My Lord, having the same object as your other friends, I wandered
about over various countries in search of you. In the course of my
travels, I arrived one day at the sacred city of Benâres. There I
bathed in the pure crystal water of the river; and duly worshipped the
mighty god, the slayer of Andhaka, at his temple outside the city.
After finishing my devotions, I was going on my way, when I saw a
tall, stout man, carrying an iron club, with his eyes red and swelled
from weeping, and engaged in making a noose with his sash.
I thought to myself: "This man has fallen into some great calamity.
He is thinking of doing violence to himself or to others. I will see
if I can assist him." I therefore went up to him, and said: "This
conduct of yours seems to indicate some rash purpose. May I know the
cause of your grief? Perhaps I may be able to help you."
He hesitated for a moment, and looked very hard at me; but at last he
said: "What harm can there be in telling you? You shall know my
troubles, if you wish to learn them."
Then we sat down together under a shady tree, and he began his tale as
follows: "O, fortunate sir, I was once as happy as you appear to be.
My father was in good circumstances, and brought me up carefully; but
I preferred a wild, dissipated life, and at last became a robber. One
night I broke into the house of a rich man in this city, was caught
in the act, and condemned to death.
"My hands were fettered by being passed through holes in a heavy piece
of wood; and in this state I was led out for execution into a public
square, where a furious elephant was brought forward to trample me to
death. When he came near me, I shouted as loudly as possible, in order
to frighten him; and lifting up my arms, gave him a violent blow on
the trunk. Upon this, he turned away; and as I continued to shout out
and abuse him, all the efforts of the driver to make him attack me
were in vain.
"Again and again, with much difficulty, the driver brought him in
front of me; but each time, instead of attacking me, he turned back,
alarmed by my menacing appearance and loud shouts; and at last ran
right away, leaving me uninjured.
"The courage which I had shown was observed by the king's chief
minister, Kâmapâla, who was looking on from one of the towers of the
palace; and he sent for me, and said: 'You seem to be a very strong,
brave man. I did not think that elephant could have been so cowed by
any one. It is a pity that such qualities should not be better
employed. Are you willing, if you are pardoned, to forsake your evil
ways, and lead an honest life? If you will give me a promise to this
effect, I will take you into my service.'
"I gladly gave the promise which he required; and he obtained my
pardon, and became my protector and master; and I have served him
faithfully ever since. After some years, seeing my devotion to him, he
placed great confidence in me, and one day told me his own history.
"'There was,' said he, 'formerly at Pushpapuri a very learned and
pious man, named Dharmapâla, one of the king's ministers. His eldest
son was like him; but I, the youngest, was of a very different
disposition. I had no inclination for work or study; but thought only
of amusement, and spent my time among gamblers and disreputable
characters. My father and brother did all they could to restrain me;
but, impatient of their control, I left my home and friends, and
wandered about the world. One day I came to this city, Benâres, and
not long after my arrival, I made acquaintance with the king's
daughter, who, with her female friends, was playing at ball in a park
outside the town. We fell in love with each other; and I contrived, by
disguising myself as a woman, to enter her private apartments and to
have many secret meetings with her; the result of which was the birth
of a child.
"'The devoted attendants kept the whole affair secret, removed the
infant as soon as it was born, and telling the mother it was dead,
gave it to a savari woman, who carried it to the public cemetery and
left it there.
"'As she was returning; she was stopped by the watchmen, and in her
fright told them what she had done. Information was given to the king,
and further inquiry being made, my offence was discovered, and one
night I was arrested, while quietly sleeping unsuspicious of danger.
Being condemned to death, I was led to execution outside the city. By
a fortunate chance I got my hands free, and snatching the sword from
the executioner, laid about me so vigorously that all the men fell
back, and I made my escape to the forest. There I wandered about for
some time, subsisting on wild fruits and roots, and sleeping in the
trees.
"'While living this precarious life, I was one day astonished at
meeting a young lady, with many female attendants. She addressed me by
my name, and desired me to sit down with her, under a large tree.
"'When, with much surprise, I asked who she was, and how she came to
be in that wild forest, with such a retinue, and why I was so favoured
by her, she told me the reason of her coming, saying: My name is
Târâvali. I am the daughter of a chief Yaksha. A short time ago I
went to visit a friend, living on the Malaya Mountains, and while
flying through the air on my return, as I passed over the cemetery of
Benâres, I heard the cry of a child.
"'Moved with compassion, I alighted on the ground, took it up and
carried it to my father. He took it to our master, the god Kuvera, who
sent for me, and asked, "What induced you to bring this child?" "A
strong feeling of compassion," I answered, as if it had been my own.
