CHAPTER IV
Suta Puranik continues the story:
Thus released from the custody the merchants were returning home. They reached the
outskirts of their town in their ship. The Lord in order to test them again comes in the
form of an old Sanyasi and inquires as to what the load in the ship is. The merchant
bluffs and says that it contains dried leaves. The sanyasi says "Tathasthu".
When the merchant returns to the ship he finds that it does contain now dried leaves only.
He swoons and when he regains his consciousness he realizes that these are doings of the
Sanyasi whom he had cursorily dismissed earlier. He seeks him out and begs for
forgiveness. The ever-merciful Lord again forgives him. Now that the merchant was near the
town, he sends a messenger in advance to Lilavathi to let her know that they are on their
way home. Lilavathi. tells her daughter to complete the Satyanarayana poola they were
performing and goes ahead to meet her husband. Kalavathi does the pooja, but in a hurry to
meet her husband, she neglects to take the prasad; and when she nears the anchorage, she
does not find the ship nor her husband! It looked to her that they both sank/drowned. She
swoons and now she decides to die.
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