"I shall gladly go to your wedding,"
She then called to her daughters-in-law and said, "I am going to this
child's wedding. But if any one of our relations dies when I am away,
do not burn his body until I come back." She went with the two Brahman
children to the seashore. The wind was blowing, and the great waves
were rolling in, and the foam was splashing over the rocks. But Soma
took the boy under one arm and the girl under the other. She jumped
far up into the sky and right over the seven seas, and when she got
to the opposite shore she put the children down again. They led her to
their father's house. Their mother Dhanvanti welcomed the washerwoman
and fell at her feet to thank her for her coming. The youngest brother
then went to Ujjain, and after making inquiries brought back a boy of
suitable caste and age to be a husband for his sister. On an auspicious
day the wedding was celebrated. But as the bridegroom and bride were
throwing rice [14] over each other, the bridegroom fainted. He fell
on the ground and lay there motionless. The little bride did not know
what to do, she was so frightened. And all the grown-up people were
almost as frightened as she was. But Soma, the washerwoman, stepped
forward and said, "It is nothing, do not be afraid." She took some
water in her hand and sprinkled it over herself. Now the secret of
Soma's power was this:--

She had acquired great merit by observing every Monday the following
practices: She would get up early, bathe, dress in silence, make
various gifts to Brahmans, and then walk one hundred and eight times
round a peepul tree. But now by sprinkling water over herself she had
transferred the whole of her merit to Gunvanti. By this means the
little bride had been able to restore her husband to life, and the
wedding ceremony finished amidst the happiness of all. Soma then took
leave to go, and started on her homeward journey. When she reached the
seashore, the wind was blowing, and the great waves came rolling in,
and the spray was splashing over the rocks. But now that she had given
away all her merit to Gunvanti, she had none left by means of which she
could jump across the seven seas. She sat down forlorn by the bank of
a river. Then she got up, bathed in the water, and prayed to the god
Vishnu. Next she took one hundred and eight sand-grains in her hand,
and then walked one hundred and eight times round a peepul tree by
the river's edge. Instantly her powers returned to