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THE PRIDE OF BEAUTY
POINTING to the blushing, beautiful dawn, Lord Indra said to the gods, "Perhaps you think that this is Beauty at its best; you can see the delicacy of a flower, the delightful tints of a lotus in the beauty of dawn, but it is nothing when compared with the beauty of Sanatraj. Words fail to do justice to Sanatraj's beauty. There is nothing in the whole of Creation that can equal his beauty; his face, his eyes, his figure are peerless. Even gods appear pale and insipid before the radiance of Sanatraj.”
The gods muttered among themselves, "Surely this is gross exaggeration; human beings, with their limited wisdom, may perhaps believe in such immoderate praise, but how does Indra expect gods to give credence to an obvious untruth like this!"
Two gods, Vijay and Vaijant, set out for Hastinapura in the guise of pilgrims to test the truth of Indra's panegyric of Sanatraj. When they arrived, Sanatraj was in the royal bath, getting his body massaged with fragrant oils.
The gate-keeper announced to his majesty the arrival of the two pilgrims from a far-off land, who insisted upon being allowed in the presence of the king before they would accept even a sip of water after their wearisome journey. "I tried to dissuade them, but they would not listen to reason. Can they be permitted to see Your Majesty in the royal bath?" asked the gate-keeper.
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