Patala

“ These are the giants and demons who fought against the gods like the Titans, the Irish Fomorians, and the Norse Jotuns. Indra confined them in this region, which is called Patala, and they remain there “afflicted by Time”, [117] and subject to the sway of Varuna. Like the Norse giants, they will be let loose to take part in the “Last Battle”. An “Asura fire” burns constantly in Patala, fed by water; it is “bound and confined”, but cannot be extinguished; when the end of all comes, it will burst forth and burn up the three worlds. ”

“ They were then re-born in Pâtâla-loka as Dharanendra or Nâgendra-Yaksha and Padmâvatî-Yakshinî. When Sambaradeva or Meghakumâra afterwards attacked the Arbat with a great storm, whilst he was engaged in the Kâyotsarga austerity--standing immovable, exposed to the weather--much in the way that Mâra attacked Śâkya Buddha at Bodh-gayâ, Dharanendra's throne in Pâtâla thereupon shook, and the Nâga or Yaksha with his consort at once sped to the protection of his former benefactor. ”

“ The poor ugly daughter-in-law grew so unhappy that, when the first Monday in Shravan [1] came, she ran out of the palace, and out of the town, and then away as fast as her fat little legs would carry her. At last she went and hid herself in the woods. Now it so happened that that very day a band of serpent-maidens [2] had come up from Patâla. After wandering through the forest and bathing in the running streams, they had joined a bevy of wood-nymphs and were coming in her direction. ”

“ That made all the snakes there rise up alive, and then that forest along the shore of the sea, crowded with the numerous tribe of snakes, appeared like Pátála ‡ [21] come to behold Jímútaváhana, having lost its previous dread of Garuda. Then Jímútaváhana's relations congratulated him, having seen that he was glorious with unwounded body and undying fame. And his wife rejoiced with her relations, and his parents also. Who would not joy at pain ending in happiness? ”

“ I adopt him as my protege, for in a previous birth he and his wife propitiated me, therefore he has been born on the earth to reap the fruit of his former austerities ; and his former wife has been born again as Patala, the daughter of the king Mahendravarman, and she shall be his wife in this birth also. Having said this, that mighty god told those three virtuous women in a dream,—"This young son of yours shall be called Putraka; and every day when he awakes from sleep, a hundred thousand gold pieces shall be found under his pillow, and at last he shall become a king." ”

“ Such a hero is Prabhása; in him nothing is wonderful." When they heard this from the hermit's son, Súryaprabha and his followers, with Maya and Prabhása, went immediately to that cavern belonging to Prabhása, that led down to Patala, for the purpose of securing the jewels. ”

“ He did all he could to persuade those who had found him to let him go, telling them he was a king and would reward them well. They only laughed at him and dragged him along with them to the palace, where he was at once taken before the king, who was sitting on his throne, surrounded by his court, in a great hall lined with soldiers. The big windows were wide open; and noticing this, Putraka did not feel at all afraid, for he knew he had only to slip on his shoes and fly out of one of the windows, if he could not persuade the king to let him marry Patala. ”

“ Gunga now went forward again, following the chariot of Bhugee-rutha. Having reached the sea, the chief of streams proceeded to Patala, to accomplish the work of Bhugee-rutha. The wise and royal sage, having with great labour conducted Gunga thither, there beheld his ancestors reduced to ashes. Then, O chief of Rughoo’s race, that heap of ashes, bathed by the excellent waters of Gunga, and purified from sin, the sons of the king obtained heaven. Having arrived at the sea, the king, followed by Gunga, entered the subterraneous regions, where lay the sacred ashes. ”

“ The strong ones, having gone over the earth without obtaining a sight of the horse, each of these mighty men pierced the earth, to the depth of a yojuna, with their mighty arm, the stroke of which resembled the thunder-bolt. Pierced by Kooddalas,6 by Purighas,7 by Shoolas,8 by Mooshulas,9 {215} and Shuktis,10 the earth cried out as in darkness. Then arose, O Raghuva! a dreadful cry of the serpents, the Usooras, the Rakshuses, and other creatures, as of beings suffering death. These angry youths, O son of Rughoo! dug the earth even to Patala, to the extent of sixty thousand yojunas. ”

