{"collection":"myth-cosmogony","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_12169/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_12169","id":"gutenberg_12169","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/12169","summary":null,"tags":["Best Books Ever Listings","Category: Mythology, Legends & Folklore","Category: Plays/Films/Dramas","India","Indic drama","Sanskrit drama -- Translations into English"],"text":"[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1\n\nOR THE LOST RING\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nAN INDIAN DRAMA\n\n\n\n\n\n\nTRANSLATED INTO ENGLISH PROSE AND VERSE\nFROM THE SANSKRIT OF K\u00c1LID\u00c1SA\n\n\nBY\n\n\nSIR MONIER MONIER-WILLIAMS, K.C.I.E.\nM.A., D.C.L., LL.D., PH.D.\nBODEN PROFESSOR OF SANSKRIT, HON. FELLOW OF UNIVERSITY\nAND LATE FELLOW OF BALLIOL COLLEGE, OXFORD\n\n\n\n\nPREFACE TO THE EIGHTH EDITION.\n\nThe fact that the following translation (first published in 1855) of\nIndia's most celebrated drama has gone through seven editions, might\nreasonably have absolved me from the duty of revising it.\n\nThree years ago, however, I heard that Sir John Lubbock had thought\n'[S']akoontal\u00e1' worthy of a place among the hundred best books of the\nworld, and had adopted my version of the original. I therefore\nundertook to go through every line and once again compare the\ntranslation with the Sanskrit, in the hope that I might be able to\ngive a few finishing touches to a performance which, although it had\nbeen before the public for about forty years, was certainly not\nperfect. The act of revision was a labour of love, and I can honestly\nsay that I did my best to make my representation of K\u00e1lid\u00e1sa's\nimmortal work as true and trustworthy as possible.\n\nAnother edition is now called for, but after a severely critical\nexamination of every word, I have only detected a few minor\nunimportant points--and those only in the Introduction and Notes--in\nwhich any alteration appeared to be desirable. Indeed it is probable\nthat the possessors of previous editions will scarcely perceive that\nany alterations have been made anywhere.\n\nOccasionally in the process of comparison a misgiving has troubled me,\nand I have felt inclined to accuse myself of having taken, in some\ncases, too great liberties with the Sanskrit original. But in the end\nI have acquiesced in my first and still abiding conviction that a\nliteral translation (such as that which I have given in the notes of\nmy edition of the Sanskrit text) might have commended itself to\nOriental students, but would not have given a true idea of the beauty\nof India's most cherished drama to general readers, whose minds are\ncast in a European mould, and who require a translator to clothe\nOriental ideas, as far as practicable, in a dress conformable to\nEuropean canons of taste.\n\nAnd most assuredly such a translation would never have adapted itself\nto actual representation on a modern stage as readily as it now\nappears that my free version has done. It has gratified me exceedingly\nto find that youthful English-speaking Indians--cultured young men\neducated at the Universities of Calcutta, Madras and Bombay--have acted\nthe [S']akoontal\u00e1, in the very words of my translation with the greatest\nsuccess before appreciative audiences in various parts of India.\n\nAnd lest any one in this country should be sceptical as to the\npossibility of interesting a modern audience in a play written\npossibly as early as the third or fourth century of our era (see p.\nxvi), I here append an extract from a letter received by me in 1893\nfrom Mr. V. Padmanabha Aiyar, B.A., resident at Karamanai, Trivandrum,\nTravancore.\n\n'SIVEN COIL STREET, TRIVANDRUM,\n\n_'May 1, 1893_.\n\n'The members of the \"Karamanai Young Men's Mutual Improvement Society\"\nacted your translation of \"[S']akoontal\u00e1\" on the 3rd and 5th of\nSeptember last year, in the Government Museum Theatre, Trivandrum.\n\n'It was acted in two parts. On the first day Acts I to IV were acted,\nand on the second the remaining three Acts.\n\n'All our chief native officials and many Europeans and their ladies\nhonoured the occasion with their presence. We acted it a second time\nat the special request of H.H. the Second Prince of Travancore, in the\nPalace of His Highness' mother, the Junior R\u00e1nee.\n\n'The public were kind enough to pronounce it a success. In many cases\nthe applause given was not so much for the acting as for the beauty of\nyour translation. The Hind\u00fas have a great liking for this play, and\nnot one of the enlightened Hind\u00fa community will fail to acknowledge\nyour translation to be a very perfect one. Our object in acting Hind\u00fa\nplays is to bring home to the Hind\u00fas the good lessons that our ancient\nauthors are able to teach us. If there is one lesson in these days\nmore than another which familiarity with the fountains of Western\nliterature constantly forces upon the mind, it is that our age is\nturning its back on time-honoured creeds and dogmas. We are hurrying\nforward to a chaos in which all our existing beliefs, nay even the\nfundamental axioms of morality, may in the end be submerged; and as\nthe general tenor of Indian thought among the educated community is to\nreject everything that is old, and equally blindly to absorb\neverything new, it becomes more and more an urgent question whether\nany great intellectual or moral revolution, which has no foundations\nin the past, can produce lasting benefits to the people.\n\n'\"I desire no future that will break the ties of the past\" is what\nGeorge Eliot has said, and so it is highly necessary that the Hind\u00fas\nshould know something of their former greatness.\n\n'The songs in [S']akoontal\u00e1, one in the Prologue and another in the\nbeginning of the fifth Act, very easily adapted themselves to Hind\u00fa\ntunes.'\n\nTowards the end of his letter Mr. Aiyar intimated that he himself took\nthe part of M\u00e1[T.]Havya. He also mentioned that a few modifications and\nadditions were introduced into some of the scenes.\n\nIn a subsequent letter received from Mr. Keshava Aiyar, the Secretary\nof the Society, I was informed that my version of the Play was acted\nagain at Trivandrum in 1894.\n\nThese descriptions of the successful representation of the [S']akoontal\u00e1\nin Travancore justified me in expressing a hope that, as K\u00e1lid\u00e1sa has\nbeen called the Shakespeare of India, so the most renowned of his\nthree dramatic works might, with a few manifestly necessary\nmodifications, be some day represented, with equal success, before\nEnglish-speaking audiences in other parts of the world and especially\nhere in England. This hope has been realized, and quite recently my\ntranslation has been successfully acted by amateur actors before a\nLondon audience.\n\nI venture, therefore, to add the expression of a further hope that\nwith the daily growth of interest in Oriental literature, and now that\nthe [S']akoontal\u00e1 forms one of Sir John Lubbock's literary series, it\nmay be more extensively read by the Rulers of India in all parts of\nthe Empire. Those who study it attentively cannot fail to become\nbetter acquainted with the customs and habits of thought, past and\npresent, of the people committed to their sway.\n\nAnd it cannot be too often repeated that our duty towards our great\nDependency requires us to do something more than merely rule justly.\nWe may impart high education, we may make good laws, we may administer\nimpartial justice, we may make roads, lay down railroads and\ntelegraphs, stimulate trade, accomplish amazing engineering\nfeats--like that lately achieved at Periyar--increase the wealth and\ndevelop the resources of our vast Eastern territories; but unless we\nseek to understand the inhabitants, unless we think it worth while to\nstudy their ancient literatures, their religious ideas, and\ntime-honoured institutions, unless we find in them something to admire\nand respect, we can never expect any reciprocity of esteem and respect\non their part--we can never look forward to a time when the present\npartition-wall, which obstructs the free Interchange of social\nrelations between European and Asiatic races, will be entirely\nremoved.\n\nMONIER MONIER-WILLIAMS, _December, 1898_.\n\n\n\n\nINTRODUCTION\n\n\nAbout a century has elapsed since the great English Orientalist, Sir\nWilliam Jones, astonished the learned world by the discovery of a\nSanskrit Dramatic Literature. He has himself given us the history of\nthis discovery. It appears that, on his arrival in Bengal, he was very\nsolicitous to procure access to certain books called N\u00e1taks, of which\nhe had read in one of the 'Lettres \u00c9difiantes et Curieuses' written by\nthe Jesuit Missionaries of China. But, although he sought information\nby consulting both Br\u00e1hmans and Europeans, he was wholly unable for\nsome time to satisfy his curiosity as to the nature of these books. It\nwas reported to him that they were not histories, as he had hoped, but\nthat they abounded with fables, and consisted of conversations in\nprose and verse held before ancient R\u00e1j\u00e1s, in their public assemblies.\nOthers, again, asserted that they were discourses on dancing, music,\nand poetry. At length, a sensible Br\u00e1hman, conversant with European\nmanners, removed all his doubts, and gave him no less delight than\nsurprise, by telling him that the English nation had compositions of\nthe same sort, which were publicly represented at Calcutta in the cold\nseason, and bore the name of 'plays.' The same Br\u00e1hman, when asked\nwhich of these N\u00e1taks was most universally esteemed, answered without\nhesitation, '[S']akoontal\u00e1.'\n\nIt may readily be imagined with what interest, the keen Orientalist\nreceived this communication; with what rapidity he followed up the\nclue; and, when at length his zeal was rewarded by actual possession\nof a MS. copy of one of these dramas, with what avidity he proceeded\nto explore the treasures which for eighteen hundred years had remained\nas unknown to the European world as the gold-fields of Australia.\n\nThe earliest Sanskrit drama with which we are acquainted, the\n'Clay-cart,' translated by my predecessor in the Boden Chair at\nOxford, Professor H.H. Wilson, is attributed to a regal author, King\n[S']\u00fadraka, the date of whose reign cannot be fixed with any certainty,\nthough some have assigned it to the first or second century B.C.\nConsidering that the nations of Europe can scarcely be said to have\npossessed a dramatic literature before the fourteenth or fifteenth\ncentury of the present era, the great age of the Hind\u00fa plays would of\nitself be a most interesting and attractive circumstance, even if\ntheir poetical merit were not of a very high order. But when to the\nantiquity of these productions is added their extreme beauty and\nexcellence as literary compositions, and when we also take into\naccount their value as representations of the early condition of Hind\u00fa\nsociety--which, notwithstanding the lapse of two thousand years, has\nin many particulars obeyed the law of unchangeableness ever stamped on\nthe manners and customs of the East--we are led to wonder that the\nstudy of the Indian drama has not commended itself in a greater degree\nto the attention of Europeans, and especially of Englishmen. The\nEnglish student, at least, is bound by considerations of duty, as well\nas curiosity, to make himself acquainted with a subject which\nelucidates and explains the condition of the millions of Hind\u00fas who\nowe allegiance to his own Sovereign, and are governed by English laws.\n\nOf all the Indian dramatists, indeed of all Indian poets, the most\ncelebrated is K\u00e1lid\u00e1sa, the writer of the present play. The late\nProfessor Lassen thought it probable that he flourished about the\nmiddle of the third century after Christ. Professor Kielhorn of\nG\u00f6ttingen has proved that the composer of the Mandasor Inscription\n(A.D. 472) knew K\u00e1lid\u00e1sa's Ritusamh\u00e1ra. Hence it may be inferred that\nLassen was not far wrong[1]. Possibly some King named Vikram\u00e1ditya\nreceived K\u00e1lid\u00e1sa at his Court, and honoured him by his patronage\nabout that time. Little, however, is known of the circumstances of his\nlife. There is certainly no satisfactory evidence to be adduced in\nsupport of the tradition current in India that he lived in the time\nof the _great_ King Vikram\u00e1ditya I., whose capital was Ujjayin\u00ed, now\nOujein.\n\nFrom the absence of historical literature in India, our knowledge of\nthe state of Hind\u00fast\u00e1n between the incursion of Alexander and the\nMuhammadan conquest is very slight. But it is ascertained with\ntolerable accuracy that, after the invasion of the kingdoms of Bactria\nand Afgh\u00e1nist\u00e1n, the Tartars or Scythians (called by the Hind\u00fas\n'[S']akas') overran the north-western provinces of India, and retained\npossession of them. The great Vikram\u00e1ditya or Vikram\u00e1rka succeeded in\ndriving back the barbaric hordes beyond the Indus, and so consolidated\nhis empire that it extended over the whole of Northern Hind\u00fast\u00e1n. His\nname is even now cherished among the Hind\u00fas with pride and affection.\nHis victory over the Scythians is believed to have taken place about\nB.C. 57. At any rate this is the starting-point of the Vikrama (also\ncalled the M\u00e1lava and in later times the Samvat) era, one of the\nepochs from which the Hind\u00fas still continue to count. There is good\nauthority for affirming that the reign of this Vikram\u00e1rka or\nVikram\u00e1ditya was equal in brilliancy to that of any monarch in any\nage. He was a liberal patron of science and literature, and gave\nsplendid encouragement to poets, philologists, astronomers, and\nmathematicians. Nine illustrious men of genius are said to have\nadorned his Court, and to have been supported by his bounty. They were\ncalled the 'Nine Gems'; and a not unnatural tradition, which, however,\nmust be considered untrustworthy, included K\u00e1lid\u00e1sa among the Nine.\n\nTo K\u00e1lid\u00e1sa (as to another celebrated Indian Dramatist, Bhavabh\u00fati,\nwho probably flourished in the eighth century) only three plays are\nattributed; and of these the '[S']akoontal\u00e1' (here translated) has\nacquired the greatest celebrity [2].\n\nIndeed, the popularity of this play with the natives of India exceeds\nthat of any other dramatic, and probably of any other poetical\ncomposition [3]. But it is not in India alone that the '[S']akoontal\u00e1' is\nknown and admired. Its excellence is now recognized in every\nliterary circle throughout the continent of Europe; and its beauties,\nif not yet universally known and appreciated, are at least\nacknowledged by many learned men in every country of the civilized\nworld. The four well-known lines of Goethe, so often quoted in\nrelation to the Indian drama, may here be repeated:\n\n  'Willst du die Bl\u00fcthe des fr\u00fchen, die Fr\u00fcchte des\n    sp\u00e4teren Jahres,\n  Willst du was reizt und entz\u00fcckt, willst du was s\u00e4ttigt\n    und n\u00e4hrt,\n  Willst du den Himmel, die Erde, mit einem Namen\n    begreifen:\n  Nenn' ich, [S']akoontal\u00e1, Dich, und so ist Alles gesagt.'\n\n  'Would'st thou the young year's blossoms and the fruits\n    of its decline,\n  And all by which the soul is charmed, enraptured,\n    feasted, fed?\n  Would'st thou the Earth and Heaven itself in one sole\n    name combine?\n  I name thee, O [S']akoontal\u00e1! and all at once is said.'\n\n _E.B. Eastwick_.\n\nAugustus William von Schlegel, in his first Lecture on Dramatic\nLiterature, says: 'Among the Indians, the people from whom perhaps all\nthe cultivation of the human race has been derived, plays were known\nlong before they could have experienced any foreign influence. It has\nlately been made known in Europe that they have a rich dramatic\nliterature, which ascends back for more than two thousand years. The\nonly specimen of their plays (N\u00e1taks) hitherto known to us is the\ndelightful [S']akoontal\u00e1, which, notwithstanding the colouring of a\nforeign clime, bears in its general structure a striking resemblance\nto our romantic drama.'\n\nAlexander von Humboldt, in treating of Indian poetry, observes:\n'K\u00e1lid\u00e1sa, the celebrated author of the [S']akoontal\u00e1, is a masterly\ndescriber of the influence which Nature exercises upon the minds of\nlovers. This great poet flourished at the splendid court of\nVikram\u00e1ditya, and was, therefore, cotemporary with Virgil and Horace.\nTenderness in the expression of feeling, and richness of creative\nfancy, have assigned to him his lofty place among the poets of all\nnations'.\n\nThese considerations induced me, in 1853, to compile and publish an\nedition of the text of the '[S']akoontal\u00e1' from various original MSS.,\nwith English translations of the metrical passages, and explanatory\nnotes. A second edition of this work has since been published by the\nDelegates of the Oxford University Press. To the notes of that edition\nI must refer all students of Sanskrit literature who desire a close\nand literal translation of the present drama, and in the Preface will\nbe found an account of various other editions and translations.\n\nThe following pages contain a  _free_ translation, and the first\nEnglish version in prose and metre, of the purest recension of the\nmost celebrated drama of the Shakespeare of India.\n\nThe need felt by the British public for some such translation as I\nhave here offered can scarcely be questioned. A great people, who,\nthrough their empire in India, command the destinies of the Eastern\nworld, ought surely to be conversant with the most popular of Indian\ndramas, in which the customs of the Hind\u00fas, their opinions,\nprejudices, and fables, their religious rites, daily occupations and\namusements, are reflected as in a mirror. Nor is the prose translation\nof Sir W. Jones (excellent though it be) adapted to meet the\nrequirements of modern times. That translation was unfortunately made\nfrom corrupt manuscripts (the best that could then be procured), in\nwhich the bold phraseology of K\u00e1lid\u00e1sa has been occasionally weakened,\nhis delicate expressions of refined love clothed in an unbecoming\ndress, and his ideas, grand in their simplicity, diluted by repetition\nor amplification. It is, moreover, altogether unfurnished with\nexplanatory annotations. The present translation, on the contrary,\nwhile representing the purest version of the drama, has abundant\nnotes, sufficient to answer the exigencies of the non-oriental\nscholar.\n\nIt may be remarked that in every Sanskrit play the women and inferior\ncharacters speak a kind of provincial dialect or _patois_, called\nPr\u00e1krit--bearing the relation to Sanskrit that Italian bears to Latin,\nor that the spoken Latin of the age of Cicero bore to the highly\npolished Latin in which he delivered his Orations. Even the heroine of\nthe drama is made to speak in the vernacular dialect. The hero, on the\nother hand, and all the higher male characters, speak in Sanskrit; and\nas if to invest them with greater dignity, half of what they say is in\nverse. Indeed the prose part of their speeches is often very\ncommonplace, being only introductory to the lofty sentiment of the\npoetry that follows. Thus, if the whole composition be compared to a\nweb, the prose will correspond to the warp, or that part which is\nextended lengthwise in the loom, while the metrical portion will\nanswer to the cross-threads which constitute the woof.\n\nThe original verses are written in a great variety of Sanskrit metres.\nFor example, the first thirty-four verses of '[S']akoontal\u00e1' exhibit\neleven different varieties of metre. No English metrical system could\ngive any idea of the almost infinite resources of Sanskrit in this\nrespect. Nor have I attempted it. Blank verse has been employed by me\nin my translation, as more in unison with the character of our own\ndramatic writings, and rhyming stanzas have only been admitted when\nthe subject-matter seemed to call for such a change. Perhaps the chief\nconsideration that induced me to adopt this mode of metrical\ntranslation was, that the free and unfettered character of the verse\nenabled me to preserve more of the freshness and vigour of the\noriginal. If the poetical ideas of K\u00e1lid\u00e1sa have not been expressed in\nlanguage as musical as his own, I have at least done my best to avoid\ndiluting them by unwarrantable paraphrases or additions. If the\nEnglish verses are prosaic, I have the satisfaction of knowing that by\nresisting the allurements of rhyme, I have done all in my power to\navoid substituting a fictitious and meagre poem of my own for the\ngrand, yet simple and chaste creation of K\u00e1lid\u00e1sa.\n\nThe unrestricted liberty of employing hypermetrical lines of eleven\nsyllables, sanctioned by the highest authority in dramatic\ncomposition, has, I think, facilitated the attainment of this object.\nOne of our own poets has said in relation to such lines: 'Let it be\nremembered that they supply us with another cadence; that they add, as\nit were, a string to the instrument; and--by enabling the poet to\nrelax at pleasure, to rise and fall with his subject--contribute what\nmost is wanted, compass and variety. They are nearest to the flow of\nan unstudied eloquence, and should therefore be used in the drama[4].'\nShakespeare does not scruple to avail himself of this licence four or\nfive times in succession, as in the well-known passage beginning--\n\n  'To be or not to be, that is the question';\n\nand even Milton uses the same freedom once or twice in every page.\n\nThe poetical merit of K\u00e1lid\u00e1sa's '[S']akoontal\u00e1' is so universally\nadmitted that any remarks on this head would be superfluous. I will\nmerely observe that, in the opinion of learned natives, the Fourth\nAct, which describes the departure of [S']akoontal\u00e1 from the hermitage,\ncontains the most obvious beauties; and that no one can read this Act,\nnor indeed any part of the play, without being struck with the\nrichness and elevation of its author's genius, the exuberance and glow\nof his fancy, his ardent love of the beautiful, his deep sympathy with\nNature and Nature's loveliest scenes, his profound knowledge of the\nhuman heart, his delicate appreciation of its most refined feelings,\nhis familiarity with its conflicting sentiments and emotions. But in\nproportion to the acknowledged excellence of K\u00e1lid\u00e1sa's composition,\nand in proportion to my own increasing admiration of its beauties, is\nthe diffidence I feel lest I may have failed to infuse any of the\npoetry of the original into the present version. Translation of poetry\nmust, at the best, resemble the process of pouring a highly volatile\nand evanescent spirit from one receptacle into another. The original\nfluid will always suffer a certain amount of waste and evaporation.\n\nThe English reader will at least be inclined to wonder at the\nanalogies which a thoroughly Eastern play offers to our own dramatic\ncompositions written many centuries later. The dexterity with which\nthe plot is arranged and conducted, the ingenuity with which the\nincidents are connected, the skill with which the characters are\ndelineated and contrasted with each other, the boldness and felicity\nof the diction, are scarcely unworthy of the great dramatists of\nEuropean countries. Nor does the parallel fail in the management of\nthe business of the stage, in minute directions to the actors, and\nvarious scenic artifices. The asides and aparts, the exits and the\nentrances, the manner, attitude, and gait of the speakers, the tone of\nvoice with which they are to deliver themselves, the tears, the\nsmiles, and the laughter, are as regularly indicated as in a modern\ndrama.\n\nIn reference to the constitution and structure of the play here\ntranslated, a few general remarks on the dramatic system of the Hind\u00fas\nmay be needed[5].\n\nDramatic poetry is said to have been invented by the sage Bharata,\nwho lived at a very remote period of Indian history, and was the\nauthor of a system of music. The drama of these early times was\nprobably nothing more than the Indian N\u00e1ch-dance (Nautch) of the\npresent day. It was a species of rude pantomime, in which dancing and\nmovements of the body were accompanied by mute gestures of the hands\nand face, or by singing and music. Subsequently, dialogue was added,\nand the art of theatrical representation was brought to great\nperfection. Elaborate treatises were written which laid down minute\nregulations for the construction and conduct of plays, and subjected\ndramatic composition to highly artificial rules of poetical and\nrhetorical style. For example, the S\u00e1hitya-darpana divides Sanskrit\nplays into two great classes, the R\u00fapaka or principal dramas, and the\nUpar\u00fapaka or minor dramas. At the head of the ten species of R\u00fapaka\nstands the N\u00e1taka, of which the '[S']akoontal\u00e1' is an example. It should\nconsist of from five to ten Acts; it should have a celebrated story\nfor its plot; it should represent heroic or godlike characters and\ngood deeds; it should be written in an elaborate style, and be full of\nnoble sentiments. Moreover, it should be composed like the end of a\ncow's tail; so that each of the Acts be gradually shorter.\n\nIn India, as in Greece, scenic entertainments took place at religious\nfestivals, and on solemn public occasions. Kalid\u00e1sa's '[S']akoontal\u00e1'\nseems to have been acted at the commencement of the summer season--a\nperiod peculiarly sacred to K\u00e1ma-deva, the Indian god of love. We are\ntold that it was enacted before an audience 'consisting chiefly of men\nof education and discernment.' As the greater part of every play was\nwritten in Sanskrit, which, although spoken by the learned in every\npart of India even at the present day, was certainly not the\nvernacular language of the country at the time when the Hind\u00fa dramas\nwere performed, few spectators would be present who were not of the\neducated classes. This circumstance is in accordance with the\nconstitution of Hind\u00fa society, whereby the productions of literature\nas well as the offices of state, were reserved for the privileged\ncastes[6].\n\nEvery Sanskrit play opens with a prologue, or, to speak more\ncorrectly, an introduction, designed to prepare the way for the\nentrance of the _dramatis person\u00e6_. The prologue commences with a\nbenediction or prayer (pronounced by a Br\u00e1hman, or if the\nstage-manager happened to be of the Br\u00e1hmanical caste, by the manager\nhimself), in which the poet invokes the favour of the national deity\nin behalf of the audience. The blessing is generally followed by a\ndialogue between the manager and one or two of the actors, in which an\naccount is given of the author of the drama, a complimentary tribute\nis paid to the critical acumen of the spectators, and such a reference\nis made to past occurrences or present circumstances as may be\nnecessary for the elucidation of the plot. At the conclusion of the\nprologue, the manager, by some abrupt exclamation, adroitly introduces\none of the dramatic personages, and the real performance commences.\n\nThe play, being thus opened, is carried forward in scenes and Acts;\neach scene being marked by the entrance of one character and the exit\nof another, as in the French drama. The _dramatis person\u00e6_ were\ndivided into three classes--the inferior characters (nicha), who were\nsaid to speak Pr\u00e1krit in a monotonous accentless tone of voice\n(anud\u00e1ttokty\u00e1); the middling (madhyama), and the superior (pradh\u00e1na),\nwho were said to speak Sanskrit with accent, emphasis, and expression\n(ud\u00e1ttokty\u00e1). In general, the stage is never left vacant till the end\nof an Act, nor does any change of locality take place until then. The\ncommencement of a new Act is often marked, like the commencement of\nthe piece, by an introductory monologue or dialogue spoken by one or\nmore of the _dramatis person\u00e6_, and called Vishkambha or Prave[S']aka.\nIn this scene allusion is frequently made to events supposed to have\noccurred in the interval of the Acts, and the audience is the better\nprepared to take up the thread of the story, which is then skilfully\ncarried on to the concluding scene. The piece closes, as it began,\nwith a prayer for national plenty and prosperity, addressed to the\nfavourite deity, and spoken by one of the principal personages of the\ndrama.\n\nAlthough, in the conduct of the plot, and the delineation of\ncharacter, Hind\u00fa dramatists show considerable skill, yet they do not\nappear to have been remarkable for much fertility of invention. Love,\naccording to Hind\u00fa notions, is the subject of most of their dramas.\n\nThe hero, who is generally a king, and already the husband of a wife\nor wives (for a wife or two more or less is no encumbrance in Indian\nplays), is suddenly smitten with the charms of a lovely woman,\nsometimes a nymph, or, as in the case of [S']akoontal\u00e1, the daughter of\na nymph by a mortal father. The heroine is required to be equally\nimpressible, and the first tender glance from the hero's eye reaches\nher heart. With true feminine delicacy, however, she locks the secret\nof her passion in her own breast, and by her coyness and reserve keeps\nher lover for a long period in the agonies of suspense. The hero,\nbeing reduced to a proper state of desperation, is harassed by other\ndifficulties. Either the celestial nature of the nymph is in the way\nof their union, or he doubts the legality of the match, or he fears\nhis own unworthiness, or he is hampered by the angry jealousy of a\nprevious wife. In short, doubts, obstacles, and delays make great\nhavoc of both hero and heroine. They give way to melancholy, indulge\nin amorous rhapsodies, and become very emaciated. So far, it must be\nconfessed, the story is decidedly dull, and its chain, however, does\nnot commence until the Fourth Act, when the union of the heroine with\nKing Dushyanta, and her acceptance of the marriage-ring as a token of\nrecognition, are supposed to have taken place. Then follows the King's\ndeparture and temporary desertion of his bride; the curse pronounced\non [S']akoontal\u00e1 by the choleric Sage; the monarch's consequent loss of\nmemory; the bride's journey to the palace of her husband; the\nmysterious disappearance of the marriage-token; the public repudiation\nof [S']akoontal\u00e1; her miraculous assumption to closes, as it began, with\na prayer for national plenty and prosperity, addressed to the\nfavourite deity, and spoken by one of the principal personages of the\ndrama.\n\nAlthough, in the conduct of the plot, and the delineation of\ncharacter, Hind\u00fa dramatists show considerable skill, yet they do not\nappear to have been remarkable for much fertility of invention. Love,\naccording to Hind\u00fa notions, is the subject of most of their dramas.\n\nThe hero, who is generally a king, and already the husband of a wife\nor wives (for a wife or two more or less is no encumbrance in Indian\nplays), is suddenly smitten with the charms of a lovely woman,\nsometimes a nymph, or, as in the case of [S']akoontal\u00e1, the daughter of a\nnymph by a mortal father. The heroine is required to be equally\nimpressible, and the first tender glance from the hero's eye reaches\nher heart. With true feminine delicacy, however, she locks the secret\nof her passion in her own breast, and by her coyness and reserve keeps\nher lover for a long period in the agonies of suspense. The hero,\nbeing reduced to a proper state of desperation, is harassed by other\ndifficulties. Either the celestial nature of the nymph is in the way\nof their union, or he doubts the legality of the match, or he his own\nunworthiness, or he is hampered by the angry jealousy of a previous\nwife. In short, doubts, obstacles, and delays make great havoc of both\nhero and heroine. They give way to melancholy, indulge in amorous\nrhapsodies, and become very emaciated. So far, it must be confessed,\nthe story is decidedly dull, and its pathos, notwithstanding the\noccasional grandeur and beauty of the imagery, often verges on the\nridiculous.\n\nBut, by way of relief, an element of life is generally introduced in\nthe character of the Vid\u00fashaka, or Jester, who is the constant\ncompanion of the hero; and in the young maidens, who are the\nconfidential friends of the heroine, and soon become possessed of her\nsecret. By a curious regulation, the Jester is always a Br\u00e1hman, and\ntherefore of a caste superior to the king himself; yet his business is\nto excite mirth by being ridiculous in person, age, and attire. He is\nsometimes represented as grey-haired, hump-backed, lame, and ugly. In\nfact, he is a species of buffoon, who is allowed full liberty of\nspeech, being himself a universal butt. His attempts at wit, which are\nrarely very successful, and his allusions to the pleasures of the\ntable, of which he is a confessed votary, are absurdly contrasted with\nthe sententious solemnity of the despairing hero, crossed in the\nprosecution of his love-suit. His clumsy interference in the intrigues\nof his friend only serves to augment his difficulties, and occasions\nmany an awkward dilemma. On the other hand, the shrewdness of the\nheroine's confidantes never seems to fail them under the most trying\ncircumstances; while their sly jokes and innuendos, their love of fun,\ntheir girlish sympathy with the progress of the love affair, their\nwarm affection for their friend, heighten the interest of the plot,\nand contribute not a little to vary its monotony.\n\nFortunately, in the '[S']akoontal\u00e1' the story is diversified and the\ninterest well sustained by a chain of stirring incidents. The first\nlink of the chain, however, does not commence until the Fourth Act,\nwhen the union of the heroine with King Dushyanta, and her acceptance\nof the marriage-ring as a token of recognition, are supposed to have\ntaken place. Then follows the King's departure and temporary desertion\nof his bride; the curse pronounced on [S']akoontal\u00e1 by the choleric Sage;\nthe monarch's consequent loss of memory; the bride's journey to the\npalace of her husband; the mysterious disappearance of the\nmarriage-token; the public repudiation of [S']akoontal\u00e1; her miraculous\nassumption to a celestial asylum; the unexpected discovery of the ring\nby a poor fisherman; the King's agony on recovering his recollection;\nhis a\u00ebrial voyage in the car of Indra; his strange meeting with the\nrefractory child in the groves of Kasyapa; the boy's battle with the\nyoung lion; the search for the amulet, by which the King is proved to\nbe his father; the return of [S']akoontal\u00e1, and the happy reunion of the\nlovers;--all these form a connected series of moving and interesting\nincidents. The feelings of the audience are wrought up to a pitch of\ngreat intensity; and whatever emotions of terror, grief, or pity may\nhave been excited, are properly tranquillized by the happy termination\nof the story.\n\nIndeed, if a calamitous conclusion be necessary to constitute a\ntragedy, the Hind\u00fa dramas are never tragedies. They are mixed\ncompositions, in which joy and sorrow, happiness and misery, are woven\nin a mingled web--tragi-comic representations, in which good and evil,\nright and wrong, truth and falsehood, are allowed to blend in\nconfusion during the first Acts of the drama. But, in the last Act,\nharmony is always restored, order succeeds to disorder, tranquillity\nto agitation; and the mind of the spectator, no longer perplexed by\nthe apparent ascendency of evil, is soothed, and purified, and made to\nacquiesce in the moral lesson deducible from the plot.\n\nThe play of '[S']akoontal\u00e1,' as Sir W. Jones observes, must have been\nvery popular when it was first performed. The Indian empire was then\nin its palmy days, and the vanity of the natives would be flattered by\nthe introduction of those kings and heroes who were supposed to have\nlaid the foundation of its greatness and magnificence, and whose were\nconnected with all that was sacred and holy in their religion,\nDushyanta, the hero of the drama, according to Indian legends, was one\nof the descendants of the Moon, or in other words, belonged to the\nLunar dynasty of Indian princes; and, if any dependence may be placed\non Hind\u00fa chronology, he must have lived in the twenty-first or\ntwenty-second generation after the Flood. Puru, his most celebrated\nancestor, was the sixth in descent from the Moon's son Budha, who\nmarried a daughter of the good King Satya-vrata, preserved by Vishnu\nin the Ark at the time of the Deluge. The son of Dushyanta, by\n[S']akoontal\u00e1, was Bharata, from whom India is still called by the\nnatives Bh\u00e1rata-varsha. After him came Samvarana, Kuru, S\u00e1ntanu,\nBh\u00edshma, and Vyasa. The latter was the father of Dhritar\u00e1shtra and\nP\u00e1ndu, the quarrels of whose sons form the subject of the great\nSanskrit epic poem called Mah\u00e1-bh\u00e1rata, a poem with parts of which the\naudience would be familiar, and in which they would feel the greatest\npride. Indeed the whole story of [S']akoontal\u00e1 is told in the\nMah\u00e1-bh\u00e1rata. The pedigree of [S']akoontal\u00e1, the heroine of the drama,\nwas no less interesting, and calculated to awaken the religious\nsympathies of Indian spectators. She was the daughter of the\ncelebrated Vi[s']w\u00e1mitra, a name associated with many remarkable\ncircumstances in Hind\u00fa mythology and history. His genealogy and the\nprincipal events of his life are narrated in the R\u00e1m\u00e1yana, the first\nof the two epic poems which were to the Hind\u00fas what the Iliad and the\nOdyssey were to the Greeks. He was originally of the regal caste; and,\nhaving raised himself to the rank of a Br\u00e1hman by the length and\nrigour of his penance, he became the preceptor of R\u00e1machandra, who\nwas the hero of the R\u00e1m\u00e1yana, and one of the incarnations of the god\nVishnu. With such an antecedent interest in the particulars of the\nstory, the audience could not fail to bring a sharpened appetite, and\na self-satisfied frame of mind, to the performance of the play.\n\nAlthough in the following translation it has been thought expedient to\nconform to modern usage, by indicating at the head of each Act the\nscene in which it is laid, yet it is proper to apprise the English\nreader that in scenery and scenic apparatus the Hind\u00fa drama, must have\nbeen very defective. No directions as to changes of scene are given in\nthe original text of the play. This is the more curious, as there are\nnumerous stage directions, which prove that in respect of dresses and\ndecorations the resources of the Indian theatre were sufficiently\nample.\n\nIt is probable that a curtain suspended across the stage, and divided\nin the centre, answered all the purposes of scenes. Behind the curtain\nwas the space or room called _nepathya_, where the decorations were\nkept, where the actors attired themselves, and remained in readiness\nbefore entering the stage, and whither they withdrew on leaving it.\nWhen an actor was to enter hurriedly, he was directed to do so 'with a\ntoss of the curtain.'\n\nThe machinery and paraphernalia of the Indian theatre were also very\nlimited, contrasting in this respect unfavourably with the ancient\nGreek theatre, which appears to have comprehended nearly all that\nmodern ingenuity has devised. Nevertheless, seats, thrones, weapons,\nand chariots, were certainly introduced, and as the intercourse\nbetween the inhabitants of heaven and earth was very frequent, it is\nnot improbable that there may have been a\u00ebrial contrivances to\nrepresent the chariots of celestial beings, as on the Greek stage. It\nis plain, however, from the frequent occurrence of the word\n_n\u00e1tayitw\u00e1_, 'gesticulating,' 'acting,' that much had to be supplied\nby the imagination of the spectator, assisted by the gesticulations of\nthe actors.\n\nFor further information relative to the dramatic system of the Hind\u00fas,\nthe reader is referred to the notes appended to the present\ntranslation. It is hoped that they will be found sufficient to explain\nevery allusion that might otherwise be unintelligible to the English\nreader.\n\nMONIER MONIER-WILLIAMS.\n\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 1: In the Aihole Inscription (edited by Dr. Fleet) of the\nWestern Ch\u00e1lukya King Pulike[S']in II, dated [S']aka 556=A.D. 634-35,\nactual mention is made of K\u00e1lid\u00e1sa and Bh\u00e1ravi by name, and Professor\nKielhorn has informed me that he found a verse from the Raghu-van[S']a\nquoted in an inscription dated A.D. 602.]\n\n[Footnote 2: As to the other two, the most celebrated, called\nVikramorva[S']\u00ed, has been excellently translated by Professors H.H.\nWilson and E.B. Cowell, and the M\u00e1lavik\u00e1gnimitra, by Professor Weber,\nthe eminent Orientalist of Berlin.]