The Kathá Sarit Ságara; or, Ocean of the Streams of StorySomadeva Bhatta, active 11th century
General
The Kathá Sarit Ságara; or, Ocean of the Streams of Story
Somadeva Bhatta, active 11th century
Folk literature -- Themes, motives; Hindu mythology; India -- Social life and customs; Tales -- India
the king quickly summoned Harisarman on account of his reputation for
supernatural knowledge. And he, when summoned, tried to gain time, and
said "I will tell you to-morrow," and then he was placed in a chamber
by the king, and carefully guarded. And he was despondent about his
pretended knowledge. [478] Now in that palace there was a maid named
Jihvá, [479] who, with the assistance of her brother had carried off
that wealth from the interior of the palace: she, being alarmed at
Harisarman's knowledge, went at night and applied her ear to the door
of that chamber in order to find out what he was about. And Harisarman,
who was alone inside, was at that very moment blaming his own tongue,
that had made a vain assumption of knowledge. He said--"O Tongue, what
is this that you have done, through desire of enjoyment? Ill-conducted
one, endure now punishment in this place." When Jihvá heard this, she
thought in her terror, that she had been discovered by this wise man,
and by an artifice she managed to get in where he was, and falling
at his feet, she said to that supposed sage;--"Bráhman, here I am,
that Jihvá whom you have discovered to be the thief of the wealth,
and after I took it, I buried it in the earth in a garden behind
the palace, under a pomegranate tree. So spare me, and receive the
small quantity of gold which is in my possession." When Harisarman
heard that, he said to her proudly, "Depart, I know all this; I
know the past, present and future: but I will not denounce you,
being a miserable creature that has implored my protection. But
whatever gold is in your possession you must give back to me." When
he said this to the maid, she consented and departed quickly. But
Harisarman reflected in his astonishment; "Fate, if propitious,
brings about, as if in sport, a thing that cannot be accomplished,
for in this matter when calamity was near, success has unexpectedly
been attained by me. While I was blaming my tongue (jihvá), the thief
Jihvá suddenly flung herself at my feet. Secret crimes I see, manifest
themselves by means of fear." In these reflections he passed the night
happily in the chamber. And in the morning he brought the king by some
skilful parade of pretended knowledge into the garden, and led him up
to the treasure, which was buried there and he said that the thief had
escaped with a part of it. Then the king was pleased and proceeded to
give him villages. But the minister, named Devajnánin, whispered in the
king's ear, "How can a man possess such knowledge unattainable by men,
without having studied treatises; so you may be certain that this is
a specimen of the way he makes a dishonest livelihood, by having a
secret intelligence with thieves. So it will be better to test him
by some new artifice." Then the king of his own accord brought a new
covered pitcher into which he had thrown a frog, and said to that
Harisarman--"Bráhman, if you can guess what there is in this pitcher,
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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