At this time Love-cluster, anointed with cooling sandal, and clad in
thin garments stood at her lattice-window. And she saw a handsome youth
with a friend whom he trusted. He seemed the god of love born anew and
seeking his bride. He was the son of the king's priest, and his name
was Lotus-lake.
And when Lotus-lake saw the lovely girl, he expanded with delight as
lotuses in a lake expand at the sight of the moon. When the two young
people saw each other, their hearts embraced each other at the bidding
of Love, their teacher.
So Lotus-lake was smitten with love, and was led home with difficulty
by his friend. And Love-cluster was equally maddened by love. First she
learned from her friend his name and home, then slowly withdrew to her
room. There she thought of him and became feverish with love, simply
tossing on her couch, seeing nothing and hearing nothing.
After two or three days spent in this way, she felt bashful and
fearful, pale and thin from the separation, and hopeless of union with
her lover. So, as if drawn on by the moonbeam which shone through her
window, she went out at night when her people were asleep, determined
to die. And she came to a pool under a tree in her garden.
There stood a family image of the goddess Gauri, set up by her father.
She drew near to this image, bowed before the goddess, praised her, and
said: "O Goddess, since I could not have Lotus-lake as my husband in
this life, may he be my husband in some other life!" And she made a
noose of her garment, and tied it to the ashoka tree before the goddess.
At that moment her trusty friend awoke, and not finding her in the
room, hunted about and came luckily into the garden. There she saw the
girl fastening the noose about her neck, and she cried, "No, no!" And
running up, she cut the noose.
When Love-cluster saw that it was her own friend who had run up and
taken the noose away, she fell to the ground in great agony. But her
friend comforted her and asked the reason of her sorrow. Then she arose
and said: "Jasmine, my friend, I cannot be united with him I love. I am
dependent on my father and other people. Death is the happiest thing
for me."
And as she spoke, she was terribly scorched by the fiery darts of love,
and determined to feel no more hope, and fainted. And her friend
Jasmine lamented: "Alas! Love is a hard master. It has reduced her to
this condition." But she gradually brought her back to life with cool
water and fans and things. She made an easy bed of lotus-leaves. She
put pearls cool as snow on her heart.
Then Love-cluster came to herself and slowly said to her weeping
friend: "My dear, the fire within me cannot be quenched by such things
as pearls. If you want to save my life, be clever enough to bring my
lover to me."
And the loving Jasmine said: "My dear, the night is almost over. In the
morning I will bring your lover here to meet you. Be brave and go now
to your room."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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