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The Wheel of Joy and Sorrow
295
When the procession came nearer, Anjana forgetting everything hurriedly ran forward and even before anybody could stop her she fell at the feet of Pavananjay. Folding her hands over her forehead she said in a voice shaken with emotion, "Oh lord of my life! Until to day during these twenty-two years of our married life, you have not thought of me even once; nor did you give me an opportunity of seeing you; yet I implore you not to forget me... I entreat you to give a place to me in your heart where I will dwell as your humble slave ... May your march be victorious by the grace of the Paramatma! May you return victorious ! May you attain success in your endeavour by the grace of the Almighty".
But Pavananjay was totally deaf to her words. Treating her as a stone-image, he reprimanded her severely and unmoved by her words, he proceeded on his march.
How cruel and monstrous he was! What a terrible kind of injustice ! Would not this shock break the heart of Anjana ? For a few moments, Anjana stood stunned by his cruelty. With the help of Vasant Tilaka she somehow managed to return to her palace and to lie down on her bed in deep despair.
There arose flames of anguish in the heart of Anjana who had been reprimanded and slighted by her husband. She felt like a tree whose roots had been cut. This separation from her husband and his incomprehensible hostility towards her filled her with deep despair and she wept like a helpless child.
But Pavananjay cared very little for her feelings. He totally forgot her and with his vast army he went travelling through the sky.
Flying from height to height he reached the banks of the Manas sarovar; and pitched his camp there. By virtue of his supernatural powers, he at once brought into existence a huge palace.
It was a beautiful evening. The sky was clear and cloudless. The splendour of the moon-light had brightened every
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