executioners, sitting 
 by the side of the caldron, by way of a simple 
 question : ' Is the business all done ? ' And as 
 they were instructed not to observe who the 
 person was that came to question them, but to 
 tie him up and boil him in the oil, they, 
 notwithstanding his howls, bound him and 
 threw him in. As soon as he was dead, they 
 extinguished the fire, poured out the oil, and 
 turned over the caldron, corpse and all. 
 
 The Brahman finished his dvddasi breakfast, 
 in great haste, and, with the betel leaf still in 
 his hand, ran to the gate to inquire of the 
 persons seated by the caldron whether it was 
 all done. When he put them the question, 
 they smilingly replied, " Yes, Sir, it is all done. 
 The Minister is boiled to death. We gava full 
 execution to the king's orders. You may go 
 and report the affair to him." 
 
 The Brahman, not knowing the reason for the 
 course events had taken, ran back and reported 
 the reply of the executioners to the king. The 
 Minister's interference in the affair at once 
 kindled suspicion in the king's mind. He un- 
 sheathed his scimitar, and holding it in his 
 right hand, twisted the lock of hair on the 
 Brahman's head into his left. He then asked 
 him whether he had not tried to dishonour his 
 queen the previous morning, and told him that 
 
192 
 
 if he concealed the truth, he would make an end 
 of him. The poor Brahman now confessed what 
 he had seen, on which the king threw down the 
 scimitar and fell down on his knees before him. 
 
 " The words of thy benediction, respected 
 Brahman have only now been explained to me. 
 Thou hast sown nothing but good ; and good 
 in having thy life preserved, hast thou reaped. 
 The wicked Minister, — whose conscious guilt 
 made him so very anxious to hear about thy 
 death, — because he sowed a bad intention in his 
 heart has reaped evil, even a death that he 
 never expected. Another victim of evil sowing 
 remains in my queen, in whom I placed an 
 undeserved love." 
 
 So said he, and ordered her to the gallows. 
 TJie old Brahman he appointed his Minister 
 and reigned for a long time. 
 
XVI. 
 PEIDE GOETH BEFORE A FALL. 
 
 Corresponding to this English proverb, there 
 is one in Tamil, — Ahambhdvam dlai alikhum, 
 "Pride of self destroys;" and the following story 
 is related by the common folk to illustrate it : — 
 
 In a certain village there lived ten cloth- 
 merchants, who always went about together. 
 Once npon a time they had travelled far afield, 
 and were returning home with a great deal of 
 money which they had obtained by selling their 
 wares. Now there happened to be a dense forest 
 near their village, and this, early one morning, 
 they reached. In it there lived three notori- 
 ous robbers, of whose existence the traders had 
 never heard, and while they were still in the 
 middle of it, the robbers stood before them, with 
 swords and cudgels in their hands, and ordered 
 them to lay down all they had. The traders 
 had no weapons with them ; and so, though they 
 were many more in number, they had to submit 
 themselves to the robbers, who took away every- 
 thing from them, even the very clothes they 
 wore, and gave to each only a small loin-cloth 
 (langot%),a, span in breadth and a cubit in length. 
 
 The idea that they had conquered ten men, 
 and plundered all their property, now took 
 possession of the robbers' minds. They seated 
 themselves like three monarchs before the men 
 they had plundered, and ordered them to dance 
 
194 
 
 to them before returning home. The mer- 
 chants now mourned their fate. They had lost 
 all they had, except their chief essential, the 
 langoti, and still the robbers were not satis- 
 fied, but ordered them to dance ! 
 
 There was, among the ten merchants, one 
 who was very intelligent. He pondered over 
 the calamity that had come upon him and his 
 friends, the dance they would have to perform, 
 and the magnificent manner in which the three 
 robbers had seated themselves on the grass. At 
 the same time he observed that these last had 
 placed their weapons on the ground, in the 
 assurance of having thoroughly cowed the 
 traders, who were now commencing to dance. 
 So he took the lead in the dance, and, as a 
 song is always sung by the leader on such 
 occasions, to which the rest keep time by hands 
 and feet, he thus began to sing : — 
 
 Ndmanum puli per, 
 
 Tdlanum iiru per : 
 
 Sdvana tdlanai 
 
 Tiruvdnan suttindn, 
 
 Sdvana tdlan midi. 
 
 Td tai torn tadingana. 
 
 " We are puli men. 
 
 They are tiru men : 
 
 If one sd man, 
 
 Surrounds tiru men, 
 
 Sa man remains. 
 
 Td, tai, torn, tadingana." 
 
195 
 
 The robbers were all unedacated, and. 
 thought that the leader was merely singing 
 a song as usual. So it was in one sense ; 
 for the leader commenced from a distance, and 
 had sung the song over twice, before he and 
 his companions commenced to approach the 
 robbers. They had understood his meaning, 
 which howerer, even to the best educated, 
 unless trained to the technical expressions of 
 trade, would have remained a riddle. 
 
 When two traders discuss the price of an 
 article in the presence of a purchaser, they use an 
 enigmatic form of language. " What is the price 
 of this cloth ?" one trader will ask another. 
 " PtiK rupees," another will reply, meaning 
 " ten rupees." Thus, there is no possibility of 
 the purchaser knowing what is meant unless 
 he be acquainted with trade technicalities.* 
 By the rules of this secret language tiru means 
 * three,' puli means ' ten,' and sdvana (or shortly 
 so) means ' one.' So the leader by his song 
 meant to hint to his fellow-traders that they 
 were ten men, the robbers only three, that if 
 three pounced upon each of the robbers, nine 
 of them could hold them down, while the re- 
 maining one bound the robbers' hands and. 
 feet. 
 
 The three thieves, glorying in their victory, 
 and little understanding the meaning of the 
 
 ^ Trader^ hare also certain secret symboia for mark- 
 ing: their prices on their cloths. 
 
196 
 
 song and tte intentions of tte dancers, were 
 proudly seated chewing betel and tamhdk 
 (tobacco). Meanwhile the song was snng a 
 third time. Td tai torn, had left the lips of 
 the singer ; and, before tadihgana was out of 
 them, the traders separated into parties of 
 three, and each party pounced upon a thief. 
 The remaining one — the leader himself, for to 
 him the other nine left the conclusion — ^tore 
 up into long narrow strips a large piece of 
 cloth six cubits long, and tied the hands and 
 feet of the robbers. These were entirely 
 humbled now, and rolled on- the ground like 
 three bags of rice ! 
 
 The ten traders now took back all their 
 property, and armed themselves with the swords 
 and cudgels of their enemies ; and when they 
 reached their village, they often amused their 
 friends and relatives by relating their adven- 
 ture.' 
 
 ' [This Btory, apart from its folklore value, is specially 
 interesting as showing that the customs mentioned, Ind. 
 Antiquary Vol. XIv . p. 155 ff., as being prevalent at 
 Delhi, regarding secret trade language are universal in 
 India.— Bd.J 
 
XVIL 
 LIGHT MAKES PEOSPEEITY. 
 
 There is a Tamil proverb dipam lahshmi^ 
 karaTTi, meaning, " light makes prosperity," and 
 the following story is related to explain it : — 
 
 In the town of Govindapathi there lived a 
 merchant named Pasupati Setti, who had a son 
 and a daughter. The son's name was Vinita 
 and the daughter's Garvi, and while still 
 playmates they made a mutual vow, that in 
 case they ever had ' children that could be 
 married together, they would certainly see that 
 this was done. Garvi grew up to marry a very 
 rich merchant, and gave birth in due course 
 to three daughters, thelast of whom was named 
 Suguni. Vinita, too, had three sons. Before, 
 however, this brother and sister could fulfil 
 their vow an event happened which threw a 
 gloom over all their expectations. 
 
 Pasupati Setti died, and his creditors — for he 
 had many — grew troublesome. All his property 
 had to be sold to clear his debts, and in a 
 month or two after his father's death Vinita 
 was reduced to the condition of a penniless 
 pauper. But being a sensible person he patient- 
 ly bore up against his calamity, and tried his 
 best to live an honest life on what little was 
 left to him. 
 
 His sister Garvi, was, as has been already 
 said, married into a rich family, and when she 
 
198 
 
 saw tlie penniless condition of her brother the' 
 engagements she had entered into with him 
 began to trouble her. To give or not to give 
 her daughters in marriage to the sons of her 
 brother ! This was the question that occupied 
 her thoughts for several months, till at last she 
 determined within herself never to give poor 
 husbands to her children. Fortunately for her 
 two young merchants of respectable family 
 offered themselves to her two eldest daughters, 
 she gladly accepted them and had the weddings 
 celebrated. The last daughter, Suguni, alone 
 remained unmarried. 
 
 Vinita was sorely troubled in his heart at 
 this disappointment, as he never thought that 
 his sister would thus look down upon his 
 poverty ; but, being very sensible, he never 
 interfered and never said a word. The vow of 
 his childhood was, however, known to every one, ' 
 and some came to sympathise with him; 
 while others spoke in a criticising tone to 
 Garvi for having broken her promise, because 
 her brother had become poor through unfore- 
 seen circumstances. Their remarks fell on 
 the ears of Suguni, who was as yet unmarried, 
 and also was a very learned and sensible girl. 
 She found her uncle Vinita extremely courteous 
 and respectful, and his sons all persons of 
 virtue and good nature. The thought that her 
 mother should have forgotten all these excellent 
 and rare qualities in the presence of fleeting 
 
199 
 
 amamtnon (astliiraisvarya) vexed her heart very 
 ■greatly. So, though it is considered most dis- 
 respectful for a girl in Hindu society to fix 
 upon a boy as her husband, she approached her 
 mother and thus addressed her : — 
 
 "Mother, I have heard all the story about 
 your vow to your brother to marry us — myself 
 and my sisters — to his sons, our cousins. But I 
 am ashamed to see that you have unwarrantably 
 broken it in the ease of my sisters. I cannot 
 bear ■with such shame. I cannot marry any 
 one in the world except one of my three 
 cousins. Tou must make up your mind to give 
 me your consent." 
 
 Garvi was astonished to hear her youngest 
 daughter talk thus to her. 
 
 " You wish to marry a beggar ?" said she. 
 " We will never agree to it, and if you persist 
 we will give you away to your penniless pauper, 
 but we will never see your face again," 
 
 But Suguni persisted. So her marriage 
 with the youngest son of Vinita was arranged. 
 He had never spoken a word about it to his 
 sister, but he had waited to make matches for 
 his children till all his sister's daughters had 
 been given away, and when he heard that 
 Suguni was determined to marry his youngest 
 flon, he was much pleased. He soon fixed upon 
 two girls from a poor family for his other 
 sons, and celebrated the three weddings as 
 became his position. 
 
200 
 
 Sugnui was as noble in her conduct as in 
 her love for her poor consin. She was never 
 proud or insolent on account of having com& 
 from a rich family. Nor- did she every. dis- 
 regard her husband, or his brothers, or father. 
 
 Now Vinita and his sons used to go out 
 in the mornings to gather dried leaves which 
 his three daughters-in-law stitched into plates 
 (patrdvalt), which the male members of the 
 family sold in the bdzelr for about four fanams 
 each.' Sometimes these leaf -plates would go for 
 more, sometimes for less : but whatever money 
 the father-in-law brought home his daughters- 
 in-law used for the day's expense. The 
 youngest of them was Sugnm, who spent the 
 money most judiciously and fed her father-in-law 
 and his sons sumptuously. Whatever remained 
 she partook of with her two poor sisters-in-law, 
 and lived most contentedly. And the family 
 respected Sugunl as a paragon of virtue, and 
 had a very great regard for her. Her parents, 
 as they had threatened, never returned to see 
 how their last, and of course once beloved, 
 child was doing in her husband's home. Thus 
 passed a couple of years. 
 
 One day the king of the town was taking an 
 oil bath, and pulling a ring ofE his finger, left 
 it in a niche in the open courtyard. A garuda 
 (Brahmani kite) was at that moment describing 
 
 ' A yatiam is generally worth two 6,n0,s. 
 
201 
 
 circles in tlie air and, mistaking tlie glittering 
 rubies in the ring for flesh, pounced upon it 
 and flew away. Finding it to be no flesh he 
 dropped it in the house of Suguni's husband. 
 She happened to be alone working in the court- 
 yard, while her sisters-in-law and the others 
 were in different parts of the house. So she took 
 up the sparkling ring and hid it in her lap. 
 
 Soon afterwards she heard a proclamation 
 made in the street that the king had lost a 
 valuable ring, and that any person who could 
 trace it and give it back to him should obtain 
 a great reward. Suguui called her husband 
 and his brothers and thus addressed them : — 
 
 " My lord and brothers, kindly excuse me 
 for having the king's ring. Exactly at mid- 
 day a garuda dropped it in our courtyard and 
 here it is. We must all go to the king, and 
 there, before you three, I shall deliver up 
 the ring, explaining how I got it. When His 
 Majesty desires me to name my reward I shall 
 do so, and beg of you never to contradict or 
 gainsay my desires, if they appear very humble 
 in your opinion." 
 
 The brothers agreed, and they all started to 
 the palace. They had a very great respect for 
 Suguni, and expected a good result from this 
 visit to the king. 
 
 The palace was reached, and the ring was 
 given back to the king with the explanation. 
 
202 
 
 His Majesty was obarmed at the modesty and 
 truthfulness of Suguni, and asked her to name 
 her reward. 
 
 " My most gracious Sovereign ! King of 
 kings ! Supreme lord ! Only a slight favour 
 thy dog of a servant requests of your Majesty. 
 It is this, that on a Friday night all the lights 
 in the town be extinguished, and not a lamp 
 be lit even in the palace. Only the house of 
 thy dog of a servant must be lighted up with 
 such lights as it can afford." 
 
 " Agreed, most modest lady. We grant your 
 request, and we permit you to have the privi- 
 lege you desire this very next Friday." 
 
 Joyfully she bowed before his Majesty and 
 returned with her husband and the others to 
 her house. She then pledged the last jewel 
 she had by her and procured some money. 
 
 Friday came. She fasted the whole day, and 
 as soon as twilight approached she called both 
 the brothers of her husband, and thus addressed 
 them : — 
 
 " My brothers, I have made arrangements 
 for lighting up our house with one thousand 
 lamps to-night. One of you without ever 
 closing your eyes for a moment must watch the 
 front of our house and the other the back. 
 If a woman of a graceful appearance and of 
 femiuine majesty wishes you to permit her to 
 enter it, boldly tell her to swear first never to 
 
203 
 
 go out again. If she solemnly agrees to this, 
 then permit her to come in. If in the same 
 way any woman wishes to go out, make a 
 similar condition that she must swear never to 
 return at any time in her life." 
 
 What Suguni said seemed ridiculous to the 
 brothers ; but they allowed her to have her 
 way, and waited to see patiently what would 
 take place. 
 
 The whole town was gloomy that night, 
 except Suguni's house : for, by order of His 
 Majesty, no light was lit in any other house. 
 The AshialaJcshmk — the Eight Prosperities — 
 entered the town that night and went house 
 by house into every street. All of them were 
 dark, and the only house lit up was Suguni's. 
 They tried to enter it, but the brother at the 
 door stopped them and ordered them to take 
 the oath. This they did, and when he came 
 to understand that these ladies were the Eight 
 Prosperities — he admired the sagacity of his 
 brother's wife. 
 
 A nimisha after the eight ladies had gone in 
 there came out of the house a hideous female 
 and requested permission to go, but the brother 
 at the back would not permit this unless she 
 swore never to come back again. She solemnly 
 swore, and the nest moment he came to know 
 that she was the Mudem, or Adversity, the 
 elder sister of Prosperity. 
 
204 
 
 For slie said : " My sisters have come. ' I 
 cannot stay here for a minute longer. God 
 bless you and your people. I swear by every- 
 thing sacred never to come back." 
 
 And so, unable to breathe there any longer, 
 Adversity ran away. 
 
 When the morning dawned, the Prosperities 
 had already taken up a permanent abode with 
 the family. The rice bag became filled. The 
 cash chest overflowed with money. The pot 
 contained milk. And thus plenty began to 
 reign in Sugum's house from that day. The 
 three brothers and her father-in-law were over- 
 joyed at the way Suguni had driven away their 
 poverty for ever, and even Suguni's parents 
 did not feel it a disgrace to come and beg their 
 daughter's pardon. She nobly granted it and 
 lived with all the members of her family in 
 prosperity for a long life. 
 
 It is a notion, therefore, among orthodox 
 Hindus, that light in the house brings prospe- 
 rity, and darkness adversity.'' 
 
 ° See also the second tale in this series ; ante, 
 p. 7. 
 
XVIIL 
 THE FITE CUPS. 
 In a certain village there lived an extremely 
 poor Brahman, named Bhikshu, who had 
 nothing to live upon. Every morning he rose 
 in the BralimamuMrta^ from his bed, went to 
 the river, bathed, and finished his prayers by 
 the third or fourth ghatihcP of the day. After 
 this his wife gave him a copper vessel cleaned 
 and washed, which he used to take in his 
 hand and went a-begging street by street, and 
 house by house, reciting the TJ^panishads} At 
 about the tenth ghatikd Bhikshu used to return 
 home with the vessel filled with rice and a few 
 vegetables with which the charitably disposed 
 had presented to him. He then performed his 
 noonday ablutions and the devatdrchana — the 
 worship of his household gods. His wife 
 cooked the rice meanwhile, and after each 
 platter had been duly offered to the god, Bhikshu 
 sat down to his dinner. Whatever remained 
 after serving her husband the Brahmani ate. 
 Such was their daily routine. If fortunately 
 
 ' BrahmamuMrta, the second half of the last watoh 
 of a night, from 4i to 6 a.m. ; so called as being sacred to 
 Brahm§. 
 
 2 See ante, Vol. XIV. p. 135, note 3. 
 
 2 V'panish''.d, sacred writings of the Brahmavis, explain- 
 ing the true sense of the V^das, 
 
206 
 
 BHksliu ever brought more rice tlian was 
 sufficient for one meal for kimself and his wife, 
 the hearth glowed a second time with fire, and 
 a second meal was cooked. If not, they had to 
 be content with a single meal for the day, and 
 passed their night in hunger and in sorrowing 
 over their poverty. 
 
 This kind of life went on for several years 
 till one day Bhikshu's wife was much vexed, 
 and calling her husband to her side thus ad- 
 dressed him : — 
 
 "My dearest Bhikshu, we have remained in 
 this misery so long that death seems more 
 welcome to us than life. But the great god 
 MahSsvara will not take us to his abode, until 
 the full punishment for all our sins committed 
 in a former life is duly undergone in this life 
 in the shape of extreme poverty. And as for 
 yourself you never cared to learn anything by 
 which to gain an honourable livelihood. The 
 only thing you seem to have studied in your 
 younger days was uriahchhavritU — the collection 
 of alms ! I beseech you to go somewhere and 
 return with some learning in you." 
 
 The Brahmani's words infused shame into 
 her husband, and he resolved within himself to 
 start the next morning in search of some know- 
 ledge to eke out honourably the remainder of 
 his life. His wife, too, did not cook all the 
 rice he got that day, but reserved a portion to 
 give to him for the way. 
 
207 
 
 Eaiiy next day wlien Bhikshu went for his 
 bath — for Brahmanism is lost if the morning 
 bath and ablation are renounced for a day 
 even— his wife rose up and bathing hastily in 
 the well in her garden, cooked the remaining 
 rice and made ready a small bundle of food for 
 her husband's use. When Bhikshu came back 
 he smiled upon his wife for her kindness, and 
 passing his left hand under the bundle placed 
 it firmly on his left shoulder. His wife then 
 ran out before him to see whether the omen 
 was good. An old lady with a ghata (pot) 
 full of newly drawn water was coming towards 
 her. 
 
