81. The king returns after his vengeance on Mahakalyayana; the monk foretells the destruction of the city

Like on many others of this series, we here find two episodes on one relief. The first scene shows the king entering the city and although there is nothing to indicate what the occasion may be, we need not doubt it is the return after his vengeance on the saint, described in the text. It was too difficult for the sculptor to depict the actual deed, the monk being buried under the sand, therefore we are strewn the return of the king, comprehensible enough to those familiar with the course of the story. The city is indicated by a building on the right, a temple or a palace with pillared niches, corner-towers and a tri,cula on the roof-top; some birds are flying above it. As the double-door and the staircase face the spectator and the royal procession is not turning in that direction, it is evident that no palace is intended, but only the buildings of the city in general. Pushed away into the righthand corner is a man in fine clothes who may have been put in only to decorate the space, but might be considered as belonging to the head of the king's train that is partly hidden behind the building. At any rate the king with his retinue approaches on the left of the house; he is seated in a palanquin and this fact has caused the most extraordinary lack of proportion between the various servants and attendants. The king himself with the attendants behind the palanquin are of normal size; the bearers, in order to place the monarch becomingly on the relief, are about two heads shorter and the third class of servants, who walk at the side of the train, are fitted in as dwarfs just below the seat of the king. The vehicle is a plain square of boards on which the kingleans against a cushion and makara-back. Peacockfeather-fan, umbrella and fly-fan are carried beside him.

The second scene is quite out-of-doors as we see by the trees; those most to the right serve as partition. On the left, on a low bench with a dish under it, Mahakatyayana is seated on a cushion, recovered from the sand-heap and uttering his prophecy to his rescuers sitting on the right; the front one makes a sembah and the last one wears a sword. There are three of them; two of course should be Hiru and Bhiru, so we might consider the third as one of the helpful cowherds. None of the three however are dressed for this humble occupation, it looks more likely that they belong together, one being possibly the son of Hiru who plays a part in the tale later on; so the cowherds have been forgotten. It is quite plain that the monk is speaking and the others listening to him.