\n\n[Footnote 3: The following is an extract from, the _Bombay Times_ of\nFebruary 3, 1855. It is given _literatim_, and the orthographical\nerrors and mutilation of the story prove that in those days a good and\ncomplete version of India's most celebrated drama was not obtainable.\n\n'HINDU DRAMA. 'SATURDAY, 3D FEBRUARY 1855.\n\n'An outline of the play to be performed at the Theatre this night.\n\n'After a short discourse between the Sutradhar (the chief actor) and\nthe Vid\u00fashaka (the clown), Surswati (the Goddess of learning) will\nappear. Sutradhar will call his wife (Nati), and they will determine\non performing the play of Shakuntala. They both will sing songs\ntogether, after which Nati will go away. The play will then regularly\ncommence. Dushanta Rajah will appear in the Court, and order his\nPradhan (the Minister) to make preparations for a hunting excursion.\nThe Rajah, sitting in his carriage, will pursue a stag, the stag will\ndisappear, upon which Dushanta will ask his coachman the cause\nthereof, this being known, the Rajah in his carriage will proceed\nfarther, when they will see the stag again, upon which he will aim an\narrow at the stag. The stag will run and reach the retirement of\nWaikhanas Rushi. The sage will come out of his hut and remonstrate\nwith the Rajah against his killing the harmless animal. The Rajah will\nobey the injunctions of the sage, who will pronounce benedictions upon\nhim. According to the Rushi's instructions, he will prepare to proceed\nto the residence of another sage named Kunwa. Bidding each other\nfarewell, the Rushi will go to procure material for his religious\nceremonies. After reaching Kunwa's place, and commanding his coachman\nto groom the horses, the Rajah will walk forth to the sage's hut.\nObserving on his way thither Shakuntala with her fellow mates watering\nthe trees, he will hide himself behind a tree. Shakuntala will praise\nto her mates the beauty of the Keshar tree. Charmed with overhearing\nher discourse, Dushanta will try to find out her descent. Shakuntala\nwill be very much teased by a Bhramar (fly) hovering about her face.\nThe Rajah will then come forward and ask the cause of the disturbed\nstate of her mind. After a mutual exchange of polite respect they all\ntake their seats beneath a shady tree, Dushanta will inform her of his\ncountry and descent, whereupon they will all go to the Rushi's hut.\n\n'Here there is a pause. A pleasing farce will then be performed.'\n\nI have already stated that the '[S']akoontal\u00e1' in the words of my own\ntranslation has been since performed at Bombay and recently at\nTrivandrum, the capital of Travancore (see Preface to this edition, p.\nvii, &c).]\n\n[Footnote 4: Rogers' Italy, note to line 23.]\n\n[Footnote 5: The admirable Essay by Professor H.H. Wilson, prefixed to\nhis Hind\u00fa Theatre, is the principal source of the information which I\nhave here given.]\n\n[Footnote 6: Wilson's Hind\u00fa Theatre, p. xii.]\n\n\n\n\nRULES FOR THE PRONUNCIATION OF\nTHE PROPER NAMES.\n\nObserve, that in order to secure the correct pronunciation of the\ntitle of this Drama, 'Sakuntal\u00e1' has been spelt '[S']akoontal\u00e1,' the\n_u_ of [S']akuntal\u00e1 being pronounced like the _u_ in the English\nword _rule_.\n\nThe vowel _a_ must invariably be pronounced with a dull sound,\nlike the _a_ in _organ_, or the _u_ in _gun, sun. Dushyanta_ must\ntherefore be pronounced as if written _Dooshyunta_. The long\nvowel _\u00e1_ is pronounced like the _a_ in _last, cart_; _i_ like\nthe _i_ in _pin, sin_; _\u00ed_ like the _i_ in _marine_; _e_ like the\n_e_ in _prey_; _o_ like the _o_ in _so_; _ai_ like the _ai_ in\n_aisle_; _au_ like _au_ in the German word _haus_, or like the\n_ou_ in _our_.\n\nThe consonants are generally pronounced as in English, but _g_\nhas always the sound of _g_ in _gun, give_, never of _g_ in\n_gin_. S with the accent over it (s), has the sound of _s_ in\n_sure_, or of the last _s_ in _session_.\n\n       *       *       *       *       *\n\n\n\nPERSONS REPRESENTED.\n\n       *       *       *       *       *\n\n\nDUSHYANTA,    _King of India_.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA,    _the jester, friend, and companion of the King_.\n\nKANWA,        _chief of the hermits, foster-father of_ [S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\n[S']\u00c1RNGARAVA,}\n            } _two Br\u00e1hmans, belonging to the hermitage of KANWA_.\n[S']\u00c1RADWATA, }\n\nMITR\u00c1VASU,    _brother-in-law of the King, and superintendent of the\n              city police_.\n\nJ\u00c1NUKA        _and_ S\u00daCHAKA, _two constables_.\n\nV\u00c1T\u00c1YANA,     _the chamberlain or attendant on the women's\n               apartments_.\n\nSOMAR\u00c1TA,     _the domestic priest_.\n\nKARABHAKA,    _a messenger of the queen-mother_.\n\nRAIVATIKA,    _the warder or doorkeeper_.\n\nM\u00c1TALI,       _charioteer of Indra_.\n\nSARVA-DAMANA, _afterwards_ BHARATA, _a little boy, son\n              of_ DUSHYANTA by [S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nKA[S']YAPA,      _a divine sage, progenitor of men and gods, son of_\n              MAR\u00cdCHI, _and grandson of_ BRAHM\u00c1.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1,   _daughter of the sage_ VI[S']W\u00c1MITRA _and the\n              nymph_ MENAK\u00c1, _foster-child of the hermit_ KANWA.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1    _and_ ANAS\u00daY\u00c1, _female attendants, companions\n              of_ [S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nGAUTAM\u00cd,      _a holy matron, Superior of the female inhabitants\n              of the hermitage_.\n\nVASUMAT\u00cd,     _the Queen of_ DUSHYANTA.\n\nS\u00c1NUMAT\u00cd,     _a nymph, friend of_ [S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nTARALIK\u00c1,     _personal attendant of the Queen_.\n\nCHATURIK\u00c1,    _personal attendant of the King_.\n\nVETRAVAT\u00cd,    _female warder or doorkeeper_.\n\nPARABHRITIK\u00c1}  _and_\n\nMADHUKARIK\u00c1,}  _maidens in charge of the royal gardens_.\n\nSUVRAT\u00c1,       _a nurse_.\n\nADITI,         _wife of_ KA[S']YAPA; _granddaughter of_ BRAHM\u00c1\n               _through her father_ DAKSHA.\n\nCHARIOTEER, FISHERMAN, OFFICERS, AND HERMITS.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1; OR, THE LOST RING.\n\n\nPROLOGUE.\n\n\nBENEDICTION.\n\n  \u00cd[S']a preserve you [1]! he who is revealed\n  In these eight forms[2] by man perceptible--\n  Water, of all creation's works the first;\n  The Fire that bears on high the sacrifice\n  Presented with solemnity to heaven;\n  The Priest, the holy offerer of gifts;\n  The Sun and Moon, those two majestic orbs,\n  Eternal marshallers of day and night;\n  The subtle Ether, vehicle of sound,\n  Diffused throughout the boundless universe;\n  The Earth, by sages called 'The place of birth\n  Of all material essences and things';\n  And Air, which giveth life to all that breathe.\n\nSTAGE-MANAGER.\n\n       [_After the recitation of the benediction_.]\n\n                             [_Looking toward the living-room_.]\n\nLady, when you have finished attiring yourself, come this way.\n\nACTRESS.\n\n                                                   [_Entering_.]\n\nHere I am, Sir; what are your commands?\n\nSTAGE-MANAGER.\n\nWe are here before the eyes of an audience of educated and\ndiscerning men[3]; and have to represent in their presence a new\ndrama composed by K\u00e1lid\u00e1sa, called '[S']akoontal\u00e1; or, the Lost\nRing[4].' Let the whole company exert themselves to do justice to\ntheir several parts.\n\nACTRESS.\n\nYou, Sir, have so judiciously managed the cast of the characters,\nthat nothing will be defective in the acting.\n\nSTAGE-MANAGER.\n\nLady, I will tell you the exact state of the case,\n\n  No skill in acting can I deem complete,\n  Till from the wise the actor gain applause;\n  Know that the heart e'en of the truly skilful,\n  Shrinks from too boastful confidence in self.\n\nACTRESS.                                            [_Modestly_.]\n\nYou judge correctly And now, what are your commands?\n\nSTAGE-MANAGER.\n\nWhat can you do better than engage the attention of the audience\nby some captivating melody?\n\nACTRESS.\n\nWhich among the seasons shall I select as the subject of my song?\n\nSTAGE-MANAGER.\n\nYou surely ought to give the preference to the present Summer\nseason[5] that has but recently commenced, a season so rich in\nenjoyment. For now\n\n  Unceasing are the charms of halcyon days,\n  When the cool bath exhilarates the frame;\n  When sylvan gales are laden with the scent\n  Of fragrant P\u00e1talas[6]; when soothing sleep\n  Creeps softly on beneath the deepening shade;\n  And when, at last, the dulcet calm of eve\n  Entrancing steals o'er every yielding sense.\n\nACTRESS.\n\nI will:--\n\n                                                       [_Sings_.]\n\n  Fond maids, the chosen of their hearts to please,\n  Entwine their ears with sweet [S']ir\u00edsha flowers[7],\n  Whose fragrant lips attract the kiss of bees\n  That softly murmur through the summer hours.\n\nSTAGE-MANAGER.\n\nCharmingly sung! The audience are motionless as statues, their\nsouls riveted by the enchanting strain. What subject shall we\nselect for representation, that we may ensure a continuance\nof their favour?\n\nACTRESS.\n\nWhy not the same, Sir, announced by you at first? Let the drama\ncalled '[S']akoontal\u00e1; or, the Lost Ring,' be the subject of our\ndramatic performance.\n\nSTAGE-MANAGER.\n\nRightly reminded! For the moment I had forgotten it.\n\n  Your song's transporting melody decoyed\n  My thoughts, and rapt with ecstasy my soul;\n  As now the bounding antelope allures\n  The King Dushyanta[8] on the chase intent.\n\n                                                       [_Exeunt_.\n\n\n\n\nACT I.\n\nSCENE-_A Forest_.\n\n_Enter King_ DUSHYANTA, _armed with a bow and arrow, in a\nchariot, chasing an antelope, attended by his_ CHARIOTEER.\n\nCHARIOTEER.\n\n                    [_Looking at the deer, and then at the_ KING.\n\nGreat Prince,\n\n  When on the antelope I bend my gaze,\n  And on your Majesty, whose mighty bow\n  Has its string firmly braced; before my eyes\n  The god that wields the trident[9] seems revealed.\n  Chasing the deer that flies from him in vain.\n\nKING.\n\nCharioteer, this fleet antelope has drawn us far from my\nattendants. See! there he runs:\n\n  Aye and anon his graceful neck he bends\n  To cast a glance at the pursuing car;\n  And dreading now the swift-descending shaft,\n  Contracts into itself his slender frame;\n  About his path, in scattered fragments strewn,\n  The half-chewed grass falls from his panting mouth;\n  See! in his airy bounds he seems to fly,\n  And leaves no trace upon th' elastic turf.\n\n                                           [_With astonishment_.]\n\nHow now! swift as is our pursuit, I scarce can see him.\n\nCHARIOTEER.\n\nSire, the ground here is full of hollows; I have therefore drawn\nin the reins and checked the speed of the chariot. Hence the deer\nhas somewhat gained upon us. Now that we are passing over level\nground, we shall have no difficulty in overtaking him.\n\nKING.\n\nLoosen the reins, then.\n\nCHARIOTEER.\n\nThe King is obeyed.\n\n                            [_Drives the chariot at full speed_.]\n\nGreat Prince, see I see!\n\n  Responsive to the slackened rein, the steeds,\n  Chafing with eager rivalry, career\n  With emulative fleetness o'er the plain;\n  Their necks outstretched, their waving plumes, that late\n  Fluttered above their brows, are motionless[10];\n  Their sprightly ears, but now erect, bent low;\n  Themselves unsullied by the circling dust,\n  That vainly follows on their rapid course.\n\nKING.                                                [_Joyously_.\n\nIn good sooth, the horses seem as if they would outstrip the\nsteeds of Indra and the Sun[11].\n\n  That which but now showed to my view minute\n  Quickly assumes dimension; that which seemed\n  A moment since disjoined in diverse parts,\n  Looks suddenly like one compacted whole;\n  That which is really crooked in its shape\n  In the far distance left, grows regular;\n  Wondrous the chariot's speed, that in a breath,\n  Makes the near distant and the distant near.\n\nNow, Charioteer, see me kill the deer.\n\n                                                    [_Takes aim_.\n\nA VOICE BEHIND THE SCENES.\n\nHold, O King! this deer belongs to our hermitage.\nKill it not! kill it not!\n\nCHARIOTEER.                             [_Listening and looking_.\n\nGreat King, some hermits have stationed themselves so as to\nscreen the antelope at the very moment of its coming within range\nof your arrow.\n\nKING.                                                 [_Hastily_.\n\nThen stop the horses.\n\nCHARIOTEER.\n\nI obey.\n\n                                            [_Stops the chariot_.\n\n_Enter a_ HERMIT, _and two others with him_.]\n\nHERMIT.                                      [_Raising his hand_.\n\nThis deer, O King, belongs to our hermitage. Kill\nit not! kill it not!\n\n  Now heaven forbid this barbed shaft descend\n  Upon the fragile body of a fawn,\n  Like fire upon a heap of tender flowers!\n  Can thy steel bolts no meeter quarry find\n  Than the warm life-blood of a harmless deer?\n  Restore, great Prince, thy weapon to its quiver.\n  More it becomes thy arms to shield the weak,\n  Than to bring anguish on the innocent.\n\nKING.\n\n'Tis done.\n\n                             [_Replaces the arrow in its quiver_.\n\nHERMIT.\n\nWorthy is this action of a Prince, the light of Puru's race[12].\n\n  Well does this act befit a Prince like thee,\n  Right worthy is it of thine ancestry.\n  Thy guerdon be a son of peerless worth,\n  Whose wide dominion shall embrace the earth.\n\nBOTH THE OTHER HERMITS.                   [_Raising their hands_.\n\nMay heaven indeed grant thee a son, a sovereign of the earth from\nsea to sea!\n\nKING.\n\n                                                       [_Bowing_.\n\nI accept with gratitude a Br\u00e1hman's benediction.\n\nHERMIT.\n\nWe came hither, mighty Prince, to collect sacrificial wood. Here\non the banks of the M\u00e1lin\u00ed you may perceive the hermitage of the\ngreat sage Kanwa[13]. If other duties require not your presence,\ndeign to enter and accept our hospitality.\n\n  When you behold our penitential rites\n  Performed without impediment by saints\n  Rich only in devotion, then with pride\n  Will you reflect:--Such are the holy men\n  Who call me Guardian; such the men for whom\n  To wield the bow I bare my nervous arm,\n  Scarred by the motion of the glancing string.\n\nKING.\n\nIs the Chief of your Society now at home?\n\nHERMIT.\n\nNo; he has gone to Soma-t\u00edrtha[14] to propitiate Destiny, which\nthreatens his daughter [S']akoontal\u00e1 with some calamity; but he has\ncommissioned her in his absence to entertain all guests with\nhospitality.\n\nKING.\n\nGood! I will pay her a visit. She will make me acquainted with\nthe mighty sage's acts of penance and devotion.\n\nHERMIT.\n\nAnd we will depart on our errand.\n\n                                     [_Exit with his companions_.\n\nKING.\n\nCharioteer, urge on the horses. We will at least purify our souls\nby a sight of this hallowed retreat.\n\nCHARIOTEER.\n\nYour Majesty is obeyed.\n\n                       [_Drives the chariot with great velocity_.\n\nKING.                                   [_Looking all about him_.\n\nCharioteer, even without being told, I should have known that\nthese were the precincts of a grove consecrated to penitential\nrites.\n\nCHARIOTEER.\n\nHow so?\n\nKING.\n\nDo not you observe?\n\n  Beneath the trees, whose hollow trunks afford\n  Secure retreat to many a nestling brood\n  Of parrots, scattered grains of rice lie strewn.\n  Lo! here and there are seen the polished slabs\n  That serve to bruise the fruit of Ingud\u00ed[15].\n  The gentle roe-deer, taught to trust in man,\n  Unstartled hear our voices. On the paths\n  Appear the traces of bark-woven vests[16]\n  Borne dripping from the limpid fount of waters.\n\nAnd mark!\n\n  Laved are the roots of trees by deep canals [17],\n  Whose glassy waters tremble in the breeze;\n  The sprouting verdure of the leaves is dimmed\n  By dusky wreaths of upward curling smoke\n  From burnt oblations; and on new-mown lawns\n  Around our car graze leisurely the fawns.\n\nCHARIOTEER.\n\nI observe it all.\n\nKING.                              [_Advancing a little further_.\n\nThe inhabitants of this sacred retreat must not be disturbed.\nStay the chariot, that I may alight.\n\nCHARIOTEER.\n\nThe reins are held in. Your Majesty may descend.\n\nKING.                                               [_Alighting_.\n\nCharioteer, groves devoted to penance must be entered in humble\nattire. Take these ornaments.\n\n                [_Delivers his ornaments and bow to CHARIOTEER_.]\n\nCharioteer, see that the horses are watered, and attend to them\nuntil I return from visiting the inhabitants of the hermitage.\n\nCHARIOTEER.\n\nI Will.\n\n                                                         [_Exit_.\n\nKING.                               [_Walking and looking about_.\n\nHere is the entrance to the hermitage. I will now go in.\n\n[_Entering and feeling a throbbing sensation in his arm_.\n\n  Serenest peace is in this calm retreat,\n  By passion's breath unruffled; what portends\n  My throbbing arm[18]? Why should it whisper here\n  Of happy love? Yet everywhere around us\n  Stand the closed portals of events unknown.\n\nA VOICE BEHIND THE SCENES.\n\nThis way, my dear companions; this way.\n\nKING.                                               [_Listening_.\n\nHark! I hear voices to the right of yonder grove\nof trees. I will walk in that direction.\n\n                                  [_Walking and looking about_.]\n\nAh! here are the maidens of the hermitage coming this way to\nwater the shrubs, carrying water-pots proportioned to their\nstrength.\n\n                                              [_Gazing at them_.]\n\nHow graceful they look!\n\n  In palaces such charms are rarely ours;\n  The woodland plants outshine the garden flowers.\n\nI will conceal myself in this shade and watch them.\n\n                                        [_Stands gazing at them_.\n\n_Enter [S']AKOONTAL\u00c1, with her two female companions, employed in\nthe manner described_.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1\n\nThis way, my dear companions; this way.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nDear [S']akoontal\u00e1, one would think that father Kanwa had more\naffection for the shrubs of the hermitage even than for you,\nseeing he assigns to you, who are yourself as delicate as the\nfresh-blown jasmine, the task of filling with water the trenches\nwhich encircle their roots.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nDear Anas\u00fay\u00e1, although I am charged by my good father with this\nduty, yet I cannot regard it as a task. I really feel a sisterly\nlove for these plants.\n\n                                [_Continues watering the shrubs_.\n\nKING.\n\nCan this be the daughter of Kanwa? The saintly man, though\ndescended from the great Kasyapa, must be very deficient in\njudgment to habituate such a maiden to the life of a recluse.\n\n  The sage who would this form of artless grace\n  Inure to penance, thoughtlessly attempts\n  To cleave in twain the hard acacia's stem[19]\n  With the soft edge of a blue lotus-leaf.\n\nWell! concealed behind this tree, I will watch her without\nraising her suspicions.\n\n                                             [_Conceals himself_.\n\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nGood Anas\u00fay\u00e1, Priyamvad\u00e1 has drawn this bark-dress too tightly\nabout my chest. I pray thee, loosen it a little.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nI will.                                            [_Loosens it_.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.                                           [_Smiling_.\n\nWhy do you lay the blame on me? Blame rather your own blooming\nyouthfulness which imparts fulness to your bosom.\n\nKING.\n\nA most just observation!\n\n  This youthful form, whose bosom's swelling charms\n  By the bark's knotted tissue are concealed,\n  Like some fair bud close folded in its sheath,\n  Gives not to view the blooming of its beauty.\n\nBut what am I saying? In real truth this bark-dress,\nthough ill-suited to her figure, sets it off like an ornament.\n\n  The lotus[20] with the [S']aivala[21] entwined\n  Is not a whit less brilliant; dusky spots\n  Heighten the lustre of the cold-rayed moon;\n  This lovely maiden in her dress of bark\n  Seems all the lovelier. E'en the meanest garb\n  Gives to true beauty fresh attractiveness.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1. [Looking before her.\n\nYon Ke[S']ara-tree[22] beckons to me with its young shoots, which,\nas the breeze waves them to and fro, appear like slender fingers.\nI will go and attend to it.\n\n                                             [_Walks towards it_.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nDear [S']akoontal\u00e1, prithee, rest in that attitude one moment.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nWhy so?\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1\n\nThe Ke[S']ara-tree, whilst your graceful form bends about its stem,\nappears as if it were wedded to some lovely twining creeper.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nAh! saucy girl, you are most appropriately named Priyamvad\u00e1\n('Speaker of flattering things').\n\nKING.\n\nWhat Priyamvad\u00e1 says, though complimentary, is nevertheless true.\nVerily,\n\n  Her ruddy lip vies with the opening bud;\n  Her graceful arms are as the twining stalks;\n  And her whole form is radiant with the glow\n  Of youthful beauty, as the tree with bloom.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nSee, dear [S']akoontal\u00e1, here is the young jasmine, which you\nnamed 'the Moonlight of the Grove,' the self-elected wife of the\nmango-tree. Have you forgotten it?\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nRather will I forget myself.\n\n                    [_Approaching the plant and looking at it_.]\n\nHow delightful is the season when the jasmine-creeper and the\nmango-tree seem thus to unite in mutual embraces! The fresh\nblossoms of the jasmine resemble the bloom of a young bride, and\nthe newly-formed shoots of the mango appear to make it her\nnatural protector.\n\n                                       [_Continues gazing at it_.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nDo you know, my Anas\u00fay\u00e1, why [S']akoontal\u00e1 gazes so intently at the\njasmine?\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nNo, indeed, I cannot imagine. I pray thee tell me.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nShe is wishing that as the jasmine is united to a suitable tree,\nso, in like manner, she may obtain a husband worthy of her.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nSpeak for yourself, girl; this is the thought in your own mind.\n\n                               [_Continues watering the flowers_.\n\nKING.\n\nWould that my union with her were permissible[23]! and yet I\nhardly dare hope that the maiden is sprung from a caste different\nfrom that of the Head of the hermitage. But away with doubt:\n\n  That she is free to wed a warrior-king\n  My heart attests. For, in conflicting doubts,\n  The secret promptings of the good man's soul\n  Are an unerring index of the truth.\n\nHowever, come what may, I will ascertain the fact.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                                      [_In a flurry_.\n\nAh! a bee, disturbed by the sprinkling of the water, has left the\nyoung jasmine, and is trying to settle on my face.\n\n                                    [_Attempts to drive it away_.\n\nKING.                                  [_Gazing at her ardently_.\n\nBeautiful! there is something charming even in her repulse.\n\n  Where'er the bee his eager onset plies,\n  Now here, now there, she darts her kindling eyes;\n  What love hath yet to teach, fear teaches now,\n  The furtive glances and the frowning brow.\n\n                                             [_In a tone of envy_.\n\n  Ah, happy bee! how boldly dost thou try\n  To steal the lustre from her sparkling eye;\n  And in thy circling movements hover near,\n  To murmur tender secrets in her ear;\n  Or, as she coyly waves her hand, to sip\n  Voluptuous nectar from her lower lip!\n  While rising doubts my heart's fond hopes destroy,\n  Thou dost the fulness of her charms enjoy.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nThis impertinent bee will not rest quiet. I must move elsewhere.\n\n[_Moving a few steps off, and casting a glance around_.]\n\nHow now! he is following me here. Help! my dear friends, help!\ndeliver me from the attacks of this troublesome insect.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1 AND ANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nHow can we deliver you? Call Dushyanta to your aid. The sacred\ngroves are under the King's special protection.\n\nKING.\n\nAn excellent opportunity for me to show myself.\nFear not--\n\n[_Checks himself when the words are half-uttered; Aside_.]\n\nBut stay, if I introduce myself in this manner, they will know me\nto be the King. Be it so, I will accost them, nevertheless.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\n                             [_Moving a step or two further off_.\n\nWhat! it still persists in following me.\n\nKING.                                       [_Advancing hastily_.\n\n  When mighty Puru's offspring sways the earth,\n  And o'er the wayward holds his threatening rod,\n  Who dares molest the gentle maids that keep\n  Their holy vigils here in Kanwa's grove?\n\n[_All look at the_ KING, _and all are embarrassed_.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nKind Sir, no outrage has been committed; only our dear friend\nhere was teased by the attacks of a troublesome bee.\n\n                                        [_Points to_ [S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nKING.                                  [_Turning to_ [S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nI trust all is well with your devotional rites[24]?\n\n                      [[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1 _stands confused and silent_.]\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nAll is well indeed, now that we are honoured by the reception of\na distinguished guest. Dear [S']akoontal\u00e1, go, bring from the\nhermitage an offering of flowers, rice, and fruit. This water\nthat we have brought with us will serve to bathe our guest's\nfeet[25].\n\nKING.\n\nThe rites of hospitality are already performed; your truly kind\nwords are the best offering I can receive.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nAt least be good enough, gentle Sir, to sit down awhile, and rest\nyourself on this seat shaded by the leaves of the Sapta-parna\ntree[26].\n\nKING.\n\nYou, too, must all be fatigued by your employment.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nDear [S']akoontal\u00e1, there is no impropriety in our sitting by the\nside of our guest; come, let us sit down here.\n\n                                        [_All sit down together_.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                                            [_Aside_.\n\nHow is it that the sight of this made me sensible of emotions\ninconsistent with religious vows?\n\nKING.                             [_Gazing at them all By turns_.\n\nHow charmingly your friendship is in keeping with the equality of\nyour ages and appearance!\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.                                  [_Aside to ANAS\u00daY\u00c1_.\n\nWho can this person be, whose lively yet dignified manner, and\npolite conversation, bespeak him a man of high rank?\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nI, too, my dear, am very curious to know. I will ask him myself.\n\n[_Aloud_]\n\nYour kind words, noble Sir, fill me with confidence, and prompt\nme to inquire of what regal family our noble guest is the\nornament? what country is now mourning his absence? and what\ninduced a person so delicately nurtured to expose himself to the\nfatigue of visiting this grove of penance?\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                                            [_Aside_.\n\nBe not troubled, O my heart, Anas\u00fay\u00e1 is giving utterance to thy\nthoughts.\n\nKING.                                                   [_Aside_.\n\nHow now shall I reply? shall I make myself known, or shall I\nstill disguise my real rank? I have it; I will answer her thus.\n[_Aloud_.] I am the person charged by his Majesty, the descendant\nof Puru, with the administration of justice and religion; and am\ncome to this sacred grove to satisfy myself that the rites of the\nhermits are free from obstruction.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nThe hermits, then, and all the members of our religious society,\nhave now a guardian.\n\n                      [[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1 _gazes bashfully at the_ KING.\n\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1 AND ANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\n      [_Perceiving the state of her feelings, and of the_ KING'S.\n                                          _Aside to_ [S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nDear [S']akoontal\u00e1, if father Kanwa were but at home to-day--\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                                           [_Angrily_.\n\nWhat if he were?\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1 AND ANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nHe would honour this our distinguished guest with an offering of\nthe most precious of his possessions.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nGo to! you have some silly idea in your minds, I will not listen\nto such remarks.\n\nKING.\n\nMay I be allowed, in my turn, to ask you maidens a few\nparticulars respecting your friend?\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1 AND ANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nYour request, Sir, is an honour.\n\nKING.\n\nThe sage Kanwa lives in the constant practice of austerities.\nHow, then, can this friend of yours be called his daughter?\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nI will explain to you. Sir. You have heard of an illustrious sage\nof regal caste, Vi[s']w\u00e1mitra, whose family name is Kau[S']ika[27].\n\nKING.\n\nI have.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nKnow that he is the real father of our friend. The venerable\nKanwa is only her reputed father. He it was who brought her up,\nwhen she was deserted by her mother.\n\nKING.\n\n'Deserted by her mother!' My curiosity is excited; pray let me\nhear the story from the beginning.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nYou shall hear it, Sir. Some time since, this sage of regal\ncaste, while performing a most severe penance on the banks of the\nriver God\u00e1var\u00ed, excited the jealousy and alarm of the gods;\ninsomuch that they despatched a lovely nymph named Menak\u00e1 to\ninterrupt his devotions.\n\nKING.\n\nThe inferior gods, I am aware, are jealous[28] of the power which\nthe practice of excessive devotion confers on mortals.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nWell, then, it happened that Vi[s']w\u00e1mitra, gazing on the\nbewitching beauty of that nymph at a season when, spring being in\nits glory--\n\n                            [_Stops short, and appears confused_.\n\nKING.\n\nThe rest may be easily divined. [S']akoontal\u00e1, then, is the\noffspring of the nymph.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nJust so.\n\nKING.\n\nIt is quite intelligible.\n\n  How would a mortal to such charms give birth?\n  The lightning's radiance flashes not from earth.\n\n       [[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1 _remains modestly seated with downcast eyes_.\n                                                         _Aside_.]\n\nAnd so my desire has really scope for its indulgence. Yet I am\nstill distracted by doubts, remembering the pleasantry of her\nfemale companions respecting her wish for a husband.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\n  [_Looking with a smile at [S']AKOONTAL\u00c1, and then turning towards\n                                                       the KING.]\n\nYou seem desirous, Sir, of asking something further.\n\n           [[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1 _makes a chiding gesture with her finger_.\n\nKING.\n\nYou conjecture truly. I am so eager to hear the particulars of\nyour friend's history, that I have still another question to ask.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nScruple not to do so. Persons who lead the life of hermits may be\nquestioned unreservedly.\n\nKING.\n\nI wish to ascertain one point respecting your friend.\n\n  Will she be bound by solitary vows\n  Opposed to love, till her espousals only?\n  Or ever dwell with these her cherished fawns,\n  Whose eyes, in lustre vying with her own,\n  Return her gaze of sisterly affection?\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nHitherto, Sir, she has been engaged in the practice of religious\nduties, and has lived in subjection to her foster-father; but it\nis now his fixed intention to give her away in marriage to a\nhusband worthy of her.\n\nKING.                                                   [_Aside_.\n\nHis intention may be easily carried into effect.\n\n  Be hopeful, O my heart, thy harrowing doubts\n  Are past and gone; that which thou didst believe\n  To be as unapproachable as fire,\n  Is found a glittering gem that may be touched.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                                 [_Pretending anger_.\n\nAnas\u00fay\u00e1, I shall leave you.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nWhy so?\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nThat I may go and report this impertinent Priyamvad\u00e1 to the\nvenerable matron, Gautam\u00ed[29].\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nSurely, dear friend, it would not be right to leave a\ndistinguished guest before he has received the rites of\nhospitality, and quit his presence in this wilful manner.\n\n            [[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1, _without answering a word, moves away_.\n\nKING.\n\n        [_Making a movement to arrest her departure, but checking\n                                                 himself. Aside_.\n\nAh! a lover's feelings betray themselves by his gestures.\n\n  When I would fain have stayed the maid, a sense\n  Of due decorum checked my bold design;\n  Though I have stirred not, yet my mien betrays\n  My eagerness to follow on her steps.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\n                                     [_Holding [S']AKOONTAL\u00c1 back_.\n\nDear [S']akoontal\u00e1, it does not become you to go away in this\nmanner.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                                         [_Frowning_.\n\nWhy not, pray?\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nYou are under a promise to water two more shrubs for me. When you\nhave paid your debt, you shall go, and not before.\n\n                                      [_Forces her to turn back_.\n\nKING.\n\nSpare her this trouble, gentle maiden. The exertion of watering\nthe shrubs has already fatigued her.\n\n  The water-jar has overtasked the strength\n  Of her slim arms; her shoulders droop, her hands\n  Are ruddy with the glow of quickened pulses;\n  E'en now her agitated breath imparts\n  Unwonted tremor to her heaving breast;\n  The pearly drops that mar the recent bloom\n  Of the [S']ir\u00edsha pendent in her ear,\n  Gather in clustering circles on her cheek;\n  Loosed is the fillet of her hair; her hand\n  Restrains the locks that struggle to be free.\n  Suffer me, then, thus to discharge the debt for you.\n\n   [_Offers a ring to_ PRIYAMVAD\u00c1. _Both the maidens, reading the\n            name_ DUSHYANTA _on the seal, look at each other with\n                                                       surprise_.\n\nKING.\n\nNay, think not that I am King Dushyanta. I am only the King's\nofficer, and this is the ring which I have received from him as\nmy credentials.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nThe greater the reason you ought not to part with the ring from\nyour finger. I am content to release her from her obligation at\nyour simple request.\n\n[_With a smile_.]\n\nNow, [S']akoontal\u00e1, my love, you are at liberty to retire, thanks\nto the intercession of this noble stranger, or rather of this\nmighty prince.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                                            [_Aside_.\n\nMy movements are no longer under my own control.\n\n                                                        [_Aloud_.\n\nPray, what authority have you over me, either to send me away or\nkeep me back?\n\nKING.                          [_Gazing at_ [S']AKOONTAL\u00c1. _Aside_.\n\nWould I could ascertain whether she is affected towards me as I\nam towards her! At any rate, my hopes are free to indulge\nthemselves. Because,\n\n  Although she mingles not her words with mine,\n  Yet doth her listening ear drink in my speech;\n  Although her eye shrinks from my ardent gaze,\n  No form but mine attracts its timid glances.\n\nA VOICE BEHIND THE SCENES.\n\nO hermits, be ready to protect the animals belonging to our\nhermitage. King Dushyanta, amusing himself with hunting, is near\nat hand.\n\n  Lo! by the feet of prancing horses raised,\n  Thick clouds of moving dust, like glittering swarms\n  Of locusts, in the glow of eventide,\n  Fall on the branches of our sacred trees\n  Where hang the dripping vests of woven bark,\n  Bleached by the waters of the cleansing fountain.\n\nAnd see!\n\n  Scared by the royal chariot in its course,\n  With headlong haste an elephant invades\n  The hallowed precincts of our sacred grove;\n  Himself the terror of the startled deer,\n  And an embodied hindrance to our rites.\n  The hedge of creepers clinging to his feet,\n  Feeble obstruction to his mad career,\n  Is dragged behind him in a tangled chain;\n  And with terrific shock one tusk he drives\n  Into the riven body of a tree,\n  Sweeping before him all impediments.\n\nKING.                                                   [_Aside_.\n\nOut upon it! my retinue are looking for me, and are disturbing\nthis holy retreat. Well! there is no help for it; I must go and\nmeet them.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1 AND ANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nNoble Sir, we are terrified by the accidental disturbance caused\nby the wild elephant. Permit us to return to the cottage.\n\nKING.                                                 [_Hastily_.\n\nGo, gentle maidens. It shall be our care that no injury happen to\nthe hermitage.\n\n                                                  [_All rise up_.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1 AND ANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nAfter such poor hospitality, we are ashamed to request the honour\nof a second visit from you.\n\nKING.\n\nSay not so. The mere sight of you, sweet maidens, has been to me\nthe best entertainment.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nAnas\u00fay\u00e1, a pointed blade of Ku[s']a-grass [30] has pricked my foot;\nand my bark-mantle is caught in the branch of a Kuruvaka-bush[31].\nBe so good as to wait for me until I have disentangled it.\n\n            [_Exit with her two companions, after making pretexts\n              for delay, that she may steal glances at the_ KING.\n\nKING.\n\nI have no longer any desire to return to the city. I will\ntherefore rejoin my attendants, and make them encamp somewhere in\nthe vicinity of this sacred grove. In good truth, [S']akoontal\u00e1 has\ntaken such possession of my thoughts, that I cannot turn myself\nin any other direction.\n\n  My limbs drawn onward leave my heart behind,\n  Like silken pennon borne against the wind.\n\n       *       *       *       *       *\n\n\n\n\nACT II.\n\n\nSCENE.--_A plain on the skirts of the forest.\n\nEnter the Jester_ [32] M\u00c1[T.]HAVYA, _in a melancholy mood_.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.                                            [_Sighing_.\n\nHeigh-ho! what an unlucky fellow I am! worn to a shadow by my\nroyal friend's sporting propensities. 'Here's a deer!' 'There\ngoes a boar!' 