 " My dear husband, the great god favours 
 your journey. A sumahgali* approaches. Start 
 at once," cried she, and off went her husband. 
 
 Bhikshu had to go through a pathless forest 
 to find some strange country in his search after 
 knowledge. The scorching sun was too much for 
 
 ' A married woman, whose approach is a good omen. 
 Omens differ in different countries : among the DrSvi- 
 dians the good omens are — a married woman, virgin, 
 dancing-woman, " double" BrAhma?, music, flowers, 
 fruits, flag, umbrella, sugar-cane, cooked rice, milk, 
 flesh, fire, wM, elephant, horse,_oows, cloth, king, pearls, 
 clarified rice (aksfiMa) and fried rice (ISja). If any of 
 these approach the omen is supposed to be good and the 
 purpose for which one goes out wiU succeed. The bad 
 omens are a widow, " single " Brfihman, three Vaiayas, 
 two ^udras, tiger, serpent, fuel, scythe, wood-axe, crow- 
 bar, oil, new pot, a man in a masque, butter-milk {chdch) 
 curds, a cough, any utterance of a preventive nature, 
 untimely rain, thunder, wind, fasting person, person 
 with his head newly shaved, sorrowful exclamations of 
 Ha! Bacla! &o. 
 
208 
 
 him, and he was greatly tired ; but though his 
 hunger was great he did not mind. He walked 
 and walked, till he came to the banks of a dry 
 river bed in one part of which, however, a small 
 stream was flowing gently. His fatigue was so 
 great that he took the bundle off his shoulder, 
 and after hanging it on the branch of an 
 ihcjudi^ tree fell into a deep slumber beneath 
 it. 
 
 Fortunately for him, while he was thus sound 
 asleep, Parvati and Paramesvara happened to 
 pass that way. The goddess was very hungry. 
 Said she to her lord : 
 
 "My great lord, here sleeps a poor Brahman. 
 The rice he brought for his meal is hanging 
 in the ingvM tree. I am very hungry. Let 
 us both eat of the bundle and then pursue 
 our way." 
 
 The great god could not but agree. He 
 himself took down the bundle and went up to 
 the flowing stream. Parvati followed and they 
 both ate their fill and came back, while Bhikshu 
 was still asleep. 
 
 " Poor soul, he sleeps soundly enough, with- 
 out knowing that we have emptied his bundle 
 of rice. What will he do for his meal when 
 he gets up ?" said Parvati, and the great god, 
 
 ^ (TermijiaWa catapjpa), a tree that grows in marshy 
 places and by the side of rivers ; always described by 
 , Sanskrit poets in wild scenes : it occurs in the E&md- 
 yana, ^ahuntalS, and other works. 
 
20 1» 
 
 asking her not to be concerned about it, took 
 five gold cups from under his feet, and tied 
 them up in the empty cloth. The goddess's 
 face glowed with joy and she hung the bundle 
 with the five caps in it where the bundle of 
 rice had been, and went behind her lord to 
 Mount Kailasa.' 
 
 In the evening Bhikshu awoke, and there 
 were only five or six ghatihas remaining before 
 the sun would set. He snatched down hia 
 bundle hastily and flew to the stream. It felt a 
 little heavier, and not knowing how to account 
 for this he opened it, when lo ! five cups made 
 of gold and arranged one over another met his 
 eyes. As he separated the cups, from out 
 of each there came out a being of the Divine 
 World (devaldlca), and served him with a 
 thousand varieties of dishes. He was delighted 
 at what he saw, and at once interpreted it to 
 be a divine gift. When he put the cups back 
 into their original position the goddesses 
 disappeared, and he thought within himself that 
 his poverty must have left him from that moment, 
 and returned home hastily with a cheerful 
 countenance to meet his wife. 
 
 Alas, poor woman ! She had given away the 
 little rice she had that morning to her husband, 
 when she sent him on his expedition in search 
 of knowledge, and as there was no one to give 
 
 " The abode of Siva in thp Himalayas. 
 
210 
 
 her another handful she had fasted the whole 
 night, and was praying for death or the return 
 of her lord to put an end to her miseries. At 
 about the . seventh ghatikd—iov it took this 
 much time for her husband to reach home — a 
 couple of taps were heard at the door accom- 
 panied by "Adiye — lady" — and she ran at. 
 once to open the latch, for she recognised 
 the voice to be her lord's. A small light from a 
 thin single wick was burning in her left hand, 
 while with her right hand she opened the latch 
 and she discovered her husband standing with 
 a cheerful face at the gate. 
 
 " Has my lord returned so soon ? " said she. 
 
 " Yes, my lady. The gift of Paramesvara 
 has been so great," replied Bhikshn, and after 
 caref ally bolting the door, he went in, followed 
 by his wife. 
 
 He then related to her how Paramesvara had 
 conferred, upon him five gold cups of extraordi- 
 nary merit, and to prove that what he told her 
 was not untrue, he fed her by. means of the newly 
 acquired vessels. She was extremely delighted 
 at the divine favour which had thus dawned 
 upon her, and in honour of it wished to give a 
 public feast to the villagers. Bhikshu agreed to 
 the idea and was much pleased at the charitable 
 disposition of his wife. And then they had 
 nothing to lose by it, for the cups would feed any 
 number of persons ! So Bhikshu undertook 
 to invite in the morning all the males of the 
 
211 
 
 village and ordered his wife to invite all the 
 females. 
 
 Accordingly, after his morning duties were 
 over, Bhikshu went to all the houses and invited 
 the male inhabitants of the village to a dinner 
 at his house, and his wife invited all the 
 members of the fair sez. But they were 
 amazed to hear that he was to give them all a 
 dinner ! 
 
 " How could a beggar do such a thing ?" said 
 they, " but if we do not go he may think that 
 we have insulted his poverty. So we must go 
 for form's sake, after dining at home." 
 
 In this way they all duly came to Bhikshu's 
 house, and seeing no signs of cooking or of a 
 dinner in the place, thiey were all glad of having 
 eaten first in their own homes. 
 
 Bhikshu received all the male guests and 
 seated" them in their proper places, while his 
 wife received and arranged for all the female 
 guests. When the arrangements were complete 
 Bhikshu went inside and opened his bundle of 
 five cups and separated them. Several divine 
 damsels came out from each cup, highly orna- 
 mented. Wreaths of sweet-scented jasmines 
 were entwined in their coiled locks, and each 
 had a dish in her hand. The first lady spread 
 the leaves. The second sprinkled water and 
 placed a lotd^ by the side of each guest, 
 
 ' A drinking cup with a neck smaller than its body. 
 
212 
 
 while the others served the contents of their 
 platters into the leaves of the guests. It was 
 a most charming sight to see this bevy of 
 fair maidens at their work, until the whole 
 party was served. Foolish gaests, they were 
 not prepared to eat, for they had eaten their 
 fill at home. So, after enjoying the sight more 
 than their meal they all returned home, congra- 
 tulating Bhikshu on this manifestation of the 
 divine favour. 
 
 Now there was a rich land-holder in the 
 village, who was notorious for his ambition for 
 anything and everything, whose name was 
 Asavan. He came to Bhikshu and requested him 
 to give full particulars as to how he had obtained 
 the cups. Bhikshu related to him the whole story 
 to which Asavan listened quite unconcernedly, 
 and went his way. He then ordered his wife 
 to give him some food tied up in a bundle 
 and started with it next morning to the ingvM 
 tree. There he suspended his rice, as Bhikshu 
 had done, and pretended to sleep, but only 
 kept his eyes closed. That day, too, Parvati 
 and ParamSsvara passed that way and ate 
 of his bundle. On returning to the bank 
 the great god placed fire cups also in 
 Asavan's bundle, as he had done in Bhikshu's. 
 Asavan observed all that had passed and was 
 delighted at the divine favour. He did not 
 even open his bundle, but came running 
 home. 
 
213 
 
 His great idea now was to invite all the 
 villagers and give them a grand feast be- 
 fore he himself tested the boon. Accordingly 
 the whole village was called in the nest morn- 
 ing, and all came hungry, and sat in a row to 
 taste of the divine dishes. Asavan treated them 
 courteously and going inside opened the cups. 
 When lo ! several barbers came out of each cup 
 and shaved the guests clean ! And as they were 
 divine the guests could not get out of their 
 clutches, and one and all left the house cursing 
 Asavan ! 
 
XIX. 
 THE BRAHMAEAKSHASA. 
 
 In a certain village of tlie country of 
 ^engalinirppattu there dwelt a Brahman, 
 gaining his living by the alms he collected 
 daily, and so he was in extremely poor cir- 
 cumstances. Poverty indeed had taken such 
 a firm hold of him that he wished to fly to 
 Banaras. Accordingly, depending as usual 
 upon what charity would provide for him on the 
 way, he started with only one day's supplies 
 tied up in a bundle. 
 
 When there wanted yet four ghaiileds before 
 sunset he had approached a thick wilderness, 
 which was also long and wide, and studded with 
 small villages here aad there. After journeying 
 through this for more than the four ghatiMs: 
 he reached a splendid tank just as the sun was. 
 setting. Ablutions must never be foregone by 
 a Brahman, so he neared the tank to wash 
 his hands and legs, to perform his prayers, and 
 to eat what little his bundle contained. As 
 soon as be placed his foot in the water- he 
 heard a voice calling out ; — "Put not thy foot 
 in this water 1 Thou art not permitted to do 
 so !" 
 
 He looked round about him and discovered 
 nothing, and so not deeding the threat he 
 
 " Sengalmfrpattu means " the land of the blue lilj'i,"' 
 aow cQnupted inta Chingleput^ 
 
215 
 
 washed his hands and feet, and sat down to 
 perform his sandhydvandana or evening wor- 
 ship, when ftgain he heard a voice: — "Per- 
 form not thy sandhydvandana ! Thou art not 
 permitted to do so !" 
 
 A second time he gave no heed to the voice 
 bnt proceeded with his prayers, and when 
 they were over opened his bundle of food. 
 As soon as he began to eat the same voice was 
 again heard, biit the Brahman paid no atten- 
 tion, and finished his meal. Then getting up 
 he pursued his journey, so as, if possible, to 
 reach a village to sleep in for the night. He 
 had scarcely advanced a step, when again the 
 same voice forbade him to go on ! 
 
 Having thus been barred four times the 
 Brahman boldly broke out and said: — "Who 
 art thou, thou wretch ? And why dost thou 
 thus forbid me every reasonable action." 
 
 Replied a voice from a pipal tree above him : 
 " I am a BraJimardkshasa, named Ganapriya.' 
 In my former life I was a Brahman, and learnt 
 all the intricacies of music, but I was unwill- 
 ing to impart my hard-earned knowledge to 
 others. Paramesvara was so greatly displeased 
 with me that he made me a Brdhmardkshasa in 
 this life^ and even now bis rage seems not to have 
 
 ' This means merely " lover of music." 
 
 'It is a common notion among Hind^is, especially 
 among Brahmaps, that he who does not freely impart 
 his knowledge to others is bom in the next life as a kind 
 of demon called BrahmarSlkshasa, 
 
216 
 
 been appeased. At the distance of a quarter 
 of a ghatiku from this spot is a ruined temple, 
 in which pujd (worship) is conducted in a verj 
 rough way, and during the ceremony a piper 
 plays upon a ndgasvara pipe so very awkwardly, 
 that its causes me the utmost mortification to 
 listen to him. My only hope of escape is that 
 a Brahman will rescue me from this tree. You 
 -are the first Brahman I have ever met with in 
 this wilderness, and I have grown quite thin 
 from the worry of hearing that awkward piper 
 day after day ! If I continue much longer in 
 this tree, it will be the death of me ! So pity 
 my condition, I beseech you, and remove me 
 to some tree five or six ghatikds' distance from 
 this place, and leave me in peace there, so 
 that I may be out of the reach of that horrible 
 piper and get a little stouter. In return 
 demand from me any boon and I will grant it." 
 
 Thus said the BrahmardksKasa, and in its 
 very voice the Brahman could discover its 
 failing strength. Said he : — " I am an ex- 
 tremely poor Brahman, and if you promise to 
 mend my condition and to make me rich I 
 will remove you to a good distance, where the 
 sound of the cracked ndgasvara shall never 
 affect your ears." 
 
 The Brahmardkshasa thought for a few 
 nimishas and thus replied : — " Holy Brahman, 
 every person must undergo what is cut upon 
 his forehead by Brahma, in this world. Five 
 
more years of poverty are allotted to you by fate, 
 after which I shall go and possess the Princess 
 of Maisur, and none of the incantations which 
 learned magicians may pronounce upon me 
 shall drive me out, until you have presented 
 yourself before the king of Maisur and pro- 
 mised to cure her of me. He will promise 
 yon ample rewards, and you must commence 
 the cure, when I will leave her. The king will 
 be pleased and grant you several boons, which 
 will make you happy. But you must never 
 afterwards visit any place where I may be. 
 It may be that I shall possess several prin- 
 cesses, but if you come there with the view 
 of curing them I shall take your life at a blow. 
 Beware !" 
 
 Thus spake the Brahmardkshasa, and the 
 Brahman agreed to all the conditions and 
 removed it to another pipal tree seven ghafifcds 
 distant from its then abode. It found its new 
 home comfortable, and let the Brahman pursue 
 his way north to Banaras, which he reached in 
 six months. 
 
 For five years he lived in the Hanumanta 
 Ghatta at Banaras, performing ablutions to 
 wash himself pure of all his sins. Then, 
 thinking of the Brahmardkshasa' s promise, he 
 returned towards the south, and after travelling 
 for five months reached Maisur, where he 
 sojourned in an old woman's house and en- 
 quired the news of the day. 
 
218 
 
 Said she: — "My son, the princess of this 
 country, who is the only daughter of the king, 
 has been possessed by a furious devil for the 
 last five months and all the exorcists of 
 Jambudvipa have tried their skill on her, but 
 to no purpose. He who cures her will become 
 the master of a vast fortune." 
 
 So said the old woman to the secret joy of 
 the Brahman at the faithful observance of its 
 promise by the Brahmardlcshasa. He bathed 
 and hastily took his meal, and then presented 
 himself at the darhdr that very day. The king 
 promised him several villages and whole 
 elephant-loads of moJiars should he effect a cui-e. 
 
 On these conditions he commenced his pre- 
 tended exorcisms, and on the third day asked 
 all the persons assembled to vacate the room 
 in which the possessed princess was seated. 
 Then he explained to his friend the Brahma- 
 rdkshasa, who was now possessing her, that he 
 was the Brahman who had assisted him in 
 the wood five years previously. The demon 
 was greatly pleased to meet its old friend again, 
 and wishing him prosperity and warning him 
 never to come again to any other place where 
 it might go for shelter, took its leave. The 
 princess came back to her former self, and 
 the Brahman, loaded with wealth and lands, 
 settled down in Maisur. 
 
 He had thus earned a name as an exorcist, 
 and now cultivated that science secretly, so 
 
219 
 
 that he soon became a master of it, and all over 
 the country he became famous as a master- 
 magician. He also became a favourite with 
 the king of Maisur, and married a beautiful 
 Brahmani girl by whom he became the father 
 of three children. Thus passed full ten 
 years. 
 
 Meanwhile the Brahmardlcsliasaa after going 
 to several places, went to the country of 
 Tiruvanandapuram (Trivandrum) and possessed 
 the Princess of Travancore. Many masters 
 of magic were called in, but to no effect. At 
 length rumours about the master-magician of 
 Maisur reached the ears of the king of Tiru- 
 vanandapuram. He at once wrote to the 
 Maharaja of Maisur, who showed the letter 
 to the Brahman. The invitation was a death 
 stroke to our hero ; for if he refused to go he 
 would lose his good name and the favour of his 
 king, and if he went he would lose his life ] 
 He preferred the latter alternative, and at 
 once wrote out a will, leaving his estate to his 
 children and confiding them to careful hands. 
 He then started from Maisur for Tiruvananda- 
 puram, which he reached after journeying for 
 a month. The king had so arranged for his 
 comfort that he performed the journey with 
 apparent ease : but his heart beating painfully ! 
 
 He reached Tiruvanandapuram and tried to 
 postpone his exorcisms for this reason or that 
 for a short time, but the king was determined 
 
220 
 
 to prove liim. So he was asked to leave no 
 stone nnturned in order to effect the perfect 
 cure of the princess. He had now no hope in 
 this world, and thinking that Jiis days were 
 numbered he undertook the cure. As usual he 
 made a pretence for a few days with his incanta- 
 tations, but he thought : " After all, what is the 
 use of my thus prolonging my miseries, as it is 
 settled that I must die ? The sooner there is 
 an end to them the better !" So with a deter- 
 mined will to fall before the blow of the Brah- 
 mardhshasa he entered the chamber in which 
 the princess was seated, but just as he entered 
 a thought came into his mind and he said 
 boldly : — " Will you now abandon her, you 
 Brahmardkshasa, or shall I at once bring in the 
 piper of the ruined temple near the wood, whd 
 is waiting outside ?" 
 
 No sooner had the name of the awkward piper 
 fallen on the ears of the Brahmardkshasa, than 
 he threw down the long pole, which he had in 
 his hand to thrash the Brahman with, and fell 
 at his feet, saying : — 
 
 " Brother Brahman, I will never even look 
 back, but run away at once, if yon will only 
 never bring that piper to me again !" 
 
 "Agreed," said our hero, and Ganapriya dis- 
 appeared. 
 
 Of course, our hero was greatly rewarded for 
 his success and became doubly famous through- 
 out the world as a master-raagiciaii ! 
 
XX. 
 
 THE SATCHEL-BEARER. 
 
 Once iipoB a time, in the city of Pushpa- 
 pura, there lived an office-messenger named 
 Tan Singh. His pay was only seven rupees 
 ■a month, out ef which he spent five rupees 
 for his maintenance and saved tiie rest. 
 After five years, he counted his savings and 
 found thaib they amounted to only Rs. 120, 
 Counting the money over and over again, 
 more than twenty times, Tan Singh could make 
 no more of it than Rs. 120 ; and so he fell into 
 «. reverie amd said to himself : — ■ 
 
 " Alas 1 after five years work 1 have been able 
 to save only Rs. 120. What can this sum 
 procure me ? Is it enough to buy me a good 
 house to live in ? No ! Can I marry on it ? 
 No ! I mast serve another five years at least 
 and save as much again to buy me even a 
 small hut I And as for a fair wife, I mast at 
 least have five or six hundred rupees, and to 
 fiave that I must serve for more than twenty or 
 thirty years ! By that time I may be dead ; so I 
 must think of something else to do than lead- 
 ing so petty a life as this. They say that 
 Tavudu Sefcti began ten years ago with the 
 very small sum of ten rupees to trade in husks ; 
 
222 
 
 and lie is already a " N'avak6tii Narayana 
 Setti," owning big shops and half-a-dozen 
 ships. 1 have twelve times as much aa he had 
 when he started in life. Why should, not 
 fortune favour me, too ?" 
 
