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Frazer, James George, Sir, 1854-1941

"The Golden Bough"

" So the box was brought and opened,
and there was the golden fish in the water. The girl said, "My soul
is in that fish. In the morning you must take the fish out of the
water, and in the evening you must put it back into the water. Do
not let the fish lie about, but bind it round your neck. If you do
this, I shall soon die." So the queen took the fish out of the box
and fastened it round her neck; and no sooner had she done so than
Bidasari fell into a swoon. But in the evening, when the fish was
put back into the water, Bidasari came to herself again. Seeing that
she thus had the girl in her power, the queen sent her home to her
adopted parents. To save her from further persecution her parents
resolved to remove their daughter from the city. So in a lonely and
desolate spot they built a house and brought Bidasari thither. There
she dwelt alone, undergoing vicissitudes that corresponded with the
vicissitudes of the golden fish in which was her soul. All day long,
while the fish was out of the water, she remained unconscious; but
in the evening, when the fish was put into the water, she revived.


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