Page:History of Bengali Language and Literature.djvu/186

 150 BENGALI LANGUAGE & LITERALURE. [ Chap. related in the Chandi Kavya by Madhavacharyya of Bengal. An ex-= a. ‘ ample from Lomaga the great Brahmin, was passing through Chandi the austere duties of the religious life on the sea- Kavya. coast. There, immaculate and pure, he was firm as a rock in his high pursuit and exposed like the rock wn cassettes eas 2 ea ৬ eel a ED The sage tothe inclemencies of the weather. He cared not one though the burning rays of the tropical sun beat on his bare head and was indifferent alike to the violent rain and the howling wind that came roar- ing in from the surging sea. Nilamvara, a son of the God Indra, one day approached him and said, ‘Great sage, I want to build a hut here in order to ) give you a little shelter.” Lomaga replied, ‘“ No need of a hut since life is transitory. Nilamvara asked the sage, ‘‘How long then will you live in this world?” Lomaga said ‘“‘ My body is covered with hair as you see ; the fall of each hair will take the whole cycle of an Indra’s reign ; when all the hair thus falls off, my death will surely come.” That is to say, the sage would live for ages and ages, and yet he would not allow others to build a hut for him. ‘For’, said he, ‘when death was certain, sooner or later, what good could there be in covet- ing the small comforts of life’. Though couched in the form of an exaggerated Pauranik story, this supreme indifference to the world and devotion to the cause of the highest good which is everlasting, is the true Brahminic ideal which has been the cherished dream of the whole Indian community through ages. Gifts toa According to the Gastras, it is a great act of (17717117111, ঃ ঠা : ae virtue to make gifts to the Brahmins. They were prohibited from pursuing any avocation for money,