'Yonder's a tiger!' This is the only burden of our\ntalk, while in the heat of the meridian sun we toil on from\njungle to jungle, wandering about in the paths of the woods,\nwhere the trees afford us no shelter. Are we thirsty? We have\nnothing to drink but the dirty water of some mountain stream\nmixed with dry leaves, which give it a most pungent flavour. Are\nwe hungry? We have nothing to eat but roast game[33], which we\nmust swallow down at odd times, as best we can. Even at night\nthere is no peace to be had. Sleeping is out of the question,\nwith joints all strained by dancing attendance upon my sporting\nfriend; or if I do happen to doze, I am awakened at the very\nearliest dawn by the horrible din of a lot of rascally beaters\nand huntsmen, who must needs surround the wood before sunrise,\nand deafen me with their clatter. Nor are these my only troubles.\nHere's a fresh grievance, like a new boil rising upon an old\none! Yesterday, while we were lagging behind, my royal friend\nentered yonder hermitage after a deer; and there, as ill-luck\nwould have it, caught sight of a beautiful girl, called\n[S']akoontal\u00e1, the hermit's daughter. From that moment, not another\nthought about returning to the city! and all last night not a\nwink of sleep did he get for thinking of the damsel. What is to\nbe done? At any rate I will be on the watch for him as soon as he\nhas finished his toilet.\n\n                                   [_Walking and looking about_.]\n\nOh! here he comes, attended by the Yavana women[34], with bows in\ntheir hands, wearing garlands of wild flowers. What shall I do? I\nhave it. I will pretend to stand in the easiest attitude for\nresting my bruised and crippled limbs.\n\n                                    [_Stands leaning on a staff_.\n\n_Enter King_ DUSHYANTA, _followed by a retinue, in the manner\ndescribed_.\n\nKING.\n\n  True, by no easy conquest may I win her,\n  Yet are my hopes encouraged by her mien,\n  Love is not yet triumphant; but, methinks,\n  The hearts of both are ripe for his delights.\n\n                                                      [_Smiling_.\n\nAh! thus does the lover delude himself; judging of the state of\nhis loved one's feelings by his own desires. But yet,\n\n  The stolen glance with half-averted eye,\n  The hesitating gait, the quick rebuke\n  Addressed to her companion, who would fain\n  Have stayed her counterfeit departure; these\n  Are signs not unpropitious to my suit.\n  So eagerly the lover feeds his hopes,\n  Claiming each trivial gesture for his own.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\n                                   [_Still in the same attitude_.\n\nAh, friends, my hands cannot move to greet you with the usual\nsalutation. I can only just command my lips to wish your Majesty\nvictory.\n\nKING.\n\nWhy, what has paralysed your limbs?\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nYou might as well ask me how my eye comes to water after you have\npoked your finger into it.\n\nKING.\n\nI don't understand you; speak more intelligibly.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nAh, my dear friend, is yonder upright reed transformed into a\ncrooked plant by its own act, or by the force of the current?\n\nKING.\n\nThe current of the river causes it, I suppose.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nAy; just as you are the cause of my crippled limbs.\n\nKING.\n\nHow so?\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nHere are you living the life of a wild man of the woods in a\nsavage unfrequented region, while your State-affairs are left to\nshift for themselves; and as for poor me, I am no longer master\nof my own limbs, but have to follow you about day after day in\nyour chases after wild animals, till my bones are all crippled\nand out of joint. Do, my dear friend, let me have one day's rest.\n\nKING.                                                   [_Aside_.\n\nThis fellow little knows, while he talks in this manner, that my\nmind is wholly engrossed by recollections of the hermit's\ndaughter, and quite as disinclined to the chase as his own.\n\n  No longer can I bend my well-braced bow\n  Against the timid deer; nor e'er again\n  With well-aimed arrows can I think to harm\n  These her beloved associates, who enjoy\n  The privilege of her companionship;\n  Teaching her tender glances in return.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.                         [_Looking in the King's face_.\n\nI may as well speak to the winds, for any attention you pay to my\nrequests. I suppose you have something on your mind, and are\ntalking it over to yourself.\n\nKING.                                                 [_Smiling_.\n\nI was only thinking that I ought not to disregard a friend's\nrequest.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nThen may the King live for ever!\n\n                                                    [_Moves off_.\n\nKING.\n\nStay a moment, my dear friend. I have something else to say to\nyou.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nSay on, then.\n\nKING.\n\nWhen you have rested, you must assist me in another business\nwhich will give you no fatigue.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nIn eating something nice, I hope.\n\nKING.\n\nYou shall know at some future time.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nNo time better than the present.\n\nKING.\n\nWhat ho, there!\n\nWARDER.                                              [_Entering_.\n\nWhat are your Majesty's commands?\n\nKING.\n\nO Raivatika, bid the General of the forces attend.\n\nWARDER.\n\nI will, Sire.\n\n[_Exit and re-enters with the_ GENERAL.]\n\nCome forward, General; his Majesty is looking towards you, and\nhas some order to give you.\n\nGENERAL.                                  [_Looking at the_ KING.\n\nThough hunting is known to produce ill effects, my royal master\nhas derived only benefit from it. For\n\n  Like the majestic elephant that roams\n  O'er mountain wilds, so does the King display\n  A stalwart frame, instinct with vigorous life.\n  His brawny arms and manly chest are scored\n  By frequent passage of the sounding string;\n  Unharmed he bears the midday sun; no toil\n  His mighty spirit daunts; his sturdy limbs,\n  Stripped of redundant flesh, relinquish nought\n  Of their robust proportions, but appear\n  In muscle, nerve, and sinewy fibre cased.\n\n                                         [_Approaching the_ KING.\n\nVictory to the King! We have tracked the wild beasts to their\nlairs in the forest. Why delay, when everything is ready?\n\nKING.\n\nMy friend M\u00e1[T.]Havya here has been disparaging the\nchase, till he has taken away all my relish for it.\n\nGENERAL.                                   [_Aside to_ M\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nPersevere in your opposition, my good fellow; I will sound the\nKing's real feelings, and humour him accordingly.\n\n                                                        [_Aloud_.\n\nThe blockhead talks nonsense, and your Majesty in your own person\nfurnishes the best proof of it. Observe, Sire, the advantage and\npleasure the hunter derives from the chase.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.                                            [_Angrily_.\n\nAway! tempter, away! The King has recovered his senses, and is\nhimself again. As for you, you may, if you choose, wander about\nfrom forest to forest, till some old bear seizes you by the nose,\nand makes a mouthful of you.\n\nKING.\n\nMy good General, as we are just now in the neighbourhood of a\nconsecrated grove, your panegyric upon hunting is somewhat\nill-timed, and I cannot assent to all you have said. For the\npresent,\n\n  All undisturbed the buffaloes shall sport\n  In yonder pool, and with their ponderous horns\n  Scatter its tranquil waters, while the deer,\n  Couched here and there in groups beneath the shade\n  Of spreading branches, ruminate in peace.\n  And all securely shall the herd of boars\n  Feed on the marshy sedge; and thou, my bow,\n  With slackened string, enjoy a long repose.\n\nGENERAL.\n\nSo please your Majesty, it shall be as you desire.\n\nKING.\n\nRecall, then, the beaters who were sent in advance to surround\nthe forest. My troops must not be allowed to disturb this sacred\nretreat, and irritate its pious inhabitants.\n\n  Know that within the calm and cold recluse\n  Lurks unperceived a germ of smothered flame,\n  All-potent to destroy; a latent fire\n  That rashly kindled bursts with fury forth;\n  As in the disc of crystal[35] that remains\n  Cool to the touch, until the solar ray\n  Falls on its polished surface, and excites\n  The burning heat that lies within concealed.\n\nGENERAL.\n\nYour Majesty's commands shall be obeyed.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nOff with you, you son of a slave! Your nonsense won't go down\nhere, my fine fellow.\n\n                                                 [_Exit_ GENERAL.\n\nKING.                               [_Looking at his attendants_.\n\nHere, women, take my hunting-dress; and you, Raivatika, keep\nguard carefully outside.\n\nATTENDANTS.\n\nWe will, Sire.\n\n                                                       [_Exeunt_.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nNow that you have got rid of these plagues, who have been buzzing\nabout us like so many flies, sit down, do, on that stone slab,\nwith the shade of the tree as your canopy, and I will seat myself\nby you quite comfortably.\n\nKING.\n\nGo you, and sit down first.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nCome along, then.\n\n               [_Both walk on a little way, and seat themselves_.\n\nKING.\n\nM\u00e1[T.]Havya, it may be said of you that you have never beheld\nanything worth seeing; for your eyes have not yet looked upon the\nloveliest object in creation.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nHow can you say so, when I see your Majesty before me at this\nmoment?\n\nKING.\n\nIt is very natural that every one should consider his own friend\nperfect; but I was alluding to [S']akoontal\u00e1, the brightest\nornament of these hallowed groves.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.                                              [_Aside_.\n\nI understand well enough, but I am not going to humour him.\n\n                                                        [_Aloud_.\n\nIf, as you intimate, she is a hermit's daughter, you cannot\nlawfully ask her in marriage. You may as well then dismiss her\nfrom your mind, for any good the mere sight of her can do.\n\nKING.\n\nThink you that a descendant of the mighty Puru could fix his\naffections on an unlawful object?\n\n  Though, as men say, the offspring of the sage,\n  The maiden to a nymph celestial owes\n  Her being, and by her mother left on earth,\n  Was found and nurtured by the holy man\n  As his own daughter, in this hermitage.\n  So, when dissevered from its parent stalk,\n  Some falling blossom of the jasmine[36], wafted\n  Upon the sturdy sun-flower, is preserved\n  By its support from premature decay.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.                                            [_Smiling_.\n\nThis passion of yours for a rustic maiden, when you have so many\ngems of women at home in your palace, seems to me very like the\nfancy of a man who is tired of sweet dates, and longs for sour\ntamarinds as a variety.\n\nKING.\n\nYou have not seen her, or you would not talk in this fashion.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nI can quite understand it must require something surpassingly\nattractive to excite the admiration of such a great man as you.\n\nKING.\n\nI will describe her, my dear friend, in a few words,\n\n  Man's all-wise Maker, wishing to create\n  A faultless form, whose matchless symmetry\n  Should far transcend Creation's choicest works,\n  Did call together by his mighty will,\n  And garner up in his eternal mind,\n  A bright assemblage of all lovely things;\n  And then, as in a picture, fashion them\n  Into one perfect and ideal form--\n  Such the divine, the wondrous prototype,\n  Whence her fair shape was moulded into being.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nIf that's the case, she must indeed throw all other beauties into\nthe shade.\n\nKING.\n\nTo my mind she really does.\n\n  This peerless maid is like a fragrant flower,\n  Whose perfumed breath has never been diffused;\n  A tender bud, that no profaning hand\n  Has dared to sever from its parent stalk;\n  A gem of priceless water, just released\n  Pure and unblemished from its glittering bed.\n  Or may the maiden haply be compared\n  To sweetest honey, that no mortal lip\n  Has sipped; or, rather, to the mellowed fruit\n  Of virtuous actions in some former birth[37],\n  Now brought to full perfection? Lives the man\n  Whom bounteous heaven has destined to espouse her?\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nMake haste, then, to her aid; you have no time to lose, if you\ndon't wish this fruit of all the virtues to drop into the mouth\nof some greasy-headed rustic of devout habits.\n\nKING.\n\nThe lady is not her own mistress, and her foster-father is not at\nhome.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nWell, but tell me, did she look at all kindly upon you?\n\nKING.\n\n  Maidens brought up in a hermitage are naturally\n  shy and reserved; but for all that\n  She did look towards me, though she quick withdrew\n  Her stealthy glances when she met my gaze;\n  She smiled upon me sweetly, but disguised\n  With maiden grace the secret of her smiles.\n  Coy love was half unveiled; then, sudden checked\n  By modesty, left half to be divined.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nWhy, of course, my dear friend, you never could seriously expect\nthat at the very first sight she would fall over head ears in\nlove with you, and without more ado come and sit in your lap.\n\nKING.\n\n  When we parted from each other, she betrayed\n  her liking for me by clearer indications, but still with the\n                                               utmost modesty.\n  Scarce had the fair one from my presence passed,\n  When, suddenly, without apparent cause,\n  She stopped; and, counterfeiting pain, exclaimed,\n  'My foot is wounded by this prickly grass,'\n  Then, glancing at me tenderly, she feigned\n  Another charming pretext for delay,\n  Pretending that a bush had caught her robe\n  And turned as if to disentangle it.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA\n\nI trust you have laid in a good stock of provisions,\nfor I see you intend making this consecrated grove your\ngame-preserve, and will be roaming here in quest of sport for\nsome time to come.\n\nKING.\n\nYou must know, my good fellow, that I have been recognised by\nsome of the inmates of the hermitage. Now I want the assistance\nof your fertile invention, in devising some excuse for going\nthere again.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nThere is but one expedient that I can suggest. You are the King,\nare you not?\n\nKING.\n\nWhat then?\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nSay you have come for the sixth part of their grain [38], which\nthey owe you for tribute.\n\nKING.\n\nNo, no, foolish man; those hermits pay me a very different kind\nof tribute, which I value more than heaps of gold or jewels;\nobserve,\n\n  The tribute which my other subjects bring\n  Must moulder into dust, but holy men\n  Present me with a portion of the fruits\n  Of penitential services and prayers--\n  A precious and imperishable gift.\n\nA VOICE BEHIND THE SCENES.\n\nWe are fortunate; here is the object of our search.\n\nKING.                                               [_Listening_.\n\nSurely those must be the voices of hermits, to judge by their\ndeep tones.\n\nWARDER.                                              [_Entering_.\n\nVictory to the King! two young hermits are in waiting outside,\nand solicit an audience of your Majesty.\n\nKING.\n\nIntroduce them Immediately.\n\nWARDER.\n\nI will, my liege.\n\n[_Goes out, and re-enters with_ TWO YOUNG HERMITS.]\n\nThis way, Sirs, this way.\n\n                           [_Both the_ HERMITS _look at the KING.\n\nFIRST HERMIT.\n\nHow majestic is his mien, and yet what confidence it inspires!\nBut this might be expected in a king, whose character and habits\nhave earned for him a title only one degree removed from that of\na Sage [39].\n\n  In this secluded grove, whose sacred joys\n  All may participate, he deigns to dwell\n  Like one of us; and daily treasures up\n  A store of purest merit for himself,\n  By the protection of our holy rites.\n  In his own person wondrously are joined\n  Both majesty and saintlike holiness;\n  And often chanted by inspired bards [40],\n  His hallowed title of 'Imperial Sage'\n  Ascends in joyous accents to the skies.\n\nSECOND HERMIT.\n\nBear in mind, Gautama, that this is the great Dushyanta, the\nfriend of Indra.\n\nFIRST HERMIT.\n\nWhat of that?\n\nSECOND HERMIT.\n\n  Where is the wonder if his nervous arm,\n  Puissant and massive as the iron bar\n  That binds a castle-gateway, singly sways\n  The sceptre of the universal earth,\n  E'en to its dark-green boundary of waters?\n  Or if the gods, beholden to his aid\n  In their fierce warfare with the powers of hell [41],\n  Should blend his name with Indra's in their songs\n  Of victory, and gratefully accord\n  No lower meed of praise to his braced bow,\n  Than to the thunders of the god of heaven?\n\nBOTH THE HERMITS.                                 [_Approaching_.\n\nVictory to the King!\n\nKING.                                    [_Rising from his seat_.\n\nHail to you both!\n\nBOTH THE HERMITS.\n\nHeaven bless your Majesty!\n\n                                            [_They offer fruits_.\n\nKING.                     [_Respectfully receiving the offering_.\n\nTell me, I pray you, the object of your visit.\n\nBOTH THE HERMITS.\n\nThe inhabitants of the hermitage, having heard of your Majesty's\nsojourn in our neighbourhood, make this humble petition:--\n\nKING.\n\nWhat are their commands?\n\nBOTH THE HERMITS.\n\nIn the absence of our Superior, the great sage Kanwa, evil demons\nare disturbing our sacrificial rites [42]. Deign, therefore,\naccompanied by your charioteer, to take up your abode in our\nhermitage for a few days.\n\nKING.\n\nI am honoured by your invitation.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.                                              [_Aside_.\n\nMost opportune and convenient, certainly!\n\nKING.                                                 [_Smiling_.\n\nHo, there, Raivatika! Tell the charioteer from me to bring round\nthe chariot with my bow.\n\nWARDER.\n\nI will, Sire.\n\n                                                         [_Exit_.\n\nBOTH THE HERMITS.                                    [_Joyfully_.\n\n  Well it becomes the King by acts of grace\n  To emulate the virtues of his race.\n  Such acts thy lofty destiny attest;\n  Thy mission is to succour the distressed.\n\nKING.                                   [_Bowing to the_ HERMITS.\n\nGo first, reverend Sirs, I will follow you immediately.\n\nBOTH THE HERMITS.\n\nMay victory attend you!\n\n                                                       [_Exeunt_.\n\nKING.\n\nMy dear M\u00e1[T.]Havya, are not you full of longing to see\n[S']akoontal\u00e1?\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nTo tell you the truth, though I was just now brimful of desire to\nsee her, I have not a drop left since this piece of news about\nthe demons.\n\nKING.\n\nNever fear; you shall keep close to me for protection.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nWell, you must be my guardian-angel, and act the part of a very\nVishnu [43] to me.\n\nWARDER.                                              [_Entering_.\n\nSire, the chariot is ready, and only waits to conduct you to\nvictory. But here is a messenger named Karabhaka, just arrived\nfrom your capital, with a message from the Queen, your mother.\n\nKING.                                            [_Respectfully_.\n\nHow say you? a messenger from the venerable Queen?\n\nWARDER.\n\nEven so.\n\nKING.\n\nIntroduce him at once.\n\nWARDER.\n\nI will, Sire.\n\n[_Goes out and re-enters with_ KARABHAKA.]\n\nBehold the King. Approach.\n\nKARABHAKA.\n\nVictory to the King! The Queen-mother bids me say that in four\ndays from the present time she intends celebrating a solemn\nceremony for the advancement and preservation of her son. She\nexpects that your Majesty will honour her with your presence on\nthat occasion.\n\nKING.\n\nThis places me in a dilemma. Here, on the one hand, is the\ncommission of these holy men to be executed; and, on the other,\nthe command of my revered parent to be obeyed. Both duties are\ntoo sacred to be neglected. What is to be done?\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nYou will have to take up an intermediate position between the\ntwo, like King Tri[s']anku [44], who was suspended between heaven\nand earth, because the sage Vi[s']w\u00e1mitra commanded him to mount up\nto heaven, and the gods ordered him down again.\n\nKING.\n\nI am certainly very much perplexed. For here,\n\n  Two different duties are required of me\n  In widely distant places; how can I\n  In my own person satisfy them both?\n  Thus is my mind distracted, and impelled\n  In opposite directions like a stream\n  That, driven back by rocks, still rushes on,\n  Forming two currents in its eddying course.\n\n                                                  [_Reflecting_.]\n\nFriend M\u00e1[T.]Havya, as you were my playfellow in childhood, the\nQueen has already received you like a second son; go you, then,\nback to her, and tell her of my solemn engagement to assist these\nholy men. You can supply my place in the ceremony, and act the\npart of a son to the Queen.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nWith the greatest pleasure in the world; but don't suppose that\nI am really coward enough to have the slightest fear of those\ntrumpery demons.\n\nKING.\n\nOh! of course not; a great Br\u00e1hman like you could not possibly\ngive way to such weakness.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nYou must let me travel in a manner suitable to the King's younger\nbrother.\n\nKING.\n\nYes, I shall send my retinue with you, that there may be no\nfarther disturbance in this sacred forest.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA,                                       [_With a strut_.\n\nAlready I feel quite like a young prince.\n\nKING.                                                   [_Aside_.\n\nThis is a giddy fellow, and in all probability he will let out\nthe truth about my present pursuit to the women of the palace.\nWhat is to be done? I must say something to deceive him.\n\n[_Aloud to_ M\u00c1[T.]HAVYA, _taking him by the hand_.]\n\nDear friend, I am going to the hermitage wholly and solely out of\nrespect for its pious inhabitants, and not because I have really\nany liking for [S']akoontal\u00e1, the hermit's daughter. Observe:--\n\n  What suitable communion could there be\n  Between a monarch and a rustic girl?\n  I did but feign an idle passion, friend,\n  Take not in earnest what was said in jest.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nDon't distress yourself; I quite understand.\n\n                                                       [_Exeunt_.\n\n       *       *       *       *       *\n\n\n\n\nPRELUDE TO ACT III.\n\nSCENE.--_The Hermitage_.\n\n_Enter a_ YOUNG BR\u00c1HMAN _carrying bundles of ku[S']a-grass for the\nuse of the sacrificing priest_.\n\nYOUNG BR\u00c1HMAN.\n\nHow wonderful is the power of King Dushyanta! No sooner did he\nenter our hermitage, than we were able to proceed with our\nsacrificial rites, unmolested by the evil demons.\n\n  No need to fix the arrow to the bow;\n  The mighty monarch sounds the quivering string,\n  And, by the thunder of his arms dismayed,\n  Our demon foes are scattered to the wind.\n\nI must now, therefore, make haste and deliver to the sacrificing\npriests these bundles of Ku[s']a-grass, to be strewn round the\naltar.\n\n[_Walking and looking about; then addressing some one off the\nstage_.]\n\nWhy, Priyamvad\u00e1, for whose use are you carrying that ointment of\nUs\u00edra-root and those lotus-leaves with fibres attached to them?\n\n[_Listening for her answer_.]\n\nWhat Say you?--that [S']akoontal\u00e1 is suffering from fever produced\nby exposure to the sun, and that this ointment is to cool her\nburning frame? Nurse her with care, then, Priyamvad\u00e1, for she is\ncherished by our reverend Superior as the very breath of his\nnostrils[46]. I, for my part, will contrive that soothing waters,\nhallowed in the sacrifice, he administered to her by the hands of\nGautam\u00ed.\n\n                                                         [_Exit_.\n\n\nACT III.\n\n\nSCENE.--_The Sacred Grove_.\n\n_Enter_ KING DUSHYANTA, _with the air of one in love_.\n\nKING.                                    [_Sighing thoughtfully_.\n\n  The holy sage possesses magic power\n  In virtue of his penance; she, his ward,\n  Under the shadow of his tutelage,\n  Rests in security, I know it well;\n  Yet sooner shall the rushing cataract\n  In foaming eddies re-ascend the steep,\n  Than my fond heart turn back from its pursuit.\n\nGod of love! God of the flowery shafts [47]! we lovers are cruelly\ndeceived by thee, and by the Moon, however deserving of confidence\nyou may both appear.\n\n  For not to us do these thine arrows seem\n  Pointed with tender flowerets; not to us\n  Doth the pale Moon irradiate the earth\n  With beams of silver fraught with cooling dews;\n  But on our fevered frames the moon-beams fall\n  Like darts of fire, and every flower-tipt shaft\n  Of K\u00e1ma[47], as it probes our throbbing hearts,\n  Seems to be barbed with hardest adamant.\n\nAdorable god of love! hast thou no pity for me?\n\n[_In a tone of anguish_.]\n\nHow can thy arrows be so sharp when they are pointed with\nflowers? Ah! I know the reason:\n\n  E'en now in thine unbodied essence lurks\n  The fire of [S']iva's anger[48], like the flame\n  That ever hidden in the secret depths\n  Of ocean, smoulders there unseen[49]. How else\n  Could'st thou, all immaterial as thou art,\n  Inflame our hearts thus fiercely?--thou, whose form\n  Was scorched to ashes by a sudden flash\n  From the offended god's terrific eye.\n\nYet, methinks,\n\n  Welcome this anguish, welcome to my heart\n  These rankling wounds inflicted by the god,\n  Who on his scutcheon bears the monster-fish[50]\n  Slain by his prowess; welcome death itself,\n  So that, commissioned by the lord of love,\n  This fair one be my executioner.\n  Adorable divinity! Can I by no reproaches excite your commiseration?\n  Have I not daily offered at thy shrine\n  Innumerable vows, the only food\n  Of thine ethereal essence? Are my prayers\n  Thus to be slighted? Is it meet that thou\n  Should'st aim thy shafts at thy true votary's heart,\n  Drawing thy bow-string even to thy ear?\n\n[_Pacing up and down in a melancholy manner_.]\n\nNow that the holy men have completed their rites, and have no\nmore need of my services, how shall I dispel my melancholy?\n\n[_Sighing_.]\n\nI have but one resource. Oh for another sight of the Idol of my\nsoul! I will seek her.\n\n[_Glancing at the sun_.]\n\nIn all probability, as the sun's heat is now at its height,\n[S']akoontal\u00e1 is passing her time under the shade of the bowers on\nthe banks of the M\u00e1lin\u00ed, attended by her maidens. I will go and\nlook for her there.\n\n[_Walking and looking about_.]\n\nI suspect the fair one has but just passed by this avenue of\nyoung trees.\n\n  Here, as she tripped along, her fingers plucked\n  The opening buds; these lacerated plants,\n  Shorn of their fairest blossoms by her hand,\n  Seem like dismembered trunks, whose recent wounds\n  Are still unclosed; while from the bleeding socket\n  Of many a severed stalk, the milky juice\n  Still slowly trickles, and betrays her path.\n\n[_Feeling a breeze_.]\n\nWhat a delicious breeze meets me in this spot!\n\n  Here may the zephyr, fragrant with the scent\n  Of lotuses, and laden with the spray\n  Caught from the waters of the rippling stream,\n  Fold in its close embrace my fevered limbs.\n\n[_Walking and looking about_.]\n\nShe must be somewhere in the neighbourhood of this arbour of\noverhanging creepers enclosed by plantations of cane;\n\n[_Looking down_.]\n\n  For at the entrance here I plainly see\n  A line of footsteps printed in the sand.\n  Here are the fresh impressions of her feet;\n  Their well-known outline faintly marked in front,\n  More deeply towards the heel; betokening\n  The graceful undulation of her gait[51].\n\nI will peep through those branches.\n\n [_Walking and looking. With transport_.]\n\nAh! now my eyes are gratified by an entrancing sight. Yonder is\nthe beloved of my heart reclining on a rock strewn with flowers,\nand attended by her two friends. How fortunate! Concealed behind\nthe leaves, I will listen to their conversation, without raising\ntheir suspicions.\n\n                          [_Stands concealed, and gazes at them_.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1 _and her two attendants, holding fans in their hands,\nare discovered as described_.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1 AND ANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\n                         [_Fanning her. In a tone of affection_.\n\nDearest [S']akoontal\u00e1, is the breeze raised by these broad\nlotus-leaves refreshing to you?\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nDear friends, why should you trouble yourselves to fan me?\n\n[PRIYAMVAD\u00c1 _and_ ANAS\u00daY\u00c1 _look sorrowfully at one another_.\n\nKING.\n\n[S']akoontal\u00e1 seems indeed to be seriously ill.\n\n[_Thoughtfully_.]\n\nCan it be the intensity of the heat that has affected her? or\ndoes my heart suggest the true cause of her malady?\n\n[_Gazing at her passionately_.]\n\nWhy should I doubt it?\n\n  The maiden's spotless bosom is o'erspread\n  With cooling balsam; on her slender arm\n  Her only bracelet, twined with lotus-stalks,\n  Hangs loose and withered; her recumbent form\n  Betokens languor. Ne'er could noon-day sun\n  Inflict such fair disorder on a maid--\n  No, love, and love alone, is here to blame.\n\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.                                  [_Aside to_ ANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nI have observed, Anas\u00fay\u00e1, that [S']akoontal\u00e1 has been indisposed\never since her first interview with King Dushyanta. Depend upon\nit, her ailment is to be traced to that source.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nThe same suspicion, dear, has crossed my mind. But I will at once\nask her and ascertain the truth.\n\n[_Aloud_.]\n\nDear [S']akoontal\u00e1, I am about to put a question to you. Your\nindisposition is really very serious.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                       [_Half rising from her couch_.\n\nWhat were you going to ask?\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nWe know very little about love-matters, dear [S']akoontal\u00e1; but for\nall that, I cannot help suspecting your present state to be\nsomething similar to that of the lovers we have heard about in\nromances. Tell us frankly what is the cause of your disorder. It\nis useless to apply a remedy, until the disease be understood.\n\nKING.\n\nAnas\u00fay\u00e1 bears me out in my suspicion.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                                            [_Aside_.\n\nI am, indeed, deeply in love; but cannot rashly\ndisclose my passion to these young girls.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nWhat Anas\u00fay\u00e1 says, dear [S']akoontal\u00e1, is very just. Why give so\nlittle heed to your ailment? Every day you are becoming thinner;\nthough I must confess your complexion is still as beautiful as\never.\n\nKING.\n\nPriyamvad\u00e1 speaks most truly.\n\n  Sunk is her velvet cheek; her wasted bosom\n  Loses its fulness; e'en her slender waist\n  Grows more attenuate; her face is wan,\n  Her shoulders droop;--as when the vernal blasts\n  Sear the young blossoms of the M\u00e1dhav\u00ed[52],\n  Blighting their bloom; so mournful is the change.\n  Yet in its sadness, fascinating still,\n  Inflicted by the mighty lord of love\n  On the fair figure of the hermit's daughter.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nDear friends, to no one would I rather reveal the nature of my\nmalady than to you; but I should only be troubling you.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1 AND ANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nNay, this is the very point about which we are so solicitous.\nSorrow shared with affectionate friends is relieved of half its\npoignancy.\n\nKING.\n\n  Pressed by the partners of her joys and griefs,\n  Her much beloved companions, to reveal\n  The cherished secret locked within her breast,\n  She needs must utter it; although her looks\n  Encourage me to hope, my bosom throbs\n  As anxiously I listen for her answer.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nKnow then, dear friends, that from the first moment the\nillustrious Prince who is the guardian of our sacred grove\npresented himself to my sight--\n\n                            [_Stops short, and appears confused_.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1 AND ANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nSay on, dear [S']akoontal\u00e1, say on.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nEver since that happy moment, my heart's affections have been\nfixed upon him, and my energies of mind and body have all\ndeserted me, as you see.\n\nKING.                                            [_With rapture_.\n\nHer own lips have uttered the words I most longed to hear.\n\n  Love lit the flame, and Love himself allays\n  My burning fever, as when gathering clouds\n  Rise o'er the earth in summer's dazzling noon,\n  And grateful showers dispel the morning heat.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nYou must consent, then, dear friends, to contrive some means by\nwhich I may find favour with the King, or you will have ere long\nto assist at my funeral.\n\nKING.\n\nEnough! These words remove all my doubts.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.                                  [_Aside to_ ANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nShe is far gone in love, dear Anas\u00fay\u00e1, and no time ought to be\nlost. Since she has fixed her affections on a monarch who is the\nornament of Puru's line, we need not hesitate for a moment to\nexpress our approval.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nI quite agree with you.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.                                             [_Aloud_.\n\nWe wish you joy, dear [S']akoontal\u00e1. Your affections are fixed on an\nobject in every respect worthy of you,. The noblest river will unite itself\nto the ocean, and the lovely M\u00e1dhav\u00ed-creeper clings naturally to the\nMango, the only tree capable of supporting it.\n\nKING.\n\nWhy need we wonder if the beautiful constellation Vi[s']\u00e1kh\u00e1 pines\nto be united with the Moon[53]?\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nBy what stratagem can we best secure to our friend the\naccomplishment of her heart's desire both speedily and secretly?\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nThe latter point is all we have to think about. As to 'speedily,'\nI look upon the whole affair as already settled.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nHow so?\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nDid you not observe how the King betrayed his liking by the\ntender manner in which he gazed upon her, and how thin he has\nbecome the last few days, as if he had been lying awake thinking\nof her?\n\nKING.                                      [_Looking at himself_.\n\nQuite true! I certainly am becoming thin from want of sleep:\n\n  As night by night in anxious thought I raise\n  This wasted arm to rest my sleepless head,\n  My jewelled bracelet, sullied by the tears\n  That trickle from my eyes in scalding streams,\n  Slips towards my elbow from my shrivelled wrist.\n  Oft I replace the bauble, but in vain;\n  So easily it spans the fleshless limb\n  That e'en the rough and corrugated skin,\n  Scarred by the bow-string, will not check its fall[54].\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nAn idea strikes me, Anas\u00fay\u00e1. Let [S']akoontal\u00e1 write a love-letter;\nI will conceal it in a flower, and contrive to drop it in the\nKing's path. He will surely mistake it for the remains of some\nsacred offering, and will, in all probability, pick it up.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nA very ingenious device! It my entire approval; but what says\n[S']akoontal\u00e1?\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nI must consider before I can consent to it.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nCould, you not, dear [S']akoontal\u00e1, think of some pretty\ncomposition in verse, containing a delicate declaration of your\nlove?\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nWell, I will do my best; but my heart trembles when I think of\nthe chances of a refusal.\n\nKING.                                            [_With rapture_.\n\n  Too timid maid, here stands the man from whom\n  Thou fearest a repulse; supremely blessed\n  To call thee all his own. Well might he doubt\n  His title to thy love; but how could'st thou\n  Believe thy beauty powerless to subdue him?\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1 AND ANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nYou undervalue your own merits, dear [S']akoontal\u00e1. What man in his\nsenses would intercept with the skirt of his robe the bright rays\nof the autumnal moon, which alone can allay the fever of his\nbody?\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                                           [_Smiling_.\n\nThen it seems I must do as I am bid.\n\n                         [_Sits down and appears to be thinking_.\n\nKING.\n\nHow charming she looks! My very eyes forget to wink, jealous of\nlosing even for an instant a sight so enchanting.\n\n  How beautiful the movement of her brow,\n  As through her mind love's tender fancies flow!\n  And, as she weighs her thoughts, how sweet to trace\n  The ardent passion mantling in her face!\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nDear girls, I have thought of a verse, but I have no\nwriting-materials at hand.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nWrite the letters with your nail on this lotus-leaf, which is\nsmooth as a parrot's breast.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                          [_After writing the verse_.\n\nListen, dear friends, and tell me whether the ideas are\nappropriately expressed.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1 AND ANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nWe are all attention.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                                             [_Reads_.\n\n  I know not the secret thy bosom conceals,\n  Thy form is not near me to gladden my sight;\n  But sad is the tale that my fever reveals,\n  Of the love that consumes me by day and by night.\n\nKING.                           [_Advancing hastily towards her_.\n\n  Nay, Love does but warm thee, fair maiden,--thy frame\n  Only droops like the bud in the glare of the noon;\n  But me he consumes with a pitiless flame,\n  As the beams of the day-star destroy the pale moon.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1 AND ANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\n             [_Looking at him joyfully and rising to salute him_.\n\nWelcome, the desire of our hearts, that so speedily presents\nitself!\n\n                          [[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1 _makes an effort to rise_.\n\nKING.\n\nNay, trouble not thyself, dear maiden.\n\n  Move not to do me homage; let thy limbs\n  Still softly rest upon their flowery couch;\n  And gather fragrance from the lotus-stalks,\n  Bruised by the fevered contact of thy frame.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nDeign, gentle Sir, to seat yourself on the rock on which our\nfriend is reposing.\n\n              [_The_ KING _sits down_. [S']AKOONTAL\u00c1 _is confused_.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nAny one may see at a glance that you are deeply attached to each\nother. But the affection I have for my friend prompts me to say\nsomething of which you hardly require to be informed.\n\nKING.\n\nDo not hesitate to speak out, my good girl. If you omit to say\nwhat is in your mind, you may be sorry for it afterwards.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nIs it not your special office as a King to remove the suffering\nof your subjects who are in trouble?