द्वितीय राजतरङ्गिणी (जोनराज - कल्हणोत्तर मध्यकालीन कश्मीर का प्रामाणिक इतिहास)

114 KINGS OF KASHMÍRA.
be said of the cruelty of the elder brother who in his folly
even killed some travellers who were going to a marriage
party, in Sūrapura. The king marched in the midst
of all his troops to that distant part of the country in
the south where the sun shines mildly. They who
entrust the duty of ruling the earth to wicked warriors,
who depend on their heavy lances, and are fond of
horses, who listen to the advice that leads to the mischief
of others, and who are not anxious to preserve their
religion and caste, like the sons of Kuru, do not win
in battle.
On the following day Hājyakhāna collected the rem-
nant of his force, repented of what he had done,
and decided to live in the Chitra country. He consoled
some of the men who were in distress, supported others
who were broken down, nourished those who were
hungry, and spent the night on the summit of a hill.
The kind hearted king returned from battle after passing
orders that none of his men should harass his son. He
had thought to himself that by placing the burden
of the kingdom on his son he would obtain rest,
and with this view he had entrusted the administration
of the country to his kindreds, to the lords of the
kingdom who had surrounded themselves with horse-
men, and to his principal servants whom he had
favoured. But they had all sided with his son, and had
come to fight with him to usurp his kingdom. He blamed
himself for having cast aside prudence in his kindness,

KINGS OF KASHMÍRA. 115
and accused himself as the cause of the mischief. Thus
he reflected, and blamed the servants who by the work
of Fate had become his enemies, and he returned to his
own city in grief. The king caused the heads of the
great warriors who had fallen in battle to be brought, and
over them he built a beautiful edifice in the town. In
this way many warriors lost their lives in battle that
year, in the quarrel between the father and the son,
owing to the wickedness of the servants. Dissensions
among kindred are like a curse, and are as little con-
ducive to the king’s happiness as the fall of snow is to
the full blown lotuses, or as the dreadful comet, the
destroyer of wicked men, is to an ill fated kingdom. O
king Shrī · Mānasimha* ! the letters of your name are as
potent as the five arrows of Kandarpa towards women,
or like the five vital fires to friends, or like the five sons
of Pāṇḍu to the enemies, or like the five celestial trees
to the poets and the learned.
Here ends the first chapter named the account of the
battle of Mallashīlā of Jainarājatarangiṇī composed by
Paṇḍita Shrīvara.
CHAPTER II.
Owing to the wickedness of the younger son, the
strong and pure stream of the king’s affection now flowed

• This name and the concluding lines are inexplicable here,
  probably inserted by mistake in the text from some other place.

116 KINGS OF KASHMÍRA.
towards the elder. He now won the affection of the king,
enjoyed good fortune, and had his councillors, and shone
owing to the absence of the heroic prince from whom
much was expected. After a long time the king returned
to the capital, and made over to Ādamakhāna a few of
the adherents of his younger brother who were at
Kramarājya. Ādamakhāna appropriated all the wealth of
Hājyehaidharakhāna which was in the house, or in
villages, or in the temples of gods, even as the sub-
marine fire consumes the water. From that time the
elder brother remained at ease in Kashmīra, in the pre-
sence of the king, as heir-apparent, and spent five years,
enjoying the dignity of kings.
Fate augments the happiness of men by increas-
ing the crops, and Fate also brings calamity to them
in the shape of famine. The clouds that make the
grass grow by rain, also destroy it by the weight of
snow. The country was rich in crops, when in the
year 36, in the month of Chaitra, the sky suddenly rained
dust.* It is well known from the Mahābhārata that the
year 36 [of a preceding century] had become terrible to all
on account of the destruction of the race of Yadu. The
leaves and the flowers hung down, grey with dust, as if
sorrowing for the people threatened with famine. The
chief of the soothsayers was consulted by the king, and

• The translator witnessed a dust-rain at Jammu, during the
  winter of 1885-86.

