Plays

"King: Behold me, best and loveliest of women, Delivered from the cloud of fatal darkness That erst oppressed my memory. Again Behold us brought together by the grace Of the great lord of Heaven. So the moon Shines forth from dim eclipse, to blend his rays With the soft lustre of his Rohiní."

"SHAKOONTALÁ: May my husband be victorious—"

"King: O fair one, though the utterance of thy prayer Be lost amid the torrent of thy tears, Yet does the sight of thy fair countenance And of thy pallid lips, all unadorned And colourless in sorrow for my absence, Make me already more than conqueror."

"Child: Mother, who is this man?"

"SHAKOONTALÁ: My child, ask the deity that presides over thy destiny."

"King:[Falling at her feet] Fairest of women, banish from thy mind The memory of my cruelty; reproach The fell delusion that o'erpowered my soul, And blame not me, thy husband; 'tis the curse Of him in whom the power of darkness reigns, That he mistakes the gifts of those he loves For deadly evils. Even though a friend Should wreathe a garland on a blind man's brow, Will he not cast it from him as a serpent?"

"SHAKOONTALÁ: Rise, my own husband, rise. Thou wast not to blame. My own evil deeds, committed in a former state of being[37], brought down this judgment upon me. How else could my husband, who was ever of a compassionate disposition, have acted so unfeelingly? But tell me, my husband, how did the remembrance of thine unfortunate wife return to thy mind?"

"King: As soon as my heart's anguish is removed, and its wounds are healed, I will tell thee all. Oh! let me, fair one, chase away the drop That still bedews the fringes of thine eye; And let me thus efface the memory Of every tear that stained thy velvet cheek, Unnoticed and unheeded by thy lord, When in his madness he rejected thee."

"SHAKOONTALÁ: [Seeing the signet-ring on his finger] Ah! my dear husband, is that the Lost Ring?"

"King: Yes; the moment I recovered it my memory was restored."

"SHAKOONTALÁ: The ring was to blame in allowing itself to be lost at the very time when I was anxious to convince my noble husband of the reality of my marriage."

"King: Receive it back, as the beautiful twining-plant receives again its blossom in token of its reunion with the spring."

"SHAKOONTALÁ: Nay; I can never more place confidence in it. Let my husband retain it."

"Mátali: I congratulate your Majesty. Happy are you in your reunion with your wife; happy are you in beholding the face of your own son."

"King: Yes, indeed. My heart's dearest wish has borne sweet fruit. But tell me, Mátali, is this joyful event known to the great Indra?"

"Mátali: What is unknown to the gods? But come with me, noble Prince, the divine [[Kashyapa graciously permits thee to be presented to him."

"King: Shakoontalá, take our child and lead the way. We will together go into the presence of the holy Sage."

"SHAKOONTALÁ: I shrink from entering the august presence of the great Saint, even with my husband at my side."

"King: Nay; on such a joyous occasion it is highly proper. Come, come; I entreat thee."

"Kashyapa [To his wife]: O Adití, This is the mighty hero, King Dushyanta, Protector of the earth; who, at the head Of the celestial armies of thy son, Does battle with the enemies of heaven. Thanks to his bow, the thunderbolt of Indra Rests from its work, no more the minister Of death and desolation to the world, But a mere symbol of divinity."

"Aditi: He bears in his noble form all the marks of dignity."

"Mátali: Sire, the venerable progenitors of the celestials are gazing at your Majesty with as much affection as if you were their son. You may advance towards them."

"King: Are these, O Mátali, the holy pair, Offspring of Daksha and divine Maríchi, Children of Brahmá's sons, by sages deemed Sole fountain of celestial light, diffused Through twelve effulgent orbs? Are these the pair From whom the ruler of the triple world, Sovereign of gods and lord of sacrifice, Sprang into being? That immortal pair Whom Vishnu, greater than the Self-existent, Chose for his parents, when, to save mankind, He took upon himself the shape of mortals?"

"King: Most august of beings! Dushyanta, content to have fulfilled the commands of your son Indra, offers you his adoration."

"Kashyapa: My son, long may'st thou live, and happily may'st thou reign over the earth!"

"Aditi: My son, may'st thou ever be invincible in the field of battle!"

"SHAKOONTALÁ: I also prostrate myself before you, most adorable Beings, and my child with me."

"Kashyapa: My daughter, Thy lord resembles Indra, and thy child Is noble as Jayanta, Indra's son; I have no worthier blessing left for thee, May'st thou be faithful as the god's own wife!"

"Aditi: My daughter, may'st thou be always the object of thy husband's fondest love; and may thy son live long to be the joy of both his parents! Be seated."

