Page:History of Bengali Language and Literature.djvu/47

II.] century of the Christian era. Dāk-Tantra is also a book of authority with the rural folk of Bengal, but it is popularly known here as "Dāker-Vachana." The latter work gives a smoothed down version of its precursor and prototype preserved in Nepal; but there are numerous lines to be found in the editions of the book published by the Baṭtalā Presses of Calcutta which retain their old and antiquated forms. It is impossible to get any clear sense out of such lines as:—

Probably the last portion refers to the rules for settling disputes by arbitration—a practice generally adopted in the old order of society. There are evident traces of Buddhistic views in these sayings. Buddhism, in its days of decline in India, became identical with scepticism. In Dāker-Bachana, we come across such views as these:—

"When we get a good palatable thing to eat, it is not wise to keep it for to-morrow. Enjoy