then Nala was unable to control the love that was in his bosom. And
he began to pass much of his time in solitude in the gardens adjoining
the inner apartment (of his palace). And there he saw a number of
swans furnished with golden wings, wandering in those woods. And
from among them he caught one with his hands. And thereupon the sky-ranging one said unto Nala, ‘Deserve I not to be slain by thee. O king,
I will do something that is agreeable to thee. O king of the Nishadhas,
I will speak of thee before Damayanti in such a way that she will not
ever desire to have any other person ( for her lord ).’ Thus addressed,
the king liberated that swan. And those swans then rose on their wings
and went to the country of the Vidarbhas. And on arriving at the city
of the Vidarbhas the birds alighted before Damayanti, who beheld
them all. And Damayanti in the midst of her maids, beholding those
birds of extarordinary appearance was filled with delight, and strove
without loss of time to catch those coursers of the skies. And the swans
at this, before that bevy of beauties, fled in all directions. And those
maidens there pursued the birds, each (running) after one. And the
swan after which Damayanti ran, having led her to a secluded spot,
addressed her in human speech, saying, ‘O Damayanti, there is a king
amongst the Nishadhas named Nala. He is equal unto the Aswins in
beauty, not having his peer among men. Indeed, in comeliness, he is
like Kandarpa himself in his embodied form. O fair-complexioned one,
O thou of slender waist, if thou becomest his wife, thy existence and
this thy beauty may be of purpose. We have, indeed, beheld celestials
and Gandharvas, and Nagas, and Rakshasas, and men, but never saw
we before any one like Nala. Thou also art a jewel among thy sex, as
Nala is the prime among men. The union of the best with the best is
happy.’ Thus addressed by the swan, Damayanti, O monarch, replied
unto him there, saying, ‘Do thou speak thus unto Nala also, ‘Saying
So be it, to the daughter of Vidarbha, the oviparous one, O king, returned to the country of the Nishadhas, and related everything unto Nala.”
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