Sraddha

“ That person who having eaten at a Sraddha does not abstain that day from study of the Vedas or who has sexual congress that day with a Sudra woman, must know that his Pitris, in consequence of such acts of his, have to lie for a month on his dung. The offerings made at Sraddhas if presented to a Brahmana who sells Soma, become converted into human ordure; if presented to a Brahmana who is engaged in the practice of Medicine, they become converted into pus and blood; if presented to one who lives by setting up a deity, they fail to produce any fruit ”

“ Robed in raiment of white, and becoming pure in body and mind, one should invite Brahmanas and cause them to utter their benedictions (when one performs the Sraddha) . On such occasions one should also recite the Bharata. It is by observing all these that the offerings made at Sraddhas become inexhaustible.'
"'"Dhaumya said, 'Broken utensils, broken bedsteads, cocks and dogs, as also such trees as have grown within the dwelling houses, are all inauspicious objects. In a broken utensil is Kali himself, while in a broken bedstead is loss of wealth. ”

“ The bones are then washed in milk, and all put into an earthen pot (kudam) with some karuga grass on the top. The pot is covered with a cloth, taken to a cocoanut tree and buried in a pit, the cloth being removed and the top filled with mud. A plantain is planted in the trench that was dug near the pyre. On the eleventh day, all the members of the family purify themselves,and perform oblations of water and balls of rice. This constitutes the first sraddha, which must be repeated on each anniversary of the eleventh day."
"The funeral rites of women are similar ”

“ Even at present, when the worship of the ancient Devas is ridiculed by many who still take part in it, the worship of the ancestors and the offering of Srâddhas have maintained much of their old sacred character. They have sometimes been compared to the "communion" in the Christian Church, and it is certainly true that many natives speak of their funeral and ancestral ceremonies with a hushed voice and with real reverence. They alone seem still to impart to their life on earth a deeper significance and a higher prospect. ”

“ Ah, sir, you must know that your father’s name resounds far and wide! by virtue of his name the tiger and the cow drink at the same pool! can his shraddha then be like the shraddha of a poor and insignificant man? Even those encumbered with debt must avoid the world’s reproach. Matilall could not comprehend the drift of all this talk. These men, while nominally manifesting their bosom friendship as kinsmen for a kinsman, were really in their inmost hearts eager to have a gorgeous shraddha ceremony, and themselves to get the management of it, so that they might gain importance thereby ”

“ Vardhamâna was the younger son of Siddhârtha a nobleman who belonged to the Kshatriya race, called in Sanskrit Jñâti or Jñâta, in Prakrit Nâya, and, according to the old custom of the Indian warrior caste, bore the name of a Brâhmanic family the Kâśyapa. His mother, who was called Triśalâ, belonged to the family of the governors of Videha. Siddhârtha's residence was Kuṇḍapura, the Basukund of to-day, a suburb of the wealthy town of Vaiśâlî, the modern Besarh, in Videha or Tirhut. ”

“ If the master loses his wealth, he should with excessive zeal be supported by the Sudra servant. A Sudra cannot have any wealth that is his own. Whatever he possesses belongs lawfully to his master. [184] Sacrifice has been laid down as a duty of the three other orders. It has been ordained for the Sudra also, O Bharata! A Sudra, however, is not competent to titter swaha and swadha or any other Vedic mantra. For this reason, the Sudra, without observing the vows laid down in the Vedas, should worship the gods in minor sacrifices called Paka-yajnas. ”

“ If you are in earnest, it can be carried out to-morrow, or whenever the lady Ortensia is ready. I will reward you as well as I can, but you must remember that I am a poor musician and not a Venetian senator——'
[61] Pina's grey eyes were like steel, and her tone was cold, and not without a certain dignity.
'Have I asked money of you, sir?'
'Oh, no!' answered Stradella readily. 'I only wished——'
She interrupted him, as if she were his equal.
'Even a servant may love something better than a bribe!' she said. ”

