JULY 5, 1872.]
MISCELLANEA, &c.
plated building a costly temple in honour of his tutelary deity, but one serious impediment lay in his way: he had not the means of carrying his pious intention into effect. The gods, however, ever ready to encourage piety of such a description, came to his help, and while he was racking his brains as to where, and how, he could raise the wind, a voice was heard to tell him that in the vicinity of the Lingam, towards the north there were three hoof-prints. If he dug up the ground in these three places, he would find what he required. He obeyed the divine injunction, and to his joy, he found in one place bricks, in another lime and mortar, and in the third gold. With those he built the temple now the centre of attraction at Trivyar. The legend given us of the origin of the Sabathas tanam we shall briefly relate. Once upon a time there lived a Brahman named Tirus'uli.
When he
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In representations of Siva, Tirunanthi is generally included, as upon him the deity is supposed to ride on great occasions. Tirunanthi was espoused to the sister of Wasittan the Rishi.
The Pancha mathi, or
five sacred rivers, took their origin at the coronation of Tirunanthi as chief of the goblins. On his head were poured (1) water from the sacred vessel in the
hand of Siva, (2) the waters of the Ganges sup posed to flow from Siva's head, (3) the froth from the mouth of a cow, and (4) nectar from the moon. These four flowed from his head into the sacred
tank, where they were speedily joined by a fifth stream, thus forming the Pancha mathi.
Where
this fifth stream came from must be explained. Near the side of the present town of Shiali, Indra, in days of yore, had a forest of choice trees.
From want of rain and excessive heat the
forest suffered exceedingly. Indra was afflicted with much sorrow, and, though a god, was power
was a child of a few years old, he happened to be
less to call down the elements to his aid.
playing in a forest when a Rishi came round beg ging. Tirusuli in a playful mood and ignorant of
distress Närada came to him, and said that, on Mount Pothyam, Agastiar the Rishi had the waters of the Ganges in a sacred vessel, and if he applied to Pillyar, this god would send the water down to re fresh the forest. Indran besought Pillyar, and the latter deity, assuming the form of a cow, and, ascend ing to the summit of Mount Pothyam, capsized the vessel, and the water flowing down from thence
the mendicant's great rank and sanctity, threw a stone into his vessel in lieu of money. The Rishi
said nothing, but enduring the insult with wonder ful meekness and humility departed. Tirusuli, when he attained to manhood, forgot this simple occur rence of his childish days, and in course of time en tered, like other men, into the business of the world and a married life. For years, however, he was childless ; and becoming apprehensive at what he could not but regard as an indication of the divine
In his
mixed first with the four rivers in the sacred tank at Trivyar, and then became the majestic river now called the Kāveri.
After his coronation Tirunanthi
and bodily mortification. One night, in a dream, the form of the insulted Rishi appeared to him, and
was, according to the prevalent custom, carried in procession to seven sacred places. The seven Rishis are said to have been doing penance, as the god, in procession, visited them severally. Very large do nations, we are told, were given towards the expenses of this annual festival by a king named Surada
something within him rebuked him for what he had
Maharaja of the Solar race, who lived many years
done when he was a child, and told him that in his present misfortunes he was reaping the fruits of his wicked behaviour towards the saintly mendicant.
ago.— Madras Mail.
displeasure, he devoted his wholetime to the exercise of religion, and the performance of severe penance
When Tirusuli awoke he was an altered man.
The
Jackdaw of Rheims did not exhibit greater signs of contrition than the repentant Brahman. His course of life was changed, his daily habits were of the most austere character, and, to punish himself for the wicked stone he had cast into the Rishi's vessel, his
diet was changed, and he lived upon stones | Hence his name was altered also from Tirusuli to Silatharan, or the stone-eater. It was to be expected, of course,
To the Editor of the ‘Indian Antiquary.' SIR,--IN reply to Babu Rajendralal I must point
out that he has given no authority for taking ghatá to mean three : or if it did so, for taking the
expression three eights to represent 888, and not 8 + 8 + 8 or even 8 × 8 x 8. He says he thinks his interpretation is ‘not forced ;' but is the word gh at à, which is very indefinite, ever used to signify figures in this way ? If the writer meant
that such acts of virtue would meet with due
to express three, could he not have used one of the
reward ; and so one day the god appeared to him, and told him that, in a certain place indicated he would find a chest underground, in which was the child he had so long and so anxiously desired. This child, in whose honor the festival at Trivyar is now observed, was no other than Tirunanthi.
many symbolical expressions for it, instead of a word which simply means ‘a collection'? And according to the usual way of expressing numbers in this symbolic way, and to the rule ‘Ankånäm vämato gatih,' if g h at à meant three, would not the expression kun jar a-gh at à mean 382 And
The child who had the head of a cow on a human
what is the necessity of restricting the ‘collection'
body, the father dedicated to Siva, and the god appointed the monster as captain of his guard of
to three. It may mean any number, even 9, in which case, though a row of nine nines, according to Babu Rajendralal's way of taking it, may not
goblins.
