Story VII
After another sleepless night the king not being able to find out the meaning of the verses, sent for the Brâhman's daughter again, and said, " Pray tell me the meaning of the verses without any- more delay."
She answered: " You must not importune the gods with entreaties or repentance will follow, as was the case with the Brâhman who fell in love with Sthagikâ. There is a town somewhere or other — it matters not where — whose king is Vîrâbhya, and in it lived a Brâhman called Keśava. One day the thought occurred to him: ' Why should I not increase the wealth my father has left me ? for it has been said —
" ' The glory that you gain from your own virtues is the truest; next best is that which you gain from your father; but that which comes to you from a remoter source is worth nothing.'
" So he started with a view of getting more money, and in the course of his wandering passed through several towns, and places of sacred pilgrimage. At last he reached an out-of-the-way place where he saw an ascetic sitting cross-legged in meditation.
" The Brâhman came up to him, and made a
