464 
fhe was a Polytheift, and worfhipped the 
Gop SuPPIRAMANIEN, who is confider- 
ed by the Hindoos to be the protector of 
learning and fcience, as Mercury was 
among the Greeks. Some pretend the 
was a goddefs, one of Brima’s wives, and 
had been guilty of a trefpafs, for which 
fhe had been driven from heaven to earth, 
wheré fhe was condemned to remain till 
fhe had performed atonement for her fin, 
by fevere and long repentance. On earth, 
fhe compofed her moral writings, for the 
benefit of mankind, and particularly for 
youth. On account of her divine origin, 
flie is greatly refpected. Others take her 
to be one of the feven wife or moral philo- 
fophers, in whom the Tamuls glory as well 
as the ancient Greeks. All thefe feven 
wife perfons belonged to the fame family, 
were of the fame parents, but were edu- 
cated by different charitable guardians. 
One in the royal palace, by a king; the 
other in a hut of a bafket-maker; another 
by a Bramin; another even by an out- 
caft; at length they all turned out fages. 
Their father was Perali, and their grand- 
father Vedamoli, both great faints and 
philofophers. The latter faw once in the 
night a bright ftar falling down, in a 
village inhabited by outeafts, upon a 
houfe in which a girl was juft born. By 
his prophetic power, he difcovered that 
this girl would be one day married to his 
fon, Perali, who was then twelve years of 
age, which made him very uneafy. 
He communicated his forrow to his fel- 
low Bramins: they were ftruck with ter- 
ror, and they deliberated:as to the difpofal 
of the infaut. The father of it was called, 
and was afked which ought to fuffer, his 
child, or the revered caft of the Bramins ? 
The poor man anfwered very fubmiffively, 
«< J deliver up my child to you ; do with 
her what you think proper.” It was at 
length determined to put it ina box, and, 
floating it on the river Kaveri, to leave it 
to the deftiny of the Deity. During this 
tranfastion, the old prophet ordered his 
fon to-go and. look at the child before it 
was committed to the water, and fee if 
he could difcover any diftinguifhing mark 
on her body: this he did; the matter was 
now dropt, and the old man died foon 
after. 
When the poor little naiad was thus 
floating to a remote country, 2 Bramin 
was one morning at the river, wafhing 
and performing his ufual devotions and 
ceremonies ; he faw the box coming on, 
and inftead of finding a treafure, as he 
had anticipated, he difcovered in ita new- 
born fmiling girl. Having no children, 
Proceedings of Learned Societies. 
[June 4 
though he had often prayed to obtain that 
blefliug, he imagined his deity had heard 
his prayers, and favoured him with this 
child. He put her to nurfe, and provided 
for her education as his own daughter. 
Meanwhile, young Perali having been 
well intruéted in philofophy, began, after 
the example of his father, to trayel as a 
Njani to vilit holy places, and to converfe 
with faints and philofophers for his im- 
provement. 
Qn thefe travels, he came accidentally 
to the houfe of the Bramin, who had 
adopted the girl, and ina few years mar- 
ried her. Not Jong after, he -difcovered 
the mark by which he knew fhe was the 
fame perfon that had formerly been aban- 
doned to the waves. Diftragted at his fitu- 
ation, he refolved to leave her. She wan- 
dered about in fearch of him, weeping and 
deploring her lofs. At length the was 
taken under the protection of a Bramin, as 
a companion to his own daughters. After 
fhe had lived in this fituation feveral years, 
the good man died, and left her part of 
his fortune, with which fhe built a /bel- 
trum, where fhe paffed her days religioully, 
affording acconimodations to travellers 
who might pafs that way. To thele the 
ufed to relate the events of her own life, 
requefting them at the fame tithe to give 
fome account of their hiftory. In a tew 
years her hufband came, and was enter- 
tained by her asa pilgrim. They knew 
not each other, till fhe related to him her 
hiftory. He then took her as bis wife, up- 
on her engaging to do every thing he fhou'd 
command. She had by him feven chil- 
dren, who became the philofophers before 
mentioned. This was, indeed, no great 
wonder, as they were born with the gifts 
of fpeech and of wifdom. She was order- 
ed by her hufband to expofe the children 
in the woods, in the open air, leaving 
them to Providence, to which fhe yielded 
implicit obedience, though not without 
the greateft reluftance and ioward grief. 
The children, however, each though but 
a few days old, are faid to have fpoken to 
her, and given. reafons why the fhould be 
refigned to her fate. They were found 
and educated by perfons of different ranks. 
It was Avyar’s fate to be educated by a 
poet; the time in which fhe lived was 
about the ninth century of the Chriftian 
era. ‘ ' 
Among other fciences, fhe was well ac- 
quainted with chemiftry, and became an 
adept, poflefing the power of making 
gold, and a celebrated medicine which 
preferves life toa great age, and by the 
virtue of which fhe lived 240 yeal's. : 7 
uc 
