"The rippling wave is like her frown; the row of tossing birds her
girdle; streaks of foam, her fluttering garment as she speeds along; the
current, her devious and stumbling gait. It is she turned in her wrath
into a stream."
At last the king finds a gem of ruddy radiance. He holds it in his
hands, and embraces the vine which is now transformed into Urvasi. Thus
is she restored to her proper form, through the mighty spell of the
magical gem. The efficacious gem is placed on her forehead. The king
recovers his reason. They are thus happily re-united and return to
Allahabad.
Several years elapse. An unlucky incident now comes to pass. A hawk
bears away the ruby of re-union. Orders are sent to shoot the bird, and,
after a short while, a forester brings the jewel and the arrow by which
the hawk was killed. An inscription on the shaft shows that its owner is
Ayus. A female ascetic enters, leading a boy with a bow in hand.
The boy is Ayus, the son of Urvasi, whom his mother confided to the
female ascetic who generously brought him up in the forest and now;
sends him back to his mother. The king who was not aware that Urvasi
had ever borne him a son, now recognises Ayus as his son. Urvasi also
comes to embrace her boy. She now suddenly bursts into tears and tells
the king:--
"Indra decreed that I am to be recalled to heaven when you see our son.
This induced me to conceal from you so long the birth of the child. Now
that you have accidentally seen the child, I shall have to return to
heaven, in compliance with the decree of Indra."
She now prepares to leave her husband after she has seen her boy
installed as associate king. So preparations are made for the
inauguration ceremony when Narada the messenger of Indra, comes to
announce that the god has compassionately revoked the decree. The nymph
is thus permitted to remain on earth for good as the hero's second wife.
Nymphs descend from heaven with a golden vase containing the water of
the heavenly Ganges, a throne, and other paraphernalia, which they
arrange. The prince is inaugurated as Yuvaraj. All now go together to
pay their homage to the queen, who had so generously resigned her rights
in favour of Urvasi.