“In a certain town, there lived a weaver, by the name of Mantharaka. One day, while he was weaving, the wooden supports of the loom broke. So, he took an axe with him and went to the jungle to cut wood.
While he was wandering on the sea-shore, he came across a giant Shinvshapa tree, and he thought to himself, ‘This is a very big tree. If I cut it down, I shall be able to make many looms out of it.’ So, he started hacking at the tree with the axe.
Now, in this tree lived a Devata*. He called out to the weaver, ‘Weaver! Stop! This tree is my home, so please spare it. The cool breeze, coming in from the sea, blows against this tree and I live here very happily.’
‘What am I to do?’ said the weaver. ‘If I have no wood to make a loom, my family will die of starvation. So, I have to cut this tree down. You’ll have to find somewhere else to live.’
‘My son,’ replied the Devata, ‘you have answered well. I am pleased with you. Ask for any boon you like and I will grant it, but spare this tree.’
‘Well,’ replied the weaver, ‘if that’s the case. I’ll go home, consult my wife and friends, and come back. Then I’ll tell you what I want and you can give it to me.’
‘All right,’ said the Devata, ‘do that.’
On his return to the town, the weaver met his friend, a barber. He said to him, ‘My friend, a Devata is pleased with me and he has said that I can ask any boon of him and he will grant it. I have come back for some advice.’
‘If I were you,’ said the barber, ‘I would ask for a kingdom. Then you can be the king and I’ll be your prime minister. We can spend a happy life here and afterwards enjoy life in the next world.’
‘Well,’ said the weaver, ‘that sounds all right, but I must go and consult my wife as well.’
‘Don’t do that!’ said the barber. ‘The shastras advise against consulting women, for their intelligence is of a lower calibre than ours. The shastras state that: “A wise man should give his woman, Food, clothes and ornaments, And have children by her, But he should never consult her on matters of importance.” And Shukracharaya* has said: “A house ruled by a woman, An addict or a child, Is sure to be destroyed.” ‘
‘Nevertheless,’ replied the weaver, ‘I must consult my wife. She is faithful and devoted. I never do anything without consulting her.’
“And so, the weaver hurried home and said to his wife, ‘My dear, a Devata is pleased with me. He said that I can ask any boon of him and he will grant it. So, I have come home to consult you. My friend, the barber, has advised me to ask for a kingdom.’
‘Fancy asking a barber’s advice!’ retorted his wife. ‘Don’t listen to him! Besides, they say: “It is difficult to rule a kingdom: There is always some trouble or the other Which robs a king of his peace. For the sake of a kingdom, Rama* had to take to the jungle, The Pandavas* were exiled, The Yadavas* were slaughtered, King Nala* was dethroned, Arjuna* almost fell in the jaws of death And Ravana* was destroyed. So, no wise man covets a kingdom, For whose sake, brothers, sons and close relatives, Plot to take each other’s lives.” ‘
‘You have spoken wisely,’ replied the weaver. ‘Now tell me, what shall I ask for?’
‘Well,’ she replied, ‘we can meet our expenses with the one piece of cloth you weave everyday. So, you had better ask for two more hands and another head, so that you can make two pieces of cloth, one in front and one behind. Then, by selling one piece, you can live as comfortably as before and with the money from the second piece, you can perform good deeds. In this way, you will earn esteem among your relatives and, at the same time, a place in heaven.’
“When the weaver heard this, he was delighted and said, ‘Well, my faithful wife! How wisely you have spoken. I shall act accordingly. I have made my decision.’
“And so, the weaver returned to the sea-shore and prayed to the Devata, ‘Devata, if you will grant me a boon, then give me two more hands and an extra head.’ He had no sooner spoken than his wish was granted.
“As the weaver was going home, full of joy, the town people saw him and thought that it was a monster. They threw sticks and stones at him and killed him.
“And so,” continued Chakradhara, “that’s why I said: ‘He who neither has commonsense, Nor listens to what his friends tell him, Is sure to be destroyed, Like Mantharaka, the weaver.’
“But then, anyone who comes into contact with the devil, in the form of greed, ultimately becomes an object of ridicule. They say: ‘When a man hankers after things, That are impossible to achieve, Or may never happen, He comes to grief, Like Soma Sharma’s* father.’ “
“How was that?” asked Suvaranasiddhi.
And Chakradhara told: THE STORY OF SOMA SHARMA’S FATHER