Read Ebook: Tibetan Tales Derived from Indian Sources by Ralston William Ralston Shedden Translator Schiefner Anton Translator

Font size: 10 px 15 px 20 px 25 px 30 px 35 px

Background color: BlackWhiteGrayLight GrayDark GrayDim Gray

Text color: BlackWhiteGrayLight GrayDark GrayDim Gray

Apply/Save settings

Ebook has 1583 lines and 104423 words, and 32 pages

friends, this was really the thief. Ye have acted wrongly in not laying hands upon him. In order to bring the matter to an end, do ye let it alone. I will lay hands on the man myself."

The king had a garden laid out at a spot where the Ganges formed a bay, and he set men to watch on both of its shores. In it he stationed his very beautiful daughter on the shore of the river, giving her orders to cry aloud in case any one tried to touch her. To the watchmen also he gave orders to repair to the park as soon as they heard any sound, and if any man was found there, to seize him and bring him before him. Now the thief thought that he must not allow the opportunity of enjoying the king's daughter to slip out of his hands. So he took an empty pitcher, went down to the shore of the Ganges, and began to draw water. As he was carrying the first pitcherful, the watchmen came running up, thinking that he was the thief, and hit him a blow, in consequence of which the pitcher was broken. As he was carrying the second pitcherful, his pitcher was broken in the same way. But after this had happened three times, the watchmen came to the conclusion that he was a water-carrier, and paid him no more attention. Then the thief covered his head with a pot, and swam down the stream to the bay. There he came ashore and said to the maiden, "If you utter a single cry you shall die." In her fright she remained silent. He tarried awhile with her, and then went his way. The watchmen did not know what to do, seeing that she had made no noise while the thief tarried with her, and had not begun to cry till he had satisfied himself and gone away; but they gave the king a full account of what had taken place. The king said, "It is a bad business that he was not caught."

The result of the thief's visit was that, after eight or nine months had elapsed, the princess bore a son. When the thief heard of this, he decided that he must not miss his son's birth-feast, so he assumed the appearance of a courtier . As he was leaving the palace he called out to the royal servants, "O friends, by order of the king, plunder the merchants' quarter!" As the servants thought that the king had given permission for the plundering of the merchants' quarter in honour of his grandson's birth, they set to work thereat. In consequence of this a great outcry arose, and the king asked what was the meaning of it. When the ministers had supplied him with a full account, the king said, "If this be so, I also have been taken in by him. Wherefore, if I do not punish him, I shall lose my throne."

With this idea in view he caused an enclosure to be made, and, after some little time had elapsed, he ordered his ministers to make public through the realm a proclamation to the effect that all men who dwelt in the kingdom were bound to assemble within that enclosure; and that no excuse would avail, but if any one did not appear he should be punished. When the ministers had made this order public, and all the inhabitants of the realm were assembled together, the king gave the boy a wreath of flowers, and told him to give it to the man who was his father; and he gave orders to the watchmen to lay hands upon the man to whom the boy should give the wreath. As the boy walked with the wreath through the assembled crowds and closely observed them, he caught sight of the thief, and, in accordance with the incomprehensible sequence of human affairs, handed him the wreath. The king's watchmen seized the thief and brought him before the king. The king asked his ministers what ought to be done. They were of opinion that the thief must be put to death. But the king said, "O friends, so little does such a hero of a man deserve to be put to death, that he ought much rather to be carefully watched over." Thereupon he endowed his daughter with ornaments of all sorts, and gave her to the thief as his wife, and bestowed upon her the half of his kingdom.

SUDHANA AVAD?NA.

In olden times there were two kings in Panch?la, one in the north and the other in the south. The king of North Panch?la, whose name was Dhana, like a law-observing monarch, ruled according to the law in Hastin?pura, a city which was endowed with wealth, health, fruitfulness, and greatness of extent and population, and which was free from disquiet, disorder, uproar, and robbery, in which disease had quite come to an end, and which was fully provided with rice, sugar-cane, bullocks, and buffaloes. Moreover in this city there was a great lake, full of blue, red, and white lotuses, and rendered pleasant and beautiful by ducks and geese of various kinds. As the N?ga Janmachitra, who dwelt in this lake, sent down from time to time a torrent of rain, the land was very fruitful; and as the realm overflowed with food and drink, the inhabitants, intent upon gifts, sacrifices, and reverence, bestowed sustenance upon the ?rama?as and Brahmans, and the poor and needy.

