18th Figure's Story - 18-Taraavatee
Story of an Unfaithful Prince

As Raajaa Bhoj tried to sit on the throne again, this time the 18th figure whose name was Taraavatee burst into laughter and asked him - "Do you still think you are the right person to sit upon this throne?" Raajaa Bhoj again said with courage - "Yes." She said - "First listen to this story and then decide if you can sit on this throne. Listen, There was no equal of Raajaa Vikram's qualities. He had many learned people and artists in his court and he used to reward other learned people and artists from other places also.

One day a learned man came to his court and said - "Unfaithfulness is the lowest grade action in the whole world." Then he told a story also to prove his statement. He said - "Long time ago, there was a King in Aaryaavart Desh. He had his full family around - wife children, grandchildren, still he married a young beautiful girl at the age of 70. He was so much attracted to his new wife that he did not want to separate from her even for a moment. He started to take her to his court.

Nobody dared to speak anything in front of him, but people laughed at him behind his back. Raajaa's Prime Minister didn't like this. He talked about this to Raajaa in private. He told that if he wanted to see his queen's face all the time, he cold make a picture of her and keep it in front of his throne. But since all past Raajaa have been attending their court alone, that is why the queen's presence in the court is not desirable.

The Prime Minister was like a friend to Raajaa, and Raajaa regarded his advice seriously. So he asked him to make good picture of his wife. The Prime Minister called a very able artist and he started making the queen's picture. When the picture was brought into the court, everybody admired the artist. He made that picture with all minute details. Raajaa also liked that picture very much. The then his eyes fell on the thigh of the queen where the artist painted a Til (a mark) very clearly. Raajaa doubted him that he might have seen other covered parts of her body also, so he asked him to tell him the truth.

The artist tried to convince him with all his nobility that God has given him hidden power to see hidden things and this Til was the result of that power, nothing else; and he had tried to show the beauty of the queen by showing this Til, that is all. But Raajaa didn't believe him and he ordered his people to kill him in a dense forest. He asked them to bring his eyes as the proof of his killing.

When his people took him to the forest, the artist gave them some money and got freed. He asked them to take out the eyes of some deer and give them to Raajaa as the proof of his killing. They did as he said, and the Prime Minister brought him to his own home and the artist started living with him in disguise.

After some time, Raajaa's son went for hunting. A lion followed him so he climbed upon a tree to save himself. At the same time he saw a bear. When he got scared of the bear, the bear said to him not to be afraid of him, because he was also sitting there because of the lion and was waiting for lion to go from there. The lion was hungry so he was sitting under the tree.

The Prince was about to fall sleep sitting there, as he found it difficult to be awake for long time sitting like this. Seeing this, the bear called him and asked him to sit beside him on a thick branch and sleep for a while. The bear told him that when he would wake up, he himself would sleep for some time. When the boy had slept, the lion said to the bear - "We both are the wild animals, this man cannot be friend of a wild animal, that is why we should think about each other's welfare. You drop this Prince so that I can eat him." But the bear told him that he could not be unfaithful to the Prince. The lion got quiet.

When the Prince woke up after four hours, it was bear's turn to sleep, so he slept. This time the lion tried the Prince to drop the bear to him. Why was he taking so much pains for this wild animal? If he would drop the bear to him, he would eat him, and he could go to his palace safely. The Prince thought it a good point and he tried to push the bear down, but the bear knew it and he fie the Prince for his deceit. The Prince got so much shocked to hear all this that he got dumb.

After a while the Lion lost all hope and went away from there in search of another prey. Then the Prince came down and went to his palace. Nobody could know the reason of his becoming dumb. At last the artist who was still living in the Prime Minister's house in disguise, came in disguise of a Vaidya (traditional doctor) to the palace. He asked the Prince through sign language that whether he became dumb because of the feeling of self-hatred? The Prince said "Yes" and he burst into tears. He got cured and his speech returned.

Raajaa asked him how he knew the mind of the Prince just by looking at his face, the Vaidya replied - "As the artist knew the Til on the Queen's thigh." The King immediately understood that he was the same artist who made picture of his queen. He asked him for his forgiveness and honored him with lots of rewards.

Raajaa Vikramaadity was very happy to hear this story from that learned man, and he gave him 100,000 gold coins as reward.