अवन्तिसुन्दरीकथासारः /63

SUMMARY OF CONTENTS
 
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other men, taken into custody as thieves, were brought and

we were all put in fetters and imprisoned. When I asked the

five men in confidence who they were and what it all meant

they said: 'Lāṭa and Pāriyātra are not on good terms for long;

and the former is stronger than the other. The ruler of

Pāriyātra has a daughter named Vāmalocanăā of exceptional.

beauty, and the Lāṭa king desirous of marrying her set out as

a friend to the capital of Pāriyātra. But the latter thinking

that his enemy should not enter his capital even as a friend,

sent his daughter away to the camp of the Lațāṭa king under

the escort of Mānapāla, lhis minister's son. We, the servants

of Manapaānapāla, followed his camp. We entered the camp of
our enemy and stole the precious stones and returned to our

our enemy and stole the precious stones and returned to our
camp. Then seeing that one valuable gem was lost in the

forest we returned to search for it and were captured by the

Lāṭa soldiers.'
 

 
(Av. Sāra VII. 15-26)
 

 
"Hearing this I planned a way out. At night we broke our

fetters, killed the prison guards, destroyed the prison and

reached the women's quarters in the camp. In the last quarter

of the night when I began to close my eyes from fatigue, I

saw near me in the glitter of ornaments, a man attempting to

strike a woman with a sword. At once I slew the man and

asked the lady who she was.
'Sir' said she, 'I am a companion

of princess Vāmalocanãā and am the wife of Mäānapāla, the

minister's son. The man you have just now slain is Prakanṇ-
t
ṭaka, a friend of my husband and the son of general Pilupati.

To-night seeing that my husband did not return home he

pressed me to yield to his wishes. But as I sternly refused

him he wanted to murder me; and it is at this juncture, O

Merciful One! that you have killed him and saved me'. I

then went to a pond and washed my blood-stained limbs. A

little later, the sun emerged from the sea and I heard the

following cry from the mouth of the people: 'Mānapāla

invited his friend Prakaṇṭaka to his house and charging him

for transgression put him to death. He is now arrested

by the commander's men and is taken to the gallows. Maāna-
pa
pāla could not have done an atrocious act. We know

Prakaṇṭaka is a rake. Besides the woman herself says that

Prakaṇṭaka attempted to kill her and was killed by some

unknown man.'
 

 
(Av. Sāra VII. 27-34)