Page:Tales from the Indian Epics.djvu/93

Rh to King Nala drove back with his guards to his city of Ayodhya.

But King Nala longed to return to his kingdom, the country of the Nishadas. For he had learnt the whole art of dicing from King Rituparna. And he knew that if he gambled again with Pushkara he would certainly recover all he had lost from him. So he took leave of King Bhima, and with a small escort started again for the country of the Nishadas. On reaching the chief city, he sent word to his brother Pushkara that he had earned vast wealth and wished again to dice with him. On hearing the message Pushkara received King Nala and asked him what he would stake on the throw of the dice. "Let your stake" answered King Nala, "be your kingdom and your life. My stake shall be my wealth and my peerless queen, Damayanti. And if you do not care for such high stakes, take your bow and arrows and let us fight each other in the open plain outside the city." Pushkara, who felt sure that he would win as before, said with a laugh, "You are indeed fortunate, my brother, to have won such wealth. And I will gladly gamble with you. For I have always loved Damayanti and now am sure that she will be mine." King Nala could hardly control his rage. He answered hotly, "Before boasting, Pushkara, of your love for Damayanti you had better wait for the fall of the dice!"

Then the two brothers began once more to dice. And Nala by means of the knowledge he had learnt from King Rituparna soon defeated Pushkara, who thus lost in a few moments not only the kingdom which he had won, but his life. And King Nala said to him with a laugh, "Now that you are a slave, Pushkara, do you still hope to win Damayanti's