The Girl who transposed the Heads of her Husband and Brother. Which combination of head and body is her husband?
Then the king went
back to the sissoo tree, put the goblin on his shoulder as before, and started
in silence toward the monk. And the goblin said to him: "O King, you are
wise and good, so I am pleased with you. To amuse you, therefore, I will tell
you another story with a puzzle in it. Listen."
Long ago there was a king named YashaKetu
in the world. His city was named Shobhavati. And in this city was a splendid
temple to the goddess Gauri. And to the right of the temple was a lake called Gauri
Tirtha. And on a certain day in each year a great crowd of people came there on
a pilgrimage from all directions to bathe.
One day a
laundryman named Dhavala came there from another village to bathe. And the
youth saw a maiden who had also come there to bathe. Her name was Akshaya, and
her father's name was Shuddapada. She robbed the moon of its beauty and White
of his heart. So he inquired about her name and family and went home lovesick.
When he got there,
he was ill and could not eat without her. And when his mother asked him, he
told her what was in his heart, but did not change his habits. But she went and
told her husband, whose name was Vimalakhyaya.
So Vimalakhyaya went
and saw how his son was acting, and said: "My son, why should you be
downcast? Your desire is not hard to obtain. For if I ask Shuddapada, he will
surely give you his daughter. We are not inferior to him in birth, wealth, or
social position. I know him and he knows me. So there is no difficulty about
it." Thus Vimalakhyaya comforted his son, made him eat and take care of
himself, went with him the next day to Shuddapada’s house, and asked that the
girl might be given to his son Dhavala. And Shuddapada graciously promised to
give her to him.
Then when the time
came, Shuddapada gave Dhavala his charming daughter, a wife worthy of him. And
when he was married, Dhavala went happily to his father's house with his sweet
bride.
Now as he lived
there happily, Akshaya's brother came to visit. And when they had all asked him
about his health and his sister had greeted him with a kiss, and after he had
rested, he said: "My father sent me to invite Akshaya and Dhavala to a
festival in our house." And all the relatives said it was a good plan and
entertained him that day with appropriate things to drink and eat.
The next morning Dhavala
set out for his father-in-law's house, together with his brother-in-law and Akshaya.
And when he came to the city Shobhavati, he saw the great temple of Gauri
And when he had
worshipped her, an idea suddenly came to him. "People honour this goddess
with all kinds of living sacrifices. Why should I not win her favour by
sacrificing myself?" And he fetched a sword from a deserted inner room,
cut off his own head, and let it fall on the floor.
Presently his
brother-in-law entered the temple to see why he delayed so long. And when he
saw his brother-in-law with his head cut off, he went mad with grief, and cut
off his own head in the same way with the same sword.
Then when he
failed to come out, Akshaya was alarmed and entered the temple. And when she
saw her husband and her brother in that condition, she cried: "Alas! This
is the end of me!" and fell weeping to the floor. But presently she rose,
lamenting for the pair so unexpectantly dead, and thought: "What is my
life good for now?"
Before killing
herself, she prayed to the goddess: "O Goddess! One only deity of
happiness and character! Partaker of the life of Shiva! Refuge of all
women-folk! Destroyer of grief! Why have you killed my husband and my brother
at one fell swoop? It was not right, for I was always devoted to you. Then be
my refuge when I pray to you, and hear my one pitiful prayer. I shall leave
this wretched body of mine on this spot, but in every future life of mine, O
Goddess, may I have the same husband and brother." Thus she prayed,
praised, and worshipped the goddess, then tied a rope to an ashoka tree which
grew there.
But while she was
arranging the rope about her neck, a voice from heaven cried: "Do nothing
rash, my daughter. Leave the rope alone. Though you are young, I am pleased
with your unusual goodness. Place the two heads on the two bodies and they
shall rise up again and live through my favour."
So Akshaya left
the rope alone and joyfully went to the bodies. But in her great hurry and
confusion she made a mistake. She put her husband's head on her brother's body
and her brother's head on her husband's body. Then they arose, sound and well,
like men awaking from a dream. And they were all delighted to hear one
another's adventures, worshipped the goddess, and went on their way.
Now as she walked
along, Akshaya noticed that she had made a mistake in their heads. And she was
troubled and did not know what to do.
When the goblin had told this story, he
asked the king: "O King, when they were mingled in this way, which should
be her husband? If you know and do not tell, then the curse I spoke of will be
fulfilled."
And the king said
to the goblin: "The body with the husband's head on it is her husband. For
the head is the most important member. It is by the head that we recognize
people."
Then the goblin
slipped from the king's shoulder as before, and quickly disappeared. And the
king went back, determined to catch him.
To be continued...
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