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MADHURAVIJAY AM
 
quest of the enemies began to give him pregnant words
of advice.
 
21
 
Slökās 21 to 48: The mission of Kampana in the Tamil
country is explained by Bukka. Here is another Polonius.
Of special significance is the exhortation that Kampana must
destroy the Sambuvaraya as a prelude to his conquest of
Madhura from the Sultan.
 
21. "A darkness always infests youthful age, and
wise men have found out that only the lamp of intelli-
gence lighted by proper advice is able to dispel it. So
it behoves you to lend me your ears and listen to what
I am about to say.
 
22. "Wise men consider instruction imparted by
a guru, as a jewelled ear-ring bereft of hardness, a
potent ointment without colour, and a wonderful form
of penance involving no self-mortification.
 
23. "Perverse rogues do not mind the prompt-
ings of good leaders. They close their eyes in their
intoxication. They are unclean because of the dust of
sin they raise against themselves. They tie themselves
to deep prejudices as if to firm posts. In all this they
resemble elephants in rut.
 
24. "The darkness of intoxication such as of
youthhood is akin to that of a starless night. Nothing
like moon-light awakening can you expect during its
sway. It marks the triumph of sex passion and is a
bad period of life not easily overcome by one in
embodied state.