Tara: A Mahratta Tale

by Meadows Taylor

  TARA: A MAHRATTA TALE.

  CHAPTER I.

  "Tara, O Tara! where art thou?"

  "Mother, I am here. Is it time?"

  "Yes; we should go with the offerings to the temple. Come, thy fatherhath long been gone, and it will be broad day ere we can reach it.Come," said her mother, entering a small open verandah which skirtedthe inner court of the house, where the girl sat reading by the lightof a lamp, now paling before the dawn which was fast spreading over thesky.

  She shut her book with a reverential gesture, laid it aside in itsquilted cover, and stood up. How beautiful she was! Let us describethis Brahmun girl to you, O reader! if we can, and tell you a littleconcerning her.

  There were many fair women of her sect in Tooljapoor, and they arealways the most remarkable of their country-women, but none so fair asTara, the daughter of Vyas Shastree.[1] From her earliest childhoodshe had given promise of grace and beauty, and since that period--fromthe time when, hanging shyly to the skirt of her mother's garment, shepassed daily through the crowded bazaar and street which led to theupper gate of the temple--to the present, she had ever been an objectof remark and admiration; while the rank and learning of her father,and his position as chief priest, had maintained for her a continuedand increasing interest as she grew up. None who had the privilege ofaddressing her ever omitted a loving greeting or respectful salutation:the public flower-sellers intrusted her with their choicest garlandsor nosegays to offer up at the shrine--the confectioners had ever adelicate sweetmeat with which to tempt the child--and even the rudestpeasant or soldier looked at her, as she passed him, in wonder,stretched out his hands to her, and kissed the tips of his fingers in aworshipful salutation and benediction.

  The promise of the child was more than fulfilled in the girl nowbudding into early womanhood; and her appearance was so remarkablethat, while many of her old friends in the bazaar now rarely venturedto accost her, and even turned aside their heads reverently as shepassed, she could not traverse the crowded street which led from herhouse to the temple, or, indeed, move anywhere during the day withoutattracting admiration from the crowds of strangers who, from allparts of India, visited that renowned shrine of which her father wasthe chief priest and manager. Many a pilgrim and worshipper gazedwonderingly upon the calm, gentle face which met him at the earliestdawn in its devotional perambulation round the temple, or followedwith his eye the graceful figure which, carrying the daily sacrificialofferings, descended the flights of steps by which the shrine wasapproached; and, far away in his native village, under the snows ofHimalaya, the burning sands of Rameshwur, or the green plains ofBengal, told of the beautiful vision, and never forgot it.

  Tara has been up since before the false dawn. She has assisted herfather with water to bathe, and in his private worship of the householdgods. She has bathed herself, and is now dressed in the simple saree,or robe of all Hindu females. It is of dark blue silk, striped witha fainter blue, and has a broad border of a light but rich patternharmonizing with the colours of the garment which, consisting of onelong piece only, is wound round her several times to form a skirt, thenpassed about her body and over her head on the left side, whence theend, which is of rich gold tissue interwoven with crimson flowers andgreen leaves, hangs heavily over her right shoulder and back. Below thegarment is a closely-fitting bodice of striped orange silk only; butno portion of it is visible except a little of the sleeve above theelbow. Tara is holding the border of her dress close to her cheek, asif to conceal it even from her mother; and the graceful outline of herarm may be followed, from the tips of the taper fingers past the wristpartly covered with purple bangles and a massive gold ring, along thesoft round arm to the dimpled elbow, whence it is lost among the foldsof the saree which falls over it.

  Do you expect that her complexion will be fair like that of our ownnorthern girls? Ah, no! that would not harmonize with the dress or thecountry; and yet it is very fair. Not a deep rich olive, but what seemsat a first glance pale and colourless; yet the skin is so glossy andtransparent that the warm glow of her blood is suffused under it withthe least passing emotion or excitement, which, as it fades, leaves, asyou think, a more beautiful tint behind.

  And the features harmonized with the colour. To a casual observer theirexpression was almost one of habitual sadness, yet it was not so inreality: there was calm, which as yet had known no rude ruffling--asweetness that was index to a simple, loving, trustful mind. True, shehad cares beyond those of ordinary household occurrences, and these hadno doubt increased the pensive expression always remarkable. So hercountenance was not easy to describe: nor could you account very wellfor the patient, care-enduring look which met you from one so young.What every one saw first, were the soft brown eyes, shaded with longeyelashes which rested upon the cheek. Ordinarily perhaps, or if seenwhen cast down, these eyes appeared nowise remarkable; yet if passingemotions were noticed, they closed when she was merry, till only abright spark of light remained glistening through the long lashes; andagain, if surprise, wonder, or admiration were excited, they suddenlyexpanded, so that one looked into a depth of clear glowing colour,violet and brown, the expression of which could not be fathomed. Buthabitually they were modest, pensive, and gentle--full of intelligence,and seemed to correspond with a low musical cadence of voice perfectlynatural, yet assisted, perhaps, by the habit of reading and studyingaloud, which she had learned from her father. In those calm eyes therewas as yet no passion of any kind. Some suffering, perhaps, but norough awakening to the reality of life.

