IX

And the elephant said: Pippala, when I ended, all at once that lady of

the steady eyes laughed as it were in my very face. And while I stood

confounded and astounded by her laughter, which poured from her like a

stream, she broke off abruptly, and she said: O King Ruru, I

congratulate thee from my heart on thy extraordinary talent for deceit.

And I waited, just to hear what further artifice thou hadst concocted,

in order to beguile me. And I admire thy roguery, and as I think, King

Bhartrihari[12] was but a novice in comparison with thee, such a master

art thou of thy trade, and all the arts of cozening my sex. But now,

cease wallowing like a hog in the mire of lying and deceit, and tell me

truly, what thou hast done with my husband. For know, that thou

wouldst never have found me here to-day to meet thee, but for my

determination to ask of thee this very question. Hast thou murdered

him, or stolen him away, or what?

And as she spoke, I staggered, like one that has received a blow. And

I ejaculated: O lady, art thou dreaming, or what is this delusion? And

then, angrily she stamped her little foot upon the ground. And she

said sternly, yet with derision: O King, has not thy own experience yet

taught thee, that kings are harder to conceal than the very sun at

noon? And has thy dealing with such multitudes of women not yet shown

thee, that even a king, versed in trickery and every diplomatic art,

might take lessons in intrigue from any woman, aye, even from so

incomplete a specimen of womankind as me? Hast thou allowed thyself to

be outwitted even by the blind? And she laughed, while I gazed at her,

astounded by her exaltation, arising like a storm in such gentleness as

hers, and helpless in my anger, which was impotent, being swallowed by

admiration for her beauty and her craft. And presently she said: What!

art thou dumb at last, and has thy voluble eloquence deserted thee,

when truth was wanted rather than a lie? Know, that I suspected thee,

from the very first, for thy voice betrayed thee, carrying in it as it

were an echo of command. And for this very reason was it that I

fingered thy necklace, by express design, to ascertain whether thou

wert speaking truth about its value. And I said privately to myself,

as I handled it: This is surely the ornament of no other than a king.

And as to thy story of the bird that brought it hither, well I

understand that it was a fable, like thy fish; and thy necklace was

nothing but a snare, by means of which thou didst hope to bribe me,

cunning in thy knowledge of my sex. And thereafter, all unknown to

thee, I caused myself to be carried in a palanquin, a day or two ago,

where I could listen to the voice of the king, and lo! it was thy own.

So drop thy mask, for it is only too transparent, since even the blind

can easily see through it. And tell me, what hast thou done with my

husband? Hast thou murdered the husband, as a stepping-stone to the

embraces of the wife?

And I said hastily: O admirable lady, I swear to thee, that I am as

innocent of thy husband's disappearance as thyself. Nay, I have

striven to discover him, without avail, and his going is a mystery I

cannot fathom. Then she said: Thou art prevaricating, and if thou art

ignorant of the reason of his absence, I am not. For certain I am,

that it is somehow or other connected with thy design upon myself, with

which it coincides in the time of its occurrence, though I cannot

understand it.

Pippala, as she spoke, I wondered at her sagacity, for blind as she

was, not having seen him as I did in the garden, she came within but a

little of the truth. And I said: Watsatarí, I swear to thee, that thy

husband has made himself invisible absolutely of his own accord, and I

am absolutely guiltless of any practices against him, as indeed my

kingdom suffers by his absence. Then she said: Partly I believe thee,

though not relying on thy own asseveration. For thou hast forfeited

all claim to be believed, in anything whatever. But even if thou hast

not actually removed him, thy action it is, which has driven him away.

For beyond a doubt, he must somehow or other have penetrated thy

design, and gone away accordingly, and O that this may be all. For

bitterly do I reproach myself, for having, in a moment of curiosity,

lent a colour to his suspicion; and even though he was not there, yet

as thou didst place thy arms about my neck, on pretext of fastening the

necklace, taking a cowardly advantage of my impotence of sight, I felt

myself a criminal. And when he comes again, I will confess it, and

take his forgiveness for my fault, into which I fell by my own

blindness, and thy abominable treachery.

