There lived at Palasgram a Brahmin named Agnisharma. He was an expert in sacrificial rites and was thoroughly versed in the four Vedas. His wife’s name was Jvalanashikha. He had a daughter named Vidyutprabha who was extremely graceful.
When Vidyutprabha was eight years old, her mother passed away. This was a great shock to her. Besides, the responsibility of managing the household was now on her young and immature shoulders. She would get up before sunrise, clean the house and the kitchen; then she would follow the cattle to the jungle for their grazing. At midday she would be back home, milk the cows, serve food to her father and take food herself, and follow the cattle to the jungle again. She came back after sunset. After she had finished her daily duties, she would be wholly exhausted. But she would not go to bed before her father, and she would get up before him. Such was her daily routine.
One day Vidyutprabha came to her father and said: “Father, I am somewhat incapable of running the household alone. Even the bulls will break down under pressure of so much work. So my request is that you marry some respectable lady so that she can share my burden and the household will run well.”
This was a good proposal and Agnisharma agreed. He soon married and brought a new wife. Even Vidyutprabha was happy to receive a new mother. But the happiness was not to last for long.
The new mother had no training in household work; besides, she was too lazy and easy-going. So all her expectations were washed away, and Vidyutprabha had only remorse in store for her; but she would blame no one but her own luck. With a deep sigh, she would say: “So long I worked for my father, but now I have the added burden of a mother. I sought happiness but I have lost even what little I had.”
In this manner, four years rolled by, and those were long and unhappy years for the young girl. She was now a lass of twelve. One day while looking after the cattle in the jungle, she lay under a tree and fell fast asleep.
At that time, a big and dark snake with bloodshot eyes slowly approached and addressed her in a human voice: “Charming maid ! Fear me not. Do as I suggest. I have been living in this forest for a long time, and good luck prevailing, I was happy here. But today my ill-luck has come up, and there are some charmers in this forest who are in search of me. If they capture me, they will place me in a basket and make my life miserable. So I seek shelter with you. Place me on your lap and cover me with your cloth. To shelter one in distress is an act of righteousness.”
Vidyutprabha woke up at the approach of the snake. She distinctly heard all this and hurriedly thought that I did not do good Karmas in my previous life, and hence my present misery. If now I don’t help this snake in distress, then the door to happiness will never open for me.
Thinking in this manner, she extended her hand to pick up the snake, placed it on her lap, and covered it with her cloth. No sooner had she finished, the charmers arrived on the scene and made inquiries about the snake. Vidyutprabha told them that she was sleeping and so she had no knowledge of it.
The charmers were convinced. After all, this is a young girl, they thought among themselves. She would have been frightened to see the terrible snake. So it can’t be here.
When they were gone beyond sight, Vidyutprabha told the snake to come out and go its own way. But as she removed her cloth, there was no snake to be seen. She didn’t know what happened but before she could think further, she heard a voice saying: “I am overwhelmed by your courage, Oh charming maid ! Seek a boon.”
Vidyutprabha turned around and saw a Dev who was repeating the aforesaid words. She said: “Oh the best among the Devs ! If you are pleased with me, then be good enough to do something to help my cattle. Please give a forest cover to them. They are much oppressed by the rays of the sun.”
The Dev cast a deep sigh and thought, “What a request ! She could have gotten rid of her poverty. She appears to be ignorant. Whatever that may be, her wishes must be duly honored.” So, he created a forest above her, as charming as the Nandanvan, the celebrated heavenly forest. Then he said to her: “Here is your forest, in it you will get trees yielding all sorts of fruits and flowers. Wherever you go, this will follow you like an umbrella. Like a divine damsel you will freely play in it, and your cattle will suffer no more. If at any time in the future you are in difficulty, think of me and I shall come to your service.”
The Dev disappeared. Vidyutprabha ate sweet fruits from that forest and returned home in the evening. The mother asked her to take food, but she had no appetite. From then on, she would go to the forest early in the morning and return home in the evening. There she would be playing throughout the day while her cattle would be grazing.
One day as she was lying under a thick tree, king Jitshatru of Patliputra with his retinue was passing by that way. He was delighted to see the divine forest and decided to rest there for some time. The king’s throne was placed under a tree; the pack animals were let loose to eat grass; the chariots were parked in a shady spot; and the men were at ease, gossiping and relaxing. This disturbed the peace of the forest and Vidyutprabha’s cattle fled away.
When Vidyutprabha woke up, she found that the cattle had disappeared. So, she rushed forth to find them. Now, as she moved, the forest-umbrella over her head moved too, and the king and his retinue were also moving, all topsy-turvy.
