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25KingMahabalHisQueenAndDaughter
Somdev Bhatt 11th Century. Original in
Sanskrit.
English Translation: C. A. KINCAID, c. v. o.
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| Background. "Vikram Aur
Betaal" is a series of enchanting tales derived from the
11th-century work 'Betaal Pachisi' by Kashmiri poet Somdev Bhatt. The
narrative follows the wise and adventurous King Vikramaditya of Ujjain.
When a mendicant consistently gifts him fruits containing rubies, the
king's curiosity is piqued. Meeting the mendicant under specific, eerie
conditions, Vikramaditya learns of a task only he can perform: to
retrieve a corpse, Betaal, from an ancient tree for the mendicant's
mystical rituals. As King Vikramaditya carries the corpse, Betaal's spirit tells him tales, concluding each with a riddle. If Vikramaditya knows the answer but stays silent, his head will shatter. But answering breaks his vow, and Betaal returns to the tree, making the king restart his mission. After 25 stories, Betaal reveals the mendicant's ulterior motive: to gain unparalleled powers by sacrificing the king. Forewarned by Betaal, Vikramaditya confronts the mendicant and, through his wit, triumphs over the deceitful ascetic. |
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THE TWENTY-FIFTH TALE
KING MAHABAL, HIS QUEEN AND DAUGHTER
ONCE upon a time there ruled in the town of Dharmapur in the Deccan a
king called Mahabal. It so happened that his enemies gathered a great
army and besieged the capital. For some time King Mahabal resisted
gallantly. But one night when half his army had deserted, and the other
half were dead, he fled with his wife and daughter into the forest.
After they had walked some miles, day dawned. The king left his wife and
daughter and went into a village to buy food. As he went, a body of
Bhils attacked him. But the king was a brave man and began to shoot at
them with his bow and arrows. They in turn began to shoot at him.
After the king had killed several Bhils, one of their arrows entered his
forehead. He fell down unconscious. Thereupon a base born Bhil rushed up
and cut off his head. When the queen and the princess learnt what had
befallen the king, they began to weep and beat their breasts. They
walked on for several miles. Then too weary to walk farther, they sat
down and began to lament bitterly.
It so chanced that a certain King Chandrasen and his son had gone out
hunting. In their chase they came to this forest and saw the tracks of
the two women. The king said, "How come these
King Mahabal, his Queen & Daughter 149
men's tracks in so wild a spot?" His son answered, "They are women's not
men's tracks. Men do not have such small feet". The king replied, "You
are right. The footprints are too small to be men's". The prince said,
"Only two women have come along this path". The king then said, "Come
along then, let us hunt them out. If we find them, you shall marry the
woman who made the big footprints, and I shall marry the one who made
the small footprints". The prince agreed. After a short search, they
found the queen and the princess. All parties were delighted to meet.
The king and the prince lifted the queen and the princess upon their
horses and, as they had agreed, the king married the princess and the
prince married the queen. At this point the oilman's son said, "King
Vikrama, tell me what relation to each other were the children of the
two marriages. The king was utterly nonplussed and could make no answer.
The oilman's son was pleased and said, "O king, I have seen your courage
and I am pleased with you. Now listen to me. That Shantashil who
came to your city with his hairs all standing out like thorns and his
body as dry as an old stick, that Shantashil who sent you to bring me to
him and who is now sitting and repeating incantations in the burning
ground, he seeks to kill you. Now I warn you that when he has
finished his horrible rites, he will say to you, "O king, you should
prostrate yourself before the god". You must then answer, "I have never
yet prostrated myself before
150 Tales of King Vikrama
anyone. I do not know how to do
it, therefore, be so kind as to show me how?" He will then show you and
as he does so, cut his head off with a single swordblow. If you do, you
will rule for ever. But if you do not, he will kill you and will rule
for ever in your stead." When the oilman's son had said this, his
ghost left the dead body. The king took it to the anchorite who was
very pleased to see it and praised the king warmly. Then saying spells
all the time he stretched it out at full length. Next he lit a sacred
fire and seating himself with his face
to the south offered to the *god incense, flowers, ghee, a lighted lamp,
rice, fruits and betel nut.
When the ceremony was over, he said, " O king, prostrate yourself
before the god. If you do, your glory and your valor will grow until the
eight magical powers and the nine treasures of Kuber will abide in your
palace". But the king remembered what the oilman's son had told him.
With clasped hands and in very humble tones he said to the anchorite,
"Reverend sir, I do not know how to prostrate myself before the deity.
You are my spiritual teacher. Be so gracious as to show me". The
anchorite bent down to show the king. Directly he bent down, the king
struck him such a blow with his sword that his head fell off his body.
Directly afterwards the ghost of the oilman's son appeared and scattered
flowers over the king. It is written in the sacred books that it is
no * The god was presumably Shiva.
King Mahabal, his Queen & Daughter 151
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