request your eye, Shakra-like king.Give me your eye and fulfill
Shakra’s high regard and my hopes.”
At the mention of Shakra, the king thought: “It is surely through divine power that this brahmin will gain an eye,” and addressed him with words that sparkled with joy:
“I will fulfill the desire
for which you visit me, brahmin.
Though you wish for one eye,
I will give you both!
2.30
Leave as you please, watched by the people,
open lotus-eyes adorning your face.
The people will sway with doubt as to whether it’s you,
but feel wonder when they realize it is.”
2.32 [15]
The royal ministers were worried, shocked, and distressed when they learned of the king’s intention to give away his eyes and said to him:
“Your extreme joy in giving makes you
unable to see it is wrong and damaging.*
Please, Your Majesty, don’t do this.
You should not give away your sight.
Do not cast all of us aside
for the sake of one brahmin!
Do not raise your people to be happy,
only to let them burn with sorrow’s fire.
Offer fortune-bringing wealth,
glorious jewels, milk-giving cows,
chariots yoked with trained horses,
or fine, graceful elephants, proud in rut.
2.35
Give houses pleasant in every season,
echoing with the sound of tinkling anklets,
brighter than autumn clouds.
But don’t give away your sight, you the world’s
sole eye.
Your Majesty should also consider this:
How can one person’s eye
be used by another?
If through divine intervention,
why is your eye needed?
Besides, Your Majesty:
Why does this poor beggar need an eye?
To see the prosperity of others?
Just give him some money, Your Majesty,
and stop acting recklessly.”
2.40
Addressing his ministers with courteous and gentle words, the king then replied:
“Those who decide not to give
when they have said they’ll give,
place their neck in the noose of greed
after releasing themselves from it.
Who could be more wicked
than those who promise to give
but change their mind,
their resolve unsteadied by stinginess?
There is no acquittal for a person
who strengthens the hopes of beggars
by promising they’ll give
and then cruelly breaks their word.
And as for your question as to why divine power alone cannot produce his eye, listen:
2.45
Endeavors are clearly accomplished
by a variety of factors.
Likewise even fate, though divine,
must rely on different means.
Do not therefore try to obstruct my exceptional gift.”
The ministers replied: “We have only advised Your Majesty to give wealth, grain, jewels, and other such offerings rather than your own eyes. We are not trying to lure Your Majesty into vice.”
The king answered:
“One should give what is requested.
An undesired gift brings no joy.
What use is water to one swept away by a river?
I shall therefore give this man his desire.”
2.50
The chief minister, who was very close to the king and intimate with him, then disregarded courtesy in a rush of affection and said to the monarch:
“Stop, sir!
Kingship is acquired
through no small toil and dedication.
Taking hundreds of sacrifices to achieve,
it is the means for attaining fame and heaven.
Yet you discard it, though it lies in your grasp,
an asset vying with Shakra’s power.
What insight impels you to give away your eyes?
What is this behavior? Where does it originate?
Gleaming with fame in every direction,
you have attained a place among gods through
sacrifice.
Your feet are tinged with the radiance of kings’ crowns.
What will you gain by giving your eye?”
The king politely replied to the minister:
2.55
“I do not strive to own the entire world,
nor to acquire heaven, liberation, or fame.
My sole concern is to save the world
and not
