Divine I O Us

The four-armed idol of Lord Venkateshwara (one of Vishnu's aliases) lives in a mammoth temple atop a 2,500-ft.-high hill at Tirupati in South India. In the temple court stands a big metal receptacle known as a hundi; into it pilgrims drop offerings of jewelry, money and gold.

Inside the hundi last year, temple priests found an I 0 U for 300 rupees. When the signer failed to come across with the money, Lord Venkateshwara, represented by his priests, took the case to court. Last week the court decided in favor of the god, ordered the debtor to pay.

Promptly two other promissory notes, for 1,000 rupees each, turned up in the hundi--creditors who had not been able to collect on them had endorsed them in favor of Lord Venkateshwara. It worked. When the temple trustees told their new debtors that they were filing suit, both rushed up the holy hill with the rupees.

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