Damayanti Confronts Nala About His Abandonment
Damayanti, dressed in rags with matted hair, sees the man who abandoned her in the forest and is overcome with sorrow. She confronts him with a series of questions — about dharma, about promises, about what kind of man leaves his sleeping wife in the wilderness — and demands to know where the pledge he made before the fire has gone.
When Damayanti saw Nala, she was overcome with a terrible sorrow. She was dressed in a red garment. Her hair was matted, dirty, and caked with mud. She spoke to Bahuka — the name Nala was using in disguise — and her words came out as accusations.
"O Bahuka! Have you ever seen any man who is said to know about dharma abandon his sleeping wife in a deserted forest? Who will forsake his beloved and innocent wife when she is overcome by fatigue? Who but Punyashloka Nala will leave? What offence have I committed towards that lord of the earth? When I was overcome with sleep, why did he desert me in the wilderness and go away?"
She reminded him of everything that had passed between them. In earlier times, she had chosen him herself, in the presence of the gods. She had loved him and been devoted to him. She was the mother of his children. How could he forsake her? He had accepted her hand in front of the fire, following the words of the swans. He had promised to sustain her. "Where has that pledge gone now?"
As she spoke, tears of sorrow welled up in her eyes and flowed copiously.
When Nala saw those tears flow from her black-pupiled, red-tinged eyes, he replied in words of sorrow. "O timid one! The loss of my kingdom was not brought about by me. It was brought about by Kali, and he made me abandon you."
He told her the truth. When she had been living in the forest, miserable and sorrowful at his having lost his garment, she had cursed Kali. Ever since then, tormented by the curse, Kali had resided in Nala's body — burnt by the curse, like kindling with fire in it. But now Kali had been conquered by Nala's perseverance and austerities. The evil one had gone away.
"O beautiful one! There will be an end to our miseries. Freeing me, that evil one has gone away. It is because of this that I came here, for your sake and for no other reason."
Then his tone shifted. "But how could a woman like you abandon a husband who loved her and was devoted to her? How could you marry another? On the king's instructions, messengers have travelled all over the earth, proclaiming that Bhima's daughter will choose a second husband. Like a wanton one, and acting on her own desires, she will choose one who is her equal. On hearing this, Bhangasvari came here swiftly."
When she heard Nala's lament, Damayanti trembled and was frightened. She joined her hands in salutation and spoke. Aranyaka Parva, Chapter 371