This was a great surprise for the king. He was anxious to discover its secret and came to know that the forest was moving with the girl. So he asked his minister to approach the girl and request her to go back to her original position, assuring her that his men would find her cows. The minister did as per the king’s command. As soon as the girl returned, the forest stopped still. The king’s men and animals were restored to order, and the king was happy.
Then the minister said: “Your Majesty ! The surprise we experienced seems to be all due to this girl.” The king replied: “Truly so. Is she a nature goddess, or a girl from the another world, or even a damsel from heaven ? She would be a precious acquisition for the palace of any king.”
The minister agreed. At the king’s wishes, he went to the girl, told her all about the king, and finding her favorably disposed, at the right moment, he proposed for her hand for his master.
Vidyutprabha was abashed and said: “High-born damsels don’t select their husband. He is selected for her by the parents. You may like to converse with my father. His name is Agnisharma, and he lives in the village nearby.” The minister went to her father and narrated the whole thing. This became a moment of great joy for Agnisharma, too. He was brought to the presence of the king in the forest.
Now, the king didn’t want any delay and so the marriage was celebrated then and there as per Gandharva rites. The king wanted to change the name of his new consort, and as she had a forest umbrella-cover on her head, she was henceforth to be called Aram Shobha (meaning comfort and grace). To put the Brahmin in affluence, the king bestowed on him revenue from twelve villages.
Then the king mounted on the elephant in the company of his wife ready to depart. The forest was still on her head. The minister went ahead of the party to organize the reception of the royal couple at the capital. It was a great occasion. People everywhere, singly or in groups, were talking of the good luck of the monarch. These words, as they reached the king’s ears, made him happy, too. The royal couple were now at the palace, where all comforts were provided for the new queen. The king and the queen lived henceforth a good life.
Now, Brahmin Agnisharma had a daughter from his newly married wife. When she came of age, her mother thought that if somehow Aram Shobha dies, then the king might be pleased to consider her own daughter to be worthy of him; and to kill the daughter of a co-wife is no sin, she said to herself.
So she hatched a plot and one day said to her husband: “Aram Shobha has been at her husband’s home for many years now, but we have never sent her anything. For girls, things from there parental homes are particularly dear.”
The Brahmin smiled and said, “Aram Shobha is no longer poor. She is now a queen and hardly needs anything from us.”
Agnishikha (Brahmin’s second wife) protested: “Even though the father-in-law’s home has affluence all around, anything sent by parents is dear to a girl. Though rich, daughters expect occasional gifts from their former home.” The Brahmin could not argue with that.
The lady prepared Kesariya Modaka (a delicious sweetmeat), poisoned it, placed it inside a pot and sealed it. Then she entrusted it to her husband, saying: “You give it to Aram Shobha and no one else. Even Aram Shobha is not to share the sweets with anyone. If she shares it with others, we shall be put to ridicule, poor as the stuff is, and poor as we are.”
Agnisharma could not read into the evil design of his wife. He picked up the pot and turned his steps toward Patliputra. When he approached the capital city, he decided to rest for a while. He placed the pot beneath a Banyan tree on the wayside and lay down to rest and was soon fast asleep.
A Yaksha used to live on that tree. By dint of his great insight, he came to know of the evil design of the Brahmin woman. He thought that when there is such an able one like me here, can anybody put Aram Shobha to the torture of death ? Has she not accumulated much righteousness in her previous birth ? Thinking so, he replaced the poisoned Modaka with a good one, delicious like nectar.
After some time, the Brahmin got up, picked up the pot, and resumed his journey. At last, he was at the palace gate. His arrival was duly announced, and with the royal sanction, the Brahmin was conducted inside the court. The Brahmin profusely blessed the king. Then there were mutual inquiries about health, after which the Brahmin presented the pot to the king. The king was very happy and ordered it immediately to be carried to the queen’s chamber. The Brahmin was honored by gifts of clothes and ornaments.
Now the king was in Aram Shobha’s chamber. He thought of the Modaka and wanted to have a portion of it. Happily the queen opened the pot, and, what joy, the whole chamber was filled with its fragrance. The king said: “Surely this Modaka is prepared with nectar.” The king cast a lustful glance at the queen and requested her to distribute it to all her co-wives. In deference to the king’s wishes, Aram Shobha did it with her own hands. All the queens were happy to taste it and all spoke in glowing terms of the skill of her mother. When the king came back to the court, the Brahmin made a prayer for his daughter’s going to his home for once. To this, the king smiled and said: “The queen does not see even the sun; so how can she go to her parents home?”
The Brahmin returned on fulfillment of his mission and reported it to his wife. The lady was now waiting to hear about her stepdaughter’s death. But the news didn’t come and she grew restless. Perhaps the sweet was not sufficiently poisoned, she reasoned.
