गुहासु सुप्तसिंहौघा कुञ्जेषूच्छ्वसितैणका । खे सावश्यायनिकरा विपिने मौनधारिणी
In caves, the groups of lions sleep; in thickets, the deer breathe; in the sky, the clouds drift; in the wilderness, silence prevails.
कज्जलाम्भोदमध्याभा काचशैलोदरोपमा । पङ्कपिण्डान्तरघना खड्गच्छेद्यान्ध्यमांसला
She is like the darkness at the center of a cloud of soot, resembling the hollow of a glass mountain; dense within a lump of mud, her flesh is blind and can be cut by a sword.
प्रलयानिलविक्षुब्धा कज्जलाचलचञ्चला । एकार्णवमहापङ्कपर्वतोदरमेदुरा
Agitated by the wind of dissolution, she is restless like a mountain of soot; she is thick as the belly of a muddy mountain in the vast ocean of mire.
अङ्गारकोटिनखरा सौषुप्तपदसुन्दरी । अज्ञाननिद्रानिविडा भृङ्गपृष्ठच्छविच्छविः
She is rough as millions of embers, beautiful in the state of deep sleep; she is the fortress of ignorance and sleep, with the hue of a bee’s back.
तस्यां रजन्यां भीमायां किरातजनमण्डले । मन्त्रिणा सह भूपालस् तस्मिन्न् अवसरे तदा
In that dreadful night, among the tribes of hunters, the king together with his minister, at that moment,
निर्जगाम सुधीरात्मा नगरात् सुप्तनागरात् । अटवीं विक्रमो नाम विषमां वीरचर्यया
Departed from the city of sleeping citizens, the wise-hearted king, named Vikrama, entered the perilous forest with heroic conduct.
अटव्यां कर्कटी सा तौ चरन्तौ राजमन्त्रिणौ । अपश्यद् धृतधैर्यांशौ वेतालालोकनोन्मुखौ
In the forest, Karkati saw those two—the king and his minister—wandering, steadfast in courage, seeking the realm of the vetalas.
अथ सा चिन्तयाम् आस लब्धो भक्षो ऽद्य हो मया । मूढाव् एताव् अनात्मज्ञौ भारो देहः किलानयोः
Then she thought, 'Today I have found food to eat. These two are foolish and ignorant of the Self; their bodies are indeed a burden to them.'
इहामुत्र च नाशाय मूढो दुःखाय जीवति । यत्नाद् विनाशनीयो ऽसौ नानर्थः परिपाल्यते
Here and hereafter, the fool lives only for destruction and suffering; he should be destroyed with effort, for there is no reason to preserve what is harmful.
अपश्यतस् स्वम् आत्मानं मृतिर् मूढस्य जीवितम् । मरणेनोदयो ऽस्यास्ति पापसम्पत्तिहेतुतः
For the one who does not see his own Self, death is life; his rise comes through death, since it is the cause of the accumulation of evil.
आदिसर्गे च नियमः कृतः पङ्कजजन्मना । हिंस्राभिभोजनायास्तु मूढात्मा नात्मवान् इति
At the beginning of creation, the lotus-born one established the rule: the ignorant self is for violent consumption, not for one possessing the Self.
तस्माद् इमौ मयैवाद्य भोक्तव्यौ भोज्यतां गतौ । अभव्य एव निर्दोषं प्राप्तम् अर्थम् उपेक्षते
Therefore, today these two must be eaten by me, as they have become food; only the unfortunate neglect a faultless opportunity that has come.
मा कदाचिद् इमौ स्यातां गुणयुक्तौ महाशयौ । तादृङ्नरविनाशो हि स्वभावान् मे न रोचते
Let these two never become virtuous or noble; the destruction of such men does not suit my nature.
तद् एतौ सम्परीक्षे ऽहं यदि तावद् गुणान्वितौ । तद् भक्ष्यं न करोम्य् एतौ न हिंस्या गुणिनः क्वचित्
Therefore, I will examine these two: if they are endowed with virtue, I will not eat them; the virtuous should never be harmed.
अकृत्रिमं सुखं कीर्तिम् आयुश् चैवाभिवाञ्छता । सर्वाभिमतदानेन पूजनीया गुणान्विताः
Those who desire uncontrived happiness, fame, and long life should honor the virtuous by giving them all that is desired.
यदि नश्यामि देहेन तन् न भोक्ष्ये गुणान्वितम् । सुखयन्ति हि चेतांसि जीविताद् अपि साधवः
If I should perish along with my body, I will not enjoy what is endowed with virtue; for truly, the virtuous bring delight to the hearts even more than life itself.
