Story of the brave King Vikramatunga
Chapter 35, Book 7, Kathaa-Sarit-Saagara
There is a city called Pataliputra, the ornament of the earth, filled with various beautiful jewels, the colours of which are so disposed as to form a perfect scale of colour. In that city there dwelt long ago a brave king, named Vikramatunga, who in giving* never turned his back on a suppliant, nor in fighting on an enemy. That king one day entered the forest to hunt, and saw there a Brahman offering a sacrifice with vilwa fruits. When he saw him, he was desirous to question him, but avoided going near him, and went off to a great distance with his army in his ardour for the chase. For a long time he sported with deer and lions, that rose up and fell slain by his hand, as if with foes, and then he returned and beheld the Brahman still intent on his sacrifice as before, and going up to him he bowed before him, and asked him his name and the advantage he hoped to derive from offering the vilva fruits.
Then the Brahman blessed the king and said to him, "I am a Brahman named Nagasarman, and hear the fruit I hope from my sacrifice. When the god of Fire is pleased with this vilva sacrifice, then vilva fruits of gold will come out of the fire-cavity. Then the god of Fire will appear in bodily form and grant me a boon ; and so I have spent much time in offering vilva fruits. But so little is my merit that even now the god of Fire is not propitiated." When he said this, that king of resolute valour answered him "Then give me one vilva fruit that I may offer it, and I will to-day, Brahman, render the god of Fire propitious to you." Then the Brahman said to the king, "How will you, unchastened and impure, propitiate that god of Fire, who is not satisfied with me, who remain thus faithful to my vow, and am chastened ?" When the Brahman said this to him, the king said to him again, "Never mind, give me a vilva fruit, and in a moment you shall behold a wonder." Then the Brahman, full of curiosity, gave a vilva fruit to the king, and he then and there meditated with soul of firm valour "If thou art not satisfied with this vilva fruit, god of Fire, then I will offer thee my own head," and thereupon offered the fruit. And the seven-rayed god appeared from the sacrificial cavity, bringing the king a golden vilva fruit as the fruit of his tree of valour. And the Fire-god, present in visible form, said to that king "I am pleased with thy courage, so receive a boon, king." When the magnanimous king heard that, he bowed before him and said " Grant this Brahman his wish. What other boon do I require?" On hearing this speech of the king's, the Fire-god was much pleased and said to him "O king, this Brahman shall become a great lord of wealth, and thou also by my favour shalt have the prosperity of thy treasury ever undiminished." When the Fire-god had, in these words, bestowed the boon, the Brahman asked him this question; "Thou hast appeared swiftly to a king that acts according to his own will, but not to me that am under vows : why is this, O revered one ?" Then the Fire-god, the giver of boons, answered "If I had not granted him an interview, this king of fierce courage would have offered his head in sacrifice to me. In this world successes quickly befall those of fierce spirit, but they come slowly, Brahman, to those of dull spirit like thee." Thus spake the god of Fire, and vanished, and the Brahman Nagasarman took leave of the king and in course of time became very rich. But the king Vikramatunga, whose courage had been thus seen by his dependents, returned amid their plaudits to his town of Pataliputra.
When the king was dwelling there, the warder S'atrunjaya entered suddenly one day, and said secretly to him; " There is standing at the door, O king, a Brahman lad, who says his name is Dattasarman, he wishes to make a representation to you in private." The king gave the order to introduce him, and the lad was introduced, and after blessing the king, he bowed before him, and sat down. And he made this representation "King, by a certain device of powder I know how to make always excellent gold out of copper. For that device was shewn me by my spiritual teacher, and I saw with my own eyes that he made gold by that device. "When the lad said this, the king ordered copper to be brought, and when it was melted, the lad threw the powder upon it. But while the powder was being thrown, an invisible Yaksha carried it off, and the king alone saw him, having propitiated the god of Fire. And that copper did not turn into gold, as the powder did not reach it ; thrice did the lad make the attempt and thrice his labour was in vain. Then the king, first of brave men, took the powder from the desponding lad, and himself threw it on the melted copper ; when he threw the powder, the Yaksha did not intercept it, but went away smiling. Accordingly the copper became gold by contact with that powder. Then the boy, astonished, asked the king for an explanation, and the king told him the incident of the Yaksha, just as he had seen it. And having learned in this way the device of the powder from that lad, the king made him marry a wife, and gave him all he wished, and having his treasury prosperously filled by means of the gold produced by that device, he himself enjoyed great happiness together with his wives, and made Brahmans rich.
"Thus you see that the Lord grants their desires to men of fierce courage, seeming to be either terrified or pleased by them.....