The king of South Panch?la, who paid no respect to the law, was haughty, choleric, passionate, and ill-natured. He did not rule in accordance with the law, and he kept the inhabitants of his realm constantly in fear by penalties, blows, wounds, executions, arrests, and bonds, and by intolerance, inaccessibility, and malice of every kind. As he was overweening and did not rule according to law, the deity did not let rain fall from time to time, on which account men, full of fear and despair, deserted the country in troops, and betook themselves to the realm of the king of North Panch?la.

Some time after this, when the king of South Panch?la had gone to the chase and had set forth to inspect his domains, he remarked that all the towns and villages were deserted, and the parks and the temples of the gods had fallen into decay and ruin. Having observed this, he said to his ministers, "Honoured sirs, what is the reason of these towns and villages being deserted, and of the parks and the temples of the gods having fallen into decay and ruin? and whither have the people gone?" The ministers replied, "They have gone into the realm of Dhana, the king of North Panch?la."

"On what account?"

"Will your majesty accord impunity of speech?"

"Speak, for I accord you impunity."

Thereupon they said, "Your majesty, as the king of North Panch?la rules in accordance with the law, his land is great, rich, healthy, fruitful, densely peopled, free from disquiet, discord, disorder, uproar, and robbery; diseases have quite disappeared there, it overflows with rice, sugar-cane, oxen, and buffaloes; and its people, intent upon bestowing gifts, sacrifices, and reverence, offer sustenance to the ?rama?as and Brahmans, and the poor and needy. But as you, your majesty, are choleric, passionate, and ill-natured, and have kept the inhabitants of the realm constantly in fear by means of penalties, blows, wounds, executions, arrests, and bonds, and by intolerance, inaccessibility, and malice of every kind, therefore have the people, full of fear and despair, gone into the land of the king of North Panch?la." The king of South Panch?la said, "O sirs, what would be a good way of making those people return and inhabit these towns and villages?" The ministers replied, "If your majesty, ruling after the fashion of the king of North Panch?la, will protect the land with gentle, benignant, and merciful mind, the people will soon return and inhabit these towns and villages." The king of South Panch?la said, "Sirs, since this is so, I will protect the land with gentle, benignant, and merciful mind, ruling after the fashion of the king of North Panch?la; but do ye take such measures that the people may come back again and inhabit these towns and villages."

"Your majesty, there is yet another cause for the state of things in Hastin?pura. In that city there is a N?ga named Janmachitra, who dwells in a great lake filled with blue, red, and white lotuses of all kinds, and adorned with ducks and geese of divers species. As he sends down a torrent of rain from time to time, the harvest is always abundant and the soil is extremely fertile, and the land abounds in meat and drink." The king said, "Is there no means of summoning that N?ga hither?"

"Your majesty, as he can be conjured hither by men who are versed in charms and spells, let them perform the deed."

Thereupon the king fastened a golden basket to the end of a standard, and ordered proclamation to be made throughout the whole kingdom that he would give that golden basket to any one who could conjure the N?ga Janmachitra out of North Panch?la into South Panch?la, and would also heap upon him a profusion of great honours. After a time a serpent-charmer appeared before the ministers, and said that if the golden basket was given to him he would capture and bring in the N?ga Janmachitra. The ministers ordered the basket to be brought, and the serpent-charmer said, "I will leave this basket in the hands of a trustworthy man. Let him give it to me when I bring the N?ga Janmachitra." When this had been promised him, the serpent-charmer placed the golden basket in the hands of a trustworthy man and betook himself to the city of Hastin?pura. Being well versed in signs, he perceived, after carefully observing the lake all round, that the N?ga Janmachitra must have his dwelling-place in a certain spot. So he went to fetch offerings and utensils, and said to the ministers, "Give me offerings and utensils, and within seven days I will capture and bring in the N?ga."

Now the N?ga had seen the serpent-charmer, and had said to himself, "This man has come to carry me off, and if at the end of seven days I am carried off, I shall suffer great distress on account of being severed from my parents. What shall I do? To whom shall I pray for protection?"