And Trishodadhi, as he listened, exclaimed within himself: Ha! very

wonderful is the intuition of women pure in soul; for she hit upon the

very truth. Ah! that I should have doubted her, even in a dream! And

oblivious of his muttering, he listened to the tale.

X

And the elephant said: Pippala, I gazed at her in silence, utterly

unable to find anything to say. And yet, alas for her! convicted as I

was, by everything she said, she did but add to the volume of my

passion, like one that pours oil upon a flame. For her anger and her

grief and her repentance, and her extraordinary subtlety, only made her

more beautiful than ever, and my own evil conduct resembled the

radiance of a lamp, that was thrown back from the opal of her purity in

showers of incomparable colour on myself. And all at once she seated

herself upon the ground. And she said: Stand thou there before me, and

listen. For my husband having gone away, no matter how or where, what

is it thy intention to do now? Here am I a prey to thee, and utterly

defenceless; and now there is absolutely nothing to prevent thee from

completing thy design. Tell me, then, what thou art proposing to do.

And she waited, while I answered her absolutely nothing, watching her

with intoxication, and lurking as it were under the protection of her

blindness. And presently she said again: Why art thou silent? Art

thou meditating in what manner to appropriate me? Save thyself the

trouble, for I myself will tell thee of my own accord. Art thou not a

king, with agents about thee for any base design? Send them secretly

at night, and steal me, and thy business is done. And she laughed

again, and said: Or didst thou think me one, like others, doubtless,

such as thou hast known, to be flattered by the vanity of having a

lover in the king? Then why didst thou endeavour to hide from me thy

rank? Surely thou wast deserted by thy reason. Art thou not aware,

that women, as a rule, flutter round a king like silly moths about a

torch, ready to burn up, not only the wings of their reputation, but

even their very souls in the form of the honour of their husbands, so

that only they may bathe for a moment in his glitter, before

shrivelling in its flame? Or didst thou trust in thy favour as a man;

for I have heard that no man in thy kingdom can compare with thee: not

considering that I was blind, and unable either to admire or dislike

thee, even though thy ugliness were such as to frighten me away? Aye,

and verily I think, that if thy exterior correspond to what thou art

within, thou art surely very ugly; and I rejoice, for the first time in

my life, I cannot see. And again she laughed, like one in a fever of

desperation, while all the while I stood before her silent, wroth with

her and with myself, yet attracted to her rather than repelled, by

everything she said.

And all at once she said: Say, Maharáj, what was thy object in

originally pursuing me? Come, tell me frankly. Is it not my love that

thou wouldst have? And I exclaimed: Aye! it is thy love indeed; and

for it I would cast my kingdom into the very bottom of a well. Then

she said: See, now, every way thou hast acted like a fool. What! gain

a woman's love by murdering her husband! Then what a monster must have

been the woman thou art ready to adore! And I said hastily: I am no

murderer of thy husband, as I told thee. And moreover, O thou angry

beauty, not every woman loves her husband; and thine is far too old for

thee, and leaves thee, moreover, deserted and alone. And instantly,

she put up her two hands to stop her ears, exclaiming: Say not a word

against my husband, or I will become deaf as well as blind. Why didst

thou not rather endeavour to persuade me, he had deserted me in favour

of thyself? For had I only been the woman thou art taking me to be,

nothing could have been better to the point. Or why didst thou not try

to buy me from him? Thou art rich. Was it that it was only too well

known to thee, he would not sell me, even for a very mountain of pure

gold? Then what art thou but a thief, seeking underhand to rob him of

the thing he would not sell?

And Trishodadhi, as he listened, murmured to himself: Aha! well said,

well done! O irrefutable wife, well might he stand before thee, in

silence and abashed. And oblivious of his muttering, he listened to

the tale.