 With these thoraghts in Ms head, Tan Singh 
 resigned his post and, committing himself to 
 fortune, opened a petty bazar for the buying 
 and selling of husks like Tavuda ^etti. 
 During the next year, after very careful 
 trading, he was able to double his capital, and 
 with his Rs. 250 he changed his husk bazar 
 into a bdgdr for nuts and betel-leaves. After 
 his second year his capital reached Es. 500, and 
 he soon changed his betel-leaf bazar into a 
 sweetmeat one. Now sweetmeats in South India 
 will bring in five or six times the sum laid out 
 on them if the trader does not give credit. Tan 
 Singh was very careful, and before the third- 
 year was quite over he had saved more than 
 3,000 rupees. He now thought that fortune 
 was really favouring him as it had favoured 
 Tavudu Setti. Every year he changed his trade 
 into a more and more lucrative and honourable 
 one. He was very careful and honest, and 
 never forgot his original poor condition. After 
 ten years of successful trading he reached his 
 ambition of becoming a " NavakSti Narayana 
 Setti," for he was now a great pearl mer- 
 chant. Pearls and diamonds of the first water 
 were his only articles of commerce. What was 
 
223 
 
 his condition now compared with that ten 
 years before ? Then he was only a messenger 
 on seven rupees a month:: now he had more 
 -than a hundred messengers, to each of whom he 
 was paying a monthly salary of seven rupees ! 
 Besides, his income now was more than that of 
 a king I 
 
 Tan Singh thought that it would be a great 
 isin in 'him if ke did not Bnjoy his life, so he at 
 lOnee bought a large establishment at Pushpa- 
 pura for Rs. 60,000, and married a lady, named 
 Xamalabai, of the best Singh family of the 
 town. His busiuess never failed him, and his 
 wife's star,* too, favoured his trade, for he grew 
 richer and richer every day. Two years after 
 his marriage he had a eon, his first-born, who 
 was very beautiful. He named him Ram 
 ^ingJi, and brought him aip very tenderly^ 
 Three years after that he had another son, 
 whom he named Lakshmana Singh ; and in two 
 years more he had a third son, the most beau- 
 tiful of them all, whom he named Krishna 
 Singh. Thus, after seven years of married 
 life, he was the father of three most beautiful 
 sons, the eldest of whom was five years of 
 age. 
 
 Beiag a rich and prudent man, he left no 
 •stone unturned to give a proper training to his 
 
 ' It is a common belief, that when good or bad days 
 xsome upon a family after taking in a new bride, it is her 
 star that has brought them. 
 
224 
 
 sons ; but, true to the proverb' that " the eldest 
 is always stupid," Ram Singh was hope- 
 lessly dull. No amount of teaching had any 
 effect on him, and his masters were not sparing 
 of the rod. The mawlavt, th« pemdtf, the 
 npddhyayar, and others came in their turn and 
 spared no pains. But nothing^ had' any efPect 
 on Ram Singh, who grew up a dandy, dressing 
 like a king, eating like a glutton, and affecting 
 loose and misguided society. LaksbmaBa Singh 
 was of a different mould ; not very intelKgent,. 
 but very hard-working;: and, with the moderate 
 brains that ParamSsvara had' given him, he- 
 progressed fairly with his studies. In the- 
 youngest son the teachers found, quite a. 
 student. He displayed extraordinary intelli- 
 gence, grasped everything at the first teaching,, 
 and gave very gr'ea± satisfaetioai aliie to his- 
 masters and his- parents. The latter were ex- 
 tremely fond of him> as he was their youngest 
 and so full of promise.. 
 
 In this way they went on with their studieSf 
 till Ram Singh had reached the age of eighteen, 
 while Lakshmana Singh was fifteen and Krishna. 
 Singh thirteen : when a m,o&t nmfoptunate event 
 occurred to the family. 
 
 Tan Singh one morning, after twenty years, 
 of married and prosperous life, bethought hinfv 
 of his former misery and his present happiness ;. 
 
 ' There is a Tamil prOTerb, " M'&ttad'U muttannd,"—- 
 the first is stupid. 
 
225 
 
 and calling to Kamalabai, his wife, told her to 
 give eaeh of the boys a hundred rupees to be 
 spent on a feast. Kamaliibiii accordingly gave 
 Ram Singh his portion as soon as he returned 
 from his morDing walk, telling him that it was 
 his father's present. He took it eagerly, "with^ 
 out even inquiring what it was for, made a 
 breakfast of cold rice, and then went into a 
 dancing-girl's heuse and there made a present 
 of it to h«r. Soon after Ram Singh had left 
 the house, Lakshmiana Singh came home from 
 his teachefs to have his breakfast of cold rice, 
 and as he was sitting in front of his leaf, his 
 mother gave him the money ; and when he 
 asked her why, she told him that it was for a, 
 feast. Lakshmana gladly received it, bnt 
 spent it on books and clothes. Krishna Singh 
 was always late for his meals, and when he 
 returned home long after the others, his mother 
 gave him his portion, while he was eating 
 his cold rice, telling him that it was for 
 a feast. Krishna Singh laughed at the idea of 
 spending one hundred rupees in one day on a 
 feast, and rebuked his mother for having 
 brought the money to him, although his fath-er 
 had given it. He thought it very silly of his 
 father to have thought of giving Rs. 300 in a 
 day to his sons to be spent on such stuff. At 
 that rate he would spend Rs. 9,000 in a 
 month, and become a beggar in a year or 
 two. 
 
226 
 
 So lie asked liis mother to return the money 
 to his father, request him to lock it up in 
 his safe and devote it to some useful pur- 
 pose. His mother returned it accordingly, and 
 his father, overjoyed at the wit of his youngest 
 son, desired the gift to be doubled. The boy 
 persisted in his refnsal, but his father would 
 not yield, and tried to compel him to take' 
 the money. He sternly refused, however, and 
 when his father wished to' know what it was • 
 that made him, always so obedient, so very 
 stubborn that day, he advised him not to 
 attempt to find out impossibilities. Tan Singh 
 grew extremely angry art; this, and blinded 
 by his pride of wealth, asked Krishna Singh ■ 
 whether anything was impossible to him in the 
 world. Krishna Singh laughed at the folly 
 of his father, and repEed in the affirmative; 
 Tan Singh then asked him to prove it, where- 
 upon the boy asked his father whether it 
 was possible for him to get his son mar- 
 ried to the princess of Pushpapura. Not 
 that he hoped to become the son-in-law of 
 the king r he only brought this forward as 
 an example of a thing that it was not in the 
 power of his father to perform. No sooner did 
 Tan Singh hear his son mention the princessy 
 than he thonglit that he was really in love 
 with her, and that too at so tender an age 
 as thirteen ! He pulled ofE his slippers at 
 once, aud severely thrashed him. Krishna 
 
227 
 
 SihgL took the insult coolly, and then plucking 
 the slippers out of his father's hands, fled 
 away with the swiftness of a kite. He linger- 
 ed in the city without meeting any of his 
 friends or relatives till it grew dark, and in 
 the night went unobserved by anyone to the 
 temple of Kali.^ There he chose a suitable 
 niche in one of the prdMra* walls, and 
 placing the slippers that his father had 
 beaten him with in it, covered them up with 
 chunam (mortar), and thus left them there in 
 safety. 
 
 He did not now wish to remain in Pushpa- 
 pura any longer ; — ■and, young and tender as he 
 was, he did not fear to gd to some other town, 
 and there try his fortune in art independent 
 life. In this way Krishna Singh left the city 
 that very night, and proceeded to the North 
 without knowing where he was going to and 
 without any premeditated plans, and fcomdiit- 
 ting himself solely to fortune. He walked till 
 his feet pained him, ate what he could procure 
 in the shape of roots and fruits, slept when he 
 felt himself drowsy, and put no value on his 
 life. Thus he journeyed through forestsj moun- 
 tains, deserts, and wilds for over a month till 
 he reached a large city, which, on enquiry, he 
 found to be Dharapuraj the capital of the 
 
 ' Village goddess. 
 
 * Circuit walls of a temple. 
 
228 
 
 xlmpetOT OT EkachakrddMpati,^ to whom all the 
 fifty-six" kings of the world did homage. 
 
 Now the Emperor of Dharapnra had no son, 
 bnt an only daughter, who was considered to be 
 the most beantiful princess in the world. Her 
 name was Ghandramnkhi.' She was only nine 
 years of age, and was prosecuting her studies 
 
 • The lord of one discus — a title which emperors in 
 India always took from their privilege bf wielding a dis- 
 cus (chaTcra), which privilege the minor kings had nol, 
 
 ' The fifty-six kings of the world, according to the 
 ideas current in South India, are the kings of 
 
 1. Aiiga. 
 
 2. Arui)a. 
 
 3. Avanti. 
 
 4. Andira. 
 
 5. Iiada (Lata). 
 
 6. Ottiya. 
 
 7. Karusa, 
 
 8. Kaliiig^. 
 d. Kannada. 
 
 10. EannS^a" 
 
 11. Kasa. 
 
 12. KSsumlra (Kashmir). 
 
 13. Kandh&ra. 
 
 14. Kamboja. 
 
 15. KiJ^ra. 
 
 16. Kuruhn. 
 
 17. Kudaka. 
 
 18. Euntalai 
 
 19. Knru. 
 
 20. Eulinda. 
 
 21. Kfirchohara. 
 
 22. Kfkaya. 
 i23. Kerala. 
 
 24. Kbngana. 
 
 25. KoUa. 
 
 26. K6sala. 
 
 27. ^aka. 
 
 28. Savvira. 
 
 ' The moon-falced. 
 
 29. ^Slava. 
 
 30. Singala. 
 Sl.^indhu. 
 
 32. ^ina. 
 
 33. ^Arasena. 
 
 34. S61a. 
 
 36. DirSvida. 
 
 37. Tuluva. 
 
 38. Tengana. 
 
 39. Nidada. 
 
 40. N^pala. 
 
 41. Pappara. 
 
 42. Pallava. 
 
 43. Pfiiichaia. 
 
 44. PSijdiya. 
 
 45. Pulinda. 
 4(6. Poda. 
 
 47. Ma'ghada. 
 
 48. Maohcha. 
 
 49. Marfita. 
 
 50. Malaiyila. 
 
 51. Mftlava. 
 
 52. Tavana. 
 
 53. Tuganda. 
 
 54. Vanga. 
 65. VaigSla. 
 5€. Vidarbha. 
 
229 
 
 in the Prince's College of Dharapura. This 
 Rajaknmar, or Royal College, was an institu- 
 tion specially adapted to the education of the 
 members of the royal family, and during the 
 school hours a body-guard always waited out- 
 side it and also accompanied the princess and 
 her fellow- students to and fro; the Minister's 
 son, Ramachandra, the Commander-in-chief's 
 son, and several other lads of noble parentage 
 were her school-mates. 
 
 It so happened that Krishna Singh bad to 
 pass by the street in which the college was 
 situated, and as one of the royal guard was a 
 Singh by caste he recognised him as a 
 caste-fellow ; and pitying the forlorn condi- 
 tion of such a beautiful and tender boy 
 he called him to his side, and asked him who 
 he was. Krishna Singh, pretending to be 
 an idiot, replied that he knew nothing about 
 himself, that he had been wandering ever 
 since he could remember, and that he had 
 no relatives. At that moment Princess Chan- 
 dramukhi happened to come outside'the college 
 for a cup of water, and was struck with the 
 beauty and majesty of Krishna Singh, worn 
 out and disfigured though he was, after his 
 wanderings. She asked him his name and 
 parentage. He replied to the first question, 
 and as to the second he said he knew nothing 
 about himself, except that he was an orphan. 
 She then asked him whether he would like to 
 
230 
 
 serve under her. On his replying in the 
 affirmative she appointed him as her TnJehuttukki 
 or Satchel-bearer, and told him that his duty 
 was ever to be by her side and to carry her 
 satchel behind her, both when she went to the 
 school and when she returned home. She 
 promised in return to feed him and bring him 
 up as well as herself. What more could Krishna 
 Singh want ? He gladly consented, and ac- 
 cepting her ofEer with thanks followed her to 
 her class, and ever afterwards attended upon her. 
 The princess obtained her father's consent, 
 too, for Krishna Singh's employment as her 
 satchel-bearer, and true to her word she brought 
 him up very tenderly. He had his meals side 
 by side with her, and, excepting that he was 
 her satchel-bearer, there was no difference 
 made between them. The general opinion 
 among the people was that the emperor allowed 
 such familiarity between his daughter and 
 Krishna Singh, because he wished to marry 
 them to each other when they were old 
 enough ; but, as they were also of opinion 
 that he was a very stupid boy they could 
 not reconcile themselves to the idea of the 
 marriage. Fop it should be said that Krishna 
 Singh had, ever since he had entered the 
 service of the princess, pretended that he 
 was a fool, and when one of the princess's 
 school-mates had asked him if he could write 
 he had replied he could, — but about as well as 
 
281 
 
 he could fly in the air ! This too was not the 
 only instance. On several occasions he behaved 
 purposely so foolishly that every one that 
 knew him thought him the silliest boy that 
 had ever lived in the world. The princess 
 also thought him so, but never lessened her 
 care for him on that account, and continued on 
 the most intimate terms with him : so much 
 so that the public began to whisper now and 
 then that she intended to marry him. To her 
 credit, however, it must be said that she had no 
 such intention. Had Krishna Singh shown 
 that he was as intelligent as herself or more 
 so, it would have been otherwise. The em- 
 peror alone entertained thoughts of their 
 marriage, for he had pitched upon Krishna 
 Singh as the best match his daughter could 
 make. That he was very stupid did not matter 
 much, because his daughter, who was very 
 intelligent, could manage everything. It was 
 necessary that her equal in beauty should be 
 her husband, and as he had found one in 
 Krishna Singh, why not accept him ? So 
 thought the emperor, and it was owing to this 
 idea that he did not like to disturb the fami- 
 liarity that was growing up between him and 
 his daughter Chandramukhi. 
 
 The princess was fit to be married in her 
 sixteenth year, i.e., seven years after Krishna 
 Singh had entered her service, and Ramaehan- 
 dra, the Minister's son, had long had thoughts 
 
232 
 
 of marrying her, and had once or twice told 
 her so. She also seemed to be agreeable, and 
 continued to attend the college even after she 
 was grown up. 
 
 One day before the college closed for the even- 
 ing Bamachandra took a ghafikd's leave from 
 his master and waited for a chance to speak to 
 the princess. Presently she started homewards 
 with the Tftkkuttukki Krishna Singh walking 
 on in front as usual with the satchel, and her 
 guard following her. Kamachandra sat near a 
 car {ratha) and asked the princess to come to 
 him . as he had a secret to tell her, telling her 
 guard at the same time to stand where they 
 could not overhear what he was saying. He 
 also asked the Tukkuttukki to walk a few 
 steps further. Now the Tukkuttukki pretending 
 to walk on quickly managed to get un- 
 observed to the other side of the car and over- 
 hoard everything that passed between them : — 
 Bamachandra asked the princess whether she 
 would adhere to her promise of marrying him. 
 The princess told him that she would be very 
 proud of it, both on account of his high 
 parentage and his intellectual attainments ; but 
 she also told him that her father might not 
 like it, as he (Bamachandra) was not much to 
 look at, and as it was his declared intention to 
 give her only to one who was as beautiful as 
 she was. She then said, that as she liked the 
 idea of the marriage much, it would be best 
 
283 
 
 to elope to some place where they could be 
 married. Then they fixed a day for the 
 elopement — the eighth day from that one— and 
 separated. As soon as the day for the elope- 
 ment was fixed on Krishna Singh ran off nn- 
 observed and stood where he had been told, 
 and as the guard were at a distance where they 
 could not have heard the conversation, Rama- 
 chandra and Chandramukhi both thought that 
 no one had overheard them, and each went 
 home with mind undisturbed. 
 
 The night passed as usual, but next morning, 
 when the emperor was holding his darhdr 
 feonrt), all of a sudden the Tukfcuttukki came 
 to him and told him that he wanted to speak 
 to him privately about something. As the 
 emperor loved Krishna Singh more than his 
 life, he at once granted him his request, and 
 asked everyone present to leave the room for 
 a few minutes. Drawing a chair itear him, he 
 asked the Tukkuttukki to take it and to proceed 
 with his news. But Kirishna Singh asked him 
 whether he knew how kings should educate their 
 daughters ! The emperor was quite confounded 
 at this. He had always thought the Tuk- 
 kuttukki to be the most stupid man on earth, 
 and he had now posed him with a question 
 which it was very difficult to answer ! The 
 Tukkuttfikki next told him that such high 
 authorities as Manu, Vyasa' and others had 
 ' Ancient oodifiers of Hindu Law. 
 
2?J* 
 
 stated that n king should send his dangHter 
 to school till her seventh year ; after whiclv 
 it was always better to have her educated at 
 home by private teachers, till she grew tip,, 
 and that then she should be educated on the 
 jjarda-system, by which the master site on one' 
 side of a screen and the girl on the other^ 
 neither being able to see the other. He also- 
 told the emperor that he had deviated froroj 
 one and all of these sound; rulesi. with the 
 result that his daughter was no longer his 
 daughter ! He then told him what had hap- 
 pened the previous evening. The emperor; 
 was highly pleased at this display of sense 
 and at the faithfulness shown by the lad in. 
 thus bringing this news to- him. in good time; 
 He asked Krishna Singh, to keep this, a dead 
 secret, as he would te,ke the necessary steps to. 
 prevent the projected elopement from taking; 
 place. 
 
 The emperor at once issued an order sum- 
 moning all the artisans of the place to attend, 
 the darbdr in a couple of hours. The orders 
 were duly obeyed, and when they came the 
 emperor asked them whether it was possible for 
 tiiemj to raise a great, mansion, seven stories 
 in height, in a couple of days. They replied 
 that with the kind favour of the king they 
 eould do it in one day. He made the neces- 
 «i*.ry arrangements for it, asking the minister 
 and other officers to suspend all other work in 
 
2S^ 
 
 'Order to superintend the building of the man- 
 sion, and to procure all that was necessary for 
 it. -The emperor went to see his daughter and 
 stuck beside Tier, watching her like a thief. 
 No one knew wTiat the mansion was meant 
 for, and no one had the boldness to ask 
 liim, but the work duly progressed. It is said 
 that even nartnre obeyed the emperor's orders, 
 and that an enormous mansion, seven stories 
 high, was completed before the eighth ghatiJcd 
 of that evening. The minister and other 
 •officers deputed to look after the Work fhen 
 sent word, to the emperor that the mansion 
 -was finished, and with his permission went 
 •home to dinner. Such was the haste with 
 'which the work proceeded to its completion. 
 
 The emperor now called all the eunuchs and 
 i;old them that they were to guard the topmost 
 three stories of the new mansion and allow no 
 one to pass or repass, except one or two whom 
 he was going to mention. As for the other four 
 stories below he sent for pensioned soldiers and 
 gave them the same orders. After thus, as it 
 Tvere, garrisoning the mansion, he told them aH 
 that it was meant for hi.? daughter, where she 
 -was to live henceforth -^ill her mairriage, and 
 ihat with her would always live twenty female 
 servants as her attendants and friends, the 
 ■head of whom was to be one Sellam. Only 
 :Sellam and the Ti&kkuttfikki were to take pro- 
 lidsiona and other things to .the seventh snausion, 
 
236 
 
 and except Sellam and the T«kkiittukki,aiid,of 
 course, ter parents, no one -was to be allowed 
 to visit the princess. If any one, whoever he 
 might be, were to enter any of the stories, even 
 in ignorance of who was confined in the place, 
 his head was to be cut off then and there. Thus 
 the very next night after her projected plans 
 the princess was imprisoned ! 
 
 She had never dreamt of anything like this. No 
 one, except the Tukkuttukki and Sellam, could, 
 she was told, pass and repass the steps of those 
 seven stories ! "What was the cause of all this ? 
 Had some spies brought the emperor news of 
 her intended elopement after overhearing her ? 
 No ! That could not be, for she had most 
 carefully watched the place. Possibly the Tuk- 
 kuttukki had somehow overheard her arrange- 
 ments with Ramaehandra, and had played her 
 false. How eould that be possible in such a 
 foolish creature ? However, in her uncertainty, 
 she was anxious to examine him. 
 