"'You are right,' he replied; 'there is good reason for what you have
done;' and he showed me how, in a former existence, when you were
Sudraka and I Aryadâsi, the child, now born of the Princess Kantimati,
was ours; therefore, I am really your wife, and it was indeed a
maternal instinct which prompted me to save the infant. Kuvera,
however, would not allow me to keep the boy, but ordered me to take
him to the Queen Vasumati, that he might be brought up together with
her son, who will one day become a great monarch.
"Having performed the command of the god, I am permitted by him to
find you out, and relieve you from your present distress."
"So saying, she embraced me, and afterwards took me to a fairy palace
in the forest, furnished with all comforts and luxuries, where I
passed some time with her in great happiness.
"One day, when she was expressing her great love for me, I said: 'I
have a strong desire to take some vengeance on the king who would have
put me to death.' Upon which, with a smile, she said, 'Ah! you wish
to see Kantimati; I am not jealous, I will take you to her.'
"Then lifting me up, she bore me through the air to the palace, and
without disturbing the guards, placed me at the bedside of the king.
"Grasping a sword lying near him, I awakened him, and said: 'I am,
your son-in-law; I took your daughter without your consent, and am now
come to make submission and atone for my fault."
"Seeing the drawn sword held over him he was much alarmed, and said:
'I must have been mad to act as I did and reject such a son-in-law; I
will now acknowledge you, and you shall duly marry my daughter.'
"He kept his word, the next day announced the intended marriage to all
the court, and shortly afterwards publicly gave me his daughter.
"Târâvali remained with me, became great friends with her fellow-wife,
told her the story which she had related to me, and how her son had
been preserved and was taken care of by Queen Vasumati.
"Thus I have for some years lived happily, holding, as you know, a
very important office."
[End of the story of Kâmapâla as told to his servant.]
* * * * *
"Some time after this, the death of the old king occurred, and as the
eldest son had died during his father's lifetime, of consumption
brought on by dissipation and debauchery; my master, together with the
other ministers, placed Sinhaghosha, a boy about five years old, on
the throne, and had him carefully educated.
"As the young king grew older, he was surrounded by companions nearer
his own age, and they not liking the restraint put upon them by the
wise and prudent Kâmapâla, endeavoured secretly to excite a prejudice
against him, saying, 'This fellow, who sets himself up to be so wise
and virtuous, is a wicked wretch, who first seduced the princess, and
then, having escaped the death he so well deserved, managed to get to
the bedside of the sleeping king, and to frighten him into compliance
with his demands. This Kâmapâla intends to make himself king; he
poisoned your eldest brother, and only spared you in order to obtain
the support of the people, knowing that the real power would remain in
his own hands. Depend on it you will not be suffered to live when you
are old enough to shake off his authority. If you wish to be safe you
should get rid of him at once.'
"With these, and other similar speeches, they so prejudiced the young
king against his guardian and minister, that he would gladly have got
rid of him at once, but was deterred by fear of the power of his
Yaksha wife.
"One day the queen, seeing the Princess Kantimati very sad, asked her
the reason of her sadness, saying, 'Tell me the truth; you cannot
deceive me; what is the cause of this depression?' 'Did I ever deceive
you?' she answered; 'my friend and fellow-wife, Târâvali, has taken
offence at something done or said by our husband, and though we tried
to soothe her, she went away, and has not returned; this is the cause
of my distress.'
"The queen hearing this, immediately told her husband, 'Kâmapâla has
quarrelled with his fairy wife, and she has left him. There is nothing
now to prevent your proceeding against him as you please.'
"Sinhaghosha, longing to be freed from restraint, caused his minister
to be arrested, when he came the next day to the palace, as usual,
unsuspicious of danger. This very day he will be led round the city,
be proclaimed a traitor, and have his eyes put out.
"I, having lost my only friend and protector, have no wish to live,
and was fastening my sash to hang myself, when you interrupted me."
When Purnabhadra had finished this story, I said to him, "I am that
child who was exposed in the cemetery, and saved by the fairy. My
coming here is indeed opportune, and with your assistance I will
engage to deliver my father. I would boldly attack the guards as they
lead him round the city, but fear, lest in the confusion he might be
killed, when all my exertions would have been in vain; some other plan
must therefore be thought of."
While I was thus speaking to him a serpent put out his head from a
hole near me, and, knowing how to charm serpents, I made it come
forth, and secured it.
