THE FEUDAL CASTLE 39
enter, a sanctuary into which they often saw her
vanish, coming from the garden, her arms laden
with flowers.
A pretty fancy, so her parents judged at first her
conduct. Indeed they were delighted to see their
little daughter so well-behaved, so happy.
For a Hindu the idea of " playing " with God
had nothing shocking about it. One day I was
told of a conversation between a Sadhu and a little
boy. The holy man asked the child what he pro-
posed to do when he was grown up.
" I don't know," the boy replied.
" What would you like to do ? "
" I like playing ; I don't care for anything else.
Can one play with God ? "
The saint pondered a while, then answered : " I
think that if you could play with Our Lord it would
be the finest thing that anyone has ever done. Men
always take Him in such deadly earnest that surely
He must be profoundly bored with them ! "
So Myrrha's parents saw in her conduct a mere
childish caprice ; the " engagement " of their only
daughter with the image of Krishna was a game of
charming make-believe.
But when Myrrha was nearly fifteen and they
spoke to her of marriage, she greeted their sugges-
tions with a laugh.
" How can you talk of my getting married ?
Don't you know I have a bridegroom already?
And I shall never love anyone except my Krishna."
And she ran out to the garden to weave a wreath
of orange-blossoms for the well-beloved. It was the
season when, in the Slave's Garden, the air is fra-
grant with white petals falling thick as snow-flakes
from the sunlit orange-groves.
But now the Maharaja and his wife lost patience