by Visnu Sarma
(53) Men skilled in diplomacy
do encourage the enemy
they wish to see destroyed
to grow and prosper a while:
just as phlegm increased by molasses
vanishes without a trace.
‘Moreover:
(54) A man who acts with candour towards a foe,
a false friend, or towards women,
especially those for sale,
will not long survive.
(55) With gods and Brāhmanas, however,
with oneself and one’s preceptor,
a man ought to act with candour;
with all others double-dealing is best.
(56) Towards ascetics purified
by prayer and meditation,
candour is ever extolled;
not with men who lust after worldly things;
with kings especially, never.
‘Therefore, my son,
(57) By resorting to double-dealing,
you will remain secure in your own place;
Death will quickly extirpate
the enemy obsessed with greed and hate.
‘And what’s more, if the smallest chink in his armour appears, you will notice it and destroy him,’ concluded Live Firm.
‘But, Father,’ objected Cloud Hue, ‘I have no idea where my enemy lives; how can I then be aware of chinks in his armour?’
‘Ah! My son,’ replied Live Firm, ‘leave that to me. By despatching secret agents, I shall be able to reveal to you not only where he lives but his weak points as well. For, you see:
(58) Cows see things by smell;
Brāhmanas see by the Vedas;
Kings see everything through spies:
And all others with their eyes.
‘And in this connection, it is further stated:
(59) The king who knows well his own high officials
and his enemy’s particularly well
through the employment of secret agents,
will never find himself in distress.’
‘Father.’ queried Cloud Hue, eagerly, ‘Tell me who these high officials are? How many are they? What kind of men are secret agents? Pray, tell me all.’
The ancient counsellor then explained: ‘In this matter, my son, the revered sage, Nārada, consulted by King Yudhisthira informed him clearly as follows: there are eighteen officials of importance in the enemy’s ranks and fifteen in one’s own. Three secret agents should be detailed to investigate each of these. By following this procedure, the high officials or personages in one’s own ranks and in the enemy’s as well are kept under control. The proverb puts the matter in a nutshell:
(60) Eighteen dignitaries on the other side
five and ten on one’s own;
three spies to each surreptitiously
keeping a wary eye.
And you’ll know everything you need to know
about each dignitary.
‘By the term “dignitary” is meant an official appointed to perform a particular job. If he performs ill, he will bring about his master’s downfall; if well, he will bring prosperity to his king. Now, these are the dignitaries: the Chief Minister, the High Priest, the Commander-in-Chief and the Crown Prince; the Chief Usher, Captain of the palace-guards, and Commandant of sappers and miners; the Commissioner of revenue and the Keeper of the stores; the Chief Justice; the Officer-in-Charge of the royal stables and the Superintendent of elephants; the Clerk of the council, the Minister for defence; the Commandant of the fort and Warden of the marches; the Secretary to the king and others; these are the important dignitaries in the enemy’s realm. By sowing dissension among them the enemy becomes vulnerable.
‘Coming to our own realm, the important personages are: the Queen and Queen-Mother; the Royal Chamberlain and garland-maker; the Lord of the royal bed-chamber; the Head of the secret service; the court-physician and court-astrologer; the water-carrier and the keeper of the royal box of betel-leaf and spices; the king’s preceptor; the royal bodyguard; the quartermaster; the bearer of the royal umbrella and the chief courtesan. It is through these persons that the realm might by destroyed. Further:
(61) Preceptor, astrologer, physician
are best employed to spy on one’s own men;
while snake-charmer and madman
know everything about one’s foes.’
‘Tell me, Father,’ said Cloud Hue, ‘What is the reason for this deadly feud between crows and owls?’
‘Listen, my son, and I’ll tell you how it all began,’ replied Live Firm. And then he began the story of How the birds picked a king.
Once upon a time all the different species of birds gathered together in a grand conclave and began deliberating. Assembled there were wild geese and sarus-cranes, koels11 and peacocks, crested cuckoos,12 pigeons, partridges and turtle-doves; blue-jays, skylarks and demoiselle cranes: owls and jungle fowls; thrushes,13 woodpeckers and many others.
‘To be sure, Vinatā’s son14 is our lord and king,’ they said. ‘But he is so rapt in the worship and service of the blessed lord, Nārāyaṇa, that he does not think of us. What good is it to have a make-believe king who cannot protect us from all the dangers we are subject to such as getting trapped, which causes us such great distress. As it is wisely observed:
(62) Let there be one, any one,
a king whom we pay homage to,
who will renew our spirits when we are weak and weary:
who will keep us safe, anxiety-free,
as the sun keeps the moon.
‘Anyone else will be a king only in name: as they say:
(63) He who does not protect his subjects
terrorized by continual harassment of foes,
he is no king—no doubt on that score—
but Death masquerading as king.
‘And again:
(64&65) Like a leaky boat at sea, these six
ought to be avoided at all costs;
a preceptor without learning;
a priest ignorant of ritual;
a king who provides no defence;
a wife whose speech is harsh and cutting;
a cowherd fond of sticking to the village
and a barber who hankers after wealth.