Now there lived in the neighbourhood of the lake two hunters, Mas?raka and Phalaka. Living near the lake, they supported themselves by killing not only land animals, such as the hares, stags, boars, and so forth which came to that lake to drink, but also the fish, tortoises, and so forth which lived in the water. Of these two hunters Mas?raka died, but Phalaka remained alive. As the N?ga Janmachitra came to the conclusion that there was no one except the hunter Phalaka to whom he could fly for refuge, he went, after assuming the form of a man, to the hunter Phalaka, and said to him, "O friend, if King Dhana's realm is vast, rich, healthy, fruitful, and populous, and overflows with rice, sugar-cane, oxen, and buffaloes , do you know through whose power this has come to pass?" The hunter answered, "Well do I know that this takes place because that king rules in accordance with the law, and protects his land with gentle, benignant, and merciful mind." The N?ga said, "Does all this arise from that cause only, or from some other cause as well?" The hunter said, "There is another cause as well. In this lake lives the N?ga Janmachitra, who from time to time sends down a torrent of rain, in consequence of which the soil becomes extremely fertile, and is replete with food and drink." Janmachitra said, "If this N?ga were to be taken away from this land by any one, he would no longer be able to be of service, and he would be very wretched on account of being separated from his parents. What would the king and the inhabitants of the land do if he were to be carried off? what would you do?"

"We should perish."

"Do you know who this N?ga is?"

"No!"

"I am he, and a serpent-charmer from South Panch?la wishes to carry me off. He has gone back to fetch offerings and utensils, and will return in seven days. He will then drive pegs of Khadira-wood into the shore of the lake at its four corners, will hang up various threads of different colours, and will recite spells. During that time you must remain hidden somewhere near. But when, as he is performing a ceremony of this kind, the waters of the lake begin to seethe and overflow, and I come forth from them, then you must bend your bow against the serpent-charmer, and run up to him quickly and say, 'Reverse the spell. If you do not do so I shall sever your head from your body and send it to the bottom of the lake.' But if he dies without reversing the spell, then, even after his death, I shall remain bound by its force all my life long." The hunter said, "As I would have done this of my own accord, were it merely for the sake of doing you a service, how much the more shall I be ready to protect you, inasmuch as I shall be doing a service to the whole kingdom. Say no more."

The N?ga then took up his abode in a lonely spot. When seven days had passed, the hunter hid himself near that place. The serpent-charmer came and began to prepare the offerings and utensils, driving in the pegs of Khadira-wood at the four corners, attaching various threads of divers colours, and reciting spells. When the water began to seethe, the hunter sped an arrow from his bow, and then drew his sword from its sheath and cried, "Will you carry off the N?ga who dwells in our land by means of spells? Reverse your spell. If you do not, I will sever your head from your body and send it to the bottom of the lake." The serpent-charmer, experiencing pain and grief induced by anguish and fear of death, reversed the spell, whereupon the hunter instantly killed him. When the N?ga was thus freed from the power of the spell, he came forth from the lake, embraced the hunter, and thus addressed him, "You are my mother, you are my father. In this wise am I, in that I trusted in you, spared the pain of being separated from my parents. Come, let us go to them." He led him to their abode, regaled him with meats and drinks of divers kinds, presented him with jewels, and then said to his parents, "This man has become my refuge, my friend, and my kinsman. Through his means I have been saved from separation from you." The parents also let him have all he wished for, and presented him with precious things of all kinds. These he took away with him, and then came forth from the lake.

Not far from the lake was a hermitage, rich in flowers, and fruits, and birds which uttered varied notes. Therein a Rishi abode, full of gentleness, mercy, and kindness towards living creatures. To this Rishi the hunter was wont to go daily, in the morning, at midday, and in the evening. To him he gave a full account of what had taken place between him and the N?ga Janmachitra. The Rishi said to him, "What need have you of jewels and gold? That habitation contains the Amogha-chain . You must ask for that." As a desire for that Amogha-chain arose within the hunter's mind, he followed the advice of the Rishi, and again betook himself to the abode of the N?gas. There he saw the Amogha-chain at the entrance of the N?gas' abode, and perceiving that it was the chain which he wanted, he entered into the abode. The N?ga Janmachitra and the other N?gas were delighted, and they gave him jewels. But he said, "Jewels I want not; rather give me the Amogha-chain." Janmachitra replied, "What need have you of it? To us it is most needful. When the Garu?a plagues us, it is to this chain that we are indebted for safety." The hunter said, "As ye are but seldom threatened with danger from the Garu?a, therefore it is not so very necessary for you. But I am constantly in want of it. Therefore give it to me, if ye are mindful of the benefit conferred and the service performed." The N?ga Janmachitra said, "As this man has done me a great service, I will give him the chain, after I have asked my father and mother." After asking his parents, he give him the chain. Thereupon the hunter, as if he had recovered himself, returned home from the N?gas' abode with the Amogha-chain, full of happiness and joy.

