कीरेषु श्वपचो राज्यं वर्षाण्य् अष्टौ चकार ह । आर्यवृत्तम् अशेषेण तावत्कालं बभार ह
Among the Kiras, the outcaste ruled the kingdom for eight years, and throughout that time, he upheld noble conduct completely.
यदृच्छयैकदाथासाव् अतिष्ठत् त्यक्तभूषणः । अतमस्तारकेन्द्वर्कतेजोऽम्बुदम् इवाम्बरम्
Once, by chance, he stood there, having abandoned his ornaments, like the sky that has cast off the radiance of darkness, stars, moon, and sun, and is covered by clouds.
बह्व् अमन्यत नो हारकेयूरवसनाद्य् असौ । प्रभुताबृंहितं चेतो नाहार्यम् अभिनन्दति
He no longer valued necklaces, armlets, garments, and the like; his mind, expanded by sovereignty, did not delight in things that could be acquired.
एक एवाजिरं बाह्यं तादृग्वेषस् स निर्ययौ । मुख्याङ्गनान् नभोभागाद् अन्तं गच्छन्न् इवांशुमान्
Wearing only a single outer garment, he went out in such attire, like the sun passing from the sky into the interior, accompanied by chief maidens.
तत्रापश्यद् घनश्यामं पीनं श्वपचपेटकम् । गायन् मृदु वसन्तोत्थं कोकिलानाम् इव व्रजम्
There he saw a dark, stout outcaste, singing softly a melody born of spring, like a flock of cuckoos.
धुनानं झल्लरीतन्त्रीं करपल्लवलीलया । मधुरेहं रणद्रेफाम् अलिश्रेणीम् इव द्रुमः
With the playful movement of his tender hands, he was shaking a small cymbal and stringed instrument, sweetly producing a sound like a swarm of bees humming around a tree in bloom.
अथ तस्मात् समुत्तस्थौ जरावान् रक्तलोचनः । काचशृङ्गं हिमापूर्णम् इव श्वपचनायकः
Then from among them arose an aged man, red-eyed, the leader of the outcastes, like a glassy mountain peak filled with snow.
ज्यो कटञ्जेति सहसा वदन् कीरमहीपतेः । वल्ल्यां काकम् इवानन्दाज् जान्वग्रे ऽयोजयत् करम्
Suddenly exclaiming 'Kaṭañja!', he placed his hand on the knee of the king of birds, just as one might set a crow on a vine out of delight.
उवाचेदं च कीरेशं हे बन्धो भोः कटञ्जक । क्व नु स्थितो ऽसि दिष्ट्याद्य दृष्टो ऽसि चिरबान्धव
And he said to the lord of the parrots: 'O friend, O Kaṭañjaka, where have you been? By good fortune, today I see you, my long-lost companion.'
क्वासि विश्रान्तवान् कालम् एतावन्तं वनान्तरे । बन्धुवृन्दपरित्यक्तः परपुष्ट इवैककः
Where have you spent all this time resting in the depths of the forest, abandoned by your circle of kin, solitary like one sustained by others?
इह राजा भवन्तं वा कच्चिद् गेयकलाविदम् । रक्तकण्ठं मानयति रागवान् इव कोकिलम्
Here, does the king honor you, who are skilled in the art of song, with a voice tinged with passion, as a lover honors the cuckoo?
आपूरयति वा कच्चिद् गृहवस्त्राशनार्पणैः । मधुस् तमालविटपं फलपत्त्ररसैर् इव
Or does anyone here fill you with offerings of household clothes and food, as bees fill the tamala tree with the essence of its fruits and leaves?
दर्शनेन तवाद्याहं परां निर्वृतिम् आगतः । पद्मस् सूर्योदयेनेव चन्द्रोदय इवोदधिः
Today, by seeing you, I have attained supreme contentment—like a lotus at sunrise, or the ocean at the rising of the moon.
आनन्दानाम् अशेषाणां लाभानां महताम् अपि । विश्रामाणाम् अनन्तानां सीमान्तो बन्धुदर्शनम्
The sight of a friend marks the boundary of all joys, of all great gains, and of all endless rests.
श्वपचे प्रवदत्य् एवं राजा तावत् तया तया । चकार तत्कालजया चेष्टयैवावधीरणम्
While the king was speaking thus to the outcaste, she, by her immediate gestures, expressed her disregard.
