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CHAPTER FOUR
moths of a fire. For that reason you talk like this, friends. For he is the Cakravartin, Sagara by name, powerful, possessing the power of Sakra, invincible to gods and asuras. He, like the thunderbolt, can be conquered by no one, outside the sphere of weapons, fire, poison, charms, water, spells, magic arts, etc. Nevertheless, at your request we will cause trouble to the powerful Cakrin, like mosquitoes to an elephant."
Saying this, the Meghavadanas departed, stood over the camp, and spread a terrible rain-cloud. The heavens were filled with such a dense darkness that the people could not distinguish objects, as if blind from birth. They rained on the camp with streams of water the size of a rice-pestle for seven nights, unchecked like a wind. When the Cakravartin saw this ill-omened rain unbroken, he touched the skin-jewel with his lotus-hand. Instantly it grew to the size of the camp and, stretched out horizontally, floated on top of the water. The King with his army got into it like a great boat and, touching the umbrellajewel, he made it spread out like the skin-jewel. He put the umbrella above the skin, like a cloud above the earth, and set the gem-jewel at the bottom of the umbrella-handle for light. Between the umbrella and the skin the King's camp remained comfortable, like a crowd of Asuras and Vyantaras within the earth.306 The steward sowed all grain, vegetables, fruit, etc., at daybreak and supplied them at evening. Such is the power of the jewels.
The Meghamukhas continued to rain unceasingly in the same way with unbroken streams of water, like evilspeaking people with evil speech. Sagara thought angrily to himself, "Who are these who have undertaken to destroy me-the fools!" The sixteen thousand attendant-gods, angered, armored, carrying weapons, approached and said to them: "O villains of little wit, do you not know this is Cakravartin Sagara, invincible to gods, etc.? So, go at
See above, p. 106 f.
306 227.
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