Part 9
“Whilst they were conversing thus, evening came on. They gave him food to his mind, and he supped. It is a well known saying that enjoyment is of eight kinds,--1. Perfume; 2. Woman; 3. Apparel; 4. Song; 5. _Pan_; 6. Food; 7. The couch; 8. Ornaments. All these existed there. To be brief, when the first watch of the night was at hand (or, was nigh passed), he repaired to the nuptial chamber, and spent the whole night in pleasure and enjoyment with her. When it became morning, he went home, and she arose and came to her companions. Then one of them enquired, ‘Say! What pleasures did you enjoy with your love in the night?’ She replied, ‘When I went and sat near him, a kind of tremour made itself felt in my heart; (but) when he smiled and took hold of my hand, I was quite overcome, and no consciousness of what took place remained to me. And it is said that if a husband be--1. possessed of renown; 2. brave; 3. clever; 4. a chief; 5. liberal; 6. endowed with good qualities; 7. a protector of his wife,--such a man a wife never forgets even in the world to come, much less in this world.”
“The gist of the story is, that on that very night she conceived. When the full time came, a boy was born. On the sixth night, the mother saw in a vision an ascetic, with matted hair on his head, a shining moon on his forehead, ashes of burnt cow-dung rubbed over him, wearing a white Brahminical thread, seated on a white lotus, wearing a necklace of white snakes, with a string of skulls thrown round his neck, and with a skull in one hand and a trident in the other, thus assuming a most terrifying appearance, come before her, and begin to say, ‘To-morrow, at midnight, place a bag of one thousand gold-mohurs in a large basket, and enclosing this boy therein, leave it at the gate of the palace.’”
“As soon as she saw this, her eyes opened. And on its becoming morning, she told all the circumstances to her mother. When her mother heard this, she, on the following day, put the boy in a basket in the very manner directed, and left him at the king’s gate. Now, here (at the palace) the king saw an apparition with ten arms, five heads, each head having three eyes in it, and a moon upon it, very large teeth, a trident in his hand--a most terrifying form, which came before him and said, ‘O king! a basket is placed at thy door; bring away the child that is in it; he it is who will maintain thy dominion.’”
“As soon as the king heard this, his eyes opened. He then related the whole affair to the queen. After that, rising up thence, and coming to the door, he perceived the basket placed there. On the instant of opening the basket and peering into it, he beheld a boy and a bag of one thousand gold-mohurs in it. He took up the child himself, and told the door-keepers to bring in the bag. He then went into the female apartments, and placed the child on the queen’s lap.”
“By this time the day broke. The king came out, and summoning the sages and astrologers, questioned them, saying, ‘Tell me, what marks of royalty are perceptible in this child?’ Thereupon one of the sages, who was acquainted with the science of interpreting the spots on the human body, spoke, saying, ‘Your majesty! three marks are distinctly perceived on this child; 1. a broad chest; 2. a high forehead; 3. a large face; in addition to these, your majesty! the whole thirty-two marks which are assigned to man exist in this one. Have no apprehensions on his account; he will rule over the kingdom.’ On hearing this, the king was pleased, and taking off a chaplet of pearls from his own neck, presented it to that Brahman; and after giving large gifts to all the Brahmans, he bade them name the child. Then the sages said, ‘Your majesty! be pleased to sit down with the queen fastened to you; let her majesty sit with the child in her lap; and summon all the musicians, singers, and others employed on festive occasions, and cause rejoicings to take place; then will we give him a name after the manner prescribed by the sacred writings.’”
“When the monarch heard this, he ordered his minister to do whatever they bid him. The minister had rejoicings for the birth of the child forthwith proclaimed throughout the city. On hearing this, all the professional rejoicers were in attendance, and congratulatory songs rung forth from every home; festive music began to strike up in the king’s palace, and rejoicing to take place. Then the king and the queen, with the child in her lap, came and sat within a square filled with coloured meal, perfumes, and sweetmeats, and the Brahmans began reading the scriptures. An astrologer from among the Brahmans, having first determined the auspicious planetary conjunction and time, named the child Hardatti After that, he grew daily. At length, at the age of nine years, he finished the study of the six learned volumes, and fourteen sciences, and became a profound scholar. In the meantime, according to what was willed by God, it happened that his father and mother died. He ascended the throne, and began to govern justly.”
