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CONQUEST OF BHARATAVARȘA BY SAGARA
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he kept watch continually. When the three days' fast was finished, the King left the pauşadha-house and bathed with pure water. The King got into his chariot covered with light-colored banners and filled with various weapons like the ocean with sea-foam and sea-monsters, adorned with four divine bells hanging at the sides, like Meru with four suns and moons, equipped with horses entirely equal to Uccaiḥśravas, their necks free from yokes.
Adorned with his fourfold army-elephants, horses, chariots, and infantry—like his own polity with the four expedients (upāya), shining with the umbrella over his head and chauris at his sides like three bulbs of the vine of glory extending through the three worlds, carrying in his hand a bow with the bow-string stretched, Sagara then plunged into the ocean until the water was up to the hub of the chariot-wheel. With his hand the King twanged the stretched bow-string, the prologue to the play of the Sri of victory, and drew an arrow from the quiver like a jewel from a treasury. At the center of the bow the King set the arrow resembling the Işvākāra Mts. in the center of Dhātakikhanda. The King drew to his ear the powerful arrow, which attained the rank of an earring, golden, marked with his own name. He discharged the arrow, which sounded with its hissing feather like a new Garuda in the sky, at the Lord of Magadhatirtha. It crossed twelve yojanas of the ocean in a twinkling and fell in the council of the Prince of Māgadhatirtha.
When he saw the arrow like an unexpected stroke of lightning, the Lord of Māgadha at once became angry, terrifying by his frown. After he had reflected a little, he arose and took the arrow himself, and saw Cakrin Sagara's name on it. Holding the arrow, he sat down again on his lion-throne and said to his own assembly in a deep voice : “In the country named Bharata in Jambūdvipa, the second Cakravartin, Sagara by name, has arisen now. Verily, gifts are necessarily made by past, future, and present lords of Māgadha to the cakravartins.'
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