Page:History of Bengali Language and Literature.djvu/188

 158 BENGALI LANGUAGE & LITERATURE. [ Chap, | city, the original texts required modification in Bengali. The Kathakatas or recitatives with songs, which became very popular during these রর হন oe times, introduced stories and descriptions not contained in the original Sanskrit writings, but much appreciated by the people, since the narrators set i» Ma invented them for the very purpose of making a — greater Impression on their audience. The tran- slations of the period, though mainly agreeing with, not seldom deviated from, the spirit of their origin- als. These literary sins again were not always of commission merely, but sometimes of omission also. The higher truths and more advanced literary com- positions of the Sanskrit originals, were not always translated because they were not likely to be under- stood by those accustomed only to the Bengali re- censions. So, inspite of fresh accretions, the tran- slations were generally less in length than the Sanskrit texts. In the declining days of Buddhism, the masses Dissemina- শি had lost all touch with Sanskrit learning. We have assica : ideas. seen that the teeth of Queen Aduna were compared by the rustic bard to the bark of the cork plant (sola) in order to signify their whiteness. The metaphors of that period appear to the Bengal people of this age as neither refined nor edifying, in spite of thier apt and homely character. With the revival of a taste for Sanskrit, the metaphorical expressions with which that language abounds, were freely borrowed for the embellishment of the vernacular, and they became familiar even to the rustic people of the villages. These metaphors were often tran- slated without any idea of appropriateness. <A woman's gait would be compared, for instance, to