वासवदत्ता (महाकवि सुबन्धु - श्लेष-प्रधान शास्त्रीय गद्यकाव्य सान्वय सटीक)

trable on account of its ‹blackness› ; it had gifts of a ‹hundred
crores› as Karṇa had the gift of ‹Indra's bolt› ; [89] it was
covered with ‹tail feathers moulted by peacocks› as Bhīṣma was
covered ¹ with ‹crescent-headed arrows› ; it was filled with ‹ele-
phants and was fragrant from the perfume of its jungles› as the
Kāmasūtra was written by ‹Mallanāga and contains the delight
and enjoyment of mistresses› ; it was a refuge for the race of
‹deer› as Hiraṇyakaśipu was a refuge for the race of ‹Śambara›.²
Because of the guise of its ruddle it seemed to have been
employed by Aruṇa to trace the path of the chariot of the
sun ³ ; [90] it watched, as it were, the journey of Agastya with
eyes dilated because the sun and moon had come upon its
summit ; on account of the old sloughs of snakes it seemed to
have a mass of entrails hanging out ⁴ ; as Kumbhakarṇa had
a host of monkeys come within his ‹teeth›,⁵ it had a host of
monkeys come upon its ‹summit› ; [91] it had bowers of screw-
pines for the rendezvous of the assembled nymphs of Śacī's Lord
who marked their pathway with a series of footprints dyed with
red henna.
Though of ‹no family›, it was adorned by a «noble ancestry»,
for it did ‹not cling to the ground› and it was «adorned with
beautiful bamboos» ; though it was ‹evidently safe›, it yielded
the «fruit of death», for it had ‹hara-nut trees› and yielded
«plantains» ; though ‹measured›, it was «measureless», for it
had ‹plateaus› and was «immeasurable» ; [92] though ‹noisy›,
it was «silent», for it had a ‹river› and was «still» ; though
a ‹Bhīma›, it was a friend of «Kīcaka», for it was ‹terrible› and
a friend of «reeds» ; though it hid its ‹garments›, it had brilliant
«raiment», for it hid the ‹sky› and had brilliant «sunbeams».
[93] It showed, moreover,⁶ a ‹malady of many of its com-

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¹ Tel. ed. and Srirangam text, ‘ had his body covered.’ Cf. Hopkins, ‘ Position of
the Ruling Caste in Ancient India,’ in JAOS. 13. 278.
² Cf. Viṣṇupurāṇa, 1. 19 ; 5. 27.
³ Tel. ed. and Srirangam text, ‘ the sun on high.’
⁴ Tel. ed., ‘ tubular entrails hanging out of chasms cleft by thunderbolts ’ ; similarly
the Srirangam text.
⁵ Cf. Rāmāyaṇa, 6. 67.
⁶ Tel. ed. and Srirangam text, ‘ like a sick man.’