Kula Shaker - Crispian Reading From The Mahabharata lyrics

Once, the sage Durvasas came to
The capital of Kuntibhoja

He wanted to spend a few days with the king
The princess Kunti had been
Appointed by her father
To attend to the wants of the sage

Indeed, the sage was so please
D with her that he wanted to grant her a boon
He summoned her to his presence and told her
That he would teach her a certain incantation
If she recited it
Any Deva whom she thought of
Would come to her
She received the gift with the humility
Becoming the daughter of a king
And Durvasas went away

The child - she was hardly a girl - did
Not understand what Durvasas meant
When he said that
"the heavenly being whom she invoked
Would come to her"
She was as excited as a child with a new toy
It was early in the morning
Through the Eastern window she could
See the Sun just rising
The East was drenched in the
Colour of liquid gold
The waters of the river were lapping
Against the walls of the palace
It was an unforgettable scene
The Sun and his soft beams - beams which
Had the coolness of the dawn -
And the beautiful river with
Her path glowing with
The red and gold of the rising Sun
The scene touched the heart of the young girl
She lost herself in the beauty
Of that majestic vision
Kunti thought how wonderful it
Would be if the
Sun could be there by her side
In a flash she remembered the mantra which
The great Durvasas had taught her
Why, if she recited it the
Sun would come to her
Yes, that was the way he said
He would come to her

The poor child, in blissful ignorance
Held her palms together
Palms that looked like a lotus bud
And invoked the Sun with the
Incantation she had learnt

She opened her eyes - a miracle was happening
Along the watery path of the river
The Sun's rays travelled fast
She was blinded by a sudden brilliance
And then Surya, the Sun God
Stood by her side
He stood looking at her with
A smile of teasing amusement

Kunti was now extremely please
D with the success of her incantation
She smiled a sweet, happy smile
"Sage Durvasas said it would work, " she said
"I stood looking at you rising in the East
The scene was so beautiful and you were so
Beautiful that I wanted you to come here
So I recited the incantation which
Had taught me by
The Sage you have come - how wonderful!"
The Sun was still smiling he said
"now that I have come
What do you want me to do?"
"Why, nothing, " said Kunti
"I just thought of you and
Imagined how wonderful it
Would be if you were here beside me
That is all"
"That is not all, " said the Deva
"It is evident that you did not
Find any meaning in the
Words of the Sage when he
Taught you the incantation
He said that any God whom you
Invoked would come to you, is that not so?"
"Yes, " said the princess
Not following his words at all
"Can you not see" said the God
That it means that
The God will embrace you and give you a son
As beautiful as the God
Whom you have summoned"

The princess was bewildered
She did not know what to do or what to say
"I did not know it!" she said
"I had no idea that the words meant this!"
Please, forgive me this childishness!
Please, go away and save me from shame!"
"But that is impossible, " said the God
"Once I am summoned by you I cannot
Go back until I take you you must have me
You cannot escape the power of the
Mantra which you have used unthinkingly"