The Kathá Sarit Ságara; or, Ocean of the Streams of Story
her life as stubble, and in his impatience supposing that she would
be able to assist him in accomplishing his vow, and remembering that
the time fixed for her abandoning the body had almost arrived, he
quickly committed his kingdom to the care of his ministers, and flying
through the air reached Pratishthána, and entered the house of his
beloved. There he beheld his beloved, with raiment pellucid like the
moonlight, having given her wealth away to Pandits, [568] attenuated
like a digit of the moon at the time of its change. Madanamálá, for
her part, on beholding him arrived unexpectedly, the quintessence
of nectar to her eyes, was for a moment like one amazed. Then she
embraced him, and threw round his neck the noose of her arms, as
if fearing that he would escape again. And she said to him with a
voice, the accents of which were choked with tears, "Cruel one, why
did you depart and forsake my innocent self?" The king said, "Come,
I will tell you in private," and went inside with her, welcomed by
her attendants. There he revealed to her who he was, and described
his circumstances, how he came there to conquer king Narasinha by
an artifice, and how, after slaying Prapanchabuddhi, he acquired the
power of flying in the air, and how he was enabled to reward her by
a boon that he obtained from the lord of wealth, and how, hearing
tidings of her from a Bráhman, he had returned there. Having told the
whole story beginning with the subject of his vow, he again said to
her--"So my beloved, that king Narasinha, being very mighty, is not
to be conquered by armies, and he contended with me in single combat,
but I did not slay him, for I possess the power of flying in the air,
and he can only go on the earth, for who, that is a true Kshatriya,
would desire to conquer in an unfair combat? The object of my vow is,
that that king may be announced by the heralds as waiting at the door;
do you assist me in that?"
When the hetæra heard this, she said, "I am honoured by your
request," and summoning her heralds she said to them--"When the king
Narasinha shall come to my house, you must stand near the door with
attentive eyes, and while he is entering, you must say again and
again--"King, prince Narasinha is loyal and devoted to thee." And
when he looks up and asks--"Who is here?"--you must immediately say
to him--"Vikramáditya is here." After giving them these orders, she
dismissed them, and then she said to the female warder--"You must
not prevent king Narasinha from entering here." After issuing these
orders, Madanamálá remained in a state of supreme felicity, having
regained the lord of her life, and gave away her wealth fearlessly.
Then king Narasinha, having heard of that profuse liberality of hers,
which was due to her possession of the golden figures, though he
had given her up, came to visit her house. And while he entered, not
being forbidden by the warder, all the heralds shouted in a loud voice,
beginning at the outer door, "King, prince Narasinha is submissive and
devoted." When that sovereign heard that, he was angry and alarmed, and
when he asked who was there, and found out that king Vikramáditya was
there, he waited a moment and went through the following reflections;
"So this king has forced his way into my kingdom, and carried out the
vow he made long ago, that I should be announced at his door. In truth
this king is a man of might, since he has thus beaten me to-day. And
I must not slay him by force, since he has come alone to a house in
my dominions. So I had better enter now." Having thus reflected, king
Narasinha entered, announced by all the heralds. And king Vikramáditya,
on beholding him enter with a smile on his face, rose up also with
smiling countenance and embraced him. Then those two kings sat down
and enquired after one another's welfare, while Madanamálá stood by
their side.
And in the course of conversation Narasinha asked Vikramáditya where he
had obtained those golden figures. Then Vikramáditya told him the whole
of that strange adventure of his, how he had slain the base ascetic,
and acquired the power of flying through the air, and how, by virtue
of the boon of the god of wealth, he had obtained five indestructible
gigantic golden figures. Then king Narasinha chose that king for his
friend, discovering that he was of great might, that he possessed the
power of flying, and that he had a good heart. And having made him
his friend, he welcomed him with the prescribed rites of hospitality,
and taking him to his own palace, he entertained him with all the
attentions paid to himself. And king Vikramáditya, after having been
thus honoured, was dismissed by him, and returned to the house of
Madanamálá. Then Vikramáditya, having accomplished his difficult vow
by his courage and intelligence, determined to go to his own city. And
Madanamálá, being unable to remain separated from him, was eager to
accompany him, and with the intention of abandoning her native land,
she bestowed her dwelling upon the Bráhmans. Then Vikramáditya,
the moon of kings, went with her, whose mind was exclusively fixed
on him, to his own city of Pátaliputra, followed by her elephants,
horses, and footmen. There he remained in happiness, (accompanied by
Madanamálá, who had abandoned her own country for his love,) having
formed an alliance with king Narasinha.
"Thus, king, even hetæræ are occasionally of noble character and
as faithful to kings as their own wives, much more then matrons of
high birth." On hearing this noble tale from the mouth of Marubhúti,
the king Naraváhanadatta, and his new wife Ratnaprabhá sprung from
the glorious race of the Vidyádharas, were much delighted.
CHAPTER XXXIX.
When Marubhúti had told this story there, the commander-in-chief
Harisikha said in the presence of Naraváhanadatta--"It is true, good
women value nothing more than their husbands, and in proof of it,
listen now to this still more wonderful tale."