“ The fire called Samvartaka, arising from the mouth of Shankarshana, will consume the Pâtâlas. Winds will blow for one hundred years, followed by rain for another hundred years. The universe will be covered by one sheet of water. ”

“ DESCRIPTION OF PATTA. The town of Patta stands on a low square point between two salt-water creeks surrounded with woods, chiefly cocoa-nut trees, and is composed of wretched mud buildings. No fruit except the cocoa-nutcocoa-nut was met with, and it was found impossible to procure any fresh water. The sheep, which are covered with hair instead of wool, and their goats are excellent (Note 11) . The inhabitants belong to the Souallie [106] tribe, a people sprung from a mixture of the Galla [107] negroes with the Arabs, &c. ”

“ Now it is very certain that the Sone, lacking this sacred character, could not have been reckoned as the third river in India; superior to many streams which take their rise from the Himalaya, and inferior only to the Ganges and the Indus, both of which are regarded with the deepest reverence.
Thus, with regard to Patna, we are led to the conclusion, that, while there is great evidence to prove that it is a most ancient city, and to identify it with the former Pataliputra, the capital of the Gupta dynasty; yet it is quite as clear that it is not the site of Palibothra. ”

“ Patuli, though a small village, is very beautifully situated. It stands on the right bank of the Bhagirathi, and is also within hail of the Ajai which joins the former at Katwa. Patuli was also the original seat of the well-known Gossain family of Serampore in the district of Hooghly. Here Dwarka Nath, built a palatial residence worthy of the renowned family which he represented. The Patuli palace lasted for several generations after which it fell a prey to the ravages of the river. ”

“ Patalolo never meant resisting. So he is going as soon as the ship is ready for sea. He went on board next day with three women and half a dozen fellows as old as himself. By Abdulla's orders he was received with a salute of seven guns, and he has been living on board ever since—five weeks. I doubt whether he will leave the river alive. At any rate he won't live to reach Penang. Lakamba took over all his goods, and gave him a draft on Abdulla's house payable in Penang. He is bound to die before he gets there. ”

“ They are "strong" for the Worship. Her son is being trained up by his cousin, an Elder of the Church, to be "the good Chief of Aniwa"; so she calls him in her prayers, as she cries on God to bless and watch over him, while she is serving the Lord in at once serving the Mission family and ministering to the Natives in that foreign field.
Many years have now passed; and when lately I visited that part of Tanna, Litsi ran to me, clasped my hand, kissed it with many sobs, and cried, "O my father! God has blessed me to see you again. Is my mother, your dear wife, well? ”

“ Patella is the Latin name, but children call it Tent-Shell. Oval at the base, it slopes upward to a point a little aside from the centre.
In this locality they are small, seldom more than an inch in length. At first, you will not readily distinguish them, they are so nearly of the color of the stones to which they are attached. This is one of those Providential adjustments by which the weak are rendered as secure as the strong. Slow in their movements, without offensive weapons, their form and their coloring are their two great safeguards. ”

“ The parks and public grounds are beautifully kept, and Patiala—with its rose gardens and its purdah-hidden harems—is thriving in the heart of modernised Asia.
We met in Patiala, and afterwards in Simla, the European lady who has recently married the Maharajah of Patiala. Such a marriage may, of course, change many old time-honoured Patiala customs.
We went back to Umballa, and then we journeyed up into the Himalayas. Into cantonments where there was not so much as a Dâk Bungalow, and we had to eat and sleep as best we might. We left the railway and civilisation at Kalka. ”

