Vidushaka

“ Then a voice from the air addressed him; “Hear this O Vidúshaka! the mendicant, whom thou hast slain, had in his power a great demon and some grains of mustard-seed. Thence arose his desire to be ruler of the earth and marry the daughters of kings, and so the fool has this day been baffled. [134] Therefore thou hero, take those mustard-seeds, in order that for this night only thou mayest be enabled to travel through the air.” Thus the aërial voice addressed the delighted Vidúshaka; for even the gods often take such a hero under their protection. ”

“ And he gave him his own daughter on the spot; what do generous men withhold when pleased with their benefactors? Surely the goddess of Prosperity,23 out of love for the lotus, dwelt in the hand of the princess, since Vidúshaka obtained great good fortune after he had received it in the marriage ceremony. Then Vidúshaka enjoying a distinguished reputation, and engaged in attending upon the sovereign, lived with that beloved wife in the palace of king Ádityasena. ”

“ She too endured patiently to be placed on the shoulder of a very loathsome Rákshasa; what will not women do when mastered by affection? So Vidúshaka, mounted on the Rákshasa, set out with his beloved, and again reached the city of Kárkoṭaka; and there men beheld him with fear inspired by the sight of the Rákshasa; and when he saw king Áryavarman, he demanded from him his daughter ”

“ The grosser traits of the typical Vidūshaka are lacking. Maitreya is neither a glutton nor a fool, but a simple-minded, whole-hearted friend.
The courtier is another character suggested by the technical works, and transformed by the genius of Shūdraka. He is a man not only of education and social refinement, but also of real nobility of nature. But he is in a false position from the first, this true gentleman at the wretched court of King Pālaka; at last he finds the courage to break away, and risks life, and all that makes life attractive, by backing Aryaka. ”

“ Supported in that way Vidúshaka descended in the sea; a brave man never desponds when the moment for action has arrived. So taking in his hand the sword of the Fire-god, that came to him with a thought, the hero descended into the midst of the sea under the ship. And there he saw a giant asleep, and he saw that the ship was stopped by his leg. So he immediately cut off his leg with his sword, and at once the ship moved on freed from its impediment. When the wicked merchant saw that, he cut the ropes, by which Vidúshaka was supported, through desire to save the wealth he had promised him ”

“ Then, while Vidúshaka was living there, a certain friend of his beloved, named Yogeśvarí, came to Bhadrá, and said to her in secret—“My friend, the Vidyádharas are angry with you because you live with a man, and they seek to do you an injury, therefore leave this place. There is a city called Kárkoṭaka on the shore of the eastern sea, and beyond that there is a sanctifying stream named Śítodá, and after you cross that, there is a great mountain named Udaya,24 the land of the Siddhas,25 which the Vidyádharas may not invade ”

“ At that time King Sanjaya was reigning in the city of Jayatura. His wife's name was Phusati, and they had a son, Visvantara. When he came of age, Visvantara married Madri, a princess of rare beauty. She bore him two children: a son, Jalin, and a daughter, Krishnajina. Visvantara owned a white elephant that had the marvellous power to make the rain fall at will. Now, the distant kingdom of Kalinga was visited by a terrible drought. The grass withered; the trees bore no fruit; men and beasts died of hunger and of thirst. ”

“ This is not so, for centuries before the coming of the Maori, let alone of the Pakeha, there was a human occupation of Westland of much greater antiquity. What manner of men were these, who, in a desperate endeavour to keep body and soul together on the meagre natural production of that wild land, hunted not for sport, but for food, the mighty moa, that gigantic wingless bird unique to New Zealand, and who, when successful, feasted to their hearts’ content on the flesh thereof? ”

“ Vibhishana's voice deepened angrily. "You dare accuse me—I am sorry, Ramey Winters. You did not mean to offend, I know. But believe me, never for an instant did I, when I ruled Lanka, harbor any lust for dominion over your people. With the Gaanelian lord I cherished the dream that we of the more advanced cultures might help improve your planet, make it a finer world for your people. All I asked of earthmen was their allegiance, small territorial rights on which to base a sound commerce and a solid economy between our two homelands. ”

