STORY TWENTY ONE
The king again went
to the shimshapaa tree; placed the Vetaala on his shoulder and started to move.
Vetaala said to the king-
“King! I will tell you
a story provoking passion! Listen!”
There is a city
named Vishaalaa like another Amaraavati (Indra’s city) created by Lord Brahma
for those meritorious ones who fell on the earth from heaven when their merits
ended.
There lived a king
named PadmaNaabha श्रीमान् सच्चक्रनन्दनः आक्रान्तबलिराजकः
(Lord of Shree;
holding the discus and pleasing all; who had subdued king Bali )
very wealthy;
pleasing the circle of virtuous people; who had subdued all powerful kings.
In that city of the
king lived a wealthy merchant who had surpassed the Lord of wealth Kubera by
his riches, named ArthaDatta.
He had a daughter
named AnangaManjaree (blossoms of Manmatha) through whom the Creator revealed
to the earth how an apsaraa would look like.
That merchant
offered his daughter in marriage to a merchant named ManiVarman of TaamaraLipti
city. But being extremely attached to his married daughter, the father did not
part with his daughter to send her to her husband’s room. Like a diseased man
hates the bitter sour medicine, AnangaManjaree hated her husband. But her
husband loved her more than his life like a miserly man loves his
wealth-collection.
ManiVarman once
felt like seeing his parents and went to the city of TaamaraLipti .
Many days passed
by.
Summer season
arrived blocking the paths of the travelers with the sharp arrows shot by the
Sun.
The winds blew
carrying the fragrance of jasmine and red (paatala) flowers as if the
directions were sighing by the separation of the Vasanta, the spring.
The days were
moving slowly like the ‘travelers seeking the shades of the trees scorched by
the heat of the Sun’ (and delaying their journeys).
The nights also
became emaciated missing the deep embrace of the ‘Hemanta (Snow season) which
shone forth white with the rays of the moon’.
On one of these
days, AnangaManjaree was seated near the window of her house with her body
covered by sandal paste and wearing a light garment. She at that time chanced
to see the son of the royal priest named Kamalaakara (collection of lotuses)
who appeared like a newly born Manmatha wandering along with his close friend
desirous of a girl’s company. Kamalaakara also saw her at the terrace window
like a moon in person; felt happy and attained the state of the collection of
night lotuses. (Kumudaakara) (happy)
Their looking at
each other made their minds attached to each other by the order of Guru
Manmatha without the actual use of glue. Kamalaakara filled with passion at her
very sight returned home somehow with the help of his friend. AnangaManjaree
also feeling attracted towards him found out about him from her friend and
entered her room thinking about him only. Wallowing in the bed in his thoughts,
stuck by the fever of passion, she never saw anything; nor heard anything.
Two three days
passed by.
AnangaManjaree’s
condition worsened. She was feeling embarrassed; frightened; paled out by the
pangs of separation; and lost hope of ever meeting her lover.
One night, as if
pulled by the rays of the moon seen from the window, she came out of the house
when all the people in the house were asleep; decided to give up her life;
reached the garden-well under a tree. There was a statue of Chandi, the Goddess
of the family installed there by her father. She saluted the Goddess; recited
hymns and said-
“Devi! In this birth I
could not get Kamalaakara as my husband. At least make him my husband in the
next birth.”
After praying like this, in the presence of the Goddess, she
tied one end of her upper garment to the branch of the Ashoka tree and tied the
other end around her neck like a noose. By that time her friend woke up; did
not see AnangaManjaree in the room; searched for her; fortunately found her in
the garden; ran towards her shouting “Don’t! Don’t!” and cut off the
noose. With the noose suddenly cut, AnangaManjaree fell on the ground distressed
and disappointed.
The friend helped her get up; consoled her and asked her why
she wanted to give up her life.
AnangaManjaree said-
“Friend Maalati! I
cannot ever unite with my lover. I am under the control of my father. There is
nothing that will give me more happiness than death.”
As she was talking, burning in the fire of arrows of
Manmatha and certain about her desires never getting fulfilled, she fainted.
“Ha! The difficulty!
The command of Manmatha can never be disobeyed. That is why she has come to
this condition.”
Lamenting like this, her friend Maalati sprinkled some cold
water on her face; made a bed of lotus leaves to cool her burning body; placed
a garland of ice-cold flowers on her neck.
Slowly AnangaManjaree came to her senses and shedding tears
said-
“Friend! These
garlands and other things are not going to reduce my inner fire. If you want to
see me alive, then do something and make me meet my lover.”
Maalati feeling worried about her friend’s condition said-
“Friend! The night is
almost gone now. I will go in the early morning itself and bring your lover by
hinting about you to him. Now take courage and go back to your room.”
AnangaManjaree was pleased by her friend’s assuring words
and gifted her a necklace, removing it her from her own neck.
“We will go home now.
Tomorrow you must do what you promised.” She told her friend and returned home.
In the early morning, Malatikaa went out unseen by anyone
searching for Kamalaakara’s house; saw Kamalaakara under a tree in the garden,
burning in the fire of passion, lying on a bed made of lotus petals dampened by
sandal paste and his close friend fanning him with plantain leaves.
