STORY FOUR
King TrivikramaSena again went to the Shimshapaa tree in the night;
climbed the tree; saw the corpse possessed by the spirit. Vetaala was laughing
aloud and making weird noises through that corpse. Without fear the king placed
the corpse on his shoulder and started walking towards the tree where the
mendicant stayed. Vetaala which was on the shoulder spoke to the king who was
walking silently.
“King! Why are
you straining yourself to fulfill the wishes of that wicked mendicant?
I do not see any
wisdom in your wasteful enterprise like this. Any how, because I like you, I
will entertain you with another story to remove your fatigue of walking.
Listen!
There is a city named Shobhaavatee beautiful as its name suggests. It
was ruled by a king named Shoodraka who was highly valorous and was extremely
courageous and brave. He was always victorious in wars; the fire of his valor
blazed high fanned by the wind blown by the chowries held by the wives of
enemies who were imprisoned. The earth filled with all sorts of wealth became
more prosperous by the unswerving righteous behavior of the king so much so
that she forgot even kings like Rama.
The king always welcomed brave men to enter his services. A valorous
man of the Kshatriya (warrior-class) named Veeravara once came to him from the
city of Maalava
to join his services. He had a wife named Dharmavati; a son named ShaktiDhara;
a daughter named Veeravati. He had only three things as his tools for the
service- the dagger tied to his waist; a sword held in the hand; a shield in
the other hand. With this much of alone as his weaponry for fighting he
requested the king to give him daily five hundred gold coins as his salary. The
king was impressed by his personality shining with valor and agreed to give him
the salary he desired. He arranged some spies to follow him to find out what he
did with so much money.
Veeravara arrived early in the morning to the palace; offered his
respects to the king; stood all through the day at the main gate with his
sword; took the salary of five hundred gold coins; gave a hundred to his wife
for house-keeping; with another hundred he purchased things like clothes,
pastes to apply on the body, Taamboola etc.
He bathed and used up another hundred in the worship of Vishnu and
Shiva. He distributed the left over two hundred coins among the poor and the
Brahmins.
In this manner he spent of daily five hundred gold coins. After that he
finished his
Fire-rites; ate food and again went back to the main gate of the palace
and spent the night guarding it all alone holding the sword in one hand and the
shield on the other.
This was his daily routine.
The king heard all this through his spies and felt very happy. He told
them not to follow Veeravara any more.
He felt that the Veeravara was of an outstanding character and deserved
to be honored in a special way.
As days went by, rainy season arrived and clouds covered the sky like a
screen, day and night; rains poured heavy and hard. The highways near the
palace were all deserted. Veeravara stood at the palace gate alone and under
the pouring rain. Evening came. The skies were dark. Rains were pouring down
without a break.
The king wanted to check the loyalty of Veeravara. He climbed up to the
terrace in that night and shouted-
“Who is there at
the main gate?”
Veeravara heard the king’s voice and shouted back-
“I alone am
here.”
The king thought-
‘Aha! This Veeravara is very honest and
respects me a lot. I should definitely promote him to a higher post.”
Then he climbed down the terrace; entered the harem and went to sleep.
Another night, when the skies were pouring heavily, as the earth was
covered by dense darkness, the king wanted to check the loyalty of Veeravara;
climbed up the terrace and shouted –
“Who is there at
the main gate?”
Veeravara heard the king’s voice and shouted back-“I alone am here.”
At that time the king was surprised to hear from a distance, a pathetic
weeping sound of a woman.
The king thought-
‘Who is crying
pitifully like this as if stuck by some great tragedy? In my country no one
harasses anyone. No one is poor or suffering. Who is this woman then?’
He was moved by compassion and ordered Veeravara who was standing below
him under the terrace-
“Hey Veeravara!
Listen! There is some lady crying far from here. Go and find out who she is and
why she is crying.”
Veeravara said-
“As the king
commands.”
He tied the dagger to his waist, took the sword in the hand and went in
search of that crying woman. He did not bother about the hail stones falling
along with the heavy rains and the dense darkness created by the freshly
gathered clouds with their flashing ‘lightning-eyes’. Observing that he was
going alone in that dark night, the king moved by kindness and curiosity
climbed down from the terrace, took a sword in his hand and followed him
unknown to him.
Veeravara followed the sound and was soon at the outskirts of the city
and reached a lake. He saw a woman in the center of the lake inside the waters
crying loudly –
“Ha, brave one!
Ha, kind one! Ha, charitable one! How will I live without you?”
Veeravara was surprised and feeling apprehensive asked her-
“Who are you? Why
are you crying?”
