XIII
PATHITHAPAVANA.
(1883)
Pathithapavana (Purifier of the fallen)-— how sweet, how tender, how engaging, how reassuring, is that sacred name of the All merciful ! Consoling, refreshing, inspiring beyond expression it is to think of, to apprehend and to approach the Divine Mother as the Reclaimer of the erratic, the Restorer of the lost, the Purifier of the tainted, the Uplifter of the fallen, the Solacer of the suffering, the Healer of the wounded and the Saviour of the sin-stricken ! Painfully conscious of sin and yet too feeble to resist it; lament- ing his piteous plight and yet helpless to better his condition ; cursing wickedness as detestable and yet caressing it as win-some ; shedding bitter tears of regret and yet relishing the tempting poison ; loathing vice as a monster with a 'frightful mien' and yet enduring and even embrac-
