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236 O thou of the prowess of the first of elephants, when Dyau was shown that cow, he began to admire her several qualities and addressing his wife, said, -'O black-eyed girl of fair thighs, this excellent cow belongeth to that Rishi whose is this deligbtful asylum ! O slenderwaisted one, that mortal who drinketh the sweet milk of this cow remaineth in unchanged youth for ten thousand years l' O best of monarchs, bearing this, the slender-waisted goddess of faultless feature then addressed her lord of blazing splendour and said, "There is on Earth a friend of mine, Jitavati by name, possessed of great beauty and youth. She is the daughter of that god among men, the royal sage Usinara, endued with intelligence and devoted to truth, I desire to have this cow, O illustrious one, with her calf for that friend of mine. Therefore, O best of celestials, bring that cow so that my friend drinking of her milk may alone become on Earth free from disease and decrepitude ! O illustrious and blameless one, it behoveth thee to grant me this desire of mine 1 There is nothing that would be more agreeable to me!' On hearing these words of his wife, Dyau, moved by the desire of humouring her, stole that cow, aided by his brothers Prithu and the others. Indeed, Dyau, commanded by his lotus-eyed wife, did her bidding, forgetting at the moment the high ascetic merits of the Rishi who owned her. He did not think at the time that he was going to fall by committing the sin of stealing the cow.

"When the son of Varuna returned to his asylum in the evening with fruits he had collected, he beheld not the cow with her calf there. He began to search them in the woods, but when the great ascetic of superior intelligence found not his cow on search, he saw by his ascetic vision that she had been stolen by the Vasus. His wrath was instantly kindled and he cursed the Vasus, saying—'Because the Vasus have stolen my cow of sweet milk and handsome tail, therefore, shall they certainly be born on Earth!'

"O thou bull of Bharata's race, the illustrious Rishi Apava thuscursed the Vasus in wrath. And having cursed them the illustious one set his heart once more on ascetic meditation. And after that Brahmarshi of great power and ascetic wealth had thus in wrath cursed the Vasus, the latter, O king, coming to know of it, speedily came into his asylum. And addressing the Rishi. O bull among kings, they endeavoured to pacify him. But they failed, 0 tiger among men, to obtain grace from Apava-that Rishi conversant with all rules of virtue. The virtuous Apava, however, said, "Ye Vasus, with Dhava and others, ye have been cursed by me! But ye shall be freed from my curse within a year of your birth among men 1 But he for whose deed ye have been cursed by me he-viz., Dyau, shall for his sinful act, have to