"Kashyapa: Hail to the beautiful Shakoontalá, Hail to her noble son, and hail to thee, Illustrious Prince—rare triple combination Of virtue, wealth, and energy united!"

"King: Most venerable Kashyapa, by your favour all my desires were accomplished even before I was admitted to your presence. Never was mortal so honoured that his boon should be granted ere it was solicited. Because— Bloom before fruit, the clouds before the rain, Cause first and then effect, in endless sequence, Is the unchanging law of constant nature; But, ere the blessing issued from thy lips, The wishes of my heart were all fulfilled."

"Mátali: It is thus that the great progenitors of the world confer favours."

"King: Most reverend Sage, this thy handmaid was married to me by the Gándharva ceremony, and after a time was conducted to my palace by her relations. Meanwhile a fatal delusion seized me; I lost my memory and rejected her, thus committing a grievous offence against the venerable Kanwa, who is of thy divine race. Afterwards the sight of this ring restored my faculties, and brought back to my mind all the circumstances of my union with his daughter. But my conduct still seems to me incomprehensible; As foolish as the fancies of a man Who, when he sees an elephant, denies That 'tis an elephant; then afterwards, When its huge bulk moves onward, hesitates; Yet will not be convinced till it has passed For ever from his sight, and left behind No vestige of its presence save its footsteps."

"Kashyapa: My son, cease to think thyself in fault. Even the delusion that possessed thy mind was not brought about by any act of thine. Listen to me."

"King: I am attentive."

"Kashyapa: Know that when the nymph Menaká, the mother of Shakoontalá, became aware of her daughter's anguish in consequence of the loss of the ring at the nymph's pool, and of thy subsequent rejection of her, she brought her and confided her to the care of Adití. And I no sooner saw her than I ascertained by my divine faculty of meditation, that thy repudiation of thy poor faithful wife had been caused entirely by the curse of Durvásas—not by thine own fault—and that the spell would terminate on the discovery of the ring."

"King: Oh! what a weight is taken off my mind, now that my character is cleared of reproach."

"SHAKOONTALÁ: Joy! joy! My revered husband did not, then, reject me without good reason, though I have no recollection of the curse pronounced upon me. But, in all probability, I unconsciously brought it upon myself, when I was so distracted on being separated from my husband soon after our marriage. For I now remember that my two friends advised me not to fail to show the ring in case he should have forgotten me."

"Kashyapa: At last, my daughter, thou art happy, and hast gained thy heart's desire. Indulge, then, no feeling of resentment against thy consort. See, now, Though he repulsed thee, 'twas the sage's curse That clouded his remembrance; 'twas the curse That made thy tender husband harsh towards thee. Soon as the spell was broken, and his soul Delivered from its darkness, in a moment, Thou didst regain thine empire o'er his heart. So on the tarnished surface of a mirror No image is reflected, till the dust, That dimmed its wonted lustre, is removed."

"King: Holy father, see here the hope of my royal race."

"Kashyapa: Know that he, too, will become the monarch of the wholes earth. Observe, Soon, a resistless hero, shall he cross The trackless ocean, borne above the waves In an aërial car; and shall subdue The earth's seven sea-girt isles. Now has he gained, As the brave tamer of the forest-beasts, The title Sarva-damana; but then Mankind shall hail him as King Bharata, And call him the supporter of the world."

"King: We cannot but entertain the highest hopes of a child for whom your Highness performed the natal rites."

"Aditi: My revered husband, should not the intelligence be conveyed to Kanwa, that his daughter's wishes are fulfilled, and her happiness complete? He is [S']akoontalá's foster-father. Menaká, who is one of my attendants, is her mother, and dearly does she love her daughter."

"SHAKOONTALÁ: [Aside] The venerable matron has given utterance to the very wish that was in my mind."

"Kashyapa: His penances have gained for him the faculty of omniscience, and the whole scene is already present to his mind's eye."

"King: Then most assuredly he cannot be very angry with me."

"Kashyapa: Nevertheless, it becomes us to send him intelligence of this happy event, and hear his reply. What ho there!"

"Pupil: Holy father, what are your commands?"

"Kashyapa: My good Gálava, delay not an instant, but hasten through the air and convey to the venerable Kanwa, from me, the happy news that the fatal spell has ceased, that Dushyanta's memory is restored, that his daughter Shakoontalá has a son, and that she is once more tenderly acknowledged by her husband."

"Kashyapa: And now, my dear son, take thy consort and thy child, re-ascend the car of Indra, and return to thy imperial capital."