Mystery & Suspense - Daily Short Stories

A Man-hating Maiden

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Duration:: 17m
Broadcast on:: 30 Jun 2024
Audio Format:: mp3

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Join our community of passionate listeners and unlock a world of knowledge, relaxation, and inspiration. Visit soulgoodmedia.com today and start your free trial. That's S-O-L-G-O-O-D-M-E-D-I-A.com. (dramatic music) - A man-hating maiden. The ever-worthy and famous King Vikramaditya had a painter named Nagarasvaman who enjoyed the revenues of a hundred villages and surpassed this Vikraman. That painter used every two or three days to paint a picture of a girl and give it as a present to the king, taking care to exemplify different types of beauty. Now, once on a time, it happened that the painter had, because a feast was going on, forgotten to paint the required girl for the king. And when the day for giving the present arrived, the painter remembered and was bewildered, saying to himself, "Alas, what can I give to the king?" And at that moment, a traveler come from afar, suddenly approached him and placed a book in his hand and went off somewhere quickly. The painter out of curiosity opened the book and saw within a picture of a girl on canvas. Inasmuch as the girl was of wonderful beauty, no sooner did he see her picture than he took it and gave it to the king, rejoicing that, so far from having no picture to present that day, he had obtained such an exceedingly beautiful one. But the king, as soon as he saw it, was astonished and said to him, "My good fellow, this is not your painting. "This is the painting of Visvakarman. "For how could a mere mortal be skillful enough "to paint such beauty?" When the painter heard this, he told the king exactly what had taken place. Then the king kept ever looking at the picture of the girl and never took his eyes off it. And one night he saw in a dream a girl exactly like her but in another land. But as he eagerly rushed to embrace her, who was eager to meet him, the night came to an end and he was woke up by the watchman. When the king awoke, he was so angry at the interruption of his delightful interview with that maiden that he banished that watchman from the city. And he said to himself, "To think that a traveler should bring a book "and that in it there should be the painted figure "of a girl and that I should in a dream "behold this same girl apparently alive. "All this elaborate dispensation of destiny "makes me think that she must be a real maiden. "But I do not know in what land she lives. "How am I to obtain her? "Full of such reflections. "The king to a pleasure in nothing "and burned with the fever of love "so that his attendants were full of anxiety. "And the water, Badra Yuda, asked the afflicted king "in private the cause of his grief, "whereupon he spoke as follows. "Listen, I will tell you my friend. "So much at any rate you know "that that a painter gave me the picture of a girl "and I fell asleep thinking on her. "And I remember that in my dream "I crossed the sea and reached and entered "a very beautiful city. "There, I saw many armed maidens in front of me. "And they, as soon as they saw me, "raised a tumultuous cry of kill. "Kill!" Then a certain female acetic came. And with great precipitation made me enter her house and briefly said to me this, "My son, here is the man-hating princess, "Mally of Ati, come this way. "Diverting herself as she pleases. "And the moment she sees a man, "she makes these maidens of hers kill him, "so I brought you in here to save your life." When the female acetic had said this, she immediately made me put on female attire and I submitted to that, knowing that it was not lawful to slay those maidens. But when the princess entered into the house with her maidens, I looked at her and lo, she was the very lady that had been shown me in a picture. And I said to myself, "Fortune at am I, in that, "after first seeing this lady in a picture, "I now behold her again in flesh and blood, "dear as my life." In the meanwhile, the princess, at the head of her maidens, said to that female acetic, "We saw some male enter here." The acetic showed me and answered, "I know of no male. "Here is my sister's daughter, "who is with me as a guest." Then the princess, seeing me, although I was disguised as a woman, forgot her dislike of men and was at once overcome by love. She remained for a moment with every hair on her body erect, motionless as if in thought, being so to speak, nailed to the spot at once with arrows by love, who had spied his opportunity. And in a moment the princess said to the acetic, "Then, noble lady, "why should not your sister's daughter be my guest also? "Let her come to my palace. "I will send her back duly honoured." Saying this, she took me by the hand and led me away to her palace. And I remember, I discerned her intention, and consented and went there, and that sly old female acetic gave me leave to depart. "Then I remained there with that princess, "who was diverting herself "with the amusement of marrying her maidens "to one another, and so forth. "Her eyes were fixed on me, "and she would not let me out of her sight for an instant. "And no occupation pleased her, "in which I did not take part. "Then those maidens, I remember, "made the princess a bride, "and me her husband, "and married us in sport. "And when we had been married, "we entered at night the bridal chamber, "and the princess fearlessly through her arms round my neck. "And then I told her who I was, "and embraced her. "And delighted at having attained her object, "she looked at me, "and then remained a long time with her eyes, "bashfully fixed on the ground. "And at that moment, "that villain of a watchman woke me up. "So, bad Rayuda, "the upshot of the whole matter "is that I can no longer live without that mally of Ati, "whom I have seen in a picture and in a dream. "When the king said this, "the order, Badra Yuda, "perceived that it was a true dream, "and he consoled the monarch and said to him, "if the king remembers it all exactly, "let him draw that city on a piece of canvas "in order that some expedient may be devised in this matter. "The moment the king heard this suggestion of Badra Yuda's, "he proceeded to draw that splendid city "on a piece of canvas, "and all the scene that took place there. "Then the water at once took the drawing "and had a new monastery made "and hung it up there on the wall. "And he directed that in relief, "houses attached to the monastery, "a quantity of food with pairs of garments and gold "should be given to bards coming from distant countries. "And he gave this order