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Tambula in their mouths and their love for Him and told Him to give up that well-known pious conduct of sages, void of pleasure and consisting in fruitless strenuous efforts. He saidThe way to final beatitude is pursued by the greatest of sages verily for the sake of attaining pleasure. Pleasure is divided into two varieties, the first of which is attained through heavenly damsels while the other is inherent in the superhuman power in the form of salvation. Salvation is far away. The other one is very easy to attain and worthy of being enjoyed. Even another person, a learned companion of yours residing in a hermitage situated on the mountain, Ramagiri by name, will proclaim thus.' He said that inasmuch as the riches resemble a flash of lightning owing to their fickleness, the worldly enjoyments perish certainly the very moment they are experienced. His better half of the former birth, separated from Him then, much distressed owing to the absence of stability in the mind of His beloved [ or in the loving person, void of bodily strength] would inquire of Him after His health [ or welfare ]. As the object of enjoyment had, he said, presented itself without any efforts on His part, He should give up indifference and as the tiger-like death, following on the heels to make search for its prey, wishes to do evil thing, He should verily desire for a long-life and prosperity, for this very thing is to be necessarily desired for with reference to the living beings whom calamities befall in an easy manner. He asked Him to look at the female, who had been in the prime of her youth and had been just referred to above, His beloved of the former birth, that had arrived there and said that she would give Him pleasure by embracing, with her body which had been emaciated, abundantly heated and which had drops of tears fallen upon it from her eyes and longing produced for a person dear to itself, His body which was thin, heated and which had a flow of tears dropping down from His eyes and which had cherished incessant longing for a person dear to itself. The young
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