  The rest of her face left nothing to be desired. The Brahmuns ofWestern India usually possess features more European in their characterthan those of the same sect in other parts of the country, and in thisrespect the women share them with the men, if they do not, indeed,exceed them. So Tara had a soft oval face, with small full lips andmouth, a thin straight nose with nostrils almost transparent, whichseemed to obey the passing emotions of her countenance. Though thefeatures were soft, they were neither insipid nor weak in character; onthe contrary, they appeared full of a woman's best strength--enduranceand patience; while, in the full glossy chin and throat, enough ofdetermination was expressed to show firmness and consistency of nocommon order. Except the eyes, perhaps, there was no feature of theface which could be called exactly beautiful, yet the whole combined tocreate an expression which was irresistibly interesting and charming;and where all harmonized, separate portions were not remarked.

  Every movement of her lithe form was displayed by the soft silk draperywhich fell over it in those graceful folds which we see expressed inancient statues, and it was cast in those full yet delicately roundedproportions which sculptors have best loved to imitate. Standing as shewas, the girl had fallen into an attitude which was most expressive:her head raised and turned to meet her mother's entrance: a delicatenaked foot, with a chain anklet of gold resting on it, put out frombeneath her robe: her eyes open, yet not to their full width: and herlips apart, disclosing the even glistening teeth:--she appeared, in herarrested movement, as if she waited some further communication from hermother, or had herself one to make before she stirred.

  No wonder that, as each morning she left the house with her mother topay her devotions at the temple, and passed along with downcast eyes,her graceful figure attracted increased attention day by day. Many agood wish followed her--many a benediction from the aged poor of thetown, to whom her charities were liberally dispensed; and it might be,too, that other admiration, less pure in its character, also restedupon her, and often, unknown to her, dogged her steps.

  The contrast between Tara and her mother was in most respects astriking one. No one could deny that Anunda Bye was a handsome woman;her neighbours and gossips told her so, and she quite believed it.She looked, too, very young of her age; and as she sailed down or upthe street leading to the temple, and received the humble salutationsof shopkeepers, flower-sellers, and all the tradesmen of that busyquarter, with an air which plainly showed how much she consideredit due to her rank and sta
tion--it would have been difficult to saywhether the timid girl following her, and screening her face from thegaze of the people as she moved along, was her daughter or youngestsister. Either she might be, and it seemed more probable the latter,than the former.

  Taller than her daughter as yet, Anunda Bye was not without much of thesame grace of figure; but it was cast on a bolder scale. The featureswere more decided and prominent, the colour several shades darker.The face, handsome as it was, had little of the softening elementof intellectuality in it; and Anunda was ignorant of everything buthousehold management, in which she excelled, in all departments, toa degree that made her the envy of her female acquaintance, and herhusband the envied of his male associates whose domestic affairs werenot conducted with the same regularity, and whose cookery was not sogood.

  Enter the Shastree's house at any time, and you were at once struckwith its great neatness. The floor was always plastered with liquidclay by the women-servants when he was absent at the temple formorning worship, and retained a cool freshness while it dried, and,indeed, during the day. It was generally decorated by pretty designsin white and red chalk powder dropped between the finger and thumb,in the execution of which both mother and daughter were very expertand accomplished. The Shastree's seat, which was, in fact, a smallraised dais at one side of the large room, was usually decked withflowers, while upon the floor before it, the greatest artistic skillwas expended in ornament by Tara and her mother. Above it werepictures of favourite divinities, painted in distemper colour: theamorous blue-throated Krishna playing to the damsels of Muttra; thesolemn four-armed Ganesha, sitting with a grave elephant's head onhis shoulders; the beautiful Lakshmee and Suruswuti, the goddessesof wealth and learning, the objects of household adoration: and theterrible six-armed Bhowani in her contest with the demon Maheshwur,in commemoration of which the temple had been erected--all surroundedby wreaths of flowers interwoven with delicate border patterns;--hadbeen partly executed by the Shastree himself, and partly by Tara, whofollowed his tastes and accomplishments after a pretty fashion. Thusdecorated, the dais had a cheerful effect in the room: and choice andintimate friends only were admitted to the privilege of sitting upon it.

  The house itself was perhaps in no degree remarkable. Outside, facingthe street, was a high wall, with a large door within a projectingporch or archway, which had a seat on either hand as you entered. Thedoor-frame was richly carved, and on each side a horse's head projectedfrom the upper corner. Above the door, in a space left for the purpose,was written in red Sanscrit letters, "Sree Martund Prussunn," "The holyMartund protects;" and Martund was one of the appellations of Siva.This legend was surrounded by wreaths of flowers in the same colour;and across the whole was a garland of mango leaves now withered, whichhad hung there since the last festival.