 It was more than the 15th ghatikd of 
 the night. The princess was sitting in her 
 chair in great distress of mind at the sudden 
 frustration of her plans. Krishna Singh was 
 sitting in front of her, and she began to exa- 
 mine him, commencing in this way : — " Will 
 the Tukkuttukki bring me that book from the 
 cupboard and turn to the 11th page and 
 read ?" Krishna Singh eyed her with anger 
 for a couple of minutes, and rising up brought 
 
237 
 
 the book from the cupboard ; but instead of 
 reading it tore it to pieces, and, holding the 
 pieces between his thumb and fore-finger, 
 smelt at them and began to cry aloud till he 
 sobbed. It was with very great difficulty that 
 the princess pacified him. 
 
 She then asked the reason of his grief, and 
 pointed to the state to which the poor book 
 was reduced. He said : "Princess ! It was you 
 that took me, an orphati, and protected me as 
 tenderly as possible for seven years. Yoa are 
 rich. It would have cost you nothing to have 
 asked one of your teachers to have devoted a 
 ghatikd or two to my tuition : yoa did not do 
 that. You are yourself so learned. I am 
 ever by your side. Tou might have taught 
 me for a ghatikd or two every day. That also 
 you did not do. I am now more than twenty, 
 and I do not know how to say ' Harihdm !" 
 Knowing so much yourself, you purposely want 
 to put me to shame in the presence of these 
 slave girls. What else did you mean by asking 
 me, who know nothing, as you know very 
 well, to turn to the 11th page of that miseir- 
 able book ? I simplified everything by tearing 
 the book to pieces. There it lies. All mj 
 ignorance is — your fault ! " 
 
 Thus said the Tukkuttukki, and the princess 
 took him at his word, and setting him down for 
 
 ' Salutation to Hari ! Repeated by Hindu children 
 before beginning the alphabet of any Indian language. 
 
238 
 
 a fool of the first water thought that she must 
 have been unwise to have entertained suspi- 
 cions about so simple a man. She praised all 
 her household gods for giving her his services, 
 and now that the emperor had given him the 
 privilege of passing and repassing the storeys of 
 the mansion, she thought of turning that privi- 
 lege to the best account. In a word she 
 wished to employ him as a love-messenger to 
 Ramachandra, and to entrust him with her 
 letters to her lover ! No sooner did this idea 
 strike her than she took iip a piece of paper 
 and wrote thereon how she had been im- 
 prisoned, the unaccountableness of it, her un- 
 diminished passion for him, and her readiness 
 to take up any course that }i& would re- 
 commend. Lastly, she requested Eiiimachandra 
 to relieve her from her imprisonment, to take 
 her somewhere or other, and there to marry 
 her. After writiag the letter she signed it 
 most affectionately, — subscribing herself as his 
 wife, — sealed it most carefully and gave it to the 
 Tukkuttukki, asking him to take it unobserved 
 to Ramachandra, her schoolmate and the 
 minister's son. She also specially asked the 
 Tukkuttukki to be very careful about the 
 tetter, not to drop it anywhere fijom, careless- 
 aess, not to.show it to. anyone and to arouse no 
 suspicions by carrying it openly. .The Tukkut-. 
 tukki asked her to disclose only to himself the 
 Qonteats o£ that letter about, the safety oi 
 
239 
 
 wiich she was so very anxious. She laughed 
 at his foolishness and told him that it contained 
 a paper of questions I The Takkuttukki pre- 
 tended to be highly satisfied with her reply 
 and promised to take the paper early in the 
 morning to Bramachandra, as it was then so 
 late. 
 
 As for poor Bamachandra, as soon as his 
 father told him about the mansion, he at once 
 thought within himself that somehow or other 
 his conversation with the princess had become 
 known to the emperor. He gave up all hopes 
 of her, and trembled for hia life. Would the 
 emperor order his head to be cut off the next 
 morning ? He did not like to say anything to 
 his father, but waited to see how matters would 
 terminate. 
 
 The morning dawned. The princess and 
 the Tukkuttukki got up from their beds, and 
 hastily took their breakfast, and when it was 
 over the princess ordered him to go to 
 Ramachandra without losing auy time. The 
 Tukkuttukki rolled up the letter in half-a- 
 dozen handkerchiefs, taking care to knot each 
 of them in the presence of the princess. She 
 laughed at his acts and told him that all those 
 knots were more than enough for the safety of 
 the letter. He then put the bundle under his 
 arm and started oif at once. 
 
 Now Krishna Singh had no idea of going to the 
 emperov with the letter, for he hOid long known 
 
240 
 
 tiiat the emperor intended giving him hia 
 daughter in marriage ; and, in spite of the 
 nnfavoiirable opinion of him entertained by the 
 people and the princess herself, he was sure 
 of securing her hand. When a danger had 
 occurred to his plans in the shape of a projected 
 elopement, he thought that unless he reported 
 the matter to the emperor and got the princess 
 into safe cdstody, he might lose her for ever ; 
 and so he had told him the Stoi'yj and no doiftt 
 the princess was safe enough now I N"o Raad,- 
 chandra could now steal her away. It was he 
 that was to act the part of RAmachandra 
 untnowii to anyone, and prove what sort of 
 man he was, and so falsify the general opinion 
 entertained of him by others. He also thought 
 that such a course would better secure him 
 the heart of the princess and the praises of 
 her father. It was to enconipass this end that 
 he had worked for a long time ; and he now 
 determined, if possible, to walk away with her 
 on the proposed eighth day, himself acting the 
 part of Ramachandra ! He also thought that 
 no ordinary course was now possible in so 
 short a time as that. 
 
 Thus thinking he went down with the lettet, 
 and, going to the hdzdr, bought paper, pen and 
 ink, and with these walked to the nearest 
 jungle, where no one could see him. There he 
 opened the letter, read the contents of it, and 
 at once began a reply, as if from Rimaohandra 
 
241 
 
 to the princess ; for be it remembered that the 
 Tukknttukki had always been in the same class 
 as the minister's son, and could imitate his 
 handwriting very well. 
 
 The reply ran thus : — 
 
 " My dear wife, — Many thanks for yoar 
 affectionate letter. I had heard all about the 
 mansion from rny father, even before your letter 
 came, and suspected something. Some devil 
 bas surely told your father of our arrange- 
 ments, but I am not a man to be discouraged 
 by such mishaps. Get your father to place you 
 in the fourteenth room, from which I will 
 arrange to take you on the sixth day hence. 
 Only you must give me what assistance I need 
 through this fool. Fool though he is, still you 
 should be very glad of his help now, and send 
 through him a lakh of rupees to pay for our 
 journey. The next letter will give you the 
 necessary particulars. Your husband to be, 
 Ramachandra. " 
 
 With a perfect freedom, and a perfect imita. 
 tion of Ramachandra's handwriting, did the 
 Tukkuttukki forge this letter. He then sealed 
 it, safely knotted it in his handkerchief, and 
 putting it under his arm, returned to the prin- 
 cess before niidday. He arrived laughing, and 
 told her how many times the minister's son 
 kissed her letter containing the questions, and 
 how delighted he was to receive it, This made 
 the princess anxious to see the reply ; but the 
 
242 
 
 Tukkuttiikki would not give it up, telling her 
 how uncharitable it was of ber astid flf the 
 mkiigter's eon to suspect him so mucli. For 
 Ramachandra, he said, had also told him half- 
 a-dozen times to be careful about the reply. 
 But in the end he untied all the knots, and 
 gave the letter to the impatient princess. 
 
 The princess read the letter and danced for 
 joy. She kissed it more than a hundred times-, 
 and, going inside her room, called the Tukkut- 
 tlakki to her, and asked him to swear not to say 
 a word about the letters to anyone. She then 
 packed up in small bundles the lakh of rupees 
 that Ramachandra wanted and told him to 
 take them down one by one to her lover. As 
 Tukkuttiikki was doing this for himself, he 
 managed it with all despatcb in tTiis way. He 
 liad been a regular customer to an old woman 
 who sold sweetmeats in Dharupura ; and so 
 procured a room in her house and put the 
 tnoney i-n it. 
 
 When he had stored all his treasure there 
 lie changed his dress, and, disguised as an 
 Arab, went through all th« stables in the place 
 in search of fast and sound horses. After great 
 difiBculty he procured two very fine asvaratnas,'^" 
 which could gallop at the rate of two hos a 
 ^hatilccl}^ for a whole week, without taking any 
 
 ^° Gems of horses. 
 
 ^' About 12 miles an hour. 
 
24S 
 
 food or drink. Such horses conld not be had 
 at all times, and it was by good fortune that 
 the Titkkuttnkki chanced on them. He paid 
 Rs. 50,000" for them, amd hired two groom& 
 to take care of them. He also spent nearly 
 Bs. 25,000 in saddling and ornaments. He' 
 paid something for the paraiyas,'^' and the re- 
 maining Rs. 26,000 he spent in buying a rope 
 ladder and a rare kind of saw. 
 
 After securing all these things, he wrote the- 
 following letter to the princess : — 
 
 " Dear Wife, — I really admire our Tukkut- 
 tfikki. Though he is a most stupid fellow, he 
 has somehow managed to bring tke Idkh o£ 
 rupees that you so kindjy sent me in safety.. 
 I have bought two of the fi'neat horses, which 
 ean gO' day and night at the rate of two kos a 
 ghatikd. 1 send through our fool a rope ladder 
 and a saw. For the saw alone I had to pay 
 m.ore than Rs. 20,000, for it is a magical one, 
 and nerer makes any noise even if you cut 
 iron with it,, It is made of adamant, and 
 can saw through the hardest iron in less, than 
 two seconds. On the fifth evening, I will go- 
 to. East King's Street, that is just opposite- 
 to the large topmost window of your mansion. 
 At the tenth ghatikd of the night, when all are- 
 sound asleep, you must get up without any 
 
 " Half a I6,kh of rupees. 
 
 '^ IjOW-caste servants vfhjo act as grooms : pariahs.. 
 
244 
 
 lioise, saw through the window and cast the 
 tope ladder towards the horses. 1 shall be 
 there to catch it ; and you must then descend 
 by it, and we shall both be off on our horses in no 
 time ! Within the next five days send down to 
 me as much money as possible for our expenses. 
 I will also, without the knowledge of my 
 father, bring something as well. Your affec- 
 tionate husband, Ramachandra." 
 
 The Tukkuttukkiclosed the letter, and tied it 
 up in his usual manner. In another handker- 
 chief he tied up the saw and the ladder, 
 and returned to Chandram-ukhi with them all. 
 
 As soon as he approached the princess he 
 kept on smiling, and so she- beckoned him 
 while he was yet at a distance, and rebuked 
 him for looking so happy. He could not 
 help it he said — " for the horses were so very 
 beautiful." 
 
 " What horses ?" asked the princess. 
 
 "Why, our yajamdn}'' has bought two of 
 the finest horses in the world. I have seen all 
 the horses of our emperor, and none of them 
 can approach these in beauty. I may not know 
 how to turn up the eleventh page of a book, but 
 you may depend upon my opinion as regard's 
 a horse !" 
 
 Thus spake the Tukkuttukki, but the princess 
 wanted him to give up the letter he had, but 
 
 " Master.- 
 
245 
 
 before lie would do so, he placed before ber the 
 saw and the rope ladder. She put them in 
 her desk, without even looking at them, as she 
 was so impatient for the letter. At last he gave 
 it her. How great was her joy as she drank in 
 the contents of it with eyes wide open. The 
 horses were ready for the elopement ! The saw 
 and the ladder (thank heaven she had them safe 
 in her box !) were ready and with her ! What 
 more remained to be done ? Money ! But only 
 for the expenses of the honey-moon ! And she 
 had plenty at her disposal, as her whole hliaiidna} * 
 had been removed to the mansion with her ! 
 She took the Tukkuttukki to her hhazdna and 
 asked him to try and take it all down to Rama- 
 chandra, or at any rate as much as he could 
 manage. He agreed on two conditions. She 
 must explain to him : firstly, what those horses 
 were for ; and secondly, why she was emptying 
 her treasury in that way and sending all her 
 wealth to Ramachandra. She told him that 
 on the next Sunday night (for that was the 
 day fixed for the elopement), she, in company 
 with Ramachandra had to go to the adjacent 
 temple of Kali, to propitiate the goddess, and that 
 the money was for the expenses. And she again 
 told him not to open his lips on the subject. He 
 promised on condition she took him also to the 
 temple ! On her replying in the negative he be- 
 gan to cry and weep aloud. She then consoled 
 " Treasury. 
 
246 
 
 him in several ways, and promised on her return 
 to bring him some rare and sweet prasddas.^'^ He 
 then, named 100 different kinds of prasddaSf and 
 insisted on her bringing them with her on her 
 return. She promised (laughing within herself) 
 to bring a hundred more in addition to those he 
 had enumerated. He was then left to himself 
 and managed to empty her whole treasury, 
 and whatever he brought down he changed into 
 liundis.^^ 
 
 Thus everything was settled : the horses for 
 the journey, the expenses for some months at 
 least in a strange country, and the due intima- 
 tion of all these preparations to the princess, 
 Chandramukhi being all the while under the 
 impression that her beloved Ramachandra was 
 no ordinary man to so quickly show the em- 
 peror that he could not secure his daughter. 
 
 But alas for poor Ramachandra ! What did 
 he know of these goings on in Dharapura ? 
 Ever since he had heard from the minister, 
 his father, about the mansion, he had been in 
 fear of his life, and had confined himself to his 
 own room ! Alas for the poor Ekachakrddhi- 
 pati ! What notion had he of the tricks that 
 were being played in. the very mansion that he 
 had buUt in one day for his dear daughter ? 
 
 '" Remainders — always, puddings cooked of rloe and 
 other eatables — of an offering to the god or goddess. 
 
 " Cheques addressed to the correspondents of a 
 trader in a distant place. 
 
247 
 
 The days went on, every moment seeming a 
 year to the princess. At last Sunday came, and 
 the princess, wishing to take her choicest orna- 
 ments and dresses with her, and not liking 
 the Tukkuttukki to stay with her while she was 
 preparing to descend, asked him to go down to 
 Ramachandra, giving him a letter to the latter 
 to keep him engaged somehow so as to prevent 
 him from watching them. With great joy 
 did the Tukkuttukki receive the letter, though 
 he pretended to be very stubborn about staying 
 and watching the preparations for the pilgrimage 
 to the temple of Ka!i. He put her on her oath 
 several times about the one hundred prasddas, 
 and went off thanking all his stars ! For what 
 would have been the end of all his prepara- 
 tions had not the princess sent him. down ? 
 So thought the Tukkuttukki as he was descend- 
 ing, thanking his household gods for his good 
 luck. The first thing he did when he got 
 down was to tear the letter to pieces ; and then 
 he spent the whole day in getting the horses 
 ready for a long journey, and in securing the 
 hundis in the saddles. As soon as it was 
 evening he dismissed the two paraiyas (grooms) 
 with presents, and himself assuming the dis- 
 guise of a groom, brought the horses opposite 
 the large window of the mansion in the East 
 King's Street, and tied them to a tree. 
 
 Meanwhile the princess had been counting 
 every minnte of the day, and as soon as it was 
 
248 
 
 twilight she saw the horses with a paraiya 
 groom, and though they were a long way below 
 her she had. no hesitation in concluding that 
 they were the finest and swiftest of horses. 
 The Tukkuttukki being sure now of walking 
 off with the princess, laid himself down to 
 rest till the tenth ghatikd, and having been 
 restless for the whole of the preceding week 
 he slept soundly. 
 
 Now the emperor of Dharapura had in some 
 way incurred the displeasure of a robber chief, 
 who determined to punish him severely. The day 
 fixed upon for this was that of the elopement. 
 The town was to be plundered, and sixty-four 
 petty chiefs had been told off to sack each of 
 the sixty-four streets of Dharapura. Each one 
 of these had a number of robbers under him, 
 and the orders were that the very salt-cellars 
 were to be taken out of the houses. One of 
 these petty chiefs came to the East King's Street, 
 where he saw the two splendid horses and the 
 groom sleeping beneath a tree. He thought 
 that they must be waiting for two gentlemen, 
 who must be very rich to own such animals. 
 So he told one of his comrades to sit down 
 near them and watch his opportunity. He also 
 told him to plunder the owners and bring 
 off the horses with all the booty thus gathered. 
 So the thief sat down by one of the horses and 
 waited for the owners to turn up, while the 
 Tukkuttukki snored away the night. 
 
249 
 
 Tlie appointed time approached. The princess 
 had prepared everything for the journey, and 
 had packed np all her ornaments and dresses in 
 a small box. At the 10th ghatikd of the night 
 she arose and found to her joy that all in the 
 mansion were fast asleep. Thinking that her 
 household gods were truly favouring her elope- 
 ment with Bamachandra, obedient to his in- 
 structions she sawed through the window in 
 two seconds and cast down the rope-ladder. 
 Fortunatelyfor her and for the snoring Tukkut- 
 tukki it caught in a strong branch of the tree. 
 She pulled it, and finding it tight thought that 
 her Ramachandra was holding firmly on to it. 
 She then began to descend. The sparkling 
 jewels in her ears, which shone like burning 
 fire in the dead of the night, and the height 
 from which she descended were more than 
 enough to infuse terror into the heart of the 
 thief. He thought that no human figure could 
 dare such an audacious thing at that hour of 
 the night, and to imagine a woman descending 
 through the air at such a time was to him 
 beyond all possibility ! The more he gazed 
 at the descending princess the more his 
 fears increased and he was almost mad by 
 the time she neared him. Setting her down 
 for a devil that was descending to prey upon 
 him, he at once untied the horse he was sitting 
 near and mounting it rode towards the South. 
 When the princess had nearly reached the 
 
250 
 
 ground she saw one of the horses being ridden 
 of£ and thought that Ramachandra was riding 
 away in advance. " Perhaps Ramachandra 
 thinks that I may speak a word or two on 
 seeing him and thus arouse suspicion. That 
 must be the reason why he goes on a little in 
 advance." Thus she thought as she reached 
 the tree, and again thinking that Ramachandra 
 had pur^DOsely left the ladder in the tree to 
 go on in advance, she got down from it, untied 
 the other horse ia haste, and followed the 
 supposed Ramachandra ! 
 
 About this time Sellam, the head of the 
 female servants, got up and, finding the window 
 cut, was much alarmed ; but, as she possessed 
 great presence of mind, she calmly searched for 
 the princess before raising a cry. She could 
 find the princess nowhere. The window that 
 was cut and the ladder hanging from it 
 showed what had happened. As she would be 
 the first victim of the anger of the emperor, 
 being the chief of the maid-servants, she made 
 up her mind to escape the danger and to track 
 the princess if possible. So she got down by 
 the ladder with the saw in her hand, fixed the 
 window in its place so as to prevent suspicion, 
 for that night at least, and when she reached 
 the tree destroyed the rope-ladder, which the 
 princess in her hurry had left to tell its 
 tale. She then ran with headlong speed in 
 the track of the horses. 
 
251 
 
 After Sellam had Tbegxin her race with the 
 horses the Tukknttukki awoke, but with his 
 usual ingenuity, instead of losing courage at the 
 course events had taken he was delighted at 
 them ! " Thank heaven. Param^svara kept me 
 sound asleep ! Somehow or other the horses 
 have got away, and I dreamt I heard the foot- 
 steps of women here. Surely the princess 
 must be on ahead not far off. Had I been 
 awake I should have been in a very awkward 
 position ! There would have been nothing for 
 it then but to make a clean confession of all 
 my tricks. Perhaps she might have murdered 
 me in her anger ! Perhaps she might have 
 returned to her mansion by the ladder and 
 and tried to hide everything ! Thanks to 
 ParmSsvara, I was in a timely sleep and am 
 thus relieved from much confusion. I will 
 follow the princess, tell her that I have 
 tracked her to her place of pilgrimage, and beg 
 prasddas ! I will still play the simpleton." 
 