King Dhana and his wife had neither son nor daughter. It happened once that he sat, resting his cheek upon his hand, absorbed by the thought that, since he had neither son nor daughter, his family would be extinct after his death, the treasures heaped up within his house would pass into other hands, and another king would rule over all that had been his. As he sat there thus absorbed in meditation, the ?rama?as and Brahmans, his friends, companions, and kinsmen, asked him why he was so downcast. When he had fully explained the whole matter to them, they said, "Be pleased to pray to the gods. Then will a son be born unto you." As he had no son, but desired to have one, he prayed to ?iva and Varu?a, to Kuvera and Vasudeva, and so forth, also to various other gods, to the gods of the parks, the gods of the forest, the gods of the crossways, the gods of the three ways, the gods who accept oblations, the ever-accompanying gods, and the gods like-minded and identical in date of birth. It is generally said that sons and daughters are born in consequence of such prayers, not otherwise; a thousand sons, for instance, may be born to a world-ruling prince when such prayers have been offered.

Praying in such a manner, Dhana obtained a hearing, and a Bodisat of the Bhadrakalpa entered into the womb of his good spouse. Some women who are endowed with insight possess five peculiar characteristics, one of which is that they know whether their child will be a boy or a girl. If it is a boy, it clings to the right side, and if a girl, to the left. Full of joy, spake the queen to her husband, "O lord, as the living being which has entered within me clings to the right side, and will certainly be a boy, therefore rejoice."

The king joyfully drew himself up, and stretched out his right arm, and said, "I shall behold the son whom I have long been desiring. As he will soon be born unto me, he will carry on my work, extend still more widely what has been acquired, and as my heir more widely propagate my race. And when we shall have died, whether we have presented many or few gifts and acquired much or little merit, it will follow after us in that place in which we shall both be born again, and our recompense will ripen through union."

Thus did he joyfully exclaim. As he knew that conception had taken place, he took care, in order that the existence in the mother's womb might be allowed to develop thoroughly, that there should be in his palace during the cold weather preservatives against cold, during the hot weather preservatives against heat. According to the directions of the physician, he provided food which was not too bitter, too sour, too salt, too sweet, too hot, or too acid--food which was without bitterness, sourness, saltness, sweetness, heat, or acidity. With strings of pearls of various kinds and with other ornaments he adorned the body of his wife, like unto an Apsaras wandering in the Nandana grove; and he made seats and seats, stools and stools, to prevent her from falling on the ground, and he ordered care to be taken that she should not hear the slightest unpleasant noise.

His father bestowed upon him three wives--a first wife, a middle wife, and a last wife--and built for his use three separate palaces, for winter, spring, and summer; and in like manner he provided him with parks of three kinds, for winter, spring, and summer. There the young Sudhana, when he went alone, without any retinue, into the upper storey of the palace, diverted and enjoyed himself to the sound of musical instruments.

It happened once that the hunter Phalaka, as he roamed to and fro in search after game, arrived at a certain mountain, and at the foot of this mountain he perceived a Rishi's hermitage, rich in flowers and fruit. Around it fluttered birds of divers kinds, and there was near it a lake provided with red and white lotuses, and with geese and various kinds of ducks. As he was about to roam over this place of seclusion, he saw a Rishi with long hair on his head and body, and with long nails and a long beard, sitting in a grass hut under a tree. On seeing him he touched the Rishi's feet with his head, joined the palms of his hands, and said, "Venerable one, how long have you been in this place?"

"Forty years."

"While you have remained here, have you seen or heard anything strange or wonderful?"

The Rishi, calm of mood, deliberately replied, "Friend, do you see that lake?"

"Venerable one, I see it."