  As you entered the court, the principal room was before you, on thebasement of the house, which you ascended by three steps. It was a wideopen verandah, extending the width of the court, supported upon sevenwooden pillars, also richly carved, on which crossed square capitalswere fixed, and from these, beams were laid to form the roof. Thisverandah was double; the inner portion being raised a step above theother to form a dais, and at each end of the inner portion were twosmall rooms in the corners, one of which was the Shastree's library.The whole of these verandahs could be shut in closely by heavy curtainsof quilted cotton, neatly ornamented by devices of birds and flowers,which hung between the pillars; but usually all was open, or closedonly by transparent blinds of split cane suspended outside.

  Having a northern aspect, this room was always cool, and was theordinary resort of the Shastree. Here he received his friends andneighbours, held disputations, and instructed his pupils. The womenseldom entered it except in the evenings when undisturbed; for, thoughunsecluded from men, a certain degree of reserve and retirement isalways observable in the women of Hindu families. There was no ornamentabout the main apartment except the Shastree's dais, and the borderspainted about the niches and architraves of the doors; but it was kepta pure white, and was scrupulously clean.

  In the centre of the back wall of the inner verandah was a door whichopened into a second court, round which was a verandah also open, and,leading from it on three sides, sleeping chambers and a bath-room. Inthis verandah there was nothing but a few spinning-wheels and theirlow stools; for Anunda Bye had no idea of allowing women-servants tobe idle, and when they were not working otherwise, they were spinningcotton yarn for their own clothes. Anunda herself had her wheel, andTara hers, and sometimes they spun yarn fine enough for the Shastree'swaist-cloths.

  On the fourth side of the court was the kitchen, and, passing by it, adoor led into a third court, more private, though not so large as thesecond. In the centre of it was an altar painted in distemper, on whichgrew a bush of toolsee or sweet basil, grateful to the gods; and in theverandah, another altar, similar in form, on which burned the sacredfire never extinguished. Close to it was the door of the private templeof the house, which contained the household gods of the family. Here itwas that Tara best loved to sit when her share of domestic affairs wascompleted. Here she tended the sacred fire, and offered worship, suchas a woman could perform, in the temple. She had a small garden in onecorner of the court, which contained a few jessamine bushes, marigolds,and other common flowers, which she cultivated for offerings to thehousehold gods in the daily worship. Here she could study undisturbed,and did so with all her heart--here, too, it was that her mother foundher.

  There was no decoration about the house, except, as we have alreadymentioned, border patterns and quaintly designed birds and flowers uponthe walls. Furniture, such as we need, was unknown. A small cotton orwoollen carpet laid down here and there, with a heavy cotton pillowcovered with white calico, sufficed for sitting or reclining; and asthe goddess Bhowani, in her incarnation at Tooljapoor, does not choose,as is believed, that any one in the town should lie upon a bed exceptherself, a cotton mattress on the floor, or a cool mat, sufficed forsleeping.

  The house, therefore, would have appeared bare in any of my readers'eyes; but it was neat and pleasant to look at: and one can imagine,though decorated in a higher style of art, the Roman houses at Pompeiito have been similar in most respects of plan and domestic arrangement.

  There was no evidence of wealth, yet the Shastree was a prosperousman; and could you have seen Anunda Bye's stores of copper andbrass utensils--large vessels for boiling vast quantities of rice onfestivals and household ceremonies--her brass lamps and candelabra,her silver plates for eating from, and silver drinking vessels;--couldyou have seen the contents of her private room, in which were sundrylarge chests, full of sarees, or women's garments, of great value;some heir-looms, woven with gold and silver thread, each having itspeculiar history; the shawls which belonged to her husband, the giftsof princes and nobles, tributes to his learning, of which she was veryproud;--could you have seen, too, the strong box that lay hidden amongthe clothes in the largest chest, full of family jewels and ornaments,among which were two necklaces of fine pearls, massive gold ornamentsfor ankles and wrists, for neck and ears;--could you have seen allthese, and the heavy gold cinctures round Anunda's and Tara's trimwaists, and their massive gold bracelets and anklets,--you would havebeen envious, my dear reader, of considerable wealth in this particular.

  Otherwise, indeed, the Shastree was a man of substance. Being an onlyson, with no other sharers, at his father's death, he had inheriteda considerable property. He had himself earned, by his scholarlyabilities, a small estate in a neighbouring province, the rent of whichwas punctually paid, and was improving, for he was a good landlord.He derived a handsome income from the temple service, and from theofferings made to him as head of the establishment. He farmed someland, too, near the town, on the bank of the small river Boree, andhad an excellent garden near the village of Sindphul, in the plainbelow the hills, the daily supply of vegetables from which was veryprofitable from the large and constant consumption in the town.Finally, as one of the most learned Sanscr
it scholars of the Dekhan,his instruction was held in deserved repute, and his classes wereattended by young Brahmuns from all parts of the country, from whom hereceived fees according to their means.

  FOOTNOTE:

  [1] For explanation of Oriental words, see Glossary.