KINGS OF KASHMÍRA. 117
he said, that owing to the dust-rain there would be a
famine in such a year. The year 36 of the last century
was the harbinger of a severe famine, and men feared that
the present year 36 would become like the one that was
past. The country was beautified with the shāli rice, when
snow fell in the month of Agrahāyaṇa and caused distress.
The earth covered her face with snow, as with a white
mantle, as if unable to bear the sight of the people's dis-
tress. The ripe shāli crop which had gladdened the
hearts of men was covered with snow, even as men of
learning and merit are covered with sandal paste in
an assembly of the wicked and the ignorant. The
monster famine soon stamped its mark on the coun-
try ; there were emaciated men distressed for want
of food, oppressed with hunger, and with eyes in-
flamed. A hungry man, distressed with the thought
of what he should eat, entered a house at night, and
leaving aside gold and other riches, stole rice from a pot.
All day, and even at night, the beggars entered the
house where there was rice, one after another, even as
arrows enter a body. Some took shells (coin) with them,
went to houses where there was grain, and obtained dry
cakes with which they sustained their lives ; and some
died by eating after too long or too short an interval,
Feeble, emaciated men in villages longed to obtain rice
which was like nectar to them, but lived on edible
leaves, roots, and fruits, as if they had taken some reli-
gious vow. Some again supported themselves by cook-

118 KINGS OF KASHMÍRA.
ing rice after a long interval, and by edible leaves. The
high price of ghee, salt, and oil was reduced on account
of the dearness of rice, as the greatness of good men is
detracted by the pride of the low. Those citizens who
had been garrulous before about many things now be-
gan to talk a great deal about rice only. The Bandhujīva
flower, which is like the life of a friend, was neglected
even like the ākanda, for without rice the people were
blind with hunger, and the sight of flower inflicted pain.
Formerly one khāra of paddy could be had for 300
dinnāras, but owing to the famine, the same khāra of
paddy could not then be obtained even for 1500. What
more need be said ? In some parts of the kingdom the
poor people were denied even the gruel of rice. Before
this the people had thought little of the lucious brīhi
and the shāli rice, and it was for this, I think, that they
now suffered from this calamity.
Being of a kind disposition, the king became anxious
for his people, and after he had fed his distressed sub-
jects for a few months, like his children, with his own
rice, a plentiful crop grew, as if on account of the
greatness of his heart. A truthful king has not to
grieve for a long time. It was the sea, I think, [by
not supplying the clouds with water,] that troubled
the earth with the calamity of the famine, inorder
that the king's humanity might be displayed. Thieves
delight at the time of anarchy, unchaste women in the
hours of darkness, and those who sell grain delight in

KINGS OF KASHMÍRA. 911
the time of famine. As the people were oppressed by
hunger, precious things were received in exchange for
grain ; but after the famine the king caused them to be
paid for at their proper price. During famine men
had eaten up walnuts ; so the intelligent king, ob-
serving the condition of the people caused oil to be
extracted from the pine. Out of humanity he cancelled
the deeds on bhūrja leaves drawn up between the credi-
tors and the debtors. The sixty-four branches of learn-
ing, art, science, and progress, all remained dormant in
the distress caused by the famine. For new books
exhibiting the play of words and sentences, the arts of
singing, music, and dance, and women skilful in the arts
of love delight not the hungry.
Here ends the second chapter named the account of
the famine of the year 36* of Jainarājatarangiṇī composed
by Paṇḍita Shrīvara.
CHAPTER III.
Fate, like a mad sovereign, can in a moment bestow
unusual favour on his subjects when propitious, and inflict
untold miseries when unpropitious. Who can understand
the caprices of Fate ? While the people had not yet for-
gotten the miseries of the famine of the year 36, they
witnessed in the year 38 a dust-rain descending on the
* The year 26 in the text is a misprint for 36.

120 KINGS OF KASHMIRA.
earth from the sky, and indicating a famine in the future
from the failure of shāli rice. Not long after, heavy
clouds with the rainbow, and peals of loud thunder,
terrified the people, even like enemies with their arrows.
Bubbles appeared on the water, beaten by the rain, and
seemed like the heads of snakes intent on destroying
the crops ; and the clouds which raised the bubbles
threatened to destroy all that would grow. Everywhere
the rain fell on the leaves of trees, and the sound seemed
like the wailing of the trees at the calamity which was
about to overtake the people. The Vitastā, the Ledari,
the Sindhu, the Kṣhiptikā, and other rivers, seemed to vie
with one another, and drowned the villages on their
banks in their fury. The waves of those rivers, ran like
coursers, swift and tumultuous, and the roar of the
whirlpools rose above the waves. The waters then
became ungovernable and caused mischief, lowering
objects which were high, and lifting up things that were
low. Who taught them then to lift the earth from the
foot of the hills and to fell trees ? They swept away
beasts and kine and living beings, as well as houses, grain,
and other things, and became terrible as a host of the
Mlechchhas. The river Vishokā caused misery in
Maḍavarājya, and entered Vijayeshvara as if seeking to
walk round the shrine, and a line of houses soon fell into
the water as if to bathe in the river which flowed eastward,
to have their sins removed. The river Vishokā is celebrat-
ed in the Purāṇa as the destroyer of afflictions, but owing