"That is the Brahmasabh? pool, filled with blue, red, and white lotuses, haunted by swarms of different kinds of birds, extremely rich in waters resembling silver, snow, and hoarfrost in colour. To this pool in the midst of the most fragrant flowers, there comes on the fifteenth day of the month Manohar? the daughter of Druma, the king of the Kinnar?s. Surrounded by five hundred Kinnar?s, she comes in order to bathe, after having washed and anointed her head. During the time of the bath they dance, sing, and make sweet music resound, such as enchants even the beasts of the forest. Even I myself, when I have heard these sounds, experience pleasure and delight for seven whole days. This maiden, O friend, I have seen."

The hunter Phalaka said to himself, "As I have obtained the Amogha-chain from the N?ga, I will cast it around the Kinnar? Manohar?." He came, accordingly, after a time, on the fifteenth of the month, bringing the Amogha-chain with him, concealed himself in a thicket not far from the lake, among fruits, flowers, and foliage, and kept watch. When Manohar?, surrounded by five hundred Kinnar?s, with befitting equipments, went into the Brahmasabh? lake to bathe, the hunter Phalaka straightway cast the Amogha-chain, and caught the Kinnar? Manohar?. Held by the chain, she began to bound and to run in the water and to utter shrieks of terror. Hearing these, the Kinnar? band broke up. Looking upon Manohar?, the Kinnar?s saw that she was taken prisoner, and they fled away terrified.

The hunter gazed at Manohar?, who was of an exquisitely proportioned figure and of a lovely countenance, and having gazed at her, he was about to draw near and lay hands upon her; but she said, "Man of low station, touch me not. I am not destined to marry you. As I am worthy of a king of goodly form, you must not lay hands upon me." The hunter said, "If I do not lay hands upon you you will flee away." She replied, "I will not flee away. If you will not trust me, take this head-jewel, by means of which I fly heavenwards." The hunter said, "Who can tell that?" She gave him the head-jewel and said, "I shall always be in the power of him whose hand holds this jewel." The hunter took the jewel, and led her away with him, just as if she had been secured by bonds.

About this time the youth Sudhana went forth to the chase one day. The hunter saw the youth Sudhana, who was handsome in form and of pleasant aspect; and having seen him he said to himself, "As this is Prince Sudhana, and as he is of goodly form and pleasant aspect, and as he, when he has looked upon this maiden, will take her to wife, I will of my own accord offer her to him as a present." So he led her, just as if she had been secured by bonds, to Prince Sudhana, and said, after touching his feet, "I offer unto you as a present this gem of a wife; be pleased to accept the gift." Prince Sudhana looked upon the Kinnar? Manohar?. She was of goodly form and pleasing countenance, with a complexion of remarkable brilliance and with all good properties, adorned with the eighteen signs of the woman, more beautiful than the children of men; the breasts wide apart, and arched like the tortoise Hira?yakumbha, firm, plump, extremely round and elastic; the eyes light blue, with small red veins and of elongated form, like young lotuses; the arch of the nose long and high; the lips like coral, gems, pearls, in form like the Bimba fruit; the chin ample and firm; the cheeks marked by very attractive moles; the eyebrows beautifully interlacing, black as a swarm of bees; the arms long and rounded like the spotless full moon; the belly a little overhanging with three deep folds; the upper part of the body a little bent from the down-hanging of the breasts, the under part beautifully formed like a disk; the hands like unto the pith of the banana tree; the legs beautiful from their delicacy and the rounding off of the calves; the veins scarcely visible and free from all crookedness, so that all the limbs were fair to see, proudly moving to the sound of the richly jewel-studded ornaments of the head, neck, and feet, and the many strings of pearls; the hair black and smooth, like unto Sach?, the feet adorned with ornaments; wearing a golden girdle, many strings of pearls hanging down at the belly, the complexion gleaming fair as gold.

