his embodied
form. O fair-complexioned one, O thou of slender waist, if thou becomest
his wife, thy existence and this thy beauty may be of purpose. We have,
indeed, beheld celestials and Gandharvas, and Nagas, and Rakshasas, and
men, but never saw we before any one like Nala. Thou also art a jewel
among thy sex, as Nala is the prime among men. The union of the best
with the best is happy." Thus addressed by the swan, Damayanti, O
monarch, replied unto him there, saying, "Do thou speak thus unto Nala
also." Saying _So be it_, to the daughter of Vidarbha, the oviparous
one, O king, returned to the country of the Nishadhas, and related
everything unto Nala.'"

SECTION LIV

"Vrihadaswa said, 'O Bharata, hearing those words of the swan, Damayanti
thenceforth lost all peace of mind on account of Nala. And heaving
frequent sighs she was filled with anxiety, and became melancholy and
pale-faced and lean. And with her heart possessed by the god of love,
she soon lost colour, and with her upturned gaze and modes of
abstraction, looked like one demented. And she lost all inclination for
beds and seats and object of enjoyment. And she ceased to lie down by
day or night, always weeping with exclamation of _Oh!_ and _Alas!_ And
beholding her uneasy and fallen into that condition, her hand-maids
represented, O king, the matter of her illness unto the ruler of
Vidarbha by indirect hints. And king Bhima, hearing of this from the
handmaids of Damayanti, regarded the affair of his daughter to be
serious. And he asked himself, "Why is it that my daughter seemeth to be
so ill now?" And the king, reflecting by himself that his daughter had
attained to puberty, concluded that Damayanti's _Swayamvara_ should take
place. And the monarch, O exalted one, (invited) all the rulers of the
earth, saying, _Ye heroes, know that Damayanti's Swayamvara is at hand_.
And all the kings, hearing of Damayanti's _Swayamvara_, came unto Bhima,
agreeable to his message, filling the earth with the clatter of their
cars, the roar of their elephants, and the neighing of their horses, and
accompanied with their fine-looking battalions decked in ornaments and
graceful garlands. And the mighty-armed Bhima paid due reverence unto
those illustrious monarchs. And duly honoured by him they took up their
quarters there.

"'And at the juncture, those foremost of celestial Rishis possessed of
great splendour, of great wisdom and great vows--namely, Narada and
Parvata-