Page:Anandamath, The Abbey of Bliss - Chatterjee.djvu/110

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The Abbey of Bliss

when the sun is shining ; Indra showers his rain on the sea ; Kuvera carries wealth to the coffers that overflow with it ; Death takes away the man who is most wanted by his friends and people. Only Cupid is never guilty of such prodigal folly. So soon as a bridal tie is complete he avoids the pair and, leaving them entirely to Prajapati (Hymen), goes looking about for somebody else whose heart's blood he might drink. But perhaps the god of the flowery bow had no work at hand now, and so he accidentally wasted two flowery arrows here. One pierced Jivananda's heart, and an- other fell on Santi's and made her aware for the first time in her life that it was after all a woman's heart — a very soft thing. Like the flower-bud opened by the first rain drop from the young clouds, Santi suddenly burst to bloom and looked to Jivananda with smiling e)'es. " I will not disown you said Jivananda, " You have only to stay here till I come back." Santi asked, "Are you sure you will come back ?" Jivananda did not speak nor look any way, but under the shade of the cocoanut grove beside the road, he touched her lips with his and went away feeling that he had drunk the heavenly sweet. Jivananda excused himself to his mother and took leave of her. His sister Nimi was recently married to a person in Bhairabipur and some love had grown up between Jivananda and his brother-in-law. Jivananda took Santi to that place. The brother-in-law gave him a bit of land. They built a hut on the spot and lived