“ Leaving Kota-kota Bay, we turned away due West on the great slave route to Katanga's and Cazembe's country in Londa. Juma lent us his servant, Selele, to lead us the first day's march. He said that the traders from Kilwa and Iboe cross the Lake either at this bay, or at Tsenga, or at the southern end of the Lake; and that wherever they may cross they all go by this path to the interior. They have slaves with them to carry their goods, and when they reach a spot where they can easily buy others, they settle down and begin the traffic, and at once cultivate grain. ”

“ The Maku, a tribe of small dark people, are universally regarded and treated as slaves; the Witoto, smaller and darker than the adjacent Boro, are physically inferior, and far less particular in their ways and in the observance of tribal customs. The Andoke, sometimes called the white Indians on account of their fairer skins, [54] are the tyrants and bullies of all their neighbours; and it has been suggested that the warlike Awashiri, who are the terror of the Napo Piohe and Orahone tribes, are nomad Andoke or Miranha. Certainly both these people wander far from their usual districts. ”

“ The next event of outstanding interest occurred when the Ngati-tama, Ati-Awa and Ngati-rarua tribes, under the leadership of Niho, made their historic raid on the greenstone country (1828) . Te Rauparaha in this year had invaded the East Coast and a section of his tribe set out for Westland by the coastal route. They believed there was a great store of greenstone at the Arahura and though they duly reached their objective they failed to obtain the pounamu. During this raid, Tuhuru (father of Werita Tainui) was captured. ”

“ We may now go on to refer shortly to the castes which are found in especial strength in Vizagapatam or are in other ways characteristic of the district. A beginning will be made with the castes of the low country, who, with a few exceptions expressly noted, all speak Telugu. It will save space if a few points common to most of the non-polluting non-Bráhman castes are first mentioned.
Caste organization is scarcely as systematic as in the southern districts, and the headman (kula-pedda) has more limited powers. ”

“ From Wiborg there is a branch line to Imatra, built for the accommodation of tourists anxious to visit the wonderful rapids or falls at the last-named place. Imatra is on a river known variously as the Vuoksen, or the Voksa, which connects the great Saima Lake with the still greater Ladoga; which, again, is connected with the open sea, as all the world knows, by the Neva. The Voksa is, I should think, one of the most beautiful rivers in the world. Wide, and clear as crystal, we have nothing like it in England; it has no tide to yellow it, no navigation to stir and distress its calm depths ”

“ There was a great village, a very fine village, and plenty Kanakas in that place; but all mighty serious; and from every here and there in the back parts of the settlement, Taveeta heard the sounds of island lamentation. 'I no savvy talk that island,' said he. 'I savvy hear um cly. I think, Hum! too many people die here!' But upon Wiseman and Wishart the significance of that barbaric keening was lost. ”

“ Vonizongo is a broad open valley, fifteen miles wide by twenty miles long. It has the noble mountain of Lóhavóhitra for its eastern boundary: on the west is a long low ridge of the usual red clay. West of this again is a fine valley, which has for its western boundary the lofty, curving ridge of Ambóhimánga: outside of this running north-west to the sea is the river Ikopa. The centre of the province consists of the sandy clay, deeply scored by the strong streams which flow from Lóhavóhitra: along the waters everywhere the levels are cultivated with rice, and small villages are numerous. ”

“ Vizagapatam proper lies at the southern end of this bay and Waltair at the northern, and between them, along the shore, runs a fine road which opens up a whole series of splendid (but so far greatly neglected) building sites.
Immediately north of the Dolphin's Nose is a small river called the Upputeru ('salt river') which drains a land-locked tidal swamp four square miles in extent and the land behind it,and flows to the sea over a sandy bar of the usual kind. ”

“ Some four miles from Hokitika a group of Maoris are settled on the river Arahura, about one hundred in all. They were there before Westland was known to settlers in Canterbury, a tribe driven out from the North Island by raids of a famous warrior, Te Rauparaha; Christians, living in simple fashion, practically shut off from communication with the rest of New Zealand. ”

