"'Nala said, "Surely, thy father's kingdom is as my own. But thither I
will not, by any means, repair in this extremity. Once I appeared there
in glory, increasing thy joy. How can I go there now in misery,
augmenting thy grief?"'
"Vrihadaswa continued, 'Saying this again and again unto Damayanti, king
Nala, wrapped in half a garment, comforted his blessed wife. And both
attired in one cloth and wearied with hunger and thirst, in course of
their wanderings, at last they came to a sheltered shed for travellers.
And arrived at this place, the king of the Nishadhas sat down on the
bare earth with the princess of Vidarbha. And wearing the same piece of
cloth (with Damayanti), and dirty, and haggard, and stained with dust,
he fell asleep with Damayanti on the ground in weariness. And suddenly
plunged in distress, the innocent and delicate Damayanti with every mark
of good fortune, fell into a profound slumber. And, O monarch, while she
slept, Nala, with heart and mind distraught, could not slumber calmly as
before. And reflecting on the loss of his kingdom, the desertion of his
friends, and his distress in the woods, he thought with himself, "What
availeth my acting thus? And what if I act not thus? Is death the better
for me now? Or should I desert my wife? She is truly devoted to me and
suffereth this distress for my sake. Separated from me, she may
perchance wander to her relatives. Devoted as she is to me, if she
stayeth with me, distress will surely be hers; while it is doubtful, if
I desert her. On the other hand, it is not unlikely that she may even
have happiness some time." Reflecting upon this repeatedly, and thinking
of it again and again, he concluded, O monarch, that the desertion of
Damayanti was the best course for him. And he also thought, "Of high
fame and auspicious fortune, and devoted to me, her husband, she is
incapable of being injured by any one on the way on account of her
energy." Thus his mind that was influenced by the wicked Kali, dwelling
upon Damayanti, was made up for deserting her. And then thinking of his
own want of clothing, and of her being clad in a single garment, he
intended to cut off for himself one half of Damayanti's attire. And he
thought, "How shall I divide this garment, so that my beloved one may
not perceive?" And thinking of this, the royal Nala began to walk up and
down that shed. And, O Bharata, pacing thus to and fro, he found a
handsome sword lying near the shed, unsheathed. And that repressor of
foes, having with that sword cut off one half of the cloth, and throwing
the instrument away, left the daughter of Vidharbha insensible in her
sleep and went away. But his heart failing him, the king of the
Nishadhas returned to the shed, and seeing Damayanti (again), burst into
tears. And he said, "Alas! that beloved one of mine whom neither the god
of wind nor the sun had seen before, even she sleepeth to-day on the
bare earth, like one forlorn. Clad in this severed piece of cloth, and
lying like one distracted, how will the beauteous one of luminous smiles
behave when she awaketh? How will the beautiful daughter of Bhima,
devoted to her lord, all alone and separated from me, wander through
these deep woods inhabited by beasts and serpents? O blessed one, may
the Adityas and the Vasus, and the twin Aswins together with the Marutas
protect thee, thy virtue being thy best guard." And addressing thus his
dear wife peerless on earth in beauty, Nala strove to go, reft of reason
by Kali. Departing and still departing, king Nala returned again and
again to that shed, dragged away by Kali but drawn back by love. And it
seemed as though the heart of the wretched king was rent in twain, and
like a swing, he kept going out from cabin and coming back into it. At
length after lamenting long and piteously, Nala stupefied and bereft of
sense by Kali went away, forsaking that sleeping wife of his. Reft of
reason through Kali's touch, and thinking of his conduct, the king
departed in sorrow, leaving his wife alone in that solitary forest.'"