Chapter 47
“Sauti said, ‘Then Vasuki spake unto the Rishi Jaratkaru these words, ‘Obest of Brahmanas, this maiden is of the same name with thee. She is mysister and hath ascetic merit. I will maintain thy wife; accept her. Othou of ascetic wealth, I shall protect her with all my ability. And, Oforemost of the great Munis, she hath been reared by me for thee.’ Andthe Rishi replied, ‘This is agreed between us that I shall not maintainher; and she shall not do aught that I do not like. If she do, I leaveher!’
“Sauti continued, ‘When the snake had promised, saying, ‘I shall maintainmy sister,’ Jaratkaru then went to the snake’s house. Then that first ofmantra-knowing Brahmanas, observing rigid vows, that virtuous and veteranascetic, took her hand presented to him according to shastric rites. Andtaking his bride with him, adored by the great Rishi, he entered thedelightful chamber set apart for him by the king of the snakes. And inthat chamber was a bed-stead covered with very valuable coverlets. AndJaratkaru lived there with his wife. And the excellent Rishi made anagreement with his wife, saying, ‘Nothing must ever be done or said bythee that is against my liking. And in case of thy doing any such thing,I will leave thee and no longer continue to stay in thy house. Bear inmind these words that have been spoken by me.’
“And then the sister of the king of the snakes in great anxiety andgrieving exceedingly, spoke unto him, saying, ‘Be it so.’ And moved bythe desire of doing good to her relatives, that damsel, of unsulliedreputation, began to attend upon her lord with the wakefulness of a dog,the timidity of a deer, and knowledge of signs possessed by the crow. Andone day, after the menstrual period, the sister of Vasuki, havingpurified herself by a bath according to custom, approached her lord thegreat Muni; And thereupon she conceived. And the embryo was like unto aflame of fire, possessed of great energy, and resplendent as fire itself.And it grew like the moon in the bright fortnight.
“And one day, within a short time, Jaratkaru of great fame, placing hishead on the lap of his wife, slept, looking like one fatigued. And as hewas sleeping, the sun entered his chambers in the Western mountain andwas about to set. And, O Brahmana, as the day was fading, she, theexcellent sister of Vasuki, became thoughtful, fearing the loss of herhusband’s virtue. And she thought, ‘What should I now do? Shall I wake myhusband or not? He is exacting and punctilious in his religious duties.How can I act as not to offend him? The alternatives are his anger andthe loss of virtue of a virtuous man. The loss of virtue, I ween, is thegreater of the two evils. Again, if I wake him, he will be angry. But iftwilight passeth away without his prayers being said, he shall certainlysustain loss of virtue.’
‘And having resolved at last, the sweet-speeched Jaratkaru, the sister ofVasuki, spake softly unto that Rishi resplendent with ascetic penances,and lying prostrate like a flame of fire, ‘O thou of great good fortune,awake, the sun is setting. O thou of rigid vows, O illustrious one, doyour evening prayer after purifying yourself with water and uttering thename of Vishnu. The time for the evening sacrifice hath come. Twilight, Olord, is even now gently covering the western side.’
“The illustrious Jaratkaru of great ascetic merit, thus addressed, spakeunto his wife these words, his upper lip quivering in anger, ‘O amiableone of the Naga race, thou hast insulted me. I shall no longer abide withthee, but shall go where I came from. O thou of beautiful thighs, Ibelieve in my heart that the sun hath no power to set in the usual time,if I am asleep. An insulted person should never live where he hath metwith the insult, far less should I, a virtuous person, or those that arelike me.’ Jaratkaru, the sister of Vasuki, thus addressed by her lord,began to quake with terror, and she spake unto him, saying, ‘O Brahmana,I have not waked thee from desire of insult; but I have done it so thatthy virtue may not sustain any loss.’
“The Rishi Jaratkaru, great in ascetic merit, possessed with anger anddesirous of forsaking his spouse, thus addressed, spake unto his wife,saying, O thou fair one, never have I spoken a falsehood. Therefore, go Ishall. This was also settled between ourselves. O amiable one, I havepassed the time happily with thee. And, O fair one, tell thy brother,when I am gone, that I have left thee. And upon my going away, itbehoveth thee not to grieve for me.’
“Thus addressed Jaratkaru, the fair sister of Vasuki, of faultlessfeatures, filled with anxiety and sorrow, having mustered sufficientcourage and patience, though her heart was still quaking, then spake untoRishi Jaratkaru. Her words were obstructed with tears and her face waspale with fear. And the palms of her hands were joined together, and hereyes were bathed in tears. And she said, ‘It behoveth thee not to leaveme without a fault. Thou treadest over the path of virtue. I too havebeen in the same path, with heart fixed on the good of my relatives. Obest of Brahmanas, the object for which I was bestowed on thee hath notbeen accomplished yet. Unfortunate that I am, what shall Vasuki say untome? O excellent one, the offspring desired of by my relatives afflictedby a mother’s curse, do not yet appear! The welfare of my relativesdependeth on the acquisition of offspring from thee. And in order that myconnection with thee may not be fruitless, O illustrious Brahmana, movedby the desire of doing good to my race do I entreat thee. O excellentone, high-souled thou art; so why shall thou leave me who am faultless?This is what is not just clear to me.’
“Thus addressed, the Muni of great ascetic merit spake unto his wifeJaratkaru these words that were proper and suitable to the occasion. Andhe said, ‘O fortunate one, the being thou hast conceived, even like untoAgni himself is a Rishi of soul highly virtuous, and a master of theVedas and their branches.’
“Having said so, the great Rishi, Jaratkaru of virtuous soul, went away,his heart firmly fixed on practising again the severest penances.'”
