26 BLOOMFIELD— ON THE ART OF 



the command of the master the king himself also accepted the art, 

 and the Magician expounded to him plainly the rules for its ap- 

 plication. 



The Brahman, though he had not been dismissed by the Master, 

 was anxious to depart. Not so the king, even though he was given 

 permission, because he was burdened with his affection for the 

 Master. For noble men, after they have been laden with a pack^^ 

 of accomplishments, do not turn their backs upon their benefactor, 

 like peacocks upon a pool. But the Master dismissed the king, 

 reluctant though he was, saying : " You have your affairs to regard, 

 whereas I must devote myself to pondering on the Law (dharma)." 



Vikrama and the Brahman Return Together to Avantl { 14^-149). 

 The king, having prepared himself for the execution of the 

 Magic Art, and having taught the Brahman to do the same, arrived, 

 perfect in the art, at his own city, accompanied by the Brahman. 

 Out of friendly feeling he told the Brahman his own history: the 

 ocean, though deep, because it is clear, displays its jewels. He 

 passed the day in hiding, but at night, leaving the Brahman outside, 

 he entered the city alone, in order to observe the state of his king- 

 dom. Delightedly he noted that the people of the city everywhere 

 were engaged in their usual pleasing occupations, such as celebrating 

 in the temples of the gods, with song, festival, and drama, and if 

 anyone happened to be worried by evil omens, such as sneezing*^^ or 

 stumbling, he propitiated the omen by exclaiming, " Long live 

 Vikrama ! " 



Vikrama Enters the Body of the Sta>te Elephant that Has Just Died, 



and the Brahman Basely Usurps His Body and 



Kingdom {if,o-i6o). 



Then the king observed that the people within the palace were 



upset because the state elephant had died. He returned to where 



°^ It is not possible to reproduce the double meaning of kalapa, which 

 means both "bundle" and "peacock's tail"; noble men do not turn the knowl- 

 edge which has been given them so as to show it as a tail to their benefactor ; 

 peacocks do turn their tails towards the pool which has refreshed them. It 

 is rhetorical vakrokti. 



^s On various aspects of the sneeze as an omen see Henry C. Warren's 

 paper in PAOS. XIII, pp. xvii ff. ; and Tawney, "Translation of Kathakoga," 

 pp. XX, xxii, and 75. 



