________________
XII
MEETING NARAD
“Dear brother, Hear me a little. Why have these animals collected here ?"
"You seem to be alien to this place; otherwise, you would not have asked this question. Here a great Yajna (sacrifice) is going on".
“But why are these cattle brought here ?"
“You are indeed, ignorant. They are sacrificed at the Yajna. You are unable to understand even this simple fact”.
“Oh! Really ?"
“Yes”.
With his head covered with knotty and plait-like hair; carrying a Veena in his hands; wearing Padukas (sandals) and with his uppercloth hanging down his shoulders, Narad, the divine sage, traversing through the sky, on land, on water, arrived in the city of Rajpur. Narad was a star in the eyes of gods and goddesses and a garland of their hearts. He could move about anywhere without let or hindrance. So, he went straight to the palace. But when he saw the decorations and jubilations there, his astonishment knew no bounds. The magnificent and richly and colourfully decorated pavilion outside the palace and the sweet music of the band fascinated him. But he noticed there thousands of animals and he had a premonition of an impending evil. There seemed to be something fishy; and on
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