________________
MUNIPATI
1097
this But, in any case, I cann't return to my kingdom At night-fall, when we entered into the bed, we were king and queen, but now we are no more than common folks So long we led a life free from care and toil, but henceforth we have to work hard to earn out livelihood We should proceed to some city that may be in the neighbourhood and try our luck there'
"So they stood up and moved together in one direction Nothing was visible in the darkness and the way was so unfamiliar When the sun was up, it was terribly hot The queen was oppressed with thirst and could move no longer. There was no water available in the neighbourhood After a great search, the king procured some water for her They moved a little further when the queen was hungry With great difficulty, the king procured sufficient fruits to appease her hunger
'At last the royal couple reached the city of Varanası The king sold out the ornaments of the queen and had some money on hand He rented a house and started a small business As he had no experience of business, he could not amass a furtune, but he could earn just enough to meet the cost of their subsistence
“Time rolled on like this Jitasatru and Sukumala were now no more than commoners Life was hard and dull. there was no longer any pleasure in it One day, Sukumala said to her husband, 'We were so happy in the past when we lived at the palace, and you were all the time by my side I was surrounded by so many maids and attendants all the time There were sundry objects of pleasure to engage my mind But here, you go out pretty early in the morning and come back late at night There is none at home with whom I can even speak Life has become so dull and meaningless. Could you not do something to relieve me of this loneliness ?