She replied-
“Hey Veeravara!
Know me to be the Mother Prithvee (Earth)!
The righteous king Shoodraka is my Lord now. Third day from today the
king is going to die. I do not know how I can get another Master like him. That
is why I am distressed and crying like this.”
Veeravara was shocked by her prediction and asked again-
“Goddess! Is
there any remedy for that? Is there any way our king can be saved?”
The Goddess of Earth answered-
“Son! There is
just one way to save the king! Can you do that?”
Veeravara said-
“Goddess! What is
it? Tell me quickly! Let me do it fast. Otherwise what use are our lives?”
Goddess Earth said-
“Son! Who is greater
devotee of our Lord than you? Then listen to what I say! Near the
palace there is the temple
of ChandikaaDevi built by
this king. If you offer your son to her
then the king will not die and live for hundred years more. If you do it today
itself, it will be good; not otherwise!”
Veeravara told her-
“I will go
Goddess! I will do it today itself!”
Goddess said- “May you be blessed!” and vanished from sight.
The king who had followed Veeravara unseen by him heard all this.
The king wanted to know what Veeravara would do now, and followed him
as he hurried towards his house.
Veeravara woke up his wife; told her what Goddess Earth had said. His
wife heard all that and told her husband-
“Lord! If it is
all for the good of the world, then wake up the child and tell him everything
yourself.”
Veeravara then woke his son up; told him everything and said-
“Son! If you are
offered to Devi Chandikaa, the king will live; otherwise he will die on the
third day from today.”
The boy did not show any anxiety and with a behavior well-suited to his
name said to his father –
“Father! If the
king lives by my giving up life, I am blessed indeed! I would have paid back
the food given by the king and be freed of the obligation.
What are you
waiting for? Quickly take me and offer me to the Goddess.
Let the
inauspiciousness waiting for the king, vanish by my death.”
Veeravara felt very happy by his words. He praised him saying-
“Good! You are a
son befitting your father!”
Veeravara placed his son on his shoulder and started walking.
His wife Dharmavati and his daughter Veeravati followed Veeravara and
ShaktiDhara to the temple
of Goddess Chandikaa. The
king also followed unseen by them.
In front of the statue of the Goddess, ShaktiDhara the personification
of courage, got down from his father’s shoulder; saluted the Goddess; and with
folded hands said-
“Goddess! Accept
my head as an offering and let this king rule the kingdom for hundred more
years without any problem.”
As he remained praying, Veeravara took the sword and sliced off his
son’s head; took the head in his hand and placed it at the feet of the Goddess
and said-
“Let the king
live by the offering of my son’s head.”
At that moment a voice rose from the sky-
“Who can be a
better devoted servant of the king than you? Hey Veeravara! You have given life
and kingdom to the king by taking away the life of your one and only son of
such a noble character!”
The king was watching all this and hearing all that.
Veeravara’s daughter Veeravati clasped the sliced off head to her bosom;
was blind with grief; her heart broke; next moment she collapsed on the ground
dead.
Then Veeravara’s wife Dharmavati said to him-
“Master! The king
has been saved.
Now I tell you;
you saw how our daughter died of grief; when both the children are dead what
for should I hold on to life?
I was an idiot; I
should have offered my head to the goddess to save the king before you killed
our son. At least give me permission now. I will immediately enter the fire.”
As she spoke these words pained by the death of her children, Veeravara
said-
“Do that only!
What happiness can there be in a life where the pain of the children’s death
lingers on! You said – ‘Why did I not offer my life?’ But do not worry about
that.
If there was any
other way to save the king, would I not have offered my own life?
So wait for a few
minutes. I will collect some wood and light a fire for you.”
The fire was made ready; it was blazing with high flames; Dharmavati
saluted her husband by falling at his feet; she saluted Goddess Chandikaa and
prayed-
“Goddess! In the
other life also, this Veeravara alone should become my husband. Let all the
good be there for the king Shoodraka by my son.”
She said this much; entered the fire burning with high flames and
offered her body to it.
Then Veeravara started thinking-
“I have done my
duties to the king. The voice from the sky proved it. I have repaid well for
the food eaten by serving the king. I am not obligated any more. Then what is
there for me to live for?
When the very
family for whom I earned by serving the king is gone, it is not right that I
should continue to live alone any more. Why don’t I please the Goddess by
offering my own life?”
Veeravara thought like this and offered prayers to the Goddess before
he killed himself.
“Victory to you!
O Slayer of Mahisha demon!
You help us cross this worldly existence!
