Page:The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa (1884).djvu/171

Rh her lord with the wakefulness of the dog, the timidity of the deer, and knowledge of signs possessed by the crow. And the sister of Vasuki, one day, when her season arrived, approached, after bath according to the custom, her lord the great Muni. And she conceived, and the being conceived was like unto a flame, possessed of excessive energy, and resplendent as fire, And he grew like the moon in the lighted fortnight.

"And one day, within a short time, Jaratkaru of great fame, placing his head on the lap of his wife, slept, looking lke one fatigued. And as he was sleeping, the sun entered his chambers in the western mountain. And, O Brahmana, as the day was fading, she, the excellent sister of Vasuki, became thoughtful, fearing the loss of her husband's virtue. And she thought, 'What is proper for me now to do? Shall I wake my husband or not? He is both exacting and punctilious in his religious duties. How can I so act as not to offend? The alternatives are his anger and the loss of virtue of a virtuous man. The loss of virtue is the greater of the two evils, I ween. Again, if I wake him, he will be angry. But if twilight passeth away, he shall certainly sustain loss of virtue.'

"And, having resolved at last, the sweet-voiced Jaratkaru, the sister of Vasuki, then spake softly unto that Rishi resplendent with his ascetic devotions, and lying prostrate like a flame of fire. 'O thou of great good fortune, awake, the sun is setting! O thou of rigid vows, thou illustrious one, adore the twilight after touching water! The time for the evening homa hath come. Twilight, O lord, is even now gently covering the western side!'

"And the illustrious Jaratkaru of great ascetic merit, thus addressed, spake unto his wife these words, his upper lip quivering in anger. 'Thou amiable one of the Naga race, thou hast insulted me. I shall no more abide with thee, but shall go whithersoever I came from. O thou of beautiful lower limb, I believe in my heart that the sun hath not power to set in the usual time, if I am asleep. An insulted person should never live where he hath met with the insult, far less should I—a virtuous person, or those that are like me!' And Jaratkaru, the sister of Vasuki, thus addressed by her lord, began to 8