“ People, who possess firmness, endure for a long time mutual separation to which no termination is assigned; hear in proof of this the tale of Rámabhadra and Sítá."
Story of Ráma and Sítá.:— Long ago king Daśaratha. the sovereign of Ayodhya, had a son, named Ráma, the elder brother of Bharata, Śatrughna and Lakshmana. He was a partial incarnation of Vishnu for the overthrow of Rávana, and he had a wife named Sítá, the daughter of Janaka, the lady of his life. As fate would have it, his father handed over the kingdom to Bharata, and sent Ráma to the forest with Sítá and Lakshmana. ”

“ The sudra is the servant of the race of men; he has no rights that others need respect; he may not hear the Vedas read, and it means death to him to look into the face of priest, or king, and naught but death can free him from his state of servitude. ”

“ They could not possibly travel, and no one in the town would take them in without baggage or cash. I tell you they went from here to a convent and asked for shelter and protection. It is the most natural thing in the world. It is what the girl's middle-aged serving-woman would certainly think of first.'
'You may be right,' answered the other, his tone changing. 'Drink more wine, for it always stimulates your imagination, and you may imagine a way of getting Stradella out of the Lion Tower. I think you are right about the girl. ”

“ Even the wicked Râja Vena, who was, as we have seen, a type of old-world impiety, was cured, like Naaman the Syrian, of his leprosy by bathing in the Sâraswati, the lost river of the Indian desert.
Even minor streams have their sanctity and their legends. The course of the Sarju was opened by a Rishi, from which time dates the efficacy of a pilgrimage to Bâgheswar.82 Râja Rantideva was such a pious king and offered up so many cattle in sacrifice, that his blood formed the river Chambal. ”

“ I like to be envied by other women because you are mine, with all you are, you, and your fame, and everything!'
'Do you see?' Stradella laughed softly. 'You should not be angry with people who stare at you, any more than I am with people who listen when I sing! And I am no more jealous because Don Alberto admires you than you should be because Queen Christina likes my singing, as she says she does.'
'Tell me, Alessandro, is that a black wig she wears, or is it her own hair?' asked Ortensia, pretending to be serious. ”

“ Very well, if Stradella has carried off your niece, as I am almost sure he has, they are beyond pursuit by this time. They have reached the mainland and are riding away as fast as they can towards the frontier. There is not the slightest chance of catching them. You must say that you have sent the young lady to the country for her health.'
At this Pignaver made a dramatic gesture. ”

“ When the crafty Rákshasa said this to Śṛingabhuja, he answered him—“Listen, I will tell you a token: in that temple there is a figure of Párvatí on the left side of Śiva, and of Gaṇeśa on his right.” When Agniśikha heard that, he was astonished and thought for a moment—“What! did he go there, and was my brother not able to devour him? Then he cannot be a mere man, he must be a god, so let him marry my daughter, as he is a fitting match for her.” After thus reflecting, he sent Śṛingabhuja as a successful suitor to Rúpaśikhá, but he never suspected that there was a traitor in his own family. ”

“ When some days had passed there, he said in secret to the Rákshasa’s daughter, “Come, my beloved, let us return to the city of Vardhamána. For that is my capital city, and I cannot endure to be banished from my capital city by my enemies, for people like myself hold honour dear as life. So leave for my sake the land of your birth, though it is hard to leave; inform your father, and bring that golden arrow in your hand.” When Śṛingabhuja said this to Rúpaśikhá, she answered—“I must immediately obey your command. ”

“ Sarat Chandra Das was born in the town of Chittagong, in Eastern Bengal, in 1849, in a Hindu family of the vaidya, or medical caste. He received his education in the Presidency College at Calcutta, where he became favourably known to Sir Alfred Croft, the present Director of Public Instruction of Bengal, who ever since has been his friend and guide in his geographical and literary work, and by whose representations to the Indian Government it became possible for him to perform his important journeys into Tibet. ”

“ Thereupon casting his eyes on Satrughna, Bharata said, "A woman is incapable of being slain by any. Do thou therefore excuse her. I myself would have slain this wicked Kaikeyi of impious deeds, if the righteous Rāma should not be displeased with me on account of my slaying my mother. And if Rāghava knows that the hump-backed one hath been slain, he surely will speak neither with thee nor me." Hearing Bharata's words, Satrughna, younger brother unto Lakshmana, refrained from that wrong and set free the hump-backed woman in a swoon. ”

