Nala Reports Damayanti's Words to the Gods
Nala returns to the assembly of the gods, who question him about everything that happened. He recounts his entire conversation with Damayanti — her declaration of love, her threat of suicide, and her plan for the svayamvara — and submits the decision to them.
The lords of the worlds saw him returning. Indra, Agni, Varuna, Yama — they had been waiting.
"O king! Did you see the sweet-smiling Damayanti? O king! O unblemished one! Tell us everything that she said."
Nala told them.
"As instructed by you, I entered Damayanti's palace. It had large and excellent rooms and was surrounded by elderly guards with staffs. When I entered, because of your energy, no man saw me, except for the daughter of the king. I saw her friends and they saw me too. O lords of the gods! All of them were astounded on seeing me."
He described how he had delivered their message — that the gods themselves desired Damayanti, that Indra wished to marry her, that Agni, Varuna, and Yama each sought her hand. He had told her everything about them.
"I told the one with the beautiful face everything about you. O supreme among the gods! But she has set her heart on me and will choose me."
He repeated her words exactly: the plan for the svayamvara, the condition that all the gods must attend, the promise that no sin would attach to anyone if she chose him in their presence.
"O lords of the thirty! I have related to you exactly what occurred there. But it is for you to decide what should be done."
The gods listened. They said nothing at first. The decision was now theirs. Aranyaka Parva, Chapter 350