A History of Fine Art in India and Ceylon, from the Earliest Times to the Present Day c9.s2.131

c9.s2.131

Sagara, King of Ajodhya, had by his queen Sumati 60,000 sons, whose impiety was such that the gods complained to Vishnu and the sage Kapila. King Sagara, having undertaken to perform the rite of the horse sacrifice (*aśvamedha*) in token of his universal sovereignty, deputed the duty of guarding the intended victim to his 60,000 sons, who failed in the trust committed to their charge, and allowed the animal to be carried off to the nether regions (*Pātāla*). Their father having directed them to recover the horse, they dug down and down until they found him grazing in Hades, with the sage Kapila seated close by, and engaged in deep meditation. The princes menaced him with their weapons, but were reduced to ashes by the flames which darted from his person, when he turned his glance upon them.