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ANTUKARI BHATTA
In the city of Avantı, there lived a merchant named Dhana, whose wife's name was Kamalashri He had a -daughter born to him after eight sons She was named
Bhatta She was loved by everybody in the household - and none ever addressed her by the derogatory 'lu' (you)
From this, she took the prefix an-tu-karı (one not addressed as 'tu') before her name Her education started at eight under diverse teachers, some experts in arts, and others in spiritual matters When she stepped into her youth, the merchant was on the look-out for a suitable groom for her When Bhatta came to know of this, she announced that she would marry only one who would never disobey her Otherwise, she preferred to remain a spinster Now, this was a difficult condition and it was by no means easy to find a man who would be so very submissive to his wife
Bhatta was a real beauty, and reports about her spread far and wide Many young men wanted to marry her, but were discouraged by her severe condition Years passed and Bhatta's youth was now fading out One day, Minister Subuddhi's eyes fell on her and he decided to accept her hand, despite the condition, and made the proposal to her father The merchant was happy and Bhatta was at last - settled in domestic life
At her new home, Bhatta started as a severe taskmistress None dared to disobey her, not even the minister Bhatta ordered her husband to return from his office before sun-down without fail, and the minister agreed The king noticed this change in the minister's routine and asked him one day about it The minister was hesitant either to come out with the truth or to make a false statement before