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[ 65. 17. of his actions, he was not caught by tainted impressions and he trembled. In the meantime the woman-cook found him. Then she [66] raised a cry, "A serpant 1 A serpant ! " Having heard this, the servants came taking in their hands the wooden hammers. They killed him.
Thus having died with compulsory suffering without any desire to stop the fructification of actions, he was born as a son to Bandhumati, the wife of his own son, named Nagadatta. He was born at a proper time. His name was settled As'okadatta. After the year passed, he, having seen the womancook and the father and the mother, had the remembrance of his life on account of the incomprehensible power of actions. He thought, The daughter-in-law is the mother; and the son himself is the father. Hence, fie upon this worldly life! How will I call the daughter-in-law mother and the son, father?" He took the vow of dumbness. The rumour spread- Oh, he is dumb!' Thus twelve years passed away. There came a sage named Meghanada who possessed the special powers of four kinds of knowledge. He knew his
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