འཕགས་པ་དཔལ་སྦས་ཞས་བྱ་བའ་མད 22

22

treated with honor and respect. He attended to him and offered him veneration. Then, accompanied by the peacock king Suvarṇāvabhāsa, he returned to Vārāṇasī. At the gate to the city, Suvarṇāvabhāsa let out a cry that resounded through the whole city, and all the men, women, boys, and girls who lived in Vārāṇasī rushed to the city gate.

“King Brahmadatta treated Suvarṇāvabhāsa with honor and respect, attending to him and offering veneration. They then went to his home, where Queen Anupamā was waiting. When they arrived, the king said to her, ‘My lady, the peacock king Suvarṇāvabhāsa approaches.’

“King Brahmadatta himself served Suvarṇāvabhāsa with flowers and fruits. But on one occasion when King Brahmadatta had other obligations, he thought, ‘Who can serve the peacock king Suvarṇāvabhāsa?’ Then the thought occurred to him, ‘Queen Anupamā is clever and very wise; I think she can do it.’ King Brahmadatta summoned Queen Anupamā and said to her, ‘My lady, please attend to the peacock king Suvarṇāvabhāsa, just as I have served him.’ Then Anupamā, the queen of King Brahmadatta, attended to Suvarṇāvabhāsa herself with flowers and fruit.

“At one point, Queen Anupamā developed an attraction to another man. She thought, ‘The peacock king Suvarṇāvabhāsa speaks the human language, so might he not tell this tale to King Brahmadatta? Might the king not arrest