OP THE HINDUS. - 45 



personages belonging to the sect of particular note, and we may, thereforej 

 here pause, to extract a few of the anecdotes which the Bhakta Mala relates 

 of those individuals, and which, if they do not afford much satisfactory infor- 

 mation regarding their objects, will at least furnish some notion of the cha- 

 racter of this popular work. 



PiPA, the Rajaput, is called the Raja of Gangaraon ; he was originally a 

 worshipper of DEvf, but abandoned her service for that of Vishnu, and 

 repaired to Benares to put himself under the tuition of Raman and. Having 

 disturbed the sage at an inconvenient season, Ramanand angrily wished that 

 he might fall into the well of his court yard, on which PIpa, in the fervour 

 of his obedience, attempted to cast himself into it to accomplish the desire 

 of the saint. This act was with difficulty prevented by the by-standers, and 

 the attempt so pleased Ramanand that he immediately admitted the Rdjd 

 amongst his disciples. 



Pfp/\, after some time abandoned his earthly possessions, and accom- 

 panied by only one of his wives, named Sita, as ardent a devotee as himself, 

 adopting a life of mendicity, accompanied Ramanand and his disciples to 

 D'wdralui. Here he plunged into the sea to visit the submarine shrine of 

 Krishna, and was affectionately received by that deity : after spending some 

 days with him, Pipa returned, when the fame of the occurrence spread, and 

 attracted great crowds to see him. Finding them incompatible with his 

 devotions, Pipa left DwdraM privately : on the road some Patans carried 

 off his wife, but Rama himself rescued her, and slew the ravishers. The 

 life of this vagrant Rdjd is narrated at considerable length in the Bhakta 

 Maid, and is made up of the most absurd and silly legends. On one oc- 

 casion the Raja encounters a furious lion in a forest j he hangs a rosary 

 round his neck, whispers the Mantra of Rama, and makes him tranquil in a 

 moment J he then lectures the lion on the impropriety of devouring men. 



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