Ancient Indian Education (Brahmanical and Buddhist) c9.88

c9.88

" 'When this world had emerged from the darkness,' says the *Bhāgavata Purāṇam*, 'the subtle elementary principle produced the vegetable seed which first of all gave life to the plants. From the plants, life passed into the fantastic creatures which were born of the slime in the waters; then, through a series of different shapes and animals, it came to Man.' 'They passed in succession by way of the plants, the worms, the insects, the serpents, the tortoises, cattle, and the wild animals—such is the lower stage,' says Manu again, who adds: 'Creatures acquired the qualities of those that preceded them, so that the farther down its position in the series, the greater its qualities' [i, 20].