Chapter 35, Book 7, Kathaa-Sarit-Saagara
There is a city called Pataliputra, the ornament of the earth, filled with various beautiful jewels, the colours of which are so disposed as to form a perfect scale of colour. In that city there dwelt long ago a brave king, named Vikramatunga, who in giving* never turned his back on a suppliant, nor in fighting on an enemy. That king one day entered the forest to hunt, and saw there a Brahman offering a sacrifice with vilwa fruits. When he saw him, he was desirous to question him, but avoided going near him, and went off to a great distance with his army in his ardour for the chase. For a long time he sported with deer and lions, that rose up and fell slain by his hand, as if with foes, and then he returned and beheld the Brahman still intent on his sacrifice as before, and going up to him he bowed before him, and asked him his name and the advantage he hoped to derive from offering the vilva fruits.
Then the Brahman blessed the king and said to him, "I am a Brahman named Nagasarman, and hear the fruit I hope from my sacrifice. When the god of Fire is pleased with this vilva sacrifice, then vilva fruits of gold will come out of the fire-cavity. Then the god of Fire will appear in bodily form and grant me a boon ; and so I have spent much time in offering vilva fruits. But so little is my merit that even now the god of Fire is not propitiated." When he said this, that king of resolute valour answered him "Then give me one vilva fruit that I may offer it, and I will to-day, Brahman, render the god of Fire propitious to you." Then the Brahman said to the king, "How will you, unchastened and impure, propitiate that god of Fire, who is not satisfied with me, who remain thus faithful to my vow, and am chastened ?" When the Brahman said this to him, the king said to him again, "Never mind, give me a vilva fruit, and in a moment you shall behold a wonder." Then the Brahman, full of curiosity, gave a vilva fruit to the king, and he then and there meditated with soul of firm valour "If thou art not satisfied with this vilva fruit, god of Fire, then I will offer thee my own head," and thereupon offered the fruit. And the seven-rayed god appeared from the sacrificial cavity, bringing the king a golden vilva fruit as the fruit of his tree of valour. And the Fire-god, present in visible form, said to that king "I am pleased with thy courage, so receive a boon, king." When the magnanimous king heard that, he bowed before him and said " Grant this Brahman his wish. What other boon do I require?" On hearing this speech of the king's, the Fire-god was much pleased and said to him "O king, this Brahman shall become a great lord of wealth, and thou also by my favour shalt have the prosperity of thy treasury ever undiminished." When the Fire-god had, in these words, bestowed the boon, the Brahman asked him this question; "Thou hast appeared swiftly to a king that acts according to his own will, but not to me that am under vows : why is this, O revered one ?" Then the Fire-god, the giver of boons, answered "If I had not granted him an interview, this king of fierce courage would have offered his head in sacrifice to me. In this world successes quickly befall those of fierce spirit, but they come slowly, Brahman, to those of dull spirit like thee." Thus spake the god of Fire, and vanished, and the Brahman Nagasarman took leave of the king and in course of time became very rich. But the king Vikramatunga, whose courage had been thus seen by his dependents, returned amid their plaudits to his town of Pataliputra.
When the king was dwelling there, the warder S'atrunjaya entered suddenly one day, and said secretly to him; " There is standing at the door, O king, a Brahman lad, who says his name is Dattasarman, he wishes to make a representation to you in private." The king gave the order to introduce him, and the lad was introduced, and after blessing the king, he bowed before him, and sat down. And he made this representation "King, by a certain device of powder I know how to make always excellent gold out of copper. For that device was shewn me by my spiritual teacher, and I saw with my own eyes that he made gold by that device. "When the lad said this, the king ordered copper to be brought, and when it was melted, the lad threw the powder upon it. But while the powder was being thrown, an invisible Yaksha carried it off, and the king alone saw him, having propitiated the god of Fire. And that copper did not turn into gold, as the powder did not reach it ; thrice did the lad make the attempt and thrice his labour was in vain. Then the king, first of brave men, took the powder from the desponding lad, and himself threw it on the melted copper ; when he threw the powder, the Yaksha did not intercept it, but went away smiling. Accordingly the copper became gold by contact with that powder. Then the boy, astonished, asked the king for an explanation, and the king told him the incident of the Yaksha, just as he had seen it. And having learned in this way the device of the powder from that lad, the king made him marry a wife, and gave him all he wished, and having his treasury prosperously filled by means of the gold produced by that device, he himself enjoyed great happiness together with his wives, and made Brahmans rich.
"Thus you see that the Lord grants their desires to men of fierce courage, seeming to be either terrified or pleased by them.....