“ On a calm evening, after Christianity had fairly taken hold of the people, and they loved to sing over and over again their favorite hymns, these village prayer-meetings formed a most blessed close to every day, and set the far-distant bush echoing with the praises of God.
Nor is our week-day life less crowded or busy, though in different ways. At gray dawn on Monday, and every morning, the Tavaka (= the canoe drum) is struck in every village on Aniwa. The whole inhabitants turn in to the early School, which lasts about an hour and a half, and then the Natives are off to their plantations. ”

“ We saw the old Chief and his men planting themselves here and there to guard us, and the Natives prowling about armed and excited. On calling them, they explained the meaning of what Youwili had done, and that they were determined to protect us. I said. "This must not continue. Are you to permit one young fool to defy us all, and break up the Lord's work on Aniwa? If you cannot righteously punish him, I will shut myself up in my house and withdraw from all attempts to teach or help you, till the vessel comes, and then I can leave the island." ”

“ Pointing to his warriors, he cried, "We are many! We are strong! We can always protect you."
"I am not afraid," she calmly replied.
He then led us to that chestnut tree, in the branches of which I had sat during a lonely and memorable night, when all hope had perished of any earthly deliverance, and said to her with a manifest touch of genuine emotion, "The God who protected Missi there will always protect you."
She told him that she had no fear of that kind, but explained to him that we must for the present go to Aniwa, but would return to Tanna, if the Lord opened up our way. ”

“ Now, though the ancient kingdom of Maghada included Patna, it is not probable that there was a capital so low down. Heeren [Pg 313] declares that the empire of the Prasii extended beyond the junction of the Jumna with the Ganges, and we may infer from this that the said junction was not much short of the limits of the empire. And, speaking of particular towns, he names Ayodhya, Kanoge, and others. Also mentioning Pataliputra (Patna) the same author says: "The scene of these fables (Hitopadesah, or Pilpay) is laid in the city of Pataliputra, by no means the most ancient in India." ”

“ Don Juan de Padilla relates that, in 1657, when he was at Santa Lucia, in the province of Lucanas, he saw the women of the village go out to assist each other in sowing their fields, and, at the end of their labour, they returned hand in hand, singing a most melancholy song, and lamenting the cruel fate of their husbands and brothers, who were slaving in the [Pg 125] mines of Huancavelica, while they were obliged to work in the fields like men. They declared that when a man was once taken for the mita his wife seldom or never saw him again, unless she went herself to the place of his torments. ”

“ In the early days of the settlement, before the ruler Patalolo had shaken off his allegiance to the Sultan of Koti, Lakamba appeared in the river with two small trading vessels. He was disappointed to find already some semblance of organization amongst the settlers of various races who recognized the unobtrusive sway of old Patalolo, and he was not politic enough to conceal his disappointment. He declared himself to be a man from the east, from those parts where no white man ruled, and to be of an oppressed race, but of a princely family. ”

“ It was generally believed that they had gone in a canoe to Tanna or Erromanga. But one morning, as I began my work at my house alone, the brave Nelwang appeared at my side!
"Hillo!" I said, "where have you come from? and where is Yakin?"
"I must not," he replied, "tell you yet. We are hid. We have lived on cocoanuts gathered at night. Yakin is well and happy. I come now to fulfil my promise: I will help you, and Yakin will help Missi Paton the woman, and we shall be your friends. I have ground to be built upon and fenced, whenever we dare ”

“ Copeland should live at either Station as seem most suitable or most requisite.
Dr. Inglis and a number of his most energetic Natives accompanied us to Umairarekar Tanna. There we purchased a site for Mission House and Church, and laid a stone foundation, and advanced as far as practicable the erection of a dwelling for Mr. and Mrs. Mathieson. Thence we proceeded to Port Resolution, Tanna, and similarly purchased a site, and advanced, to a forward stage, the house which Mrs. Paton and I were to occupy on our settlement there. Lime for plastering had to be burned in kilns from the coral rocks ”

“ In about two hours we land at Palatka, a pretty bright little town, one of the scores of places which we are obliged to pass through with only a passing glance. Those who are tired of wandering and wish to rest, cannot do better than spend a few pleasant tranquil days here on the banks of the quiet river. ”