Page:Tales from the Indian Epics.djvu/119

Rh As Keshini was the elder wife, King Sagar bade her choose the boon which pleased her. "King Sagar," she replied, "I choose a single son who shall live to carry on your line." King Sagar took his two queens back to his capital. A few months later, Queen Keshini bore a son to whom King Sagar gave the name of Asamanja. Shortly afterwards Queen Sumati gave birth to a gourd. She kept it in a warm place until it ripened. Then she opened it and found inside sixty thousand baby boys.

In the course of time Asamanja and his sixty thousand brothers grew from babyhood to boyhood. But Asamanja tormented his brothers, and one day pushed them into the waters of a river from which they were with difficulty rescued. King Sagar's anger was kindled against Prince Asamanja and he banished him from the kingdom. The prince left it as ordered by his father and was never heard of again. But before Asamanja departed he had been married; and his wife had borne him a son called Anshumat.

Now when all King Sagar's sixty thousand sons had grown to manhood, the king in his pride of them resolved to hold an Aswamedha sacrifice. He appointed his grandson Anshumat, now grown a youth, to command an army and to go forth with a horse from the royal stables. From all men who lived in the countries through which the horse roamed, Prince Anshumat was to exact tribute or to kill them. In a year's time the prince was to bring back the horse. King Sagar would then sacrifice it to the immortal gods. Prince Anshumat gladly obeyed the king's words, and taking the best horse out of the king's stables he set it free to roam at will. And always behind the horse followed Prince Anshumat and the royal army.