Lekhny post -19-Mar-2022

The husband began following her secretly and when she went to the tank to bathe, he went to the temple of the Goddess and hid behind the idol. After taking bath in the tank, the Brahmin’s wife came to the temple from the tank and began praying the Goddess, "O mother, tell me how can I render my husband blind?" The Brahmin, hiding behind the idol, changed his voice and said, "O great devotee, you feed your husband daily with good and delicious food. Very soon he will become blind." From then onwards, the wife began feeding her husband with delicacies. Soon, the Brahmin complained to the wife that he was not able to see clearly. The wife thought that the Goddess had at last fulfilled her desire. Encouraged by the Brahmin’s blindness, his wife’s lover began visiting her without any fear. One day, Yagnadatta saw him and his wife together. The lover ignored him thinking the Brahmin was blind. Yagnadatta then thrashed the lover so hard that he died. The Brahmin then cut the nose of his wife. "That’s why," Mandavishya told the cobra, "I am pretending to be friendly with the frogs." Jalapada, the king of frogs overheard this conversation and asked Mandavishya if what he had heard was true. The snake at once realised his mistake and told the king of frogs that it was all fun. The king of frogs foolishly believed the words of the snake and the snake slowly swallowed all the frogs. Sthirajeevi told Meghavarna that he followed the tactics of Mandavishya in misleading his enemies. Pleased, the king of crows said, "What you have said is correct. Great men do not give up what they have begun even in the face of obstacles. Cowards, afraid of failure, do not venture at all. There are some that begin a task and give it up when there is a problem. But courageous people do not give up whatever dangers they face." "You (Sthirajeevi) have crushed the enemies and brought security to my kingdom. The learned have said, "It is dangerous to leave A fire un extinguished A debt unredeemed An enemy uncrushed andA disease untreated." Sthirajeevi said, "My lord, virtue belongs to him who is charitable, learned, courageous and friendly. Virtue brings wealth. Wealth brings power. It is a king with these qualities who can rule and expand his kingdom. I have done my duty. I need rest. But I humbly seek to offer one word of advice. All this power should not go to your head. Follow the path of duty and rule your subjects for a hundred years. May God bless you." Thus ends the third part of the Panchatantra.