Once, having prepared a rice pudding, a man sought shelter beneath a spreading banyan tree. Unbeknownst to him, O King, a snake had poisoned the food. Soon after, a wandering mendicant arrived at that spot, partook of the rice pudding, and became intoxicated from the poison. The mendicant, realizing what had happened, rebuked the giver, “You fool, you have given rice pudding mixed with poison.” Having uttered these words, the mendicant died, but by the merit of his life, attained the realm of Shiva. At this point, the Vetala turned to the king and spoke: “Therefore, the snake is at fault, for it poisoned the food, but it did not incur the sin of killing a Brahmin. The Brahmin, deluded by fate, gave alms to the hungry, not knowing the food was tainted. Yet, the sin that one commits must always be experienced by that person. In this case, the act of killing a Brahmin should be attributed to the one who administered the poison. And you, by narrating this story, have taken upon yourself the sin of killing a Brahmin.” Now, in the city of Candrahṛdaya, there ruled a king named Raṇadhīra. In that same city lived a virtuous and wealthy merchant named Dharmadhvaja. One day, a man devoted to eating flesh appeared in the city. There was also a rākṣasa, a fearsome devourer of men, named Vāśara. Pleased with the flesh-eater, the rākṣasa spoke to him, “Grant me a boon, O devourer of men.” Hearing this, the man dug a deep pit, cunningly designed to bewilder the mind. By theft in the night, he obtained a royal maidservant, a beautiful woman. This man had seven wives, women from all four castes. The rākṣasa, meanwhile, built a house like a royal fortress, and much stolen wealth was forcibly concealed in the pit. O King, the people began to say, “Let us abandon this city of yours, which is plagued by thieves. In that city, those devoted to violence and theft have established themselves.” The king, hearing of these troubles, gave the order and went to the house; those who heard what had been done acted accordingly. But by the rākṣasa’s magic, all the guards were deluded. Once more, messengers went to King Raṇadhīra and informed him of the strange happenings. At midnight, when darkness had covered the land, the thief came before the king. The king addressed him, “I am the king, and you, the thief, have come as summoned. Take much wealth with me and be happy.” That night, the thief led the king to the pit, leaving him outside. He said to the king, “O king, go quickly to your own house.” Having spoken thus, a woman showed the king a different path. She then gathered the army and led them to where the thief stood. Honoring the demon, she recounted all that had transpired. Laughing, she said to the rākṣasa, “You have prepared my meal!” And, impelled by fate, she declared, “Today I will devour all the men.” She fell upon the great army, devouring many, and the soldiers fled in all ten directions. Then the thief himself, angered, approached and spoke to the king. Upon hearing this, the king swiftly arrived at the scene. In a moment, together with the demon, the pit was reduced to ashes. Thus, the woman returned, taking with her all the wealth and women. The sound of drums echoed through every house, announcing these astonishing events.