6' Ramavijaya.

their lives. Bramhadev then brought them to Ayodya
and placed Dasharatha on the throne of the country.
One day while Eayana was going by his viman, he observ-
ed on "the road a beautiful woman, who was the wife of a god
and sought to outrage her modesty. She complained to
Bramhadey against the conduct of the demon, when the
god cursed him and said that if he would outrage the mo-
desty of any woman, he would be cut into one hundred
pieces. For fear of the curse he let her go and began to
deyour the Brahmans and cows that came in his way.
The earth trembled and went in the form of a cow to Bra-
mhadey with all the gods and Bishis and applied to him for
protection, when a voice said, " I will be born in the family
of Dasharatha and called Eama ; and killing Eavana and
all other demons, I will make all the gods and good people
happy, for the purpose of helping me the Shesha * on
which I lie, will be my second brother, who will be named
Iiakshuman, the sJiankha^ which is in my hand, will be
my, third brother, who will be called Bharata and the
siid&r^an^ my weapon, will be my fourth brother, who will
be named Shatrughana; and ye, all the gods, will' be mon-
keys. Siva will be Maruti; Bramhadey, Janbuyant; Dhana-
vantari,.Sushen; Biahasapati, Angada; the sun, Sugriva;
AgnI5: Nala; and Yama, Bashabha." Listening to the voice
of :Vishnu all the gods and Bishis were glad and returned
to their respective places. At Ayodya Dasharatha marri-
ed i&ore wives, Sumitra and Kayakayi. He was an ac-
complished' prince and. very dexterous in the use of dha-,
nusJiabans.§ -One day he dreamt a dream in which he found
that he had killed an .innocent man and woman. Where*
upon he asked hisguru*{ Vashista, a Bishi, to interprets

* The king of the serpent-race, as a large, thousand head-
ed snakes, at once the couch and canopy of Vishnu and the up~:
holder of the world which-rests on one of its heads. f The
U,.! J A disc'ug.*§: Bows-and 'arrows; f A^spiritual teacher