THE OLD BOTTLE
151
a thousand -headed
hydra , for ever battling with
him
on
the
field of the world , fearing
her awful
powers
and
dim mysteries , reversed facts which were so un
palatable to him , and drinking deep of the cup of joy
during
those
short moments when it was proffered to
his lips , dimly or vividly saw through
the intoxicating
fumes cloudy realms of perpetual libation , of hope , and
of glorious expectations .
Heaven and then Hell .
The
former
first ,
for
man
is
essentially
selfish ;
having
found
a fat billet for himself , it was not long before
he found a lean
one for his neighbour :
To divide my devotees
From those who scorned me to the close :
A worm , a fire, a thirst for these ;
A harp - resounding heaven
for those !?
The
primary
object of existence is to keep alive ,
and
all
heavens
,
hells
,
paradises
,
gehennas
,
valhallas
,
nirvanas
,
and other abodes
of
the
dead
,
have never
for long exercised
such
a
superabundance
of
power
as
to
crush and extinguish
the flaming
desire for ex
istence
.
The
fools having
devised God with jam
for
the good
in
heaven
,
were not long
in
devising
Satan
with
a
pickled
birch for
the
naughty
in
hell
.
Those
who were not fools
and who found
their bread un
palatably dry
,
found that butter could
be
supplied free
of
cost
by
literally doing
nothing
.
Any
one familiar
with
a
native city
in
India
is
aware
of
the vast hordes
of
indolent fakirs who
practically
do
nothing
except
stand still
and gaze
vacantly
into
the clouds utter
ing
,
“
Rama
,
”
“
Hanuman
,
”
and
before
they
drop
their eyes their bowls are full
of
atta and dhal
.
Hence
priests and kings
,
those truly greedy anthropophagi
:
Songs
of
the Spirit
,
vol
.
i,
p
.
43
.