KINGS OF KASHMÍRA. 121
to the misfortunes of the people it belied its name. The
buildings in the city drowned themselves in the water,
as if to avoid the sight of the distress of those who had
raised them. The king had built a flaghouse on the
Vitastā made of stone and wood, and consisting of four
towers, and it served as a bridge to the people who came
to visit him from the villages of Darad, even as the four
steps of virtue serve to ferry men over hell. But owing
to the rush of water over the bank of the river, the portion
of the building which was on the side of the town was
destroyed, and only the columns remained and the two
towers like two legs, as if to call on future kings to
complete the other two. In Kramarājya, the Mahānap
lake caused sufferings to people by its waves, and its
water rushed within Durgapura. The edifices in the town
witnessed this from a distance, and apprehended that
some other lake had come on a joyous visit to the
Padmanāga lake; and they threw themselves into the
water, fearing to be beaten down like trees by the waves.
The Vitastā, far away from her lord the ocean, was
alarmed at this intrusion, turned in her course, and
flowed in an opposite direction. Landmarks were sub-
merged, roads were destroyed, and the land was full of
water and polluted with mud, even as Kaliyuga is polluted
with apprehensions. At the time when Indra thus poured
torrents of rain, the king was filled with anxiety, on ac-
count of excessive water, and set out in a boat. His soul
was full of kindness towards men; and he wandered
II

122 KINGS OF KASHMÍRA.
about and saw the cultivated fields merged under water ;
and his sorrow made him weak. Embarked on a boat, he
saw the place where the milkmen had their quarters, and
which was not visible before, so densely was it wooded.
Within a few days the ruthless flood subsided, and was
dried up as if by the fire of the king's prowess. The
people were then soon delighted with the sight of
the wealth of ripe shāli crop that grew that year,
as if through the virtue of their king's charity. And
the kind heart of the king of Kashmīra became full at
the prosperity of the people, even as the sea becomes
full at the increase of the moon's crescent. The virtuous
king is like the soul, and the subjects are dear to him
as the body. By the increase of the king's happiness
the subjects become happy, and by his afflictions they
become afflicted.
The king apprehended the recurrence of a similar
calamity, and wandered about with a view to build a
city on the high banks of the Vitastā near Joyāpīḍapura.
On an elevated site on the banks of the river he built a
town called Jainatilaka, which was like an ornament to
the earth, and humbled the pride of Alakā. The moon-
light rested on the walls of this whitewashed city, as if
the goddess of the capital lingered there to see the
king. The houses in the city looked like Kailāsa, as if
it had come there in sorrow, for the favour shown by
Mahādeva towards Rāvaṇa who had uprooted that
mountain. The city with its white washed houses seemed

KINGS OF KASHMÍRA. 123
to laugh at Jayāpīḍapura where the houses and fields
were mouldering in decay. The wise who saw the new
city remarked that the king in his search for the
way into the nether world must have come across the
city of Maya the Asura. The beautiful water from the
river surrounded the city and flowed by its gate, white
as lime, and seemed to laugh at the city of Dvārikā in
the pride of its beauty. It was here that the king, on
the anniversary of his birth day, marked Jayasiṁha of
Rājapurī, with the symbol of royalty. The king who
loved the Brāhmaṇas was pleased with the services
rendered by Jayasiṁha, and as he sat here, he gave
Jayasiṁha the charge of the beautiful kingdom of
Rājapurī. In this same year the king showered gold
in the court-yard of the palace where all the songs of
Kashmīra and of the Kāshya countries were chanted. In
the neighbourhood of this city, a servant of the king
named Helāla killed a mad elephant, and the king built a
small town called Helālapura, inorder to commemorate
the deed.
Within Jayāpīḍapura, the king erected a high seat
of stone, and he built a beautiful palace by the side
of a tank, and having drained off water from the tank
which had been submerged by the inundation, the wise
king built rows of houses for royal offices, befitting
his palace. Every year, on the day of Nāgayātrā, and
during the festivity of Gaṇachakra, the king fed the
devotees here for five days. He made tanks here which

