Page:Life in India or Madras, the Neilgherries, and Calcutta.djvu/488

428 those who come to him for refreshment. As he is a Brahmin, all castes can receive food or drink from his hands.

This work of providing water for the thirsty is one of great merit; indeed, according to the Madura Puranna, (a sacred history,) the god Siva manifested himself on one occasion as a man for the purpose of performing this meritorious act. The king of Madura, according to this Puranna, went forth to meet an enemy, with an army resembling a continuous river running into the sea. The two armies joined battle, and continued the contest for five hours, when the soldiers on both sides began to faint from thirst. At this juncture, a water-booth appeared in the midst of the army of Madura, within which stood the god, in the guise of a Brahmin, with a supply of Ganges water. From this all who came were instantly supplied, and the recipients of the favour of the god, engaging with renewed vigour, were victorious. The cut, which is taken from the Hindu illustrations of the Puranna, represents the warriors as standing with their hands joined to convey the water to their mouths. The figure of the disguised deity gives a good idea of the appearance and dress of a Brahmin,