She thought-“Is he
suffering for the company of my mistress or not?”
To find out the truth, she hid there behind a tree unable to
make a decision.
Then Kamalaakara’s friend said to him-
“Friend! Just for a
second look around you; see the beautiful garden and feel relaxed.
Do not suffer so much
like this.”
Kamalaakara said to his friend-
“My mind is stolen by
AnangaManjaree. This body now has no mind at all. How can I enjoy anything? I
now have an empty heart because of Manmatha and pierced all over by his arrows.
Do something so I can meet my Goddess of the heart.”
Maalati now had no doubt; was happy; came out of her hiding;
showed herself to him and said-
“Good man! I have been
sent to you by AnangaManjaree. I will give you the message sent by her.
‘Is this the
befitting conduct of a noble man to suddenly enter the heart and steal away an
innocent girl’s heart? It is strange;
even then that girl of pretty eyes wants to offer her body also along with her
lives to you the handsome one. She breathes out hot
smoke-filled air
rising out of the passion fire burning day and night in the heart.
The tear drops
darkened by collirium of the eyes fall continuously like the bees attracted
towards the fragrance of the lotus-face.’
So if you want, I will
suggest something that will help both of you.”
Kamalaakara said-
“Good lady! Your words
which reveal the suffering and love of my beloved frighten me and soothe me
also. You alone can help us. Tell me what I should do.”
Maalati said-
“I will bring
AnangaManjaree secretly to her garden at night. You be waiting outside.
I will somehow get you inside the garden. In
this manner you both can meet.”
Kamalaakara felt relieved and happy by her words. Maalati
went back and reported everything to her friend.
As the Lord of the day filled with love for the twilight
(Sandhyaa) went off with the day;
as the eastern direction where Indra resides
(Vaasavaashayaa) decorated herself with the Tilak of Chandra (Moon); as the
grove of night lotuses (Kumudaakara) smiled with the face fully blossoming in
the joy thinking that ‘the Goddess of beauty has discarded the grove of lotuses
and has come to me’; that passionate Kamalaakara decorated himself well, and
with all excitement arrived at the garden gate of his beloved carefully unseen
by others.
Maalati brought AnangaManjaree who had passed the day with
much difficulty, to the garden behind the house; made her sit under the mango
tree; went out and brought Kamalaakara inside. He entered and saw that
AnangaManjaree like a traveler looking at the shade of a huge tree covered
fully with leaves growing on the roadside.
As soon as he was seen, AnangaManjaree overcome by passion
rushed towards him and embraced him by the neck losing all her shyness.
“Where were you? My mind-thief! I have at last got you”
As she was blabbering such love-filled words, her breath
getting choked by the extreme emotion of joy at the lover’s sight, she died and
fell on the ground like a creeper hit by the storm.
विचित्रं बत कामस्य विषमः क्रमः ॥
The ways of
Passion are indeed strange!
Shocked as if stuck by lightning, Kamalaakara cried-
“Ha! Ha! What is this?!” and fainted on the ground.
Next moment, he woke up; placed his beloved’s body on his
lap; embraced her; kissed her again and again; wept aloud; suffering
uncontrollably died of broken heart due to excessive grief.
Rajanee (Night), looking at both of them, got emaciated due
to embarrassment and fear.
The garden keepers saw the dead bodies in the morning and
informed the respective families. Filled with embarrassment, surprise, grief
and confusion, all of them came there and stood dumbstruck in front of the dead
bodies unable to do anything.
हा। कष्टं कुयोषितः कुलखलीकारहेतवः॥
Alas! Wayward
women indeed cause dishonor to their families!
At that time AnangaManjaree’s husband ManiVarman arrived there from
his father’s house at TaamraLipti, eager to meet his wife. He went to his
in-law’s house; was informed of his wife’s death; came to the garden profusely
shedding tears; saw his
wife’s dead body in the embrace of some other man; and immediately died
burnt by the fire of grief.
As the weeping and lamenting went on, all the citizens came
there to see them.
AnangaManjaree’s father fell at the feet of Goddess Chandi
in that garden, along with his family and prayed-
“Mother! This ArthaDatta has installed you here and has
always worshipped you with devotion. Please show your compassion now and save
me.”
Shankaree the
compassionate Goddess ordered-
“Let all three wake up
alive with their passions subsided.”
By the grace of the
Goddess all the three became alive. They were freed of the torment of passion
also. All the people assembled there felt happy by seeing all this. Kamalaakara
returned home feeling embarrassed and bending his head.
ArthaDatta brought
his daughter AnangaManjaree who was feeling embarrassed and shy back to
his house along with her husband.
END
After relating this story, Vetaala questioned the king in
that night-
“King! Who crosses the limit of foolishness in these
deaths due to love? If you know the answer and do not speak, the curse will
take effect as I had previously mentioned.”
The King replied-
“Yogeshvara! ManiVarman is the most foolish of all. Though seeing his wife dead in the embrace of
another person, instead of getting angry, he was overcome by grief being infatuated
with her; and died.”
Vetaala heard his answer and flew off to its abode on the
tree. The king ran after it as us usual.
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