There lived in one country a rich merchant named Dhanapal, and although he was engaged in trade, he was famous for his honesty and kindness. For this reason, people respected him, and the goddess of wealth Lakshmi settled in his house. And when a daughter was born into the family, she surpassed the goddess herself in beauty and virtues with her thirty-two noble qualities. Therefore, they named her in honor of the goddess Lakshmi-devi. In addition to his little daughter, Dhanapala had three adult sons who helped him in his trading business. For a long time the merchant's family lived happily and amicably, without knowing any troubles. Just for some time now, Dha-napal’s wife suddenly began to lose weight and turn pale, as if an evil melancholy was gnawing at her.
For a long time the merchant asked his wife what was bothering the poor woman, and she admitted to him that she was worried about the fate of her only daughter. Now, if Lakshmi-devi were happily married, a mother’s heart would stop suffering.
Dhanapal, who loved his wife very much, promised her to arrange her daughter’s fate without delay. And, true to his word, the next morning he ordered his sons to go north, east and west to look for a groom for his sister, and he himself set off along the southern road for the same purpose.
The father and brothers began to look everywhere for a groom for Lakshmi-devi. The fame of her beauty thundered throughout the country, so there was no shortage of suitors. All young people only dreamed of such a beautiful bride. It was much more difficult to find the most worthy one for her. But in the end, both the father and brothers each chose someone and agreed on the wedding day. And by chance, everyone scheduled the same day.
The merchant himself was the first to return home. He joyfully informed his wife that the groom had been found and the wedding day had already been set, so preparations for the wedding immediately began in the house.
By this time, the merchant’s sons had also returned from their travels. They saw that wedding preparations were in full swing in the house and that this wedding was to take place on the day they had appointed, and it did not even occur to any of the brothers that their parents did not yet know about their choice. Like everyone else in the house, they were so busy, they didn't bother to find time to talk to each other. And none of them knew that on the appointed day four suitors from four directions of the world would arrive at the house at once.
Finally everything was ready: neighbors gathered, relatives and friends arrived; a special treat awaited the groom and his relatives... And at the same hour, wedding processions - jan-ti - began to approach the merchant's house from four directions of the world. The sounds of music were heard from everywhere. The processions stopped and four grooms entered the house, each surrounded by his retinue.
What to do? Both parents and brothers were confused. The bride came to her senses first. She ordered refreshments to be served for the grooms, the guests, and everyone who had arrived from afar. Somehow, they knew how to treat people in the house, so everything went smoothly so far. But the time for the wedding ceremony was approaching. According to custom, the bride must be given to the groom in front of the sacred fire. And so the Brahmins built a fire; began to recite sacred hymns and throw grains of rice into the fire. Now all that remained was to tie the fingers of the bride and groom with the sacred thread. But Lakshmi-devi could not become the wife of four suitors! Meanwhile, none of them wanted to give up the girl promised to him. Then the bride said:
- O worthy young men! My father can give me as his wife to only one of you. But there are four of you gathered here, and I’m alone. Think carefully and try to decide peacefully which of you will get me. If no one wants to give up on me, let me look for a way out myself and do what I think is the most prudent.
But would anyone voluntarily give up such a beauty! The grooms asked the girl to do what she considered reasonable. And the bride has already thought about everything and decided.
Lakshmi-devi bowed to her father, mother and elder brothers, walked around the fire and jumped into the fire.
Shocked by the death of the bride, one of the grooms thought: “How can you live in the world when you know that you unwittingly caused the death of another. Now your own life will become torture. The only way out is to follow the bride. If I am not destined to unite with her on earth, then I will find her in the next world.” And he too jumped into the fire.
Another groom, after the death of Lakshmi-devi, decided to forever wander the world and devote his life to the memory of the late bride.
The third groom calmly went home and married another girl - what obligations could there be to the deceased, since she did not become his wife?
And only the last groom did not want to give in to fate and decided to snatch his bride from her, no matter how much work and hardship it cost him. Filled with such good intentions, the young man set off. One day he came to visit a Brahman scholar, who had long intended to visit holy places, but could not get ready because there was no one to leave the house to. He received the young wanderer and asked him to take care of the household while he and his wife walked to holy places; promised to return in four months and advised him to study secret spells - mantras - from his books.
One day, a young man came across a book where it was written how to give a second birth to a deceased person. He was incredibly happy, hoping to bring his bride back to life. Four months later, when the brahmana returned home, he handed him the key to the house and immediately went to the homeland of Lakshmi-devi. He found the place where the fire of the sacred fire burned on the wedding day and began to read magic spells. As soon as he uttered the last word of the spell, Lakshmi-devi appeared before him, but along with the girl, the groom also rose from the dead and jumped into the fire after her.
And again a dispute over the bride flared up; now the two grooms could not decide which of them was worthy of her hand? The one who gave his life for the girl, or the one who revived her? While they were arguing, a third groom appeared and traveled around the world, repeating the name of Lakshmi-devi. There were already three candidates for the bride. They themselves, of course, again could not resolve their dispute. And Lakshmi-devi this time did not know what to do. They then decided to go to trial before the Raja of the Principality of Gorkha.
When the Raja learned about what had happened, he ordered all the judges of his country to gather in the palace. The suitors of Lakshmi-devi told them about their dispute and asked them to judge them fairly.
The judges deliberated for a long time and finally announced to the grooms:
- Oh, young men! There is nothing unnatural in the fact that you three want to marry a beautiful girl like Lakshmi Devi and have already sacrificed a lot for her. If you had approached us earlier, when Lakshmi-devi advised you to get along with each other, you would not have had to suffer in vain. But only now you have called the court for help, and we, the judges, based on the current situation, are making such a decision.
First. The groom, who followed the bride into the fire and went to the next world, could claim the hand of Lakshmi-devi only in his first birth. In the second birth, they are related to each other by family ties. Now they are twins, and the law prohibits marriage between brother and sister.
Second. The person who gave second life to Lakshmi-devi also cannot become her husband, since he is now her father. And the judges of the Raja of the Principality of Gorkha cannot give their permission to such a marriage.
Third. Based on all these circumstances, the judges came to the unanimous conclusion that only the only one of the three applicants who dedicated his life to the memory of the deceased and traveled around the world, pronouncing the name of Lakshmi-devi, could become Lakshmi-devi’s groom. By this he proved his fidelity and devotion to his lawful bride.
Everyone considered the court's decision fair, and the beautiful Lakshmi-devi finally got married.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru