The Yâtrâs; or, the Popular Dramas of Bengal

Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: were perhaps given to their possessors to express some of the physical and moral qualities which characterised the individuals. When Krishna was at Vrindavan, or, as it is more usually called in the Ydfrds, Gokula, it was these Sakhis who arranged their mutual meetings in groves and forests, who contrived...
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Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: were perhaps given to their possessors to express some of the physical and moral qualities which characterised the individuals. When Krishna was at Vrindavan, or, as it is more usually called in the Ydfrds, Gokula, it was these Sakhis who arranged their mutual meetings in groves and forests, who contrived all kinds of ingenious arts to divert the happy hours, and by dancing around them diverse graceful ballets, enhanced their hours of joy; and when Krishna had gone off to Hathura to release his parents, Vasudeva and Devaki, and kill Kansa, it was also these SakMs who share Hadha's agonies, offer her all consolations that are in their power, and when the poor abandoned Radha faints try to revive her by the refreshing waters of the Jamuna, by the fanning of the nalini-patra (lotus-leaves), by balsamiug her decayed but symmetrical forms with Candana (sandal-wood), but above all, by repeating all ensemble the sweet name of Krishna, saying that he was at last come, into her ears as loud as they can, the name of Krishna, which must of course resuscitate her Besides these nine Sakhis, there are two other female figures who appear on the scene; they are called Vrinda and Candravali. They are more than mere friends; they are her rivals in love. They both love and are loved by Krishna, especially Ccmdra, whose graces and accomplishments seem sometimes to rival those of RadJha. There is, however, this characteristic feature about their love, that they always gladly accord the superiority of Radha; and when once Radha, after long and constant faintings, was supposed to be dead, both Candra and Vrinda came to join their tears and lamentations with the other nine SakMs, both of them repeatedly attesting how incomparable were the graces of their dead rival, and above all. how matchless...