तावद् वातायनगताः कान्ताः प्रकृतयस् तथा । श्वपचो ऽयम् इति ज्ञात्वा म्लानताम् अलम् आययुः
Meanwhile, the ladies and attendants at the windows, realizing 'this is an outcaste,' became thoroughly dispirited.
पद्मास् तुषारवृष्ट्येव ग्रामास् सावग्रहा इव । दाववन्त इवाद्रीन्द्रा नागरा न विरेजिरे
The lotuses, like villages struck by frost, the towns, as if seized by calamity, and the mountains, as if scorched by wildfire, lost their splendor.
नृपो ऽवधीरयाम् आस स तां स्वजनसङ्कथाम् । वृक्षाग्रगतमार्जारफेक्कारं मृगराड् इव
The king disregarded that talk among his people, like a lion ignores the hissing of a cat perched atop a tree.
सत्वरं प्रविवेशान्तःपुरम् आम्लानमानवम् । राजहंस इवावर्षसीदत्सरसिजं सरः
He quickly entered the inner chambers, his pride withered, like a royal swan approaching a lotus pond parched by drought.
सर्वावयवविश्रान्तां म्लानताम् अलम् आययौ । जानुस्तम्भान्तरमहारन्ध्रस्थाग्निर् इव द्रुमः
He was utterly exhausted in all his limbs, overtaken by dejection, like a tree whose inner fire is lodged deep within the hollow of its knee-like root.
तत्रापश्यद् असौ सर्वं विषण्णवदनं जनम् । जालं कुङ्कुमपुष्पाणां भुक्तमूलम् इवाखुना
There he saw all the people with downcast faces, like a cluster of saffron flowers whose roots have been eaten away by a rat.
मन्त्रिणो नागरा नार्यस् ततस् ते तं महीपतिम् । नास्प्राक्षुर् अपि तिष्ठन्तं गृह एव शवं यथा
The ministers, citizens, and women did not even speak to that king as he stood there, just as one would not address a corpse lying in the house.
भृत्याश् चाकृतसत्कारं दूर एव तम् अत्यजन् । दुःखयुक्ता घनस्नेहा अपि बालशवं यथा
Even his servants, though deeply attached, did not show him any honor and kept their distance, as people do with the corpse of a child, despite their great affection.
अनानन्दमुखं श्यामशरीरं श्रीविवर्जितम् । दग्धं स्थलम् इवैनं ते बह्व् अमन्यन्त नाकुलाः
Seeing his joyless face, darkened body, and bereft of splendor, they regarded him as one would a scorched field, without any concern.
धूमायमानदेहस्य परितापदशावती । नाढौकतास्य जनता पार्श्वम् अग्निगिरेर् इव
The people, distressed by the sight of his smoke-darkened body, stayed away from him as one would avoid the side of a burning mountain.
मन्दोत्साहसमुद्भूतास् तन्व्यस् सङ्घातवर्जिताः । एतदाज्ञाः परं प्रापुर् भस्मनीवाम्बुविप्रुषः
Those commands, arising from faint enthusiasm and lacking any real support, vanished utterly—like drops of water on hot ashes.
क्रूरकर्मकराकारात् सङ्गतो ऽशुभदायिनः । तस्माद् विशेषेण जना राक्षसाद् इव दुद्रुवुः
Because of his cruel deeds and harmful company, people fled from him in particular, just as one would run from a demon.
एक एव बभूवासौ जनमध्यगतो ऽपि सन् । अर्थादिगुणनिर्मुक्तः परदेश इवाध्वगः
He became utterly alone, though among people, stripped of all qualities like wealth and so on—like a traveler in a foreign land.
भृशम् आरटते ऽप्य् अस्मै नालापं नागरा ददुः । मुक्ताजालयुतायापि कीचकायाध्वगा इव
Even when he cried out loudly, the townspeople did not speak a word to him, just as travelers avoid the bamboo woman adorned with pearl garlands.
अथ सर्वे वयं दीर्घं कालं श्वपचदूषिताः । प्रायश्चित्तैर् न शुद्धास् स्मः प्रविशामो हुताशनम्
Then all of us, polluted for a long time by contact with a corpse, and not purified by any atonement, decided: 'Let us enter the fire.'