Page:The Katha Sarit Sagara.djvu/313

 emaciated. Then the king, seeing that I seemed to be ill, asked me meaningly the following question— " Hola ! tell me why you have become thus?' And after he had questioned me persistently, I answered the king in private, after imploring immunity from punishment— " King, my wife is a witch. And when I am asleep she extracts my entrails and sucks them, and then replaces them as before— This is how I have become lean. So how can continual refreshment and eating nourish me?" When I said this to the king, he became anxious and reflected— " Can she really be a witch? Why was I captivated by her? I wonder whether she will suck my entrails also, since I am well nourished with food. So I will myself contrive to test her this very night." Having thus reflected, the king caused food to be given, me on the spot. Then I went home and shed tears in the presence of my wife, and when she questioned me, I said to her— " My beloved, you must not reveal to any one what I am about to tell you. Listen ! That king has teeth as sharp as the edge of a thunderbolt, where teeth are not usually found, and they broke my razor to-day while I was performing my duties. And in this way I shall break a razor every time. So how am I to be continually procuring fresh razors? This is why I weep, for the means of supporting myself in my home are destroyed." When I had said this to my wife, she made up her mind to investigate the marvel of the concealed teeth while the king was asleep, since he was to visit her at night. But she did not perceive that such a thing had never been seen since the world was, and could not be true. Even clever women are deceived by the tales of an impostor.

So the king came at night and visited my wife at will, and as if fatigued, pretended to go to sleep, remembering what I had said. Then my wife, thinking he was asleep, slowly stretched out her hand to find his concealed teeth. And as soon as her hand reached him, the king exclaimed— " A witch ! A witch !" and left the house in terror. Henceforth my wife, having been abandoned by the king out of fear, became satisfied with me and devoted to me exclusively. In this way I saved my wife on a former occasion from the king by my intelligence.

Having told this story to the female ascetic, the barber went onto say— " So, my good lady, this desire of yours must be accomplished by wisdom; and I will tell you, mother, how it is to be done, listen to me. Some old servant of the harem must be won over to say to this king in secret every day, ' Your wife Kadalígarbhá is a witch.' For she, being a forest maiden, has no attendants of her own, and what will not all alien servants do for gain, being easily corrupted? Accordingly, when the king becomes apprehensive on hearing what the old servant says, you must contrive to place at night hands and feet and other limbs in the chamber of Kadalígarbhá. Then the king will see them in the morning, and concluding that what the old