124 KINGS OF KASHMÍRA.
were filled with wine, cream, and curries, and fed every
body. Here also was heard frequently the sound of horns
of thousand devotees, which made even the serpents of
the Mānasa lake shut their eyes. There was no kind of
rice or meat or vegetable or fruit or food with which the
king did not feed the people at the time of this feast.
Out of his reverence for the devotees the king put up
with their indecorous behavior arising from intoxication
which even ordinary men would not have borne. He
dressed Mera the chief of the devotees in valuable
robes and gave him presents, and marks of honor, and
made him like himself in splendour. On the twelfth
day of the moon the king dismissed the devotees after
having laden them with quilts, attendants, money, and
walking stalves.
On the thirteenth day of the moon the king wished
to see the display of lamps made on the occasion of the
worship held on account of the birth of the Vitastā ; and
he embarked on a boat and went to the capital. While
on the water he listened to well composed songs, and at
the time of embarking and disembarking he accepted
the blessings of the citizens. The display of lamps
offered by the citizens to the river looked graceful as if
the spirits of numberless holy places had come to the
Vitastā for adoration. The rows of lamps placed at the
ferry on both banks looked beautiful, as if the gods had
scattered golden flowers for the worship of the Vitastā.
The moon was reflected on the river, but trembled

KINGS OF KASHMÍRA. 125
on the water as if overcome by superior beauty, and
humbled by the lovely faces of the citizens' wives who
came to make offerings to the Vitastā and to worship.
The king who had curbed the pride of his enemies spent
the whole night in the pleasure of listening to songs,
even as Gaḍura spent in feasting on the Gandharbhas.
Where is the place where the rising of the sun is not
seen ? All men are pleased at the sight of the adorable
sun who dwells in the zodiac and is the friend of the
virtuous. But his two sons Yama and Shani, unlike
their father, bring trouble to men, and are cursed by the
people ; they have obtained the title of death, and are
wicked planets. At this time the wicked Ādamakhāna
impelled by envy towards his younger brother, caused
much trouble to the whole country. The wicked minis-
ters and leaders of men had become independent of
the king and indifferent about the welfare of the king-
dom ; and Ādamakhāna who was hard hearted like stone,
was puffed up by pride but was afraid of his brother.
He was fond of women and not of learning ; he was
addicted to hunting, and amused himself with dogs ;
and the night was like day to him. What need be said
of the meanness of him whose servants, like pedlars, sold
in towns, the plumes of birds killed by hawks.
The prince was vain, as being the heir-apparent, and
once on a time went to Kramarājya attended by a
numerous retinue, inorder to secure possession of the
country. The oppressed country resounded with the cries

126 KINGS OF KASHMÍRA.
of villagers wherever that sinful man passed through,
like a dire calamity. Like the course of a dreadful
planet, his course was marked by the confiscation of
lands which had been previously given away as marks
of favour, although the title deeds were clear. The
covetous Ādamakhāna plundered the people of their
riches in some places by the usual methods, in other
places by threat, or craft, or by deceiving them with
false hopes, and in some places by force. Like a
common man he pretended friendship with the several
Lavanyas, came to their houses, and out of covetous-
ness, robbed them of their wealth. His servants
oppressed timid women, made insulting proposals
to them ; and as the women refused compliance, they
cruelly treated the villagers, and took care to avoid
courts of justice. Ādamakhāna was invincible to the
people of the kingdom, even like a clever logician,
and his shameless servants forcibly entered into houses
where there were handsome women ; — wives, daughters, or
daughters-in-law of citizens, and ravished them. In wine
shops, these servants drank in fishpots, and when they
became intoxicated, they began to blow the earthen pots
like jesters. In their violence, they consumed rice from
the barns, got drunk with wine from the casks, and exacted
enhanced rents. What more need I tell of their un-
lawful acts ? At night these wicked men besmered the
villagers with ghee, and made lamps of them at the
junctions of roads by placing them in vessels full of oil

