It is merely a step forward to the idea in the Quatrain of wise old Omar Khayyām:—

“I saw a busy potter by the way

Kneading with might and main a lump of clay;

And lo! the clay cried, ‘Use me tenderly,

I was a man myself but yesterday!’ ”


[1] The Sinhalese title is, “Concerning a Woman’s becoming a Rākshī (Rākshasī).” [↑]

[2] Lit., tied the marriage. The little fingers or thumbs of the bride and bridegroom were tied together by a thread during the ceremony. [↑]

[3] A room. The word meaning “room” is rarely used in these stories, the usual expression, kāmara, being a Portuguese word. [↑]