 With these ideas in his head the Tukknttukki 
 ran on post-haste to overtake the horses. The 
 distance between the thief on the first horse 
 and the second horse was that of a gJiatikd ; 
 that between the princess and Sellam was also 
 a ghdtikd, and that between Sellam and the 
 Tukknttukki was likewise a ghatikd. In this 
 way they raced on the whole night. 
 
 The morning twilight approached, and the 
 birds began to sing to announce the dawn. 
 
252 
 
 All our racers found themselves in tlie midst of 
 a thick jungle. The princess, even in the grey 
 twilight (for so great -was her anxiety to get a 
 glimpse of her beloved Bamachandra), looked 
 well at the rider of the first horse, and to 
 her confusion and surprise found him to be a 
 black awkward looking Tealla^^ instead of her 
 lover ! She spurred on her horse, went very 
 near him and found him without doubt to be a 
 Tcalla ! She unsheathed her sword and with 
 one stroke stretched him on the ground and 
 secured the horse ! 
 
 " Alas ! was I created in this world merely to 
 undergo calamities ? By some mistake or other 
 instead of Bamachandra a black halla has been 
 riding before me ! Perhaps this thief has killed 
 Ramachandra somewhere on the way and plun- 
 dered his horse, I am now in the thick of the 
 forest without assistance. I do not know what 
 is to become of me. I will lie down here and 
 die!" She sat down weeping, overcome with 
 grief, but it was not long before, to her surprise, 
 she saw Sellam in the distance. What was her 
 joy then ! Both flew into each other's arms and 
 embraced ; and the princess now explained to 
 her briefly all the previous story. While they 
 were thus speaking they saw the Tukkuttukki 
 running towards them at headlong speed, and 
 the first question he put to the princess when 
 he saw her was as to her promise to give him 
 " A roliber-olass in South India. 
 
253 
 
 the promised prasddas ! She was tiglily vexed 
 at his stupidity, but still thanking her gods for 
 having sent the faithful fool to her, promised 
 to give him the prasddas before long. 
 
 Sellam was the first to console the princess. 
 She advised her not to lose courage, and they 
 then agreed that the best course would be to 
 go to some unknown town, and there to live as 
 private people, till better times. They then 
 got upon the horses and asked the Tukknttukki 
 to run before them. 
 
 Now as to affairs at Dharapura. When the 
 morning dawned the maid-servants of the 
 mansion were greatly alarmed at the disap- 
 pearance of the princess, Sellam and the Tukknt- 
 tukki, and reported the matter to the old king. 
 He was extremely vexed, but ordered the maid- 
 servants to keep the matter strictly secret, and 
 live in the mansion as if the princess was 
 present among them- He promised to make 
 a secret search for the lost princess and sent his 
 spies in several directions, and enquired about 
 Ramachandra, and found that he was safe at 
 home. The fact that the Tukknttukki and 
 SeUam had disappeared at the same time as 
 the princess made the old king hopeful of her 
 safety ; so the maid-servants returned to the 
 mansion, and performed their duties just as if 
 the princess was living among them, and 
 supplies of provisions, as if they were for the 
 princess, were sent up regularly. 
 
254 
 
 Meanwhile in the forest the Tukknttukki 
 thought that really ill-luck never left him, for 
 while Sellam rode side by side with the princess, 
 he had to run before her like a dog ! He did not, 
 however, lose courage, and in this way the three 
 journeyed on till the middle of the day, when 
 the princess and Sellam became very tired. 
 They were also very thirsty, and asked the 
 Tukkuttukki whether he could get them a little 
 water to drink. He asked them to sit down in 
 the cool shade of a large tree, and went off to 
 search for water. He looked about everywhere. 
 At last, at about six or seven ghaiihds' distance 
 to the West, so it appeared to him, he saw a 
 red glitter. He went towards it, and then saw 
 a large lake. Horror of horrors ! The water 
 in the lake looked like blood, for it was very 
 red ! He, however, took a handful of it to 
 drink, *° and behold when he put it to his mouth 
 it became as pure as crystal. This made him 
 think that there must be something near the lake 
 which gave it its red colour, so he went round it. 
 
 To the extreme north he found a ruby as big 
 as a man's thumb glittering like fire, which he 
 picked up, and, after rolling it up in several 
 wraps, tied it safely to his hip inside his clothes. 
 He then collected the water in half a dozen 
 sembv/'° leaves and returned to the ladies, who 
 
 *' Natives of India do drink water by handfuls. 
 '" Oalad/ium nymphoefoHiim,, a garden plant, with large 
 broad succulent leaves and roots. 
 
265 
 
 drank it and rested for a while, resuming their 
 journey at about the 20th ghatikd. 
 
 So far the Tukkuttukki did not know in what 
 country he was travelling, and in the morning 
 the party found themselves in the middle of a 
 jungle with nothing to show them where they 
 were going. Bat about the 25th ghatiltd that 
 evening they emerged from the jungle and 
 neared a road. On enquiry the Tukkuttukki 
 found to his great joy that it led to Pushpa- 
 pura. His vigour was renewed by the news, and 
 he was anxious, if possible, to reach Pushpapnra 
 before night, and actually succeeded in nearing 
 the vicinity of his native city before it was 
 dark. He then asked the princess and 6ellam 
 to sit down in a chatram/''^ with the horses, while 
 he went into the town and hired a very spacious 
 and convenient house, three stories high, and 
 when he returned he took them to it. 
 
 The two women were most thankful for the 
 assistance of the Tukkuttukki in their trouble, 
 and asked him to get them what he could to 
 eat for the night. He went to the chief temple 
 of the town and brought away food enough for 
 their purpose, and after eating a little of it the 
 princess and her companion, much exhausted by 
 their journey, retired to sleep. The Tukkuttukki, 
 however, had no rest. He tied up the horses 
 in the ground-floor of the house and took a big 
 
 '' An inn. 
 
256 
 
 room in it for his own use, in which he secured 
 the hundis and the other money he had so care- 
 fully hidden in the horses' saddles at Dharapura ; 
 and, though it was very late, he went to the 
 bazar, where he bought everything that was 
 necessary for a comfortable life in Pushpapura, 
 except rice, which he purposely omitted to bring. 
 He then retired to rest at about midnight. 
 
 They all got up very early in the morning, 
 for ' light meals procure light slumbers.' The 
 ladies found provisions, vessels and everything 
 ready, and the Tukkuttukki told them he had 
 managed to bring them all during the night, as 
 he had seen that they were so tired by their 
 journey that they would urgently require them 
 in the morning. They were rather surprised 
 at what they thought to be the dawn of intelli- 
 gence in the Tfikkuttukki, but their surprise 
 was changed to amusement when, on enquiring 
 for rice, they were told that he had forgotten to 
 buy it ! So they ridiculed him for his foolish- 
 ness in having omitted the most important thing 
 of all! 
 
 The princess now asked the Tukkuttfikki to 
 do the menial work of the household, draw 
 water from the well, wash the clothes, bring the 
 necessary provisions from the bdzdr and perform 
 other out-of-door and petty services, while she 
 asked Sellam to be cook. In this way they lived 
 at Pushpapura as ordinary people without 
 attracting any notice, the ladies never leaving 
 
257 
 
 their third storey and returning to their former 
 gSsha'^ life, and managing to live in comfort 
 through the assistance of the Tukkuttukki. 
 
 Meanwhile the Tukkuttukki always used to 
 finish all his daily work in a few hours, and 
 after taking his meals with the ladies, he used 
 to go out and a.muse himself by wandering up 
 and down. He now bought another pair of 
 very fine horses and a beautiful coach, and 
 engaged four grooms for the horses, giving up 
 the whole of the ground-floor of the house for 
 stables. He also gave orders for some beautiful 
 dresses and had them prepared according to 
 the best fashion of the day. All this was done 
 after dinner, for until then he had to draw 
 water and do other menial work. The ladies 
 knew nothing as to what he was doing, as the 
 Tukkuttukki used to leave them in his dirty 
 menial's dress and returned to them in the 
 same clothes, but he spent his leisure hours 
 in the town driving about up and down in his 
 coach and four, dressed like a prince or even 
 better ! 
 
 Thus passed many days, till one day the 
 Tukkuttukki determined to pay a visit to the 
 king of Pushpapura. Now to visit a king empty- 
 handed is always deemed to be a sin, so he took 
 up the ruby he had picked up at the red lake 
 with him as a present, and drove to the palace. 
 
 " Closed life within doors : the nandna system. 
 
268 
 
 His ricli dress, his beautiful person, tlie coac& 
 and four, and everything about him made hires 
 appear to be himself a king or a prince, so the 
 king of Pushpapura did not think it at all odd 
 that he should visit him, and treated him as 
 an equal, going forward a few steps to meet 
 him, and receiving him with a royal greeting.. 
 The TukkuttAkki asked after his good health and 
 tendered his present, which went far to confirm 
 the previous opinion the king had formed of hi& 
 social position. He was indeed very pleased to' 
 receive so rare a gift, and told the Tukkuttukki 
 that he had one gem of the kind, that he had 
 for a long time been in search of another 
 to match with it, and that he was accord- 
 ingly all the more delighted now to have 
 had one given him. The Tukkuttukki now in- 
 sulted the king, or rather seemed to insult him^ 
 by saying that his was a gem of the first water, 
 and that no other gem in the world could 
 approach it either in beauty or value ! The 
 king flew into a fury at this piece of brag, and 
 made the same boast as to his gem. They then 
 both agreed to a wager as to which was the 
 best gem. The king's stake was his kingdom 
 in case his gem was found to be the inferior 
 one, while the Tukkuttukki bound himself to 
 serve the king for twenty-eight years in case he 
 lost. Both the gems were then subjected to all 
 possible tests. The best gem-assayers and mer- 
 chants were called in, and one and all of them 
 
269 
 
 gave it as their opinion that the Tukknttukki's 
 gem -was immensely superior to the king's. 
 The king thereupon true to his word told the 
 Tukkuttukki to take possession of his kingdom. 
 Now our hero was not a person to he blinded 
 by fortune, as he possessed a good deal of fore- 
 sight. He thought that he would not be 
 acting rightly if he took upon himself the 
 ■duties of a king publicly, and he told the king 
 that he was satisfied ±o he his agant ; — ^that is, 
 as the king was rather old, he would take upon 
 hi m self to do all the royal duties in the name 
 of the king. The Tukkuttukki was to trajisact 
 all the royal business, but the king wa,e to sign 
 the papers and appear to manage the State. 
 He agreed to act thus during the Hfetiise of the 
 ■old king, and then he was to succeed him. 
 What more could the old king want ? He 
 thanked the youth and named him henceforth 
 " the Young King." He asked him his parent- 
 age, and the now young king Krishna Singh 
 replied that he was of Royal parentage, but 
 more than this he would not say, asking the 
 old king to excuse him, and saying that every- 
 thing would be revealed to him in due course. 
 The old king was delighted with Krishna Singh 
 and wished to be relieved from the burden 
 of the State at once, and agreeably to his 
 wishes King Krishna Singh took at once upon 
 bimself the management of the kingdom of 
 Pushpapura. Thus suddenly, by the caprice o£ 
 
260 
 
 fortune, the Tukkuttukki turned into a king, and 
 hencefortli was known as King Krishna Singh. 
 In the evening, after the Court was over, King 
 Krishna Singh started to go to his house in the 
 city, accompanied by the palace band, horses, ele- 
 phants and other royal paraphernalia as usual, 
 but he forbad any of them to go on with him 
 on the pain of death. Such things, he said, were 
 meant for proud empty-headed kings, and not 
 for persons like himself. All he wanted was to 
 go home as an ordinary man without any pomp. 
 Thus he ret arned home before the 6th ghatikd 
 and resumed his duties as a menial ! During 
 the night and up to the 10th ghatikd of the 
 morning he used to act as a servant under 
 the princess and Sellam, and after his dinner 
 he came down, dressed himself like a king 
 and drove to the Court, and there swayed the 
 whole kingdom till the second ghatilcd of even- 
 ing. This was his routine for several months. 
 Krishna Singh had studied the Rdjaniti" so 
 well that he ruled like Brihaspati,'* being just to 
 every one. The people were overjoyed at the 
 justice and impartiality of their young king, 
 and the old king, too, as he had no son, thanked 
 the gods for having sent him one so intelligent 
 and so able to wield the sceptre after him. He 
 treated him very kindly, and had a high regard 
 
 " A popular book on politics according to Indian 
 notions. 
 " The Minister of Indra, the Enler of the Heavens. 
 
261 
 
 for his merits, but he dared aot ask him to 
 disclose his parentage. Thus no one knew 
 "where he came from in the morning or where he 
 went to in the evening, and though he attend- 
 ed the Court most punctually, and performed 
 the duties of a king most satisfactorily towards 
 all, from the highest to the lowest, the 
 Ministers of the empire thought it very unfair 
 on them not to know anything about him. 
 They accordingly planned among themselves to 
 go to the East Street in disguise and watch his 
 carriage every evening. 
 
 After a while one of them thus found out 
 Krishna Singh's house, as it happened, on 
 the day that the princess took an oil bath in the 
 third storey. Her hair was so long that it 
 touched the surface of the second storey, and 
 Sellam had to anoint her locks one by one. This 
 Minister observed this also, and as it is the 
 usual opinion that beauty and length of the 
 hair go together, he set down the woman bath- 
 ing inside to be a paragon of beauty, as indeed 
 she was. " Who else should that beauty be 
 but the lady of our revered young king?" 
 thought he, " We should purify ourselves by a 
 sight of her holy presence!" With these 
 thoughts in his head he returned and informed 
 his fellow-ministers of the place of their young 
 king's residence. He also pointed out to them 
 that eyesight was useless to them so long as 
 the Queen — the lady of their young king — 
 
262 
 
 remained unseen by them, explaining to them 
 what he had observed. 
 
 Then all the ministers went to the old 
 king and excited his cnriosity till he, too, 
 thought that he had been most foolish in not 
 having made himself better acquainted with 
 the young king. He now wished to manage 
 to know more of him without injuring his 
 feelings, as he had found him very stubborn 
 on one or two occasions when he had questioned 
 him about his country and parentage. So the 
 Ministers proposed that they should forge a 
 document to the effect that it was the custom 
 to perform a certain festival called the Swing- 
 ing Feast once a year in the great temple of 
 Kali at Pushpapnra, insert this document in 
 the records, and explain to the young king 
 that it had not been held for the past few 
 years owing to certain causes, but that, as they 
 had now entered on a new epoch, it ought to be 
 held as before. The document was to say that 
 during this festival the rule was that every 
 man, high and low, from king to beggar, must 
 come and sit along with his wife on a swing 
 to be set up in the great grove opposite the 
 temple of Kali, and there be swung to and fro. 
 
 Accordingly such a document was forged 
 with the signature of the old king attached to 
 it, and inserted among the records ; the time 
 for the festival becoming due being stated to 
 be about a month hence. The young king 
 
263 
 
 knew notliiiig about these plans, but he did 
 know that no sach festival was in vogue in 
 Pnshpapura, because he had previously carefully- 
 studied all the records. So when the ministers 
 suddenly spoke to him about the Swinging Feast 
 and asked him to issae the necessary orders for 
 it, he thought within himself that it must be 
 some trick played upon him. " Might it be 
 that some of these Ministers have, after great 
 difficulty, found out my residence and there 
 have caught sight of the princess ?" thought 
 he : " Might it be that these people mistaking 
 her for my wife have invented this feast merely 
 in order to get a public view of her ? Never 
 mind ! Let me satisfy them and thereby estab- 
 lish my claim as husband to Chandramnkhi ! " 
 With these thoughts in his mind, and begging 
 to be excused for the oversight, he at once 
 issued the necessary orders, and everything 
 was arranged. Meanwhile King Krishna Singh 
 followed his usual life till the very day fixed for 
 the festival. 
 
 It was now nearly a year since the princess 
 left Dharapura ; and all the while she had been 
 living as a private person without seeing any 
 one except ^ellam and the Tukkuttukki. " Alas ! 
 What a cruel woman I am !" thought she ; " I 
 am the only child of my parents, and have left 
 them to their fate, flying away hither. There 
 I lived in all honour : here I am but an ordi- 
 nary woman ! I might have become the queen 
 
264 
 
 of an empire some day if I had remained with 
 my father : now I am ashamed to explain who 
 I am ! It is nearly a year since I grew up, and 
 hundreds of princes would have been courting 
 me by this time were I in Dharapura ; but now 
 I have not even a single prince to seek my hand. 
 Sellam wants me to marry the Tukkuttukki. 
 Alas, poor man ! How could I marry him when 
 he does not even know that two and two make 
 four ! I do wish my father would come in search 
 of me !" 
 
 It was about noon when she fell into this 
 reverie and the scorching midday sun together 
 with the uneasiness of her mind produced a 
 sort of head-ache which made her drowsy, 
 when she was suddenly aroused by Sellam with 
 a loud acclamation that her father the emperor 
 had tracked them at last ! "I have been thinking 
 about this for the last half ghatilcd," said the 
 princess. " Has the dream proved true ? I hp,ve 
 wished it, but still I very much fear the wrath 
 of my father." So the pi'incess, wringing her 
 hands, asked Sellam to explain what she meant. 
 " Does it require an explanation ?" said Sellam. 
 "Do not you hear the sounds of the drums 
 and pipes announcing a royal progress ? Why 
 should these sounds be heard in this street on 
 this day alone ? We have been living here for 
 nearly a year and at no time have we heard 
 such sounds. It is this that makes me think 
 that our emperor is in search of us." 
 
265 
 
 Sellam had scarcely finislied speaking when 
 the royal procession stopped at their very 
 gates. Their fears now knew no bonnds and the 
 princess changed colour. She asked Sellam to 
 run down at once and see who it was that had 
 alighted at their gates. Sellam ran down and 
 what was her surprise when she found it was 
 the Tukkutukki. " Do my eyes deceive me ?" 
 she exclaimed : " He .was here two gJiatilcds 
 ago washing the utensils ; and now he comes, 
 dressed like a king ! Can my eyes see straight ? 
 Are my senses all gone ?" 
 
 Nevertheless she could not deny that the 
 person sitting on the threshold was the Tukkut- 
 tukki. She ran up and reported to the princess 
 that the king that had come was the satchel- 
 bearer ! The pomp with which he had come 
 and the honour paid to him by all that accom- 
 panied him instilled a mysterious awe into the 
 mind of the princess, and forsaking her gosha 
 for the time she ran down to meet him just as 
 he was coming up. They met and saluted and 
 she who commanded him till now found in his 
 countenance an unspeakable majesty, which 
 forced her to obey his orders. He adorned her 
 with jewels from head to foot, while she gladly 
 received the honours thrust upon her and asked 
 him to tell her by what good fortune he had 
 become king. He replied that everything 
 would be revealed in time and that she must 
 start without delay to the temple of Kali for 
 
266 
 
 the Swinging Festival. She could not but 
 obey. 
 
 By this time a voice was heard : — " My dear 
 young king, why are you so late ?" It was 
 the old king calling ! What were the thoughts 
 of the princess now ? The Tukkuttukki that 
 had but three or four short ghatikds ago washed 
 her utensils had become a kiug, and was being 
 called to in very afEectionate terms by the old 
 king ! Wonder of wonders ! she was impatient 
 to ask, but there was no time. So they all 
 started for the temple of Kali. 
 
