Sexual Life in Ancient India: A Study in the Comparative History of Indian Culture v1.c5.66

v1.c5.66

“ When the daughter heard the words of the overwhelmingly saddened parents, she spoke unto them, her body clasped in grief : ‘ Why do ye weep as bitterly as those beyond hope, tortured by a mighty sorrow? Listen unto my words and then do what is befitting. By all that is right, ye two shall give me up; of that there is no doubt. By giving me, who do consent, thou shalt save all through me, a single person. This is why offspring are wished for: ‘They shall save me.’ Since now the time for it has drawn nigh, cross, with me as the vessel, over the misfortune. Here and after death he must rescue from danger. In every way the son must sacrifice himself. That is why he is called son by the wise.¹ And the ancestors yearn ever for daughter’s sons from me. So will I myself save them by shielding my father’s life. But if thou goest into that world, then this my small brother will soon perish; of that there is no doubt. And if my father should have come into heaven, and my younger brother gone to destruction, then the gift of cakes for the ancestors would be cut short; and that would be a misfortune for them. Robbed thus of my father, and of my mother and brother, I should surely die, falling from one sorrow into a greater, for I am not used to such things as this. But if thou hast escaped, safe and sound, then assuredly my mother and brother, the child and the family line, and the offering to the forbears will be preserved and kept. The son is the very self, the wife a friend, but, as all know, the daughter is ever a misfortune (kṛcchra). . . But if I carry out the liberation, then my death will bear fruit, after I have carried through a very heavy task. But if thou goest thither, O best among Brahmans, and dost leave me behind, then shall I be in straits; therefore look, too, to me. Save thyself for our sake, and for the sake of religious duty, and for the sake of the offspring, and give up me, who am ready for it. And now let not the time go by for this most necessary deed. Indeed, what greater misfortune could there be than that we, after thy going home, should run round like dogs begging food from strangers? But if thou and our kinsfolk are set free from this calamity, sound and unhurt, then I shall live in happiness, as one that has not died in the world. As a result the gods will work well-being because of the sacrifices, and, as we have heard, so will the