“After, several years, the king one day thought to himself, ‘What have I done for my parents in return for being born in their family? The saying is that,--Those who are compassionate, deal compassionately with all; they it is who are wise, and to them it is that Paradise is allotted. And the gifts, worship, religious penances, pilgrimages, and listening to the scriptures of those who are not pure of heart, is all in vain. And those who perform the funeral ceremonies and worship of the Manes without faith, and in pride, derive no advantage thereby, and so, their fathers go with their desires unfulfilled.’ Reflecting and pondering on this matter, the king decided that he ought now to perform the funeral ceremonies of his fathers. Thereupon King Hardatt proceeded to Gayã, and on arriving there, invoked the names of his fathers, and began offering oblations * to them on the bank of the River Phalgü, when the hands of all three ** came up out of the river. He was troubled in mind on seeing this, wondering to which of the hands he should give (the oblations), and to which not.”
* These oblations consist of balls (pind) or lumps of meat, or rice mixed up with milk, curds, flowers, &c.
** That is the thief’s, the Brahman’s who begat him, and the king’s who adopted him. The Hindus believe that when a son performs the ceremony in question, the father is permitted to come from the other world and receive the oblation.
Having reached this stage of the story, the sprite said, “O King Vikram! to which of the three was it right to give the oblations?” Then the king said, “To the thief.” The sprite said again, “For what reason?” Thereupon he (the king) said, “The seed of the Brahman had been bought; and the king took a thousand gold mohurs and brought up the boy; and therefore neither of these two had any right to the oblation.” On hearing these words, the sprite went again and hung on to that tree, and the king carried him away bound from thence.
TALE XIX.
The sprite said, “O king! there is a city named Chitraküt, the king of which was Rupdatt. One day he mounted his horse and went forth alone to hunt; and, having lost his way, got into a great forest. What does he see on going there but a large tank, in which lotuses were flowering, and various kinds of birds were sporting. On all four sides of the tank cool and perfume-laden breezes were blowing under the shade of the dense foliage of the trees. He, for his part, was overcome with the heat, (so) he tied his horse to a tree, and spread the saddle-cloth, and sat down. A half-hour or so had passed when the daughter of a holy sage, very beautiful, and in the prime of youth, came to gather flowers. Seeing her plucking the flowers, the king became deeply enamoured. When she was returning to her abode, after gathering the flowers, the king said, ‘What conduct is this of yours, for you not to attend to me when I have come as a guest to your abode?’”
“On hearing this she stood still again. Then the king said, ‘They say that if one of low caste come as a guest to the house of one of the highest caste, even he is entitled to respect; and whether he be a thief, or an outcast, or an enemy, or a parricide,--if such a one even comes to one’s house, it is right to show him honour; for a guest is more to be honoured than anyone else.’ When the king spoke thus, she stood still. Then, in truth, the two began to ogle one another. In the meantime the holy sage also came up. The king saluted the devotee on seeing him, and he (in return) blessed him, saying, ‘May you live long.’”
“Having said so much, he asked the king, ‘Why have you come here?’ He replied, ‘Your holiness I I have come a hunting.’ He said, ‘Why dost thou commit a great sin? It is said that one man commits a sin and many men reap the fruits thereof.’ The king said, ‘Your holiness! kindly favour me with your judgment of right and wrong.’ Thereupon the sage said, ‘Attend, your majesty! A great wrong is done in killing an animal that lives in the forest, supporting itself on grass * and water; and it is a very meritorious act in man to cherish beasts and birds. It is said, moreover, that those who render unapprehensive the timid and refuge-seeking, receive the reward of those who are most liberal givers. It is also said, that no religious austerity equals forbearance, and no happiness equals that of contentment, and no wealth equals friendship, and there is no virtue like mercy. Moreover, those men who are conscious of their duties, and show no pride on acquiring riches, accomplishments, learning, renown, or supremacy; and those who are content with their own wives, and are truth-speakers--such men obtain, final salvation hereafter. And those who kill ascetics with matted hair, and without clothes and arms, experience the torments of hell at the last. And the king who does not punish the oppressors of his subjects, he also experiences the torments of hell. And those who have carnal intercourse with a king’s wife, or the wife or daughter of a friend, or with a woman eight or nine months advanced in pregnancy--they are cast into the (lowest and) greatest hell of all. Thus is it declared in the book of law and religion.’”
