Then the lady said to him, "Sir, this is not clear to you, but it is clear enough to the king and me," and she repeated the first stanza:--

Then wert thou first known to me,
When in forest-depths, O king,
Roasted lizard broke its string
And from Bo-tree branch got free.
Though 'neath robe of bark, I ween,
Sword and coat of mail were seen.?

Thus spake the queen, making known the king's offence in the midst of his courtiers. The Bodhisatta, on hearing her, said, "Lady, ever since the time when your husband ceased to love you, why do you go on living here, making unpleasantness for both?" and he repeated two stanzas:--

To one that honours thee, due honour show
With full requital of good service done:
No kindness on illiberal folk bestow,
Nor those affect that would thy presence shun.

Forsake the wretch who has forsaken thee,
And love not one who has for thee no love,
E'en as a bird forsakes a barren tree,
And seeks a home in some far distant grove.

[109] The king, while the Bodhisatta was yet speaking, called to mind her virtues and said, "My dear, ever so long I observed not your virtues, but through the words of this wise man, I have observed them. Bear with my offence. This whole realm of mine I give to you alone." And hereupon he spoke the fourth stanza:--

Far as in his power may be,
Gratitude a king should show:
All my realm I grant to thee,
Gifts, on whom thou wilt, bestow.

With these words the king conferred on the queen supreme power, and thinking, "It was by this man that I was reminded of her virtues," he gave great power to the wise man also.

The Master, having brought his lesson to an end, identified the Birth:--At the conclusion of the Truths, both husband and wife attained fruition of the First Path:--"The husband and wife of the present story played the same part in the old tale. But I myself was the wise minister."

Footnotes

^71:1 Compare No. 223, Vol. ii.

^71:2 See No. 320, Vol. iii.