\n\nKING.\n\nSuch is my duty, most assuredly.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nKnow, then, that our dear friend has been brought to her present\nstate of suffering entirely through love for you. Her life is in\nyour hands; take pity on her and restore her to health.\n\nKING.\n\nExcellent maiden, our attachment is mutual. It is I who am the\nmost honoured by it.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                            [_Looking at PRIYAMVAD\u00c1_.\n\nWhat do you mean by detaining the King, who must be anxious to\nreturn to his royal consorts after so long a separation?\n\nKING.\n\n  Sweet maiden, banish from thy mind the thought\n  That I could love another. Thou dost reign\n  Supreme, without a rival, in my heart,\n  And I am thine alone; disown me not,\n  Else must I die a second deadlier death,\n  Killed by thy words, as erst by K\u00e1ma's[47] shafts.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nKind Sir, we have heard it said that kings have many favourite\nconsorts. You must not, then, by your behaviour towards our dear\nfriend, give her relations cause to sorrow for her.\n\nKING.\n\nListen, gentle maiden, while in a few words I quiet your anxiety.\n\n  Though many beauteous forms my palace grace,\n  Henceforth two things alone will I esteem\n  The glory of my royal dynasty--\n  My sea-girt realm, and this most lovely maid.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1 AND ANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nWe are satisfied by your assurances.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.                              [_Glancing on one side_.\n\nSee, Anas\u00fay\u00e1, there is our favourite little fawn running about in\ngreat distress, and turning its eyes in every direction as if\nlooking for its mother; come, let us help the little thing to\nfind her. [_Both move away_.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nDear friends, dear friends, leave me not alone and unprotected.\nWhy need you both go?\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1 AND ANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nUnprotected! when the Protector of the world is at your side.\n\n                                                       [_Exeunt_.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nWhat! have they both really left me?\n\nKING.\n\nDistress not thyself, sweet maiden. Thy adorer is at hand to wait\nupon thee.\n\n  Oh let me tend thee, fair one, in the place\n  Of thy dear friends; and with broad lotus fans\n  Raise cooling breezes to refresh thy frame;\n  Or shall I rather, with caressing touch,\n  Allay the fever of thy limbs, and soothe\n  Thy aching feet, beauteous as blushing lilies?\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nNay, touch me not. I will not incur the censure of those whom I\nam bound to respect.\n\n                                     [_Rises and attempts to go_.\n\nKING.\n\nFair one, the heat of noon has not yet subsided, and thy body is\nstill feeble.\n\n  How canst thou quit thy fragrant couch of flowers,\n  And from thy throbbing bosom cast aside\n  Its covering of lotus-leaves, to brave\n  With weak and fainting limbs the noon-day heat?\n\n                                      [_Forces her to turn back_.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nInfringe not the rules of decorum, mighty descendant of Puru.\nRemember, though I love you, I have no power to dispose of\nmyself.\n\nKING.\n\nWhy this fear of offending your relations, timid maid? When your\nvenerable foster-father hears of it, he will not find fault with\nyou. He knows that the law permits us to be united without\nconsulting him.\n\n  In Indra's heaven, so at least 'tis said,\n  No nuptial rites prevail[55], nor is the bride\n  Led to the altar by her future lord;\n  But all in secret does the bridegroom plight\n  His troth, and each unto the other vow\n  Mutual allegiance. Such espousals, too,\n  Are authorised on earth, and many daughters\n  Of royal saints thus wedded to their lords\n  Have still received their father's benison.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nLeave me, leave me; I must take counsel with my female friends.\n\nKING.\n\nI will leave thee when--\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nWhen?\n\nKING.\n\n  When I have gently stolen from thy lips\n  Their yet untasted nectar, to allay\n  The raging of my thirst, e'en as the bee\n  Sips the fresh honey from the opening bud.\n\n             [_Attempts to raise her face_.  [S']AKOONTAL\u00c1 tries to\n                                                    prevent him_.\n\nA VOICE BEHIND THE SCENES.\n\nThe loving birds, doomed by fate to nightly separation[56], must\nbid farewell to each other, for evening is at hand.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                                    [_In confusion_.\n\nGreat Prince, I hear the voice of the matron Gautam\u00ed. She is\ncoming this way to inquire after my health. Hasten and conceal\nyourself behind the branches.\n\nKING.\n\nI will.                                      [_Conceals himself_.\n\n_Enter_ GAUTAM\u00cd _with a vase in her hand, preceded by two\nattendants_.\n\nATTENDANTS.\n\nThis way, most venerable Gautam\u00ed.\n\nGAUTAM\u00cd.                               [_Approaching_ [S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nMy child, is the fever of thy limbs allayed?\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nVenerable mother, there is certainly a change for the better.\n\nGAUTAM\u00cd.\n\nLet me sprinkle you with this holy water, and all\nyour ailments will depart.\n\n[_Sprinkling_ [S']AKOONTAL\u00c1 on the head_.]\n\nThe day is closing, my child; come, let us go to the cottage.\n\n                                           [_They all move away_.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                                             [_Aside_.\n\nOh my heart! thou didst fear to taste of happiness when it was\nwithin thy reach. Now that the object of thy desires is torn from\nthee, how bitter will be thy remorse, how distracting thine\nanguish!\n\n[_Moving on a few steps and stopping. Aloud_.]\n\nFarewell! bower of creepers, sweet soother of my sufferings,\nfarewell! may I soon again be happy under thy shade.\n\n                             [_Exit reluctantly with the others_.\n\nKING.\n\n          [_Returning to his former seat in the arbour. Sighing_.\n\nAlas! how many are the obstacles to the accomplishment of our\nwishes!\n\n  Albeit she did coyly turn away\n  Her glowing cheek, and with her fingers guard\n  Her pouting lips, that murmured a denial\n  In faltering accents, she did yield herself\n  A sweet reluctant captive to my will.\n  As eagerly I raised her lovely face;\n  But ere with gentle force I stole the kiss,\n  Too envious Fate did mar my daring purpose.\n\nWhither now shall I betake myself? I will tarry for a brief space\nin this bower of creepers, so endeared to me by the presence of\nmy beloved [S']akoontal\u00e1.\n\n                                                [_Looking round_.\n\n  Here printed on the flowery couch I see\n  The fair impression of her slender limbs;\n  Here is the sweet confession of her love,\n  Traced with her nail upon the lotus-leaf;\n  And yonder are the withered lily-stalks\n  That graced her wrist. While all around I view\n  Things that recall her image, can I quit\n  This bower, e'en though its living be fled?\n\nA VOICE IN THE AIR.\n\nGreat King,\n\n  Scarce is our evening sacrifice begun,\n  When evil demons, lurid as the clouds\n  That gather round the dying orb of day,\n  Cluster in hideous troops, obscene and dread,\n  About our altars, casting far and near\n  Terrific shadows, while the sacred fire\n  Sheds a pale lustre o'er their ghostly shapes.\n\nKING.\n\nI come to the rescue, I come.\n\n                                                         [_Exit_.\n\n       *       *       *       *       *\n\n\n\n\nPRELUDE TO ACT IV.\n\n\nSCENE.--_The Garden of the Hermitage_.\n\n_Enter_ PRIYAMVAD\u00c1 and ANAS\u00daY\u00c1 in the act of gathering flowers_.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nAlthough, dear Priyamvad\u00e1, it rejoices my heart to think that\n[S']akoontal\u00e1 has been happily united to a husband in every respect\nworthy of her, by the form of marriage prevalent among Indra's\ncelestial musicians, nevertheless, I cannot help feeling somewhat\nuneasy in my mind.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nHow so?\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nYou know that the pious King was gratefully dismissed by the\nhermits on the successful termination of their sacrificial rites.\nHe has now returned to his capital, leaving [S']akoontal\u00e1 under our\ncare; and it may be doubted whether, in the society of his royal\nconsorts, he will not forget all that has taken place in this\nhermitage of ours.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nOn that score be at ease. Persons of his noble nature are not so\ndestitute of all honourable feeling. I confess, however, that\nthere is one point about which I am rather anxious. What, think\nyou, will Father Kanwa say when he hears what has occurred?\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nIn my opinion, he will approve the marriage.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nWhat makes you think so?\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nFrom the first, it was always his fixed purpose to bestow the\nmaiden on a husband worthy of her; and since heaven has given her\nsuch a husband, his wishes have been realized without any trouble\nto himself.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.                      [_Looking at the flower-basket_.\n\nWe have gathered flowers enough for the sacred offering, dear\nAnas\u00fay\u00e1.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nWell, then, let us now gather more, that we may have wherewith to\npropitiate the guardian-deity of our dear [S']akoontal\u00e1.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nBy all means.\n\n                                      [_They continue gathering_.\n\nA VOICE BEHIND THE SCENES.\n\nHo there! See you not that I am here!\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nThat must be the voice of a guest announcing his arrival.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nSurely, [S']akoontal\u00e1 is not absent from the cottage.\n\n[_Aside_.]\n\nHer heart at least is absent, I fear.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nCome along, come along; we have gathered flowers\nenough.\n\n                                               [_They move away_.\n\nTHE SAME VOICE BEHIND THE SCENES.\n\nWoe to thee, maiden, for daring to slight a guest like me!\n\n  Shall I stand here unwelcomed--even I,\n  A very mine of penitential merit,\n  Worthy of all respect? Shalt thou, rash maid,\n  Thus set at nought the ever sacred ties\n  Of hospitality? and fix thy thoughts\n  Upon the cherished object of thy love,\n  While I am present? Thus I curse thee, then--\n  He, even he of whom thou thinkest, he\n  Shall think no more of thee; nor in his heart\n  Retain thine image. Vainly shalt thou strive\n  To waken his remembrance of the past;\n  He shall disown thee, even as the sot,\n  Roused from his midnight drunkenness, denies\n  The words he uttered in his revellings.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nAlas! alas! I fear a terrible misfortune has occurred.\n[S']akoontal\u00e1, from absence of mind, must have offended some guest\nwhom she was bound to treat with respect.\n\n[_Looking behind the scenes_.]\n\nAh! yes; I see; and no less a person than the great sage\nDurv\u00e1sas[57], who is known to be most irascible. He it is that\nhas just cursed her, and is now retiring with hasty strides,\ntrembling with passion, and looking as if nothing could turn him.\nHis wrath is like a consuming fire.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nGo quickly, dear Priyamvad\u00e1, throw yourself at his feet, and\npersuade him to come back, while I prepare a propitiatory\noffering[59] for him, with water and refreshments.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nI will.\n\n                                                         [_Exit_.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\n[_Advancing hastily a few steps and stumbling_.\n\nAlas! alas! this comes of being in a hurry. My foot has slipped,\nand my basket of flowers has fallen from my hand.\n\n                                      [_Stays to gather them up_.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.                               [_Re-entering_\n\nWell, dear Anas\u00fay\u00e1, I have done my best; but what living being\ncould succeed in pacifying such a cross-grained, ill-tempered old\nfellow? However, I managed to mollify him a little.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1                                               [_Smiling_.\n\nEven a little was much for him. Say on.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nWhen he refused to turn back, I implored his forgiveness in these\nwords: 'Most venerable sage, pardon, I beseech you, this first\noffence of a young and inexperienced girl, who was ignorant of\nthe respect due to your saintly character and exalted rank.'\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1\n\nAnd what did he reply?\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\n'My word must not be falsified; but, at the sight of the ring of\nrecognition the spell shall cease.' So saying, he disappeared.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nOh! then we may breathe again; for, now I think of it, the King\nhimself, at his departure, fastened on [S']akoontal\u00e1's finger, as a\ntoken of remembrance, a ring on which his own name was engraved.\nShe has, therefore, a remedy for her misfortune at her own\ncommand.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nCome, dear Anas\u00fay\u00e1, let us proceed with our religious duties.\n\n                                              [_They walk round_.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.                             [_Looking off the stage_.\n\nSee, Anas\u00fay\u00e1, there sits our dear friend, motionless as a statue,\nresting her face on her left hand, her whole mind absorbed in\nthinking of her absent husband. She can pay no attention to\nherself, much less to a stranger.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nPriyamvad\u00e1, let this affair never pass our lips. We must spare\nour dear friend's feelings. Her constitution is too delicate to\nbear much emotion.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nI agree with you. Who would think of watering a tender jasmine\nwith hot water?\n\n\n\nACT IV.\n\nScene.--_The Neighbourhood of the Hermitage.\n\nEnter one of_ Kanwa's Pupils _just arisen from his couch at the\ndawn of day_.\n\nPUPIL.\n\nMy master, the venerable Kanwa, who is but lately returned from\nhis pilgrimage, has ordered me to ascertain how the time goes. I\nhave therefore come into the open air to see if it be still dark.\n\n [_Walking and looking about_.]\n\nOh! the dawn has already broken.\n\n  Lo! in one quarter of the sky, the Moon,\n  Lord of the herbs and night-expanding flowers,\n  Sinks towards his bed behind the western hills;\n  While in the east, preceded by the Dawn,\n  His blushing charioteer[59], the glorious Sun\n  Begins his course, and far into the gloom\n  Casts the first radiance of his orient beams.\n  Hail! co-eternal orbs, that rise to set,\n  And set to rise again; symbols divine\n  Of man's reverses, life's vicissitudes.\n\nAnd now,\n\n  While the round Moon withdraws his looming disc\n  Beneath the western sky, the full-blown flower\n  Of the night-loving lotus[60] sheds her leave\n  In sorrow for his loss, bequeathing nought\n  But the sweet memory of her loveliness\n  To my bereaved sight; e'en as the bride\n  Disconsolately mourns her absent lord,\n  And yields her heart a prey to anxious grief.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.                                    [_Entering abruptly_.\n\nLittle as I know of the ways of the world, I cannot help thinking\nthat King Dushyanta is treating [S']akoontal\u00e1 very improperly.\n\nPUPIL.\n\nWell, I must let my revered preceptor know that it is time to\noffer the burnt oblation.\n\n                                                         [_Exit_.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nI am broad awake, but what shall I do? I have no energy to go\nabout my usual occupations. My hands and feet seem to have lost\ntheir power. Well, Love has gained his object; and Love only is\nto blame for having induced our dear friend, in the innocence of\nher heart, to confide in such a perfidious man. Possibly,\nhowever, the imprecation of Durv\u00e1sas may he already taking\neffect. Indeed, I cannot otherwise account for the King's strange\nconduct, in allowing so long a time to elapse without even a\nletter; and that, too, after so many promises and protestations.\nI cannot think what to do unless we send him the ring which was\nto be the token of recognition. But which of these austere\nhermits could we ask to be the bearer of it? Then, again, Father\nKanwa has just returned from his pilgrimage; and how am I to\ninform him of [S']akoontal\u00e1's marriage to King Dushyanta, and her\nexpectation of becoming soon a mother? I never could bring myself\nto tell him, even if I felt that [S']akoontal\u00e1 had been in fault,\nwhich she certainly has not. What is to be done?\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.                                [_Entering;  joyfully_.\n\nQuick! quick! Anas\u00fay\u00e1! come and assist in the joyful preparations\nfor [S']akoontal\u00e1's departure to her husband's palace.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nMy dear girl, what can you mean?\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nListen, now, and I will tell you all about it. I went just now to\n[S']akoontal\u00e1, to inquire whether she had slept comfortably--\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nWell, well; go on.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nShe was sitting with her face bowed down to the very ground with\nshame, when Father Kanwa entered, and, embracing her, of his own\naccord offered her his congratulations. 'I give thee joy, my\nchild,' he said, 'we have had an auspicious omen. The priest who\noffered the oblation dropped it into the very centre of the\nsacred fire [81], though thick smoke obstructed his vision.\nHenceforth thou wilt cease to be an object of compassion. This\nvery day I purpose sending thee, under the charge of certain\ntrusty hermits, to the King's palace; and shall deliver thee into\nthe hands of thy husband, as I would commit knowledge to the\nkeeping of a wise and faithful student.'\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nWho, then, informed the holy father of what passed in his\nabsence?\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nAs he was entering the sanctuary of the consecrated fire, an\ninvisible being chanted a verse in celestial strains.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.                                    [_With astonishment_.\n\nIndeed! pray repeat it.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.                               [_Repeating the verse_.\n\n  Glows in thy daughter King Dushyanta's glory,\n  As in the sacred tree the mystic fire [62];\n  Let worlds rejoice to hear the welcome story,\n  And may the son immortalize the sire.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.                                 [_Embracing_ PRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nOh, my dear Priyamvad\u00e1, what delightful news! I am pleased\nbeyond measure; yet when I think that we are to lose our dear\n[S']akoontal\u00e1 this very day, a feeling of melancholy mingles with\nmy joy.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nWe shall find means of consoling ourselves after her departure.\nLet the dear creature only be made happy at any cost.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nYes, yes, Priyamvad\u00e1, it shall be so; and now to prepare the\nbridal array. I have always looked forward to this occasion, and\nsome time since, I deposited a beautiful garland of Ke[S']ara\nflowers in a cocoa-nut box, and suspended it on a bough of\nyonder mango-tree. Be good enough to stretch out your hand and\ntake it down, while I compound unguents and perfumes with this\nconsecrated paste and these blades of sacred grass.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nVery well.\n\n           [_Exit_ ANAS\u00daY\u00c1. PRIYAMVAD\u00c1  _takes down the flowers_.\n\nA VOICE BEHIND THE SCENES.\n\nGautam\u00ed, bid [S']\u00e1rngarava and the others hold themselves in\nreadiness to escort [S']akoontal\u00e1.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.                                         [_Listening_.\n\nQuick, quick, Anas\u00fay\u00e1! They are calling the\nhermits who are to go with [S']akoontal\u00e1 to Hastin\u00e1pur[83].\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1. [_Re-entering with the perfumed unguents in her\nhand_.\n\nCome along then, Priyamvad\u00e1; I am ready to go with you.\n\n                                               [_They walk away_.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.                                           [_Looking_.\n\nSee! there sits [S']akoontal\u00e1, her locks arranged even at this\nearly hour of the morning. The holy women of the hermitage are\ncongratulating her, and invoking blessings on her head, while\nthey present her with wedding-gifts and offerings of consecrated\nwild-rice. Let us join them.\n\n                                               [_They approach_.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1 _is seen seated, with women surrounding her, occupied\nin the manner described_.\n\nFIRST WOMAN.                                  [_To_ [S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nMy child, may'st thou receive the title of 'Chief-queen,' and may\nthy husband delight to honour thee above all others!\n\nSECOND WOMAN.\n\nMy child, may'st thou be the mother of a hero!\n\nTHIRD WOMAN.\n\nMy child, may'st thou be highly honoured by thy lord!\n\n[_Exeunt all the women, excepting_ GAUTAM\u00cd, after blessing_\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1 AND ANAS\u00daY\u00c1.                           [_Approaching_.\n\nDear [S']akoontal\u00e1, we are come to assist you at your toilet, and\nmay a blessing attend it!\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nWelcome, dear friends, welcome. Sit down here.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1 AND ANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\n      [_Taking the baskets containing the bridal decorations, and\n                                                   sitting down_.\n\nNow, then, dearest, prepare to let us dress you. We must first\nrub your limbs with these perfumed unguents.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nI ought indeed to be grateful for your kind offices, now that I\nam so soon to be deprived of them. Dear, dear friends, perhaps I\nshall never be dressed by you again.\n\n                                            [_Bursts into tears_.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1 AND ANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nWeep not, dearest; tears are out of season on such a happy\noccasion.\n\n              [_They wipe away her tears and begin to dress her_.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nAlas! these simple flowers and rude ornaments, which our\nhermitage offers in abundance, do not set off your beauty as it\ndeserves.\n\n_Enter TWO YOUNG HERMITS, bearing costly presents_.\n\nBOTH HERMITS.\n\nHere are ornaments suitable for a queen.\n\n[_The women look at them in astonishment_.\n\nGAUTAM\u00cd\n\nWhy, N\u00e1rada, my son, whence came these?\n\nFIRST HERMIT.\n\nYou owe them to the devotion of Father Kanwa.\n\nGAUTAM\u00cd.\n\nDid he create them by the power of his own mind?\n\nSECOND HERMIT.\n\nCertainly not; but you shall hear. The venerable sage ordered us\nto collect flowers for [S']akoontal\u00e1 from the forest-trees; and we\nwent to the wood for that purpose, when\n\n  Straightway depending from a neighbouring tree\n  Appeared a robe of linen tissue, pure\n  And spotless as a moonbeam--mystic pledge\n  Of bridal happiness; another tree\n  Distilled a roseate dye wherewith to stain\n  The lady's feet [135]; and other branches near\n  Glistened with rare and costly ornaments.\n  While, 'mid the leaves, the hands of forest-nymphs,\n  Vying in beauty with the opening buds,\n  Presented us with sylvan offerings.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.                            [_Looking at_ [S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nThe wood-nymphs have done you honour, indeed. This favour\ndoubtless signifies that you are soon to be received as a happy\nwife into your husband's house, and are from this time forward to\nbecome the partner of his royal fortunes.\n\n[[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1 _appears abashed_.\n\nFIRST HERMIT.\n\nCome, Gautama; Father Kanwa has finished his ablutions. Let us go\nand inform him of the favour we have received from the deities\nwho preside over our trees.\n\nSECOND HERMIT.\n\nBy all means.\n\n                                                       [_Exeunt_.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1 AND ANAS\u00daY\u00c1\n\nAlas! what are we to do? We are unused to such splendid\ndecorations, and are at a loss how to arrange them. Our\nknowledge of painting must be our guide. We will dispose the\nornaments as we have seen them in pictures.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1\n\nWhatever pleases you, dear girls, will please me. I have perfect\nconfidence In your taste.\n\n                                   [_They commence dressing her_.\n\n_Enter_ KANWA, _having just finished his ablutions_.\n\nKANWA.\n\n  This day my loved one leaves me, and my heart\n  Is heavy with its grief; the streams of sorrow,\n  Choked at the source, repress my faltering voice,\n  I have no words to speak; mine eyes are dimmed\n  By the dark shadows of the thoughts that rise\n  Within my soul. If such the force of grief\n  In an old hermit parted from his nursling,\n  What anguish must the stricken parent feel--\n  Bereft for ever of an only daughter.\n\n[_Advances towards_ [S']AKOONTAL\u00c1\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1 AND ANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nNow, dearest [S']akoontal\u00e1, we have finished decorating you. You\nhave only to put on the two linen mantles.\n\n                            [[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1 _rises and puts them on_.\n\nGAUTAM\u00cd.\n\nDaughter, see, here comes thy foster-father; he is eager to fold\nthee in his arms; his eyes swim with tears of joy. Hasten to do\nhim reverence.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1                                        [_Reverently_.\n\nMy father, I salute you.\n\nKANWA.\n\nMy daughter,\n\n  May'st thou be highly honoured by thy lord,\n  E'en as Yay\u00e1ti [S']armishth\u00e1 adored[64]!\n  And, as she bore him Puru, so may'st thou\n  Bring forth a son to whom the world shall bow!\n\nGAUTAM\u00cd.\n\nMost venerable father, she accepts your benediction as if she\nalready possessed the boon it confers.\n\nKANWA.\n\nNow come this way, my child, and walk reverently\nround these sacrificial fires.\n\n                                          [_They all walk round_.\n\nKANWA.\n\n                [_Repeats a prayer in the metre of the Rig-veda_.\n\n  Holy flames, that gleam around\n  Every altar's hallowed ground;\n  Holy flames, whose frequent food\n  Is the consecrated wood,\n  And for whose encircling bed,\n  Sacred Ku[s']a-grass is spread [65];\n  Holy flames, that waft to heaven\n  Sweet oblations daily given,\n  Mortal guilt to purge away,\n  Hear, oh hear me, when I pray--\n  Purify my child this day!\n\nNow then, my daughter, set out on thy journey.\n\n[_Looking on one side_.]\n\nWhere are thy attendants. [S']\u00e1rngarava and the others?\n\nYOUNG HERMIT.                                        [_Entering_.\n\nHere we are, most venerable father.\n\nKANWA.\n\nLead the way for thy sister.\n\n[S']\u00c1RNGARAVA.\n\nCome, [S']akoontal\u00e1, let us proceed.\n\n                                                [_All move away_.\n\nKANWA.\n\n  Hear me, ye trees that surround our hermitage!\n  [S']akoontal\u00e1 ne'er moistened in the stream\n  Her own parched lips, till she had fondly poured\n  Its purest water on your thirsty roots;\n  And oft, when she would fain have decked her hair\n  With your thick-clustering blossoms, in her love\n  She robbed you not e'en of a single flower.\n  Her highest joy was ever to behold\n  The early glory of your opening buds;\n  Oh, then, dismiss her with a kind farewell.\n  This very day she quits her father's home,\n  To seek the palace of her wedded lord.\n\n[_The note of a Ko\u00efl[66] is heard_.\n\n  Hark! heard'st thou not the answer of the trees,\n  Our sylvan sisters, warbled in the note\n  Of the melodious Ko\u00efl[66]? they dismiss\n  Their dear [S']akoontal\u00e1 with loving wishes.\n\nVOICES IN THE AIR.\n\n  Fare thee well, journey pleasantly on amid streams\n  Where the lotuses bloom, and the sun's glowing beams\n  Never pierce the deep shade of the wide-spreading trees,\n  While gently around thee shall sport the cool breeze;\n  Then light be thy footsteps and easy thy tread,\n  Beneath thee shall carpets of lilies be spread;\n  Journey on to thy lord, let thy spirit be gay,\n  For the smiles of all Nature shall gladden thy way.\n\n                                 [_All listen with astonishment_.\n\nGAUTAM\u00cd.\n\nDaughter! the nymphs of the wood, who love thee with the\naffection of a sister, dismiss thee with kind wishes for thy\nhappiness. Take thou leave of them reverentially.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\n[_Bowing respectfully and walking on. Aside to her friend_.\n\nEager as I am, dear Priyamvad\u00e1, to see my husband once more, yet\nmy feet refuse to move, now that I am quitting for ever the home\nof my girlhood.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1.\n\nYou are not the only one, dearest, to feel the bitterness of\nparting. As the time of separation approaches, the whole grove\nseems to share your anguish.\n\n  In sorrow for thy loss, the herd of deer\n  Forget to browse; the peacock on the lawn\n  Ceases its dance[67]; the very trees around\n  Shed their pale leaves, like tears, upon the ground.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                             [_Recollecting herself_.\n\nMy father, let me, before I go, bid adieu to my pet jasmine, the\nMoonlight of the Grove[68]. I love the plant almost as a sister.\n\nKANWA.\n\nYes, yes, my child, I remember thy sisterly affection for the\ncreeper. Here it is on the right.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                          [_Approaching the jasmine_.\n\nMy beloved jasmine! most brilliant of climbing plants, how sweet\nit is to see thee cling thus fondly to thy husband, the\nmango-tree; yet, prithee, turn thy twining arms for a moment in\nthis direction to embrace thy sister; she is going far away, and\nmay never see thee again.\n\nKANWA.\n\n  Daughter, the cherished purpose of my heart\n  Has ever been to wed thee to a man\n  That should be worthy of thee; such a spouse\n  Hast thou thyself, by thine own merits, won.\n  To him thou goest, and about his neck\n  Soon shalt thou cling confidingly, as now\n  Thy favourite jasmine twines its loving arms\n  Around the sturdy mango. Leave thou it\n  To its protector--e'en as I consign\n  Thee to thy lord, and henceforth from my mind\n  Banish all anxious thought on thy behalf.\n\nProceed on thy journey, my child.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                      [_To_ PRIYAMVAD\u00c1 _and_ ANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nTo you, my sweet companions, I leave it as a keepsake. Take\ncharge of it when I am gone.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1 AND ANAS\u00daY\u00c1.                   [_Bursting into tears_.\n\nAnd to whose charge do you leave us, dearest? Who will care for\nus when you are gone?\n\nKANWA.\n\nFor shame, Anas\u00fay\u00e1! dry your tears. Is this the way to cheer your\nfriend at a time when she needs your support and consolation?\n\n                                                  [_All move on_.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nMy father, see you there my pet deer, grazing close to the\nhermitage? She expects soon to fawn, and even now the weight of\nthe little one she carries hinders her movements. Do not forget\nto send me word when she becomes a mother.\n\nKANWA.\n\nI will not forget it.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                       [_Feeling herself drawn back_.\n\nWhat can this be, fastened to my dress?\n\n                                                  [_Turns round_.\n\nKANWA.\n\nMy daughter,\n\n  It is the little fawn, thy foster-child,\n  Poor helpless orphan! it remembers well\n  How with a mother's tenderness and love\n  Thou didst protect it, and with grains of rice\n  From thine own hand didst daily nourish it;\n  And, ever and anon, when some sharp thorn\n  Had pierced its mouth, how gently thou didst tend\n  The bleeding wound, and pour in healing balm.\n  The grateful nursling clings to its protectress,\n  Mutely imploring leave to follow her.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nMy poor little fawn! dost thou ask to follow an ungrateful\nwretch who hesitates not to desert her companions! When thy\nmother died, soon after thy birth, I supplied her place, and\nreared thee with my own hand; and now that thy second mother is\nabout to leave thee, who will care for thee? My father, be thou a\nmother to her. My child, go back, and be a daughter to my father.\n\n                                            [_Moves on, weeping_.\n\nKANWA.\n\n  Weep not, my daughter, check the gathering tear\n  That lurks beneath thine eyelid, ere it flow\n  And weaken thy resolve; be firm and true--\n  True to thyself and me; the path of life\n  Will lead o'er hill and plain, o'er rough and smooth,\n  And all must feel the steepness of the way;\n  Though rugged be thy course, press boldly on.\n\n[S']\u00c1RNGARAVA.\n\nVenerable Sire! the sacred precept is:--'Accompany thy friend as\nfar as the margin of the first stream.' Here, then, we are\narrived at the border of a lake. It is time for you to give us\nyour final instructions and return.\n\nKANWA.\n\nBe it so; let us tarry for a moment under the shade of this\nfig-tree[69].\n\n[_They do so_.\n\nKANWA                                                   [_Aside_.\n\nI must think of some appropriate message to send to his Majesty\nKing Dushyanta.\n\n[_Reflects_. .\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                                 [_Aside to_ ANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nSee, see, dear Anas\u00fay\u00e1, the poor female Chakrav\u00e1ka-bird[70], whom\ncruel fate dooms to nightly separation from her mate, calls to\nhim in mournful notes from the other side of the stream, though\nhe is only hidden from her view by the spreading leaves of the\nwater-lily. Her cry is so piteous that I could almost fancy she\nwas lamenting her hard lot in intelligible words.\n\nANAS\u00daY\u00c1\n\nSay not so, dearest:\n\n  Fond bird! though sorrow lengthen out her night\n  Of widowhood, yet with a cry of joy\n  She hails the morning light that brings her mate\n  Back to her side. The agony of parting\n  Would wound us like a sword, but that its edge\n  Is blunted by the hope of future meeting.\n\nKANWA.\n\n[S']\u00e1rngarava! when you have introduced [S']akoontal\u00e1 into the\npresence of the King, you must give him this message from me:--\n\n[S']\u00c1RNGARAVA\n\nLet me hear it, venerable father.\n\nKANWA.\n\nThis is it:--\n\n  Most puissant prince! we here present before thee\n  One thou art bound to cherish and receive\n  As thine own wife; yea, even to enthrone\n  As thine own queen--worthy of equal love\n  With thine imperial consorts. So much, Sire,\n  We claim of thee as justice due to us,\n  In virtue of our holy character,\n  In virtue of thine honourable rank,\n  In virtue of the pure spontaneous love\n  That secretly grew up 'twixt thee and her,\n  Without consent or privity of us.\n  We ask no more--the rest we freely leave\n  To thy just feeling and to destiny.\n\n[S']\u00c1RNGARAVA.\n\nA most suitable message! I will take care to deliver it\ncorrectly.\n\nKANWA.\n\nAnd, now, my child, a few words of advice for thee. We hermits,\nthough we live secluded from the world are not ignorant of\nworldly matters.\n\n[S']\u00c1RNGARAVA.\n\nNo, indeed. Wise men are conversant with all subjects.\n\nKANWA.\n\nListen, then, my daughter. When thou reachest thy husband's\npalace, and art admitted into his family,\n\n  Honour thy betters; ever be respectful\n  To those above thee; and, should others share\n  Thy husband's love, ne'er yield thyself a prey\n  to jealousy; but ever be a friend,\n  A loving friend, to those who rival thee\n  In his affections. Should thy wedded lord\n  Treat thee with harshness, thou most never be\n  Harsh in return, but patient and submissive;\n  Be to thy menials courteous, and to all\n  Placed under thee, considerate and kind;\n  Be never self-indulgent, but avoid\n  Excess in pleasure; and, when fortune smiles,\n  Be not puffed up. Thus to thy husband's house\n  Wilt thou a blessing prove, and not a curse.\n\nWhat thinks Gautam\u00ed of this advice?\n\nGAUTAM\u00cd.\n\nAn excellent compendium, truly, of every wife's duties! Lay it\nwell to heart, my daughter.\n\nKANWA.\n\nCome, my beloved child, one parting embrace for me and for thy\ncompanions, and then we leave thee.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nMy father, must Priyamvad\u00e1 and Anas\u00fay\u00e1 really return with you?\nThey are very dear to me.\n\nKANWA.\n\nYes, my child; they, too, in good time, will be given in marriage\nto suitable husbands. It would not be proper for them to\naccompany thee to such a public place. But Gautam\u00ed shall be thy\ncompanion.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                                    [_Embracing him_.\n\nRemoved from thy bosom, my beloved father, like a young\ntendril of the sandal-tree torn from its home in the western\nmountains[71], how shall I be able to support life in a foreign\nsoil?\n\nKANWA.\n\nDaughter, thy fears are groundless.\n\n  Soon shall thy lord prefer thee to the rank\n  Of his own consort; and unnumbered cares\n  Befitting his imperial dignity\n  Shall constantly engross thee. Then the bliss\n  Of bearing him a son--a noble boy,\n  Bright as the day-star, shall transport thy soul\n  With new delights, and little shalt thou reck\n  Of the light sorrow that afflicts thee now\n  At parting from thy father and thy friends.\n\n       [[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1 _throws herself at her foster-father's feet_.\n\nKANWA.\n\nBlessings on thee, my child! May all my hopes of thee be\nrealized!\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1                           [_Approaching her friends_.\n\nCome, my two loved companions, embrace me both of you together.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1 AND ANAS\u00daY\u00c1.                         [_Embracing her_.\n\nDear [S']akoontal\u00e1, remember, if the King should by any chance be\nslow in recognizing you, you have only to show him this ring, on\nwhich his own name is engraved.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nThe bare thought of it puts me in a tremor.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1 AND ANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nThere is no real cause for fear, dearest. Excessive affection is\ntoo apt to suspect evil where none exists.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nCome, lady, we must hasten on. The sun is rising in the heavens.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                    [_Looking towards the hermitage_.\n\nDear father, when shall I ever see this hallowed grove again?\n\nKANWA.\n\nI will tell thee; listen:--\n\n  When thou hast passed a long and blissful life\n  As King Dushyanta's queen, and jointly shared\n  With all the earth his ever-watchful care;\n  And hast beheld thine own heroic son,\n  Matchless in arms, united to a bride\n  In happy wedlock; when his aged sire,\n  Thy faithful husband, hath to him resigned\n  The helm of state; then, weary of the world,\n  Together with Dushyanta thou shalt seek\n  The calm seclusion of thy former home[72];\n  There amid holy scenes to be at peace,\n  Till thy pure spirit gain its last release.