Page 465 - Lokmanya Tilak Samagra (khand 2)

246 SAMAGRA TILAK - 2 • THE ARCTIC HOME
beautiful spouse ofPurumitra (I, 117, 20 ). They restored Vi~h~pti ,
like a lost animal, to the sight of their worshipper Vishvaka, son
ofKri~hna (I, 116, 23; X, 65, 12 ). But the story most often referred
to is that of the rescue of Bhujyu, son of Tugra, who was abandoned
in the midst of ocean ( samudre ), or in the water-clouds ( udameghe ),
and who, tossed about in darkness, invoked the aid of the youthful
~eroes. Jn the ocean which is without support ( anaramb~ )
tpey to()k him home in a hundred-oared ( shataritram ) ship (I,
116, 5 ). They rescued him with animated water-tight ships, which
traversed the air ( antarik~ha ) with four ships, with an animated
winged boat with three flying cars having a hundred feet and six
horses. In one passage Bhujyu is described as clinging to a log in
the midst of water ( an;aso madhye I, 182, 7 ). The sage Rebha
stabbed, bound, hidden by the malignant, overwhelmed in waters
for ten nights and nine days, abandoned as dead, was by the Ashvins
revived and drawn out as Soma juice is raised with a ladle ( I, 116,
24; I, 112, 5. ). They delivered Vandana from his calamity and
restored him to the light of the sun. In I, 117, 5, they are also said
to have dug up for Vandana some bright buried gold of new
splendour ' like one asleep in the lap of Nir-riti ' or like ' the sun
dwelling in darkness. ' They succoured the sage Atri Sapta-Vadhri,
who was plunged in a burning pit by the wiles of a demon, and
delivered him from darkness ( I, 116, 8; VI, 50, I 0 ). They rescued
from the jaws of a wolf a quail ( vartika ) who invoked their aid
(I, 112, 8 ). To ~ijrashav, who had been blinded by his cruel father
for killing one hundred and one sheep and giving them to a she-
wolf to devour, they restored his eyesight at the prayer of she
wolf ( I, 116, 16; 117, 17 ) ; and cured Pan1vrij of blindness and
lameness ( I, 112, 8 ). When Vishpala's leg had been cut off in the
battle like the wing of a bird, the Ashvins gave her an iron one
instead (I, 116, 15 ). They befriended Gho~ha. when she was grow-
ing old in her father's house by giving her a husband ( I, 117, 7;
X, 39, 3 ). To the wife of a eunuch ( Vadhrimati) they gave a son
called Hirattya-hasta ( I, 116, 13; VI, 62, 7 ). The cow of Shayu
which had left off bearing they caused to give milk (I, 116, 22 );
and to Pedu they gave a strong swift dragon-slaying steed impelled
by Indra which won him unbounded spoils (I, 116, 6 )."
Besides these there are many other exploits mentioned in I,
112, 116-119; and the Ashvins are described as having saved, help-
ed, or cured a number of other persons. But the above summary