Chapter CXVIII.
Project Gutenberg EPUB3 edition
Somadeva Bhatta, active 11th century and Tawney, C. H. (Charles Henry)
Then king Merudhvaja, who was delighted at hearing that, and the queen his wife said to one another, “If our two sons could obtain these two maidens for their wives, they would reap fruit from their conquest of the two worlds. So let us go to them and their mother, before they have cast themselves into the fire, as they intend to do in a moment, and dissuade them from doing so.” When the king, in consultation with the queen, had made up his mind to this, he went up to them, and said, “Do not act rashly: for I will put a stop to your sorrow.” When all the Asura ladies heard this speech of the king’s, that seemed like a rain of nectar to their ears, and afterwards saw him, they all bowed before him.
And Svayamprabhá said to him, “Before we were concealed by magic, and you did not see us, though we saw you, but now we have been seen here by you, the sovereign of the two worlds. And now that we have been seen by you, our sorrow will soon come to an end; much more since you have bestowed on us by your own mouth a boon we never craved; so take a seat and receive the arghya and water for the feet.13 For you deserve to be honoured by the three worlds; and this is our hermitage.” When she said this, the king answered laughing, “Give the arghya and water for the feet to these your sons-in-law.” Then Svayamprabhá said, “To them the god Śiva will give the arghya and soon, but do you receive it to-day.” Then Merudhvaja said, “I have already received it all; but do you, ladies, immediately give up your intention of committing suicide; and go and dwell in one of your cities where every wish can be gratified; then I will take steps to ensure your welfare.”
When the king said this, Svayamprabhá said to him, “In accordance with your Majesty’s order we have given up our intention of abandoning the body, but while our lord is in prison, how would it be becoming for us to live in our palace? So we will remain here, king, for the present, until your Highness shall perform the promise which you spontaneously made to us, and shall cause our lord to be set free with his servants and ministers. And he will hold sway as your Majesty’s zealous officer, and will make over his realm to you if you desire it; indeed he will make a strict agreement14 with you to this effect. And for this we and all the inhabitants of Pátála will be your sureties, so take our jewels from the regions of Pátála, and make them your own.”
When she said this, king Merudhvaja said to her, “I will see about that, but you must remember your promise.” When the king had said this, he bathed and worshipped Háṭakeśa. And those Daitya princesses, having now seen his sons with their own eyes, had their minds entirely fixed on them. Then all the inhabitants of Rasátala15 fell at the feet of the virtuous king Merudhvaja, and asked that Trailokyamálin should be set at liberty; and then king Merudhvaja, with his wife, sons, and servants, left the world of the Asuras, and returned to his own city, covering the regions with his umbrellas white as his own glory. There his son Malayadhvaja spent the night in thinking on the younger daughter of the king of the Dánavas, being tortured with the fever of love, and though he closed his eyes, he never slept. But that sea of self-control Muktáphaladhvaja, though he thought upon the elder daughter of the Asura monarch who was deeply in love with him, and though he was young, and she was fair enough to shake with love the saintly minds of anchorites, still in virtue of the boon he had craved from the hermit, was no whit disturbed in mind. But Merudhvaja, finding that his elder son was determined not to take a wife, while Malayadhvaja was desperately in love, and that on the other hand that great Asura was averse to giving him his daughters, remained with his mind bewildered as to how to devise an expedient.
Source notes
1 MS. No. 1882 reads garbhaváse kleśo; and this seems to give a sense more clearly in accordance with the sequel of the story.
2 Literally, too careful guarding of his dináras. Dinára is the Latin denarius.
3 Of course we must read avilambitam̱ which is found in two out of the three India Office MSS. and in the Sanskrit College MS. No. 1882 has vilambitam̱.
4Viníyate is a misprint for viniyete.
5 We should probably read asranimnagáḥ with two India Office MSS. No 3003 has asrunimnagáḥ.
6 The three India Office MSS. give Devasabhásanne, “near Devasabha.”
7 The three India Office MSS., read puraśatair, “hundreds of cities?” In any case varais should he varair.
8 Böhtlingk and Roth would read svadhishṇyáni for swádhisṭháni in Taranga 120, 25. Here Brockhaus reads svádhisṭhán ṛishayas which I find in MS. No 1882; No 3003 has what, judging from the way shụ is written in this MS., I take to be svadhishṇyányashayas. No 2166 has what for similar reasons I take to be svadhishṇánṛishayas. The Sanskrit College MS. has svadhishṭányṛishayas.
9 For árádhayitum̱ Nos. 1882 and 2166 give árádhayan which satisfies the metre. The Sanskrit College MS. has árádhitum̱.
10 I read akṛitapuṇyayoḥ, not having done meritorious actions. This is the reading of all the India Office MSS. and the Sanskrit College MS.
11 The three India Office MSS. give susamiddham̱, which is perhaps preferable to the reading of Brockhaus’s text. The Sanskrit College MS. gives susamitam̱.
12 MSS. Nos. 1882 and 2166 and the Sanskrit College MS. give lasannavanavádbhutá “is ever displaying new marvels.” No. 3003 gives lasannavatavádbhutá. The t is no doubt a mere slip of the pen for n.
13 I read arghyapádyádi in śl. 180, 6; as in śl. 181, 6. The y is found in the three India Office MSS. and the Sanskrit College MS. I also read in śl. 179 svagirá datte devenánarthite vare, which I find in the three India Office MSS. and the Sanskrit College MS.
14 Two of the India Office MSS. read samayapratibandham̱; No. 3003 has samayaprativa; clearly some letters have been omitted. The sense would remain the same.
15 Pátála and Rasátala seem to be used indiscriminately to denote “the nether world” in this passage. Strictly speaking, Rasátala is one of the seven Pátálas. The words in śl. 189 which I have translated “regions of Pátála” mean literally “the Pátálas.” In śl. 192 the three India Office MSS. read sudṛishṭayoḥ “having had a good look at them.”