 As all the preparations for the feast had been 
 made solely in order to get a view of the prin- 
 cess — now the young queen, — the ministers and 
 others had a very good view of her, as she was 
 . kept swinging for a very long time in the swing 
 in which she sat with King Krishna Singh. 
 The old king threw a very valuable pearl hdra^' 
 over his new king's neck. But he who had once 
 had the patience to run for a whole day before 
 the flying horses now found the hdra too heavy, 
 so he took it ofE and hung it on the branch of a 
 tree near the swing. The feast was kept up for 
 a long while and the party did not return till 
 about the Becond. ghatilcd of the night. All the 
 way home King Krishna Singh was praised as 
 the noblest and most intelligent of kings. Here 
 and there a petitioner stood forth and said : — 
 " Good and gracious king, I have been waiting 
 
 '" Garland. 
 
267 
 
 for the whole of the last fortnight, please send 
 me away soon." 
 
 The princess could not understand all this. 
 " How was it that he who did not know how 
 to turn to the 11th page was now a king !" 
 thought she. " Let me wait. • Let me wait. It 
 was haste that deprived me of my father." As 
 soon as they reached home the princess asked 
 King Krishna Singh to relate his story. He 
 said he would take ofE his angarhhd (coat) 
 before telling her, and as he did so to his great 
 vexation he found that he had forgotten the 
 pearl hdra that the old king had given him. 
 His face at once changed colour and his wife 
 asked him what was the matter. " I have for- 
 gotten the hdra !" was his reply, and with that he 
 began to descend hastily. The princess caught 
 his arm and said: "My dear husband, don't 
 you know that I am the daughter of an 
 Emperor ? I can get you hundreds of such 
 haras. Don't trouble yourself any more about it. 
 Be quiet and stay here." 
 
 Krishna Singh told her that as she was young 
 and inexperienced she spoke so, and that it was 
 not right for him to neglect a present, even if it 
 were a haudi." Besides he would be back in a 
 couple of minutes. The princess proposed 
 sending a servant, but he objected that if they 
 did so the neglect might become known some 
 
 •' KaVfMsViseA. as money, one hauMhsiag equal to a 
 sixteenth of a pie. 
 
268 
 
 day and vex the old king. So he ran ofE and 
 reached the grove. It was a very dark night, 
 and a dead silence prevailed in it. Groping 
 his way he crept to the tree on which he had 
 suspended the hdra ; and put out his right 
 hand to take it. Horror of horrors ! A black 
 and hungry serpent that was sitting over it 
 bit him severely and he fell down dead. 
 
 Alas ! poor Krishna Singh ! There was his 
 newly married wife to whom he had not spoken 
 a word as a husband ! There was the old king 
 entirely dependent upon him. He had not had 
 time even to see his father Tan Singh. Poor 
 old emperor, what would his feelings be 
 when he came to know what had happened ! 
 Thus, leaving so many people that loved him 
 at the moment of reaping the fruits of his 
 labours, poor Krishna Singh died ! But it was 
 not for ever. 
 
 Between the ffarlhagriha'^ of the temple of 
 Kali and the inner chamber of the house of the 
 princess of Pushpapura there was a subter- 
 ranean passage, through which she used to 
 come daily at midnight and propitiate the 
 deity. That day too she came according to 
 her usual custom and worshipped the goddess. 
 After her prayers were over she requested 
 Kali to give her a good and noble husband and 
 at once a voice was heard in the sky : " There 
 
 " The inmoat shrine of Hindft temples in which the 
 idol is worshipped. 
 
269 
 
 lies a prince in my holy presence. He shall be 
 thy husband." She ran headlong, and instead 
 of a man sleeping she found a lifeless corpse. 
 With the true faith of an affectionate wife she 
 began to weep and wail, and at once another 
 voice was heard : " My child, all this is my 
 trick to prove you. Now that you have so suc- 
 cessfully etood the test, return to my holy 
 presence and with a handful of the sacred ashes 
 go to him again, sprinkle them on his face, 
 and request him to rise." She obeyed the orders 
 of the Ambika,''° and to her joy the man rose 
 up, when she took hold of his hands and 
 humbly asked him to accompany her home, 
 telling him what had happened. 
 
 By this time the princess of Dharapura, 
 finding that her husband was not returning, 
 suspected something wrong, and flew to the 
 grove with ^ellam. When they reached the 
 temple of Kali, what did they find but another 
 woman asking his hand ! After a while the 
 news of all this reached the ears of the old 
 king, who was very glad to think that a 
 divine order had been given to his daughter to 
 marry the young king. But after having cele- 
 brated the Swinging Feast he was unable to 
 deny the right of wifeship to the Dharapura 
 princess, and so to avoid all misunderstandings 
 he had them both married to Krishna Singh. 
 
 "' Goddess. 
 
270 
 
 Invitations to the marriage were sent out in 
 all directions. The Emperor of Dharapura also, 
 who had. by this time come to know everything, 
 proclaimed that he meant to give his daughter 
 Chandramukhi in marriage to King Krishna 
 Singh in Pushpapura. A closed palanquin, 
 containing nothing, accompanied the female 
 retinue of the Emperor, and in it the princess 
 Chandramukhi was supposed to go to Push- 
 papura, where the marriage was celebrated with 
 all deserving pomp, for kings bore the marriage 
 palanquins of Krishna Singh and the two prin- 
 cesses. The Emperor was extremely pleased at 
 the adventures of Krishna Singh and at his 
 success in having won a kingdom of his own 
 in addition to the empire he got with his 
 wife. 
 
 The story is now almost ended, but a word 
 as to what had become of Tan Singh all this 
 while and of the slippers hidden in the temple 
 of Kali. Tan Singh, as his son had so intelli- 
 gently prophesied, became poor very soon after 
 Krishna Singh left him, and with his wife and 
 two other sons was living in a hole and corner, 
 having been by his own foolishness and extra- 
 vagance reduced to his original condition of 
 poverty. Krishna Singh had found this out as 
 soon as he reached Pushpapura, but did not like 
 to disturb his own plans by revealing himself just 
 then. However, now that everything was about 
 to be settled, he ordered a palanquin of flowers 
 
271 
 
 to be brought to the temple of Kali, took the 
 slippers with which his father had beaten him 
 out of the hole, placed them on it and brought 
 them to the palace. He then sent word to his 
 father Tan Singh that the king of the town 
 wanted him with all the members of his.family 
 immediately. Tan Singh did not understand 
 what the orders meant, but be was obliged to 
 obey them. 
 
 Krishna Singh at once recognised his parents 
 and brothers, but none of them recognised 
 Krishna Singh in the young king, so he explained 
 before the whole assembly all about his adven- 
 tures from the time' he had been beaten ; and, 
 pointing to the slippers, he said : " By the good 
 fortune of my father's slippers I am now the 
 husband of princesses. He punished me for 
 having demanded one, but as the shoes are a 
 pair they have given me a pair of wives !" 
 
 With these words he prostrated himself be- 
 fore his parents and brothers. They all wept 
 for joy and sorrow, and he at once took them 
 into the palace. King Krishna Singh after 
 this lived a very long and prosperous life with 
 his two beautiful wives, sometimes in Dhara- 
 pura and sometimes in Pushpapura. 
 
 The story has ended, and nothing remains 
 to be told except that Krishna Singh had a 
 number of sons to console the sonless age of 
 the old King of Pushpapura and of the Emperor 
 of Dharapura. 
 
XXI. 
 BEAHMAEAKSHA AND THE HATE. 
 
 la a certain -village there lived a very rich, 
 landlord, who owned several villages, but was 
 Buch a great miser that no tenant would 'wil- 
 lingly cultivate his lands, and those he had 
 gave him not a little trouble. He was, indeed, 
 so vexed -with them that he left all his lands 
 nntilledand his tanks and irrigation channels 
 dried up. All this, of course, made him poorer 
 and poorer day by day. Nevertheless he 
 never liked the idea of freely opening his 
 purse to his tenants and obtaining their good 
 will. "While he was in this frame of mind a 
 learned sanydsi paid him a visit, and on his 
 representing his case to him, the holy man 
 said : — 
 
 " My dear son, I know an incantation 
 (mantra) in which I can instruct you. If 
 you repeat it for three months, day and night, 
 a Brahmarakshasa will appear before you 
 on the first day of the fourth month. Make 
 him your servant and then yon can set at 
 nought all your petty troubles •with your 
 tenants. The Brahmarakshasa will obey all 
 your orders and you will find him equal to a 
 hundred servants." 
 
 Onr hero fell at his feet and begged to be 
 instructed at once. The sage then sat facing 
 
273 
 
 the East, and his disciple the landlord, facing 
 the West,°° and in this position formal instruc- 
 tion was given, after which the sanydsi went 
 his way. 
 
 The landlord, mightily pleased at what he 
 had learnt, went on practising the incantation, 
 till, on the first day of the fourth month, the 
 great Brahmaratshasa stood before him. 
 
 " What do you want, sir, from my hands ?" 
 said he — " what is the object of your having 
 propitiated me for these three months ?" 
 
 The landlord was thunderstruck at the 
 huge monster that now stood before him and 
 still more so at his terrible voice, but never- 
 theless he said : — " I want you to become my 
 servant and obey all my commands." 
 
 "Agreed," answered the Brahmarakshasa in 
 a very mild tone, for it was his duty to leave 
 off his impertinent ways when any one who 
 had performed the required penance wanted 
 him to become his servant; "Agreed. But 
 you must always give me work to do, when 
 one job is finished you mnst at once give me a 
 second and so on. If you fail I shall kill 
 you." 
 
 The landlord, thinking that he would have 
 work for several such Brahmarakshasas, was 
 pleased to see that his demoniacal servant was 
 
 '° This is always the course followed when a guru 
 (moral teacher) iustruots his Hshya (disciple) in any 
 mantra. 
 
274 
 
 so eager to help him. He at once took him to 
 a large tank which had been dried up for several 
 years, and, pointing to it, spoke as follows : — 
 
 " Ton see this large tank, you must make it 
 as deep as the height of two palmyra trees and 
 repair the embankment wherever it is broken." 
 
 "Yes, my master, your orders shall be 
 obeyed," humbly replied the servant and fell to 
 work. 
 
 The landlord, thinking that it would take 
 several months, if not years, to do the work in 
 the tank, for it was two kos long and one kos 
 broad, returned delighted to his home, where 
 his people were awaiting him with a sumptuous 
 dinner. He enjoyed himself amazingly with 
 his wife, but when it was approaching evening 
 he Brahmarakshasa came to inform his master 
 that he had finished his work in the tank ! 
 He was indeed astonished and feared for his 
 own life ! 
 
 " What ! finished the work in one day, which 
 I thought would occupy him for months and 
 years ; if he goes on at this rate, how shall 
 I keep him employed ? And when I cannot 
 find employment for him he will kiU me !" 
 Thus he thought and began to weep. His 
 wife wiped the tears that ran down his face, 
 and said : — 
 
 "My dearest husband, you must not lose 
 courage. Get from the Brahmarakshasa all the 
 work you can and then let me know. I'll 
 
275 
 
 give him something that -will keep him 
 engaged for a very very long time and then 
 he'll trouble us no more." 
 
 But her husband only thought her words to 
 be meaningless, and followed the Brahmarak- 
 shasa to see what he had done. Sure enough 
 the thing was as complete as complete could 
 be, so he asked him to plough all his lands, 
 which extended over twenty villages ! This 
 was done in two ghatilcas ! He next made 
 him to dig and cultivate all his dry and garden 
 lands. This was done in the twinkling of an 
 eye ! The landlord now grew hopeless. 
 
 "What more work have you for me?" 
 roared the Brahmarakshasa, as he found that 
 his master had nothing for him to do and that 
 the time for his eating him up was approaching. 
 
 "My dear friend," said he, " my wife says 
 she has a little job to give you ; do it, please, 
 now. I think that that is the last thing I can 
 give you to do, and after it, in obedience to the 
 conditions under which you took service with 
 me, I must become your prey ! 
 
 At this moment hia wife came to them, 
 holding in her left hand a long hair, which 
 she had just pulled out from her head, and 
 
 said :— 
 
 "Well, Brahmarakshasa, I have only a very 
 light job for you. Take this hair and when 
 you have made it straight bring it back to 
 me." 
 
276 
 
 The Brahmarakshaaa calmly received it and 
 sat in a pifal tree to make it straight. He 
 rolled it several times on his thigh and lifted it 
 up to see if it had become straight : but no, it 
 would still bend ! Just then it occurred to him 
 that goldsmiths, when they want to make 
 their metal wires straight, have them heated 
 in a fire. So he went to a fire and placed the 
 hair over it, and, of course, it frizzled up with 
 a nasty smell ! He was horrified ! " What 
 will my master's wife say if I do not return 
 her the hair she gave me ?" So he became 
 mightily afraid and ran away ! 
 
 This story is told to explain the modern 
 custom of nailing a handful of hair to a tree 
 in which devils are supposed to dwell to drive 
 them away. 
 
XXII. 
 THE EEGGAR AND THE FIVE MUFFINS. 
 
 In a certain village there lived a poor beggar 
 and Hs wife. The man nsed to go out every 
 morning with a clean vessel in his hand, 
 return home with rice enough for the day's 
 meal, and thus the pair lived on in extreme 
 poverty. 
 
 One day a poor Madhva Brahman invited 
 them to a feast, and, among Madhvas 
 muffins (tosai) are always a part of the good 
 things on festive occasions. So during the 
 feast the beggar and his wife had their fill 
 of muffins. They were so pleased with them 
 that the woman was extremely anxious to 
 prepare some more muffins in her own house, 
 and began to save every day a little rice from 
 what her husband brought her for the purpose. 
 When enough had been thus collected she 
 begged a poor neighbour's wife to give her a 
 little black pulse, which the latter — praised be 
 her charity — readily did. The faces of the 
 beggar and his wife literally glowed with joy 
 that day, for were they not to taste the long- 
 desired muffins a second time ? 
 
 The woman soon turned the rice she had 
 been saving and the black pulse she had 
 obtained from her neighbour into a paste, 
 and mixing it well with a little salt, green 
 
278 
 
 cbillies, coriander seed and curds, set it in a 
 pan on the fire ; and with her mouth watering 
 all the while prepared five muffins ! By the 
 time her husband had returned from his collec- 
 tion of alms, she was just turning out of the 
 pan the fifth muffin ! And when she placed 
 the whole five muffins before him his mouth, 
 too, began to water. He kept two for himself 
 and two he placed before his wife, but what 
 was to be done with the fifth ? He did not 
 understand the way out of this difficulty. That 
 half and half make one and that each could 
 take two and a half muffins was a question too 
 hard for him to solve. The beloved muffins 
 must not be torn in pieces ; so he said to his 
 wife that either he or she must take the 
 remaining one. But how were they to decide 
 which should be the lucky one ? 
 
 Proposed the husband:— " Let us both shut 
 our eyes and stretch ourselves as if in sleep 
 each on a verandah on either side the kitchen. 
 Whoever opens an eye and speaks first 
 gets only two muffins, and the other gets 
 three." 
 
 So great was the desire of each to get the 
 three muffins that they both abided by the 
 agreement, and the woman, though her mouth 
 watered for the muffins, resolved to go through 
 the ordeal. She placed the five cakes in a 
 pan and covered it over with another pan. 
 She then carefully bolted the door iuside, and 
 
279 
 
 asking her hnaband to go into the east verandah, 
 lay down - in the west one. Sleep she had 
 none, and with closed eyes kept guard over her 
 husband : for if he spoke first he would have 
 only two muffins and the other three wonld 
 come to her share. Equally watchful was her 
 husband over her. 
 
 Thus passed one whole day — two — three ! 
 The house was never opened ! No beggar came 
 to receive the morning dole. The whole 
 village began to enquire after the missing 
 beggar. What had become of him ? What had 
 become of his wife ? " See whether his house 
 is locked on the outside and whether he has 
 left us to go to some other village," spoke the 
 greyheads. So the village watch came and 
 tried to push the door open, but it would not 
 open! "Surely," said they, "it is locked on 
 the inside! Some great calamity must have 
 happened. Perhaps thieves have entered the 
 house and after plundering their property 
 murdered the inmates." 
 
 "But what property is a beggar likely to 
 have ?" thought the village assembly, and not 
 liking to waste time in idle speculations, they 
 sent two watchmen to climb the roof and open 
 the latch from the inside. Meanwhile the whole 
 village — men, women and children — stood before 
 the beggar's house to see what had taken place 
 inside. The watchmen jumped into the house, 
 and to their horror found the beggar and his 
 
280 
 
 wife stretclied on opposite verandahs like two 
 corpses. They opened the door, and the whole 
 village rushed in. They, too, saw the beggar 
 and his wife lying so still that they thought 
 them to be dead. And though the beggar pair 
 had heard everything that passed around them, 
 neither would open an eye or speak. For who- 
 ever did it first would get only two muffins ! 
 
 At the public expense of the village two 
 green litters of bamboo and cocoanut leaves 
 were prepared on which to remove the unfor- 
 tunate pair to the cremation-ground. " How 
 loving they must have been to have died to- 
 gether like this !" said some of the greybeards 
 of the village. 
 
 In time the cremation-ground was reached, 
 and the village watchmen had collected a score 
 of dried cowdung-cakes and a bundle of fire- 
 wood from each house for the funeral pyre.^'' 
 From these charitable contributions two pyres 
 had been prepared, one for the man and one 
 for the woman. The pyres were then lighted, 
 and when the fire approached his leg, the man 
 thought it time to give up the ordeal and to 
 be satisfied with only two muffins ! So while 
 the villagers were still continuing the funeral 
 rites, they suddenly heard a voice : — 
 
 " I shall be satisfied with two muffins !" 
 
 '^ The village custom in South India when a death 
 occurs in the village. 
 
281 
 
 Immediately anotlier voice replied from the 
 woman's pyre : — 
 
 " I have gained the day ; let me have the 
 three !" 
 
 The villagers were amazed and ran away. 
 One bold man alone stood face to face with the 
 supposed dead husband and wife. He was a 
 bold man, indeed, for when a dead man or a 
 man supposed to have died comes to life village 
 people consider him to be a ghost. However, 
 this bold villager questioned the beggars until 
 he came to know their story. He then went 
 after the runaways and related to them the 
 whole story of the five muffins to their great 
 amazement. 
 
 But what was to be done to the people 
 who had thus voluntarily faced death out of a 
 love for muffins. Persons who had ascended the 
 green litter and slept on the funeral pyre could 
 never come back to the village ! If they did 
 the whole village would perish. So the elders 
 built a small hut in a deserved meadow out- 
 side the village and made the beggar and his 
 wife live there. 
 
 Ever after that memorable day our hero and 
 his wife were called the muffin beggar and the 
 muffin beggar's wife, and many old ladies and 
 young children from the village used to bring 
 them muffins in the morning and evening, out of 
 pity for them — for had they not loved muffins 
 so much that they underwent death in life ? 
 
XXIIL 
 THE BRAHMAN PEIEST WHO BECAME 
 
 AN 'IMILDAE-' 
 
 In the Karnatadesa there reigned a famous 
 king named Chamunda, who was served by a 
 household priest, named Gundappa, well versed 
 in all the rituals at which he ofBciated. 
 
 Chamunda, one day, while chewing betel- 
 leaves, thus addressed Gundappa, who was 
 sitting opposite him : — 
 
 " My most holy priest, I am greatly pleased 
 at your faithfulness in the discharge of your 
 sacred duties; and you may ask of me now 
 what you wish and I shall grant your request." 
 
 The priest in his elation replied : " I had 
 always a desire to become the 'dmilddr'' of a 
 district and to exercise power over a number 
 of people ; and if" Tour Majesty should grant 
 me this I have attained my ambition." 
 
