Reflections of Indian Society in Pitamahpur and the Benediction of the Gems And on her lover’s arm she leant, And round her waist she felt it fold, And far across the hills they went, In that new world which is the old.⁴¹⁹ I sat beside a sage’s bed, And the lamp was burning red Near the book where he had fed; When a Dream with plumes of flame To his pillow hovering came, And I knew it was the same Which had kindled long ago Pity, eloquence, and woe; And the world a while below Wore the shade its lustre made. It has borne me here as fleet As Desire’s lighting feet: I must ride it back ere morrow, Or the sage will wake in sorrow.⁴²⁰

‘B eloved Chandra, what is this?’ ‘These are the walls of Pitamahpur.’ ‘How long has it been that we have been as one?’ ‘The time that it takes to move from wakefulness to dream; some call it a moment, others aeons!’ ‘Today, I stand close to you, touching your body, and yet I feel peace and tranquility. Yesterday, even when I touched your feet I felt lust. Why is this?’ ‘Those flames of lust originated in your physical body. Today our subtle bodies are united; they breathe in the pure air of Siddhalok.’ ‘Have you any experience of flaming lust?’ ‘Ask that question of your mangalsutra. Our flaming desires and our strivings to control it are known to us. The thread through which Saubhagya Devi united us would allow you to perceive the history of our desires. Do you see it?’ ‘Yes.’ ‘And you can see the outcome of that churning in your mangalsutra.’ ‘Yes.’ Suddenly, they heard the loud barking of dogs coming towards them from the city gates. About fifty large dogs, snarling, barking and pawing the ground with their feet, came and encircled them. The largest of the dogs came forward and spoke to Sarasvatichandra in human tongue, ‘Oh human being, who are you and why are you here?’ Sarasvatichandra: ‘The immortals have guided our path. We are their children. Who are you and what powers do you enjoy here?’ Dog: ‘When the Pandavas began their journey to heaven, our ancestor entered the heavens as a companion of Dharmaraj Yudhishthir. Since then we guard many city gates in Siddhalok. Since the time of Dharmaraj, we protect this land from immoral, unjust and irreligious persons.’ Sarasvatichandra: ‘How do you protect Siddhalok?’ Dog: ‘The immortals enter this city on their own spiritual attainments. But sometimes human beings such as you also come up here. As human beings approach this land we can smell their presence. We can discern their qualities by their smell. If they are Satvik we allow them to enter the city unharmed; if they are Rajasik we inflict minimal bites on them and allow them to enter the city. If they are Tamasik we eat them up and throw their bones on this heap. This is our food; this is