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and so on. And the head minister of the king his father found out, by means of a spy, that Bhímaparakrama had collected all these things in his house. And at that time it happened that Mrigánkadatta, while walking about on the top of his palace, spit down some betel-juice. And as illluck would have it, it fell on the head of his father's minister, who happened to be walking below, unseen by the prince.*[1] But the minister, knowing that Mrigánkadatta had spit down that betel-juice, bathed, and laid up in his heart a grudge against Mrigánkadatta on account of the insult.
Now it happened that the next day king Amaradatta, the father of Mrigánkadatta, had an attack of cholera, and then the minister saw his chance, and, after imploring an assurance of safety, he said in secret to the king, who was tortured with his sudden attack of disease, " The fact is, my sovereign, your son Mrigánkadatta has begun incantations against you in the house of Bhímaparákrama, that is why you are suffering. I found it out by means of a spy, and the thing is obvious for all to see, so banish your son from your realm and your disease from your body at the same time." When the king heard that, he was terrified, and sent his own general to the house of Bhímaparakrama, to investigate the matter. And he found the hair, and the skulls, and other articles, †[2] and immediately brought those very things and shewed them to the king. And the king in his anger said to the general, " That son of mine is conspiring against me, because he wishes to reign himself, so expel him from the kingdom this very moment without delay, together with his ministers." For a confiding ‡[3] king never sees through the wicked practices of his ministers. So the general went and communicated that order of the king's, and expelled Mrigánkadatta from the city, together with his ministers.§[4]
Then Mrigánkadatta was delighted at having obtained his object, and he worshipped Ganeśa, and mentally took a humble leave of his parents, and started off. And after they had gone a great distance from the town of Ayodhyá, the prince said to Prachandaśakti and the other nine ministers who were travelling with him, " There is here a great king of the Kirátas, named Śaktirakshita; he is a student in the sciences, observing a vow of chastity, and he is a friend of mine from childhood. For, when his father was long ago captured in battle, he sent him here to be imprisoned as a
- ↑ * Cp. " The Story of the First Royal Mendicant," Lane's Arabian Nights, Vol. I, p. 136.
- ↑ † I follow the Sanskrit College MS. which reads keśakapáládi; perhaps for keśa we should read veśá The skulls have been mentioned before.
- ↑ ‡ For áśvasto I read viśvasto. Perhaps we ought to read ascastho, i.e., sick, ill.
- ↑ § The wanderings of Herzog Ernst are brought about in a very similar manner. (See Simrock's Deutache Volksbücher, Vol. III, p. 278),