No sooner had the youth set eyes on her than he was suddenly enchained by the bonds of passion--passion which, like the pure and spotless moon reflected in water, is, on account of its unstable nature, not easily to be grasped, and like a sea-monster in a billowy torrent, is not easily to be distinguished, which steps along like the Garu?a or the flow of the wind, which flies about swiftly with a lightness resembling that of cotton, which, like a monkey, is always in motion, never resting in any place. When the arrow of passion, which is ever connected with woes and with longing to enjoy the bliss of love, without letting itself be warned off from the abyss of misfortune due to all those woes--when this arrow strikes the heart, shot from the careless bow with a scarcely audible sound arising from the longing after a meeting, then, completely befooled by senses which hang upon the fair one, a man falls, like a moth, into the flame. As in summer the lightning flashes from out of the rain-cloud, so did the dart of love strike Sudhana when he looked upon her whose countenance was like unto the moon. Then Prince Sudhana took Manohar? and brought her to the city of Hastin?pura, and to the hunter he gave a splendid city. Ascending with Manohar? to the upper storey of the palace, the youth Sudhana spent his time with her in pleasure and sport; and by the hundredfold force of Manohar?'s youth, beauty, and respect for him, the youth Sudhana was immediately and irresistibly captivated.

After a time two Brahmans wandered that way, one of whom attached himself to the king, the other to Sudhana. The Brahman who attached himself to the king was appointed a Purohita by the king, who also bestowed much property upon him. But only a little property was given to him who attached himself to Prince Sudhana. The prince's Brahman said to him, "O youth, what will you do for me when, after your father's death, you are made king?" The youth Sudhana replied, "As your companion has been appointed my father's Purohita, I will appoint you also to be a Purohita." As this conversation of theirs was passed on by one man to another, it came to the ears of the Brahman who was the Purohita. He said to himself, "If I can manage so that the youth does not acquire the sovereign power, there will no longer be any question as to the appointment to the Purohitaship."

It came to pass afterwards that the mountaineers of the king's realm rebelled. The king sent a general to subdue them, but he returned completely overcome and vanquished. Just the same happened to seven other generals whom the king sent out. The ministers said to the king, "Wherefore, your majesty, do you allow your forces to dwindle away and the power of the foe to increase? Be pleased to order out all who are capable of bearing arms within your realm." The Brahman who was the Purohita thought that this was the time for bringing about Sudhana's death, so he said to the king, "There can be no doubt that in that wise defeat will take place." The king said, "What am I to do then? Ought I to march out myself?" The Purohita said, "Your majesty, why should you go yourself? As the youth Sudhana has come to man's estate, and is proud of his strength and courage, you can send him out with the troops." The king said, "I will do so." Thereupon the king summoned the youth, and said to him, "O youth, march forth with the troops and subdue the mountaineers." "Your majesty, I will act in accordance with your commands."

Having thus spoken, Sudhana prepared to obey his father. On betaking himself to the zenana, he saw Manohar? there, and not only forgot all his other wives, but also, as soon as he saw her, forgot the commands laid upon him by the king. Thereupon the Purohita said to the king, "Your majesty, as there can be no doubt that the youth Sudhana is deeply in love with Manohar?, let the troops be drawn up, and order the youth, when he comes forth from the zenana, to set out on the march without going to see Manohar? again." The king said to the ministers, "Honoured sirs, equip the host." The ministers obeyed the orders of the king, and equipped the hosts, elephants, horses, chariots, and infantry, well provided with many kinds of weapons and appurtenances. Then they summoned the youth, saying to him, "O youth, as the troops are ready, come forth from thence." He said, "Your majesty, I will go forth when I have seen Manohar?."

The king said, "O youth, do not go to see her, for that would give rise to delay."

"If that be so, I will set out when I have seen my mother."

"O youth, your mother you may see."

Sudhana took Manohar?'s head-jewel, went to his mother, touched her feet, and said, "O mother, as I am setting out to subdue the mountaineers, do you keep this jewel with the utmost secrecy, and do not give it to Manohar? except in a case of life and death." After saying these words to his mother, and taking leave of her, he set forth with the army to the sound of music. After gradually advancing for some time, he halted under a tree at no great distance from the mountaineers. Just at that time the Mah?r?ja Vai?rava?a was going to a Yaksha meeting, together with many Yakshas, many hundreds, many thousands, many hundreds of thousands of Yakshas. As he drove along, and was delayed upon the celestial road, he said to himself, "Often as I have driven along this road, yet has my chariot never once been delayed. What can be the cause of its being delayed now?"