\n\nGAUTAM\u00cd.\n\nCome, my child, the favourable time for our journey is fast\npassing. Let thy father return. Venerable Sire, be thou the first\nto move homewards, or these last words will never end.\n\nKANWA.\n\nDaughter, detain me no longer. My religious duties must not be\ninterrupted.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                [_Again embracing her foster-father_.\n\nBeloved father, thy frame is much enfeebled by penitential\nexercises. Do not, oh! do not, allow thyself to sorrow too much\non my account.\n\nKANWA.                                                [_Sighing_.\n\n  How, O my child, shall my bereaved heart\n  Forget its bitterness, when, day by day,\n  Full in my sight shall grow the tender plants\n  Reared by thy care, or sprang from hallowed grain\n  Which thy loved hands have strewn around the door--\n  A frequent offering to our household gods[73]?\n\nGo, my daughter, and may thy journey be prosperous.\n\n                           [_Exit_ [S']AKOONTAL\u00c1 _with her escort_.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1 AND ANAS\u00daY\u00c1.              [_Gazing after_ [S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nAlas! alas! she is gone, and now the trees hide our darling from\nour view.\n\nKANWA.                                                [_Sighing_.\n\nWell, Anas\u00fay\u00e1, your sister has departed. Moderate your grief,\nboth of you, and follow me, I go back to the hermitage.\n\nPRIYAMVAD\u00c1 AND ANAS\u00daY\u00c1.\n\nHoly father, the sacred grove will be a desert without\n[S']akoontal\u00e1. How can we ever return to it?\n\nKANWA.\n\nIt is natural enough that your affection should make you view it\nin this light.\n\n[_Walking pensively on_.]\n\nAs for me, I am quite surprised at myself. Now that I have fairly\ndismissed her to her husband's house, my mind is easy; for,\nindeed,\n\n  A daughter is a loan--a precious jewel\n  Lent to a parent till her husband claim her.\n  And now that to her rightful lord and master\n  I have delivered her, my burdened soul\n  Is lightened, and I seem to breathe more freely.\n\n                                                       [_Exeunt_.\n\n       *       *       *       *       *\n\n\n\n\nACT V.\n\nSCENE.--_A Room in the Palace_.\n\n_The King_ DUSHYANTA _and the Jester_ M\u00c1[T.]HAVYA _are discovered\nseated_.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.                                          [_Listening_.\n\nHark! my dear friend, listen a minute, and you will hear sweet\nsounds proceeding from the music-room. Some one is singing a\ncharming air. Who can it be? Oh! I know. The queen Hansapadik\u00e1 is\npractising her notes, that she may greet you with a new song.\n\nKING.\n\nHush! Let me listen.\n\nA VOICE SINGS BEHIND THE SCENES.\n\n  How often hither didst thou rove,\n  Sweet bee, to kiss the mango's cheek;\n  Oh! leave not, then, thy early love,\n  The lily's honeyed lip to seek.\n\nKING.\n\nA most impassioned strain, truly!\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nDo you understand the meaning of the words?\n\nKING.                                                 [_Smiling_.\n\nShe means to reprove me, because I once paid her great attention,\nand have lately deserted her for the queen Vasumat\u00ed. Go, my dear\nfellow, and tell Hansapadik\u00e1 from me that I take her delicate\nreproof as it is intended.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nVery well.\n\n[_Rising from his seat_.]\n\nBut stay--I don't much relish being sent to bear the brunt of her\njealousy. The chances are that she will have me seized by the\nhair of the head and beaten to a jelly. I would as soon expose\nmyself, after a vow of celibacy, to the seductions of a lovely\nnymph, as encounter the fury of a jealous woman.\n\nKING.\n\nGo, go; you can disarm her wrath by a civil speech; but give her\nmy message.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nWhat must be must be, I suppose.\n\n                                                         [_Exit_.\n\nKING.                                                   [_Aside_.\n\nStrange! that song has filled me with a most peculiar sensation.\nA melancholy feeling has come over me, and I seem to yearn after\nsome long-forgotten object of affection. Singular, indeed! but\n\n  Not seldom In our happy hours of ease,\n  When thought is still, the sight of some fair form,\n  Or mournful fall of music breathing low,\n  Will stir strange fancies, thrilling all the soul\n  With a mysterious sadness, and a sense\n  Of vague yet earnest longing. Can it be\n  That the dim memory of events long past,\n  Or friendships formed in other states of being[74],\n  Flits like a passing shadow o'er the spirit?\n\n                                      [_Remains pensive and sad_.\n\n_Enter the_ CHAMBERLAIN[75], _named_ V\u00c1T\u00c1YANA.\n\nCHAMBERLAIN.\n\nAlas! to what an advanced period of life have I attained!\n\n  Even this wand betrays the lapse of years;\n  In youthful days 'twas but a useless badge\n  And symbol of my office; now it serves\n  As a support to prop my tottering steps.\n\nAh me! I feel very unwilling to announce to the King that a\ndeputation of young hermits from the sage Kanwa has arrived, and\ncraves an immediate audience. Certainly, his Majesty ought not to\nneglect a matter of sacred duty, yet I hardly like to trouble him\nwhen he has just risen from the judgment-seat. Well, well; a\nmonarch's business is to sustain the world, and he must not\nexpect much repose; because--\n\n  Onward, for ever onward, in his car\n  The unwearied Sun pursues his daily course,\n  Nor tarries to unyoke his glittering steeds.\n  And, ever moving, speeds the rushing Wind\n  Through boundless space, filling the universe\n  With his life-giving breezes. Day and night,\n  The King of Serpents on his thousand heads[76]\n  Upholds the incumbent earth; and even so,\n  Unceasing toil is aye the lot of kings,\n  Who, in return, draw nurture from their subjects.\n\nI will therefore deliver my message.\n\n[_Walking on and looking about_.]\n\nAh! here comes the King.\n\n  His subjects are his children; through the day,\n  Like a fond father, to supply their wants,\n  Incessantly he labours; wearied now,\n  The monarch seeks seclusion and repose;\n  E'en as the prince of elephants defies\n  The sun's fierce heat, and leads the fainting herd\n  To verdant pastures, ere his wayworn limbs\n  He yields to rest beneath the cooling shade.\n\n[_Approaching_.]\n\nVictory to the King! So please your Majesty, some hermits who\nlive in a forest near the Snowy Mountains have arrived here,\nbringing certain women with them. They have a message to deliver\nfrom the sage Kanwa and desire an audience. I await your\nMajesty's commands.\n\nKING.                                            [_Respectfully_.\n\nA message from the sage Kanwa, did you say?\n\nCHAMBERLAIN.\n\nEven so, my liege.\n\nKING.\n\nTell my domestic priest Somar\u00e1ta to receive the hermits with due\nhonour, according to the prescribed form. He may then himself\nintroduce them into my presence. I will await them in a place\nsuitable for the reception of such holy guests.\n\nCHAMBERLAIN.\n\nYour Majesty's commands shall be obeyed.\n\n                                                         [_Exit_.\n\nKING.                        [_Rising and addressing his_ WARDER.\n\nVetravat\u00ed, lead the way to the chamber of the consecrated\nfire[77].\n\nWARDER.\n\nThis way, Sire.\n\nKING.\n\n[_Walking on, with the air of one oppressed by the cares of\nGovernment_.\n\nPeople are generally contented and happy when they have gained\ntheir desires; but kings have no sooner attained the object of\ntheir aspirations than all their troubles begin.\n\n  'Tis a fond thought that to attain the end\n  And object of ambition is to rest;\n  Success doth only mitigate the fever\n  Of anxious expectation; soon the fear\n  Of losing what we have, the constant care\n  Of guarding it, doth weary. Ceaseless toil\n  Must be the lot of him who with his hands\n  Supports the canopy that shields his subjects.\n\nTWO HERALDS[78].                            [_Behind the scenes_.\n\nMay the King be victorious!\n\nFIRST HERALD.\n\n  Honour to him who labours day by day\n  For the world's weal, forgetful of his own;\n  Like some tall tree that with its stately head\n  Endures the solar beam, while underneath\n  It yields refreshing shelter to the weary.\n\nSECOND HERALD.\n\n  Let but the monarch wield his threatening rod\n  And e'en the guilty tremble; at his voice\n  The rebel spirit cowers; his grateful subjects\n  Acknowledge him their guardian; rich and poor\n  Hail him a faithful friend--a loving kinsman.\n\nKING.\n\nWeary as I was before, this complimentary address has refreshed\nme.\n\n                                                     [_Walks on_.\n\nWARDER.\n\nHere is the terrace of the hallowed fire-chamber, and yonder\nstands the cow that yields the milk for the oblations. The sacred\nenclosure has been recently purified, and looks clean and\nbeautiful. Ascend, Sire.\n\nKING. [Leans on the shoulders of his attendants and ascends_.\n\nVetravat\u00ed, what can possibly be the message that the venerable\nKanwa has sent me by these hermits?\n\n  Perchance their sacred rites have been disturbed\n  By demons, or some evil has befallen\n  The innocent herds, their favourites, that graze\n  Within the precincts of the hermitage,\n  Or haply, through my sins, some withering blight\n  Has nipped the creeping plants that spread their arms\n  Around the hallowed grove. Such troubled thoughts\n  Crowd through my mind, and fill me with misgiving.\n\nWARDER.\n\nIf you ask my opinion, Sire, I think the hermits merely wish to\ntake an opportunity of testifying their loyalty, and are\ntherefore come to offer homage to your majesty.\n\n_Enter the_ HERMITS _leading_ [S']AKOONTAL\u00c1, _attended by_ GAUTAM\u00cd;\n_and in advance of them, the_ CHAMBERLAIN _and the_ DOMESTIC\nPRIEST.\n\nCHAMBERLAIN.\n\nThis way, reverend Sirs, this way.\n\n[S']\u00c1RNGARAVA\n\nO [S']\u00e1radwata,\n\n  'Tis true the monarch lacks no royal grace,\n  Nor ever swerves from justice; true, his people,\n  Yea such as in life's humblest walks are found,\n  Refrain from evil courses; still to me,\n  A lonely hermit reared in solitude,\n  This throng appears bewildering, and I seem\n  To look upon a burning house, whose inmates\n  Are running to and fro in wild dismay.\n\n[S']\u00c1RADWATA.\n\nIt is natural that the first sight of the King's capital should\naffect you in this manner; my own sensations are very similar.\n\n  As one just bathed beholds the man polluted;\n  As one late purified, the yet impure;\n  As one awake looks on the yet unawakened;\n  Or as the freeman gazes on the thrall,\n  So I regard this crowd of pleasure-seekers.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\n  [_Feeling a quivering sensation in her right eyelid_ [79]_, and\n                                          suspecting a bad omen_.\n\nAlas! what means this throbbing of my right eyelid?\n\nGAUTAM\u00cd.\n\nHeaven avert the evil omen, my child! May the guardian deities of\nthy husband's family convert it into a sign of good fortune!\n\n[_Walks on_.\n\nPRIEST.\n\n[_Pointing to the King_.\n\nMost reverend Sirs, there stands the protector of the four\nclasses of the people; the guardian of the four conditions of the\npriesthood[80]. He has just left the judgment-seat, and is\nwaiting for you. Behold him!\n\n[S']\u00c1RNGARAVA\n\nGreat Br\u00e1hman, we are happy in thinking that the King's power is\nexerted for the protection of all classes of his subjects. We\nhave not come as petitioners--we have the fullest confidence in\nthe generosity of his nature.\n\n  The loftiest trees bend humbly to the ground\n  Beneath the teeming burden of their fruit;\n  High in the vernal sky the pregnant clouds\n  Suspend their stately course, and, hanging low,\n  Scatter their sparkling treasures o'er the earth;\n  And such is true benevolence; the good\n  Are never rendered arrogant by riches.\n\n WARDER.\n\nSo please your Majesty, I judge from the placid countenance of\nthe hermits that they have no alarming message to deliver.\n\nKING.                                  [_Looking at [S']AKOONTAL\u00c1_.\n\nBut the lady there--\n\n  Who can she be, whose form of matchless grace\n  Is half concealed beneath her flowing veil?\n  Among the sombre hermits she appears\n  Like a fresh bud 'mid sear and yellow leaves.\n\nWARDER.\n\nSo please your Majesty, my curiosity is also roused, but no\nconjecture occurs to my mind. This at least is certain, that she\ndeserves to be looked at more closely.\n\nKING.\n\nTrue; but it is not right to gaze at another man's wife[120].\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.             [_Placing her hand on her bosom. Aside_.\n\nO my heart, why this throbbing? Remember thy lord's affection,\nand take courage.\n\nPRIEST.                                             [_Advancing_.\n\nThese holy men have been received with all due honour. One of\nthem has now a message to deliver from his spiritual superior.\nWill your Majesty deign to hear it?\n\nKING.\n\nI am all attention.\n\nHERMITS.                                [_Extending their hands_.\n\nVictory to the King!\n\nKING.\n\nAccept my respectful greeting.\n\nHERMITS.\n\nMay the desires of your soul be accomplished!\n\nKING.\n\nI trust no one is molesting you in the prosecution of your\nreligious rites.\n\nHERMITS.\n\n  Who dares disturb our penitential rites\n  When thou art our protector? Can the night\n  Prevail to cast her shadows o'er the earth\n  While the sun's beams irradiate the sky?\n\nKING.\n\nSuch, indeed, is the very meaning of my title--'Defender of the\nJust.' I trust the venerable Kanwa is in good health. The world\nis interested in his well-being.\n\nHERMITS.\n\nHoly men have health and prosperity in their own power. He bade\nus greet your Majesty, and, after kind inquiries, deliver this\nmessage.\n\nKING.\n\nLet me hear his commands.\n\n[S']\u00c1RNGARAVA.\n\nHe bade us say that he feels happy in giving his sanction to the\nmarriage which your Majesty contracted with this lady, his\ndaughter, privately and by mutual agreement. Because,\n\n  By us thou art esteemed the most illustrious\n  Of noble husbands; and [S']akoontal\u00e1,\n  Virtue herself in human form revealed.\n  Great Brahm\u00e1 hath in equal yoke united\n  A bride unto a husband worthy of her;\n  Henceforth let none make blasphemous complaint\n  That he is pleased with ill-assorted unions[81].\n\nSince, therefore, she expects soon to be the mother of thy child,\nreceive her into thy palace, that she may perform, in conjunction\nwith thee, the ceremonies prescribed by religion on such an\noccasion.\n\nGAUTAM\u00cd.\n\nSo please your Majesty, I would add a few words; but why should\nI intrude my sentiments when an opportunity of speaking my mind\nhas never been allowed me?\n\n  She took no counsel with her kindred; thou\n  Didst not confer with thine, but all alone\n  Didst solemnize thy nuptials with thy wife.\n  Together, then, hold converse; let us leave you.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1                                             [_Aside_.\n\nAh! how I tremble for my lord's reply.\n\nKING.\n\nWhat strange proposal is this?\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1                                             [_Aside_.\n\nHis words are like fire to me.\n\n[S']\u00c1RNGARAVA\n\nWhat do I hear? Dost thou, then, hesitate? Monarch, thou art well\nacquainted with the ways of the world, and knowest that\n\n  A wife, however virtuous and discreet,\n  If she live separate from her wedded lord,\n  Though under shelter of her parent's roof,\n  Is marked for vile suspicion. Let her dwell\n  Beside her husband, though he hold her not\n  In his affection. So her kinsmen will it.\n\nKING.\n\nDo you really mean to assert that I ever married\nthis lady?\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                              [_Despondingly. Aside_.\n\nO my heart, thy worst misgivings are confirmed.\n\n[S']\u00c1RNGARAVA.\n\nIs it becoming in a monarch to depart from the rules of justice,\nbecause he repents of his engagements?\n\nKING.\n\nI cannot answer a question which is based on a mere fabrication.\n\n[S']\u00c1RNGARAVA.\n\nSuch inconstancy is fortunately not common, except in men\nintoxicated by power.\n\nKING.\n\nIs that remark aimed at me?\n\nGAUTAM\u00cd.\n\nBe not ashamed, my daughter. Let me remove thy veil for a little\nspace. Thy husband will then recognize thee.\n\n                                             [_Removes her veil_.\n\nKING.\n\n                               [_Gazing at_ [S']AKOONTAL\u00c1. _Aside_.\n\n  What charms are here revealed before mine eyes!\n  Truly no blemish mars the symmetry\n  Of that fair form; yet can I ne'er believe\n  She is my wedded wife; and like a bee\n  That circles round the flower whose nectared cup\n  Teems with the dew of morning, I must pause\n  Ere eagerly I taste the proffered sweetness.\n\n                                   [_Remains wrapped in thought_.\n\nWARDER.\n\nHow admirably does our royal master's behaviour prove his regard\nfor justice! Who else would hesitate for a moment when good\nfortune offered for his acceptance a form of such rare beauty?\n\n[S']\u00c1RNGARAVA.\n\nGreat King, why art thou silent?\n\nKING.\n\nHoly men, I have revolved the matter in my mind; but the more I\nthink of it, the less able am I to recollect that I ever\ncontracted an alliance with this lady. What answer, then, can I\npossibly give you when I do not believe myself to be her husband,\nand I plainly see that she is soon to become a mother?\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1\n\n[_Aside_.\n\nWoe! woe! Is our very marriage to be called in question by my own\nhusband? Ah me! is this to be the end of all my bright visions of\nwedded happiness?\n\n[S']\u00c1RNGARAVA.\n\nBeware!\n\n  Beware how thou insult the holy Sage!\n  Remember how he generously allowed\n  Thy secret union with his foster-child;\n  And how, when thou didst rob him of his treasure,\n  He sought to furnish thee excuse, when rather\n  He should have cursed thee for a ravisher.\n\n[S']\u00c1RADWATA.\n\n[S']\u00e1rngarava, speak to him no more. [S']akoontal\u00e1,\nour part is performed; we have said all we have to\nsay, and the King has replied in the manner thou\nhast heard. It is now thy turn to give him convincing\nevidence of thy marriage.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                                            [_Aside_.\n\nSince his feeling towards me has undergone a complete revolution,\nwhat will it avail to revive old recollections? One thing is\nclear--I shall soon have to mourn my own widowhood.\n\n[_Aloud_.]\n\nMy revered husband--\n\n[_Stops short_.]\n\nBut no--I dare not address thee by this title, since thou hast\nrefused to acknowledge our union. Noble descendant of Puru! It is\nnot worthy of thee to betray an innocent-minded girl, and disown\nher in such terms, after having so lately and so solemnly\nplighted thy vows to her in the hermitage.\n\nKING.\n\n[_Stopping his ears_.\n\nI will hear no more. Be such a crime far from my thoughts!\n\n  What evil spirit can possess thee, lady,\n  That thou dost seek to sully my good name\n  By base aspersions, like a swollen torrent,\n  That, leaping from its narrow bed, o'erthrows\n  The tree upon its bank, and strives to blend\n  Its turbid waters with the crystal stream?\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nIf, then, thou really believest me to be the wife of another, and\nthy present conduct proceeds from some cloud that obscures thy\nrecollection, I will easily convince thee by this token.\n\nKING.\n\nAn excellent idea!\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\n[_Feeling for the ring_.\n\nAlas! alas! woe is me! There is no ring on my finger!\n\n                                [_Looks with anguish at_ GAUTAM\u00cd.\n\nGAUTAM\u00cd.\n\nThe ring must have slipped off when thou wast in the act of\noffering homage to the holy water of [S']ach\u00ed's sacred pool, near\nSakr\u00e1vat\u00e1ra[82].\n\nKING.                                                 [_Smiling_.\n\nPeople may well talk of the readiness of woman's invention! Here\nis an instance of it.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nSay, rather, of the omnipotence of fate. I will mention another\ncircumstance, which may yet convince thee.\n\nKING.\n\nBy all means let me hear it at once.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nOne day, while we were seated in a jasmine-bower, thou didst pour\ninto the hollow of thine hand some water, sprinkled by a recent\nshower in the cup of a lotus-blossom--\n\nKING.\n\nI am listening; proceed.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nAt that instant, my adopted child, the little fawn, with soft,\nlong eyes, came running towards us. Upon which, before tasting\nthe water thyself, thou didst kindly offer some to the little\ncreature, saying fondly:--'Drink first, gentle fawn.' But she\ncould not be induced to drink from the hand of a stranger; though\nimmediately afterwards, when I took the water in my own hand,\nshe drank with perfect confidence. Then, with a smile, thou didst\nsay;--'Every creature confides naturally in its own kind. You are\nboth inhabitants of the same forest, and have learnt to trust\neach other.'\n\nKING.\n\nVoluptuaries may allow themselves to be seduced from the path of\nduty by falsehoods such as these, expressed in honeyed words.\n\nGAUTAM\u00cd.\n\nSpeak not thus, illustrious Prince. This lady was brought up in a\nhermitage, and has never learnt deceit.\n\nKING.\n\nHoly matron,\n\n  E'en in untutored brutes, the female sex\n  Is marked by inborn subtlety--much more\n  In beings gifted with intelligence.\n  The wily Ko\u00efl[83], ere towards the sky\n  She wings her sportive flight, commits her eggs\n  To other nests, and artfully consigns\n  The rearing of her little ones to strangers.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                                          [_Angrily_.\n\nDishonourable man, thou judgest of others by thine own evil\nheart. Thou, at least, art unrivalled in perfidy, and standest\nalone--a base deceiver in the garb of virtue and religion--like a\ndeep pit whose yawning mouth is concealed by smiling flowers.\n\nKING.                                                   [_Aside_.\n\nHer anger, at any rate, appears genuine, and makes me almost\ndoubt whether I am in the right. For indeed,\n\n  When I had vainly searched my memory,\n  And so with stern severity denied\n  The fabled story of our secret loves,\n  Her brows, that met before in graceful curves,\n  Like the arched weapon of the god of love,\n  Seemed by her frown dissevered; while the fire\n  Of sudden anger kindled in her eyes.\n\n[_Aloud_.]\n\nMy good lady, Dushyanta's character is well known to all. I\ncomprehend not your meaning.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nWell do I deserve to be thought a harlot for having in the\ninnocence of my heart, and out of the confidence I reposed in a\nPrince of Puru's race, entrusted my honour to a man whose mouth\ndistils honey, while his heart is full of poison.\n\n       [_Covers her face with her mantle, and bursts into tears_.\n\n[S']\u00c1RNGARAVA.\n\nThus it is that burning remorse must ever follow rash actions\nwhich might have been avoided, and for which one has only one's\nself to blame.\n\n  Not hastily should marriage be contracted,\n  And specially in secret. Many a time,\n  In hearts that know not each the other's fancies,\n  Fond love is changed into most bitter hate.\n\nKING.\n\nHow now! Do you give credence to this woman rather than to me,\nthat you heap such accusations on me?\n\n[S']\u00c1RNGARAVA.                                    [_Sarcastically_.\n\nThat would be too absurd, certainly. You have heard the\nproverb:--\n\n  Hold in contempt the innocent words of those\n  Who from their infancy have known no guile;\n  But trust the treacherous counsels of the man\n  Who makes a very science of deceit.\n\nKING.\n\nMost veracious Br\u00e1hman, grant that you are in the right, what end\nwould be gained by betraying this lady?\n\n[S']\u00c1RNGARAVA.\n\nRuin.\n\nKING.\n\nNo one will believe that a Prince of Puru's race would seek to\nruin others or himself.\n\n[S']\u00c1RADWATA.\n\nThis altercation is idle, [S']\u00e1rngarava. We have executed the\ncommission of our preceptor; come, let us return.\n\n                                                  [_To the_ KING.\n\n  [S']akoontal\u00e1 is certainly thy bride;\n  Receive her or reject her, she is thine.\n  Do with her, King, according to thy pleasure--\n  The husband o'er the wife is absolute.\n\nGo on before us, Gautam\u00ed.\n\n                                               [_They move away_.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nWhat! is it not enough to have been betrayed by this perfidious\nman? Must you also forsake me, regardless of my tears and\nlamentations?\n\n                                      [_Attempts to follow them_.\n\nGAUTAM\u00cd.                                             [_Stopping_.\n\nMy son [S']\u00e1rngarava, see! [S']akoontal\u00e1 is following us, and with\ntears implores us not to leave her. Alas! poor child, what will\nshe do here with a cruel husband who casts her from him?\n\n[S']\u00c1RNGARAVA.\n\n                                  [_Turning angrily towards her_.\n\nWilful woman, dost thou seek to be independent of thy lord?\n\n                               [[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1 _trembles with fear_.\n\n[S']akoontal\u00e1!\n\n  If thou art really what the King proclaims thee,\n  How can thy father e'er receive thee back\n  Into his house and home? but if thy conscience\n  Be witness to thy purity of soul,\n  E'en should thy husband to a handmaid's lot\n  Condemn thee, thou may'st cheerfully endure it.\n  When ranked among the number of his household.\n\nThy duty therefore is to stay. As for us, we must return\nimmediately.\n\nKING.\n\nDeceive not this lady, my good hermit, by any such expectations.\n\n  The moon expands the lotus of the night,\n  The rising sun awakes the lily; each\n  Is with his own contented. Even so\n  The virtuous man is master of his passions,\n  And from another's wife averts his gaze[120].\n\n[S']\u00c1RNGARAVA.\n\nSince thy union with another woman has rendered thee oblivious of\nthy marriage with [S']akoontal\u00e1, whence this fear of losing thy\ncharacter for constancy and virtue?\n\nKING.                                  [_To his domestic_ PRIEST.\n\nYou must counsel me, revered Sir, as to my course of action.\nWhich of the two evils involves the greater or less sin?\n\n  Whether by some dark veil my mind be clouded.\n  Or this designing woman speak untruly,\n  I know not. Tell me, must I rather be\n  The base disowner of my wedded wife,\n  Or the defiling and defiled adulterer?\n\nPRIEST.                                    [_After deliberation_.\n\nYou must take an intermediate course.\n\nKING.\n\nWhat course, revered Sir? Tell me at once.\n\nPRIEST.\n\nI will provide an asylum for the lady in my own house until the\nbirth of her child; and my reason, if you ask me, is this:\nSoothsayers have predicted that your first-born will have\nuniversal dominion. Now, if the hermit's daughter bring forth a\nson with the discus or mark of empire in the lines of his\nhand[84], you must admit her immediately into your royal\napartments with great rejoicings; if not, then determine to send\nher back as soon as possible to her father.\n\nKING.  I bow to the decision of my spiritual advisor.\n\nPRIEST.\n\nDaughter, follow me.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nO divine earth, open and receive me into thy bosom!\n\n[_Exit_ [S']AKOONTAL\u00c1 _weeping, with the_ PRIEST _and the_ HERMITS.\n_The_ KING _remains absorbed in thinking of her, though the curse\nstill clouds his recollection_.\n\nA VOICE BEHIND THE SCENES.\n\nA miracle! a miracle!\n\nKING.\n\n                                                    [_Listening_.\n\nWhat has happened now?\n\nPRIEST.                  [_Entering with an air of astonishment_.\n\nGreat Prince, a stupendous prodigy has just occurred.\n\nKING.\n\nWhat is it?\n\nPRIEST.\n\nMay it please your Majesty, so soon as Kanwa's pupils had\ndeparted, [S']akoontal\u00e1, her eyes all bathed in tears, with\noutstretched arms, bewailed her cruel fate--\n\nKING.\n\nWell, well, what happened then?\n\nPRIEST.\n\n  When suddenly a shining apparition,\n  In female shape, descended from the skies,\n  Near the nymph's pool, and bore her up to heaven.\n\n[_All remain motionless with astonishment_.\n\nKING.\n\nMy good priest, from the very first I declined having anything to\ndo with this matter. It is now all over, and we can never, by our\nconjectures, unravel the mystery; let it rest; go, seek repose.\n\nPRIEST.\n\n                                          [_Looking at the_ KING.\n\nBe it so. Victory to the King!\n\n                                                         [_Exit_.\n\nKING.\n\nVetravat\u00ed, I am tired out; lead the way to the bedchamber.\n\nWARDER.\n\nThis way, Sire.\n\n                                               [_They move away_.\n\nKING.\n\n  Do what I will, I cannot call to mind\n  That I did e'er espouse the sage's daughter;\n  Therefore I have disowned her; yet 'tis strange\n  How painfully my agitated heart\n  Bears witness to the truth of her assertion,\n  And makes me credit her against my judgment.\n\n                                                       [_Exeunt_.\n\n       *       *       *       *       *\n\n\n\n\nPRELUDE TO ACT VI.\n\nSCENE.--_A Street_.\n\n_Enter the King's brother-in-law as_ SUPERINTENDENT _of the city\npolice; and with him_ TWO CONSTABLES, _dragging a poor_\nFISHERMAN, _who has his hands tied behind his back_.\n\nBOTH THE CONSTABLES.                    [_Striking the prisoner_.\n\nTake that for a rascally thief that you are; and now tell us, sirrah,\nwhere you found this ring--aye, the King's own signet-ring. See, here\nis the royal name engraved on the setting of the jewel.\n\nFISHERMAN.                            [_With a gesture of alarm_.\n\nMercy! kind sirs, mercy! I did not steal it; indeed I did not.\n\nFIRST CONSTABLE.\n\nOh! then I suppose the King took you for some fine Br\u00e1hman, and\nmade you a present of it?\n\nFISHERMAN.\n\nOnly hear me. I am but a poor fisherman, living at Sakr\u00e1vat\u00e1ra--\n\nSECOND CONSTABLE.\n\nScoundrel, who ever asked you, pray, for a history of your birth\nand parentage?\n\nSUPERINTENDENT.                      [_To one of the_ CONSTABLES.\n\nS\u00fachaka, let the fellow tell his own story from the beginning.\nDon't interrupt him.\n\nBOTH CONSTABLES.\n\nAs you please, master. Go on, then, sirrah, and say what you've\ngot to say.\n\nFISHERMAN.\n\nYou see in me a poor man, who supports his family by catching\nfish with nets, hooks, and the like.\n\nSUPERINTENDENT.                                      [_Laughing_.\n\nA most refined occupation, certainly[85]!\n\nFISHERMAN.\n\nBlame me not for it, master,\n\n  The father's occupation, though despised\n  By others, casts no shame upon the son,\n  And he should not forsake it[86]. Is the priest\n  Who kills the animal for sacrifice\n  Therefore deemed cruel? Sure a low-born man\n  May, though a fisherman, be tender-hearted.\n\nSUPERINTENDENT.\n\nWell, well; go on with your story.\n\nFISHERMAN.\n\nOne day I was cutting open a large carp[87] I had just hooked,\nwhen the sparkle of a jewel caught my eye, and what should I find\nin the fish's maw but that ring! Soon afterwards, when I was\noffering it for sale, I was seized by your honours. Now you know\neverything. Whether you kill me, or whether you let me go, this\nis the true account of how the ring came into my possession.\n\nSUPERINTENDENT.                      [_To one of the_ CONSTABLES.\n\nWell, J\u00e1nuka, the rascal emits such a fishy odour that I have no\ndoubt of his being a fisherman; but we must inquire a little more\nclosely into this queer story about the finding of the ring.\nCome, we'll take him before the King's household.\n\nBOTH CONSTABLES.\n\nVery good, master. Get on with you, you cutpurse.\n\n                                                  [_All move on_.\n\nSUPERINTENDENT.\n\nNow attend, S\u00fachaka; keep your guard here at the gate; and hark\nye, sirrahs, take good care your prisoner does not escape, while\nI go in and lay the whole story of the discovery of this ring\nbefore the King in person. I will soon return and let you know\nhis commands.\n\nBOTH CONSTABLES.\n\nGo in, master, by all means; and may you find favour in the\nKing's sight.\n\n[_Exit_ SUPERINTENDENT.  FIRST CONSTABLE.\n\n                                            [_After an interval_.\n\nI say, J\u00e1nuka, the Superintendent is a long time away.\n\nSECOND CONSTABLE.\n\nAye, aye; kings are not to be got at so easily. Folks must bide\nthe proper opportunity.\n\nFIRST CONSTABLE.\n\nJ\u00e1nuka, my fingers itch to strike the first blow at this royal\nvictim here. We must kill him with all the honours, you know. I\nlong to begin binding the flowers round his head[88].\n\n                   [_Pretends to strike a blow at the_ FISHERMAN.\n\nFISHERMAN.\n\nYour Honour surely will not put an innocent man to a cruel death.\n\nSECOND CONSTABLE.\n\nThere's our Superintendent at last, I declare. See! he is coming\ntowards us with a paper in his hand. We shall soon know the\nKing's command; so prepare, my fine fellow, either to become food\nfor the vultures, or to make acquaintance with some hungry cur.\n\nSUPERINTENDENT.\n\n                                                     [_Entering_.\n\nHo, there, S\u00fachaka! set the fisherman at liberty, I tell you. His\nstory about the ring is all correct.  S\u00daCHAKA.\n\nOh! very good, Sir; as you please.\n\nSECOND CONSTABLE.\n\nThe fellow had one foot in hell, and now here he is in the land\nof the living.\n\n                                                 [_Releases him_.\n\nFISHERMAN.\n\n                                 [_Bowing to the_ SUPERINTENDENT.\n\nNow, master, what think you of my way of getting a livelihood?\n\nSUPERINTENDENT.\n\nHere, my good man, the King desired me to present you with this\npurse. It contains a sum of money equal to the full value of the\nring.\n\n                                          [_Gives him the money_.\n\nFISHERMAN.\n\n                                         [_Taking it and bowing_.\n\nHis Majesty does me too great honour.\n\nS\u00daCHAKA.\n\nYou may well say so. He might as well have taken you from the\ngallows to seat you on his state elephant.\n\nJ\u00c1NUKA.\n\nMaster, the King must value the ring very highly, or he would\nnever have sent such a sum of money to this ragamuffin.\n\nSUPERINTENDENT.\n\nI don't think he prizes it as a costly jewel so much as a\nmemorial of some person he tenderly loves. The moment it was\nshown to him he became much agitated, though in general he\nconceals his feelings.  S\u00daCHAKA.\n\nThen you must have done a great service--\n\nJ\u00c1NUKA.\n\nYes, to this husband of a fish-wife.\n\n                             [_Looks enviously at the_ FISHERMAN.\n\nFISHERMAN.\n\nHere's half the money for you, my masters. It will serve to\npurchase the flowers you spoke of, if not to buy me your\ngood-will.\n\nJ\u00c1NUKA.\n\nWell, now, that's just as it should be.\n\nSUPERINTENDENT.\n\nMy good fisherman, you are an excellent fellow, and I begin to\nfeel quite a regard for you. Let us seal our first friendship\nover a glass of good liquor. Come along to the next wine-shop,\nand we'll drink your health.\n\nALL.\n\nBy all means.\n\n                                                       [_Exeunt_.\n\n       *       *       *       *       *\n\n\n\n\nACT VI.\n\nSCENE.--_The Garden of a Palace.\n\nThe nymph_ S\u00c1NUMAT\u00cd _is seen descending in a celestial car_.\n\nS\u00c1NUMAT\u00cd.\n\nBehold me just arrived from attending in my proper turn at the\nnymph's pool, where I have left the other nymphs to perform their\nablutions, whilst I seek to ascertain, with my own eyes, how it\nfares with King Dushyanta. My connexion with the nymph Menak\u00e1 has\nmade her daughter [S']akoontal\u00e1 dearer to me than my own flesh and\nblood; and Menak\u00e1 it was who charged me with this errand on her\ndaughter's behalf.\n\n[_Looking round in all directions_.]\n\nHow is it that I see no preparations in the King's household for\ncelebrating the great vernal festival[89]? I could easily\ndiscover the reason by my divine faculty of meditation[134]; but\nrespect must be shown to the wishes of my friend. How then shall\nI arrive at the truth? I know what I will do. I will become\ninvisible, and place myself near those two maidens who are\ntending the plants in the garden.\n\n                               [_Descends and takes her station_.\n\n_Enter a_ MAIDEN, _who stops in front of a mango-tree, and gazes\nat the blossom. Another_ MAIDEN _is seen behind her_.\n\nFIRST MAIDEN.\n\nHail to thee, lovely harbinger of spring! The varied radiance of\nthy opening flowers Is welcome to my sight. I bid thee hail,\nSweet mango, soul of this enchanting season.\n\nSECOND MAIDEN.\n\nParabhritik\u00e1, what are you saying there to yourself?\n\nFIRST MAIDEN.\n\nDear Madhukarik\u00e1, am I not named after the Ko\u00efl[90]? and does not\nthe Ko\u00efl sing for joy at the first appearance of the mango-blossom?\n\nSECOND MAIDEN.            [_Approaching hastily, with transport_.\n\nWhat! is spring really come?\n\nFIRST MAIDEN.\n\nYes, indeed, Madhukarik\u00e1, and with it the season of joy, love,\nand song.\n\nSECOND MAIDEN.\n\nLet me lean upon you, dear, while I stead on tiptoe and pluck a\nblossom, of the mango, that I may present it as an offering to\nthe god of love.\n\nFIRST MAIDEN.\n\nProvided you let me have half the reward which the god will\nbestow in return.\n\nSECOND MAIDEN.\n\nTo be sure you shall, and that without asking. Are we not one in\nheart and soul, though divided in body?\n\n[_Leans on her friend and plucks a mango-blossom_.]\n\nAh! here is a bud just bursting into flower. It diffuses a\ndelicious perfume, though not yet quite expanded.\n\n[_Joining her hands reverentially_.]\n\n  God of the bow, who with spring's choicest flowers\n  Dost point thy five unerring shafts[91]; to thee\n  I dedicate this blossom; let it serve\n  To barb thy truest arrow; be its mark\n  Some youthful heart that pines to be beloved.\n\n                                  [_Throws down a mango-blossom_.\n\nCHAMBERLAIN.\n\n                        [_Entering in a hurried manner, angrily_.\n\nHold there, thoughtless woman. What are you about, breaking off\nthose mango-blossoms, when the King has forbidden the celebration\nof the spring festival?\n\nBOTH MAIDENS.                                         [_Alarmed_.\n\nPardon us, kind Sir, we have heard nothing of it.\n\nCHAMBERLAIN.\n\nYou have heard nothing of it? Why, all the vernal plants and\nshrubs, and the very birds that lodge in their branches, show\nmore respect to the King's order than you do.\n\n  Yon mango-blossoms, though long since expanded,\n  Gather no down upon their tender crests;\n  The flower still lingers in the amaranth[92],\n  Imprisoned in its bud; the tuneful Ko\u00efl,\n  Though winter's chilly dews be overpast,\n  Suspends the liquid volume of his song\n  Scarce uttered in his throat; e'en Love, dismayed,\n  Restores the half-drawn arrow to his quiver.\n\nBOTH MAIDENS.\n\nThe mighty power of King Dushyanta is not to be disputed.\n\nFIRST MAIDEN.\n\nIt is but a few days since Mitr\u00e1vasu, the King's brother-in-law,\nsent us to wait upon his Majesty; and, during the whole of our\nsojourn here, we have been entrusted with the charge of the royal\npleasure-grounds. We are therefore strangers in this place, and\nheard nothing of the order till you informed us of it.\n\nCHAMBERLAIN.\n\nWell then, now you know it, take care you don't continue your\npreparations.\n\nBOTH MAIDENS.\n\nBut tell us, kind Sir, why has the King prohibited the usual\nfestivities? We are curious to hear, if we may.\n\nS\u00c1NUMAT\u00cd.                                              [_Aside_.\n\nMen are naturally fond of festive entertainments. There must be\nsome good reason for the prohibition.\n\nCHAMBERLAIN.\n\nThe whole affair is now public; why should I not speak of it?\nHas not the gossip about the King's rejection of [S']akoontal\u00e1\nreached your ears yet?\n\nBOTH MAIDENS.\n\nOh yes, we heard the story from the King's brother-in-law, as\nfar, at least, as the discovery of the ring.\n\nCHAMBERLAIN.\n\nThen there is little more to tell you. As soon as the King's\nmemory was restored by the sight of his own ring, he exclaimed:\n'Yes, it is all true. I remember now my secret marriage with\n[S']akoontal\u00e1. When I repudiated her, I had lost my recollection!'