So, she resolved to make a renewed attempt and continue it until her goal was attained. This time she poisoned the Modaka very heavily, packed it as before and dispatched it with her husband with the same sort of message. The Brahmin was again on the road to Patliputra. When he arrived beneath the same Banyan tree, he was tired, lay down and fell fast asleep. As before, the Modaka was changed by the Yaksha, was later taken to the court and delivered to the king. This time, too, the Modaka was tasted by all the queens, and both Aram Shobha and her mother were praised by all.
But the coveted bad news about Aram Shobha’s death did not arrive, and the Brahmin lady was bitter and highly depressed. So she repeated the mischief for the third time, mixing this time the most dreadful Talaput poison with it.
She also insisted that Aram Shobha should be brought once to her parental home, and if the king did not agree, she advised her husband to use his Brahminical power to force his hands. The Brahmin started again and came under the same Banyan tree, where everything repeated as before, so that the Modaka was changed, and once again, at the palace, everyone was happy to taste the divine stuff and spoke in high praise of its sender.
The court was now in full session. Agnisharma made the proposal about his daughter’s going to her parental home and insisted that her first child should, in fairness to the custom prevailing, be delivered there. But the king would not budge. He said: “That has never been so, and that will never be.”
The Brahmin now displayed his Brahminical power and threatened to commit suicide right there if his request was not honored. He said: “If you do not send Aram Shobha with me, then I shall stain you with the sin of murdering a Brahmin. Oh king ! I gave you my daughter’s hand not on this term that she would never see her parents at their own home. She too must be feeling keen to go there once. Will the parental affection thus go unheeded ?”
The minister intervened. “Your Majesty ! Surely this Brahmin has gone mad, but if you do not agree, he will not hesitate to stain you with the blasphemy of killing him. So may it be decided that the queen goes once.” Under so much pressure, the king reluctantly agreed. The queen was given much treasure and was seen off along with her started her forest-umbrella.
Agnishikha had her plot wholly ready. She had a deep well dug behind her house. At the proper moment, Aram Shobha gave birth to a godly child. She was then taken to the backyard of the house for a wash, her stepmother attending. On seeing this well, Aram Shobha asked when it was dug. The mother said: “This has been dug for you. You are now a queen, and there may be jealous people who may poison your drinking water if it is fetched from a distance. Hence this arrangement for your safety.”
Aram Shobha took it all as said and bent to have a look inside. As she did so, the stepmother pushed her into it. As she was going down, her mind went back to the Dev who had once promised her help, and he readily appeared on the scene. He supported her by his hand and made her sit on a comfortable place. He would have punished Agnishikha on the spot for her misdeed but desisted as Aram Shobha held fast his feet. In the nether world, the Dev built a chamber for her stay. The forest-umbrella too stayed with her there.
Agnishikha now dressed her daughter in the clothes of a woman who has recently delivered a child and placed her on the couch. When the maids returned, they expressed surprise to see a lusterless and uncouth woman with a plump frame lying there. False Aram Shobha said: “I don’t know why all this has happened, but it seems some internal disease or disorder is the cause of my physical change.” When the maids reported the matter to Agnishikha, she rushed wailing and striking her chest: “Oh daughter ! How has this happened ? Has anybody cast inauspicious glances at you ? Or is it due to gastritis or some organic trouble ? Alas ! All my sweet dreams may come to an end !” She pretended to make all possible arrangements for her restoration, but none yielded any result.
Now, the minister came to take the queen back. The party started for Patliputra. On the way, when the maids asked why the forest-umbrella was not there, false Aram Shobha said that it had gone to the well to take water and would soon follow.
When the party was in the vicinity of Patliputra, the king arranged a fitting welcome. He was pleased to see a godly son but was sorry at the queen’s plight. When he inquired the cause of it, she repeated the same words as before some internal disease or disorder. The king’s sorrow knew no end. When he inquired about the forest, the lady said: “When I came, it was taking water at the well. So I have left it behind. It will come itself after some time.”
The king had some doubt about the lady. Was it Aram Shobha or someone else who had stepped in her place ? He apprehended that there might be a trick behind it, some sort of mischief. He said to her again: “My dear ! Bring that forest back. I feel so uneasy without it.” And there was the same evasive reply: “Please don’t be anxious, Sir ! It will come back in time.”
The king’s doubt was now largely confirmed. This was another lady, and there must have been some mischief-mongering at his cost. The plot must be unfolded.
At the other end, Aram Shobha was safe and comfortable at her underground shelter, and all her needs were taken care of by the Dev. One day she said to him: “I feel very uneasy for my son. It behooves you, Oh Dev, to do something to relieve me of this situation.”
