foremost of the great Munis, she hath been reared by me for thee.' And
the Rishi replied, 'This is agreed between us that I shall not maintain
her; and she shall not do aught that I do not like. If she do, I leave
her!'

"Sauti continued, 'When the snake had promised, saying, 'I shall maintain
my sister,' Jaratkaru then went to the snake's house. Then that first of
mantra-knowing Brahmanas, observing rigid vows, that virtuous and veteran
ascetic, took her hand presented to him according to shastric rites. And
taking his bride with him, adored by the great Rishi, he entered the
delightful chamber set apart for him by the king of the snakes. And in
that chamber was a bed-stead covered with very valuable coverlets. And
Jaratkaru lived there with his wife. And the excellent Rishi made an
agreement with his wife, saying, 'Nothing must ever be done or said by
thee that is against my liking. And in case of thy doing any such thing,
I will leave thee and no longer continue to stay in thy house. Bear in
mind these words that have been spoken by me.'

"And then the sister of the king of the snakes in great anxiety and
grieving exceedingly, spoke unto him, saying, 'Be it so.' And moved by
the desire of doing good to her relatives, that damsel, of unsullied
reputation, began to attend upon her lord with the wakefulness of a dog,
the timidity of a deer, and knowledge of signs possessed by the crow. And
one day, after the menstrual period, the sister of Vasuki, having
purified herself by a bath according to custom, approached her lord the
great Muni; And thereupon she conceived. And the embryo was like unto a
flame of fire, possessed of great energy, and resplendent as fire itself.
And it grew like the moon in the bright fortnight.

"And one day, within a short time, Jaratkaru of great fame, placing his
head on the lap of his wife, slept, looking like one fatigued. And as he
was sleeping, the sun entered his chambers in the Western mountain and
was about to set. And, O Brahmana, as the day was fading, she, the
excellent sister of Vasuki, became thoughtful, fearing the loss of her
husband's virtue. And she thought, 'What should I now do? Shall I wake my
husband or not? He is exacting and punctilious in his religious duties.
How can I act as not to offend him? The alternatives are his anger and
the loss of virtue of a virtuous man. The loss of virtue, I ween, is the
greater of the two evils. Again, if I wake him, he will be angry. But