The demon-king Nilarudraka, whose citadel was at the foot of Himalayas, had long been waging war with heaven. The gods could not destroy him, for he had received Siwa peomise that he should die neither at the hands of gods nor men nor other demon like himself. Only Siwa himself could devise a remedy; but Siwa was practicing yoga on mount Meru, and none of the gods dared to wake him. They decided at last that Siwa favorite child, Semara, the God of Love, must be persuaded to undertake the dangerous task, and all went together in search of him. When they found him they did obeisance, and sat down each one in his place.

Then Indra said: ‘Brother, we have a prayer to make. Heaven threaten to be destroyed by Rudraka, who was his power from Siwa, and against whom neither men nor gods nor demons can prevail. Our only hope is to bring Siwa out of his meditation, so that he may lie with Parwati and bear a child of such shape that he can kill Rudraka. And now our universal prayer is that you should go, who are Siwa’s favorite child.’ Semara said: ‘It is dreadfully dangerous me to go against my father will. He will kill me in his anger.’ Then Indra said: ‘Siwa’s yoga has lasted long enough. You have no fear, for after all it is our business you are going on, not your own. You had better set off at once, and take the Widyadari (angel) with you.’

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Once upon a time, there was a man named Windu Sara. He only cared about flowers and books, and took no interest in women. His mother as always urging him to marry, and one day she told him that she had chosen for his wife a cousin of his, named Mertayadnya. He still protested that he had no wish to marry, besides the girl in question had a dimple on her shoulder, a sure sign that she would be fatal to men. His mother replied: “if she is not to your taste, I have another choice for you; Navartna, a sister of Jagasatru, who is also of royal blood.” But he explained that he was ngelangkargunung, i.e. her birthday was in an unlucky relation to his own; there was only two days difference between them. “Who then would you like to marry? You have only to say a word and I will get her for you, from wherever she may be.” But Windu Sara said that he could see no reason for marrying anyone; he did not want a wife.

His friend Jagasatru meanwhile married Mertayadnya, and begged Windu Sara to come and help him to entertain the wedding-guest. The wedding-day came. Mertayadnya was fetched in a litter, there was a great banquet and Windu Sara entertained the guest. Mertayadnya was marvelously dressed, and as Windu Sara was helping her to descend form her litter, he was so overwhelmed by her beauty that he fainted. And Mertayadnya gave him medicine to revive him. But he left the feast and went home; and the wedding went without him. When he got home he would eat nothing and his mother asked him what was wrong. At first he would not reply, but after long asking, he confessed that he fallen passionately in love with his friend’s wife, and he would die unless he got her for himself his mother was very angry, and reproached him to his former obstinacy. Now it was too late; but she promised to try and get him a widyadari in place of the wife he could not have.

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