अपि जीवितदानेन गुणिनं परिपालयेत् । गुणवत्सङ्गमौषध्या मृत्युर् अप्य् एति मित्रताम्
One should protect a virtuous person even at the cost of one's own life; for with the medicine of association with the virtuous, even death becomes a friend.
यत्राहम् अपि रक्षामि राक्षसी गुणशालिनम् । तत्रान्यश् चानुकुर्यात् तं हृद्विचारम् इवामलम्
Where even I, a demoness, protect one endowed with virtue, there another too would act kindly toward him, just as pure reflection arises in the heart.
उदारगुणयुक्ता ये विहरन्तीह देहिनः । धरातलेन्दवस् सङ्गाद् भृशं शीतलयन्ति ते
Those who are endowed with noble virtues and dwell here among embodied beings, are like moons upon the earth, greatly cooling through their association.
मृतिर् गुणतिरस्कारो जीवितं गुणिसंश्रयः । फलं स्वर्गापवर्गादि जीविताद् गुणिसंश्रयात्
Death is the rejection of virtue; life is the shelter of the virtuous; the fruit, whether heaven, liberation, or otherwise, comes from taking refuge in the virtuous during life.
तस्माद् इमौ परीक्षे ऽहं कदाचित् प्रश्नलीलया । किं मानज्ञानकाव् एताव् इति तामरसेक्षणौ
Therefore, I sometimes examine these two, with playful questioning: Are these two possessed of honor, knowledge, and poetry, O lotus-eyed ones?
आदौ विचार्य सुगुणागुणलेशयुक्तिम् आगस् ततो ऽधिकतरं च गुणाद् यादि स्यात् । कुर्यात् ततस् समुपपत्तिवशेन दण्डं दण्ड्यस्य लघ्व् अथ दृढं धनसम्भवे वा
First, one should consider the presence or absence of virtue and the degree of fault; then, if the fault is greater than the virtue, one should impose punishment on the offender, light or severe, or in the form of a fine, according to what is appropriate.
अथ सा राक्षसी रक्षःकुलकाननमञ्जरी । तमस्य् एवाभ्रलेखेव गम्भीरं निननाद सा
Then that demoness, the flower of the demon clan's forest, roared deeply, like a streak of cloud in the darkness.
नादान्ते समुवाचेदं प्रीङ्कारपरुषं वचः । गर्जितानन्तरं जातकरकाशनिशब्दवत्
At the end of the sound, it uttered these harsh, shrill words—like the noise that follows thunder, resembling the crack of lightning.
भो भो घोराटवीव्योमपदवीशशिभास्करौ । महामायातमःपीठशिलाकोटरकीटकौ
Hey! Hey! Moon and sun, rulers of the wild forest sky-path; worms dwelling in the dark hollows of the great illusion's seat.
कौ भवन्तौ महाबुद्धी दुर्बुद्धी वा समागतौ । मद्ग्रासपथम् आपन्नौ क्षणान् मरणकोविदौ
Who are you two—possessors of great wisdom or poor judgment—who have come together, entering the path of my prey, experts in death for a moment?
भो भो भूतक किं स्यास् त्वं क्व तिष्ठसि च देहकम् । दर्शयास्यास् तव गिरः को बिभेत्य् अलिनीध्वनेः
Hey! Hey! Spirit, what are you? Where does your little body stand? Show your face, let your voice be heard—who fears the buzzing of a bee?
सिंहवत् सर्ववेगेन पतन्त्य् अर्थं किलार्थिनः । समम् आकारशब्दाभ्यां भावयास्मान् बिभेषि किम् । न किञ्चिद् दीर्घसूत्राणां सिध्यत्य् आत्मक्षयाद् ऋते
Like lions, those seeking their aim rush forward with all their strength; with equal form and sound, you try to frighten me—why? Nothing succeeds for those who delay, except self-destruction.
राज्ञेत्य् उक्ते रम्यम् उक्तम् इति सञ्चिन्त्य सा तयोः । प्रकाशायाप्य् अधैर्याय ननाद च जहास च
When 'king' was spoken, she thought, 'That was pleasant to hear,' and, due to her own restlessness, she roared and laughed.
ततो ददृशतुस् तौ तां शब्दपूरितदिग्गणाम् । स्वाट्टहासप्रभापिण्डपूरप्रकटिताकृतिम्
Then the two saw her, filling the quarters with sound, her form revealed by the flood of radiance from her laughter.