Perceiving the youth Sudhana, he thought, "This is a Bodisat of the Bhadrakalpa, who has gone forth to war and will be in difficulty. I will assist him, and subdue the mountaineers without living creatures being exposed to danger." So he summoned P?nchika, the commander-in-chief of the Yakshas, and said to him, "P?nchika, come here. Contrive so that the youth Sudhana may subdue the mountaineers without a battle being fought or injury being inflicted upon living creatures." The Yaksha commander-in-chief P?nchika listened to the orders of Vai?rava?a, and said, "I will act in accordance with your commands." Then he conjured up the four contingents of the divine host, men of the stature of palm trees, elephants of the size of mountains, horses as large as elephants, and chariots as bulky as the palace of the gods Vim?na. Together with his mighty host, spreading great alarm by means of all kinds of weapons, such as swords, mallets, javelins, lances, disks, maces, arrows, battle-axes, and so forth, and through the clang of all sorts of musical instruments, P?nchika moved onwards towards the mountaineers, whose walls gave way in consequence of the uproar made by the elephants, the horses, and the chariots, and of the clangings of all kinds, and of the power of the Yakshas. Seeing these hosts, and perceiving that their walls had given way, the mountaineers were greatly astonished, and asked the hosts whence they came. They replied, "Open the gates with all speed. The youth Sudhana is on the march behind us, and we are his army. If you do not open your gates with all speed, everything will be overthrown." The mountaineers said, "We did not rebel against the king. Moreover, the youth is judicious; but we have been reduced to fear and anxiety by the king's officials." Then they opened the gates, and went forth to meet the youth Sudhana, with banners and standards displayed, with full urns, and to the sound of all manner of instruments. After he had taken rest, he called them to him, nominated chiefs, fixed taxes, and took hostages. Then, having subdued the mountaineers, the youth Sudhana returned home.

That same night King Dhana dreamt this dream. A vulture came flying up, tore open the king's belly, seized his entrails, and wound them around the whole city. And the seven treasures came into the palace. Terrified by this dream, with creeping skin and unquiet mind, he rose swiftly from his couch, and sat down in his sleeping chamber, his head leaning on his hand, absorbed in meditation as to whether he was about to lose his sovereign power or whether he was about to die. In the morning he told his dream to the Purohita, who came to the conclusion that, as the king had dreamt such a dream, the youth must certainly have subdued the mountaineers, and that it was the Purohita's business to devise some means for his destruction, so he said to the king, "What your majesty has seen in this dream is not good. There is no doubt that either you will lose your sovereignty, or your life will be placed in danger. There is, however, a means of averting this evil. I have found it in the mystic lore of the Brahmans." "What is the means of averting it?" "Your majesty, let a tank be dug in the park, a man's height in depth, and let it be lined with mortar, and when all is smooth, let it be filled with the blood of young roes. Then, when you go there to bathe, you will enter the tank as far as the first step, and when you have descended to the first step you will go down to the second step, and after you have descended to the second step you will go on to the third step, and when you have descended to the third step you will go down to the fourth step. Then must four Brahmans, perfectly versed in the Veda and Ved?nga, lick your feet with their tongues, and anoint them with the fat of a non-human being . In this wise will all that is sinful in your nature become purified, and you will long retain your sovereignty." The king said, "All this may possibly be carried out, but yet demon-fat is very rare." The Purohita said, "Your majesty, is that a rarity which it is possible to find?" The king said, "What does that mean?" The Purohita said, "Your majesty, is Manohar? a human or a non-human being?" The king said, "O Purohita, speak not so; for the youth's life depends upon her." The Purohita said, "Your majesty, have you not heard that for the sake of the house should one of its inmates be given up, for the sake of the city should the house be given up, for the sake of the country should the city be given up, for the sake of one's own self should the country be given up? If you, O king, are firm, you can bestow another wife on the discerning youth, and cause Manohar? to be put to death."

As the king, out of self-love, did not wish any means to be neglected, he acquiesced and ordered the preparations to be made according to the Purohita's directions, the tank to be dug, lined with mortar and glazed, and filled with the blood of roes and so forth. When Sudhana's wives saw these preparations, cheerfulness and joy sprang up within them. "As we also," they said, "shall acquire exquisite beauty if we avail ourselves of this, we shall be able to partake of great enjoyment with the youth Sudhana." As they spoke joyfully to this effect, Manohar? saw them, and asked wherefore they were so delighted. One of them explained the whole matter to Manohar?. Thereupon pain and displeasure sprang up within her, and she betook herself to Sudhana's mother, and touched her feet, and told her the whole story in words provocative of sympathy. The queen said, "As these things are so, ponder over them well, and I will ponder over them also."

