तान् परिज्ञातवांश् चासीद् व्याधान् पुक्कसजान् पुरः । विस्मयाकुलया बुद्ध्या भूयो बभ्राम सम्भ्रमी
He also recognized those hunters, the outcaste Pukkasas, standing before him, and with a mind overwhelmed by wonder, he wandered on, bewildered.
अथ प्राप महाटव्याः पर्यन्ते धूमधूसरम् । तम् एव ग्रामकं यस्मिन् सो ऽभवत् पुष्टपुक्कसः
Then he reached the edge of the great forest, gray with smoke and dust, to that very village where he had once been a thriving Pukkasa.
तत्रापश्यज् जनांस् तांस् तांस् स्त्रियस् तास् ताः कुटीरिकाः । तान् आरामाञ् जलाधारांस् तांस् तांश् च वसुधातटान्
There he saw those people, those women, those little huts, those gardens, streams, and those stretches of land.
तं चाकाण्डपरिभ्रंशं तान् वृक्षांस् तान् वृतिव्रजान् । तांस् तथैव समुद्देशांस् तद्वृत्तान्तैकलाञ्छितान्
He saw that sudden ruin, those trees, those herds of cattle, and those very places marked by the events that had occurred there.
अन्यासु वृद्धासु सबाष्पनेत्रास्व् आर्त्याभियुक्तासु च वर्णयन्ती । अकालकान्तारविशीर्णबन्धुदुःखान्य् असङ्ख्यानि सखी सखीषु
Elsewhere, among the old women with tearful eyes, afflicted by sorrow, one friend described to another the countless griefs of losing loved ones untimely in the forest.
वृद्धा प्रवृद्धोज्ज्वलबाष्पानेत्र कन्थावृता शुष्ककुचा कृशाङ्गी । अवग्रहोग्राशनिदग्धदेशे तत्रान्तरान्ता परिरोदितीयम्
Aged, greatly afflicted, her eyes bright with tears, her throat choked, her breasts dried, her body emaciated—she wails in the midst of the place scorched by the fierce fire of grief.
हा पुत्र पुत्रावृतसर्वगात्र दिनत्रयाभोजनजर्जराङ्ग । कृत्तेशुना चर्मणि जीर्णदेहात् कथं क्व मुक्ता भवतासवस् ते
Alas, my son! My body, covered with wounds and weakened by three days without food, is worn out; how, where, did your life depart from your mutilated, decaying body?
तालीलतालम्बनम् अम्बुदार्द्रदन्तान्तरस्थारुणसत्फलस्य । स्मरामि गुञ्जाफलदामहेतोः पुरस् स्ववध्वा रसहासिनस् ते
I remember the garland of gunja berries, the sweet laughter with your wife, the ripe fruit held between your moist teeth, and the playful swinging from the palm tree.
कदम्बजम्बीरलवङ्गगुञ्जकुञ्जान्तर् अत्रस्ततरत्तरक्षोः । पश्यामि पुत्रस्य कदा नु भूयो भयङ्कराण्य् आप्लुतिवल्गितानि
In the groves of kadamba, jambira, clove, and gunja, where wild beasts roam, when will I again see my son's leaps and plunges into those terrifying places?
न तानि ताम्बूलविलासिनीनां मुखेषु शोभललितानि सन्ति । तमालनीले चिबुकैकदेशे सुतस्य यान्य् आस्यगतामिषस्य
Those charming marks are not found on the lips of women who delight in chewing betel; they were on the blue cheek of my son, left by the meat he had eaten.
सुतापि नीता सह तेन भर्त्रा यमेन यास्या यमुना समाना । तमालवल्ली सहपुष्पगुच्छा समीरणेनेव वनेचरेण
My daughter too was taken away by her husband, and will go to Yama, the lord of death, just as the Yamuna river joins the Yamuna, like a forest wanderer with a cluster of flowers carried by the breeze.
हा पुत्रि गुञ्जाफलदामहारे समुन्नताभोगपयोधराङ्गि । वातोल्लसत्कज्जलनीलवर्णे पर्णाम्बरे ऽबाधरजे ऽम्बुदन्ते
Alas, my daughter, with a gunja berry necklace and full, rounded breasts, wearing a garment of leaves, blue as the water stirred by the wind, untroubled by dust at the edge of the clouds.
हा राजपुत्रेन्दुसमान कान्त सन्त्यज्य शुद्धान्तविलासिनीस् ताः । रतिं प्रयातो ऽसि ममात्मजायां न सापि ते सुस्थिरताम् उपेता
Alas, prince, radiant as the moon, you abandoned those pure, graceful women and sought pleasure with my own daughter; yet she did not attain lasting happiness with you.
संसारनद्यास् स्वतरङ्गभङ्गैः क्रियाविलासैर् विहितोपहासैः । किं नाम तुच्छं न कृतं नृपो ऽसौ यद् योजितः पुक्कसकन्यकायाम्
In the river of worldly existence, with its own waves breaking and playful activities mocking, what trivial thing has not been done by that king, who was joined to the daughter of a pukkasa?
