Story of the two princesses.
There is a dvípa named Kaṭáha, the home of all felicities. In it there is a king rightly named Guṇaságara.[9] He had born to him by his principal queen a daughter named Guṇavatí, who by her beauty produced astonishment even in the Creator who made her. And holy seers announced that she should have for a husband the lord of the seven dvípas; whereupon her father the king deliberated with his counsellors; and came to this conclusion, “King Vikramáditya is a suitable husband for my daughter; so I will send her to marry him.”
Accordingly, the king made his daughter embark in a ship on the sea, with her retinue and wealth, and sent her off. But it so happened that when the ship came near Suvarṇadvípa, it was swallowed, with the princess and the people on board, by a large fish. But that monstrous fish was carried by the current of the sea as if by the course of Destiny, and thrown up on a coast near that dvípa, and there stranded. And the people of the neighbourhood, the moment they saw it, ran with many weapons in their hands, and killed that marvellous fish, and cut open its belly.[10] And then there came out of it that great ship full of people; and when the king of that dvípa heard of it, he came there greatly wondering. And that king, whose name was Chandraśekhara, and who was the brother-in-law of king Guṇaságara, heard the whole story from the people in the ship. Then the king, finding that Guṇavatí was the daughter of his sister, took her into his palace, and out of joy celebrated a feast. And the next day that king put on board a ship in a lucky moment his daughter Chandravatí, whom he had long intended to give to king Vikramáditya, with that Guṇavatí, and sent her off with much magnificence as a gift to that sovereign.
These two princesses, having crossed the sea, by advancing gradually, have at length arrived here; and we are their attendants. And when we reached this place, a very large boar and a very large elephant rushed upon us; then, king, we uttered this cry, “These maidens have come to offer themselves for wives to king Vikramáditya: so preserve them for him, ye Guardians of the World, as is meet.” When the boar and the elephant heard this, they said to us with articulate speech, “Be of good courage! the mere mention of that king’s name ensures your safety. And you shall see him arrive here in a moment.” When the boar and the elephant, who were, no doubt, some heavenly beings or other, had said this, they went away.
“This is our story,” said the chamberlain, and then, queen, I said to them, “And this is the king you seek.” Then they fell at the king’s feet rejoicing, and made over to him those two princesses Guṇavatí and Chandravatí. And the king gave orders to the Vetála and had those two fair ones also taken to his queen, saying, “Let all three travel with Madanasundarí.”
The Vetála returned immediately, and then, queen, the king went with him and myself by an out-of-the-way path. And as we were going along in the forest, the sun set; and just at that time we heard there the sound of a drum. The king asked, “Whence comes this sound of a drum?” The Vetála answered him, “King, there is a temple here. It is a marvel of heavenly skill, having been built by Viśvakarman; and this beating of the drum is to announce the commencement of the evening spectacle.”
When the Vetála had said this, he and the king and I went there out of curiosity, and after we had tied up the horse, we entered. And we saw worshipped there a great linga of tárkshyaratna[11] and in front of it a spectacle with blazing lights. And there danced there for a long time three nymphs of celestial beauty, in four kinds of measures, accompanied with music and singing. And at the end of the spectacle we beheld a wonder, for the dancing nymphs disappeared in the figures carved on the pillars of the temple: and in the same way the singers and players went into the figures of men painted on the walls. When the king saw this, he was astonished, but the Vetála said to him, “Such is this heavenly enchantment produced by Viśvakarman, lasting for ever, for this will always take place at both twilights.”
When he had said this, we wandered about in the temple, and saw in one place a female figure on a pillar, of extraordinary beauty. When the king saw her, he was bewildered by her beauty, and remained for a moment absent-minded and motionless, so that he himself was like a figure cut on a pillar. And he exclaimed, “If I do not see a living woman like this figure, of what profit to me is my kingdom or my life?” When the Vetála heard this, he said, “Your wish is not hard to gratify, for the king of Kalinga has a daughter named Kalingasená, and a sculptor of Vardhamána seeing her, and being desirous of representing her beauty, carved this figure in imitation of her.[12] So return to Ujjayiní, king, and ask that king of Kalinga for his daughter, or carry her off by force.” This speech of the Vetála’s the king laid up in his heart.
Then we spent that night there, and the next morning we set out, and we saw two handsome men under an aśoka-tree, and then they rose up and bowed before the king. Then the king said to them, “Who are you, and why are you in the forest?” One of them answered, “Listen, king, I will tell you the whole story.”