anger, and thought: "Very well. Why not?" And
he said: "O King, I want a noble, intelligent Brahman boy seven years
old, who shall give himself up of his own accord for your sake. And
when he is killed, his mother must hold his hands tightly to the
ground, and his father must hold his feet, and you must cut off his
head with your own sword. If you do this within seven days, then I will
forgive the insult you have offered me. If not, I will kill you and all
your people."

And the king was so frightened that he consented. Then the giant
disappeared.

Then King Moon mounted his horse with his wife Lotus-bloom and rode
away sad at heart, seeking for his soldiers. And he thought: "Alas! I
was bewildered by hunting and by love, and I find myself ruined. Where
can I find such a sacrifice for the giant? Well, I will go to my own
city now, and see what happens."

So he continued his search, and found his soldiers and his city
Brilliant-peak. There his subjects were delighted because he had found
a wife worthy of him, and they made a great feast. But it was a day of
despondency and dreadful agony for the king.

On the next day he told his counsellors the whole story. And one
counsellor named Wise said: "Your Majesty, do not despair. I will find
a victim for the sacrifice. The world is a strange place."

Thus the counsellor comforted the king, and made a statue of a boy out
of gold. And he sent the statue about the land, with constant beating
of drums and this proclamation: "We want a noble Brahman boy seven
years old who will offer himself as a sacrifice to a giant with the
permission of his parents. And when he is killed, his mother must hold
his hands, and his father must hold his feet. And as a reward, the king
will give his parents a hundred villages and this statue of gold and
gems."

Now there was a Brahman boy on a farm, who was only seven years old,
but wonderfully brave. He was of great beauty, and even in childhood he
was always thinking about others. He said to the heralds: "Gentlemen, I
will give you my body. Wait a moment. I will hurry back after telling
my parents."

So they told the boy to go. And he went into the house, bowed before
his parents, and said: "Mother! Father! I am going to give this
wretched body of mine in order to win lasting happiness. Pray permit
me. And I will take the king's gift, this statue of myself made of gold
and gems, and give it to you together with the hundred villages. Thus I