सा त्रस्तसारङ्गसमाननेत्रा स तृप्तशार्दूलसमानवीर्यः । उभौ गताव् एकपदेन नाशम् आशा सहार्थेन यथा च हेम
She, whose eyes resembled those of a frightened deer, and he, whose strength matched that of a satisfied lion—both departed together in a single step into destruction, just as hope and wealth vanish, like gold.
मृतेश्वरास्म्य् अस्तमितात्मजास्मि दुर्देशयातास्मि च दुर्गतास्मि । दुर्जातजातास्मि महापदास्मि साक्षात् स्वयं वोन्नमितापदास्मि
I am the wife of a dead lord, my children have faded away, I have traveled to a foreign land, I am destitute, born into a low lineage, afflicted by great misfortune, and I myself am the witness to my own downfall.
नीचावमानप्रभवस्य मन्योः क्षुधावसन्नस्य कलत्रकस्य । शोकस्य वेगाद् अनिवार्यवृत्तेर् नार्यस् सदैकायतनं विनाथाः
Women, the sole refuge for those humiliated by contempt, weakened by hunger, burdened by family, and overwhelmed by unstoppable grief, are left without support except for their own bodies.
दैवोपतप्तस्य विबान्धवस्य मूढस्य रूढस्य महाधिभूमौ । यत् प्राणनं तन् मरणं महापद् या स्यान् मृतिर् जीवितम् उत्तमं तत्
For one afflicted by fate, separated from relatives, confused and deeply rooted in suffering, living is the same as dying; great misfortune makes death life’s highest blessing.
जनैर् विहीनस्य विदेशवृत्तेर् दुःखान्य् अनन्तानि समुल्लसन्ति । सहस्रशाखारससङ्कुलानि तृणानि वर्षास्व् इव पर्वतस्य
For one deprived of people, living in a foreign land, endless sorrows arise, crowded together like thousands of branches and blades of grass on a mountain during the rains.
एवं लपन्तीं स्वकलत्रवृद्धां दासिभिर् आश्वास्य नृपस् स्त्रियं ताम् । पप्रच्छ किं वृत्तम् इहासि का च का ते सुता कश् च पतिस् तवेति
After comforting the woman, aged with her own family, with the help of maidservants, the king asked her: 'What has happened here? Who are you? Who is your daughter? And who is your husband?'
उवाच सोद्बाष्पविलोचनाथ ग्रामस् त्व् अयं पुक्कसघोषनामा । इहाभवत् पुक्कसकः पतिर् मे बभूव तस्येन्दुसमा सुतैका
With tearful eyes she replied: 'This village is called Pukkasa settlement. Here, my husband was a pukkasa; he had one daughter, radiant like the moon.'
सा दैवयोगात् पतिम् इन्दुतुल्यम् इहागतं दैववशेन भूपम् । शून्ये विशीर्णं मधुकुम्भम् आप वने वराकी करभी यथैका
By the will of fate, she obtained a husband equal to the moon, a king who arrived there by destiny; like a poor female elephant who finds an empty, broken honey-jar in the forest, she came to him alone.
सा तेन सार्धं सुचिरं सुखानि भुक्त्वा प्रसूता तनयां सुतांश् च । वृद्धिं गता काननकोटरे ऽस्मिंस् तुम्बीलता पादपसंवृतेव
She enjoyed happiness with him for a long time, and gave birth to a daughter and sons; she grew old in that forest hollow, like a gourd vine covered by a tree.
केनचित् त्व् अथ कालेन ग्रामके ऽस्मिञ् जनेश्वर । अवृष्टिदुःखम् अभवद् भीषणं भग्नमानवम्
Then, after some time, O lord of people, a terrible suffering from drought befell that village, breaking the spirit of its people.
महतानेन दुःखेन सर्वे ते ग्रामकाज् जनाः । विनिर्गत्य गता दूरं तत्र पञ्चत्वम् आगताः
Because of that great suffering, all the villagers left and went far away, and there they met their end.
तेनेमा दुःखभागिन्यश् शून्या वयम् इह प्रभो । शोच्याश् शोचाम उद्बाष्पम् आचान्तेक्षणवारयः
Because of this, O lord, we who remain here are left to share in this suffering; we are pitiable, we weep, our eyes brimming with tears.
इत्य् आकर्ण्याङ्गनावक्त्राद् राजा विस्मयम् आगतः । मन्त्रिणां मुखम् आलोक्य चित्रार्पित इवाभवत्
Hearing this from the lips of the women, the king was filled with wonder; looking at the faces of his ministers, he seemed as if struck by a marvelous painting.
भूयो विचारयाम् आस तद् आश्चर्यम् अनुत्तमम् । भूयो भूयश् च पप्रच्छ बभूवाश्चर्यवान् अति
He began to reflect again and again on that extraordinary event, and repeatedly questioned them, becoming ever more astonished.
तेषां समुचितैर् मानसम्मानैर् दुःखसङ्क्षयम् । कृत्वा करुणयाविद्धो दृष्टलोकपरावरः
Moved by compassion, and seeing the world in all its aspects, he relieved their suffering with proper respect and honor for their minds.
स्थित्वा तत्र चिरं कालं विमृश्य नियतेर् गतीः । आजगाम पुरं पौरैर् वन्दितः प्रविवेश च
Having remained there for a long time, reflecting on the courses of destiny, he returned to the city, honored by the citizens, and entered within.