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188
THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY
(OCTOBER, 1926
We, Thy servants for generations, O Lord ! are happy. Thou who as the precious fire Art red ; Thou who wearest the white ashes ; Thou blest with the highest wealth; Thou Bridegroom of the small-waisted woman with the wide, black eyes; Ah Lord, in Thy merciful sport of accepting service and saving souls, what of obser
vances Those who would be saved perform, all such have we finished performing. Guard us in Thy mercy that we weary not. El Or, Our Lady.
12. The Pure One whom we praise in noisy dance that the woes which bind to birth may
севе, The Dancer, that, in the Court of Tillai, like flame of fire doth dance, Having, in sport, this sky, the earth and all of us Protected, created, destroyed Discoursing of His greatness, with bracelets tinkling, long jewelled-girdles Sounding like laughter, and beetles buzzing over our coiled hair, Let us bathe, in the tank bright with flowers in bloom, scooping up the water, All the time singing of the glory of the golden feet of Our Lord. El Or, Our Lady.
13. Because of the dark blossoms of bright kuvaļai (eye of Pârvati), because, of the bright
bloom of red lotuses, (eye of Siva), Because of the swarms of pretty little birds (white bracelets of conch-shell) there,
because of their cries too (Cobras, as armlets of Siva). Because of the throng of those who come to wash impurity from their bodies, This bubbling pool is like our Lady Pârvati and our Lord Siva in one. Leap into it, again and again, With our shell-bracelets tinkling, with ankle-rings jingling together, With our bosoms swelling, and the water swelling up around us,
Leap into the water abloom with lotuses and take your bath. El Or, Our Lady. 14. With ear-rings waving, with bright, bejewelled trinkets waving,
With garlanded tresses waving, while the swarming beetles waver, In the cool water bathe. Singing of the “Small Court", Singing of Him who is the Vedas' meaning, singing how He happened to become
that meaning, Singing of the power of the Supreme Light, singing of His encircling wreath of cassia, Singing of the power of Him as the Beginning of all, singing likewise of Him as the
end of all, Take thou thy bath, singing, the praise of the feet Of the Lady who changeth, saveth, exalteth us. El Or, Our Lady. Once and again crying "My Lord ", she $1 did never Oase, To belaud the greatness of Our Lord, her heart rapt in joy, Her eyes wet with the increasing flow of tears ; She would now and then worship Him by falling upon the earth but would not
worship the Gods of Heaven. Him who, in this wise, maddens his worshippers In extending to them His Grace, Him, will we sing full-mouthed, O ye women with heaving and adomed bosoms let us sport and bathe
In the water fragrant with beautiful flowers. El Or, Our Lady. 31 This has been held to refer to one of the 63 Saiva devotees who is described the "Lady of Karaikkal", as she had forgotten her own name.-E.
