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THE ORIENTAL ANNUAL. 
man would condescend to consecrate his dominions, 
at least, by a temporary residence in his capital ; but 
Shri Gooroo remained inexorable, and declared that 
nothing would tempt him to exist in such a world 
of sin and misery. He then inquired, with great 
anxiety, if the Goddess Gunga (the Ganges) still 
dwelt upon earth ; and, being assured that she did, 
he demanded to be shown some of the water of the 
sacred stream. When it was brought to him, he 
beheld it with the most ineffable contempt, and cried, 
“ O thou false and deceitful Raja ! callest thou this 
water from holy Gunga? Yet, why should it not 
be, after all ; for undoubtedly all things are now 
deteriorated. Behold, said he, what the goddess 
was, in the days of the Trita Youg.” Hereupon, he 
showed them some of the milk which remained in 
his bowl. 
The veneration of the Raja was greatly increased, 
on hearing the wonderful words of th efakhir; and, 
falling at his feet, he cried, a 0 most illustrious of 
mortals, how miserable am I, that I should be thus 
deprived of the holy counsels and society of so sacred 
a being, the contemporary of the divine Ram, and 
of the blessed sages, at the very moment when I had 
thought my good fortune to be in the ascendant ! If 
however, you must, indeed, depart, condescend to 
receive from me some token of my devotion ; of this 
small merit you must not deprive me. Gopa Shahir 
here joined in the intreaties of the Raja; reminding 