Then I said to Purnabhadra: "O friend, this is just what I wanted. I
will mix with the crowd when my father is led round, let this serpent
fall on him as if by chance, and then run up to him and say that I am
skilled in charms, and can save his life. No doubt they will allow me
to try, and I will stop the effect of the poison in such a manner that
he will not die, and yet remain insensible, as if dead. Meanwhile, do
you go to my mother, ask to see her in private, and tell her that the
son whom she had lost is now here. Explain to her my plan for saving
my father, and say that when she hears of the death of her husband,
she must go to the king as if in the greatest grief, and ask for
permission to burn herself together with the dead body. When this
request is granted, as no doubt it will be, she must prepare the
funeral pile, and make ready for self-immolation, laying the
apparently dead body on a couch in a private room till I come, when I
will tell her what is further to be done."
Purnabhadra, delighted with the plan which I proposed, no longer
wished to destroy himself. He set out at once to do as I had directed
him, and I went immediately into the city. There I saw great crowds
already collected, and ascertained where the executioner would stand
when the proclamation was made.
Overhanging the place, there happened to be a large tree, with thick
foliage. Into this I climbed, and waited patiently, listening to the
talk of the people collected underneath.
Presently the executioner and his men came, bringing the prisoner, and
the proclamation was made three times.
"Know all men that this traitor, Kâmapâla, has not only poisoned the
late king and his eldest son, but has been convicted of plotting
against the life of his present majesty; he endeavoured to persuade
two of the king's faithful attendants to administer poison, but they
have given information, and his life is justly forfeited; the king,
however, in consideration of his being a brahman, and nearly
connected with himself, has spared his life, and only sentenced him to
have his eyes put out. Let all evil-doers take warning by his
punishment."
While this proclamation was being read, I climbed to a branch of the
tree just over my father, and dropped on him the poisonous serpent,
which immediately bit him. In the confusion which ensued, I slipped
down from the tree, and, having mixed with the crowd, managed, while
shouting out "This is a just punishment from heaven; so may all
traitors perish," to get close to my father, and quickly applied a
charm in such a manner that, though he fell down apparently dead, the
effect of the poison was stopped. The executioner being also bitten;
and his assistants, as well as the crowd of spectators, being alarmed
and dispersed from dread of the poisonous serpent; this act of mine
was not noticed.
Meanwhile, my mother, who had been prepared by Purnabhadra to hear of
her husband's death, went immediately to the king, attended by a large
number of friends, and said; "The gods know if my husband was your
enemy or not; I will not now attempt to defend him; but, whether he
was innocent or guilty, your anger should cease now he is dead. I pray
you to allow me to burn his body, and according to the custom of
widows of my rank, to ascend the funeral pile together with him. Were
I not to perform this duty, disgrace would fall on you and on the
whole family, as well as on myself."
The king, well pleased to have got rid of the obnoxious minister,
without incurring the sin of killing him, exclaimed: "This death is
indeed the act of fate!" And, immediately granting her request,
permitted the body of Kâmapâla to be taken to his own house, where I
had by that time arrived, and was ready to receive it.
Meanwhile, my mother prepared for death, and, resisting all the
entreaties of her friends and servants, expressed her determination to
be burnt together with her husband.
When everything for the funeral was arranged, she came into the
private room, where the body had been laid, and there saw her husband
fully recovered, and me sitting by him. Great was her delight and
astonishment at this wonderful and sudden change; and having first
embraced her husband, she threw her arms round me, and, with a voice
broken by sobs of joy, said: "O, my darling son, how can I deserve
such happiness?--I, who so cruelly abandoned you at your birth, and
suffered you to be taken away, as if dead? but your father was not to
blame for that; he, indeed, deserves to have been restored to life by
you, and to have the happiness of seeing you. Cruel, indeed, was
Târâvali, who, when she had received you again from Kuvera, did not
bring you at once to me; but what could I expect from her? It is
through her unkindness in leaving us that all this misfortune has
happened; but I must not complain; I was not worthy, without previous
suffering, to enjoy such great happiness. Come and embrace me."
Saying this, she again threw her arms round me, and kissed me
repeatedly, trembling with emotion, and shedding many tears of joy.
My father's feelings were scarcely less excited. He seemed to have
risen from the lowest depth of misery to the summit of felicity, and
esteemed himself more fortunate than even Indra the King of the Gods.
When we were all somewhat calmed, and I had explained to my father all
that had occurred, I said: "There is much yet to be done; the king
will soon find out the deception which has been practised, and send to
arrest you again; so we must consider how we can defend ourselves."