“ They smear themselves with rancid butter instead of macassar, and are, in consequence, very offensive to all but the negro, who seems, rather than otherwise, to enjoy a good sharp nose tickler. For arms they carry both bow and spear; more generally the latter. The Wazinza in the southern parts are so much like the Wanyamuezi, as not to require any especial notice; but in the north, where the country is more hilly, they are much more energetic and actively built. All alike live in grass-hut villages, fenced round by bomas in the south, but open in the north. ”

“ Thomas Brunner and Charles Heaphy, who were connected with the New Zealand Land Company, set out to explore the country we now know as Westland, with a view “to report on its resources and potentialities as a field for further settlement.” They left Nelson on March 17th, 1846, with the Arahura River, in the heart of the greenstone country, as their objective. They were accompanied on this important expedition by a Maori named Ekehu who had previously visited the locality, and had been engaged as guide. ”

“ If the girl's parents dislike the match she often elopes with the youth, who eventually is punished for his transgression by having to provide a caste dinner. Gadaba children, like those of other primitive tribes here, are usually named after the day of the week on which they were born. Stone slabs are erected to the memory of the dead and sacrifices offered to them now and again. The Kóyas, who number 11,000 in this district, live in the corner of Malkanagiri taluk south-west of Malkanagiri town and are immigrants from Gódávari, to which district, rather than to Vizagapatam, they belong. ”

“ Rámatírtham lies about eight miles north-east of Vizianagram and contains 986 inhabitants. North of it stand two hills which are in striking contrast to the rounded red heights so common in this district, and consist of bare, solid rock, dotted with tors and worn into sheer precipices like the hills of the Deccan. The nearer of these is called Bódikonda, or 'bald hill.' On the top of the western end of it is a ruined brick shrine in which stand three images of Jain tirthankaras, some 11⁄2 to 3 feet high, neatly carved out of the local garnetiferous gneiss. ”

“ Upon the southern shore of the same Island of Nope, at a distance of ten or twelve miles from the residence of Moshup, lived, at the same period of time, Hiwassee, the proud and arbitrary Sachem of that portion of the Island which lies most exposed to the fogs of spring. He was a very rich and mighty man, had abundance of grape-vines, and a vast many ponds, well stocked with clams, oysters, perch, crabs, and wild fowl; many swamps filled with terrapins and cranberries; and much land, well adapted to the growing of maize and other good things. ”

“ On 23 June the Lady Nyassa was launched on the Zambesi, but as the waters of the Shire had fallen too low to allow of ascending, Livingstone made another attempt to ascend the Rovuma, leaving Kongoni in the Pioneer on 6 Aug. He navigated the river for 160 miles, and finding that it was navigable no further, he returned to the Zambesi at the end of November, and reached Shupanga on 19 Dec., leaving again on 10 Jan. 1863 with the Lady Nyassa in tow. All up the Shire they saw the most sickening scenes of destruction due to slave-raids. ”

“ Vibhishana is now crowned king of Lanka. Alaka, a tutelary deity, comes. Lanka, another tutelary deity, is consoled by Alaka.
Sita passes the fiery ordeal in triumph. The gods cheer her.
Rama, accompainied by Sita, Lakshmana, Vibhishana and Sugriva, then enters the aerial car Pushpaka which was once wrested from Kuvera by Ravana, and which is now placed at the disposal of Rama by Vibhishana. The car transports them from Ceylon all the way to Ayodhya. One or other of the party points out the places over which they fly viz. ”

“ Happily the Hova traditions give us the names of seven Vazimba kings. These names are as genuine specimens of Malagasy as the Hova names themselves. The Vazimba tombs are of the shape and structure of the usual Hova tombs, though of rude work and rough stones. So far therefore as we know anything about the Vazimba, they were a true Malagasy people: there is nothing African about them.
After a while the Vazimba and the strangers quarrelled. Contests arose and the Vazimba were driven out of the province; “to the south-west” says the story; and that means “into the unknown.” ”