55.4: Ganeshnath’s dislike of ease and sensual objects

23. At the sight of sensual objects he felt repentance in every limb; just as a worshipper of fire finds himself pent up in the house of a Muhammadan;

24. or as a tiger takes a living cow into his cave and she with a fearful heart tries to come out of it as soon as she can;

25. or as a deer brought from a forest and tied up in a palace wishes at heart to be able to get away quickly;

26. or as a living fish struggles in ghee; just so did Ganeshnath feel about the attractions in the royal palace.

27. As a parrot is put into a cage for the first time, and he does not like the food and drink given to it; in the same way the one who was indifferent to worldly things felt disgusted.

28. He had taken with him some pebbles and had spread them on the bedstead where he slept for four ghatikas (one ghatika=24 minutes), when the sun arose.

29. When the king came to visit him he saw the pebbles spread on the bedstead. He felt astonished at heart and prostrated himself before him.

30. With hands joined palm to palm, he asked Nath of this and he replied, ‘Had I slept on the comfortable bedstead, the sleep would have been too sound;

31. therefore in order to satisfy your real aim for me, I spread the pebbles on it and slept; for if the body is permitted to enjoy itself it will have to experience a proportionate amount of grief in the future.

32. You go on scratching the itch and feel very pleased at the time, but when the scratching ceases there is no relief;

33. we take pleasure in eating, but feel it troublesome to vomit; in the same way the pleasure derived from sleep is very sweet in the beginning, but in the end it is harmful to the body.

34. Bachanag (poisonous gloriosa superba) is sweet to eat but the eater loses his life; in the same way, O king, there is great danger in the enjoyment of sensual objects.’

35. As the king heard this advice he repented and vowed never again to sleep on a bedstead.