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FEBRUARY, 1889.)
SOUTH INDIAN SANSKRIT LITERATURE.
"The hen pigeon much bewildered said to her lord- My lord, now has come our last moment to us. The hunter pulling tight his bow has aimed his arrow at us. Over our head the kite circles in his flight.' Scarcely had she spoken this, when by a serpent he was stung and by his arrow the kite was killed, and both their enemies went at once to the house of death. The ways of the fate are wonderful." In another verse the difficulties of a doe are enamerated :
अमे व्याधः करधृतशरः पार्श्वतो जालमाला पृष्ठे वहिर्वहति च वनं संनिधौ सारमेयाः । एणी गर्भादलसगमना शाबकः पादलीमः
चिन्ताविष्टा कलयति मृयी किं करोमि कयामि। “In front of her is a hunter with a full-drawn bow in his hand: on both sides of her he has spread his nets so that escape on either side is impossible; to turn back and run away is also impossible, as he has lighted a big fire which is burning the whole forest. The space between the hunter and the nets is guarded by the hounds. With all these external difficulties, the doe is full heavy with young and not at all able to walk quickly, and a young one is running between her feet. In the midst of so many difficulties she is buried in the ocean of anxiety and says to herself. What shall I do? Where shall I go?!”
While thus surrounded with dangers the following events occurred, or are supposed to have occurred, and made her escape possible :
मध्ये ज्या त्रुटिता शरासनमभूमं दवाग्नेर्भयात् निर्यातइशशकश्शुनानुगमितः पाशश्च दग्धोमिना। शान्तो वहिरकालमेघसलिलैः सूता मृगी गर्भिणी
वामापत्सरितं ततार कृपया देवस्य लक्ष्मीपतेः॥ “The bow-string broke in the middle (from too strong & pull); the bow too was smashed to pieces. From fear of the forest-fire a hare left its bush and ran and was followed furiously by the hounds. The nets were burnt by the fire. All of a sudden an untimely cloud appeared and poured volumes of water apon the fire and quenched the flames, and in that very place after crossing all the channels of difficulty by the favour of the lord of the Lakshmi (Vishņa) the doe was confined and brought to bed of another young one."
Thus if fate only desires it, everything shall take place as it should. In this way many an idler generalizes in remote villages and quotes the three verses given above as his authority for so doing.
III.-On Mask. The following beautiful verse is current as one addressed by a great Paņdit to a rogue -
कस्तूरिकां वृणभुनामटवीचराणां निक्षिप्य नाभिषु चकार था वधार्थीन् । मूढो विधिः स खलु पुर्जनलोलजिह्वा
मूलेषु निक्षिपति चेत् सकलोपकारः।। The fool Brahmå by placing musk in the navel of those poor beasts which graze on grass and roam the forests made them (most unreasonably) objects of slaughter; but if, instead of that, he had kept it at the root of the tongues of wiokod people it would have been a great help to all."
The author means that wicked men would lose their tongues, and thus their wickedness, and that the rest of the world, would get musk from their tongues instead of from harmless beasts.