* The text has tant by mistake, for trin.
“On hearing this, the monarch said, ‘The sins which I have heretofore committed in ignorance are done, and are beyond recall; henceforth, God willing, I will not commit such again.’ The holy sage was pleased at the king’s speaking thus, and said ‘I will grant thee any boon thou may’st ask for; I am highly pleased with thee.’ Then the king spoke, saying, ‘Your holiness! if you are pleased with me, give me your daughter.’ When the sage heard this, he married his daughter to the king, after the manner of Gandharb marriages, and departed to his own place. Then the king took the saint’s daughter and set out for his capital. On the road, about mid-way, the sun set and the moon rose. Then the king, seeing a shady tree, alighted beneath it, and tying the horse to its root, spread his saddle-covering and lay down along with her. Thereupon, at the hour of midnight, a Brahman-devouring demon came and awoke the king, saying, ‘O king! I will devour thy wife.’ The king said, ‘Act not so; whatever thou askest for, I will grant.’ Then the demon said, ‘O king! if thou wilt cut off the head of a Brahman’s son seven years’ old, and give it to me with thine own hand, I will not eat her.’ The king replied, ‘Even so will I do; but do thou come to me seven days hence in my capital, and I will give it thee.’”
“Having bound the king by a promise thus, the demon departed to his own place; and on the morn arriving, the king also left and came to his palace. The minister hearing of it (i e., the king’s arrival) made great rejoicings, and came and presented gifts; and the king, after telling the minister of the adventure (with the demon), asked, ‘Say, what expedient shall we adopt in the matter, for the demon will come on the seventh day?’ The minister said, ‘Your majesty! feel no anxiety whatever; God will make all right.’ After saying so much, the minister had an image made of a maund and a quarter of gold, and jewels studded therein, and having it placed on a cart, and (conveyed away, and) set up at a point where four roads met, he said to the keepers thereof, ‘If any persons come to look at this, say to them that any Brahman who will allow the king to cut off the head of a seven-year-old son of his may take possession of this.’ Having said this, he came away. Thereupon the keepers used to say this to those who came to look at it (the image).”
“Two days passed away without any result. On the third day, however, a weakly Brahman, who had three sons, hearing of this matter, came home and began saying to his wife, ‘If thou wilt give a son of thine to the king for a sacrifice, an image of a maund and a quarter of gold, and studded with jewels, will come into the house.’ On hearing this, his wife said, ‘I will not give the youngest son.’ The Brahman said, ‘The eldest I will not part with.’ When the second son heard this, he said, ‘Father! give me up.’ He replied, ‘Very well.’ Then the Brahman spoke again, saying, ‘Wealth it is which is the source of all happiness in this world. Now, what happiness can reach him who lacks wealth? and if one be poor, his coming into the world is useless.’”
“Having said this, he took the second son, and gave him up to the guards, and brought away the image to his house; and the people, for their part, took the boy to the minister. Further, when seven days passed away, the demon, too, came. The king took sandal, unbroken rice, flowers, perfumes, lamps, food for the deity, fruits and betel-leaf, and paid adoration to him; and, summoning the boy, took his sword in his hand, and stood ready to sacrifice him. Thereupon the boy first laughed, and then wept. While he was doing this, the king struck him a blow with the sword, so that his head was severed (from his body). True it is, as the sages have said,--Woman is the source (_lit_. mine) of misery in the world, the abode of imprudence * (or immorality), the destroyer of courage (or daring), and the occasioner of infatuation, (and) the bereaver of virtue. Who has pronounced such a source (_lit_, root) of venom to be the highest good? Again, it is said,--Store up wealth against adversity, and disburse wealth to guard your wife, and give up wealth and wife to save your own life.”
