महावीरचरितम् (महाकवि भवभूति - वीररस-प्रधान रामकथा नाटक सम्पूर्ण ७ अङ्क सटीक)

65] Act IV, Kausalyā and Janaka — Translation [—iv. 17ᶜ whole purpose of my existence: my body, my soul, my whatever- else-dearer-than-these-there-may-be—was there anything that that great and illustrious King Daśaratha was not to me? 13 And is this, alas, that same Kausalyā?— Between her and her Lord, in [the confidence of] privacy, whatever occasion of displeasure there arose, it was to me that the husband and the wife severally communicated their complaints; and then, whether it was a case for forbearance or for anger, the issue rested entirely with me. Away rather with these memories that assail and consume my heart! 14 Arundhatī—Alas, alas! With this long suspension of breath her heart has [almost] ceased to beat! Janaka—Alas, my dear friend! Sprinkles [her] with water from his _kamaṇḍalu._¹ Chamberlain—Having at first, like a delightful bosom-friend, mani- fested unalloyed favours, Fate, terrible in the suddenness of its reverses, is next intensifying [by contrast] the anguish of the heart. 15 Kausalyā, regaining consciousness—Alas my child, Jānakī, where art thou? I [still] remember thy face all suffused with the glory imparted to it by thy [recent] marriage sacraments, [thy face] with that pure smile playing upon it, and charming like a [full-blown] lotus. With limbs fair as the light of the shining moon, once more, my darling, do thou grace my lap. The great King [Daśaratha] would always say: "Of the mightier ancestors of the race of Raghu she may be a daughter-in-law; to us, however— such is our friendship for Janaka—she is just 'little daughter' [no more, but no less]." Chamberlain—It was, just as the Queen has said: Although the King [Daśaratha] had five children, it was [Rāma] the enemy of Subāhu² that was specially dear to him. So likewise, among his four daughters-in-law, Sītā was as much adored by him as was his own daughter, Śāntā. 16 Janaka—Oh, my dear friend, thou great King, Daśaratha! So indeed thou art, in every way a delight to the heart: How canst thou be forgotten? It is customary (kila) for the parents of the bride to pay court to the kinsfolk of the son-in-law; but with our connexion [through the marriage of Rāma and Sītā] all was reversed: it was me that thou wast assiduous to please! Such as thou hast been, Time ¹ An ascetic's gourd. ² A demon who molested Viśvāmitra's sacri- fice, and who was killed by Rāma. 9 [H.O.S. 21]