________________
JULY 5, 1872.]
plated building a costly temple in honour of his tutelary deity, but one serious impediment lay in his way he had not the means of carrying his pious intention into effect. The gods, however, ever ready to encourage piety of such a description, came to his help, and while he was racking his brains as to where, and how, he could raise the wind, a voice was heard to tell him that in the vicinity of the Lingam, towards the north there were three hoof-prints. If he dug up the ground in these three places, he would find what he required. He obeyed the divine injunction, and to his joy, he found in one place bricks, in another lime and mortar, and in the third gold. With those he built the temple now the centre of attraction at Trivyar.
MISCELLANEA, &c.
The legend given us of the origin of the Sabathastanam we shall briefly relate. Once upon a time there lived a Brahman named Tirus'uli. When he was a child of a few years old, he happened to be playing in a forest when a Rishi came round begging. Tirusuli in a playful mood and ignorant of the mendicant's great rank and sanctity, threw a stone into his vessel in lieu of money. The Rishi said nothing, but enduring the insult with wonderful meekness and humility departed. Tirusuli, when he attained to manhood, forgot this simple occurrence of his childish days, and in course of time entered, like other men, into the business of the world and a married life. For years, however, he was childless; and becoming apprehensive at what he could not but regard as an indication of the divine displeasure, he devoted his whole time to the exercise of religion, and the performance of severe penance and bodily mortification. One night, in a dream, the form of the insulted Rishi appeared to him, and something within him rebuked him for what he had done when he was a child, and told him that in his present misfortunes he was reaping the fruits of his wicked behaviour towards the saintly mendicant. When Tirusuli awoke he was an altered man. The Jackdaw of Rheims did not exhibit greater signs of contrition than the repentant Brahman. His course of life was changed, his daily habits were of the most austere character, and, to punish himself for the wicked stone he had cast into the Rishi's vessel, his diet was changed, and he lived upon stones! Hence his name was altered also from Tirusuli to Silatharan, or the stone-eater. It was to be expected, of course, that such acts of virtue would meet with due reward; and so one day the god appeared to him, and told him that, in a certain place indicated he would find a chest underground, in which was the child he had so long and so anxiously desired. This child, in whose honor the festival at Trivyar is now observed, was no other than Tirunanthi. The child who had the head of a cow on a human body, the father dedicated to Siva, and the god appointed the monster as captain of his guard of goblins.
227
In representations of S'iva, Tirunanthi is generally included, as upon him the deity is supposed to ride on great occasions. Tirunanthi was espoused to the sister of Vasittan the Rishi. The Pancha nathi, or five sacred rivers, took their origin at the coronation of Tirunanthi as chief of the goblins. On his head were poured (1) water from the sacred vessel in the hand of Siva, (2) the waters of the Ganges supposed to flow from Siva's head, (3) the froth from the mouth of a cow, and (4) nectar from the moon. These four flowed from his head into the sacred tank, where they were speedily joined by a fifth stream, thus forming the Pancha nathi. Where this fifth stream came from must be explained. Near the side of the present town of Shiali, Indra, in days of yore, had a forest of choice trees. From want of rain and excessive heat the forest suffered exceedingly. Indra was afflicted with much sorrow, and, though a god, was powerless to call down the elements to his aid. In his distress Narada came to him, and said that, on Mount Pothyam, Agastiar the Rishi had the waters of the Ganges in a sacred vessel, and if he applied to Pillyar, this god would send the water down to refresh the forest. Indran besought Pillyar, and the latter deity, assuming the form of a cow, and, ascending to the summit of Mount Pothyam, capsized the vessel, and the water flowing down from thence mixed first with the four.rivers in the sacred tank at Trivyar, and then became the majestic river now called the Kaveri. After his coronation Tirunanthi was, according to the prevalent custom, carried in procession to seven sacred places. The seven Rishis are said to have been doing penance, as the god, in procession, visited them severally. Very large donations, we are told, were given towards the expenses of this annual festival by a king named Surada Maharaja of the Solar race, who lived many years ago.-Madras Mail.
To the Editor of the Indian Antiquary! SIR,-IN reply to Babu Rajendralal I must point out that he has given no authority for taking ghata to mean three; or if it did so, for taking the expression three eights to represent 888, and not 8+8+8 or even 8 x 8 x 8. He says he thinks his interpretation is not forced; but is the word ghata, which is very indefinite, ever used to signify figures in this way? If the writer meant to express three, could he not have used one of the many symbolical expressions for it, instead of a word which simply means 'a collection'? And according to the usual way of expressing numbers in this symbolic way, and to the rule Ankânâm vâmato gatih,' if ghata meant three, would not the expression kunjára-ghat & mean 38? And what is the necessity of restricting the 'collection' to three. It may mean any number, even 9, in which case, though a row of nine nines, according to Babu Rajendralal's way of taking it, may not