* The only meanings assigned to binti in the vocabulary are, “submission,” “respects,” “solicitation,” none of which seem to apply here. Deriving the word from the Sanskrit vi-nïti, I prefer giving it the signification I have done.
Having related so much of the story, the sprite said, “Your majesty! a man weeps at the moment of dying; will you account for this,--Why did he (the boy) laugh?” The monarch replied, “He laughed at the thought of this,--viz., That in infancy a mother protects (her child), and on his growing up the father cherishes him; (and) in both good and bad times a king befriends his subjects,--Such is the way of the world; whereas, my predicament is such that my father and mother have delivered me over to the king through greed of wealth, and he stands, sword in hand, ready to slay me, and the demon desires a sacrifice; no single one of them feels (a spark of) pity.” On hearing this, the sprite went and hung on to that same tree; and the king also speedily arrived there, and binding him, placed him on his shoulder, and carried him off.
TALE XX.
The sprite said, “O king! there is a city named Bishalpur, the king of which was named Bipuleshwar. In his city lived a merchant whose name was Arthdatt, and his daughter’s name was Anaug-manjari. He had married her to a merchant of Kanwalpur, named Munni. Some days after, the merchant crossed the ocean on a mercantile venture; and when she attained to womanhood here (at home), she was standing one day in the pavilion, and observing what was going on in the road, when at that moment a Brahman’s son named Kamalãkar was coming along. The eyes of the pair met, and they became enamoured of each other at first sight. Again, after a quarter of an hour or so, recovering self-possession, the Brahman’s son, in the restlessness consequent on separation from his beloved, proceeded to the house of his friend; and here she, too, was in extreme distress through the pain of separation from him, when, in the meantime, a female companion came and took her up; she had, however, no self-consciousness remaining. Then she (the companion) sprinkled rose-water (over her) and made her smell perfumes, and while so doing, her senses returned, and she said, ‘O Cupid! Mahãdeva burnt thee to ashes, * and yet thou wilt not desist from thy knavish tricks, but comest and inflictest pain on innocent, feeble women.’”
* Mahãdeva, or hiva, was once engaged in religious meditation, when Kamdeva, or Cupid, excited amorous desires within his breast; whereupon the angry god reduced him to ashes by a fiery glance. The curious reader will find a detailed account of the circumstance in the fifty-sixth Chapter of the Prem Sagar.
“She was uttering these words, when evening came on, and the moon appeared. Then she said, while gazing at the moonlight, ‘O moon! I used to be told that the water of life is in you, and that you shed it in your beams; to-day, however, even you have begun to pour down venom.’ She then said to her companion, ‘Take me up, and lead me away from this place, for I am being burnt to death by the moonlight.’ Thereupon she raised her and took her to the pavilion, and said, ‘Dost thou feel no shame at uttering such words?’ Then she said, ‘O friend! I am fully aware of all; but Cupid has wounded me, and rendered me void of shame; and I make great efforts to be patient, but the more I continue to be consumed with the fire of separation, the more venom-like does home appear to me.’ The companion said, ‘Keep thy mind at ease; I will relieve thee of all thy suffering.’”
“Having said thus much, the companion went home, and she (the love-lorn) determined in her mind that she would quit this body for his sake, and, being born again, enjoy life well with him. With this longing in her mind, she threw a noose on her neck, and was about drawing it tight, when the companion arrived, and instantly taking the rope off her neck, said, ‘Everything can be attained by living, not by dying.’ She replied, ‘Better is it to die than suffer such pain.’ The companion said, ‘Repose awhile, and I will go and bring him.’”