\nEver since that moment, he has yielded himself a prey to the\nbitterest remorse.\n\n  He loathes his former pleasures; he rejects\n  The daily homage of his ministers;\n  On his lone couch he tosses to and fro,\n  Courting repose in vain. Whene'er he meets\n  The ladies of his palace, and would fain\n  Address them with politeness, he confounds\n  Their names; or, calling them '[S']akoontal\u00e1,'\n  Is straightway silent and abashed with shame.\n\nS\u00c1NUMAT\u00cd.                                               [_Aside_.\n\nTo me this account is delightful.\n\nCHAMBERLAIN.\n\nIn short, the King is so completely out of his mind that the\nfestival has been prohibited.\n\nBOTH MAIDENS.\n\nPerfectly right.\n\nA VOICE BEHIND THE SCENES.\n\nThe King! the King! This way, Sire, this way.\n\nCHAMBERLAIN.                                        [_Listening_.\n\nOh! here comes his Majesty in this direction. Pass on, maidens;\nattend to your duties.\n\nBOTH MAIDENS.\n\nWe will, sir.\n\n                                                       [_Exeunt_.\n\n_Enter King_ DUSHYANTA, _dressed in deep mourning, attended his\nJester_, M\u00c1[T.]HAVYA, _and preceded by_ VETRAVAT\u00cd.\n\nCHAMBERLAIN.                               [_Gazing at the_ KING.\n\nWell, noble forms are certainly pleasing, under all varieties of\noutward circumstances. The King's person is as charming as ever,\nnotwithstanding his sorrow of mind.\n\n  Though but a single golden bracelet spans\n  His wasted arm; though costly ornaments\n  Have given place to penitential weeds;\n  Though oft-repeated sighs have blanched his lips,\n  And robbed them of their bloom; though sleepless care\n  And carking thought have dimmed his beaming eye;\n  Yet does his form, by its inherent lustre,\n  Dazzle the gaze; and, like a priceless gem\n  Committed to some cunning polisher,\n  Grow more effulgent by the loss of substance.\n\nS\u00c1NUMAT\u00cd.                          [_Aside. Looking at the_ KING.\n\nNow that I have seen him, I can well understand why [S']akoontal\u00e1\nshould pine after such a man, in spite of his disdainful\nrejection of her.\n\nKING.              [_Walking slowly up and down in deep thought_.\n\n  When fatal lethargy o'erwhelmed my soul,\n  My loved one strove to rouse me, but in vain;\n  And now, when I would fain in slumber deep\n  Forget myself, full soon remorse doth wake me.\n\nS\u00c1NUMAT\u00cd.                                               [_Aside_.\n\nMy poor [S']akoontal\u00e1's sufferings are very similar.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.                                              [_Aside_.\n\nHe is taken with another attack of this odious [S']akoontal\u00e1-fever.\nHow shall we ever cure him?\n\nCHAMBERLAIN.                                      [_Approaching_.\n\nVictory to the King! Great Prince, the royal pleasure-grounds\nhave been put in order. Your Majesty can resort to them for\nexercise and amusement whenever you think proper.\n\nKING.\n\nVetravat\u00ed, tell the worthy Pi[S']una, my prime minister, from me,\nthat I am so exhausted by want of sleep that I cannot sit on the\njudgment-seat to-day. If any case of importance be brought before\nthe tribunal, he must give it his best attention, and inform me\nof the circumstances by letter.\n\nVETRAVAT\u00cd.\n\nYour Majesty's commands shall be obeyed.\n\n                                                         [_Exit_.\n\nKING.                                      [_To the CHAMBERLAIN_.\n\nAnd you, V\u00e1t\u00e1yana, may go about your own affairs.\n\nCHAMBERLAIN.\n\nI will, Sire.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nNow that you have rid yourself of these troublesome fellows, you\ncan enjoy the delightful coolness of your pleasure-grounds\nwithout interruption.\n\nKING.\n\nAh! my dear friend, there is an old adage:--'When affliction has\na mind to enter, she will find a crevice somewhere;' and it is\nverified in me.\n\n  Scarce is my soul delivered from the cloud\n  That darkened its remembrance of the past,\n  When lo! the heart-born deity of love\n  With yonder blossom of the mango barbs\n  His keenest shaft, and aims it at my breast.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nWell, then, wait a moment; I will soon demolish Master K\u00e1ma's[47]\narrow with a cut of my cane.\n\n           [_Raises his stick and strikes off the mango-blossom_.\n\nKING.                                                 [_Smiling_.\n\nThat will do. I see very well the god of love is not a match for\na Br\u00e1hman. And now, my dear friend, where shall I sit down, that\nI may enchant my sight by gazing on the twining plants, which\nseem to remind me of the graceful shape of my beloved?\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nDon't you remember? you told your personal attendant, Chaturik\u00e1,\nthat you would pass the heat of the day in the jasmine-bower; and\ncommanded her to bring the likeness of your queen [S']akoontal\u00e1,\nsketched with your own hand.\n\nKING.\n\nTrue. The sight of her picture will refresh my soul. Lead the way\nto the arbour.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nThis way, Sire.\n\n                           [_Both move on, followed by_ S\u00c1NUMAT\u00cd.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nHere we are at the jasmine-bower. Look, it has a marble seat, and\nseems to bid us welcome with its offerings of delicious flowers.\nYou have only to enter and sit down.\n\n                               [_Both enter and seat themselves_.\n\nS\u00c1NUMAT\u00cd\n\n[_Aside_.\n\nI will lean against these young jasmines. I can easily, from\nbehind them, glance at my friend's picture, and will then hasten\nto inform her of her husband's ardent affection.\n\n                          [_Stands leaning against the creepers_.\n\nKING.\n\nOh! my dear friend, how vividly all the circumstances of my union\nwith [S']akoontal\u00e1 present themselves to my recollection at this\nmoment! But tell me now how it was that, between the time of my\nleaving her in the hermitage and my subsequent rejection of her,\nyou never breathed her name to me? True, you were not by my side\nwhen I disowned her; but I had confided to you the story of my\nlove, and you were acquainted with every particular. Did it pass\nout of your mind as it did out of mine?\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nNo, no; trust me for that. But, if you remember, when you had\nfinished telling me about it, you added that I was not to take\nthe story in earnest, for that you were not really in love with a\ncountry girl, but were only jesting; and I was dull and\nthick-headed enough to believe you. But so fate decreed, and\nthere is no help for it.\n\nS\u00c1NUMAT\u00cd.                                               [_Aside_.\n\nExactly.\n\nKING.                                      [_After deep thought_.\n\nMy dear friend, suggest some relief for my misery.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nCome, come, cheer up; why do you give way? Such weakness is\nunworthy of you. Great men never surrender themselves to\nuncontrolled grief. Do not mountains remain unshaken even in a\ngale of wind?\n\nKING.\n\nHow can I be otherwise than inconsolable, when I call to mind the\nagonized demeanour of the dear one on the occasion of my\ndisowning her?\n\n  When cruelly I spurned her from my presence,\n  She fain had left me; but the young recluse,\n  Stern as the Sage, and with authority\n  As from his saintly master, in a voice\n  That brooked not contradiction, bade her stay.\n  Then through her pleading eyes, bedimmed with tears,\n  She cast on me one long reproachful look,\n  Which like a poisoned shaft torments me still.\n\nS\u00c1NUMAT\u00cd.                                               [_Aside_.\n\nAlas! such is the force of self-reproach following a rash\naction. But his anguish only rejoices me.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA\n\nAn idea has just struck me. I should not wonder if some celestial\nbeing had carried her off to heaven.\n\nKING.\n\nVery likely. Who else would have dared to lay a finger on a wife,\nthe idol of her husband? It is said that Menak\u00e1, the nymph of\nheaven, gave her birth. The suspicion has certainly crossed my\nmind that some of her celestial companions may have taken her to\ntheir own abode.\n\nS\u00c1NUMAT\u00cd.                                               [_Aside_.\n\nHis present recollection of every circumstance of her history\ndoes not surprise me so much as his former forgetfulness.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nIf that's the case, you will be certain to meet her before long.\n\nKING.\n\nWhy?\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nNo father and mother can endure to see a daughter suffering the\npain of separation from her husband.\n\nKING. Oh! my dear M\u00e1[T.]Havya,\n\n  Was it a dream? or did some magic dire,\n  Dulling my senses with a strange delusion,\n  O'ercome my spirit? or did destiny,\n  Jealous of my good actions, mar their fruit,\n  And rob me of their guerdon? It is past,\n  Whate'er the spell that bound me. Once again\n  Am I awake, but only to behold\n  The precipice o'er which my hopes have fallen.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nDo not despair in this manner. Is not this very ring a proof that\nwhat has been lost may be unexpectedly found?\n\nKING.                                      [_Gazing at the ring_.\n\nAh! this ring, too, has fallen from a station not easily\nregained, and I offer it my sympathy. O gem,\n\n  The punishment we suffer is deserved,\n  And equal is the merit of our works,\n  When such our common doom. Thou didst enjoy\n  The thrilling contact of those slender fingers,\n  Bright as the dawn; and now how changed thy lot!\n\nS\u00c1NUMAT\u00cd.                                               [_Aside_.\n\nHad it found its way to the hand of any other person, then indeed\nits fate would have been deplorable.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nPray, how did the ring ever come upon her hand at all?\n\nS\u00c1NUMAT\u00cd.                                               [_Aside_.\n\nI myself am curious to know.\n\nKING.\n\nYou shall hear. When I was leaving my beloved [S']akoontal\u00e1 that I\nmight return to my own capital, she said to me, with tears in her\neyes: 'How long will it be ere my lord send for me to his palace\nand make me his queen?'\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nWell, what was your reply?\n\nKING.\n\nThen I placed the ring on her finger, and thus addressed her:--\n\nRepeat each day one letter of the name Engraven on this gem; ere\nthou hast reckoned The tale of syllables, my minister Shall come\nto lead thee to thy husband's palace.\n\nBut, hard-hearted man that I was, I forgot to fulfil my promise,\nowing to the infatuation that took possession of me.\n\nS\u00c1NUMAT\u00cd.                                               [_Aside_.\n\nA pleasant arrangement! Fate, however, ordained that the\nappointment should not be kept.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nBut how did the ring contrive to pass into the stomach of that\ncarp which the fisherman caught and was cutting up?\n\nKING.\n\nIt must have slipped from my [S']akoontal\u00e1's hand, and fallen into\nthe stream of the Ganges, while she was offering homage to the\nwater of [S']ach\u00ed's holy pool.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nVery likely.\n\nS\u00c1NUMAT\u00cd.                                               [_Aside_.\n\nHence it happened, I suppose, that the King, always fearful of\ncommitting the least injustice, came to doubt his marriage with\nmy poor [S']akoontal\u00e1. But why should affection so strong as his\nstand in need of any token of recognition?\n\nKING.\n\nLet me now address a few words of reproof to this ring.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.                                              [_Aside_.\n\nHe is going stark mad, I verily believe.\n\nKING.\n\n  Hear me, then dull and undiscerning bauble!\n  For so it argues thee, that thou could'st leave\n  The slender fingers of her hand, to sink\n  Beneath the waters. Yet what marvel is it\n  That thou should'st lack discernment? let me rather\n  Heap curses on myself, who, though endowed\n  With reason, yet rejected her I loved.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.                                              [_Aside_.\n\nAnd so, I suppose, I must stand here to be devoured by hunger,\nwhilst he goes on in this sentimental strain.\n\nKING.\n\nO forsaken one, unjustly banished from my presence, take pity on\nthy slave, whose heart is consumed by the fire of remorse, and\nreturn to my sight.\n\n_Enter_ CHATURIK\u00c1 _hurriedly, with a picture in her hand_.\n\nCHATURIK\u00c1.\n\nHere is the Queen's portrait.\n\n                                            [_Shows the picture_.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nExcellent, my dear friend, excellent! The imitation of nature is\nperfect, and the attitude of the figures is really charming. They\nstand out in such bold relief that the eye is quite deceived.\n\nS\u00c1NUMAT\u00cd.                                               [_Aside_.\n\nA most artistic performance! I admire the King's skill, and could\nalmost believe that [S']akoontal\u00e1 herself was before me.\n\nKING.\n\n  I own 'tis not amiss, though it portrays\n  But feebly her angelic loveliness.\n  Aught less than perfect is depicted falsely,\n  And fancy must supply the imperfection.\n\nS\u00c1NUMAT\u00cd.                                               [_Aside_.\n\nA very just remark from a modest man, whose affection is\nexaggerated by the keenness of his remorse.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nTell me:--I see three female figures drawn on the canvas, and all\nof them beautiful; which of the three is her Majesty [S']akoontal\u00e1?\n\nS\u00c1NUMAT\u00cd.                                               [_Aside_.\n\nIf he cannot distinguish her from the others, the simpleton might\nas well have no eyes in his head.\n\nKING.\n\nWhich should you imagine to be intended for her?\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nShe who is leaning, apparently a little tired, against the stem\nof that mango-tree, the tender leaves of which glitter with the\nwater she has poured upon them. Her arms are gracefully extended;\nher face is somewhat flushed with the heat; and a few flowers\nhave escaped from her hair, which has become unfastened, and hangs\nin loose tresses about her neck. That must be the queen\n[S']akoontal\u00e1, and the others, I presume, are her two attendants.\n\nKING.\n\nI congratulate you on your discernment. Behold the proof of my\npassion;\n\n  My finger, burning with the glow of love[93],\n  Has left its impress on the painted tablet;\n  While here and there, alas! a scalding tear\n  Has fallen on the cheek and dimmed its brightness.\n\nChaturik\u00e1, the garden in the background of the picture is only\nhalf-painted. Go, fetch the brush that I may finish it.\n\nCHATURIK\u00c1.\n\nWorthy M\u00e1[t.]havya, have the kindness to hold the picture until I\nreturn.\n\nKING.\n\nNay, I will hold it myself.\n\n                                            [_Takes the picture_.\n\n                                               [_Exit_ CHATURIK\u00c1.\n\n  My loved one came but lately to my presence\n  And offered me herself, but in my folly\n  I spurned the gift, and now I fondly cling\n  To her mere image; even as a madman\n  Would pass the waters of the gushing stream,\n  And thirst for airy vapours of the desert[94].\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.                                             [_Aside_.\n\nHe has been fool enough to forego the reality for the semblance,\nthe substance for the shadow.\n\n[_Aloud_.]\n\nTell us, I pray, what else remains to be painted.\n\nS\u00c1NUMAT\u00cd.                                               [_Aside_.\n\nHe longs, no doubt, to delineate some favourite spot where my\n[S']akoontal\u00e1 delighted to ramble.\n\nKING.\n\nYou shall hear:--\n\n  I wish to see the M\u00e1lin\u00ed portrayed,\n  Its tranquil course by banks of sand impeded;\n  Upon the brink a pair of swans; beyond,\n  The hills adjacent to Him\u00e1laya[95],\n  Studded with deer; and, near the spreading shade\n  Of some large tree, where 'mid the branches hang\n  The hermits' vests of bark, a tender doe,\n  Rubbing its downy forehead on the horn\n  Of a black antelope, should be depicted.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\n                                                        [_Aside_.\n\nPooh! if I were he, I would fill up the vacant\nspaces with a lot of grizzly-bearded old hermits.\n\nKING.\n\nMy dear M\u00e1[T.]Havya, there is still a part of [S']akoontal\u00e1's\ndress which I purposed to draw, but find I have\nomitted.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nWhat is that?\n\nS\u00c1NUMAT\u00cd.                                              [_Aside_.\n\nSomething suitable, I suppose, to the simple attire of a young\nand beautiful girl dwelling in a forest.\n\nKING.\n\n  A sweet [S']ir\u00edsha blossom should be twined\n  Behind her ear[7], its perfumed crest depending\n  Towards her cheek; and, resting on her bosom,\n  A lotus-fibre necklace, soft and bright\n  As an autumnal moonbeam, should be traced.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nPray, why does the Queen cover her lips with the tips of her\nfingers, bright as the blossom of a lily, as if she were afraid\nof something? [_Looking more closely_.] Oh! I see; a vagabond\nbee, intent on thieving honey from the flowers, has mistaken her\nmouth for a rosebud, and is trying to settle upon it.\n\nKING.\n\nA bee! drive off the impudent insect, will you?\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nThat's your business. Your royal prerogative gives you power over\nall offenders.\n\nKING.\n\nVery true. Listen to me, thou favourite guest of flowering plants;\nwhy give thyself the trouble of hovering here?\n\n  See where thy partner sits on yonder flower,\n  And waits for thee ere she will sip its dew.\n\nS\u00c1NUMAT\u00cd.                                               [_Aside_.\n\nA most polite way of warning him off!\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nYou'll find the obstinate creature is not to be sent about his\nbusiness so easily as you think.\n\nKING.\n\nDost thou presume to disobey? Now hear me:--\n\n  An thou but touch the lips of my beloved,\n  Sweet as the opening blossom, whence I quaffed\n  In happier days love's nectar, I will place thee\n  Within the hollow of yon lotus cup,\n  And there imprison thee for thy presumption.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nHe must be bold indeed not to show any fear when you threaten him\nwith such an awful punishment. [_Smiling, aside_.] He is stark mad,\nthat's clear; and I believe, by keeping him company, I am beginning\nto talk almost as wildly. [_Aloud_.] Look, it is only a painted bee.\n\nKING.\n\nPainted? impossible!\n\nS\u00c1NUMAT\u00cd.                                               [_Aside_.\n\nEven I did not perceive it; how much less should he!\n\nKING.\n\nOh! my dear friend, why were you so ill-natured as to tell me the\ntruth?\n\n  While all entranced, I gazed upon her picture,\n  My loved one seemed to live before my eyes\n  Till every fibre of my being thrilled\n  With rapturous emotion. Oh! 'twas cruel\n  To dissipate the day-dream, and transform\n  The blissful vision to a lifeless image.\n\n                                                  [_Sheds tears_.\n\nS\u00c1NUMAT\u00cd.                                               [_Aside_.\n\nSeparated lovers are very difficult to please; but he seems more\ndifficult than usual.\n\nKING.\n\nAlas! my dear M\u00e1[T.]Havya, why am I doomed to be the victim of\nperpetual disappointment?\n\n  Vain is the hope of meeting her in dreams,\n  For slumber night by night forsakes my couch;\n  And now that I would fain assuage my grief\n  By gazing on her portrait here before me,\n  Tears of despairing love obscure my sight.\n\nS\u00c1NUMAT\u00cd.                                               [_Aside_.\n\nYou have made ample amends for the wrong you did [S']akoontal\u00e1 in\ndisowning her.\n\nCHATURIK\u00c1.                                           [_Entering_.\n\nVictory to the King! I was coming along with the box of colours\nin my hand--\n\nKING.\n\nWhat now?\n\nCHATURIK\u00c1.\n\nWhen I met the queen Vasumat\u00ed, attended by Taralik\u00e1. She insisted\non taking it from me, and declared she would herself deliver it\ninto your Majesty's hands.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nBy what luck did you contrive to escape her?\n\nCHATURIK\u00c1.\n\nWhile her maid was disengaging her mantle, which had caught in\nthe branch, of a shrub, I ran away.\n\nKING.\n\nHere, my good friend, take the picture and conceal it. My\nattentions to the Queen have made her presumptuous. She will be\nhere in a minute.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nConceal the picture! conceal myself, you mean.\n\n[_Getting up and taking the picture_.]\n\nThe Queen has a bitter draught in store for you, which you will\nhave to swallow, as [S']iva did the poison at the Deluge[96]. When\nyou are well quit of her, you may send and call me from the\nPalace of Clouds[97], where I shall take refuge.\n\n                                                [_Exit, running_.\n\nS\u00c1NUMAT\u00cd.                                               [_Aside_.\n\nAlthough the King's affections are transferred to another object,\nyet he respects his previous attachments. I fear his love must be\nsomewhat fickle.\n\nVETRAVAT\u00cd.               [_Entering with a despatch in her hand_.\n\nVictory to the King!\n\nKING.\n\nVetravat\u00ed, did you observe the queen Vasumat\u00ed coming in this\ndirection?\n\nVETRAVAT\u00cd.\n\nI did; but when she saw that I had a despatch in my hand for your\nMajesty, she turned back.\n\nKING.\n\nThe Queen has too much regard for propriety to interrupt me when\nI am engaged with State-affairs.\n\nVETRAVAT\u00cd.\n\nSo please your Majesty, your prime minister begs respectfully to\ninform you that he has devoted much time to the settlement of\nfinancial calculations, and only one case of importance has been\nsubmitted by the citizens for his consideration. He has made a\nwritten report of the facts, and requests your Majesty to cast\nyour eyes over it.\n\nKING.\n\nHand me the paper.\n\n                                        [_VETRAVAT\u00cd delivers it_.\n\n[_Reading_.\n\nWhat have we here? 'A merchant named Dhanamitra, trading by sea,\nwas lost in a late shipwreck. Though a wealthy trader, he was\nchildless; and the whole of his immense property becomes by law\nforfeited to the king.' So writes the minister. Alas! alas! for\nhis childlessness! But surely, if he was wealthy, he must have\nhad many wives. Let an inquiry be made whether any one of them is\nexpecting to give birth to a child.\n\nVETRAVAT\u00cd.\n\nThey say that his wife, the daughter of the foreman of a guild\nbelonging to Ayodhy\u00e1 [98], has just completed the ceremonies usual\nupon such expectations.\n\nKING.\n\nThe unborn child has a title to its father's property. Such is my\ndecree. Go, bid my minister proclaim it so.\n\nVETRAVAT\u00cd.\n\nI will, my liege.\n\n                                                        [_Going_.\n\nKING.\n\nStay a moment.\n\nVETRAVAT\u00cd.\n\nI am at your Majesty's service.\n\nKING.\n\nLet there be no question whether he may or may not have left\noffspring; Rather be it proclaimed that whosoe'er Of King\nDushyanta's subjects be bereaved\n\n  Of any loved relation, an it be not\n  That his estates are forfeited for crimes,\n  Dushyanta will himself to them supply\n  That kinsman's place in tenderest affection.\n\nVETRAVAT\u00cd.\n\nIt shall be so proclaimed.\n\n            [_Exit_ VETRAVAT\u00cd, _and re-enters after an interval_.\n\nVETRAVAT\u00cd.\n\nYour Majesty's proclamation was received with acclamations of\njoy, like grateful rain at the right season.\n\nKING.                                     [_Drawing a deep sigh_.\n\nSo, then, the property of rich men, who have no lineal\ndescendants, passes over to a stranger at their decease. And\nsuch, alas! must be the fate of the fortunes of the race of Puru\nat my death; even as when fertile soil is sown with seed at the\nwrong season.\n\nVETRAVAT\u00cd.\n\nHeaven forbid!\n\nKING.\n\nFool that I was to reject such happiness when it offered itself\nfor my acceptance!\n\nS\u00c1NUMAT\u00cd.                                               [_Aside_.\n\nHe may well blame his own folly when he calls to mind his\ntreatment of my beloved [S']akoontal\u00e1.\n\nKING.\n\n  Ah! woe is me! when I forsook my wife--\n  My lawful wife--concealed within her breast\n  There lay my second self, a child unborn,\n  Hope of my race, e'en as the choicest fruit\n  Lies hidden in the bosom of the earth.\n\nS\u00c1NUMAT\u00cd. [_Aside_.\n\nThere is no fear of your race being cut off for want of a son.\n\nCHATURIK\u00c1. [_Aside to_ VETRAVAT\u00cd.\n\nThe affair of the merchant's death has quite upset our royal\nmaster, and caused him sad distress. Would it not be better to\nfetch the worthy M\u00e1[t.]havya from the Palace of Clouds to comfort\nhim?\n\nVETRAVAT\u00cd.\n\nA very good idea.\n\n                                                         [_Exit_.\n\nKING.\n\nAlas! the shades of my forefathers are even now beginning to be\nalarmed, lest at my death they may be deprived of their funeral\nlibations.\n\n  No son remains in King Dushyanta's place\n  To offer sacred homage to the dead\n  Of Puru's noble line; my ancestors\n  Must drink these glistening tears, the last libation[99]\n  A childless man can ever hope to make them.\n\n                              [_Falls down in an agony of grief_.\n\nCHATURIK\u00c1.                    [_Looking at him in consternation_.\n\nGreat King, compose yourself.\n\nS\u00c1NUMAT\u00cd.                                               [_Aside_.\n\nAlas! alas! though a bright light is shining near him, he is\ninvolved in the blackest darkness, by reason of the veil that\nobscures his sight. I will now reveal all, and put an end to his\nmisery. But no; I heard the mother of the great Indra[100], when\nshe was consoling [S']akoontal\u00e1, say that the gods will soon bring\nabout a joyful union between husband and wife, being eager for\nthe sacrifice which will be celebrated in their honour on the\noccasion. I must not anticipate the happy moment, but will return\nat once to my dear friend and cheer her with an account of what I\nhave seen and heard. [_Rises aloft and disappears_.\n\nA VOICE BEHIND THE SCENES.\n\nHelp! help! to the rescue!\n\nKING.\n\n                                [_Recovering himself. Listening_.\n\nHa! I heard a cry of distress, and in M\u00e1[t.]havya's voice too. What\nho there!\n\nVETRAVAT\u00cd.                                           [_Entering_.\n\nYour friend is in danger; save him, great King.\n\nKING.\n\nWho dares insult the worthy M\u00e1[t.]havya?\n\nVETRAVAT\u00cd.\n\nSome evil demon, invisible to human eyes, has seized him, and\ncarried him to one of the turrets of the Palace of Clouds.\n\nKING.                                                  [_Rising_.\n\n  Impossible! Have evil spirits power over my subjects,\n  even in nay private apartments? Well, well;--\n  Daily I seem, less able to avert\n  Misfortune from myself, and o'er my actions\n  Less competent to exercise control;\n  How can I then direct my subjects' ways,\n  Or shelter them from tyranny and wrong?\n\nA VOICE BEHIND THE SCENES.\n\nHalloo there! my dear friend; help! help!\n\nKING.                            [_Advancing with rapid strides_.\n\nFear nothing--\n\nTHE SAME VOICE BEHIND THE SCENES.\n\nFear nothing, indeed! How can I help fearing when some monster is\ntwisting back my neck, and is about to snap it as he would a\nsugar-cane?\n\nKING.                                           [_Looking round_.\nWhat ho there! my bow!\n\nSLAVE.                               [_Entering with a bow_.\n\nBehold your bow, Sire, and your arm-guard.\n\n[_The_ KING _snatches up the bow and arrows_.\n\nANOTHER VOICE BEHIND THE SCENES.\n\n  Here, thirsting for thy life-blood, will I slay thee,\n  As a fierce tiger rends his struggling prey.\n  Call now thy friend Dushyanta to thy aid;\n  His bow is mighty to defend the weak;\n  Yet all its vaunted power shall be as nought.\n\nKING.                                               [_With fury_.\n\nWhat! dares he defy me to my face? Hold there, monster! Prepare\nto die, for your time is come.\n\n[_Stringing his bow_.]\n\nVetravat\u00ed, lead the way to the terrace.\n\nVETRAVAT\u00cd.\n\nThis way, Sire.\n\n                                        [_They advance in haste_.\n\nKING.                                   [_Looking on every side_.\n\nHow's this? there is nothing to be seen.\n\nA VOICE BEHIND THE SCENES.\n\nHelp! Save me! I can see you, though you cannot see me. I am like\na mouse in the claws of a cat; my life is not worth a minute's\npurchase.\n\nKING.\n\n  Avaunt, monster! You may pride yourself on the\n  magic that renders you invisible, but my arrow shall\n  find you out. Thus do I fix a shaft\n  That shall discern between an impious demon,\n  And a good Br\u00e1hman; bearing death to thee,\n  To him deliverance--even as the swan\n  Distinguishes the milk from worthless water[101].\n\n                                                    [_Takes aim_.\n\n_Enter_ M\u00c1TALI[102] _holding_ M\u00c1[T.]HAVYA, _whom he releases_.\n\nM\u00c1TALI.\n\n  Turn thou thy deadly arrows on the demons;\n  Such is the will of Indra; let thy bow\n  Be drawn against the enemies of the gods;\n  But on thy friends cast only looks of favour.\n\nKING.                                  [_Putting back his arrow_.\n\nWhat, M\u00e1tali! Welcome, most noble charioteer of the mighty Indra.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nSo, here is a monster who thought as little about slaughtering me\nas if I had been a bullock for sacrifice, and you must e'en greet\nhim with a welcome.\n\nM\u00c1TALI.                                               [_Smiling_.\n\nGreat Prince, hear on what errand Indra sent me into your\npresence.\n\nKING.\n\nI am all attention.\n\nM\u00c1TALI.\n\nThere is a race of giants, the descendants of K\u00e1lanemi[103], whom\nthe gods find it difficult to subdue.\n\nKING.\n\nSo I have already heard from N\u00e1rada[104].\n\nM\u00c1TALI.\n\n  Heaven's mighty lord, who deigns to call thee 'friend,'\n  Appoints thee to the post of highest honour,\n  As leader of his armies; and commits\n  The subjugation of this giant brood\n  To thy resistless arms, e'en as the sun\n  Leaves the pale moon to dissipate the darkness.\n\nLet your Majesty, therefore, ascend at once the celestial car of\nIndra; and, grasping your arms, advance to victory.\n\nKING.\n\nThe mighty Indra honours me too highly by such a mark of\ndistinction. But tell me, what made you act thus towards my poor\nfriend M\u00e1[T.]Havya?\n\nM\u00c1TALI.\n\n  I will tell you. Perceiving that your Majesty's\n  spirit was completely broken by some distress of mind\n  under which you were labouring, I determined to\n  rouse your energies by moving you to anger. Because\n  To light a flame, we need but stir the embers;\n  The cobra, when incensed, extends his head\n  And springs upon his foe; the bravest men\n  Display their courage only when provoked.\n\nKING.                                      [_Aside to_ M\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\n\nMy dear M\u00e1[T.]Havya, the commands of the great Indra must not be\nleft unfulfilled. Go you and acquaint my minister, Pi[S']una, with\nwhat has happened, and say to him from me:--\n\n  Dushyanta to thy care confides his realm--\n  Protect with all the vigour of thy mind\n  The interests of his people; while his bow\n  Is braced against the enemies of heaven.\n\nM\u00c1[T.]HAVYA.\nI obey.                                                  [_Exit_.\n\nM\u00c1TALI\n\nAscend, illustrious Prince.\n\n                                   [_The_ KING _ascends the car_.\n\n                                                       [_Exeunt_.\n\n       *       *       *       *       *\n\n\n\n\nACT VII.\n\n\nSCENE.--_The Sky_.\n\n_Enter_ KING DUSHYANTA _and_ M\u00c1TALI _in the car of Indra, moving\nin the air_.\n\nKING.\n\nMy good M\u00e1tali, it appears to me incredible that I can merit such\na mark of distinction for having simply fulfilled the behests of\nthe great Indra.\n\nM\u00c1TALI.                                               [_Smiling_.\n\nGreat Prince, it seems to me that neither of you is satisfied\nwith himself.\n\n  You underrate the services you have rendered,\n  And think too highly of the god's reward;\n  He deems it scarce sufficient recompense\n  For your heroic deeds on his behalf.\n\nKING.\n\nNay, M\u00e1tali, say not so. My most ambitious expectations were more\nthan realised by the honour conferred on me at the moment when I\ntook my leave. For,\n\n  Tinged with celestial sandal, from the breast[105]\n  Of the great Indra, where before it hung,\n  A garland of the ever-blooming tree\n  Of Nandana[106] was cast about my neck\n  By his own hand; while, in the very presence\n  Of the assembled gods, I was enthroned\n  Beside their mighty lord, who smiled to see\n  His son Jayanta[107] envious of the honour.\n\nM\u00c1TALI.\n\nThere is no mark of distinction which your Majesty does not\ndeserve at the hands of the immortals. See,\n\n  Heaven's hosts acknowledge thee their second saviour:\n  For now thy how's unerring shafts (as erst\n  The Lion-man's terrific claws[108]) have purged\n  The empyreal sphere from taint of demons foul.\n\nKING.\n\nThe praise of my victory must be ascribed to the majesty of\nIndra.\n\n  When mighty gods make men their delegates\n  In martial enterprise, to them belongs\n  The palm of victory; and not to mortals.\n  Could the pale Dawn dispel the shades of night,\n  Did not the god of day, whose diadem\n  Is jewelled with a thousand beams of light,\n  Place him in front of his effulgent car[11]?\n\nM\u00c1TALI.\n\nA very just comparison!\n\n[_Driving on_.]\n\nGreat King, behold! the glory of thy fame has reached even to the\nvault of heaven.\n\n  Hark! yonder inmates of the starry sphere\n  Sing anthems worthy of thy martial deeds,\n  While with celestial colours they depict\n  The story of thy victories on scrolls\n  Formed of the leaves of heaven's immortal trees.\n\nKING.\n\nMy good M\u00e1tali, yesterday, when I ascended the sky, I was so\neager to do battle with the demons, that the road by which we\nwere travelling towards Indra's heaven escaped my observation.\nTell me, in which path of the seven winds are we now moving?\n\nM\u00c1TALI.\n\n  We journey in the path of Parivaha[109]--\n  The wind that bears along the triple Ganges[110]\n  And causes Ursa's seven stars to roll\n  In their appointed orbits, scattering\n  Their several rays with equal distribution.\n  'Tis the same path that once was sanctified\n  By the divine impression of the foot\n  Of Vishnu, when, to conquer haughty Bali,\n  He spanned the heavens in his second stride[111].\n\nKING.\n\nThis is the reason, I suppose, that a sensation of calm repose\npervades all my senses.\n\n[_Looking down at the wheels_.]\n\nAh! M\u00e1tali, we are descending towards the earth's atmosphere.\n\nM\u00c1TALI.\n\nWhat makes you think so?\n\nKING.\n\nThe car itself instructs me; we are moving\nO'er pregnant clouds, surcharged with rain; below us\nI see the moisture-loving Ch\u00e1takas[112]\nIn sportive flight dart through the spokes; the steeds\nOf Indra glisten with the lightning's flash;\nAnd a thick mist bedews the circling wheels.\n\nM\u00c1TALI.\n\nYou are right; in a little while the chariot will touch the\nground, and you will be in your own dominions.\n\nKING.                                            [_Looking down_.\n\nHow wonderful the appearance of the earth as we rapidly descend!\n\n  Stupendous prospect! yonder lofty hills\n  Do suddenly uprear their towering heads\n  Amid the plain, while from beneath their crests\n  The ground receding sinks; the trees, whose stem\n  Seemed lately hid within their leafy tresses,\n  Rise into elevation, and display\n  Their branching shoulders; yonder streams, whose waters,\n  Like silver threads, were scarce, but now, discerned,\n  Grow into mighty rivers; lo! the earth\n  Seems upward hurled by some gigantic power.\n\nM\u00c1TALI.\n\nWell described!\n\n                                            [_Looking with awe_.]\n\nGrand, indeed, and lovely is the spectacle presented by the\nearth.\n\nKING.\n\nTell me, M\u00e1tali, what is the range of mountains which, like a\nbank of clouds illumined by the setting sun, pours down a stream\nof gold? On one side its base dips into the eastern ocean, and on\nthe other side into the western.\n\nM\u00c1TALI.\n\nGreat Prince, it is called 'Golden-peak[113],' and is the abode\nof the attendants of the god of wealth. In this spot the highest\nforms of penance are wrought out.\n\n  There Ka[s']yapa[114], the great progenitor\n  Of demons and of gods, himself the offspring\n  Of the divine Mar\u00edchi, Brahm\u00e1's son,\n  With Adit\u00ed, his wife, in calm seclusion,\n  Does holy penance for the good of mortals.\n\nKING.\n\nThen I must not neglect so good an opportunity of obtaining his\nblessing. I should much like to visit this venerable personage\nand offer him my homage.\n\nM\u00c1TALI.\n\nBy all means. An excellent idea!\n\n                                  [_Guides the car to the earth_.\n\nKING.                                      [_In a tone of wonder_.\n\nHow's this?\n\n  Our chariot wheels move noiselessly. Around\n  No clouds of dust arise; no shock betokened\n  Our contact with the earth; we seem to glide\n  Above the ground, so lightly do we touch it.\n\nM\u00c1TALI.\n\nSuch is the difference between the car of Indra and that of your\nMajesty.\n\nKING.\n\nIn which direction, M\u00e1tali, is Ka[s']yapa's sacred retreat?\n\nM\u00c1TALI.                                              [_Pointing_.\n\n  Where stands yon anchorite, towards the orb\n  Of the meridian sun, immovable\n  As a tree's stem, his body half-concealed\n  By a huge ant-hill. Bound about his breast\n  No sacred cord is twined[115], but in its stead\n  A hideous serpent's skin. In place of necklace,\n  The tendrils of a withered creeper chafe\n  His wasted neck. His matted hair depends\n  In thick entanglement about his shoulders,\n  And birds construct their nests within its folds[116].\n\nKING.\n\nI salute thee, thou man of austere devotion.\n\nM\u00c1TALI.                       [_Holding in the reins of the car_.\n\nGreat Prince, we are now in the sacred grove of the holy\nKa[s']yapa--the grove that boasts as its ornament one of the five\ntrees of Indra's heaven, reared by Adit\u00ed.\n\nKING.\n\nThis sacred retreat is more delightful than heaven itself. I\ncould almost fancy myself bathing in a pool of nectar.\n\nM\u00c1TALI.                                  [_Stopping the chariot_.\n\nDescend, mighty Prince.\n\nKING.                                              [_Descending_.\n\nAnd what will you do, M\u00e1tali?\n\nM\u00c1TALI.\n\nThe chariot will remain where I have stopped it. We may both\ndescend.\n\n[_Doing so_.]\n\nThis way, great King.\n\n[_Walking on_.]\n\nYou see around you the celebrated region where the holiest sages\ndevote themselves to penitential rites.\n\nKING.\n\nI am filled with awe and wonder as I gaze.\n\n  In such a place as this do saints of earth\n  Long to complete their acts of penance; here,\n  Beneath the shade of everlasting trees.\n  Transplanted from the groves of Paradise,\n  May they inhale the balmy air, and need\n  No other nourishment[117]; here may they bathe\n  In fountains sparkling with the golden dust\n  Of lilies; here, on jewelled slabs of marble,\n  In meditation rapt, may they recline;\n  Here, in the presence of celestial nymphs,\n  E'en passion's voice is powerless to move them.\n\nM\u00c1TALI.\n\nSo true is it that the aspirations of the good and great are ever\nsoaring upwards.\n\n[_Turning round and speaking off the stage_.]\n\nTell me, Vriddha-[S']\u00e1kalya, how is the divine son of Mar\u00edchi now\nengaged? What sayest thou? that he is conversing with Adit\u00ed and\nsome of the wives of the great sages, and that they are\nquestioning him respecting the duties of a faithful wife?\n\nKING.                                               [_Listening_.\n\nThen we must await the holy father's leisure.\n\nM\u00c1TALI.                                   [_Looking at the_ KING.\n\nIf your Majesty will rest under the shade, at the foot of this\nA[s']oka-tree [118], I will seek an opportunity of announcing your\narrival to Indra's reputed father.\n\nKING.\n\nAs you think proper.