Story of Sringabhuja and the daughter of the Rákshasa.
There is a city on the earth named Vardhamána, and in it there dwelt
a king named Vírabhuja, chief of righteous men. And though he had a
hundred wives, one queen of the name of Gunavará was dearer to him than
his life. And in spite of his hundred wives, it happened, as Fate would
have it, that not one of them bore him a son. So he asked a physician
named Srutavardhana--"Is there any medicine able to bring about
the birth of a son?" When the physician heard that, he said--"King,
I can prepare such a medicine, [569] but the king must procure for
me a wild goat." When he heard this speech of the physician's, the
king gave an order to the warder, and had a goat brought for him from
the forest. The physician handed over the goat to the king's cooks,
and with its flesh prepared a sovereign elixir for the queens. The
king went off to worship his god, after ordering the queens to
assemble in one place. And ninety-nine of those queens did assemble
in one place, but the queen Gunavará alone was not present there,
for she was at that time near the king, who was engaged in praying
to his god. And when they had assembled, the physician gave them the
whole of the elixir to drink mixed with powder, not perceiving the
absence of Gunavará. Immediately the king returned with his beloved,
having performed his devotions, and perceiving that that drug was
completely finished, he said to the physician--"What! did you not keep
any for Gunavará? You have forgotten the principal object with which
this was undertaken." After saying this to the abashed physician,
the king said to the cooks--"Is there any of the flesh of that goat
left?" The cooks said, "The horns only remain." Then the physician
said, "Bravo! I can make an admirable elixir out of the centre of the
horns." After saying this, the physician had an elixir prepared from
the fleshy part of the horns, and gave it to queen Gunavará mixed with
powder. Then the ninety-nine wives of the king became pregnant, and
all in time brought forth sons. But the head queen Gunavará conceived
last of all, and afterwards gave birth to a son with more auspicious
marks than the sons of all the others. And as he was sprung from the
juice of the fleshy part of the horns, his father, the king, gave him
the name of Sringabhuja, and rejoiced greatly at his birth. He grew up
with those other brothers, and though in age he was the youngest of
all, he was superior to all in good qualities. And in course of time
that prince became like the god of Love in beauty, and like Arjuna
in his skill in archery, and like Bhíma in strength. Accordingly the
other queens, seeing that queen Gunavará, now that she had this son,
was more than ever dear to king Vírabhuja, became jealous of her.
Then an evil-minded queen among them, named Ayasolekhá, deliberated
with all the others and entered into a conspiracy; and when the
king came home one day, she exhibited an assumed sadness in her
face. The king asked her the reason, and she said with apparent
reluctance--"My husband, why do you endure patiently the disgrace
of your house? you avert disgrace from others, why do you not avert
it from yourself? You know the young superintendent of the women's
apartments named Surakshita; your queen Gunavará is secretly devoted
to him. Since no man but he can penetrate into the women's apartments,
which are strictly watched by guards, she associates with him. And this
is a well-known subject of gossip in the whole harem." When she said
this to the king, he pondered and reflected; and went and asked the
other queens one after another in private, and they were faithful to
their treacherous plot, and told him the same story. Then that wise
king conquered his anger, and reflected--"This accusation against
these two is improbable, and yet such is the gossip. So I must not
without reflecting reveal the matter to any one; but they must by an
artifice be separated now, to enable me to see the termination of
the whole matter." Having determined on this, next day he summoned
Surakshita, the superintendent of the womens' apartments, into his
judgment-hall, and with assumed anger, said to him--"I have learned,
villain, that you have slain a Bráhman, so I cannot endure to see
your face until you have made a pilgrimage to holy places." When he
heard that, he was amazed and began to murmur--"How can I have slain a
Bráhman, my sovereign?" But the king went on to say; "Do not attempt
to brazen it out, but go to Kásmír to wash away your sin, (where are
those holy fields, Vijayakshetra, and Nandikshetra the purifying,
and the kshetra [570] of the Boar), the land which was hallowed by
Vishnu the bow-handed god, where the stream of the Ganges bears the
name of Vitastá, where is the famous Mandapakshetra, and where is
Uttaramánasa; when your sin has been washed away by a pilgrimage to
these holy places, you shall behold my face again, but not till then."
With this speech the king Vírabhuja dismissed the helpless Surakshita,
sending him to a distance on the pretence of a pilgrimage to holy
places. Then the king went into the presence of that queen Gunavará,
full of love and anger and sober reflection. Then she, seeing that
his mind was troubled, asked him anxiously, "My husband, why are
you seized to-day with a sudden fit of despondency?" When the king
heard that, he gave her this feigned answer--"To-day, queen, a great
astrologer came to me and said--'King, you must place the queen
Gunavará for some time in a dungeon, and you must yourself live a
life of chastity, otherwise your kingdom will certainly be overthrown,
and she will surely die.' Having said this, the astrologer departed;
hence my present despondency." When the king said this, the queen
Gunavará, who was devoted to her husband, distracted with fear