“Having said this, she went to the place where Kamalãkar was, and taking a secret look at him, perceived that he also was much disturbed by the separation from his beloved, while his friend was rubbing down sandal in rose water and applying it to his body, and fanning him with tender leaves of the plantain-tree; despite which, he was crying out all aflame (with passion) and saying to his friend, ‘Bring me poison, I will sacrifice my life and be released from this suffering. Observing this state of his, she said to herself, ‘However courageous, learned, sagacious, discreet, and patient a man may be, Cupid reduces him to a state of distraction all the same.’ These thoughts having passed through her mind, the companion said to him, ‘O Kamalãkar! Anangmanjari has sent word to thee to come and bestow life on her.’ He replied, ‘She, indeed, has given life to me.’”
“After saying this, he rose up, and the companion went to her (the love-sick maiden), taking him along with her. When he got there, lo! she was lying dead! Thereupon he also uttered a cry of anguish, and therewith his spirit fled. And when it became morning, her household took both of them to the burning-ground, and arranging the pile, placed them thereon and set fire to it, when, in the meantime, her husband also arrived at the burning-ground, on his return from abroad. Then, hearing the sound of the people’s weeping, he went there, and what does he behold but his wife burning with a strange man! He, also, being distracted with love, burnt himself ta death in the same fire. The people of the city, hearing this intelligence, began saying one to another, ‘Neither has eye seen, nor ear heard of so wonderful an event!’”
After relating so much of the story, the sprite said, “O king! whose love, of these three, was greatest?” The king said, “Her husband was the deepest lover.”
“Why?” said the sprite. The king replied, “He, who, on seeing his wife dead for another’s sake, put aside anger, and cheerfully laid down his life through love for her--he is the deepest lover.” Hearing these words, the sprite went again and hung on to that tree. The king, too, went there, bound him, placed him on his shoulder, and carried him off.
TALE XXI.
The sprite said, “Your majesty! there is a city named Jaysthal, the king of which was named Varddhamãn. In his city was a Brahman named Vishnuswami, who had four sons; one a gambler, the second a lover of women, the third a fornicator, the fourth an atheist. The Brahman was one day admonishing his sons, saying, ‘Wealth abides not in the house of him who gambles.’ The gambler became greatly annoyed at hearing this. And he (the father) spoke again, saying, ‘It is said in the Rãjnit (or book of policy), Cut off the nose and ears of a gambler, and expel him from the land, so that others may not gamble; and although the gambler may have a wife and family in his house, do not consider them as in the house, for there’s no knowing when he may lose them (at play). Again, those who are attracted by the wiles of courtesans purchase suffering for their own souls, while they part with their all under the influence of harlots, and take to stealing in the end. It is said, further, that wise men keep far away from such women as ensnare their hearts in a moment; whereas the unwise give up their hearts, and so lose all their honesty, good disposition, reputation, conduct, judgment, piety, and moral character. Moreover, the exhortation of their spiritual preceptors is unpalatable to them. It is also said that--When one has lost his own sense of shame, why should he fear to dishonour any one else? And there is a proverb to the effect that--When will the cat that devours its own young allow a rat to escape!’ He went on to say, ‘Those who do not acquire knowledge in their childhood, and who on attaining to manhood become engrossed in amorous pleasures, and continue to pride themselves on their youth,--those persons, in their old age, are consumed with regretful longings (for that which they have neglected in their youth).’”
“On hearing these words, all four of them came mutually to the decision that it was better for an ignorant man to die than live; and hence, it was best for them to visit some other land and study science. Determining on this, they went to another city, and after some time, having studied and become learned, they set out for their home. What do they see on the road but a Kanjar, * who, after skinning and cutting up a dead tiger, and making a bundle of its bones, was about to take them away. Thereupon they said to one another, ‘Come, let each of us put his knowledge to the proof.’ Having determined on this, one of them called him (the Kanjar) and gave him something, and taking the bundle, sent him away; and, quitting the road, they opened the bundle. One of them arranged all the bones in their proper places, repeated an incantation and sprinkled something over them, so that they became united. In the same way the second brought the flesh together on the bones. The third, in the same manner, fixed the skin on the flesh. The fourth, in the same way, raised it to life. Thereupon it devoured the whole four of them as soon as it arose.”