हिन्दी
In ancient times there was a king who was the great-grandson of Janaśruta. He was a highly charitable person, who gave many gifts in charity, and always with due respect. He also had large quantities of food cooked for people. With the thought in mind, ‘People all over will eat my food,’ he had many rest-houses built in different places.
Once he saw some swans flying overhead at night. The swan flying behind called out to the one ahead: ‘Hey, you short-sided one! Don’t you see that the brightness of Jānaśruti has spread all over the sky like daylight? Beware you don’t touch it. See that it doesn’t bum you’.
The swan in front replied: ‘Say, who is this person? From the way you are talking, one would think he was Raikva with the cart.’ Then the other swan asked, ‘And who is this Raikva with the cart you are referring to?’.
‘Just as in a game of dice, when a person wins the toss called kṛta he automatically wins the lower tosses also, in the same way, whatever good work people do goes to the credit of Raikva. If anyone knows what Raikva knows, he becomes like Raikva. This is how I would describe Raikva.’
Jānaśruti Pautrāyaṇa overheard what the swan said. He got up from his bed and the first thing he did was to ask his attendant (who was standing nearby): ‘O my child, can I be compared to Raikva with the cart? Who is this Raikva with the cart? What sort of person is he?’
(Then he quoted what the swan had said) "Just as in a game of dice, if a person wins the toss called kṛta, he automatically wins the lower tosses also, in the same way, whatever good work people do goes to the credit of Raikva. If anyone knows what Raikva knows, he becomes like Raikva. This is how I would describe Raikva."
(Jānaśruti asked his attendant to go and look for Raikva) Having looked for him, the attendant thought, ‘I can’t find him,’ and returned to his master. Jānaśruti then said to him: ‘Well, why don’t you go to places where brāhmins are to be found—in forests and solitary places? Look for him there’.
The attendant noticed a man sitting under a cart, scratching a rash on his body. Sitting down close to him, the attendant asked, ‘Sir, are you Raikva with the cart?’ The man answered, ‘Well, yes, I am.’ The attendant thought, ‘I have found him,’ and returned.
