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13-Vikram is Accused of Theft

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Vikram is Accused of Theft

Alolikaa rose from the bed and looked for her necklace and when she did not find it there, she woke up the King in a rough way - "You stole my necklace and went to sleep, but I can not leave you like that. Give my necklace back to me and then go away from here, you thief." The King said - "Sister, I have not stolen your necklace. I was only sleeping here. Your accusation is false." The girl complained this to her father. The father also got very angry. He scolded him - "That is why I brought you here? I brought you here, I gave you food and shelter, even I suggested my daughter to marry you and you paid me like this? You stole my daughter's necklace?" Vikramaaditya said - "I did not steal the necklace, it is my ill-luck that brought me here and did this to me, believe me."

At this the trader got angrier than before and asked his servants to take him and give him a good beating so that he could admit his crime. His servants took him and gave him a good beating but the King still did not accept it. He cried - "I am innocent, I have not stolen the necklace. You are beating me uselessly, I don't have your necklace." The trader said to his servants - "He seems a seasoned thief, take him to the King, only he will be able to take out something from him." The servants tied the hands of Vikramaaditya and took him to King's palace and told him the whole story. Their King's name was Chandrasen. He asked Vikramaaditya to take out the necklace and give it to the trader.

Vikramaaditya again said - "I did not steal her necklace, I am not a thief. I am in trouble only because Shani is against me. If you still doubt me, then do whatever you like. But trust me I am not a thief. Please have mercy on me." Chandrasen got angrier and said - "You are still not admitting your crime." Then he asked his servants - "Cut his both hands and feet and throw him out of the town where he cannot get even food or water." Shani had turned Chandrasen's mind to believe Vikramaaditya as thief.

The servants took Vikramaaditya out of the town, cut both his hands and feet and left him there. He was crying helplessly in the agony of pain but the servants were merciless. Nobody did anything to relieve his pain. When Chandrasen's servants came back, he asked them - "Is he dead yet?" "No, Your Majesty, But he will soon be dead. How can he survive after his both hands and feet are cut? He is bleeding heavily and we have stopped everybody to give him any food or drink." In normal conditions he would have died, but Shani would not let him die, so he survived.

Vikram's Bad Days Get Some Relief

After a month passed, Shani Dev showed some compassion towards Vikram. He created some kindness in King Chandrasen's heart. One day suddenly he asked his servants - "What condition the thief is in?" The servants said - "O King, He is still alive but he is in a very bad shape. He has had no food and drink and he is on the point of death." Chandrasen said - "From today show some mercy to him, at least give him food and drink." So King's servant started giving him food and drink. The people of that country also started taking care of him. Slowly his pain started going away and his strength returned. He was crippled without hands and feet. He could not move, he could not do anything.

Two years passed in this way. One day a woman, who was born in Ujjayinee, came there. She was the daughter-in-law of an oil merchant of Tamalind. She saw King Vikramaaditya sitting under a tree without hands and feet. She recognized the King and was dumbfounded. She stopped her palanquin and asked him - "O Great King, How did you come here in this state? And for how long you have been here?" Vikramaaditya said - "O Lady, This is all because of my previous Karm. Shani Dev is angry with me that is why he has put me in this state. There is no escape from enduring the consequences of one's Karm. Is everything well in Ujjayinee?

The woman was about to cry, she said - "Everything is good in Ujjayinee, O King, but seeing you in this condition, I feel very bad. You are right, there is no escape from the consequences of one's Karm. But whatever was to happened has happened, now you come in my palanquin and come to my house." The King managed to sit in the palanquin with great difficulty and that woman took him to her house. The oil merchant, her father-in-law, feared as he saw that crippled man getting off from the palanquin. He asked - "Why you have brought this trouble to our house? Our King has ordered not to assist him in any way, if he will see him here, he will imprison us."

The woman said calmly and quietly - "O Dear Father-in-law, Do not fear, he is the King of Ujaayinee - King Vikramaaditya. He is suffering because of of his bad times. He is the jewel which we have luckily found." Hearing this the oil merchant got very surprised, he respected the King appropriately, kept him in his home and thought over to explain his situation to the King Chandrasen.

Next day he went to King Chandrasen and appealed - "O Great King, Do you remember that thief who you threw in a forest after cutting his hands and feet? If you permit me, I will keep him in my house and feed him." Chandrasen thought for a few moments and then permitted him to keep that criminal his house. Now that merchant was fearless. When he came to his house, King Vikramaaditya said to him - "Please do not tell anybody that I am King Vikramaaditya, and do not talk about this matter any more to anybody." He promised to do so and said to him - "From now on you will sit on the top of my oil press and press out the oil and I will give you food and clothing. King Vikramaaditya had no option except to accept to his proposal. This was all Shani's effect that a King was without hands and feet and was pressing out oil on a merchant's mercy. Still he was indebted to that oil merchant for his kindness. Five more years passed this way.

Vikram Meets Chandrasen's Daughter

As the time was passing by, King Vikramaaditya used to sing just to pass the time sitting on the oil press. As he was a talented musician and knew the classical music very well, he used to sing very well. One day he sang Deepak Raag from the bottom of his heart. He sang it so well that, all of a sudden all lamps of the city lit spontaneously. Now it so happened that the Princess Padmsenaa, King Chandrasen's daughter, was standing in her balcony when these lamps lit. She marveled this scene - lighting all the lamps coming into life in every house in town, as if it was Deepaavalee day. She just wondered how did it happen, so she sent her servants to find out its cause. Just then Vikramaaditya finished his singing and all lamps went out as they lit.

Then he began to sing Raag Shree. Hearing such a melodious voice and perfect music, the Princess thought "who is that who is singing so beautifully?" She sent her maids to find out about this. They went around until they came to that Oil merchant's house. There they found crippled Vikramaaditya sitting on the oil press, singing beautifully. They went back and reported this to the Princess - "O Princess, Do you remember that thief who was made cripple by cutting his hands and feet by your father about seven years ago? The same man was sitting on the oil press in an oil merchant's house. He was pressing the oil and singing that song."

Hearing this she asked them to bring him to her. One maid said - "If we will bring him here like that, your father might be angry. Let us first suggest this to him and then we will bring him here so that he is not offended." The Princess said - "No need to tell him anything, I will tell him later. Just go and bring him here, because my mind is already with him." So the maids went to the oil merchant's house and brought him to the palace with the permission of the oil merchant. There he saw Padmsenaa sitting on a beautiful seat. She said to him - "You seem to know Raag very well, please sing one of them for me. Your voice is very sweet and your knowledge of music is complete. In fact you seem to me a celestial musician." After that King Vikramaaditya spent some days in the palace of the Princess Padmsenaa singing many Raag and Raaginee for her in his sweet voice.

 

 

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Created by Sushma Gupta on 8/9/2008
Contact:  sushmajee@yahoo.com
Updated on 06/09/11