saying, “Ye lovely women!  Ye must find some means to allure, and obtain the confidence of the son of the saint—­Rishyasringa, whom ye must bring over to my territory.”  And those same women, on the one hand afraid of the anger of the king and on the other, dreading a curse from the saint, became sad and confounded, and declared the business to be beyond their power.  One, however, among them—­a hoary woman, thus spake to the king, “O great king! him whose wealth solely consists in penances, I shall try to bring over here.  Thou wilt, however, have to procure for me certain things, in connection with the plan.  In that case, I may be able to bring over the son of the saint—­Rishyasringa.”  Thereupon the king gave an order that all that she might ask for should be procured.  And he also gave a good deal of wealth and jewels of various kinds.  And then, O Lord of the earth, she took with herself a number of women endowed with beauty and youth, and went to the forest without delay.’”

SECTION CXI

“Lomasa said, ’O descendant of Bharata! she in order to compass the object of the king, prepared a floating hermitage, both because the king had ordered so, and also because it exactly accorded with her plan.  And the floating hermitage, containing artificial trees adorned with various flowers and fruits, and surrounded by diverse shrubs and creeping plants and capable of furnishing choice and delicious fruits, was exceedingly delightful, and nice, and pleasing, and looked as if it had been created by magic.  Then she moored the vessel at no great distance from the hermitage of Kasyapa’s son, and sent emissaries to survey the place where that same saint habitually went about.  And then she saw an opportunity; and having conceived a plan in her mind, sent forward her daughter, a courtesan by trade and of smart sense.  And that clever woman went to the vicinity of the religious man and arriving at the hermitage beheld the son of the saint.

“’The courtesan said, “I hope, O saint! that is all well with the religious devotees.  And I hope that thou hast a plentiful store of fruits and roots and that thou takest delight in this hermitage.  Verily I come here now to pay thee a visit.  I hope the practice of austerities among the saints is on the increase.  I hope that thy father’s spirit hath not slackened and that he is well pleased with thee.  O Rishyasringa of the priestly caste!  I hope thou prosecutest the studies proper for thee.”

“’Rishyasringa said, “Thou art shining with lustre, as if thou wert a (mass) of light.  And I deem thee worthy of obeisance.  Verily I shall give thee water for washing thy feet and such fruits and roots also as may be liked by thee, for this is what my religion hath prescribed to me.  Be thou pleased to take at thy pleasure thy seat on a mat made of the sacred grass, covered over with a black deer-skin and made pleasant and comfortable to sit upon.  And where is thy hermitage?  O Brahmana! thou resemblest a god in thy mien.  What is the name of this particular religious vow, which thou seemest to be observing now?”