638 BLOOMFIELD— ADVENTURES OF MULADEVA t-^P"! iS. 



not attach much value to it ; to virtue alone is their inclination.' 

 Anent this it is said: 



" ' Speech is valued at a thousand ; the rewards of love at a hun- 

 dred thousand. But the devotion of a noble man exceeds a krore.' 



"Therefore, by all means yield to my wishes." Then he con- 

 sented, and there sprang up between them a union of surpassing 

 love. 



• It came to pass that Devadatta danced before the king, while 

 ]Muladeva beat the drum. The king was delighted, granted her 

 a boon, which she laid up in store.*' But ]Midadeva was so 

 passionatelv addicted to gambling, that he did not keep even the 

 clothes on his back. Devadatta, sweetly spoken, administered a 

 friendly rebuke : " Dearly beloved, the passion of gambling in thee, 

 that art the resort of all virtues, is a blemish, like the figure of the 

 gazelle on the full-moon.*^ Gambling, as the poet says, is the 

 foundation of every sin:'*'' 



" Gambling disgraces the family ; is the enemy of truth ; brings 

 shame and grief upon parents and teacher. It destroys piety, and 

 wastes property. It precludes liberality to others and own enjoy- 

 ment; it steals from child and wife, from father and mother. O 

 beloved do not adhere to this vice which makes forget God and 

 teacher, and right and wrong: which ruins the body and leads to hell ! 



" Aye, by all means desist from this vice ! " But Muladeva could 

 not control his exceeding passion. 



Xow there was a rich son of a merchant, Ayala by name, who 

 had a host of friends, and was deeply smitten with Devadatta. He 

 gave her whatever she asked; sent her clothes, jewels, and other 

 presents. He bore Muladeva a grudge, and sought out his vulnerable 

 points. ]\Iuladeva regarded Ayala with suspicion, and did not come 

 to the house, unless there was some special occasion. Now Deva- 

 datta's " ]\Iama ""^ said to her : " My child, drop ]\lCiladeva ! You 



*" This practice is referred to quite frequently: Kathako^a, p. 48; Pra- 

 bandhacintamani, p. "/"] ; Jatakas, Vol. I, p. 24. 



*s The Hindus fancj' either a gazelle or a hare in the moon. 



^^ Cf. the reflections on gambling in the gamblers' stories, Katha- 

 saritsagara 121. 



so This "Mama" is sometimes the real mother of the hetjera, but, 

 generally speaking, rather a hired manager. See Dhanamjaya's Dagarupa 2. 