When Manohar? had reflected and spoken, and the queen also had considered the matter, and had decided that it was right so to do, she gave Manohar? the head-jewel and a garment, and said, "Child, I was to give you this jewel only if your life was in danger. In the present circumstances I shall be beyond reproach."

After a time, all things having been prepared for the bath according to the command of the king, he entered the blood-filled tank and came forth from it again, and then the Brahmans licked his feet with their tongues. When, subsequently to this, all things had been set in order for the bath according to the commands of the king, and he had entered the blood-filled tank and emerged from it again, then the tongues of the Brahmans licked his feet. After that the supernatural being was brought forward. When Manohar? was ordered to draw nearer, she immediately rose heavenwards, saying, "After being seized and bound, after having laughed and played, like a cow freed from its bonds, will I flee away." When the king saw her sweeping through the air, fear came upon him, and he said to the Purohita, "How comes it that the Kinnar? Manohar? has flown away before our preparations were carried into effect?" The Purohita said, "Your majesty, the end is now attained, and your nature is made free from sin."

While Manohar? was wending her way through the air she said to herself, "The directions of the Rishi were the cause of my passing into this condition. Had he not given these directions I should not have been captured. So I will go to him for awhile." On reaching the Rishi's hermitage she touched his feet and said, "Great Rishi, in consequence of your directions, I have been captured and exposed to the touch of man, and have nearly lost my life. Now then, if the youth Sudhana should happen to come here in search of me, give him my ring, and say to him these words: 'O youth, turn back again, for the way is full of woe and hard to tread. But if you cannot turn back, it is right to show you the way. Thus, O youth, does Manohar? point it out. In the north there are three black mountains. When these are surmounted, there rise three more. When these three have been surmounted, there rise three more again. And when these three also have been surmounted, there remains the prince of mountains, Himavant. On its north side are the mountains Utk?laka, Jalapatha, Khadiraka, Ekad?raka, Vajraka, K?mar?pin, K?laka, Air?vata, Adhov?na, and Pramuchapa. Over these mountains you must make your way. Traverse Khadiraka, Ekad?raka, and Utk?laka by the cavern. The king of the birds will carry you over Vajraka. In such a way will you traverse these mountains. You will overcome magic creatures, ram-like and goat-faced, and also a man having the form of the R?kshasa Pingal?. In the cavern is a huge snake, which rolls with the force of a foaming stream. This snake you must tame by force. When you see the black snake half coiling in the cavern, you must slay it, bending the bow and shooting the arrow. When you see two rams butting one another, break a horn off each of them, and you will find the way. If you see two iron men with fear-inspiring weapons, and you slay one of them, you will find the way. If you see an iron-lipped R?kshas? opening and shutting her mouth, you must fling a wedge at her forehead. Likewise must you spring across the fount with the wild whirlpool, which measures sixty fathoms. Bending your bow, you must slay Yakshas and R?kshasas with lion-yellow hair and eyes, difficult to resist and hard to approach. Many rivers, also, full of tens of thousands of alligators, must you cross. You will see the Crocodile, the Butterfly, the Sad, the Gay, the Weeper, the Laugher, a river full of snakes, and another full of reeds. In the Crocodile is R?kshas?-anger, in the Butterfly a demon, in the Sad are many water-monsters, in the Gay is a Vidy?dhara, in the Weeper is a Kinnar? serving-maid, in the Laugher is a Kinnar?, in the snake-filled river are many snakes, in the river rich in reeds is ??lmali . In the presence of the Crocodile you must stand firm, and be bold in that of the Butterfly. On reaching the Sad, you must bind the jaws of the water-monsters. With the Gay you will succeed by the help of some N?gas, with the Weeper by means of courage, with the Laugher by means of silence. The snake-filled river you must pass by means of snake-charms, and the reed-producing river by means of the charm of sharp weapons beaten together. Having crossed all the rivers, you will come to a wild country wherein five hundred Yakshas dwell. Opposing these, overcome them. Then will appear the capital of the Kinnar? king. To him address yourself.'" Having spoken these words to the Rishi, Manohar? touched his feet with her head and went away.

Share on: WhatsApp @Hash Facebook Tweet