THE RELIGION AND CUSTOMS OF THE TJRAONS. 129 



and stop work at night. God's horse Ansraj Pankraj is sick and cannot eat his corn." 

 The 12 brothers Asurs and 13 brothers Lodhas impudently answered, " Who is he that for- 

 bids us ? We won't receive any orders from anyone. We don't recognise any master. 

 Here we are kings and subjects {i.e., we are all equal). This is our own kingdom. 

 Though we work day and night, we eat only hot melted iron, and the effects of digestion are 

 disastrous to our clothes ; and still we have to receive orders." They got in a fury and 

 said, " Let us catch the fellow." They rushed upon him, caught him by the neck with 

 their pincers and flattened his head on the stone used by them as an anvil, whilst his 

 wings got reddened with iron dust. Though before that the Kerketa was white, from 

 that time his head is flat and his wings reddish and his cry is ket! ket! ket ! Having been 

 treated in this way, the Kerketa returned to his master and said to him, " God, I delivered 

 your message to the Asurs, and see how they have treated me ! They replied, ' Here we 

 are the masters. In this kingdom we are all kings and subjects ; we eat only hot melted 

 irons, &c. &c. ; go, we are not afraid of anyone.' See now how they have maltreated me ! 

 They have caught me by the neck with their pincers and flattened my head on their anvil." 

 After this God sent the king-crow and told him, " Go and try to persuade the 12 

 brothers Asurs and 13 brothers Lodhas to stop ; tell them that my horse Ansraj Pankraj 

 cannot eat his corn nor drink water." The king-crow went and said to them, " Brothers 

 Asurs and Lodhas, work during the day and stop during the night ! God's horse 

 Ansraj Pankraj is sick and cannot eat his grain." The 12 brothers Asurs and 

 13 brothers Lodhas got into a rage and gave him the same answer as to the Kerketa ; 

 caught him by the tail with their pincers and rolled him in black iron dust ; from that time, 

 the king-crow is black and his tail is divided into two parts. The king-crow returned 

 to his master and told him how he had been treated and what they had said. Then 

 God said, " I will go myself." He took the form of a man full of sores and put round his 

 loins strips of the bark of the Simul tree and came down upon earth. He went first to 

 the rich and said to them, " Oh, you that are rich will you not keep me in your house ? " 

 They answered, " Go, we won't keep you. What ! If you were to remain here, our 

 servants seeing your purilent sores would get disgusted and would not be able to digest 

 their food. He went thus to three different houses and got the same answer. At last he 

 went to the house of an old widow and said to her, " Mother, take pity on me and keep me 

 in your house." The old widow answered, " Come in, my son. You can stop in my miser- 

 able hut. I have nothing to eat. I get my daily food by working for others, but I will 

 keep you all the same." The old woman immediately washed him and anointed him with 

 oil. The next morning, she went as usual to work and got much more than usual, just as 

 much as she could carry ; and when she poured the grain out of her basket she found that 

 it had doubled. Then Bhagaban unhusked the paddy and for two measures of paddy got 

 two measures of rice. This went on for several days. Then the old woman began to sus- 

 pect him and said to him, " My son, do not steal the property of others. This will bring 

 trouble. I beg of you not to do that. I get my food by working every day : let us be 

 satisfied with that." Bhagwan full of sores answered, " Mother ! don't accuse me, I never 

 stole the property of others. I will prove it. Remain here to-day, take two measures of 

 paddy to husk and I will do the same." They did so, and he brought in twice the amount 