 "Agreed," said the king, and as at that time 
 the ' dmilddrship of Naiijangod happened to 
 be vacant, His Majesty at once appointed his 
 priest to the post, thinking that a priest, who 
 was so intelligent in his duties, would do well 
 
 A Eanareae tale related by a risdld&r. 
 ' A chief revenue officer. 
 
283 
 
 on the new post. Before lie sent him ofE, 
 however, he gave Gnndappa three bits of 
 advice :— 
 
 (1). MuJeha happage irabeleu: 
 
 (2). Elldru Jceviannu haohchi mdtan ddu. 
 
 (3). Elldr juUu hayyali irabiku. 
 
 Meaning : — 
 
 (1). Ton should always keep a black (i.e. 
 frowning) countenance. 
 
 (2). When you speak about State affairs 
 you should do it biting the ear (i.e. secretly — 
 close to the ear). 
 
 (3). The locks of all the people must be 
 in your hand (i.e. you must use your influence 
 and make every one subservient to you). 
 
 Gundappa attended carefully to the advice 
 so kindly given by the king, and the way in 
 which he listened to it made His Majesty 
 understand that he had taken it to heart. So 
 with a smiling face the king gave the letter 
 containing the appointment to Gundappa, who 
 returned home with a happy heart. 
 
 He told his wife about the change that had 
 come over his prospects, and wished to start at 
 once to take charge of the new post. The 
 king and his officers at once sent messengers 
 to NaSjafigod informing the officers of the 
 'dmilddn there that a newly appointed 'dmil- 
 ddr would be coming soon. So they all waited 
 near the gate of the town to pay their respects 
 to the new 'dmilddr and escort him into it. 
 
284 
 
 GuBdappa started the very next morning to 
 Naiijangod -with a bundle containing' clean 
 clotlies, six and twelve cubits long, on his head. 
 Poor priest ! Wherever he saw the Jiusa grass on 
 the road, he was- drawn to it by its freshness, 
 and kept on storing it up all the way. The 
 sacred grass had become so dear to him, that, 
 though he would have no occasion to use it as 
 'dmilddr of NaSjangod, he could not pass by 
 it without gathering some of it. So with 
 his bundle of clothes on his head and his 
 beloved Jmsa grass in his hands Gundappa 
 approached the city of Nanjangod about the 
 twentieth ghatikd of the day. 
 
 Now, though it was very late in the day 
 none of the officers who had come out to 
 receive the 'amildar had returned home to his 
 meal. Every one w^as waiting in the gate, 
 and when Gundappa turned up, no one took 
 him to be anything more than a priest. The 
 bundle on his head and the green ritual grass 
 in his hands proclaimed his vocation. But 
 every one thought that, as a priest was coming 
 by the very road the 'dmilddr would take, he 
 might bring n-ews of hian — 'whether be had 
 halted on the road or might be expected 
 before- the evening. So the officer next in rank 
 to the 'dmilddr came to the most reverend 
 priest and asked him whether he had any news 
 of the coming 'dmilddr; on which o-ar hero 
 put down his bundle and taking the cover out 
 
285 
 
 of it — containing the order of his appointment 
 with a handfnl of Jcusa grass, lest his clothes 
 be polluted if he touched them with his bare 
 hands, informed his subordinate that he was 
 himself the 'dmilddr ! 
 
 All those assembled were astonished to find 
 that such a stupid priest was appointed to so 
 responsible a post, but when it was made 
 known that Gundappa was the new 'dmilddr 
 the customary music was played, and he was 
 escorted in a manner due to his position into 
 the town. He had been fasting from the 
 morning, and a grand feast was prepared for 
 him in the house of the next senior official, 
 which Gundappa entered to dine and take rest. 
 He there informed the officials that he would 
 be at the office at the 25th ghatikd of the 
 evenirig. From the way in which he issued 
 the order all thought that he was really an 
 able man, and that he had come in the guise 
 of a simpJe priest in order to find out the real 
 state of his district. So ewery officer went 
 home, bathed, ate his meal in haste and 
 attended at the office. 
 
 The chief assistant took the 'dmilddr to 
 his house, and entertained Ms guest as became 
 his position. Gundappa, being a priest, was 
 a very good eater, for never for a day in his 
 life he had spent money out of his own pocket 
 «n meals, so what reason had he to enquire 
 about the price of provisions ? It was &i 
 
286 
 
 the expense of others he had grown so fat ! 
 After doing more than full justice to all the 
 good things, much to the secret amusement of 
 his host and assistant, Gundappa rose up from 
 his food, and washed his hands. He then 
 wanted betel-leaves, though to ask for these 
 before the host ofEers them is very impolite. 
 But his subordinate interpreted it as an order 
 from a master and brought the platter con- 
 taining the necessary nutmeg, mace, nuts, 
 leaves, and chunam (lime). 
 
 Where is the daksMna ?' next asked the 
 'dmilddr. His host did not quite understand 
 whether this was meant in earnest or in 
 joke, bat before he could solve the question 
 in his mind : — 
 
 "Where is the daksMna?" reiterated the 
 'dmilddr, and his assistant, thinking that his 
 new superior was prone to taking bribes, at 
 once brought a bag containing 500 mohars and 
 placed it in the platter. Now, a dakshina to a 
 Brahman is not usually more than a couple 
 of rupees ; but should an 'dmilddr ask for 
 one his assistant would naturally mistake him, 
 and think he was hinting at a bribe ! 
 
 Gundappa, greatly pleased at a princely dakshi- 
 na such as he had never se^n before in all his 
 life, at once opened the bag and counted out 
 every gold piece in it, carefully tying them up 
 
 ° DaUeMna <fee given in donation to Sr^lunans) is 
 ordinarily given to priesta after feasting them. 
 
287 
 
 in his bundle. He then began to chew his 
 betel, and at one gulp swallowed up all the 
 nutmeg and mace in the platter ! These acts 
 made his assistant strongly suspect the real 
 nature of the new 'amildar ; but then there was 
 the order of the king, and it must be obeyed ! 
 
 Gundappa next asked his assistant to go on in 
 advance of him to the ofBce, saying that he 
 would be there himself in a ghatihd. The 
 assistant accordingly left a messenger to attend 
 on the 'dmilddr, and being very anxious to see 
 things in good order left his house for the office. 
 
 Grundappa now remembered the three bits of 
 advice given by the king, the first of which 
 was that he should always put on when in office, 
 a black countenance. Now he understood the 
 word " black'' in its literal sense and not in 
 its allegorical one of "frowning," and so, going 
 into the kitchen he asked for a lump of charcoal 
 paste. "When this was ready he blackened the 
 whole of his face with it, and covering his 
 face with his cloth, — as he was ashamed to show 
 it, — entered the office. With his face thus 
 blackened and partly covered with a cloth the 
 new 'amildar came and took his seat. Now 
 and then he would remove the cloth from his 
 eyes to see how his officers were working, and 
 meanwhile all the clerks and others present 
 were laughing in their sleeves at the queer 
 conduct of their chief. 
 The evening was drawing to a close, and 
 
288 
 
 there were certain orders to be signed. So 
 taking them all in his hand the assistant ap- 
 proached the 'dmilddr and stood at a respectful 
 distance. Gundappa, however, asked him to 
 come nearer, and nearer the assistant came. 
 
 " Still nearer," said Gundappa, and nearer 
 still came the assistant. 
 
 The second bit of advice from the king now 
 rushed into the 'dmilddr's mind that he should 
 bite the ears of his officials when he enquired 
 into State affairs, and as Gundappa's want of 
 sense always made him take what was said 
 literally, he opened his mouth and bit the ear 
 of his assistant, while in a muffled voice he 
 asked him whether all his people enjoyed full 
 prosperity ! The assistant, now in very fear of 
 his life, roared out that all the people were in 
 the fullest prosperity. But Gundappa would 
 not let go his ear till the poor assistant had 
 roared out the answer more than twenty times. 
 The assistant's ear soon began to swell 
 enormously, and leaving the office in disgust, he 
 started to report to the king the insane acts 
 of the new 'dmilddr. 
 
 Two out of the three bits of advice from 
 the king had now been duly obeyed, but 
 the third — that the locks of all the people must 
 be in his hands — remained unfulfilled, and 
 Gundappa wished to carry out that also quick- 
 ly. Night had now set in, and as the 'dmilddr 
 still remained in hie seat all his officers were 
 
compelled to do tte same: In tlii's way the 
 tenth ghatilid of the night approached, and stiJl 
 the ^amildar would not get up, bnt sat with his 
 black face secured in his eloth, aow and then 
 peeping OUi to £«e wtetbar they were all 
 asleep or awake. The fact was he was waiting 
 for an opporfciinity to have all the locks of his 
 officers in his hands I As soon as all his 
 officers fell asleep he mteiidedt© cut off all theiV 
 locks, understanding as usual the words of the 
 king in their literal sense ! At about midnight, 
 never dreaming of the stupid act that the 
 'dnnlddr was co-ntemplating in his mind, every 
 one fell asleep, and Gundappa rose up and 
 with a pair of scissors cut oflF all the locks of 
 his afllcers. He then tied them all up in a. 
 bundle and returned to his assistant's house 
 late at sight,, where the servants gave him 
 something to eat ; after which he started! with, 
 his bag of mohars &n& bundle of locks to his 
 king to inform him of how well he had obeyed 
 hia orders I 
 
 In the early morning he reached the pre- 
 sence of His Majesty only a nim.is-'ha (minute) 
 after the assistant had arrived. Seeing the 
 'timildui- the poor wretch was too afraid to 
 lodge any complaint, \mt his swollen ear drew 
 the attention of every eye in the assembly. 
 
 Gundappa now stood before the king witb 
 the charcoal still on his face and said : — 
 
 "Most noble king, you ordered me to blacken 
 
290 
 
 my face for my new duties. See, I have not even 
 yet removed tlie dye ! Ton ordered me next 
 only to speak while biting an ear. Look, please, 
 at my assistant's ear, who stands before yon 
 and tell me whether I have not obeyed you ! ! 
 And as for having the locks of my officers in my 
 hands ; why here they are in this bundle ! ! ! 
 
 Never before had the king seen an instance 
 of such remarkable stupidity, and the thought 
 that Gundappa had shorn so many respectable 
 heads of their locks, and had really bitten the 
 ear of a worthy gentleman, brought much 
 shame to his heart. He begged the pardon of 
 the injured man and from that day forward 
 was ever careful in the choice of his officers ! 
 Poor Gundappa was dismissed even from the 
 priestship, and his belly grew lean from having 
 no longer the privilege of eating rich food at 
 another's cost ! 
 
XXIV. 
 THE GAEDENER'S CUNNING WIFE. 
 
 In a certain village there lived with his wife 
 a poor gardener, who cultivated vegetables in 
 a small patch in the backyard of his house. 
 They were in thirty little beds, half of which 
 he would water every day. This occupied 
 him from the fifth to the fifteenth ghatihu. 
 
 His wife used to cut a basketful of vegetables 
 every evening, and he took them in the morn- 
 ings to sell in the village. The sale brought 
 him a measure or two of rice, and on this 
 the family lived ! If he could manage any 
 extra work of an evening he got a few coppers, 
 which served to meet their other expenses. 
 
 Now, in that village there was a temple to 
 Kali, before which was a fine tank with a 
 mango tree on its bank. The fish in the tank 
 and the mangoes from the tree were dedicated 
 to the goddess, and were strictly forbidden 
 to the villagers. If any one was discovered 
 cutting a mango or catching a fish he was at 
 once excommunicated from the village. So 
 strict was the prohibition. 
 
 The gardener was returning home one 
 morning after selling his vegetables and passed 
 
292 
 
 by the temple. The mangoes, so carefully 
 guarded, by religious protection, were hanging 
 on the tree in great numbers, and the gardener's 
 eyes fell on them ! His mouth watered. He 
 looked round about him, and fortunately there 
 was no one by, at least, as far as his eyes 
 could reach. So he hastily plucked one of 
 the mangoes and with nimble feet descended 
 into the tank to wash it. Just then a 
 m.ost charming shoal of fish met his eyes. 
 These protected dwellers in the tank had no 
 notion of danger, and so were frolicking about 
 at their ease. The gardener looked about him 
 first and finding no one by eauglit half a dozen 
 stout fish at one plunge of his hand. He hid 
 them and the mango underneath the rice in 
 his basket and returned home, happy in the 
 thought that he had not been caught. Now 
 he had a special delight in fish, and when he 
 reached his house he showed what he brought 
 to his wife and asked her to prepare a dish 
 with the newly caught fish and the never-till- 
 then tasted mango. 
 
 Meanwhile he had to water his garden, and 
 went to the back yard for the purpose. The 
 watering was done by a pilwta. He used to 
 run up and down the pole while a friend of 
 is, the son of his neighbour, lifted the water 
 and irrigated the garden. 
 
 Meanwhile his wife cooked the dish of 
 mango and fish in a pan, and found the flavour 
 
293 
 
 so sweet that even wliile the dish was only 
 half cooked she began to taste one bit 
 after another till more than half had already 
 gone down her throat ! The dish was at last 
 cooked and the few remaining slices in the 
 pan were taken off the fire, so she went into the 
 verandah and from thence saw her husband 
 running up and down the pikota. She 
 beckoned to him that the dish was ready and 
 that he should come in and taste it. How- 
 ever, he never noticed her, but kept on running 
 up and down the 'pileofa, and while doing so 
 he was obliged to wave his hands about, 
 and this his wife mistook as an indication 
 that she might eat up her portion of the dish. 
 At any rate her imagination made her think 
 so ; and she went in and ate a slice, and then 
 went out into the verandah again to call 
 her husband, who was still running up and 
 down the piMta. Again, her husband, so she 
 thought, waved his hands in permission to go on 
 with her dinner. Again she went in and had 
 another sUce. Thus it went on for a full 
 ghatiled tiU the last slice was consumed ! 
 
 "Alas!" thought she, "With what great 
 eagerness my husband fetched the fish and the 
 mango and how sadly, out of greediness, have 
 I disappointed him ! Surely his auger will 
 know no bounds when he comes in. I must 
 soon devise some means to save myself." 
 
 So, she brought the pan in which she cooked 
 
294 
 
 the fish and mango out of the house and covered 
 it with another pan of similar size and sat 
 down before it. Then she undid her hair 
 and twisted it about her head until it was 
 dishevelled. She then began to make a great 
 noise. This action by a woman in an illiterate 
 family of low caste is always supposed to 
 indicate a visitation from a goddess or a 
 demon : so when her husband from the pihota 
 tree saw the state of his wife, his guilty 
 conscience smote him. The change in his 
 wife alarmed him, and he came down sudden- 
 ly and stood before her. As soon as she saw 
 him she roared oiit at him : — 
 
 " Why have you injured me to-day by 
 plundering my mango and fish ? How dare 
 you do such an irreligious act ? Ton shall 
 soon see the results of your impertinence !" 
 
 " The goddess has come upon my wife most 
 terribly," thought the poor man. " Her divine 
 power may soon kill her ! What shall I do ?" 
 So he fell at the feet of the divine visitation, as 
 he thought it to be, and said : "My most holy 
 goddess, your dog of a servant has this day 
 deviated from the straight path. Excuse 
 him this time, and he will never do so a 
 second time." 
 
 " Run then with the pan which contains the 
 results of your sin and dip it deep into my 
 tank. Then shall the fish become alive and 
 the mango shall take its place in the tree." 
 
295 
 
 The gardener received the order most sub- 
 missively, and taking the pan in his hand flew 
 to the tank. There he dipped it in the water 
 and came back to his house fully believing 
 that his sin that day had been forgiven, and that 
 the cooked fish had become alive again and the 
 mango a living one. Thus did the cunning 
 wife save herself from her husband's wrath ! 
 
ENGLISH WORKS 
 By 
 
 PANDIT NATESA SASTRI, 
 M.F.L.S. 
 
 Re. a. p. 
 
 Folklore in South India, Parti.... 10 
 
 Postage 10 
 
 Folklore in South India, Part II. ... 8 
 Postage 10 
 
 Folklore in South India, Part III.. 18 
 Postage 2 
 
 The Dravidian Nights Entertain- 
 ments 10 
 
 Postage 2 
 
 Topographical Notes on Kanohi ... 8 
 
 Postage • 10 
 
 Bombay : The Superintendent, Education So. 
 oiety's Press, Byculla, 
 
 Madras : The Secretary, M. S. B. and V. L. 
 Society, Old College, Nungambakam. 
 
 London : Messrs. Trubner & Co., Ludgate Hill. 
 
OPINIONS OF THE PRESS 
 
 FOLKLOBE IN SOUTHERN INDIA. 
 
 Parts I. and II. 
 
 The researches of Captain E. C. Temple and other 
 speci^Bts have awakened quite a lirely interest in 
 Indian folklore. Some Tory curious and interesting 
 popular stories, illustratiTe chiefly of the sources of 
 Tamil proverbs, are collected by Mr. Natesa Sastri in 
 two little books entitled Folklore of Southern India 
 ^rilbner & Co.) In some of thQse the element of gro- 
 tesque is exceedingly striking. — The Saturday Review, 
 July 17, 1886. 
 
 The increasing importance of the study of folklore is 
 being illustrated on all hands at the present day. Its 
 value in the elucidation of obscure myths and customs 
 has been recently shown by Mr. Andrew Lang, who along 
 with a wide philological knowledge possesses an intimate 
 acquaintance with the folklore of many countries. 
 Every independent worker, therefore, is doing valuable 
 Bervioe in working up material for the generalization of 
 the scholar. We congratulate Mr. Natesa Sastri on 
 having begun this study, and we trust that the little 
 volumes already published may be but the first fruits of 
 a wider investigation. Comparatively little has been 
 done in Southern India — a country which, with its 
 numerous and binding customs, should be a rich mine 
 for many investigators. The study is one which can 
 hardly be regarded as the province of the foreigner, 
 — it is specially suited for the natives themselves ; and 
 of the many graduates who are passing annually through 
 our University, some might well take up this subject, 
 and carry on what the author of these volumes has 
 begun. 
 
The little stories are well told, aii(J written witli an 
 almost thoroagk mastery of English. They are twelve 
 in all, some of them giving the origin of Tamil proverbs 
 and cnatomg. One of the most interesting is the one 
 told as esplanatory of the onstom prevalent among the 
 Brahmins "of leaving their food uneaten when it so 
 happens that from any caase the light is blown out ;" 
 another is that shedding light on the proverb, " Charity 
 alone conquers ;" while a third is related as the explana- 
 tion of the provsrh, " Little by little the mother-in-law 
 became an ass." Space prevents our quoting any of the 
 passages. — The Madras Christian College Magaziiie, 
 May 1886. Vol. III. 
 
 Wb owe an apology to the author of the abovemen- 
 tioned books for noi noticing earlier his admirable 
 renderings of the household stories current in Southern 
 India. These stories are the truest embodiments of the 
 native wit and wisdom that are vaore ©ommon and wide- 
 spread in Hindu households than is ordinarily imagined, 
 and a. glance over them will give a very correct view 
 of the inner life of the middle class Hindu household, 
 its sense of humour, its incisive intelligence, the gen- 
 tle lights and shades, and the mild frictions that chequer 
 its otherwise -unruffled course, the innocent and artless 
 pleasures and festivities in which it delights, the essential 
 simplicity that characterises its internal and external re- 
 lations, and the thousand and one national idiosyncraciea 
 which pass in delightful panorama before the eyes of the 
 delighted reader of these tales of fact in fiction. Any 
 attempt on out part to summaTise any of these tales 
 would prove a thankless task, for not only have we no 
 faith in stieh saimmaries, but they would take away from 
 the aemte pleasure and the astonished delight which 
 these tales are sure to extort even from the most pre- 
 judiced sreaider. To its intrinsic merits the publishers 
 have added those of good type and glazed paper. 
 Europeans especially who are interested in India should 
 be thankful for such an opportnnity of ieaming some- 
 
4 
 
 thing genuine about Hindu modes of feeling and living, 
 and to such Europeans we confidently recommend a 
 perusal of those delightful volumes which have won for 
 Pandit Natesa Sastri the honour ;of being the only Hindu 
 Member of the London Folklore Society. — ITw Hindu, 
 Oct. 1886. 
 
