O gem, deserved the punishment we suffer,
And equal is the merit of our works,
When such our common doom. Thou didst enjoy
The thrilling contact of those slender fingers,
Bright as the dawn; and now how changed thy lot!
SANUMATI [_aside_].--Had it found its way to the hand of any other
person, then indeed its fate would have been deplorable.
MATHAVYA.--Pray, how did the ring ever come upon her hand at all?
SANUMATI.--I myself am curious to know.
KING.--You shall hear. When I was leaving my beloved Sakoontala that I
might return to my own capital, she said to me, with tears in her eyes,
"How long will it be ere my lord send for me to his palace and make me
his queen?"
MATHAVYA.--Well, what was your reply?
KING.--Then I placed the ring on her finger, and thus addressed her--
Repeat each day one letter of the name
Engraven on this gem; ere thou hast reckoned
The tale of syllables, my minister
Shall come to lead thee to thy husband's palace.
But, hard-hearted man that I was, I forgot to fulfil my promise, owing
to the infatuation that took possession of me.
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