Page:India as known to the Ancient World.djvu/85

Rh Monarchies of Egypt. Yet from the time of Alexander downwards the intellectual life of India was profoundly felt throughout the ancient world. Greece, Persia, Egypt and China even, went to sit at the feet of those serene dreamers on the banks of the Indus and the Ganges under the shades of the banyan trees ; and there they marvelled at the power of philosophy to achieve ideal virtue. And what treasures of European fable, legend and mythic lore further testify to the indebtedness of Europe to India, in the sphere of imagination and fancy ; the Magic Mirror, the Golden Egg, the Purse of Fortunatus, the Cap of Invisibility. Ex Oriente Lux !