 The work which is now in the course of publication 
 at Bombay by Pandit S. M. Natesa Sastri, of the 
 Government ArohaBologioal Survey, under the title of 
 Folklore in Southern IncUa (Trubner and Co.), and of 
 which the second part has recently appeared, will 
 answer still more nearly to what they require. It 
 appears to be a very genuine interpretation of the 
 stories current among Tamil villagers, and, although 
 not attractive to juvenile readers, nor always to be 
 recommended to them, wiU be prized by students who 
 wish for Indian tales exactly as they are told by 
 natives.— rfee Athenosum, No. 306B, July 24, 1886. 
 
 XJndee the title of Folklore in Southern India a 
 Native Scholar, Mr. S. M. Natesa Sastri, has commenced 
 the publication of a collection of Tamil Popular Tales. 
 
 The two parts already published contain twelve 
 stories. The work appears to be of a very genuine 
 nature, and it is likely te be highly prized by all who 
 wish to render themselves familiar with Indian thoughts 
 and feeling.— ITts Academy, No. 741, July 17, 1886. 
 
 CoNTErBimoNS to the published folklore of any nation 
 are always valuable. In every country it is to the 
 fables, the household tales, and the common songs of the 
 people that we must look for the earliest and the most 
 trustworthy manifestations of the people's real thoughts 
 and characteristics. * * * * The difficulty of get- 
 ting at the genuine feelings and thought of the people 
 through the formidable barrier of Brahmanical influence 
 ig what makes contributions to the folklore of this country 
 
especially valuable. Small, therefore, though the two 
 little volumes of Folklore in Southern India published 
 by Mr. Pandit Natesa Sastri be, they are welcome as a 
 right step in the direction of unearthing and recording 
 primitive stories popularly obtaining in different parts 
 of the country. * * * *—The Madras Mail, March 1886. 
 
 Wb have here two instalments of what bids fair to 
 prove a most useful as well as highly entertaining col- 
 lection of Hindu folktales, which the Pandit Natesa 
 Sastri has been contributing to the Indian Antiquary 
 during the past few years. A goodly portion of both 
 the literary and the traditionary popular fictions of 
 Indian countries has already been rendered accessible to 
 English readers ; but these fields are of vast extent, and 
 much yet remains unexplored. In the former class are : 
 Professor Tawney'a complete translation of the Katha 
 Sarit Sagara, " Ocean of the Streams of Story" — com- 
 posed in Sanskrit verse, in the latter part of the 
 eleventh century, by Somadeva, after a similar work, 
 now apparently lost, entitled Vrihat Katha, "The Great 
 Story," written in the sixth century, by Gunadhyaj 
 translations from the Budhist Jatahas, or Birth-Stories, 
 by Dr. Ehys Davids (Trtibner), the Lord Bishop of 
 Colombo [Transactions of the Ceylon Branch of the 
 Eoyal Asiatic Society), and the Rev- Dr. E. Moriss fin 
 this Journal) ; and one Sanskrit version of the cele- 
 brated Fablep of Bidpai, the Hitopadeea ; but an En- 
 glish translation of the more important text, the Fan- 
 chatantra, ia greatly to be desired. Of the traditionary 
 class of Indian Folk -Tales, we have such useful collec- 
 tions as Miss Prere's Old Decean Days; Misa Stokes' 
 Indian Fairy Tales; the Eev. IA\ Bahiri Day's Folk- 
 Tales of Bengal; Steel and Temple's Wide-Awake Stories, 
 from the Panjab and Kashmir ; two volumes of Captain 
 Temple's valuable Legends of the Fwnjab, &o. 
 
 And now English students of comparative folklore 
 will cordially welcome this interesting collpctioa of the 
 
6 
 
 popular fictions of Sonthern India, in which may be 
 found the sources of similar tales current in Ceylon. 
 The first story is of " Two Deaf Men and a Traveller," 
 and is related with considerable humour : the blunders 
 made by deaf folks in endeavouring to conceal their 
 " infirmity are favourite subjects of the popular tales of 
 Europe as well as of Asia ; thus, for instance, the Norse 
 tale of " Goodman Axeshaft " has its close parallel in a 
 Persian story-book. In the tale of " The Soothsayer's 
 Son" (pp. 12 — ^34) we find a singular variant of a world- 
 wide apologue, of which well-known versions occur in the 
 Gesta Romanorum, and Gower's Confessio Amantia: a 
 traveller rescues a serpent, a monkey, a tiger and a man 
 from a deep pit into which they had fallen ; the man 
 afterwards attempts to cause the death of his benefactor ; 
 but the animals testify their gratitude by gifts, and by 
 extricating him from the ungrateful man's snare. The 
 Buddhist original of this fine story will be found in the 
 Saccanlcira Jatalia, translated by Dr. Morris, Folklore 
 Journal, Vol. III. pp. 348—353. The tale entitled 
 "Charity alone conquers" (pp. 63 — 83), which bears 
 evident traces, we think, of Buddhist extraction, is a 
 Tamil version of another very widely-diffused story. It 
 is own brother (as Baring-Gould would say) to the Norse 
 tale of " True and Untrue" ; the German tale of "The 
 Three Crows" (in Grimm) ; the Portuguese tale of " The 
 Poor Muleteer" ; the Persian tale of " Khayr (i.e., Good) 
 and his comrade Sh4r (Evil)" ; and the Arabian tale of 
 " Abi Niyyut and Abu Niyyutin" (the Well-intentioned 
 and the Evil-intentioned), which occurs in a MS. text of 
 the Thousand and One Nights, preserved in the Bodleiaji 
 Library, Oxford. In the diverting story of "Appayya" 
 (pp. 104 — 115) f olklorists will readily recognise a variant 
 at the Germaji taie of '" The Brave Little Tailor" (in 
 Grimm); the Chilian tale of "Don Juan Bolmodron*' 
 (Folklore Journal, Vol. III. p. 293), which is of Spanish 
 extraction ; the taie of " Fattii the Valiant Weaver," in 
 Wide-Avjake Stories, and a host of others. The third 
 adventure of the hero of the Norse tale, " Not a. Pin to 
 
choose between them"— the Three Noodles— and that of 
 his Italian cousin, in Miss Busk's Folklore of Borne, in 
 which he persuades a simple-minded goody that he has 
 come straight from Paradise, have their counterpart in 
 the story of "The Good Wife and the Bad Husband'^ 
 (pp. 131 — 135), especially the Norwegian version ; from 
 which it is probable was derived the Sinhalese folk-tale 
 translated in The Orientalist, 1884, Vol. I. p. 62. We 
 trust we have in the foregoing notes sufficiently indi- 
 cated the general character of this new collection of 
 Indian popular fictions, which cannot fail, we are 
 confident, to be eminently serviceable to students of the 
 science of comparative folklore, and to amuse, and even 
 instruct, general readers. The two fasciculi before us 
 are well printed and in a handy form, and we hope the 
 work will soon be completed. — Mr. W. A. Clouston, 
 Editor of The Book of Sindibad, Bakhtyar Nama, Arabian 
 Poetry for English Readers, ^c. Popular Tales and 
 Fiction : their Migrations and Transformations. Folk- 
 lore Journal, London. Vol. 17. 1836. 
 
 Undek the above title we have received from Mr. 
 Natesa Sastri a small collection of Indian Fables which 
 forcibly call to mind the legendary tales with which 
 bright memories of our early years are stored. The tales 
 contained in this little book, however, differ consider- 
 ably in one respect from those with which our youthful 
 hours over the home fire-side were beguiled. Both alike 
 amuse, and yet point a moral or proclaim a truth, but 
 these fairy tales of an Eastern land, unlike our own, have 
 blended with them peculiar mythological allusions which 
 lend them piquancy. The East has ever been the home 
 of legendary lore, but unfortunately ignorance of the 
 language of this country on our part, and of ours on the 
 part of the native, has for some time prevented the 
 European from learning the style of fairy tale with 
 which the Indian grand-dame beguiles the evening hour, 
 seated among her dusky offspring, or the way-side 
 
improTisator rivets the attention of the passer-by with 
 his stories of quaint imagery, and half historical, half 
 fictitious, or half probable and half improbable tales. It 
 is the love of the marvellous, with which the Eastern 
 mind is so deeply-imbued, that has to a great extent 
 clouded the early history of this land. To trace the 
 story of the good old days when Pandya and Chola 
 strove for mastery in Southern India is, owing to this, 
 rendered well-nigh impossible. So intimately are copiou*. 
 myths blended with a little truth, that history has 
 degenerated into fable, even in times so recent that in 
 European history they seem but as yesterday. The 
 little book before us goes far to show to the English 
 reader what has hitherto been a closed book to many, 
 the style of fiction which has thus impregnated the history 
 of this part of the world. Historical allusions there 
 are, but all blended, as we have said, with myth forming 
 a quaint whole. In many instances the origin of proverbs 
 and the reasons for certain Hindu customs are explained. 
 Thus in one story we learn the legend on account of 
 which the Brahman will not eat his food in the dark, 
 while another explains the origin of the Tamil proverb, 
 " Charity alone conquers." The English in which the 
 tales are written is very good, and seldom does the 
 author betray that the language in which he writes is 
 any other than his own mother-tongue. We find in it 
 few indeed of those Indian peculiarities of language or 
 composition from which native productions are seldom 
 free. It is throughout most readably written, and we 
 should strongly recommend any one who takes an interest 
 in the literature of the East to peruse its fairy tales. — 
 The Madras Times. 
 
 It is due to the patient researches of a class of savants 
 and investigators that the folklore of so many countries 
 constitute an agreeable part of the literature of the 
 world. Men of the highest intellect have addressed 
 themselves, with more or less credit, to the task of 
 
collecting those legendary talea, inytha, and Bimilar 
 things founded on some incident or tradition about 
 which there is no historic certainty, and which are 
 coloured by the glow of an imagination that runs riot. 
 Every nationality in India hag its folklore, but it is only 
 a small part of it that has been explored and brought to 
 light, and there yet remains a large field for the industry 
 of those who will take the trouble to discover the sort 
 at legends that are retailed and believed in by the ^eat 
 mass of the people, legends the recital of which in prose 
 or verse amuse the untutored fancy in numberless house- 
 holds or on the way-side. The late Mr. Gover published 
 a work giving an interesting account of the Folklore in 
 the Madras Presidency, and especially that in vogue 
 among the Tamil-speaking population. Had he not been 
 cut off in the prime of life and from amidst his useful 
 municipal labours) this work would have been greatly 
 extended. We have received a brochure of eighty-three 
 pages, entitled Folklore in Southern India by a learned 
 Pandit (S. M. Natesa Sastri) of the Madras Presidency, 
 employed in the Government Archaeological Survey. It 
 is written in English in a pleasing manner, and is only 
 the first part of the tales that make up the folklore in 
 Southern India. — The Madras Standard. 
 
 Pandit S. M. Natesa Sastei, Folklore in Southern 
 
 India. Parts I-II. (Bombay, 18S4-86) London, Trflbner 
 
 u. Co. in Comm. 135 S. 12mo. Eup. 2. 
 
 Von den verschiedenen Volksstammen, welche Indien 
 
 bewohnen, hat ein jeder seine eigentumlichen Erzahlun- 
 
 gen, Miirchen, Legenden und Fabeln, welche ftir jeder- 
 
 mann von Interesse sein mussen, der in die eigenartige 
 
 Cnltur jeues Landes, in das Leben und Treiben des 
 
 Volkes tiefer hineinzublioken Lust hat. Der Schatz 
 
 dieser volksmassigen Erzahlungen des Inderlandes ist 
 
 bisjetzt nur zu einem kleinen Telle " gehoben, aber es 
 
 Boheint, dasa diese Arbeit gegenwartig an mehreren 
 
 Punkten zugleich in . Angriff genommen wird. Ein 
 
 grosserea, wertvollea "Werk des Captain E. C. Temple 
 
10 
 
 bringt una in xwei Banden " the legends of the Panjab" 
 (Bombay, 1886), und das vorliegende Buch des Pandit 
 S. M. Natesa Sastri maoht nns mit einer Eeihe yon 
 Volkserzahlungen ana dem siidliohen Indien bekannt, 
 die in der tamulisch spreohendenBevolkernngcursieren. 
 Die erste Halfte des Werkohens, welches im ganzen 12 
 Erziihlungen enthalt, ersohien bereita im Jahre 1884, 
 die zweite folgte in diesem Jahre. Manohe dieser 
 Erzahlnngen sind anziehend dnroh eoht volksmiissigen ; 
 Humor; einige sind mehr marohen-haft (z. B. daa 
 Brahmanenmadohen, welches einen Tiger heiratete ; 
 und die Gesohiohte von Appayya) ; andere kommen zu 
 moralischen Schlussfolgerungen (z. B. Herr Stark-mit- 
 dem-'XIund und Herr Stark-mit-der-Hand ; Gute allein 
 tragt den Sieg davon) ; einige dienen zur Begrijndung 
 beatimmter Sitten (z. B. " Warum die Brahmanen 
 nicht imDunkeln essen konnen") und namentlich oft von 
 Eedensarten, die im Volke iiblich sind (z. B. die 
 Geschiohte von den drei tanben Menschen ; Herr Will- 
 nioht-geben und Herr Will-nicht-ablassen ; die Sohwie- 
 germutter wird ein Esel u. dgl. m.) ; in andere endlich 
 soheinen historisohe Ziige verwebt zu sein (z. B. in 
 die Geschiohte von Eanavirasing). Das Englisch, in 
 welohem der Verf. — ein geborener Inder — seine Ge- 
 Bohiohten erziihlt, iat sohon von der Madras Times und 
 dem Madras Standard wegen seiner Eeinheit und 
 Vortrefflichkeit gelobt worden. Wir konnen nnr 
 wunsohen, daaa derartige Beitrage zur Kenntniss der 
 volksmassigen Erzahlnngen der Inder, und zwar 
 womoglioh aus alien Teilen des grossen Landes, noeh in 
 recht groaser Anzahl an die OefEentlichkeit kommen 
 mochten. Wisaensohaftlioh gebildete Eingeborene wer- 
 den vielleioht dei besteu Sammler aein. 
 Dorpat. 
 
 L. v. SCHBOEDEK. 
 
 Translation. 
 
 Of the different raoea which inhabit India each one 
 haa its own peculiar tales, fablea, legends and fairy- 
 
11 
 
 tales, which must have an interest for any one who 
 ■wishes to look further into the ways and life of the 
 people of that country. The treasure of these popular 
 tales of India has till now been only revealed in a very 
 small measure, but it appears that this work is at 
 present being attacked from various sides. A largo 
 valuable work of Captain E. C. Temple brings us in two 
 volumes " The Legends of the Punjab" (Bombay, 1886), 
 and the bo,ok which lies before us by Pandit S. M. Natesa 
 Sastri makes us acquainted with a quantity of popular 
 tales from the South of India which are current 
 amongst the Tamit-speaking populations. The first half 
 of this little work which altogether contains 12 tales, 
 appeared in the year 1884, the 2nd followed in this one. 
 Many of these stories are very attractive through their 
 popular humour ; some are mere fairy-tales (for example, 
 the Brahmin Girl who marries a tiger and the story of 
 Appayya); others have moral meanings (for example, Mr. 
 Mighty with the mouth and Mr. Mighty with the 
 hand : kindness alone carries off the victory therein) ; 
 others again serve as the establishment of certain cus- 
 toms (for example, why the Brahmins will not eat in the 
 dark) ; and again to illustrate figures of speech which 
 are customary amongst the masses (for example, the story 
 of The Three Deaf Men, Mr. Will-not-give and Mr. Will- 
 not-leave. How the Mother-in-law became an Ass, &o.) ; 
 finally in others historical features seem to be interwoven 
 (forexample, inthestory of Kanavirasing). The English 
 in which the author — a native of India — tells his tales has 
 already been praised in the Madras Times and the 
 Madras Standard on account of its purity and excel- 
 lence. We can only wish that such contributions should 
 know acquaintance with the popular tales of India, and 
 indeed, if possible, from all parts of that great country 
 should still come to light in great numbers. Learned, 
 educated natives will probably be the best collectors. 
 
 Dorpat. 
 
 L. V. SCHEOBDBB. 
 
12 
 
 THE DBAVIDIAN NIGHTS. 
 
 In July last year we had the pleasure of reviewing the 
 first and second partaof Mr. Natesa Saatri's Folklore in 
 Southern India, and we have now before us another 
 translation from the Tamil, by the same Pandit, of a 
 work which can be known to very few of our membera, 
 and which should possess no little interest for story 
 comparers, and indeed all who are devoted to the study 
 of the history of fiction. One important result of Mr. 
 Nateaa Sastri'stranslations from the Tamil must beto give 
 another and telling blow to the theory of our European 
 popular tales being the exclusive property of the Aryan 
 race. They also seem to show, as it seema to ua, the 
 marked influence of the Tamil on the Buddhist literature 
 of Ceylon and, in, fact, suggest new questions as to the 
 origin and diffusion of tales and apologues current 
 throughout the whole of the Indian Peninsula. 
 
 Like nearly all Asiatic story-books. The Dravidian 
 Nights, as the learned translator happily entitles the 
 English rendering of the Tamil romance Madaria Kama 
 Raja Kadai, consists of a general, or leading story, 
 within which are sphered or interwoven a aeries of 
 tales, more or less appropriate to the circumstances 
 which led to their narration. 
 
 • * * * # 
 
 * • • All students of folklore and of romantic 
 fiction cannot fail to find this work very useful, and all 
 lovers of fairy tales must be delighted with it from the 
 beginning to the happy end. Considering that English 
 is a foreign language to Mr. Katesa Sastri, the transla- 
 tion ia on the whole very good, and we hope soon to 
 hear of a new edition being required, the present one 
 being, we understand, rather limited.— The Folklore 
 Society Journal, London. Vol. V. 1887. 
 
 TOPOOBATHICAL NOTES ON EANCEI. 
 We notice with pleasure an interesting pamphlet of 
 Pandit Natesa Sastriyar, the well-known author of the 
 
13 
 
 Folklore of Southern India, entitled "Topographical 
 notes on Kanchi." He gives a good description of the 
 various temples in and about that ancient and historical 
 town of Conjeeveram, and their probable ages, as de- 
 noted by the style of architecture and inscriptions. He 
 classes these temples under three heads : the Pallara, 
 the early Chola, and the later Chola. Of , these the 
 Pallava temples are the oldest, some of them being as old 
 as the 7th century A.D. To this group belongs the 
 temple of Eailasanatha. The most famous temples of 
 Ekambara and Eamakshiamman belong to the 2nd 
 period. The present" temple of Varadaraja Perumal in 
 what is misnamed as little Kanchi belongs to the last 
 period, though it has been much altered and repaired, 
 and bears considerable marks of the Viijianas-ar style of 
 architecture. The old name of little Kanchi was 
 Tiruvattiyur (fig-town or elephant-town) and contained 
 originally a Saivite shrine which during the Vijianagar 
 rule was converted into a Vishnu pagoda. The proofs 
 that the Pandit adduces for this last assertion are many 
 and various, and the time (a year and-a-half) which ho 
 has spent in Kanchi has not been in vain. We wish the 
 Pandit would give ua more of his researches and would 
 continue to be useful in the new field which he has 
 struck out for himself. — The Hindu.