Page:Katha sarit sagara, vol2.djvu/617

 astonishment even in the Creator who made her. And holy seers announced that she should have for a hushand the lord of the seven dvípas; whereupon her father the king deliberated with his counsellors; and came to this conclusion, " King Vikramáditya is a suitable husband for my daughter; so I will send her to marry him." Accordingly, the king made his daughter embark in a ship on the sea, with her retinue and wealth, and sent her off. But it so happened that when the ship came near Suvarnadvípa, it was swallowed, with the princess and the people on board, by a large fish. But that monstrous fish was carried by the current of the sea as if by the course of Destiny, and thrown up on a coast near that dvípa, and there stranded. And the people of the neighbourhood, the moment they saw it, ran with many weapons in their hands, and killed that marvellous fish, and cut open its belly.* And then there came out of it that great ship full of people; and when the king of that dvípa heard of it, he came there greatly wondering. And that king, whose name was Chandraśekhara, and who was the brother-in- law of king Gunaságara, heard the whole story from the people in the ship. Then the king, finding that Gunavatí was the daughter of his sister, took her into his palace, and out of joy celebrated a feast. And the next day that king put on board a ship in a lucky moment his daughter Chandravatí, whom he had long intended to give to king Vikramáditya, with that Gunavatí, and sent her off with much magnificence as a gift to that sovereign. These two princesses, having crossed the sea, by advancing gradually, have at length arrived here ; and we are their attendants. And when we reached this place, a very large boar and a very large elephant rushed upon us: then, king, we uttered this cry, " These maidens have come to offer themselves for wives to king Vikramáditya: so preserve them for him, ye Guardians of the World, as is meet." When the boar and the elephant heard this, they said to us with articulate speech, " Be of good courage ! the mere mention of that king's name ensures your safety. And you shall see him arrive here in a moment." When the boar and the elephant, who were, no doubt, some heavenly beings or other, had said this, they went away. " This is our story," said the chamberlain, and then, queen, I said to them, " And this is the king you seek." Then they fell at the king's feet rejoicing, and made over to him those two princesses Gunavatí and Chandravatí. And the king gave orders to the Vetála and had those two fair ones also taken to his queen, saying, " Let all three travel with Madanasundarí."