My father answered: "This house is a very large one; the walls are
strong; there are many secret passages; I have a great store of
weapons; my servants are brave and faithful, so that we could hold out
for several days. Besides this I have many friends in the city; most
of the authorities will favour me; many of the soldiers will be on my
side, and there are many persons discontented and ready to rebel
against the king. Therefore, if we act prudently, we shall have much
assistance, and be able to cut off that tyrant."
With this I entirely agreed, and we prepared for defence. As I had
expected, the king, finding how he had been deceived, sent soldiers to
take us; but, though they made many attempts, we drove them back day
after day, with very small loss to ourselves.
Meanwhile, fearing lest we should at last be overpowered, if something
more were not done, I determined, if possible, to seize the person of
the king; and, as my father's house was not far from the palace, I
began to make an underground passage inside, in order to reach his
sleeping-room, the exact position of which I had learnt from my
father. After digging for some distance, I came, to my great
astonishment, into a large, lofty, well-lighted room, occupied by a
number of women, among whom was a young lady of surpassing beauty,
resembling the wife of Kâma, or the tutelary goddess of the city, who
had hidden herself here to avoid the sight of so much wickedness
above.
The women were equally astonished at seeing me, and ran away, alarmed,
into other adjoining rooms. One old woman, however, remained behind,
and, falling at my feet, said "Have pity on us poor helpless women;
surely thou art a god, for no mortal could have thus found his way
hither. O tell us why thou art come."
"Calm yourself," I answered, "You have nothing to fear from me. I am
Arthapâla, the son of the minister Kâmapâla and the Princess
Kantimati, and have come thus unexpectedly on you while making an
underground passage from my father's house to the palace; but tell me
who you all are, and how you come to be living here."
"O prince," she answered, "I had heard of your birth, but not of your
preservation, and happy am I now to see you. Know that the young lady
whom you have just seen is the granddaughter of your maternal
grandfather, Chandasinha. The eldest son of that king died before his
father, leaving his wife pregnant, and she lost her life in giving
birth to this daughter, who was committed to my care. One day the king
sent for me, and said: 'I intend this child when grown up to be given
in marriage to Darpasâra, son of the King of Mâlwa; and, remembering
the misconduct of her aunt, I am determined that nothing of the kind
shall happen with her. I have therefore caused a spacious palace to be
made underground, and have furnished it with provisions and all other
necessaries for even a hundred years. I have great confidence in you;
you will therefore go down into this subterranean dwelling, taking
with you the princess and such attendants as you may think desirable,
and will remain there until she is grown up, when I shall fetch you
from below, and give her in marriage as I have intended.' So saying,
he lifted up a small trap-door in the court-yard close to his own
apartment, and showed me the steps leading to this place. The next day
we all came down, and have remained here ever since. Twelve years have
now passed, and the king seems to have forgotten us. I must tell you
also that the princess, though destined by her grandfather for
Darpasâra, was originally intended for you; for her mother, while the
child was as yet unborn, promised that her daughter should become the
wife of the son of Kantimati if he should ever return. Look on her,
therefore, as your intended, and do what is best for us."
Having received this account from the old woman, I told her to have no
fear on the princess's account, but to trust entirely in me, and that
I would soon liberate them from their long and tedious imprisonment.
She then took a lamp and showed me the steps leading to the trap-door,
which I forced open, and soon found my way into the king's bed-room.
There, before he was sufficiently awake to call for help, I seized,
gagged, and bound him, and dragging him along, as an ichneumon drags a
serpent, past the astonished women and through the tunnel which I had
made, I brought him, trembling with fear and bowed down by shame, to
my father's house, and showed him to my parents, telling them how I
had captured him, and how I had discovered the princess in the
subterranean palace.
When the seizure of the king was known, those who were previously
well-disposed to my father immediately joined us, and all opposition
ceased.
Soon afterwards I married the princess, who looked on me as her
deliverer from the dungeon; Sinhaghosha was deposed; and I, having
double claim to the throne, was acknowledged king in his stead.
Hearing that the King of Anga, a devoted friend of your father, was at
war, and attacked by a strong enemy, we have marched hither with an
army to his assistance, and I have had the pleasure of helping to
deliver him from his enemies, and the still greater happiness of
meeting with you. I now beg of you to decide what shall be done with
the deposed king, our prisoner, whom we have brought with us. My
mother is very anxious to liberate him, but hitherto it has not been
thought safe to do so.
The prince answered: "Let that unworthy young man be freed, on
condition of giving up all claim to the throne and leading a private
life; and let him devote himself to pious meditation, which is the
purifier of evil deeds." Then turning with a kind look to Pramati, he
said: "Do you now relate your adventures," with which request he at
once complied:--
* * * * *