CHAPTER XLIII

 Over the relic¹ of Lord Buddha² King Bimbisār built a shrine³, a salutation in white marble.

 

There in the evening would come all the brides and daughters of the King’s house to offer flowers and light lamps.

 

When the son became king in his time he washed his father’s creed⁴ away with blood, and lit sacrificial fires with its sacred books.

 

The autumn day was dying.

 

The evening hour of worship was near.

 

Shrimati, the queen’s maid, devoted⁵ to Lord Buddha, having bathed in holy water, and decked the golden tray with lamps and fresh white blossoms, silently raised her dark eyes to the queen’s face.

 

The queen shuddered⁶ in fear and said, “Do you not know, foolish girl, that death is the penalty for whoever brings worship to Buddha’s shrine?

 

“Such is the king’s will.”

 

Shrimati bowed to the queen, and turning away from her door came and stood before Amitā, the newly wed⁷ bride of the king’s son.

 

A mirror of burnished⁸ gold on her lap, the newly wed bride was braiding her dark long tresses and painting the red spot of good luck at the parting of her hair.

 

Her hands trembled when she saw the young maid, and she cried, “What fearful peril⁹ would you bring me! Leave me this instant.”

 

Princess Shuklā sat at the window reading her book of romance by the light of the setting sun.

 

She started when she saw at her door the maid with the sacred offerings.

 

Her book fell down from her lap, and she whispered in Shrimati’s ears, “Rush not to death, daring woman!”

 

Shrimati walked from door to door.

 

She raised her head and cried, “O women of the king’s house, hasten!

 

“The time for our Lord’s worship is come!”

 

Some shut their doors in her face and some reviled¹⁰ her.

 

The last gleam of daylight faded from the bronze dome¹¹ of the palace tower.

 

Deep shadows settled in street corners: the bustle¹² of the city was hushed: the gong at the temple of Shiva announced the time of the evening prayer.

 

In the dark of the autumn evening, deep as a limpid¹³ lake, stars throbbed¹⁴ with light, when the guards of the palace garden were startled to see through the trees a row of lamps burning at the shrine of Buddha.

 

They ran with their swords unsheathed, crying, “Who are you, foolish one, reckless of death?”

 

“I am Shrimati,” replied a sweet voice, “the servant of Lord Buddha.”

 

The next moment her heart’s blood coloured the cold marble with its red.

 

And in the still hour of stars died the light of the last lamp of worship at the foot of the shrine.

1 relic   

n.神圣的遗物，遗迹，纪念物

参考例句：

• This stone axe is a relic of ancient times.这石斧是古代的遗物。
• He found himself thinking of the man as a relic from the past.他把这个男人看成是过去时代的人物。

2 Buddha   

n.佛；佛像；佛陀

参考例句：

• Several women knelt down before the statue of Buddha and prayed.几个妇女跪在佛像前祈祷。
• He has kept the figure of Buddha for luck.为了图吉利他一直保存着这尊佛像。

3 shrine   

n.圣地，神龛，庙；v.将...置于神龛内，把...奉为神圣

参考例句：

• The shrine was an object of pilgrimage.这处圣地是人们朝圣的目的地。
• They bowed down before the shrine.他们在神龛前鞠躬示敬。

4 creed   

n.信条；信念，纲领

参考例句：

• They offended against every article of his creed.他们触犯了他的每一条戒律。
• Our creed has always been that business is business.我们的信条一直是公私分明。

5 devoted   

adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的

参考例句：

• He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。

6 shuddered   

v.战栗( shudder的过去式和过去分词 )；发抖；（机器、车辆等）突然震动；颤动

参考例句：

• He slammed on the brakes and the car shuddered to a halt. 他猛踩刹车，车颤抖着停住了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I shuddered at the sight of the dead body. 我一看见那尸体就战栗。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 wed   

v.娶，嫁，与…结婚

参考例句：

• The couple eventually wed after three year engagement.这对夫妇在订婚三年后终于结婚了。
• The prince was very determined to wed one of the king's daughters.王子下定决心要娶国王的其中一位女儿。

8 burnished   

adj.抛光的，光亮的v.擦亮（金属等），磨光( burnish的过去式和过去分词 )；被擦亮，磨光

参考例句：

• The floor was spotless; the grate and fire-irons were burnished bright. 地板上没有污迹；炉栅和火炉用具擦得发亮。 来自辞典例句
• The woods today are burnished bronze. 今天的树林是一片发亮的青铜色。 来自辞典例句

9 peril   

n.(严重的)危险；危险的事物

参考例句：

• The refugees were in peril of death from hunger.难民有饿死的危险。
• The embankment is in great peril.河堤岌岌可危。

10 reviled   

v.辱骂，痛斥( revile的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The tramp reviled the man who drove him off. 流浪汉辱骂那位赶他走开的人。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• The old man reviled against corruption. 那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 dome   

n.圆屋顶，拱顶

参考例句：

• The dome was supported by white marble columns.圆顶由白色大理石柱支撑着。
• They formed the dome with the tree's branches.他们用树枝搭成圆屋顶。

12 bustle   

v.喧扰地忙乱，匆忙，奔忙；n.忙碌；喧闹

参考例句：

• The bustle and din gradually faded to silence as night advanced.随着夜越来越深，喧闹声逐渐沉寂。
• There is a lot of hustle and bustle in the railway station.火车站里非常拥挤。

13 limpid   

adj.清澈的，透明的

参考例句：

• He has a pair of limpid blue eyes.他有一双清澈的蓝眼睛。
• The sky was a limpid blue,as if swept clean of everything.碧空如洗。

14 throbbed   

抽痛( throb的过去式和过去分词 )； （心脏、脉搏等）跳动

参考例句：

• His head throbbed painfully. 他的头一抽一跳地痛。
• The pulse throbbed steadily. 脉搏跳得平稳。