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JAIN RAMAYAN
in some deep agitation. Even the beautiful damsel Vanamala could not relieve King Sumitra's agitation though she tried her best to cheer him up. She was unable to do anything to help him to recover his spirits. She knew that her husband's anguish was caused by the inexplicable sickly condition of his friend, Prabhav; but she could do nothing in this regard. Whenever King Sumitra asked Prabhav to tell him the cause for his anguish, he used to be silent or he used to give some false reason or he used to give evasive replies to change the topic of their conversation. This did not satisfy Sumitra; nor could he bear with the condition of his friend. At last, Sumitra made a strong determination to discover the secret cause of his friend's anguish
"Dear friend, Pravhav! You must tell me to-day what exactly is the cause for your grief and what is the cause for your maintaining such a distance. Am I not your intimate
? Have we not shared our hearts' inmost secrets ? What causing such anguish to you that you keep languishing thus day and night ?" Taking his head into his lap affectionately Sumitra said while they two were resting on the same cot.
Prabhav's dress had become soiled and unclean. For some days, he had not even taken a bath. His eyes and cheeks had bcome sunken. The garden of his heart had become bleak and blighted. He was silent. He could not even look straight into the eyes of Sumitra.
"Prabhav! You are not physically ill. You are suffering from some mental malady. Something has been causing this anguish to you".
"Dear friend! What you say is true.” Prabhav said with great grief, breaking the silence.
"What is the matter ? Please tell me". "I cannot speak of it to you”.
"You are not going to speak to any stranger; you are going speak to me, your dearest friend. You know our hearts are like
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