Page:Katha sarit sagara, vol2.djvu/184

 Aśokakarí rtlated from the very beginning the history of the daring treachery accomplished by Kanakamanjarí. Then king Kamalákara, having found out the truth, thus bewailed his lot on that occasion, " Alas! I have been deceived by this supposed Hansávalí into burning the real Hansávalí with my own hand, fool that I was ! Well ! this wicked woman has met the just reward of her actions, in that, after becoming the wife of a king, she has been thus put to death. But how came I to permit cruel Destiny to deceive me with mere outward appearances, like a child, and so to rob me by taking away my jewel and giving me glass instead. Moreover, I did not remember that touch of the hand of Hansávalí, of which "Vishnu spoke to her father, which has given evidence of its power to remove fever." While Kamalákara was thus lamenting, he suddenly recollected the words of Vishnu and said to himself, " Her father Meghamálin told me that Vishnu said that she should obtain a husband, but that she should suffer some little affliction, and that word of the god, made known to men, will not have been spoken in vain. So it is quite possible that she may have gone somewhere else, and be still alive, for who knows the mysterious ways of a woman's heart, any more than those of destiny? So in this matter the bard Manorathasiddhi must once more be my refuge."

Thus reflecting, the king sent for that excellent bard, and said to him, " How is it, my good friend, that you are never seen in the palace?" But how can those obtain their wishes, who are deceived by rogues? "When the bard heard that, he said, " My excuse is that this Aśokakarí was well nigh slain, out of fear that she would reveal the secret. But you must not be despondent about Hansávalí, for Vishnu revealed that she would suffer calamity for a short time. And he certainly protects her, because she is ever intent on worshipping him; for virtue prevails; has it not been seen in the present instance? So I will go, king, to obtain tidings of her." When the bard said this to the king, he answered him, " I myself will go in search of her with you. For otherwise my mind cannot be at rest even for a moment."

When the king bad said this, he resolved on the course to be taken, and next day he entrusted his kingdom to the care of his minister Prajnádhya. And though the minister did all he could to dissuade him, the king left the town unobserved with Manorathasiddhi. And he went round to many holy places, hermitages, and forests in search of her, disregarding physical suffering, for weighty is the command of Love. And it happened that he and Manorathasiddhi at last reached the wood, where Hansávalí was performing austerities. There he saw her at the foot of a red Asoka-tree, thin and pale, but yet charming, like the last digit of the gleaming moon. And he said to the bard; " Who is this silent and motionless, engaged in meditation? Can she be a goddess, for her beauty is more than