Evening Republican, Volume 22, Number 172, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 23 July 1919 — BEYOND ALL OTHER DEBTS [ARTICLE]

BEYOND ALL OTHER DEBTS

Leaning Turret* of Benares Recall to Men Their Deep Obligation to Their Mothers. You can repay all services, all kindnesses, either by money, or service, or love, or devotion, but a mother’s debt you can never repay. Bhupendranath Basu writes in the Journal of the Roynl Society of Arts. Those of you who have heen to India and visited Benares must have noticed the leaning turrets on the banks of the Ganges. Benares Is the holiest city of the Hindus, and temples erected there , were considered as earning great merit > for both those who built them and those in whose memory they were built. Tradition says these turrets are the remnants of a Hindu temple which a dutiful son erected to Jhe memory of mother, believing that he would thereby repay the debt which| he owed to her. When the tempi™ was completed after several years —for you can even now see it was a great temple of stone —ami was about, to be conse.crtited. the son was filled with the pleasure which comes of a duty discharged, ami he cried out: “Now, mother, I have after all been able to repay my debt to you.” and lo! and behold.- the temple began to lean toward the earth, and was about to fall, when the pious builder, remembering his blasphemy, exclaimed : “Oh. mother that art in heaven, truly I am sinful. for how can I think of repaying my debt to thee!” and the fall of the temple was arrested, but leaning turrets still preach a great lesson to devout Hindus who visit. Benares.