to the dwellers in the monastery. "If anyone comes here, "who knows the city represented here in a picture, "let me be informed of it. "In the meanwhile, the fierce elephant of the rainy season, "with irresistible loud, deep thunder roar "and long kataka tusks, "came down upon the forest of the heats, "a forest the breezes of which were scented "with the perfume of the jasmine, "in which travelers sat down on the ground in the shade "and trumpet flowers bloomed. "At that time, the forest fire of separation "of that king Vikramaditya began to burn more fiercely, "fanned by the Eastern Breeze. "Then the following cries were heard "among the ladies of his court. "Harelata, bring ice. "Chitrongi, sprinkle him with sandalwood juice. "Patralica, make a bed cool with lotus leaves. "Kanderpasana, fan him with plantain leaves. "And in course of time, the cloudy season terrible "with lightning passed away for that king. "But the fever of love burning with the sorrow "of separation did not pass away. "Then the autumn with her open lotus face "and smile of unclosed flowers came vocal "with the cries of swans seeming to utter this command. "Let travelers advance on their journey. "Let pleasant tidings be brought about absent dear ones. "Happy may their merry meetings be." On a certain day in that season, a bard who had come from a distance of the name of San Veraciti, having heard the fame of that monastery built by the water, entered it to get food. After he had been fed and presented with a pair of garments, he saw that painting on the wall of the monastery. When the bard had carefully scanned the city, delineated there he was astonished and said, "I wonder who can have drawn this city. "For I alone have seen it. "I am certain and no other. "And here it is drawn by some second person." When the inhabitants of the monastery heard that, they told Badra Yudha. Then he came in person and took that bard to the king. The king said to San Veraciti, "Have you really seen that city?" Then San Veraciti gave him the following answer. "When I was wondering about the world, "I crossed the sea that separates the aisles "and beheld that great city, Malia Pura. "In that city there dwells a king of the name of Malaya Sinha, "and he has a matchless daughter named Malia Vati, "who used to abhor males. "But one night she somehow or other saw in a dream "a great hero in a convent. "The moment she saw him, "that evil spirit of detestation of the male sex "fled from her mind as if terrified. "Then she took him to her palace, "and in her dream married him, "and entered with him the bridal chamber. "And at that moment the night came to an end, "and an attendant in her room woke her up. "Then she banished that servant in her anger, "and thinking upon that dear one "whom she had seen in her dream, "seeing no way of escape owing to the blazing fire "of separation, utterly overpowered by love. "She never rose from her couch, "except to fall back upon it again with relaxed limbs. "She was dumb, as if possessed by a demon, "as if stunned by a blow. "For when her attendants questioned her, "she gave them no answer. "Then her father and mother came to hear of it, "and questioned her. "And at last she was, with exceeding difficulty, "persuaded to tell them what happened to her in the dream "by the mouth of a confidential female friend. "Then her father comforted her, "but she made a solemn vow "that if she did not obtain her beloved in six months, "she would enter the fire. "And already five months are past. "Who knows what will become of her? "This is the story that I heard about her in that city." When Sanvera City had told this story, which tallied so well with the king's own dream, the king was pleased at knowing the certainty of the matter, and Badra Yuda said to him, "The business is as good as affected "for that king and his country own "your paramount supremacy. "So let us go there before the sixth month "has passed away." When the water had said this, King Vikramaditya made him inform Sanvera City of all the circumstances connected with the matter, and honored him with the present of much wealth, and made him show him the way, and then he seemed to bequeath his own burning heat to the rays of the sun, his paleness to the clouds, and his thinness to the waters of the rivers, and having become free from sorrow, set out at once, escorted by a small force for the dwelling place of his beloved. In course of time, as he advanced, he crossed the sea and reached that city, and there he saw the people in front of it engaged in loud lamentation, and when he questioned them, he received this answer. The Princess Malia Vati is here, as the period of six months is at an end, and she has not obtained her beloved, is preparing to enter the fire. Then the king went to the place where the pyre had been made ready. When the people saw him, they made way for him, and then the Princess beheld that unexpected nectar rained to her eyes, and she said to her ladies in waiting, "Here is that beloved come who married me in a dream, so tell my father quickly." They went and told this to her father, and then that king delivered from his grief and filled with joy, submissively approached the sovereign. At that moment, the bar at San Veraciti, who knew his time, lifted up his arm and chanted aloud, "This strain." Hail thou that with the flame of thy valor has to consume the forest of the army of demons and Malekas. Hail king, lord of the seven seagurt, earth bride. Hail thou that hast imposed thy exceedingly heavy yoke on the bowd heads of all kings conquered by thee. Hail, Vishamasila. Hail, Vikramaditya, ocean of valor. When the bard said this, King Malia Sinha knew that it was Vikramaditya himself that had come and embraced his feet, and after he had welcomed him, he entered his palace with him and his daughter Malia Vati thus delivered from death. And that king gave that daughter of his to King Vikramaditya, thinking himself fortunate in having obtained such a son-in-law. And King Vikramaditya, when he saw in his arms in flesh and blood that Malia Vati, whom he had previously seen in a picture and in a dream, considered it a wonderful fruit of the wishing tree of Siva's favor. Then Vikramaditya took with him his wife, Malia Vati, like an incarnation of bliss and crossed the sea, resembling his long regretful separation, and being submissively waited upon at every step by kings with various presence in their hands, returned to his own city, Ujayini, and on beholding there that might of his, that satisfied freely every kind of curiosity. What people were not astonished? What people did not rejoice? 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