Page:Katha sarit sagara, vol2.djvu/504

 Avantivardhana; by him I was married; and this night, when I was asleep on the top of the palace, and my husband was asleep also, I was carried off by this villain.' When she said this, I kept both of them here, the lady and Ityaka, the latter in fetters; it now remains for your majesty to decide what is to be done."

When the emperor heard this from his Commander-in-chief Hariśikha, he went in some perplexity to Gopálaka, and told him the story. Gopálaka said, " My dear nephew, I do not know about this; I know so much, that the lady was lately married to Pálaka's son; so let the prince be summoned from Ujjayiní, together with the minister Bharataroha; then we shall get at the truth." When the emperor received this advice from his uncle, he sent the Vidyádhara Dhúmaśikha to Pálaka his younger uncle, and summoned from Ujjayiní that prince, his son, and the minister. When they arrived and bowed before the emperor, he and Gopálaka received them with love and courtesy, and questioned them about the matter under consideration. Then, in the presence of Avantivardhana, who looked like the moon robbed of the night,* of Suratamanjarí, her father, and of Ityaka, of Váyupatha and his peers, and the hermit Kaśyapa, and the men-at-arms, Bharataroha began to speak as follows, " Once on a time all the citizens of Ujjayiní met together and said to Pálaka the king of that city ' To-morrow the festival, called the giving of water, will take place in this city, and if your majesty has not heard the true account of the origin of this festival, please listen to it now.' "

Story of king Chandamahásena and the Asura's daughter.† :—Long ago your father Chandamahásena propitiated the goddess Chandi with asceticism, in order to obtain a splendid sword and a wife. She gave him her own sword, and about a wife said to him, " Thou shalt soon slay, my son, the Asura called Angáraka, and obtain his beautiful daughter Angáravatí for a wife " When the king had been favoured with this revelation from the goddess, he remained thinking on the Asura's daughter.

Now, at this time, everybody that was appointed head police officer in Ujjayiní, was at once carried off by some creature at night and devoured. And this went on night after night. Then Chandamahásena roaming leisurely about the city at night, to investigate the matter for himself found an adulterer, lie cut off with his sword his oiled and curled head, and no sooner was his neck severed than a certain Rákshasa came and laid