Simhasanadvatrimshika 24.p1

24.p1

Once again, as the king was about to sit upon the throne, another statuette said: "O King, he who possesses generosity and other virtues like Vikrama is capable of sitting upon this throne, no other." The king said: "O statuette, tell the story of his generosity." She said: "Listen, O King. In the kingdom of Vikramāditya there was a city named Purandarapurī. There lived a certain very wealthy merchant. He had four sons. Then, as much time passed, the merchant grew old and fell ill; at the time of death he summoned his four sons and said: 'O sons, when I am dead, you four may or may not remain together, and afterwards a dispute will arise. Therefore, while I am still alive, I have divided [the inheritance] among the four of you in order of age. Here, beneath the four legs of the bed, four portions have been placed; take them in order from eldest to youngest.' And they agreed. Then, when he had gone to the other world, the four brothers stayed together for a month. Then a quarrel arose among their wives. Thereupon they reflected: 'Why make a commotion here? Our father while still alive previously made the division among the four [of us]; let us take the wealth of the shares placed under the bed, and live happily separated.' Having said this, as they dug under the bed, four copper caskets came out from under the four legs. Among them, in one casket was earth, in one were coals, in another were bones, and in one was straw. Seeing these four things, the four brothers were astonished and said to one another: 'Ah, our father made a proper division; who knows this method of division?' Having said this, they entered the assembly and reported this matter before it. The assembly members did not understand the method of division. Again the four brothers, wherever in any town there were knowledgeable people, reported this matter before them; yet they too could not determine it.