KINGS OF KASHMÍRA. 127
and setting fire to them ; and the flame rose as if in
laughter.
The king became distressed on being informed of
these heinous acts, and could not leave his house in his
sorrow. When the king's messenger's asked the servants
of Ādamakhāna not to oppress the people, they replied,
—"Let the king cry in his illness." When a man op-
presses the good and nourishes the wicked, when he
hoards riches instead of spending them in gifts and on
his own comforts, and when he tyrannises over defence-
less villagers without cause,—then surely his end is near,
and his wealth becomes a curse and a misfortune.
Ādamakhāna collected his army at Kuddadenapura, and
came to Jainanagara against the king. On that day the
king had heard evil reports, and collected his army in
fear of his son. The king had constructed a bridge on the
Vitastā, named Jainakadali, with four towers made of
stone and wood, and it was the tenth bridge on the way
from the Darad villages to the city. This same bridge,
constructed by himself, now caused alarm to the king,
and he apprehended that [his foes might take advantage
of it] and thus cause him harm. The king also appre-
hended commotion within the town and was struck down
with fear. With great difficulty and through the council
of his advisers, he succeeded in dislodging his son from
the city.
The sun's passage towards the north brings heat to
the world, and the sun, as if conscious of this, retreats

128 KINGS OF KASHMÍRA.
southwards, and thus causes cold. I bow to the sun
who thus brings relief to men, and who again moves
northward to remove their sufferings caused by cold.
Ādamakhāna reached Kramarājya, and the king fearing
that his state would be divided into factions wrote a
letter with his own hand thus, and sent it to Hājyakhāna.
"O son ! Calamities have befallen me which I find it
difficult to surmount; my life is in danger, and I have
no other help but in you. As soon as you read my
letter, sit up at once if you were sleeping, stand up if
you were seated, run if you were standing. What more
need be said in this matter? If you come without
delay, and without minding the trouble which this bad
news may cause, truly your desire will be realized in full.
But if you do not arrive here speedily while I am yet
alive though distracted, there will be no use in your
coming to me after I am dead." Now prince Ādamakhāna
had crossed over to Svayyapura, and engaged his force
in a fierce encounter with the royal army. The contest
between the two armies soon became a general confused
battle, marked by great ferocity. The battle in this
year, 35, like that in the year 28, was caused by wicked
people ; they created enmity between father and son, and
caused harm to them both. The people of Darad and
others drowned themselves in the water of the river
through fear of Ādamakhāna, and the lake became full of
corpses. The three hundred men of Ādamakhāna, fierce
as death, slaughtered men in the field that day and then

KINGS OF KASHMÍRA. 129
tore up the bridge of boats, and crossed the river. As the
king went out of the city he saw citizens in the streets
with their feet burnt and suffering from the agony ;
and he heard them crying and lamenting thus :—"Fie
to the cruel man who instead of subduing foreign
countries oppressed his father’s dominion which he should
have protected. The vicious Shikhajāda and others
who accepted pay from both father aud son and harassed
the king are now suffering the punishment of their
treachery. The wicked planet saturn believed himself
to be as great a benefactor to men as the matchless sun,
and aspired to equal him ; but then the peerless sun
arese, brightening everything, and by his greatness des-
troyed those whose ways were tortuous. Ādamakhāna
has been deserted by his wicked followers who have
brought misery on their country and destruction on
the people, and he has also been deserted by fortune
and prosperity. The people survive other calamities
like excessive rain or drought, or the destruction of
crops by mice, locusts, or birds ; or even a foreign
invasion ; but let not the king have sons bent
on destruction or divided by mutual enmity ; or if
he has only one son, let it not be a wicked son
who causes misery. The two sons of the king, cruel
destroyers of the people, were to him even as the
rising of the Saturn and Yama is to the sun. Where
can such another king be found, lenient even to
those who caused trouble, forgiving to fallen enemies,

and liberal in the appreciation of merit ? It is owing
to our misfortune that the king was put to trouble by
his wicked son." When the king went to Svayyapura
he heard villagers on the road censuring his son for the
slaughter of men, saying :—" When the king saw the
birth of his son, he felt happy, for he thought that his
son would bear the burden of the kingdom ; and the
king raised him to prosperity out of his affection, even
against the dictates of policy. But the king now knows
his son to be as powerful as himself, and fears him, and
though surrounded by joys, he can never sleep on
account of his anxiety. There was a great slaughter of
men owing to the animosity between brothers, and king
Ālishāhi was bound and killed by the son of Mallika.
Similarly what calamity has befallen king Jaina, ou
of the jealousy of his sons ? Let not many sons, the
destroyers of the country, be born therefore into a king’s
house !"
. The armies of the father and son were now encamped
on either bank of the Vitastā ; they were now near each
other and each was eager to overcome the other. In
the meantime Hājyakhāna who had reached Parṇotsa
without delay, approached, like Gaḍura, the neighbour-
hood of the Saḍvarṇa country. When the king heard
of the arrival of the prince with his army at the out-
skirts of Varāhamūla, he sent Vahrāmakhāna to greet
him. Hājyakhāna, who was expecting him, greeted and
embraced his youngest brother, who was gratified with

