SECTION –LXIII
(Nalopakhyana Parva Continued)
Vrihadaswa said, "O king, after Nala had
gone away, the beauteous Damayanti, now refreshed, timorously awoke in that
lonely forest. And O mighty monarch, not finding her lord Naishadha, afflicted
with grief and pain, she shrieked aloud in fright, saying, 'O lord? O mighty
monarch! O husband, dost thou desert me? Oh, I am lost and undone, frightened
in this desolate place. O illustrious prince, thou art truthful in speech, and
conversant with morality. How hast thou then, having pledged thy word, deserted
me asleep in the woods? Oh, why hast thou deserted thy accomplished wife, even
devoted to thee, particularly one that hath not wronged thee, though wronged
thou hast been by others? O king of men, it behoveth thee to act faithfull,
according to those words thou hadst spoken unto me before in the presence of
the guardians of the worlds. O bull among men, that thy wife liveth even a
moment after thy desertion of her, is only because mortals are decreed to die
at the appointed time. O bull among men, enough of this joke! O irrepressible
one, I am terribly frightened. O lord, show thyself. I see thee! I see thee, o
king! Thou art seen, O Naishadha, Hiding thyself behind those shrubs, why dost
thou not reply unto me? It is cruel of thee, O great king, that seeing me in
this plight and so lamenting, thou dost not, O king, approach and comfort me. I
grieve not for myself, nor for anything else. I only grieve to think how thou
wilt pass thy days alone, O king. In the evening oppressed with hunger and
thirst and fatigue, underneath the trees, how wilt it take with thee when thou
seest me not?' And then Damayanti, afflicted with anguish and burning with
grief, began to rush hither and thither, weeping in woe. And now the helpless
princess sprang up, and now she sank down in stupor; and now she shrank in
terror, and now she wept and wailed aloud. And Bhima's daughter devoted to her
husband, burning in anguish and sighing ever more, and faint and weeping
exclaimed, 'That being through whose imprecation the afflicted Naishadha
suffereth this woe, shall bear grief that is greater than ours. May that wicked
being who hath brought Nala of sinless heart this, lead a more miserable life
bearing greater ills.'
"Thus lamenting, the crowned consort of the
illustrious (king) began to seek her lord in those woods, inhabited by beasts
of prey. And the daughter of Bhima, wailing bitterly, wandered hither and
thither like a maniac, exclaiming, 'Alas! Alas! Oh king!' And as she was
wailing loudly like a female osprey, and grieving and indulging in piteous
lamentations unceasingly, she came near a gigantic serpent. And that huge and
hungry serpent thereupon suddenly seized Bhima's daughter, who had come near and
was moving about within its range. And folded within serpent's coils and filled
with grief, she still wept, not for herself but for Naishadha. And she said 'O
lord, why dost thou not rush towards me, now that I am seized, without anybody
to protect me, by this serpent in these desert wilds? And, O Naishadha, how
will it fare with thee when thou rememberest me? O lord, why hast thou gone
away, deserting me today in the forest? Free from thy course, when thou wilt
have regained thy mind and senses and wealth, how will it be with thee when
thou thinkest of me? O Naishadha, O sinless one, who will soothe thee when thou
art weary, and hungry, and fainting, O tiger among kings?' And while she was
wailing thus, a certain huntsman ranging the deep woods, hearing her
lamentations, swiftly came to the spot. And beholding the large-eyed one in the
coils of the serpent, he rushed towards it and cut off its head with his sharp
weapon. And having struck the reptile dead, the huntsman set Damayanti free.
And having sprinkled her body with water and fed and comforted her. O Bharata,
he addressed her saying, 'O thou with eyes like those of a young gazelle, who
art thou? And why also hast thou come into the woods? And, O beauteous one, how
hast thou fallen into this extreme misery' And thus accosted, O monarch, by
that man, Damayanti, O Bharata, related unto him all that had happened. And
beholding that beautiful woman clad in half a garment, with deep bosom and
round hips, and limbs delicate and faultless, and face resembling the full
moon, and eyes graced with curved eye-lashes, and speech sweet as honey, the
hunter became inflamed with desire. And afflicted by the god of love, the
huntsman began to soothe her in winning voice and soft words. And as soon as
the chaste and beauteous Damayanti, beholding him understood his intentions,
she was filled with fierce wrath and seemed to blaze up in anger. But the
wicked-minded wretch, burning with desire became wroth, attempted to employ
force upon her, who was unconquerable as a flame of blazing fire. And Damayanti
already distressed upon being deprived of husband and kingdom, in that hour of
grief beyond utterance, cursed him in anger, saying, 'I have never even thought
of any other person than Naishadha, therefore let this mean-minded wrath
subsisting on chase, fall down lifeless.' And as soon as she said this, the
hunter fell down lifeless upon the ground, like a tree consumed by fire."
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