‘Therefore let us consider someone else to be the King of Birds.’
Then, observing that the owl had a gracious appearance, they all said, ‘Let this owl now be our king. Let all the essential requisites15 for the anointing of a king be collected and brought.’
Waters of sacred streams were brought; the hundred and eight herbs including cakrānkita16 and sahadevi17 were arranged in a bouquet; the lion-throne was set up. A picture of the earth’s circle with its seven continents, seas and mountains, was drawn on the ground; a tiger-skin was spread out. Golden jars filled with five kinds of tender sprouts and blossoms, and coloured grains of rice were placed in a row; offerings were made ready. Then bards began their praise-songs and Brāhmanas skilled in chanting the four Vedas correctly, began their recitations. Young maidens specially trained to sing songs of celebration lifted up their melodious voices. A sanctified salver containing white mustard, parched grain, grains of coloured rice, yellow pigment, flower-garlands, conches and other auspicious items were then placed in the forefront. Materials for the lustration rites were placed in readiness and drums began to be gently struck.18
As the owl graced the lion-throne set in the centre of a raised dais decorated with designs drawn with barley-flour, in readiness for his coronation, a crow flew in from somewhere announcing his arrival with raucous cawing, and entered the assembly. As he came he was thinking to himself, ‘Aha! What festival is this where all the birds are gathered together!’
Seeing him all the birds started whispering among themselves. ‘Look, we hear that of all birds, this one is the shrewdest. So let us hear what he has to say. As the proverb states it:
(66) Of men, the barber is the smartest,
of birds the crow,
of four-footed cr
eatures, the jackal,
of mendicants, the white-robed.
Besides:
(67) When many counsellors, wise and learned
frame after due deliberation
in close consultation
and thorough examination
a policy and carry it through,
under no circumstances will it fail.’
Thinking in this manner, the birds looked towards the crow and said, ‘Because we birds have no king we have all gathered together and decided unanimously that the owl should be anointed to reign as the supreme sovereign of birds. Since you have arrived at the right time you are welcome to express your views on the matter.’
The crow then laughed and said, ‘Worthy gentlemen! What an idea! When you have among you wild goose and peacock, koel and greek partridge,19 green pigeon20 and sarus-crane and other pre-eminent birds to choose from, why on earth would you go and pick this fellow here and crown him king—a creature blind by day and hideous looking? I am afraid I cannot approve of your choice. Look at him:
(68) Hook-nosed and squint-eyed,
fierce, with looks most unprepossessing:
in a pleasant mood if his face looks like this,
what’ll it be like when he’s angry and ranting?
‘Moreover:
(69) By nature wild and fierce,
a most savage creature, cruel,
every word he speaks is harsh
and extremely disagreeable:
having crowned the owl your king,
what good fortune do you expect to have?
“Besides, with Vinatā’s son himself as your sovereign, what good is this fellow? Even granting he possesses virtues, when you already have a king, why think of another? As the proverb says:
(70) One monarch, one only,
brilliant and lordly,
is a blessing to the world.
Monarchs many—Ah! that’s a calamity,
like multiple suns blazing forth
at the end of the world.
‘Why! The very name of your sovereign serves to keep you unassailable by enemies. As it is wisely said:
(71) Where a noble sovereign is present,
the mention of his mere name
before evil men however powerful,
results that very moment
in producing peace and security.
‘It is also known that:
(72) By feigning greatly
great success follows;
the hares lived happily
riding high on the moon’s glory.’
‘Oh! And how was that,’ asked the birds eagerly. And the crow began the tale of The Hare who fooled the Elephant-King.
In a wooded region lived an elephant-king named Four Tusks21 surrounded by a large retinue of elephants. His time was all taken up with the protection of his herd.
Once a twelve-year drought fell on this region resulting in all the ponds, pools, swamps and lakes drying up completely. Then the elephants spoke to their lord, lamenting, ‘Great lord, our little ones are tormented by extreme thirst; some are at the point of death while others are already dead. Pray devise some means of coping with this thirst.’
The elephant-king then despatched some of his fleet-footed and impetuous attendants in all directions to search for water. Those that went in an easterly direction came upon a lake beside a path that ran close to a hermitage, a lake brimming with translucent water and enchanting with wild geese, cranes and curlews, sheldrakes and other aquatic creatures. Branches of various trees drooping from the weight of blossoming sprays and a wealth of tender leaf-shoots, formed a protective screen enclosing the lake. Both banks were adorned with trees. Little waves of pellucid water, tremulous in the breeze, jostled against the margins to tumble on to the sandy shores in a profusion of foam bubbles. The waters were perfumed by the scent of ichor streaming down the sloping cheeks of lordly tuskers whose temples had been swept clean of bees that flew up as the beasts plunged into the lake. The waters were perpetually shaded from the heat of the sun’s rays by a canopy of hundreds of leafy parasols formed by clumps of trees growing by the lake-edge. The waters reverberated with the deep-toned music made by a host of gathering wavelets that retreated hastily from the assault of plump buttocks, sloping hips and heavy breasts of young hill-women diving with speed to hit the waters in full force. The lake shone with the rare beauty of thickets of fully-blossomed lotuses. But why expatiate further? This pool of water known as Moon Lake was nothing short of a piece of paradise. The elephant-scouts took a look at the lake and hurried back to their lord to inform him of what they had seen.
