towards a mountain stream to drink of its water befouled by their temporal juice, saw that caravan as also the numerous elephants belonging to it.  And seeing their domesticated fellows the wild elephants infuriated and with the temporal juice trickling down rushed impetuously on the former, with the intention of killing them.  And the force of the rush of those elephants was hard to bear, like the impetuosity of peaks lessened from mountain summits rolling towards the plain.  The rushing elephants found the forest paths to be all blocked up, for the goodly caravan was sleeping obstructing the paths around that lake of lotuses.  And the elephants all of a sudden, began to crush the men lying insensible on the ground.  And uttering cries of ‘Oh!’ and ‘Alas!’ the merchants, blinded by sleep, fled, in order to escape that danger, to copses and woods for refuge.  And some were slain by the tusks, and some by the trunks, and some by the legs of those elephants.  And innumerable camels and horses were killed, and crowds of men on foot, running in fright, killed one another.  And uttering loud cries some fell down on the ground, and some in fear climbed on trees, and some dropped down on uneven ground.  And, O king, thus accidentally attacked by that large herd of elephants, that goodly caravan suffered a great loss.  And there arose a tremendous uproar calculated to frighten the three worlds, ’Lo! a great fire hath broken out.  Rescue us.

Do ye speedily fly away.  Why do ye fly?  Take the heaps of jewels scattered around.  All this wealth is a trifle.  I do not speak falsely, ’I tell you again, (exclaimed some one) think on my words, O ye distracted one!’ With such exclamation they ran about in fright.  And Damayanti awoke in fear and anxiety, while that terrible slaughter was raging there.  And beholding slaughter capable of awaking the fear of all the worlds, and which was so unforeseen, the damsel of eyes like lotus leaves rose up, wild with fright, and almost out of breath.  And those of the caravan that had escaped unhurt, met together, and asked one another, ’Of what deed of ours is this the consequence?  Surely, we have failed to worship the illustrious Manibhadras, and likewise the exalted and graceful Vaisravana, the king of the Yaksha.  Perhaps, we have not worshipped the deities that cause calamities, or perhaps, we have not paid them the first homage.  Or, perhaps, this evil is the certain consequence of the birds (we saw).  Our stars are not unpropitious.  From what other cause, then hath this disaster come?’ Others, distressed and bereft of wealth and relatives, said, ’That maniac-like woman who came amongst this mighty caravan in guise that was strange and scarcely human, alas, it is by her that this dreadful illusion had been pre-arranged.  Of a certainty, she is a terrible Rakshasa or a Yaksha or a Pisacha woman.  All this evil is her work, what need of doubts?  If we again see that wicked destroyer of merchants, that giver of innumerable woes, we shall