“This can be done by dint of my power, but only on one condition. At night you may go to your son, but you must return before sunrise. If you fail, then you forfeit my assistance forever. And in that case, a dead snake will drop from your braid, and that will sever our link beyond repair. If you agree, then your desire to meet your son may be fulfilled,” said the Dev.
Aram Shobha agreed. With the Dev’s power assisting her, she reached the palace, embraced the child in her arms and was happy to play with him. When the time for her return approached, she placed the child on the couch, scattered some fruits and flowers from her forest, and left.
When in the morning the matter was reported to the king, he made inquiries about it from the queen who said: “My Lord ! I brought these fruits and flowers from my forest and scattered them here.” The king said: “If that be so, then bring some fruits and flowers from the forest right now.” She replied: “Well, Sir, I shall do so tonight.”
The king had no more doubt about the mischief played on him. The event was repeated on the second night, and then on the third, this time the king himself keeping watch. With a sword in his hand, he sat in the shadow of a lamp.
At the right hour, Aram Shobha came, embraced the child and started playing with him. The king had no doubt as to who she was, but he restrained himself. Aram Shobha left the palace before sunrise.
In the morning, he went to false Aram Shobha and said: “Lady ! If you can restore the forest, well and good. Otherwise, I have no need of you. Go away.” The earth now slipped away from beneath the woman’s feet. She didn’t know what to do. The king rebuked her harshly and returned to the court.
On the fourth night, Aram Shobha came as usual to her son. The king was in hiding. Now, before sunrise, as she was about to return, he held her hand and said: “My dear, why this trick with me ? Come back to your palace. I can no longer abide your absence.”
Aram Shobha was taken aback. She tried to free herself but failed. In a helpless tone she said: “Sir, there is some serious reason behind it. Please don’t delay me tonight. I shall come again tomorrow at the same hour and narrate the whole thing to you. If you don’t release me now, I shall have cause to repent throughout my life.”
The king said: “My dear ! My eyes have been languishing for you for many days. Now that you are within my grip, how can I let you go ? Tomorrow is far off; even a moment would be too long.”
Aram Shobha was between a frying pan and the fire. To narrate the whole thing to the king would take a lot of time, and the sunrise was not far off. If she did not do so, the king would not release her. She could not refuse the king, whatever the risk. She tried to be brief but all in vain.
Meanwhile, the early rays of the sun burst forth on the earth, and the dead snake dropped from her braid, as predicted. “How unfortunate I am ! Alas, I am undone !” These words dropped from her lips as she herself dropped senseless on the ground.
When restored to her senses, she was only moaning and wailing. The king consoled her by saying: “My dear ! Who can avoid the inevitable ? Whatever was destined has happened. Forget the past and look forward to a golden future.”
The king was now rageful toward the false Aram Shobha. She was handed over to the guards and severely beaten. Aram Shobha pleaded mercy for her sister, and the king couldn’t deny it to her. But she was expelled from the city, and her father was deprived of the twelve villages and the treasures bestowed on him. The family was turned out from the kingdom for good.
Aram Shobha was happy once again. One day the king and the queen were in conversation, when the queen thought, my early life has been spent in distress followed by happiness now. These are all the outcome of Karmas, good as well as bad, acquired in a previously. I must know them.
In those days, Acharya Virbhadra with his spiritual family of five hundred Munis was present there, and the royal couple thought of benefiting from the presence of the celebrated Acharya.
After the queen had listened to the Acharya, she fainted. When she recovered, she made the following submission: “Your Holiness ! The account of my previous life as given by you is wholly correct. With my reawakened memory, I can fully testify to it. But I am now uneasy about the worldly existence. With the permission of my husband, the king, I desire to be initiated by you into the holy order.”
Needless to add, the king approved of her noble wishes. He, too, revealed his mind in the following words: “My dear ! Once having known the worthlessness of the worldly life, who wants to remain any longer in it ? I too shall follow you.”
Then, turning to the Acharya, he said: “Your Holiness ! I shall presently return to the palace and crown Aram Shobha’s son Malaysundar as king. Immediately thereafter I shall return to you. Until I come back, may your Holy Grace not withdraw from this city !”
The king went back to the palace and placed the young prince on the throne. Then both the king and the queen were initiated into the holy order. They spent their time acquiring scriptural knowledge and soon became profound.
The king, now a Muni, was nominated by the Acharya as his successor to the holy chair, and under his able guidance, the order flourished. Aram Shobha became the head of the order of nuns.
For many years, they served the order and then gave up their mortal frames through spiritual fasts and attained coveted higher places.
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