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the north, always for half a month. His back was eaten away by vultures, crows, jackals and other animals but he bore the pain silently without disturbing his attention fully concentrated on the worship. When he died, he was admitted to Saudharma heaven where he became Indra. The Brahmin ascetic Agnisarmā, after his death, was born as his riding animal Airāvana. It is only natural that such a sinner has to serve the person against whom he had sinned by being his vehicle. After a lapse of time, Indrafell from his position and was born as the fourth universal monarch, Sanatkumāra in Hastinapura and Agnisarmā was born as Asitäksa the Yaksa. This is the cause of the enmity, as explained by Candavega who had learnt it from the sage Arcismálin. After having recounted it he turned to the matter in hand and apologised to Sanatkumāra whom he had induced to marry the eight daughters of Bhānuvega in the city of Priyasangama and now he had abandoned him alone. Now he made a request to Sanatkumăra to marry his own hundred daughters and also requested him to let his eight young wives to come back to him. Sanatkumāra graciously agreed and the eight beautiful brides approached him. He also celebrated his marriage with the hundred daughters of Candavega with great pomp, and enjoyed the pleasures of married life for all this period. One of these days he said that they should all go to the lake where he had had the memorable fight with the Yaksa. Before that they all had organised a pleasant entertainment in the wood". Here ends Vipulamati's narration.
That was the day when Sanatkumāra's friend Mahendrasimha appeared on the scene and met Sanatkumāra. By the time Vipulamati had finished this account of Sanatkumāra's mysterious adventures, he appeared on the scene after a good sleep and they all went to mount Vaitādhva and Mahendrasimha got an opportunity to speak to him about the anxious state of rnind in which his father and mother had been and requested him to do him a favour of making a visit to them at Hastinapura to which Sanatkumāra not only agreed but immediately ordered Vidyadharas to take him there. Accordingly they all mounted various flying palace-chariots, horses, elephants and other means of transport, all gorgeously decorated with fabulous ornaments. Sanatkumăra's parents and
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