Having said this, that prince of snakes became as
small as the thumb. And taking him up, Nala went
to a spot free from fire. Having reached an open
spot where there was no fire, Nala intended to drop
the serpent, upon which Karkotaka again addressed him,
saying, “O king of the Nishadhas, proceed thou
yet, counting a few steps of thine; meanwhile, O mighty-armed
one, I will do thee great good.” And as
Nala began to count his steps, the snake bit him at
the tenth step. And, lo! As he was bit,
his form speedily underwent a change. And beholding
his change of form, Nala was amazed. And the king
saw the snake also assume his own form. And the
snake Karkotaka, comforting Nala, spake unto him,
“I have deprived thee of thy beauty, so that
people may not recognise thee. And, O Nala, he
by whom thou hast been deceived and cast into distress,
shall dwell in thee tortured by my venom. And,
O monarch, as long as he doth not leave thee, he will
have to dwell in pain in thy body with thine every
limb filled with my venom. And, O ruler of men
I have saved from the hands of him who from anger
and hate deceived thee, perfectly innocent though
thou art and undeserving of wrong. And, O tiger
among men, through my grace, thou shalt have (no longer)
any fear from animals with fangs, from enemies, and
from Brahmanas also versed in the Vedas, O king!
Nor shalt thou, O monarch, feel pain on account of
my poison. And, O foremost of kings, thou shalt
be ever victorious in battle. This very day,
O prince, O lord of Nishadhas, go to the delightful
city of Ayodhya, and present thyself before Rituparna
skilled in gambling, saying, ‘I am a charioteer,
Vahuka by name.’ And that king will
give thee his skill in dice for thy knowledge of horses.
Sprung from the line of Ikswaku, and possessed of prosperity,
he will be thy friend. When thou wilt be an adept
at dice, thou shalt then have prosperity. Thou
wilt also meet with thy wife and thy children, and
regain thy kingdom. I tell thee this truly.
Therefore, let not thy mind be occupied by sorrow.
And, O lord of men, when thou shouldst desire to behold
thy proper form, thou shouldst remember me, and wear
this garment. Upon wearing this, thou shalt get
back thy own form.” And saying this, that
Naga then gave unto Nala two pieces of celestial cloth.
And, O son of the Kuru race, having thus instructed
Nala, and presented him with the attire, the king
of snakes, O monarch, made himself invisible there
and then!’”
SECTION LXVII
“Vrihadaswa said, ’After the snake had vanished, Nala, the ruler of the Nishadhas, proceeded, and on the tenth day entered the city of Rituparna. And he approached the king, saying, “My name is Vahuka. There is no one in this world equal to me in managing steeds. My counsel also should be sought in matters of difficulty and in all affairs of skill. I also surpass others in the art of cooking. In all those arts that exist in this