_The Three Lovers who brought the Dead Girl to Life. Whose wife should
she be?_
Then King Triple-victory went back under the sissoo tree to fetch the
goblin. And when he got there and looked about, he saw the goblin
fallen on the ground and moaning. Then, when the king put the body with
the goblin in it on his shoulder and started to carry him off quickly
and silently, the goblin on his shoulder said to him: "O King, you have
fallen into a very disagreeable task which you do not deserve. So to
amuse you I will tell another story. Listen."
* * * * *
On the bank of the Kalindi River is a farm where a very learned Brahman
lived. And he had a very beautiful daughter named Coral. When the
Creator fashioned her fresh and peerless loveliness, surely he must
have despised the cleverness he showed before in fashioning the nymphs
of heaven.
When she had grown out of childhood, there came from the city of Kanauj
three Brahman youths, endowed with all the virtues. And each of them
asked her father for her, that she might be his own. And though her
father would rather have died than give her up to anyone, he made up
his mind to give her to one of them. But the girl would not marry
any one of them for some time, because she was afraid of hurting the
feelings of the other two. So they stayed there all three of them day
and night, feasting on the beauty of her face, like the birds that live
on moonbeams.
Then all at once Coral fell sick of a burning fever and died. And when
the Brahman youths saw that she was dead, they were smitten with grief.
But they adorned her body, took it to the cemetery, and burned it.
And one of them built a hut there, slept on a bed made of her ashes,
and got his food by begging. The second took her bones and went to
dip them in the sacred Ganges river. And the third became a monk and
wandered in other countries.
And as he wandered, the monk came to a village called Thunderbolt,
and was entertained in the house of a Brahman. But when he had been
honoured by the master of the house and had begun to eat dinner there,
the little boy began to cry and would not stop even when they petted
him. So his mother took him on her arm, and angrily threw him into the
blazing fire. And being tender, he was reduced to ashes in a moment.
When the monk saw this, his hair stood on end, and he said: "Alas! I
have come into the house of a devil. I will not eat this food. It would
be like eating sin." But the master of the house said to him: "Brahman,
I have studied to good purpose. See my skill in bringing the dead
to life." So he opened a book, took out a magic spell, read it, and
sprinkled water on the ashes. And the moment the water was sprinkled,
the boy stood up alive just as before. Then the monk was highly
delighted and finished his dinner with pleasure.
And the master of the house hung the book on an ivory peg, took dinner
with the monk, and went to bed. When he was asleep, the monk got up
quietly, and tremblingly took the book, hoping to bring his darling
Coral back to life. He went away and travelled night and day, until he
finally reached the cemetery. And he caught sight of the second youth,
who had come back after dipping the bones in the Ganges. And he also
found the third youth, who had made a hut and lived there, sleeping on
the girl's ashes.
Then the monk cried: "Brother, leave your hut. I will bring the dear
girl back to life." And while they eagerly questioned him, he opened
the book, and read the magic spell, and sprinkled holy water on the
ashes. And Coral immediately stood up, alive. And the girl was more
beautiful than ever. She looked as if she were made of gold.
When the three youths saw her come back to life like that, they went
mad with love, and fought with one another to possess her.