"The fate that causes, may remove our sorrows."
A cry is now heard from behind that the inner apartments are on fire.
The king starts up wildly and exclaims, "Vasavadatta burnt to death! my
queen, my love!"
The queen exclaims, "What extravagance is this--behold me at your side.
But ah! help, help, my lord. I think not of myself but poor Sagarika.
She is in bonds; my cruelty has kept her captive--and she will be lost
without some aid--haste, haste and save her!" The king flies to her
rescue, precipitates himself into the flames and takes her in his arms.
He pauses--looks around--closes his eyes, and reopens them. The flames
disappear. The palace stands unharmed. The king observes, "This must
have been a dream, or is it magic?" Vasantaka replies, "The latter, no
doubt; did not that conjuring son of a slave say, he had still something
for your Majesty to see?"
The king says to the queen,
"Here, madam, is Sagarika rescued in obedience to your commands." The
queen smiling replies, "I am sensible of your obedience, my lord." She
now informs all present, "Yaugandharayana presented her to me, and told
me she had been rescued from the sea: it was hence we designated her
Sagarika or the ocean Maid." The likeness--the necklace--the recovery of
the damsel from the sea--leave no doubt in the mind of Vasubhuti that
this is the daughter of the king of Simhala, Ratnavali. Vasubhuti
advances to her who looks at him. They recognize each other and both
faint. After some time they recover. As Ratnavali goes to embrace the
queen at her invitation, she stumbles. At the request of the queen who
blushes for her cruelty, the king takes the chains off Ratnavali's feet.
Yaugandharayana now explains his conduct thus, "It was formerly
announced to us by a holy seer, that the husband of the princess of
Simhala should become the emperor of the world. We therefore earnestly
applied to her father to give her hand to our sovereign; but unwilling
to be cause of uneasiness to the queen, the monarch of Simhala declined
compliance with our request: we therefore raised a report that
Vasavadatta had perished by a fire at Lavanaka, and Babhravya was
despatched with the news to the court of Simhala. Vikrambahu then
consented to our proposal and sent his daughter on board a ship
accompanied by Vasubhuti and Babhravya. The ship was wrecked. The
princess was rescued from the sea by a merchant who brought her to me. I
placed her with the queen in a very unsuitable station as I expected you
would see her in the inner apartments, and take pleasure in her sight. I
had some concern in the appearance of the magician who had conjured up a
vision of the gods and a conflagration, as no other means remained of
restoring the damsel to your presence and creating an opportunity for
Vasubhuti to see and recognise the princess." The queen now puts on
Ratnavali her own jewels, then takes her by the hand and presents her to
the king. Ratnavali bows to the queen who embraces her. The king
observes, "My cares are all rewarded. Nothing more is necessary,
Vikrambahu is my kinsman, Sagarika, the essence of the world, the source
of universal victory, is mine, and Vasavadatta rejoices to obtain a
sister. The _Kosalas_ are subdued: what other object does the world
present for which I could entertain a wish? This be alone my prayer; may
Indra with seasonable showers render the earth bountiful of grain; may
the presiding Brahmans secure the favour of the gods by acceptable
sacrifices; may the association of the pious confer delight until the
end of time, and may the appalling blasphemies of the profane be
silenced for ever."