“ Strada’s fancy was this: “There is,” he supposes, “a species of loadstone which possesses such virtue, that if two needles be touched with it, and then balanced on separate pivots, and the one be turned in a particular direction, the other will sympathetically move parallel to it. He then directs each of these needles to be poised and mounted parallel on a dial having the letters of the alphabet arranged round it. ”

“ The Queen smiled still more graciously at the ancient name, though she was a little surprised that a Grimani [223] should have married a singer. Bernini and Guidi greeted Stradella while the Queen exchanged these few words with his wife, and the three gentlemen also came forward and pressed his hand, asking him questions about his journey, his marriage, and his present lodgings.
'What?' cried young Paluzzo Altieri. 'Lodging at the Orso? At an inn? My uncle will never allow that, nor her Majesty either!' He glanced at the Queen, who was still talking with Ortensia. ”

“ Pina slept with her mistress, while Stradella and his man rolled themselves in their cloaks and lay down outside the door, with valises for pillows; for they expected to be pursued, and though they had made good time, they knew that mounted men, with frequent relays of horses, might overtake them before morning. ”

“ The people who inhabited Rāḍha are described to be black-skinned and rude in manners, and are reported to have been fond of robbing the pious Jaina intruders. In the Brahmāṇḍa section of the Bhaviṣya Purāṇa, the whole tract lying to the north of the Dārukeśvara river and extending along the Panchkot hills, has been called the Rāḍha country and the temple of Baidyanāth has been mentioned as existing in that tract. ”

“ This evil genius of wrath and fury, who conies down from the Gathic period, works in opposition to Sraosha. He is full of sin, [146] and is the wielder of a bloody mace. [147] Ahura Mazda created Sraosha to counteract his fiendish mischief. [148] The faithful invoke Sraosha to protect them from his assaults. [149] Sraosha hurls his mace at this demon's skull, and the fiend takes to flight before Mithra. [150] Intoxicating drinks incite men to embrace Aeshma, but the recital of the holy spells helps to dispel him. ”

“ I hid thee at birth, and Radha, who found thee, is not thy mother. It is not seemly that thou shouldst in ignorance plot with Duryodhana against thine own brethren. Let the Kauravas this day behold the friendship of thee and Arjuna. If you two were side by side you would conquer the world. My eldest son, it is meet that thou shouldst be with thy brethren now. Be no longer known as one of lowly birth.”
A voice spoke from the sun, saying: “What Pritha hath said is truth. O tiger among men, great good will be accomplished if thou wilt obey her command.” ”

“ She caught his glance, and with a smile bent down to kiss the upturned palms. She wanted to abase herself before the strong man, to be low and humble before him. She would have been his handmaiden, and nothing could have satisfied her so much as to perform for him the most menial services. She knew not how to show the immensity of her passion.
It pleased Bertha to walk into Blackstable with her lover and to catch the people’s stares, knowing how much the marriage interested them. What did she care if they were surprised at her choosing Edward Craddock, whom they had known all his life? ”

“ And taking up a huge and dreadful crag resembling a mountain, the monkey-king hurled it with great vehemence to slay him. Thereupon finding that crag about to fall, Mahodara fearlessly severed it with his arrows. And being sundered into a thousand pieces by the arrow of that Rākshasa, it fell down on the earth like unto a band of vultures. And beholding that crag thus severed, Sugriva was beside himself with ire; and uplifting a sāla tree hurled it: and the heroic Rākshasa, the slayer of enemy's force, severed it into several pieces with his arrows. ”

“ Day was breaking, and Pritha and her sons immediately turned away to leave the forest. The Rakshasa woman followed them, and Bhima cried to her: “Begone! or I will send thee after thy brother.”
Said Yudhishthira: “It is unseemly to slay a woman. Besides, she is the sister of that Rakshasa, and even although she became angry, what harm can she do us?”
Kneeling at Pritha's feet, the demon wailed: “O illustrious and blessed lady, thou knowest the sufferings women endure when the love god wounds them. Have pity upon me now, and command thy son to take me for his bride. ”