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DISCOURSE 39
too saw him. The queen was beautiful and Lalitang also possessed a fascinating appearance. The queen became infatuated with Lalitang. She became mad with passion. Lalitang was bewitched by the queen's beauty and he kept gazing at her forgetting himself. The queen by means of a sign suggested to him to go into the parlour. She also showed him to a seat. Lalitang understood her sign and he was greatly delighted. He entertained an impetuous desire for a union with her and he too was maddenned by passion.
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The queen gave him a sign suggesting a secret passage by which he could gain access to her chamber in the night. Accordingly, Lalitang entered the palace that night and went into her chamber. The queen and Lalitang were plunged in the ocean of sensual passion and enjoyment. A few minutes passed. They heard the king approaching the chamber. The queen was greatly terrified. At that time, the queen did not expect that the king would come to her chamber. The king came there by chance. Lalitang also was filled with a mortal dread. The queen thought of hiding Lalitang at once but there was no place in the chamber where he could hide himself. She thought of the latrine inside. At once, she told Lalitang to hide himself in the latrine. Without a moment's delay, Lalitang ran into the latrine and hid himself there.
The king entered the queen's chamber. The queen received him with effusive love and solicitation. Her heart was palpitating with fear. In fact, it was thumping against her ribs. Yet since she was clever, she put on an appearance of calmness and composure. The king looked about the chamber and then said to the queen, "Get me some water, I want to go to the latrine".
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The queen stood petrified for a moment. Lalitang who was hiding himself in the latrine also heard what the king said. He too was filled with fear. In order to escape the stroke of the king's sword, he crept into the pipe in the latrine, and he sank into the hellish gutter full of filth. Is there anything that a terrified man would not do ? When the king opened the door of the latrine, the queen was breathless with fear. But when Lalitang was not to be seen in the latrine, she was greatly relieved.
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