Children -- India; India -- Social life and customs
When the verse was finished a Hindu asked him:--
“Little fellow, where did you learn that song?”
“Over at the school.”
“Who is Jesus, and what is the Bible?”
“Oh, the Bible is the book sent from God, they say, to teach us how to
get to heaven; and Jesus is the name of the divine Redeemer that came
into the world to save us from sins: that is what the missionaries say.”
“Well, the song is a nice one anyhow; come sing us some more.”
But it is not only when words are spoken or sung that the traces of the
King are seen in India. One of the most important things that happens
there is the digging of a well, and here are some boys who are talking
excitedly about a new well in their village. Let us hear what they are
saying:--
“Yes, truly they got water--beautiful clear water, and it rushed in so
fast that the men who dug had to flee for their lives.”
“And yet they did not have a Brahman to bless it?”
“No, I have told you they follow Christ. They do not obey the Brahmans.”
“Tell us what they did.”
“It was the time of heat! The river was dried up, and the new buildings
of the Christians were almost finished. But as it was not fitting that
this new religion should find shelter in our village, our priests had
tried to prevent them from getting land. They did not succeed in that,
but they forbade the Christian people to drink from the wells of the
village, and behold the river was dry. The face of Raghu, the leader of
the Christian folk, was sad, for what can man do without water? But he
went away to consult the foreign teacher. When he returned, he was no
longer sad, and it began to be said in the village that the Christians
would dig a well within their own ground. Many heads were shaken, for
no one thought that water could be found there. When the Christians
began to dig everyone was still more amazed, for they did not dig at
the lower end where water might soon be reached, if it were to be found
anywhere, but high up, close to the dwellings of the low caste men. It
was at the edge of their ground, and we all gathered to watch; each man
had some taunt to fling at the foreigners, for they did not do anything
to appease the gods; they did not consult with the wise men, nor call
the priests to bless the well; they made no offerings at the temple,
nor did they feast the Brahmans; and everyone was certain that no water
would be found. It is true they did pray to their own God, but everyone
was sure He had not given them good guidance, for a child may know that
a well should not be dug near the dwellings of outcasts. But in answer
to all the Christians said only, ‘We will surely get water.’ And they
believed this, for they worked on day after day through the great heat
until the well was so deep that they had to dig through rock--soft
rock it was, it is true, but still hard enough to break the points
of pickaxes. Weeks went on, and we ceased to watch the well of the
foreigners, or to taunt them. It was an old story in the village, but
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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