You are the slayer of all demons!
You hold the Trident!
You give joy to the Gods!
You are the support of the three worlds!
You are the best of Mothers!
Victory to you!
Your feet are worshipped by the world!
You are the shelter for me!
You bestow good on your devotees!
You are Kaali, the dark hued Goddess!
You hold the human skull as a bowl in your
hand!
You wear the bones as your garland!
You are the auspicious one!
Salutations to you!
Accept my head as
an offering and bestow all the good on King Shoodraka!”
Having recited the hymns in this manner, he immediately sliced off his
head with the sword.
The king, who was watching all this hiding in a corner, was shocked; grieved
and worried.
He thought-
“Alas! I have
never seen or heard such a thing. This good man has performed a very difficult
deed along with his family.
In this amazing
worldly existence which other person is equal to this brave man! He has offered
the lives of his children and his own too for his king. If I do not do
something to redeem his sacrifice, then what is the meaning of my being a
king?! What use is there living like an animal? Because of this incident my
fame will be tainted always!”
Having thought like this, the king pulled out the sword from its
sheath; went near the statue of the Goddess and said-
“Goddess! I am
always in your shelter. If you are pleased now by my offering of the body then
bestow your grace on me. Let this Veeravara filled with many virtues who
sacrificed his life for me become alive along with his family.”
Having said these words, he raised the sword to slice off his head,
then immediately a voice spoke from the sky.
“Son! Do not do
such a terrible act of valor. I am pleased by your greatness.
Let Veeravara
become alive along with his family.”
As soon as the voice subsided, Veeravara stood there alive along with
his wife, son and daughter unhurt in the body.
The king immediately hid himself in a dark corner. His eyes were filled
with tears of happiness. He could not believe himself and looked at them again
and again with joy.
Veeravara got up as if from sleep; saw his wife, son and daughter alive;
was puzzled in his mind. He asked each of them –
“How did you
become alive after dying? Or am I hallucinating?
Aha! Or is it a
dream? Or is it sorcery? Or is it the grace of the Goddess?”
When he talked like this, his
wife and children said to him-
“We are all alive
by the grace of the Goddess!”
He also agreed thinking that is how it could be explained; saluted the
Goddess; feeling satisfied with all that had happened, he took his family home;
left them there; reached the main gate on that very night and stood there as
usual.
King Shoodraka saw all this; returned to the palace unseen by them;
climbed the terrace; and shouted-
“Who is standing
guard at the main gate?”
Veeravara answered back-
“Lord! I,
Veeravara am standing here. As you ordered me, I went in search of the woman
who was crying. She was some demoness. As soon as she saw me, she ran away.”
The king was very much surprised by his words as he had actually seen
what had truly taken pace. He thought-
“Aha! Wise men
who are courageous and have minds deep like the ocean, never talk about their
deeds even if they have done something far above the level of an ordinary man.”
The king thought like this; climbed down the terrace; went back to the
harem; and slept the rest of the night peacefully.
Next morning, Veeravara came to visit him as usual. The king felt happy
by seeing him and told all his ministers and courtiers all that had happened
the previous night.
All were surprised and bewildered by the account given by the king and
praised
Veeravara –“Well-done! Well-done!”
Later the king and Veeravara lived happily with the kingdom equally
divided between them.
END
After recounting the story of Veeravara, Vetaala asked TrivikramaSena-
“King! Who is the
greatest among them all? If you know and yet do not answer, you will be the
victim of the curse which I mentioned already!”
Hearing the words of the Vetaala, the king said-
“O Divine being! King
Shoodraka alone is the greatest among them all.”
Vetaala said-
“King! Why not
Veeravara? There is no one equal to him in service!
Why not you
commend the wife as the greatest? She did not lose her courage even when her
son’s head was sliced off!
Why is not the
son ShaktiDhara the greatest? Being a small child, he showed such courage! Why
do you say that only Shoodraka is the greatest of all?”
The king said-
“Veeravara was of
a noble family; yet he was not the greatest! It is his duty to protect the king
with his lives, wife and children; his wife was of a good family, a devoted
wife, loved her husband like her lives; she did only the duty of a wife by
co-operating with her husband. ShaktiDhara, their son also did what a son had
to do; because the cloth has the same character as the threads.
King Shoodraka
was ready to sacrifice his life for his servants who saved him by sacrificing
their own lives. So he is the greatest among them all.”
Vetaala vanished immediately from his shoulders and flew away to its
place on the tree. The king unmoved by its magical powers started walking back
towards the Shimshapaa tree to bring it back again.
