Indian Antiquary Vol 60

Author(s): Richard Carnac Temple, Charles E A W Oldham, S Krishnaswami Aiyangar, Devadatta Ramkrishna Bhandarka
Publisher: Swati Publications

Page 140

118
THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY
(JUNE, 1931
"I overtook (pp. 250-251) and passed a number of travellers (to Lhasa) on foot. Most of them were obviously pilgrims of great poverty..... One such pilgrim attracted my especial attention, as he was measuring his distance along the ground. He would stand up straight, his hands stretched above him, and then prostrating himself along the ground, would mark the place to which his finger-tips extended. He would then step to this point and go through the same process. When I came near he stopped and begged me to give him somo money, saying he was & pilgrim, who in expiation of certain past misdeeds, was making a pilgrimage in this alow laborious fashion to Lhasa. He added that he had started his journey from Shigatae and had just been a year on the road. He had been supported all this time by the donations of pious travellers, who had passed him. I tossed him a small coin and then went on."
In Kashmir there is a place of Hindu pilgrimage, Lake Gangabal, to which similar laborious pilgrimages are occasionally made.
"Said I: no pilgrimage like the Gang.
Said he : no pilgrimage like the knees.' Said I: love in ardent worship flung Is a greater pilgrimage than these."-Word of Lalla, 232.
(To be continued.)
MISCELLANEA ORDEAL IN CHINESE FOLKLORE. his property. The daughter, furious at being done The following unfinished story was sent to me out of the money that she expected, said that the from Chaio-Tso, Honan, in September 1930, by infant could not possibly be the child of her father, an English engineer, who has been resident in as he was too old to have & son. She took the China for 30 years. It is, however, probably case to the Courts. tale of Central China, as the narrator, an educated The four daughters-in-law asked the young man who is Chinese accountant of a large English mother whether the child was really the son of the firm, came from the Yangtae in that central part old man. She assured them that he was and ex. of the country. Ho has been mixed up with pressed indignation that she could have done foreigners for many years, and told the telo in
anything wrong. English, but my informant says that "he evidently
The case came on in due course, but as there believed in the truth of it." The narration was
was no actual proof except the word of the mother, interrupted towards the end by happenings in the
the magistrato determined to try the test that unsettled state of that unhappy land, and the
never failed. But he first asked the oldest daughter toller is not now in a condition to finish the talo,
in-law if she consented, for if the test proved the but enough has been told to explain the Chinese
infant to be illegitimato, she would love her head, view of the Ordeal, and so to make it worth publi.
as she was the defendant in the MO brought cation.
by the daughter. The oldest daughter-in-law R.C. TEMPLE.
exprowed her willingness for the test to be TRE ORDBAL
made, and the usual formalitice were carried A rich man had four sons all married, and one out. daughter, also married. The four sons died without The old man's body was dug up. His knee-cap inue, and their widows put their heads together, bone was removed and was put into water, and for when the old man died his money would go then a drop of blood from the baby was also put to the danghter and they would have none. More- into it. All looked to see the result. If the child over, the money would go to people with another were really the offspring of the former poser name.*This is bad Joes."
of the knee-cap bond, the blood would immediately The result of the meeting was that they doter. flow towards the bone, but if not, the blood would mined to persuade young and pretty sister of go in the opposite direction. In this case the blood one of them to marry the old man, so that there did not go to the bone. The daughter triumphed; might be a son to inherit and keep the money in the daughters-in-law were discomfited and the the namo. They also knew that they were more eldest was docked of a very good bead. likely to get something from the young wifo than The three remaining daughters-in-law attacked from their sister-in-law.
the baby's mother, Aconged her of lying and of Their plan was muccessful in every way. The having caused the death of the oldest. The mother old man died loaving an infant son us the heir to l however persisted that she had done no wrong and