\n\n                                       [_Remains under the tree_.\n\nM\u00c1TALI.\n\nGreat King, I go.                                        [_Exit_.\n\nKING.                                   [_Feeling his arm throb_.\n\n  Wherefore this causeless throbbing, O mine arm[18]?\n  All hope has fled for ever; mock me not\n  With presages of good, when happiness\n  Is lost, and nought but misery remains.\n\nA VOICE BEHIND THE SCENES.\n\nBe not so naughty. Do you begin already to show a refractory\nspirit?\n\nKING.                                               [_Listening_.\n\nThis is no place for petulance. Who can it be whose behaviour\ncalls for such a rebuke?\n\n[_Looking in the direction of the sound and smiling_.]\n\nA child, is it? closely attended by two holy women. His\ndisposition seems anything but child-like. See!\n\n  He braves the fury of yon lioness\n  Suckling its savage offspring, and compels\n  The angry whelp to leave the half-sucked dug,\n  Tearing its tender mane in boisterous sport.\n\n_Enter a_ CHILD, _attended by_ TWO WOMEN _of the hermitage, in\nthe manner described_.\n\nCHILD.\n\nOpen your mouth, my young lion, I want to count your teeth.\n\nFIRST ATTENDANT.\n\nYou naughty child, why do you tease the animals? Know you not\nthat we cherish them in this hermitage as if they were our own\nchildren? In good sooth, you have a high spirit of your own, and\nare beginning already to do justice to the name Sarva-damana\n('All-taming'), given you by the hermits.\n\nKING.\n\nStrange! My heart inclines towards the boy with almost as much\naffection as if he were my own child. What can be the reason? I\nsuppose my own childlessness makes me yearn towards the sons of\nothers.\n\nSECOND ATTENDANT.\n\nThis lioness will certainly attack you if you do not release her\nwhelp.\n\nCHILD.                                               [_Laughing_.\n\nOh! indeed! let her come. Much I fear her, to be sure!\n\n                              [_Pouts his under-lip in defiance_.\n\nKING.\n\n  The germ of mighty courage lies concealed\n  Within this noble infant, like a spark\n  Beneath the fuel, waiting but a breath\n  To fan the flame and raise a conflagration.\n\nFIRST ATTENDANT.\n\nLet the young lion go, like a dear child, and I will give you\nsomething else to play with.\n\nCHILD.\n\nWhere is it? Give it me first.\n\n                                       [_Stretches out his hand_.\n\nKING.                                     [_Looking at his hand_.\n\nHow's that? His hand exhibits one of those mystic marks[84] which\nare the sure prognostic of universal empire. See! His fingers\nstretched in eager expectation To grasp the wished-for toy, and\nknit together By a close-woven web, in shape resemble A lotus\nblossom, whose expanding petals The early dawn has only half\nunfolded.\n\nSECOND ATTENDANT.\n\nWe shall never pacify him by mere words, dear Suvrat\u00e1. Be kind\nenough to go to my cottage, and you will find there a plaything\nbelonging to M\u00e1rkandeya, one of the hermit's children. It is a\npeacock made of china-ware, painted in many colours. Bring it\nhere for the child.\n\nFIRST ATTENDANT.\n\nVery well.                                               [_Exit_.\n\nCHILD.\n\nNo, no; I shall go on playing with the young lion.\n\n[_Looks at the_ FEMALE ATTENDANT _and laughs_.\n\nKING.\n\n  I feel an unaccountable affection for this wayward child.\n  How blessed the virtuous parents whose attire\n  Is soiled with dust, by raising from the ground\n  The child that asks a refuge in their arms!\n  And happy are they while with lisping prattle,\n  In accents sweetly inarticulate,\n  He charms their ears; and with his artless smiles\n  Gladdens their hearts[119], revealing to their gaze\n  His pearly teeth just budding into view.\n\nATTENDANT.\n\nI see how it is. He pays me no manner of attention.\n\n[_Looking off the stage_.]\n\nI wonder whether any of the hermits are about here.\n\n[_ Seeing the_ KING.]\n\nKind Sir, could you come hither a moment and help me to release\nthe young lion from the clutch of this child who is teasing him\nin boyish play?\n\nKING.                                 [_Approaching and smiling_.\n\nListen to me, thou child of a mighty saint!\n\n  Dost thou dare show a wayward spirit here?\n  Here, in this hallowed region? Take thou heed\n  Lest, as the serpent's young defiles the sandal[71],\n  Thou bring dishonour on the holy sage\n  Thy tender-hearted parent, who delights\n  To shield from harm the tenants of the wood.\n\nATTENDANT.\n\nGentle Sir, I thank you; but he is not the saint's son.\n\nKING.\n\nHis behaviour and whole bearing would have led me to doubt it,\nhad not the place of his abode encouraged the idea.\n\n   [_Follows the_ CHILD, _and takes him by the hand, according to\n                            the request of the attendant. Aside_.\n\n  I marvel that the touch of this strange child\n  Should thrill me with delight; if so it be,\n  How must the fond caresses of a son\n  Transport the father's soul who gave him being!\n\nATTENDANT.                               [_Looking at them both_.\n\nWonderful! Prodigious!\n\nKING.\n\nWhat excites your surprise, my good woman?\n\nATTENDANT.\n\nI am astonished at the striking resemblance between the child and\nyourself; and, what is still more extraordinary, he seems to have\ntaken to you kindly and submissively, though you are a stranger\nto him.\n\nKING.                                      [_Fondling the_ CHILD.\n\nIf he be not the son of the great sage, of what family does he\ncome, may I ask?\n\nATTENDANT.\n\nOf the race of Puru.\n\nKING.                                                   [_Aside_.\n\nWhat! are we, then, descended from the same ancestry? This, no\ndoubt, accounts for the resemblance she traces between the child\nand me. Certainly it has always been an established usage among\nthe princes of Puru's race,\n\n  To dedicate the morning of their days\n  To the world's weal, in palaces and halls,\n  'Mid luxury and regal pomp abiding;\n  Then, in the wane of life, to seek release\n  From kingly cares, and make the hallowed shade\n  Of sacred trees their last asylum, where\n  As hermits they may practise self-abasement,\n  And bind themselves by rigid vows of penance.\n\n[_Aloud_.]\n\nBut how could mortals by their own power gain admission to this\nsacred region?\n\nATTENDANT.\n\nYour remark is just; but your wonder will cease when I tell you\nthat his mother is the offspring of a celestial nymph, and gave\nhim birth in the hallowed grove of Ka[s']yapa.\n\nKING.                                                   [_Aside_.\n\nStrange that my hopes should be again excited!\n\n[_Aloud_.]\n\nBut what, let me ask, was the name of the prince whom she deigned\nto honour with her hand?\n\nATTENDANT.\n\nHow could I think of polluting my lips by the mention of a wretch\nwho had the cruelty to desert his lawful wife?\n\nKING.                                                   [_Aside_.\n\nHa! the description suits me exactly. Would I could bring myself\nto inquire the name of the child's mother!\n\n[_Reflecting_.]\n\nBut it is against propriety to make too minute inquiries about\nthe wife of another man[120].\n\nFIRST ATTENDANT.\n\n                  [_Entering with the china peacock in her hand_.\n\nSarva-damana, Sarva-damana, see, see, what a beautiful [S']akoonta\n(bird).\n\nCHILD.                                          [_Looking round_.\n\nMy mother! Where? Let me go to her.\n\nBOTH ATTENDANTS.\n\nHe mistook the word [S']akoonta for [S']akoontal\u00e1. The boy dotes upon\nhis mother, and she is ever uppermost in his thoughts.\n\nSECOND ATTENDANT.\n\nNay, my dear child, I said: Look at the beauty of this [S']akoonta.\n\nKING.                                                   [_Aside_.\n\nWhat! is his mother's name [S']akoontal\u00e1? But the name is not\nuncommon among women. Alas! I fear the mere similarity of a name,\nlike the deceitful vapour of the desert[94], has once more raised\nmy hopes only to dash them to the ground.\n\nCHILD.\n\nDear nurse, what a beautiful peacock!\n\n                                                [_Takes the toy_.\n\nFIRST ATTENDANT.\n\n                      [_Looking at the CHILD. In great distress_.\n\nAlas! alas! I do not see the amulet on his wrist.\n\nKING.\n\nDon't distress yourself. Here it is. It fell off while he was\nstruggling with the young lion.\n\n                                         [_Stoops to pick it up_.\n\nBOTH ATTENDANTS.\n\nHold! hold! Touch it not, for your life. How marvellous! He has\nactually taken it up without the slightest hesitation.\n\n [_Both raise their hands to their breasts and look at each other\n                                                in astonishment_.\n\nKING.\n\nWhy did you try to prevent my touching it?\n\nFIRST ATTENDANT.\n\nListen, great Monarch. This amulet, known as 'The Invincible,'\nwas given to the boy by the divine son of Mar\u00edchi, soon after his\nbirth, when the natal ceremony was performed. Its peculiar virtue\nis, that when it falls on the ground, no one except the father or\nmother of the child can touch it unhurt.\n\nKING.\n\nAnd suppose another person touches it?\n\nFIRST ATTENDANT.\n\nThen it instantly becomes a serpent, and bites him.\n\nKING.\n\nHave you ever witnessed the transformation with your own eyes?\n\nBOTH ATTENDANTS.\n\nOver and over again.\n\nKING.                                     [_With rapture. Aside_.\n\nJoy! joy! Are then my dearest hopes to be fulfilled?\n\n                                           [_Embraces the CHILD_.\n\nSECOND ATTENDANT.\n\nCome, my dear Suvrat\u00e1, we must inform [S']akoontal\u00e1 immediately of\nthis wonderful event, though we have to interrupt her in the\nperformance of her religious vows.\n\n                                                       [_Exeunt_.\n\nCHILD.                                            [_To the_ KING.\n\nDon't hold me. I want to go to my mother.\n\nKING.\n\nWe will go to her together, and give her joy, my son.\n\nCHILD.\n\nDushyanta is my father, not you.\n\nKING.                                                 [_Smiling_.\n\nHis contradiction only convinces me the more.\n\n_Enter_ [S']AKOONTAL\u00c1, _in widow's apparel, with her long hair\ntwisted into a single braid_.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                                            [_Aside_.\n\nI have just heard that Sarva-damana's amulet has retained its\nform, though a stranger raised it from the ground. I can hardly\nbelieve in my good fortune. Yet why should not S\u00e1numat\u00ed's\nprediction be verified?\n\nKING.\n\nAlas! can this indeed be my [S']akoontal\u00e1?\n\n  Clad in the weeds of widowhood, her face\n  Emaciate with fasting, her long hair\n  Twined in a single braid[121], her whole demeanour\n  Expressive of her purity of soul;\n  With patient constancy she thus prolongs\n  The vow to which my cruelty condemned her.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.   [_Gazing at the_ KING, _who is pale with remorse_.\n\nSurely this is not like my husband; yet who can it be that dares\npollute by the pressure of his hand my child, whose amulet should\nprotect him from a stranger's touch?\n\nCHILD.                                    [_Going to his mother_.\n\nMother, who is this man that has been kissing me and calling me\nhis son?\n\nKING.\n\nMy best beloved, I have indeed treated thee most cruelly, but am\nnow once more thy fond and affectionate lover. Refuse not to\nacknowledge me as thy husband.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                                            [_Aside_.\n\nBe of good cheer, my heart. The anger of Destiny is at last\nappeased. Heaven regards thee with compassion. But is he in very\ntruth my husband?\n\nKING.\n\n  Behold me, best and loveliest of women,\n  Delivered from the cloud of fatal darkness\n  That erst oppressed my memory. Again\n  Behold us brought together by the grace\n  Of the great lord of Heaven. So the moon\n  Shines forth from dim eclipse [122], to blend his rays\n  With the soft lustre of his Rohin\u00ed.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nMay my husband be victorious--\n\n                 [_She stops short, her voice choked with tears_.\n\nKING.\n\n  O fair one, though the utterance of thy prayer\n  Be lost amid the torrent of thy tears,\n  Yet does the sight of thy fair countenance\n  And of thy pallid lips, all unadorned[123]\n  And colourless in sorrow for my absence,\n  Make me already more than conqueror.\n\nCHILD.\n\nMother, who is this man?\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nMy child, ask the deity that presides over thy destiny.\n\nKING.                         [_Falling at_ [S']AKOONTAL\u00c1's _feet_.\n\n  Fairest of women, banish from thy mind\n  The memory of my cruelty; reproach\n  The fell delusion that o'erpowered my soul,\n  And blame not me, thy husband; 'tis the curse\n  Of him in whom the power of darkness[124] reigns,\n  That he mistakes the gifts of those he loves\n  For deadly evils. Even though a friend\n  Should wreathe a garland on a blind man's brow,\n  Will he not cast it from him as a serpent?\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nRise, my own husband, rise. Thou wast not to blame. My own evil\ndeeds, committed in a former state of being[37], brought down\nthis judgment upon me. How else could my husband, who was ever of\na compassionate disposition, have acted so unfeelingly?\n\n[_The_ KING _rises_.]\n\nBut tell me, my husband, how did the remembrance of thine\nunfortunate wife return to thy mind?\n\nKING.\n\nAs soon as my heart's anguish is removed, and its wounds are\nhealed, I will tell thee all.\n\n  Oh! let me, fair one, chase away the drop\n  That still bedews the fringes of thine eye;\n  And let me thus efface the memory\n  Of every tear that stained thy velvet cheek,\n  Unnoticed and unheeded by thy lord,\n  When in his madness he rejected thee.\n\n                                          [_Wipes away the tear_.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\n                         [_Seeing the signet-ring on his finger_.\n\nAh! my dear husband, is that the Lost Ring?\n\nKING.\n\nYes; the moment I recovered it my memory was restored.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nThe ring was to blame in allowing itself to be lost at the very\ntime when I was anxious to convince my noble husband of the\nreality of my marriage.\n\nKING.\n\nReceive it back, as the beautiful twining-plant receives again\nits blossom in token of its reunion with the spring.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nNay; I can never more place confidence in it. Let my husband\nretain it.\n\n                                                 [_Enter_ M\u00c1TALI.\n\nM\u00c1TALI.\n\nI congratulate your Majesty. Happy are you in your reunion with\nyour wife; happy are you in beholding the face of your own son.\n\nKING.\n\nYes, indeed. My heart's dearest wish has borne sweet fruit. But\ntell me, M\u00e1tali, is this joyful event known to the great Indra?\n\nM\u00c1TALI.                                               [_Smiling_.\n\nWhat is unknown to the gods? But come with me, noble Prince, the\ndivine Ka[s']yapa graciously permits thee to be presented to him.\n\nKING.\n\n[S']akoontal\u00e1, take our child and lead the way. We will together go\ninto the presence of the holy Sage.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nI shrink from entering the august presence of the great Saint,\neven with my husband at my side.\n\nKING.\n\nNay; on such a joyous occasion it is highly proper. Come, come; I\nentreat thee.\n\n                                                  [_All advance_.\n\nKA[S']YAPA _is discovered seated on a throne with his wife_ ADITI.\n\nKA[S']YAPA.\n\n                           [_Gazing at_ DUSHYANTA. _To his wife_.\n\nO Adit\u00ed,\n\n  This is the mighty hero, King Dushyanta,\n  Protector of the earth; who, at the head\n  Of the celestial armies of thy son,\n  Does battle with the enemies of heaven.\n  Thanks to his bow, the thunderbolt of Indra\n  Rests from its work, no more the minister\n  Of death and desolation to the world,\n  But a mere symbol of divinity.\n\nADITI.\n\nHe bears in his noble form all the marks of dignity.\n\nM\u00c1TALI.                                           [_To_ DUSHYANTA\n\nSire, the venerable progenitors of the celestials are gazing at\nyour Majesty with as much affection as if you were their son. You\nmay advance towards them.\n\nKING.\n\n  Are these, O M\u00e1tali, the holy pair,\n  Offspring of Daksha and divine Mar\u00edchi,\n  Children of Brahm\u00e1's sons[125], by sages deemed\n  Sole fountain of celestial light, diffused\n  Through twelve effulgent orbs [114]? Are these the pair\n  From whom the ruler of the triple world [126],\n  Sovereign of gods and lord of sacrifice,\n  Sprang into being? That immortal pair\n  Whom Vishnu, greater than the Self-existent [127],\n  Chose for his parents, when, to save mankind,\n  He took upon himself the shape of mortals?\n\nM\u00c1TALI.\n\nEven so.\n\nKING.                                     [_Prostrating himself_.\n\nMost august of beings! Dushyanta, content to have fulfilled the\ncommands of your son Indra, offers you his adoration.\n\nKA[S']YAPA.\n\nMy son, long may'st thou live, and happily may'st thou reign over\nthe earth!\n\nADITI.\n\nMy son, may'st thou ever be invincible in the field of battle!\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.\n\nI also prostrate myself before you, most adorable Beings, and my\nchild with me.\n\nKA[S']YAPA.\n\nMy daughter,\n\n  Thy lord resembles Indra, and thy child\n  Is noble as Jayanta, Indra's son;\n  I have no worthier blessing left for thee,\n  May'st thou be faithful as the god's own wife!\n\nADITI.\n\nMy daughter, may'st thou be always the object of thy husband's\nfondest love; and may thy son live long to be the joy of both his\nparents! Be seated.\n\n[_All sit down in the presence of KA[S']YAPA_.\n\nKA[S']YAPA.                     [_Regarding each of them by turns_.\n\n  Hail to the beautiful [S']akoontal\u00e1,\n  Hail to her noble son, and hail to thee,\n  Illustrious Prince--rare triple combination\n  Of virtue, wealth, and energy united!\n\nKING.\n\nMost venerable Ka[s']yapa, by your favour all my desires were\naccomplished even before I was admitted to your presence. Never\nwas mortal so honoured that his boon should be granted ere it was\nsolicited. Because--\n\n  Bloom before fruit, the clouds before the rain,\n  Cause first and then effect, in endless sequence,\n  Is the unchanging law of constant nature;\n  But, ere the blessing issued from thy lips,\n  The wishes of my heart were all fulfilled.\n\nM\u00c1TALI.\n\nIt is thus that the great progenitors of the world confer\nfavours.\n\nKING.\n\nMost reverend Sage, this thy handmaid was married to me by the\nG\u00e1ndharva ceremony[55], and after a time was conducted to my\npalace by her relations. Meanwhile a fatal delusion seized me; I\nlost my memory and rejected her, thus committing a grievous\noffence against the venerable Kanwa, who is of thy divine race.\nAfterwards the sight of this ring restored my faculties, and\nbrought back to my mind all the circumstances of my union with\nhis daughter. But my conduct still seems to me incomprehensible;\n\n  As foolish as the fancies of a man\n  Who, when he sees an elephant, denies\n  That 'tis an elephant; then afterwards,\n  When its huge bulk moves onward, hesitates;\n  Yet will not be convinced till it has passed\n  For ever from his sight, and left behind\n  No vestige of its presence save its footsteps.\n\nKA[S']YAPA.\n\nMy son, cease to think thyself in fault. Even the delusion that\npossessed thy mind was not brought about by any act of thine.\nListen to me.\n\nKING.\n\nI am attentive.\n\nKA[S']YAPA.\n\nKnow that when the nymph Menak\u00e1, the mother of [S']akoontal\u00e1,\nbecame aware of her daughter's anguish in consequence of the loss\nof the ring at the nymph's pool, and of thy subsequent rejection\nof her, she brought her and confided her to the care of Adit\u00ed.\nAnd I no sooner saw her than I ascertained by my divine faculty\nof meditation[134], that thy repudiation of thy poor faithful\nwife had been caused entirely by the curse of Durv\u00e1sas--not by\nthine own fault--and that the spell would terminate on the\ndiscovery of the ring.\n\nKING.                                   [_Drawing a deep breath_.\n\nOh! what a weight is taken off my mind, now that my character is\ncleared of reproach.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                                            [_Aside_.\n\nJoy! joy! My revered husband did not, then, reject me without\ngood reason, though I have no recollection of the curse\npronounced upon me. But, in all probability, I unconsciously\nbrought it upon myself, when I was so distracted on being\nseparated from my husband soon after our marriage. For I now\nremember that my two friends advised me not to fail to show the\nring in case he should have forgotten me.\n\nKA[S']YAPA.\n\nAt last, my daughter, thou art happy, and hast gained thy heart's\ndesire. Indulge, then, no feeling of resentment against thy\nconsort. See, now,\n\n  Though he repulsed thee, 'twas the sage's curse\n  That clouded his remembrance; 'twas the curse\n  That made thy tender husband harsh towards thee.\n  Soon as the spell was broken, and his soul\n  Delivered from its darkness, in a moment,\n  Thou didst regain thine empire o'er his heart.\n  So on the tarnished surface of a mirror\n  No image is reflected, till the dust,\n  That dimmed its wonted lustre, is removed.\n\nKING.\n\nHoly father, see here the hope of my royal race.\n\n                                  [_Takes his child by the hand_.\n\nKA[S']YAPA.\n\n\n  Know that he, too, will become the monarch of the\n  wholes earth. Observe,\n  Soon, a resistless hero, shall he cross\n  The trackless ocean, borne above the waves\n  In an a\u00ebrial car; and shall subdue\n  The earth's seven sea-girt isles[128]. Now has he gained,\n  As the brave tamer of the forest-beasts,\n  The title Sarva-damana; but then\n  Mankind shall hail him as King Bharata[129],\n  And call him the supporter of the world.\n\nKING.\n\nWe cannot but entertain the highest hopes of a child for whom\nyour Highness performed the natal rites.\n\nADITI.\n\nMy revered husband, should not the intelligence be conveyed to\nKanwa, that his daughter's wishes are fulfilled, and her\nhappiness complete? He is [S']akoontal\u00e1's foster-father. Menak\u00e1,\nwho is one of my attendants, is her mother, and dearly does she\nlove her daughter.\n\n[S']AKOONTAL\u00c1.                                            [_Aside_.\n\nThe venerable matron has given utterance to the very wish that\nwas in my mind.\n\nKA[S']YAPA.\n\nHis penances have gained for him the faculty of omniscience, and\nthe whole scene is already present to his mind's eye.\n\nKING.\n\nThen most assuredly he cannot be very angry with me.\n\nKA[S']YAPA.\n\nNevertheless, it becomes us to send him intelligence of this\nhappy event, and hear his reply. What ho there!\n\nPUPIL.                                               [_Entering_.\n\nHoly father, what are your commands?\n\nKA[S']YAPA.\n\nMy good G\u00e1lava, delay not an instant, but hasten through the air\nand convey to the venerable Kanwa, from me, the happy news that\nthe fatal spell has ceased, that Dushyanta's memory is restored,\nthat his daughter [S']akoontal\u00e1 has a son, and that she is once\nmore tenderly acknowledged by her husband.\n\nPUPIL.\n\nYour Highness' commands shall be obeyed.\n\n                                                         [_Exit_.\n\nKA[S']YAPA.\n\nAnd now, my dear son, take thy consort and thy child, re-ascend\nthe car of Indra, and return to thy imperial capital.\n\nKING.\n\nMost holy father, I obey.\n\nKA[S']YAPA.\n\nAnd accept this blessing--\n\n  For countless ages may the god of gods,\n  Lord of the atmosphere, by copious showers\n  Secure abundant harvests to thy subjects;\n  And thou by frequent offerings preserve\n  The Thunderer's friendship. Thus, by interchange\n  Of kindly actions may you both confer\n  Unnumbered benefits on earth and heaven.\n\nKING.\n\nHoly father, I will strive, as far as I am able, to attain this\nhappiness.\n\nKA[S']YAPA.\n\nWhat other favour can I bestow on thee, my son?\n\nKING.\n\nWhat other can I desire? If, however, you permit me to form\nanother wish, I would humbly beg that the saying of the sage\nBharata[130] be fulfilled:\n\n  May kings reign only for their subjects' weal;\n  May the divine Saraswat\u00ed[131], the source\n  Of speech, and goddess of dramatic art,\n  Be ever honoured by the great and wise;\n  And may the purple self-existent god[132],\n  Whose vital Energy[133] pervades all space,\n  From future transmigrations save my soul.\n\n\n                                                 [_Exeunt omnes_.\n\n\n\n\nNOTES:\n\n\n1. _\u00cd[S']a preserve you_.\n\nThat is, 'the Lord,' a name given to the god Siva, when regarded as\nsupreme. As presiding over dissolution he is associated with Brahm\u00e1\nthe Creator, and Vishnu the Preserver; constituting with them the\nHind\u00fa Triad. K\u00e1lid\u00e1sa indulges the religious predilections of his\nfellow-townsmen by beginning and ending the play with a prayer to\n[S']iva, who had a large temple in Ujjayin\u00ed, the modern Oujein, the city\nof Vikram\u00e1ditya, situated north-eastward from Gujar\u00e1t.\n\n2. _In these eight forms_.\n\nThe worshippers of Siva, who were Pantheists in the sense of\nbelieving that [S']iva was himself all that exists, as well as the\ncause of all that is, held that there were eight different\nmanifestations of their god, called Rudras; and that these had\ntheir types in the eight visible forms enumerated here. The\nHind\u00fas reckon five elements. The most subtle is Ether (_\u00e1k\u00e1sa_),\nsupposed to convey sound, which is its peculiar attribute or\nproperty (_guna_). The next element--Air, has for its properties\nsound and feeling. The third--Fire, has sound, feeling, and\ncolour. The fourth--Water, has sound, feeling, colour, and taste.\nThe fifth--Earth, has all the other properties, with the addition\nof smell.\n\n3. _An audience of educated and discerning men_.\n\nLit. 'An audience, who are chiefly men of education and discernment.'\nFew could have been present at these dramatic representations excepting\nlearned and educated men. The mass of the composition being in Sanskrit,\nwould not have been intelligible to the vulgar and illiterate.\n\n4. _[S']akoontal\u00e1; or, The Lost Ring_.\n\nThe literal title is '[S']akoontal\u00e1 recognized by the token or\nring.'\n\n5. _The present Summer season_.\n\nHind\u00fa poets divide the year into six seasons of two months each,\nviz. I. Spring (Vasanta), beginning about the middle of March;\nor, according to some, February. 2. Summer (Gr\u00edshma). 3. Rains\n(Varsha). 4. Autumn (Sarad). 5. Winter (Hemanta). 6. Dews\n(Sisira). Practically, however, there are only three seasons in\nIndia, 1. The hot season. 2. The rains. 3. The cold weather. In\nLower Bengal and Behar, the first of these seasons begins in\nMarch, the second in June, and the third in November. The\ntemperature of the cold season is highly exhilarating, and the\nclimate is then superior to that of any portion of the English\nyear. In Calcutta, this season continues for about three months;\nin Upper India, for about five; and in the Panj\u00e1b for about\nseven. The rains in Bengal Proper are more violent and protracted\nthan in Hind\u00fast\u00e1n and the Panj\u00e1b. In the latter country they last\nfor hardly more than two months, and even then only fall at\nintervals. Plays were acted on solemn and festive occasions, on\nlunar holidays, and especially at the changes of the season.\n\n6. _Of fragrant P\u00e1talas_.\n\nThe P\u00e1tala or trumpet-flower; _Bignonia suaveolens_.\n\n7. _With sweet [S']ir\u00edsha flowers_.\n\nThe flowers of the _Acacia S\u00edrisha_ were used by the Hind\u00fa women\nas ear-ornaments.\n\n8. _King Dushyanta_.\n\nFor the genealogy of King Dushyanta see Introduction, page\nxxxviii.\n\n9. _That wields the trident_.\n\n[S']iva is called Pin\u00e1kin, that is, 'armed with a trident,' or\naccording to some, a bow named Pin\u00e1ka. Siva not being invited to\nDaksha's sacrifice, was so indignant, that, with his wife, he\nsuddenly presented himself, confounded the sacrifice, dispersed\nthe gods, and chasing Yajna, 'the lord of sacrifice,' who fled in\nthe form of a deer, overtook and decapitated him.\n\n10.        _Their waving plumes, that late\n    Fluttered above their brows, are motionless._\n\nThe Ch\u00e1mar\u00ed, or chowrie, formed of the white bushy tail of the\nYak, or _Bos grunniens_, was placed as an ornament between the\nears of horses, like the plume of the war-horse of chivalry. The\nvelocity of the chariot caused it to lose its play, and appear\nfixed in one direction, like a flag borne rapidly against the\nwind.\n\n11. _The steeds of Indra and the Sun._\n\nThat is, the speed of the chariot resembled that of the Wind and\nthe Sun. Indra was the god of the firmament or atmosphere--the\nJupiter Tonans of Hind\u00fa mythology--and presided over the\nforty-nine Winds. He has a heaven of his own (Swarga), of which\nhe is the lord, and, although inferior to the three great deities\nof the Hind\u00fa Triad (Brahm\u00e1, Vishnu, and Siva), he is chief of the\nsecondary gods. The Hind\u00fas represent the Sun as seated in a\nchariot, drawn by seven green horses, having before him a lovely\nyouth without legs, who acts as his charioteer, and who is Aruna,\nor the Dawn personified.\n\n12. _Puru's race_.\n\nSee Dushyanta's pedigree detailed at page xxxviii of the\nIntroduction.\n\n13. _The great sage Kanwa_.\n\nThe sage Kanwa was a descendant of Kasyapa, whom the Hind\u00fas\nconsider to have been the father of the inferior gods, demons,\nman, fish, reptiles, and all animals, by his twelve wives. Kanwa\nwas the chief of a number of devotees, or hermits, who had\nconstructed a hermitage on the banks of the river M\u00e1lin\u00ed, and\nsurrounded it with gardens and groves, where penitential rites\nwere performed, and animals were reared for sacrificial purposes,\nor for the amusement of the inmates. There is nothing new in\nasceticism. The craving after self-righteousness, and the desire\nof acquiring merit by self-mortification, is an innate principle\nof the human heart, and ineradicable even by Christianity.\nWitness the monastic institutions of the Romish Church, of which\nIndian penance-groves were the type. The Superior of a modern\nConvent is but the antitype of Kanwa; and what is Romanism but\nhumanity developing itself in some of its most inveterate\npropensities?\n\n14. _He has gone to Soma t\u00edrtha_.\n\nA place of pilgrimage in the west of India, on the coast of\nGujar\u00e1t, near the temple of Soman\u00e1th, or Somn\u00e1t, made notorious\nby its gates, which were brought back from Ghazn\u00ed by Lord\nEllenborough's orders in 1842, and are now to be seen in the\narsenal at Agra. These places of pilgrimage were generally fixed\non the bank of some sacred stream, or in the vicinity of some\nholy spring. The word _t\u00edrtha_ is derived from a Sanskrit root,\n_tr\u00ed_, 'to cross,' implying that the river has to be passed\nthrough, either for the washing away of sin, or extrication from\nsome adverse destiny. Thousands of devotees still flock to the\nmost celebrated T\u00edrthas on the Ganges, at Benares, Haridw\u00e1r, etc.\n\n15. _Ingud\u00ed_.\n\nA tree, commonly called Ingua, or Jiyaputa, from the fruit of\nwhich oil was extracted, which the devotees used for their lamps\nand for ointment. One synonym for this tree is _t\u00e1pasa-taru_,\n'the anchorite's tree.'\n\n16. _Bark-woven vests_.\n\nDresses made of bark, worn by ascetics, were washed in water, and\nthen suspended to dry on the branches of trees.\n\n17. _By deep canals_.\n\nIt was customary to dig trenches round the roots of trees, to\ncollect the rain-water.\n\n18. _My throbbing arm_.\n\nA quivering sensation in the right arm was supposed by the Hind\u00fas\nto prognosticate union with a beautiful woman. Throbbings of the\narm or eyelid, if felt on the right side, were omens of good\nfortune in men; if on the left, bad omens. The reverse was true\nof women.  19. _The hard acacia's stem_.\n\nThe Sam\u00ed tree, a kind of acacia (_Acacia Suma_), the wood of\nwhich is very hard, and supposed by the Hind\u00fas to contain fire.\n\n20. _The lotus_.\n\nThis beautiful plant, the varieties of which, white, blue, and\nred, are numerous, bears some resemblance to our water-lily. It\nis as favourite a subject of allusion and comparison with Hind\u00fa\npoets as the rose is with Persian.\n\n21. _With the Saivala entwined_.\n\nThe [S']aivala (_Vallisneria_) is an aquatic plant, which spreads\nitself over ponds, and interweaves itself with the lotus. The\ninterlacing of its stalks is compared in poetry to braided hair.\n\n22. _Yon Ke[s']ara tree_.\n\nThe Ke[s']ara tree (_Mimusops elengi_) is the same as the Bakula,\nfrequent mention of which is made is some of the Pur\u00e1nas. It\nbears a strong-smelling flower, which, according to Sir W. Jones,\nis ranked among the flowers of the Hind\u00fa paradise. The tree Is\nvery ornamental in pleasure-grounds.\n\n23. _Would that my union with her were permissible_.\n\nA Br\u00e1hman might marry a woman of the military or kingly class\nnext below him, and the female offspring of such a marriage would\nbelong to a mixed caste, and might be lawfully solicited in\nmarriage by a man of the military class. But if [S']akoontal\u00e1 were\na pure Br\u00e1hman\u00ed woman, both on the mother's and father's side,\nshe would be ineligible as the wife of a Kshatriya king.\nDushyanta discovers afterwards that she was, in fact, the\ndaughter of the great Vi[s']w\u00e1mitra (see note 27), who was of the\nsame caste as himself, though her mother was the nymph Menak\u00e1.\n\n24. _I trust all is well with your devotional rites_.\n\nThis was the regular formula of salutation addressed to persons\nengaged in religions exercises.\n\n25. _This water that we have brought with us will serve to bathe\nour guest's feet_.\n\nWater for the feet is one of the first things invariably provided\nfor a guest in all Eastern countries. Compare Genesis xxiv. 32;\nLuke vii. 44. If the guest were a Br\u00e1hman, or a man of rank, a\nrespectful offering (_argha_) of rice, fruit, and flowers was\nnext presented. In fact, the rites of hospitality in India were\nenforced by very stringent regulations. The observance of them\nranked as one of the five great sacred rites, and no punishment\nwas thought too severe for one who violated them. If a guest\ndeparted unhonoured from a house, his sins were to be transferred\nto the householder, and all the merits of the householder were to\nbe transferred to him.\n\n26. _Sapta-parna tree_.\n\nA tree having seven leaves on a stalk (_Echites scholaris_).\n\n27. _Vis']w\u00e1mitra, whose family name is Kausika_.\n\nIn the R\u00e1m\u00e1yana, the great sage Vi[s']w\u00e1mitra (both king and saint),\nwho raised himself by his austerities from the regal to the\nBr\u00e1hmanical caste, is said to be the son of G\u00e1dhi, King of Kan\u00faj,\ngrandson of Kusan\u00e1tha, and great-grandson of Kusika or Kusa. On\nhis accession to the throne, in the room of his father G\u00e1dhi, in\nthe course of a tour through his dominions, he visited the\nhermitage of the sage Vasishtha, where the Cow of Plenty, a cow\ngranting all desires, excited his cupidity. He offered the sage\nuntold treasures for the cow; but being refused, prepared to take\nit by force. A long war ensued between the king and the sage\n(symbolical of the struggles between the military and Br\u00e1hmanical\nclasses), which ended in the defeat of Vi[s']w\u00e1mitra, whose vexation\nwas such, that he devoted himself to austerities, in the hope of\nattaining the condition of a Br\u00e1hman. The R\u00e1m\u00e1yana recounts how,\nby gradually increasing the rigour of his penance through\nthousands of years, he successively earned the title of Royal\nSage, Sage, Great Sage, and Br\u00e1hman Sage. It was not till he had\ngained this last title that Vasishtha consented to acknowledge\nhis equality with himself, and ratify his admission into the\nBr\u00e1hmanical state. It was at the time of Vi[s']w\u00e1mitra's advancement\nto the rank of a Sage, and whilst he was still a Kshatriya, that\nIndra, jealous of his increasing power, sent the nymph Menak\u00e1 to\nseduce him from his life of mortification and continence. The R\u00e1m\u00e1yana\nrecords his surrender to this temptation, and relates that the nymph\nwas his companion in the hermitage for ten years, but does not allude\nto the birth of [S']akoontal\u00e1 during that period.\n\n28. _The inferior gods, I am aware, are jealous_.\n\nAccording to the Hind\u00fa system, Indra and the other inferior\ndeities were not the possessors of Swarga, or heaven, by\nindefeasible right. They accordingly viewed with jealousy, and\neven alarm, any extraordinary persistency by a human being in\nacts of penance, as it raised him to a level with themselves;\nand, if carried beyond a certain point, enabled him to dispossess\nthem of Paradise. Indra was therefore the enemy of excessive\nself-mortification, and had in his service numerous nymphs who\nwere called his 'weapons,' and whose business it was to impede by\ntheir seductions the devotion of holy men.\n\n29. _Gautam\u00ed_.\n\nThe name of the matron or Superior of the female part of the\nsociety of hermits. Every association of religious devotees seems\nto have included a certain number of women, presided over by an\nelderly and venerable matron, whose authority resembled that of\nan abbess in a convent of nuns.\n\n30. _Ku[s']a-grass_.\n\nThis grass was held sacred by the Hind\u00fas, and was abundantly\nused in all their religions ceremonies. Its leaves are very long,\nand taper to a sharp needle-like point, of which the extreme\nacuteness was proverbial; whence the epithet applied to a clever\nman, 'sharp as the point of Ku[s']a-grass.' Its botanical name is\n_Poa cynosuro\u00efdes_.\n\n31. _Kuruvaka._\n\nA species of Jhint\u00ed or Barleria, with purple flowers, and covered\nwith sharp prickles.\n\n32. _The Jester_.\n\nSee an account of this character in the Introduction, p. xxxiv.\n\n33. _We have nothing to eat but roast game_.\n\nIndian game is often very dry and flavourless.\n\n34. _Attended by the Yavana women_.\n\nWho these women were has not been accurately ascertained. Yavana\nis properly Arabia, but is also a name applied to Greece. The\nYavana women were therefore either natives of Arabia, or Greece,\nand their business was to attend upon the king, and take charge\nof his weapons, especially his bow and arrows. Professor H. H.\nWilson, in his translation of the Vikramorva[s']\u00ed, where the same\nword occurs (Act V. p. 261), remarks that Tartarian or Bactrian\nwomen may be intended.\n\n35. _In the disc of crystal_.\n\nThat is, the sun-gem (_S\u00farya-k\u00e1nta_, 'beloved by the sun'), a\nshining stone resembling crystal. Professor Wilson calls it a\nfabulous stone with fabulous properties, and mentions another\nstone, the moon-gem (_chandra-k\u00e1nta_). It may be gathered from\nthis passage that the sun-stone was a kind of glass lens, and\nthat the Hind\u00fas were not ignorant of the properties of this\ninstrument at the time when '[S']akoontal\u00e1' was written.\n\n36. _Some fallen blossoms of the jasmine_.\n\nThe jasmine here intended was a kind of double jasmine with a\nvery delicious perfume, sometimes called 'Arabian jasmine'\n(_Jasminum zambac_). It was a delicate plant, and, as a creeper,\nwould depend on some other tree for support. The Arka, or\nsun-tree (Gigantic Asclepias: _Calotropis gigantea_), on the\nother hand, was a large and vigorous shrub. Hence the former is\ncompared to [S']akoontal\u00e1, the latter to the sage Kanwa.\n\n37.\n\n                  _The mellowed fruit\n  Of virtuous actions in some former birth_.\n\nThe doctrine of the transmigration of the soul from one body to\nanother is an essential dogma of the Hind\u00fa religion, and\nconnected with it is the belief in the power which every human\nbeing possesses of laying up for himself a store of merit by good\ndeeds performed in the present and former births. Indeed the\ncondition of every person is supposed to derive its character of\nhappiness or misery, elevation or degradation, from the virtues\nor vices of previous states of being. The consequences of actions\nin a former birth are called _vip\u00e1ka_; they may be either good\nor bad, but are rarely unmixed with evil taint.\n\nIn the present comparison, however, they are described as pure\nand unalloyed. With reference to the first four lines of this\nstanza, compare Catullus, Carmen Nuptiale, verse 39.