KINGS OF KASHMÍRA. 131
the reception. On the following day, when Ādamakhāna
found that his younger brother was welcomed by his
father, he retired in fear, deserted by his guards ; and he
arrived with his army and distressed followers in the
country of Sindhu by the way of Shāhibhanga after
crossing the Sindhu river. Thus in the year 33,* the
happy king expelled his eldest son by his wisdom and
entered the capital, joined by Hājyakhāna.
The bee which has spent the long winter in a hollow
in the ground overpowered with grief, comes out in the
spring season with trembling wings to the garden bright
with blooming creepers, and roams about in joy, fond
of the young sprout. Even so after a long time, Hājya-
khāna now obtained from his Janaka like father the rank
of heir-apparent which he had once held. He obtained
his father's love which was as a bright jewel, and in
his affection towards him, he never cast it away, even
as Kṛishṇa never cast away the Kaustuva gem. He was
of fair complexion, spirited, and courteous to all, and
he bent down in humility, sitting behind gods and
elders. He was graceful as the letter Ha which bends
itself, as if in humility, after the god-like letters which
precede. It is a good alphabet of the Ushṇa group,
even as he was of good and bright complexion ; and the
last of all the alphabets. There was not a shrine where
the king went, not a journey which he undertook,

• There is some discrepancy in the dates. The year given here is
  33, but just before it was said to be 35.

132 KINGS OF KASHMÍRA.
not a festive performance which he attended in which
he was not accompanied by Hājyakhāna. What man
does not admire Mahādeva, who is attended by his two
sons, the benefactor of the universe, who is in the en-
joyment of pleasures, and is surrounded by hundreds of
spirits beaming in the excess of their devotion, who
spends his time in listening to hymns accompanied
with dances, and who is the object of adoration, the
possessor of superhuman power, and the dweller of
Kailāsa ?
Here ends the third chapter of Jainarājatarangiṇī,
entitled the account of the banishment of Ādamakhāna
and alliance with Hājyakhāna.
CHAPTER IV.
In the meantime, Spring, the friend of Cupid,
passed away. What the moon is to lustful kumuda
flowers, what the sun, the dispeller of darkness which
is like woman's anger, is to blooming creepers, what
the beauty of budding youth is to women, that is
Spring to Cupid. At the Chaitra festival, the king em-
barked on a boat, accompanied by his son, and with a
view to enjoy the sport of flowers he went to Maḍava-
rājya. The line of the king's boats on the Vitastā
looked like the row of Indra's charriots on the milky
way. He started from Avantipura, and stopped at royal
palaces at Vijayesha and other places inorder to witness

KINGS OF KASHMÍRA. 133
dancing. The king was a part of Mahādeva, and his
courtiers who attended on him were like Cupid, who
had multiplied into many persons inorder to overcome
him. The spectators and the singers knew literature,
rhetoric, and philosophy, and appreciated merit. Young
women, proficient in music, possessed of sweet voice,
and with a genuine ardour for song, graced the place.
The men were learned and dignified; and fond of
enjoyment ; and they displayed their taste and their in-
telligence on the stage. The renowned Tārā and the
actors sang various songs to the nārācha tune, and to
every kind of music. And the songstress Utsavā who
was even like Cupid's arrow, charming to the eye and
proficient in dance, both swift and slow, entranced
every body. The actresses, who displayed the forty nine
different emotions seemed even like the ascending and
descending notes of music personified. As they danced
and sang, the eye and the ear of the audience seemed to
contend for the kneenest enjoyment. The scene was in-
deed beautiful, the songs of the actresses were like the
voice of the kokila, the stage was like a garden where the
lamps on it looked like rows of the champaka flower, and
around them were men intoxicated with wine, like bees
around flowers. Rows of lamps surrounded the king, as if
the gods pleased with his government had come to witness
the dance, and had thrown a garland of golden lotuses
round him. In some places, the rows of lamps were
reflected on the water, as if Varuṇa had out of favour
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