After receiving their report, Four Tusks accompanied by them went by easy stages to Moon Lake. Seeing a gentle slope all around the lake the elephants descended, and in the process the heads and necks, bodies and feet of thousands of hares who had made the lake shore their home for long, were crushed and pounded to a jelly. Having drunk his fill and soaked to his heart’s content, the elephant-lord came out of the lake with his herd and entered his home forest.
The surviving hares now gathered and sat in serious deliberation. ‘Whatever shall we do now,’ they lamented; ‘now that these fellows know the way, they will come here daily to our lake. So we ought to think of a plan by which these fellows may be prevented from returning.’
Now, one of the hares, whose name was Victory, spoke out of compassion, perceiving the terror that gripped the community, and the utter grief that overwhelmed those whose wives, children and kinsfolk had been crushed to death. ‘Now, now, friends,’ he said, ‘You should not be frightened; these beasts will never come here again, I promise you. For the divinity22 who oversees my actions has bestowed his grace upon me.’
Then Dart Face, King of Hares, commended Victory. ‘Dear friend,’ he said, ‘I have no doubts at all on this score; and for good reason; for:
(73) Wherever Victory is despatched,
who is the acknowledged master
of the essence of texts on polity,
who knows as well unerringly
the right time and place for action;
there, lies success unsurpassed.
‘Moreover:
(74) The man whose speech is measured;
whose speech is always for the good;
whose speech is wise and well-wrought;
who never speaks in excess,
and only after deep reflection; he
is the one effective every time.
‘Receiving the full measure of Your Honour’s profound wisdom, the elephants are sure to become aware of my three powers23 even at a distance. For:
(75) Judging from the messenger or the missive,
though I have never set eyes on him,
I know what kind of king he is;
whether he has any wisdom or none.
‘It is also said:
(76) A messenger alone knits together;
a messenger alone breaks what’s well-knit;
a messenger does what is needed
to make enemies come to terms.
‘Your going there serves the same purpose as my going personally; the reason being this:
(77) When you speak and say all that needs to be said,
what men of virtue deem correct,
articulating well what you speak,
it is as if I myself have spoken.
‘And again:
(78) In brief the object of a messenger
is to fit words to the facts of the case,
communicating as best as he can
and bringing about the desired aims.
‘So, my good friend, be on your way and may this mission be a second overseer of your actions.’
As Victory started on his mission, he saw the King of Elephants coming towards that very lake, surrounded by thousands of lordly elephants whose flapping ears looked like silken pennons dancing gaily in the breeze. His whole frame tinged yellow from masses of pollen of flowering golden campā whose tender twigs made a carpet for him to re
st on, made him resemble a rain-swollen cloud streaked by flashes of lightning. His trumpeting had the deep-toned resonance of thunderbolts clashing in the rainy season and emitting fiery, scintillating gleams of lightning. Having the sheen of radiant blue lotuses veiled in their leafy sheaths, he displayed the majesty of Airāvata, the celestial tusker. His trunk was beautifully coiled to resemble the foremost lord of serpents. Honey-coloured and glistening, his two pairs of tusks, grown to their full length looked gorgeous. The round of his face with the hum of bees drawn by the heady scent of ichor trickling down the sides of his temples was most captivating.
Victory thought to himself, ‘A direct encounter with this person is inadvisable for persons like myself; the reason being,
(79) A tusker kills by a mere touch;
a serpent by a simple sniff;
A king has only to smile to kill;
a knave by just paying honour.
‘I should therefore find some impregnable ground to stand on before I present myself to him.’ With this idea, Victory clambered on to a very high and jagged pile of rocks and called out, ‘O, Lord of Elephants! I trust all is well with you.’
Hearing this greeting, the elephant-king looked carefully around and demanded, ‘Pray, sir, who are you?’
‘An envoy,’ replied the hare.
‘And who has sent you, sir?’ asked the tusker.
‘I come from the blessed Lord Moon,’ was the reply.
‘And what may your business be, sir?’ asked the Lord of Elephants.
‘Your Honour is aware I am sure, that an envoy coming on a mission is not to be harmed; for envoys are the mouthpieces of all rulers. As the proverb says:
(80) Even if weapons are drawn, ready;
even if kinsmen lie slaughtered;
even if the messenger prates, harsh-tongued;
a king should not take his life.
‘It is by the command of Lord Moon that I say this to Your Honour: “How is it, O, mortal, that without a true reckoning of your own powers and your enemy’s as well, you have chosen to indulge in violent acts against others? Have you not heard that;
(81) Whoever embarks on a venture
in a moment of rash folly