\n\n  'Ut flos in septis secretus nascitur hortis,\n  Ignotus pecori, nullo contusus aratro,\n  Quem mulcent aur\u00e6, firmat sol, educat imber:\n  Multi illuum pueri, mult\u00e6 optavere puell\u00e6:\n  Idem quum tenui carptus defloruit ungui,\n  Nulli illum pueri, nall\u00e6 optavere puell\u00e6:\n  Sic virgo, dum intacta manet,' etc.\n\n38. _The sixth part of their grain_.\n\nAccording to Manu, a king might take a sixth part of liquids,\nflowers, roots, fruit, grass, etc.; but, even though dying with\nwant, he was not to receive any tax from a Br\u00e1hman learned in the\nVedas.\n\n39. _A title only one degree removed from that of a Sage_.\n\nDushyanta was a R\u00e1jarshi; that is, a man of the military class\nwho had attained the rank of Royal Sage or Saint by the practice\nof religious austerities. The title of Royal or Imperial Sage was\nonly one degree inferior to that of Sage. Compare note 27.\n\n40. _Chanted by inspired bards_.\n\nOr celestial minstrels, called Gandharvas. These beings were the\nmusicians of Indra's heaven, and their business was to amuse the\ninhabitants of Swarga by singing the praises of gods, saints, or\nheroes. Compare note 11.\n\n41. _In their fierce warfare with the powers of hell_.\n\nIndra and the other inferior gods (compare note 11) were for ever\nengaged in hostilities with their half-brothers, the demons\ncalled Daityas, who were the giants or Titans of Hind\u00fa mythology.\nOn such occasions the gods seem to have depended very much upon\nthe assistance they received from mortal heroes.\n\n42. _Evil demons are disturbing our sacrificial rites_.\n\nThe religious rites and sacrifices of holy men were often\ndisturbed by certain evil spirits or goblins called R\u00e1kshasas,\nwho were the determined enemies of piety and devotion. No great\nsacrifice or religious ceremony was ever carried on without an\nattempt on the part of these demons to impede its celebration;\nand the most renowned saints found it necessary on such occasions\nto acknowledge their dependence on the strong arm of the military\nclass, by seeking the aid of warriors and heroes. The inability\nof holy men, who had attained the utmost limit of spiritual\npower, to cope with the spirits of evil, and the superiority of\nphysical force in this respect, is very remarkable.\n\n43. _Vishnu_.\n\nVishnu, the Preserver, was one of the three gods of the Hind\u00fa\nTriad. He became incarnate in various forms for the good of\nmortals, and is the great enemy of the demons.\n\n14 _Like king Tri[s']anku_.\n\nThe story of this monarch is told in the R\u00e1m\u00e1yana. He is there\ndescribed as a just and pious prince of the solar race, who\naspired to celebrate a great sacrifice, hoping thereby to ascend\nto heaven in his mortal body. After various failures he had\nrecourse to Vi[s']w\u00e1mitra, who undertook to conduct the sacrifice,\nand invited all the gods to be present. They, however, refused to\nattend; upon which the enraged Vi[s']w\u00e1mitra, by his own power,\ntransported Tri[s']anku to the skies, whither he had no sooner\narrived than he was hurled down again by Indra and the gods; but\nbeing arrested in his downward course by the sage, he remained\nsuspended between heaven and earth, forming a constellation in\nthe southern hemisphere.\n\n45. _Ointment of Us\u00edra-root_.\n\nThe root of a fragrant grass (_Andropogon muricatum_), from\nwhich a cooling ointment was made.\n\n46. _The very breath of his nostrils_.\n\nCompare Lam. iv. 20. 'The breath of our nostrils, the anointed of\nthe Lord, was taken.'\n\n47. _God of the flowery shafts_.\n\nThe Hind\u00fa Cupid, or god of love (K\u00e1ma), is armed with a bow made\nof sugar-cane, the string of which consists of bees. He has five\narrows, each tipped with the blossom of a flower, which pierce\nthe heart through the five senses; and his favourite arrow is\npointed with the _chita_, or mango-flower.\n\n48. _E'en now in thy unbodied essence lurks The fire of [S']iva's\nanger_.\n\nThe story is thus told in the R\u00e1m\u00e1yana. K\u00e1ma (Cupid) once\napproached [S']iva that he might influence him with love for his\nwife, P\u00e1rvat\u00ed. [S']iva happened then to be practising austerities,\nand intent on a vow of chastity. He therefore cursed the god of\nlove in a terrible voice, and at the same time a flash from his\neye caused the god's body to shrivel into ashes. Thus K\u00e1ma was\nmade incorporeal, and from that time was called 'the bodiless\none.'\n\n49.\n                    _Like the flame,\n  That ever hidden in the secret depths\n  Of ocean, smoulders there unseen_.\n\nThis submarine fire was called Aurva,\nfrom the following fable. The Rishi Aurva, who had gained great\npower by his austerities, was pressed by the gods and others to\nperpetuate his race. He consented, but warned them that his\noffspring would consume the world. Accordingly, he created from\nhis thigh a devouring fire, which, as soon as it was produced,\ndemanded nourishment, and would have destroyed the whole earth,\nhad not Brahm\u00e1 appeared and assigned the ocean as its habitation,\nand the waves as its food. The spot where it entered the sea was\ncalled 'the mare's mouth.' Doubtless the story was invented to\nsuit the phenomenon of some marine volcano, which may have\nexhaled through the water bituminous inflammable gas, and which,\nperhaps in the form of a horse's mouth, was at times visible\nabove the sea.\n\n50 _Who on his 'scutcheon bears the monster-fish_.\n\nThe Hind\u00fa Cupid is said to have subdued a marine monster, which\nwas, therefore, painted on his banner.\n\n51 _The graceful undulation of her gait_.\n\n_Hansa-g\u00e1min\u00ed_, 'walking like a swan,' was an epithet for a\ngraceful woman. The Indian lawgiver, Manu, recommends that a\nBr\u00e1hman should choose for his wife a young maiden, whose gait was\nlike that of a phoenicopter, or flamingo, or even like that of a\nyoung elephant. The idea in the original is, that the weight of\nher hips had caused the peculiar appearance observable in the\nprint of her feet. Largeness of the hips was considered a great\nbeauty in Hind\u00fa women, and would give an undulatory motion to\ntheir walk.  52 _The M\u00e1dhav\u00ed_.\n\nA large and beautiful creeper (_Gaertnera racemosa_), bearing\nwhite, fragrant flowers, to which constant allusion is made in\nSanskrit plays.\n\n53 _Pines to be united with the Moon_.\n\nA complete revolution of the moon, with respect to the stars, being\nmade in twenty-seven days, odd hours, the Hind\u00fas divide the heavens\ninto twenty-seven constellations (asterisms) or lunar stations, one\nof which receives the moon for one day in each of his monthly journeys.\nAs the Moon, Chandra, is considered to be a masculine deity, the Hind\u00fas\nfable these twenty-seven constellations as his wives, and personify\nthem as the daughters of Daksha. Of these twenty-seven wives, twelve\nof whom give names to the twelve months, Chandra is supposed to show\nthe greatest affection for the fourth, Rohin\u00ed; but each of the others,\nand amongst them Vi[s']\u00e1kh\u00e1, is represented as jealous of this\npartiality, and eager to secure the Moon's favour for herself,\nDushyanta probably means to compare himself to the Moon (he being of\nthe Lunar race) and [S']akoontal\u00e1 to Vi[s']\u00e1kh\u00e1.\n\n54. _Checks its fall_.\n\nOwing to emaciation and disuse of the bow, the callosities on the\nforearm, usually caused by the bow-string, were not sufficiently\nprominent to prevent the bracelet from slipping down from the\nwrist to the elbow, when the arm was raised to support the head.\nThis is a favourite idea with K\u00e1lid\u00e1sa to express the attenuation\ncaused by love.\n\n55. _No nuptial rites prevail_.\n\nA marriage without the usual ceremonies is called G\u00e1ndharva. It\nwas supposed to be the form of marriage prevalent among the\nnymphs of India's heaven. In the 3rd Book of Manu (v. 22), it is\nincluded among the various marriage rites, and is said to be a\nunion proceeding entirely from love, or mutual inclination, and\nconcluded without any religious services, and without consulting\nrelatives. It was recognized as a legal marriage by Manu and\nother lawgivers, though it is difficult to say in what respect it\ndiffered from unlawful cohabitation.\n\n56. _The loving birds doomed by fate to nightly separation_.\n\nThat is, the male and female of the Chakrav\u00e1ka, commonly called Chakwa\nand Chakw\u00ed, or Br\u00e1hman\u00ed duck (_Anas casarca_). These birds associate\ntogether during the day, and are, like turtle-doves, patterns of\nconnubial affection; but the legend is, that they are doomed to pass\nthe night apart, in consequence of a curse pronounced upon them by a\nsaint whom they had offended. As soon as night commences, they take\nup their station on the opposite banks of a river, and call to each\nother in piteous cries. The Beng\u00e1l\u00eds consider their flesh to be a good\nmedicine for fever.\n\n57. _The great sage Durv\u00e1sas_.\n\nA Saint or Muni, represented by the Hind\u00fa poets as excessively\ncholeric and inexorably severe. The Pur\u00e1nas and other poems\ncontain frequent accounts of the terrible effects of his\nimprecations on various occasions, the slightest offence being in\nhis eyes deserving of the most fearful punishment. On one\noccasion he cursed Indra, merely because his elephant let fall a\ngarland he had given to this god; and in consequence of this\nimprecation all plants withered, men ceased to sacrifice, and the\ngods were overcome in their wars with the demons.\n\n58. _Propitiatory offering_.\n\nCompare note 25.\n\n59. _His blushing charioteer_.\n\nCompare note 11.\n\n60. _Night-loving lotus_.\n\nSome species of the lotus, especially the white esculent kind,\nopen their petals during the night, and close them during the\nday, whence the moon is often called the 'lover, or lord of the\nlotuses.'\n\n61. _The very centre of the sacred fire_.\n\nFire was an important object of veneration with the Hind\u00fas, as\nwith the ancient Persians. Perhaps the chief worship recognized\nin the Vedas is that of Fire and the Sun. The holy fire was\ndeposited in a hallowed part of the house, or in a sacred\nbuilding, and kept perpetually burning. Every morning and\nevening, oblations were offered to it by dropping clarified\nbutter and other substances into the flame, accompanied with\nprayers and invocations.\n\n62. _As in the sacred tree the mystic fire_.\n\nLiterally, 'as the [S']ami-tree is pregnant with fire.' The legend\nis, that the goddess P\u00e1rvat\u00ed, being one day under the influence\nof love, reposed on a trunk of this tree, whereby a sympathetic\nwarmth was generated in the pith or interior of the wood, which\never after broke into a sacred flame on the slightest attrition.\n\n63 _Hastin\u00e1pur_.\n\nThe ancient Delhi, situated on the Ganges, and the capital of\nDushyanta. Its site is about fifty miles from the modern Delhi,\nwhich is on the Jumn\u00e1,\n\n64 _E'en as Yay\u00e1ti [S']armishth\u00e1 adored_,\n\n[S']armishth\u00e1 was the daughter of Vrishaparvan, king of the\ndemons, and wife of Yay\u00e1ti, son of Nahusha, one of the princes of\nthe Lunar dynasty, and ancestor of Dushyanta. Puru was the son of\nYay\u00e1ti, by [S']armishth\u00e1.\n\n65 _And for whose encircling bed, Sacred Kusa-grass is spread_.\n\nAt a sacrifice, sacred fires were lighted at the four cardinal\npoints, and Ku[s']a-grass was scattered around each fire,  66\n_Ko\u00efl_,\n\nThe Ko\u00efl, or Kokil, is the Indian cuckoo. It is sometimes called\nPara-bhrita ('nourished by another'). because the female is known\nto leave her eggs in the nest of the crow to be hatched. The bird\nis as great a favourite with Indian poets as the nightingale with\nEuropean. One of its names is 'Messenger of Spring.' Its note is\na constant subject of allusion, and is described as beautifully\nsweet, and, if heard on a journey, indicative of good fortune.\nEverything, however, is beautiful by comparison. The song of the\nKo\u00efl is not only very dissimilar, but very inferior to that of\nthe nightingale,\n\n67 _The peacock on the lawn Ceases its dance_,\n\nThe Indian peacock is very restless, especially at the approach\nof rain, in which it is thought to take delight. Its circular\nmovements are a frequent subject of allusion with Hind\u00fa poets,\nand are often by them compared to dancing.\n\n68. _The moonlight of the grove_.\n\nThe name of [S']akoontal\u00e1's favourite jasmine, spoken of in the 1st\nAct. See page 15 of this volume.\n\n69. _Fig-tree_.\n\nNot the Banyan-tree (_Ficus Indica_), nor the Pippala (_Ficus\nreligiosa_), but the Glomerous Fig-tree (_Ficus glomerata_),\nwhich yields a resinous milky juice from its bark, and is large\nenough to afford abundant shade.\n\n70. _The poor female Chakrav\u00e1ka_.\n\nCompare note 56.\n\n71. _Like a young tendril of the sandal-tree torn from its home\nin the western mountains_.\n\nThe sandal is a kind of large myrtle with pointed leaves (_Sirium\nmyrtifolium_). The wood affords many highly esteemed perfumes,\nunguents, etc., and is celebrated for its delicious scent. It is\nchiefly found on the slopes of the Malaya mountain or Western\nGhauts on the Malabar coast. The roots of the tree are said to be\ninfested with snakes. Indeed it seems to pay dearly for the\nfragrance of its wood: 'The root is infested by serpents, the\nblossoms by bees, the branches by monkeys, the summit by bears.\nIn short there is not a part of the sandal-tree that is not\noccupied by the vilest impurities.' Hitopade[s']a, verse 162.\n\n72. _The calm seclusion of thy former home_.\n\n'When the father of a family perceives his own wrinkles and grey\nhair, committing the care of his wife to his sons, or accompanied\nby her, let him repair to the woods and become a hermit.'--Manu,\nvi. 2. It was usual for kings, at a certain time of life, to\nabdicate the throne in favour of the heir-apparent, and pass the\nremainder of their days in seclusion.\n\n73. _A frequent offering to our household gods_.\n\nThis was an offering (_bali_) in honour of those spiritual\nbeings called 'household deities,' which were supposed to hover\nround and protect houses. It was made by throwing up into the air\nin some part of the house (generally at the door) the remains of\nthe morning and evening meal of rice or grain, uttering at the\nsame time a _mantra_, or prayer.\n\n74. _In other states of being_.\n\nDim recollections of occurrences in former states of existence\nare supposed occasionally to cross the mind. Compare note 37.\n\n75. _The Chamberlain_.\n\nThe attendant on the women's apartment. He is generally a\nBr\u00e1hman, and usually appears in the plays as a tottering and\ndecrepit old man, leaning on his staff of office.  76. _The king\nof serpents on his thousand heads_.\n\nA mythological serpent, the personification of eternity, and king\nof the N\u00e1gas, or snakes, who inhabit P\u00e1t\u00e1la, the lowermost of the\nseven regions below the earth. His body formed the couch of\nVishnu, reposing on the waters of Chaos, whilst his thousand\nheads were the god's canopy. He is also said to uphold the world\non one of his heads.\n\n77. _The chamber of the consecrated fire_.\n\nCompare note 61.\n\n78. _Two heralds_.\n\nThese heralds were introduced into Hind\u00fa plays something in the\nsame manner as a Chorus; and, although their especial duty was to\nannounce, in measured verse, the periods of the day, and\nparticularly the fixed divisions into which the king's day was\ndivided, yet the strain which they poured forth frequently\ncontained allusions to incidental circumstances. The royal office\nwas no sinecure. From the Da[s']a-kum\u00e1ra, it appears that the day\nand night were each divided into eight portions of one hour and a\nhalf, reckoned from sunrise; and were thus distributed: Day--l.\nThe king, being dressed, is to audit accounts; 2. He is to\npronounce judgment in appeals; 3. He is to breakfast; 4. He is to\nreceive and make presents; 5. He is to discuss political\nquestions with his ministers; 6. He is to amuse himself; 7. He is\nto review his troops; 8. He is to hold a military council.\nNight--l. He is to receive the reports of his spies and envoys;\n2. He is to sup or dine; 3. He is to retire to rest after the\nperusal of some sacred work; 4 and 5. He is to sleep; 6. He is to\nrise and purify himself; 7. He is to hold a private consultation\nwith his ministers, and instruct his officers; 8. He is to attend\nupon the _Purohita_ or family priest, for the performance of\nreligious ceremonies. See Wilson's Hind\u00fa Theatre, vol. i. p. 209.\n\n79. _Feeling a quivering sensation in her right eyelid_.\n\nCompare note 18.\n\n80. _The protector of the four classes of the people, the\nguardian of the four conditions of the priesthood_.\n\nA remarkable feature in the ancient Hind\u00fa social system, as\ndepicted in the plays, was the division of the people into four\nclasses or castes:--1st. The sacerdotal, consisting of the\nBr\u00e1hmans.--2nd. The military, consisting of fighting men, and\nincluding the king himself and the royal family. This class\nenjoyed great privileges, and must have been practically the most\npowerful.--3rd. The commercial, including merchants and\nhusbandmen.--4th. The servile, consisting of servants and slaves.\nOf these four divisions the first alone has been preserved in its\npurity to the present day, although the R\u00e1jputs claim to be the\nrepresentatives of the second class. The others have been lost in\na multitude of mixed castes formed by intermarriage, and bound\ntogether by similarity of trade or occupation. With regard to the\nsacerdotal class, the Br\u00e1hmans, who formed it, were held to be\nthe chief of all human beings; they were superior to the king,\nand their lives and property were protected by the most stringent\nlaws. They were to divide their lives into four quarters, during\nwhich they passed through four states or conditions, viz. as\nreligious students, as householders, as anchorites, and as\nreligious mendicants.\n\n81. _That he is pleased with ill-assorted unions_.\n\nThe god Brahm\u00e1 seems to have enjoyed a very unenviable notoriety\nas taking pleasure in ill-assorted marriages, and encouraging\nthem by his own example in the case of his own daughter.\n\n82. _[S']ach\u00ed's sacred pool near Sakr\u00e1vat\u00e1ra_.\n\n[S']akra is a name of the god Indra, and Sakr\u00e1vat\u00e1ra is a sacred\nplace of pilgrimage where he descended upon earth. [S']ach\u00ed is his\nwife, to whom a _Urtha_, or holy bathing-place, was probably\nconsecrated at the place where [S']akoontal\u00e1 had performed her\nablutions. Compare note 14.\n\n83. _The wily Ko\u00efl_.\n\nCompare note 66.\n\n84. _With the discus or mark of empire in the lines of his\nhand_.\n\nWhen the lines of the right hand formed themselves into a circle,\nit was thought to be the mark of a future hero or emperor.\n\n85. _A most refined occupation, certainly!_\n\nSpoken ironically. The occupation of a fisherman, and, indeed, any\noccupation which involved the sin of slaughtering animals, was\nconsidered despicable. Fishermen, butchers, and leather-sellers were\nequally objects of scorn. In Lower Bengal the castes of J\u00e1liy\u00e1s and\nB\u00e1gdis, who live by fishing, etc., are amongst the lowest, and eke\nout a precarious livelihood by thieving and dacoity.\n\n86. _And he should not forsake it_.\n\nThe great Hind\u00fa lawgiver is very peremptory in restricting\nspecial occupations (such as fishing, slaughtering animals,\nbasket-making) to the mixed and lowest castes. 'A man of the\nlowest caste, who, through covetousness, lives by the acts of the\nhighest, let the king strip of all his wealth and banish. His own\nbusiness, though badly performed, is preferable to that of\nanother, though well performed.'--Manu, x. 96. In the later Hind\u00fa\nsystem the sacrifice of animals is practised by the priests of\nthe goddess K\u00e1li only.\n\n87. _Carp_.\n\nThat is, the Rohita, or Rohi (red) fish (_Cyprinus rohita_), a\nkind of carp found in lakes and ponds in the neighbourhood of the\nGanges. It grows to the length of three feet, is very voracious,\nand its flesh, though it often has a muddy taste, is edible. Its\nback is olive-coloured, its belly of a golden hue, its fins and\neyes red. This fish is often caught in tanks in Lower Bengal of\nthe weight of twenty-five or thirty pounds.\n\n88. _I long to begin binding the flowers round his head_.\n\nIt is evident from the M\u00e1lati-M\u00e1dhava, and other plays, that a\nvictim, about to be offered as a sacrifice, had a wreath of\nflowers bound round the head.\n\n89. _The great vernal festival_.\n\nIn celebration of the return of Spring, and said to be in honour\nof Krishna, and of his son K\u00e1ma-deva, the god of love. It is\nidentified with the Hol\u00ed or Dol\u00e1-y\u00e1tra, the Saturnalia, or\nrather, Carnival of the Hind\u00fas, when people of all conditions\ntake liberties with each other, especially by scattering red\npowder and coloured water on the clothes of persons passing in\nthe street, as described in the play called Ratn\u00e1val\u00ed, where the\ncrowd are represented as using syringes and waterpipes. Flowers,\nand especially the opening blossoms of the mango, would naturally\nbe much employed for decoration at this festival, as an offering\nto the god of love. It was formerly held on the full moon of the\nmonth Chaitra, or about the beginning of April, but it is now\ncelebrated on the full moon of Ph\u00e1lguna, or about the beginning\nof March. The other great Hind\u00fa festival, held in the autumn,\nabout October, is called Durg\u00e1-p\u00faj\u00e1, being in honour of the\ngoddess Durg\u00e1. The Hol\u00ed festival is now so disfigured by unseemly\npractices and coarse jests that it is reprobated by the\nrespectable natives, and will probably, in the course of time,\neither die out or be prohibited by legal enactment.\n\n90. _Am not I named after the Ko\u00efl?_\n\nCompare note 66.\n\n91. _Thy fire unerring shafts_.\n\nCompare note 47.\n\n92. _The amaranth_\n\nThat is, the Kuruvaka, either the crimson amaranth, or a purple\nspecies of _Barleria_.\n\n93. _My finger burning with the glow of love_.\n\nHowever offensive to our notions of good taste, it is certain\nthat, in Hind\u00fa erotic poetry, a hot hand is considered to be one\nof the signs of passionate love. Compare Othello, Act III. Scene\n4. 'Give me your hand: this hand is moist, my lady--hot, hot,\nand moist.'\n\n94. _The airy vapours of the desert_.\n\nA kind of mirage floating over waste places, and appearing at a\ndistance like water. Travellers and some animals, especially\ndeer, are supposed to be attracted and deceived by it.\n\n95. _Him\u00e1laya_.\n\nThe name of this celebrated range of mountains is derived from\ntwo Sanskrit words, _hima_, 'ice' or 'snow' (Lat. _hiems_), and\n_\u00e1laya_, 'abode.' The pronunciation Himalaya is incorrect.\n\n96. _As [S']iva did the poison at the Deluge_.\n\nAt the churning of the ocean, after the Deluge, by the gods and\ndemons, for the recovery or production of fourteen sacred things,\na deadly poison called K\u00e1la-k\u00fata, or Hal\u00e1-hala, was generated, so\nvirulent that it would have destroyed the world, had not the god\n[S']iva swallowed it. Its only effect was to leave a dark blue mark\non his throat, whence his name N\u00edla-kantha. This name is also\ngiven to a beautiful bird, not wholly unlike our jay, common in\nBengal.\n\n97. _Palace of clouds_.\n\nThe palace of King Dushyanta, so called because it was lofty as\nthe clouds.\n\n98. _The foreman of a guild belonging to Ayodhy\u00e1_.\n\nThe chief of a guild or corporation of artisans practising the\nsame trade. Ayodhy\u00e1, or the Invincible City, was the ancient\ncapital of R\u00e1machandra, founded by Ikshw\u00e1ku, the first of the\nSolar dynasty. It was situated on the river Sarayu in the north\nof India, and is now called Oude.\n\n99. _My ancestors Must drink these glistening tears, the last\nlibation_.\n\nOblations to the spirits of the deceased are offered by the\nnearest surviving relatives soon after the funeral ceremonies;\nand are repeated once in every year. They are supposed to be\nnecessary to secure the well-being of the souls of the dead in\nthe world appropriated to them. The oblation-ceremony is called\n[S']r\u00e1ddha, and generally consisted in offering balls made of rice\nand milk, or in pouring out water, or water and sesamum-seed\nmixed. These ceremonies are still regarded as essential to the\nwelfare of deceased persons, and their celebration is marked by\nmagnificent feasts, to which relations and a host of Br\u00e1hmans are\ninvited. A native who had grown rich in the time of Warren\nHastings spent nine lakhs of rupees on his mother's [S']r\u00e1ddha; and\nlarge sums are still spent on similar occasions by wealthy Hind\u00fas\n(see my 'Br\u00e1hmanism and Hind\u00faism,' p. 306).\n\n100. _The mother of the great Indra_.\n\nThat is, Adit\u00ed, the wife of Ka[s']yapa, with whom, in their sacred\nretreat, [S']akoontal\u00e1 was enjoying an asylum.\n\n101. _Distinguishes the milk from worthless water_.\n\nThe Hind\u00fas imagine that the flamingo (a kind of goose) is the\nvehicle on which the god Brahm\u00e1 is borne through the air; and\nthat this bird, being fond of the pulpy fibres of the water-lily,\nhas been gifted by him with the power of separating the milky\nfrom the watery portion of the juice contained in the stalk of\nthat plant.\n\n102. _M\u00e1tali_.\n\nThe charioteer of Indra. In the pictures which represent this god\nmounted on his usual vehicle--an elephant called A\u00edr\u00e1vata--M\u00e1tali\nis seen seated before him on the withers of the animal, acting as\nits driver. In the plays, however, Indra is generally represented\nborne in a chariot drawn by two horses, guided by M\u00e1tali.\n\n103. _K\u00e1lanemi_.\n\nA Daitya or demon, with a hundred arms and as many heads.\n\n104. _N\u00e1rada_.\n\nA celebrated divine sage, usually reckoned among the ten\npatriarchs first created by Brahm\u00e1. He acted as a messenger of\nthe gods.\n\n105. _Tinged with celestial sandal from the breast_.\n\nThe breast of Indra was dyed yellow with a fragrant kind of\nsandal-wood (_hari-chandana_); and the garland by rubbing\nagainst it, became tinged with the same color. Wreaths and\ngarlands of flowers are much used by the Hind\u00fas as marks of\nhonorary distinction, as well as for ornament or festive\noccasions. They are suspended round the neck.\n\n106. _The ever-blooming tree of Nandana_.\n\nThat is, Mand\u00e1ra, one of the five ever-blooming trees of Nandana,\nor Swarga, Indra's heaven. The two most celebrated of these trees\nwere the P\u00e1rij\u00e1ta and the Kalpa-druma, or tree granting all\ndesires. Each of the superior Hind\u00fa gods has a heaven, paradise,\nor elysium of his own. That of Brahm\u00e1 is called Brahma-loka,\nsituate on the summit of mount Meru; that of Vishnu is Vaikuntha,\non the Him\u00e1layas; that of [S']iva and Kuvera is Kail\u00e1sa, also on\nthe Him\u00e1layas; that of Indra is Swarga or Nandana. The latter,\nthough properly on the summit of mount Meru, below Brahm\u00e1's\nparadise, is sometimes identified with the sphere of the sky or\nheaven in general. It is the only heaven of orthodox Br\u00e1hmanism.\n\n107. _Jayanta_.\n\nThe son of Indra by his favourite wife Paulom\u00ed or [S']ach\u00ed.\n\n108. _The Lion-man's terrific claws_.\n\nVishnu, in the monstrous shape of a creature half man, half lion\n(his fourth Avat\u00e1r or incarnation), delivered the three worlds,\nthat is to say, Earth, Heaven, and the lower regions, from the\ntyranny of an insolent demon called Hiranya-ka[S']ipu.\n\n109. _We journey in the path of Parivaha_.\n\nThe Hind\u00fas divide the heavens into seven M\u00e1rgas, paths or\norbits, assigning a particular wind to each. The sixth of these\npaths is that of the Great Bear, and its peculiar wind is called\nParivaha. This wind is supposed to bear along the seven stars of\nUrsa Major, and to propel the heavenly Ganges.\n\n110. _The triple Ganges_.\n\nThe Ganges was supposed to take its rise in the toe of Vishnu\n(whence one of its names, Vishnu-pad\u00ed); thence it flowed through\nthe heavenly sphere, being borne along by the wind Parivaha, and\nidentified with the Mand\u00e1kin\u00ed, or Milky Way. Its second course is\nthrough the earth; but the weight of its descent was borne by\n[S']iva's head, whence, after wandering among the tresses of his\nhair, it descended through a chasm in the Him\u00e1layas. Its third\ncourse is through P\u00e1t\u00e1la, or the lower regions, the residence of\nthe Daityas and N\u00e1gas, and not to be confounded with Naraka,\n'hell,' 'the place of punishment.'\n\n111. _He spanned the heavens in his second stride_.\n\nThe story of Vishnu's second stride was this:--An Asura or\nDaitya, named Bali, had, by his devotions, gained the dominion of\nHeaven, Earth, and P\u00e1t\u00e1la. Vishnu undertook to trick him out of\nhis power, and assuming the form of a V\u00e1mana, or dwarf (his fifth\nAvat\u00e1r), he appeared before the giant and begged as a boon as\nmuch land as he could pace in three steps. This was granted; and\nthe god immediately expanded himself till he filled the world;\ndeprived Bali, at the first step, of Earth; at the second, of\nHeaven; but, in consideration of some merit, left P\u00e1t\u00e1la still\nunder his rule.\n\n112. _I see the moisture-loving Ch\u00e1takas_.\n\nThe Ch\u00e1taka is a kind of Cuckoo (_Cuculus Melanoleucus_). The\nHind\u00fas suppose that it drinks only the water of the clouds, and\ntheir poets usually introduce allusions to this bird in connexion\nwith cloudy or rainy weather.\n\n113. _Golden-peak_.\n\nA sacred range of mountains lying among the Him\u00e1laya chain, and\napparently identical with, or immediately adjacent to, Kail\u00e1sa,\nthe paradise of Kuvera, the god of wealth. It is here described\nas the mountain of the Kimpurashas, or servants of Kuvera. They\nare a dwarfish kind of monster, with the body of a man and the\nhead of a horse, and are otherwise called Kinnara.\n\n114. _Ka[s']yapa_.\n\nKa[s']yapa was the son of Brahm\u00e1's son, Mar\u00edchi, and was one of\nthose Patriarchs (created by Brahm\u00e1 to supply the universe with\ninhabitants) who, after fulfilling their mission, retired from\nthe world to practise penance. He was a progenitor on a\nmagnificent scale, as he is considered to have been the father of\nthe gods, demons, man, fish, reptiles, and all animals, by the\nthirteen daughters of Daksha. The eldest of the thirteen, his\nfavourite wife, was Adit\u00ed, from whom were born Indra and all the\ninferior gods, and particularly the twelve \u00c1dityas, or forms of\nthe sun, which represent him in the several months of the year.\nFrom Diti, Danu, and others of the remaining twelve, came the\nDaityas, D\u00e1navas, and other demons.\n\n115. _No sacred cord is twined_.\n\nThe serpent's skin was used by the ascetic in place of the\nregular Br\u00e1hmanical cord. This thread or cord, sometimes called\nthe sacrificial cord, might be made of various substances, such\nas cotton, hempen or woollen thread, according to the class of\nthe wearer; and was worn over the left shoulder and under the\nright. The rite of investiture with this thread, which conferred\nthe title of 'twice-born,' and corresponded in some respects with\nthe Christian rite of baptism, was performed on youths of the\nfirst three classes (compare note 80), at ages varying from eight\nto sixteen, from eleven to twenty-two, and from twelve to\ntwenty-four, respectively. At present the Br\u00e1hmans alone, and\nthose who claim to be Kshatriyas, have a right to wear this\nthread. Not long since, a K\u00e1yath (or man of the writer caste) in\nBengal, who attempted to claim it, was excommunicated.\n\n116. _And birds construct their nests within its folds_.\n\nSuch was the immovable impassiveness of this ascetic, that the\nants had thrown up their mound as high as his waist without being\ndisturbed, and birds had built their nests in his hair.\n\n117. _And need no other nourishment_.\n\nThe Hind\u00fas imagine that living upon air is a proof of the highest\ndegree of spirituality to which a man can attain.\n\n118. _A[s']oka-tree_.\n\nThe A[s']oka (_Jonesia Asoka_) is one of the most beautiful of\nIndian trees. Sir W. Jones observes that 'the vegetable world\nscarce exhibits a richer sight than an A[s']oka-tree in full bloom'.\nIt is about as high as an ordinary cherry-tree. The flowers are\nvery large, and beautifully diversified with tints of\norange-scarlet, of pale yellow, and of bright orange, which form\na variety of shades according to the age of the blossom.\n\n119. _And with his artless smiles Gladdens their hearts_.\n\nCh\u00e9zy is enraptured with this verse: ' ... strophe incomparable,\nque tout p\u00e8re, ou plut\u00f4t toute m\u00e8re, ne pourra lire sans sentir\nbattre son coeur, tant le po\u00e8te a su y rendre, avec les nuances\nles plus d\u00e9licates, l'expression vivante de l'amour maternel.'\nCompare Statius, Theb., book v. line 613.\n\n  'Heu ubi siderei vultus? ubi verba ligatis\n  Imperfecta sonis? risusque et murmura soli\n  Intellecta mihi?'\n\n 120. _It is against propriety to make too minute inquiries\nabout the wife of another man_.\n\nThe Hind\u00fas were very careful to screen their wives from the curiosity\nof strangers; and their great lawgiver, Manu, enjoined that married\nwomen should be cautiously guarded by their husbands in the inner\napartments (_antahpura_) appropriated to women (called by the\nMuhammadans, Haram, and in common parlance, in India _andar-mahall_).\nThe chief duty of a married woman's life seems to have been to keep as\nquiet as possible, to know as little as possible, to hear, see, and\ninquire about nothing; and above all, to avoid being herself the\nsubject of conversation or inquiry; in short, the sole end and object\nof her existence was to act as a good head-servant, yielding to her\nhusband a servile obedience, regulating the affairs of his family,\npreparing his daily food, and superintending his household. (Manu, ix.\n11, 16.) But notwithstanding the social restrictions to which women\nwere subjected, even in the earlier periods of Indian history, it\nseems probable that they were not rigidly excluded from general\nsociety until after the introduction of Muhammadan customs into India.\nIt appears from the plays that they were allowed to go into public on\ncertain occasions; they took part in bridal processions, and were\npermitted to enter the temples of the gods, [S']akoontal\u00e1 appears in\nthe court of King Dushyanta and pleads her own cause; and V\u00e1savadatt\u00e1,\nin the Ratn\u00e1val\u00ed, holds a conversation with her father's envoy. Even\nin later times, the presence of men, other than husbands or sons, in\nthe inner apartments, was far from being prohibited. See Wilson's\nHind\u00fa Theatre, p. xliii.\n\n121. _Her long hair Twined in a single braid_.\n\nHind\u00fa women collect their hair into a single long braid as a sign\nof mourning, when their husbands are dead or absent for a long\nperiod.\n\n122. _Shines forth from dim eclipse_.\n\nThe following is the Hind\u00fa notion of an eclipse:--A certain\ndemon, which had the tail of a dragon, was decapitated by Vishnu\nat the churning of the ocean; but, as he had previously tasted of\nthe Amrit or nectar reproduced at that time, he was thereby\nrendered immortal, and his head and tail, retaining their\nseparate existence, were transferred to the stellar sphere. The\nhead was called R\u00e1hu, and became the cause of eclipses, by\nendeavouring at various times to swallow the sun and moon. So in\nthe Hitopade[s']a, line 192, the moon is said to be eaten by R\u00e1hu.\nWith regard to the love of the Moon for Rohin\u00ed, the fourth lunar\nconstellation, see note 53.\n\n123. _All unadorned_.\n\nThat is, from the absence of colouring or paint.\n\n124. _The power of darkness_.\n\nAccording to Hind\u00fa philosophy there are three qualities or\nproperties which together make up or dominate humanity: 1.\n_Sattwa_, 'excellence' or 'goodness' (quiescence), whence\nproceed truth, knowledge, purity, etc. 2. _Rajas_, 'passion'\n(activity), which produces lust, pride, falsehood, etc., and is\nthe cause of pain. 3. _Tamas_, 'darkness' (inertia), whence\nproceed ignorance, infatuation, delusion, mental blindness, etc.\n\n125. _Children of Brahm\u00e1's sons_.\n\nKa[s']yapa and Adit\u00ed were the children of Mar\u00edchi and Daksha\nrespectively, and these last were the sons of Brahm\u00e1.\n\n126. _The ruler of the triple world_.\n\nThat is, Indra, lord of heaven, earth, and the lower regions.\nCompare notes 110, 113.\n\n127. _Whom Vishnu, greater than the Self-existent_.\n\nVishnu, as N\u00e1r\u00e1yana, or the Supreme Spirit, moved over the waters\nbefore the creation of the world, and from his navel came the lotus\nfrom which Brahm\u00e1, the World's Creator, here called the Self-existent,\nsprang. As Vishnu, the Preserver, he became incarnate in various\nforms; and chose Ka[s']yapa and Adit\u00ed, from whom all human beings\nwere descended, as his medium of incarnation, especially in the Avat\u00e1r\nin which he was called Upendra, 'Indra's younger brother.' Hence it\nappears that the worshippers of Vishnu exalt him above the Creator.\n\n128. _The earth's seven sea-girt isles_.\n\nAccording to the mythical geography of the Hind\u00fas, the earth\nconsisted of seven islands, or rather insular continents,\nsurrounded by seven seas. That inhabited by men was called\nJambudw\u00edpa, and was in the centre, having in the middle of it the\nsacred mountain Meru or Sumeru, a kind of Mount Olympus inhabited\nby the gods. About Jambu flowed the sea of salt-water which\nextends to the second Dw\u00edpa, called Plaksha, which is in its turn\nsurrounded by a sea of sugar-cane juice. And so with the five\nother Dw\u00edpas, viz. S\u00e1lmali, Ku[S']a, Krauncha, [S']\u00e1ka, and Pushkara,\nwhich are severally surrounded by the seas of wine, clarified\nbutter, curds, milk, and fresh water.\n\n129. _Bharata_.\n\nThe name Bharata is derived from the root bhri (fero),'to\nsupport.' Many Indian princes were so named, but the most\ncelebrated was this son of Dushyanta and [S']akoontal\u00e1, who so\nextended his empire that from him the whole of India was called\nBharata-varsha or Bh\u00e1rata-varsha; and whose descendants, the sons\nof Dhritar\u00e1shtra and P\u00e1ndu, by their quarrels, formed the subject\nof the great epic poem called Mah\u00e1-bh\u00e1rata. The Hind\u00fas at the\npresent day continue to call India by the name Bh\u00e1rata-varsha.\n\n180. _The Sage Bharata_.\n\nThe Bharata here intended must not be confounded with the young\nprince. He was a holy sage, the director or manager of the gods'\ndramas, and inventor of theatrical representations in general. He\nwrote a work containing precepts and rules relating to every\nbranch of dramatic writing, which appears to have been lost, but\nis constantly quoted by the commentators. (See p. xxix.)\n\n131. _Saraswat\u00ed_.\n\nShe is the goddess of speech and eloquence, patroness of the arts\nand sciences, and inventress of the Sanskrit language. There is a\nfestival still held in her honour for two days, about February in\nevery year, when no Hind\u00fa will touch a pen or write a letter. The\ncourts are all closed accordingly.\n\n132. _The purple self-existent god_.\n\n[S']iva is usually represented as borne on a bull; his colour, as\nwell as that of the animal he rides, being white, to denote the\npurity of Justice, over which he presides. In his destroying\ncapacity, he is characterized by the quality 'darkness,' and\nnamed Rudra, K\u00e1la, etc., when his colour is said to be purple or\nblack. Some refer the epithet 'purple' to the colour of his\nthroat; compare note 96. Self-existent, although properly a name\nof the Supreme Being (Brahm\u00e1), is applied both to Vishnu and\n[S']iva by their votaries.\n\n134. _Whose vital Energy_.\n\nThat is, [S']iva's wife, P\u00e1rvat\u00ed, who was supposed to personify his\nenergy or active power. Exemption from further transmigration,\nand absorption into the divine soul, was the _summum bonum_ of\nHind\u00fa philosophy. Compare note 37.\n\n135. _By my divine faculty of meditation_.\n\nCelestial beings were endowed with a mental faculty (called\ndhy\u00e1na, pranidh\u00e1na, etc.), which enabled them to arrive at the\nknowledge of present and future events.\n\n136. _A roseate dye wherewith to stain The lady's feet_.\n\nThat is, the soles of her feet. It was customary for Hind\u00fa ladies\nto stain the soles of their feet of a red colour with the dye\nmade from lac--a minute insect bearing some resemblance to the\ncochineal--which punctures the bark of the Indian fig-tree, and\nsurrounds itself with the milky resinous juice of that tree.\nThis custom is a alluded to in one of Paterson's Hind\u00fa odes--\n\n  'The rose that humbly bowed to meet,\n  With glowing lips, her hallowed feet,\n  And lent them all its bloom.'\n\nSee Megha-d\u00fata (Edit. Johnson), p. 32.","title":"Sakoontala; Or, The Lost Ring: An Indian Drama","tradition":"myth-cosmogony","translated_text":null,"word_count":48005}