Would a maddened elephant, roused to fury, ever pause for the waving staff or the shouts of Azhwarkkadiyan? Lifting its trunk high, it crashed through the shrubs and creepers that blocked its path, advancing ever closer. In the next instant, there could be no doubt what fate awaited Azhwarkkadiyan! The two soldiers who had come to his aid stood rooted to the spot, crying out, “Hai!” in alarm. Vandiyathevan, retrieving the spear that had slipped from his grasp and fallen to the ground, resolved to make one last desperate attempt.

At that very moment, Azhwarkkadiyan hurled his staff at the charging elephant. In the blink of an eye, Azhwarkkadiyan vanished from sight. His turban, caught by the wind, flew off and landed on a tree branch. Before Vandiyathevan could even wonder what had become of him, an even more momentous event occurred. The elephant, which had charged past the spot where Azhwarkkadiyan had disappeared, suddenly bent its forelegs and collapsed forward as if kneeling. A terrible, reverberating roar echoed through the forest. In the next moment, the massive form of the elephant was gone. It had rolled and tumbled into a deep chasm, sending up a cloud of dust and debris that billowed over the area.

It took Vandiyathevan a few moments to comprehend what had happened.

There had been a great pit behind Azhwarkkadiyan. When he threw his staff, the force of the motion made him lose his balance and fall backward into the pit. The maddened elephant, charging at him, had also set its forelegs into the chasm. Try as it might, it could not recover. The very weight of its mountainous body became its enemy, dragging it down into the abyss! In the same instant, both the crazed elephant and the man who had faced it—Azhwarkkadiyan—met the same fate, vanishing into the pit together!

As this realization struck Vandiyathevan, a shiver ran through his body. A deep sorrow welled up in his heart. All the suspicions he had once harbored against the Srivaishnavan had faded during their journey together, replaced by a sense of affection. Was this the end that awaited such a companion? The thought that he must now accomplish the task he had undertaken, without the help and guidance of Azhwarkkadiyan, filled him with anxiety.

Vandiyathevan approached the edge of the pit where both the Vaishnavan and the elephant had disappeared, and peered down into its depths. At first, there was nothing but a cloud of dust—nothing could be seen at all. As the dust slowly settled, the path the elephant had taken became clear: shrubs and creepers, rocks and stones, all lay crushed and scattered in its wake.

“What’s this, brother! Are you just going to stand there and watch the spectacle? Won’t you lend a hand?” The moment Vandiyathevan heard this voice, he was startled as if someone had given him a sudden jolt. Reeling with surprise, he turned toward the direction of the voice. Clinging to the exposed root of a tree at the edge of a steep rock face, right along the path where the elephant had fallen, hung Azhwarkkadian.

Can one even describe Vandiyathevan’s delight at this sight? At once, his playful spirit returned.

“Oh-ho! O Vaishnavite! After granting salvation only to Gajendra, have you decided to remain suspended in Trishanku’s heaven?” he called out, clapping his hands to summon the soldiers.

He quickly unwound the cloth girdle from around his waist and had two of the soldiers grip one end tightly. Dropping the other end down, Azhwarkkadian let go of the tree root and seized the cloth. The three of them, pulling together with all their might, slowly and carefully hauled the Vaishnavite up to safety.

For a while, Azhwarkkadian lay stretched out, gasping for breath, as if bereft of all awareness. The others stood around him, offering words of comfort.

Suddenly, he sat up and said, “Let’s move! We must reach Rajapattai before it gets completely dark. Where’s my head-cloth? Where’s my staff?”

“There’s no need to hurry. Rest a little longer, and then we’ll set out,” said Vandiyathevan.

Just then, the cry of a jackal echoed through the air. From another direction, a second jackal began its plaintive song. Soon, a hundred, two hundred jackals joined in a chorus. From the wooded hills above, down into the valley below, the sounds of furtive movement could be heard in many places. There was no need to say that the stealthy rustlings in the undergrowth were caused by leopards slipping through the brush. Over the valley, eagles and kites began to circle.

“The death of an elephant is no ordinary matter. From far and wide, beasts and birds that feed on flesh will soon arrive to feast upon the body of the great Gajendra. We too may become prey for them. Let us depart at once!” said Azhwarkkadiyan.

Vandiyathevan did not object to his words now. The four of them hastened along the forest path as swiftly as they could. By the time dusk fell, they reached the royal highway.

The royal highway was abuzz with people coming and going, with carts and vehicles of every kind. Vandiyathevan was astonished to see people mounting elephants as if it were the most natural thing in the world. He wondered again and again, “Was it just one such beast that caused so much terror along the forest path?”

“Where does this royal highway lead? Where are we now? Where are we headed?” he asked.

“We have joined the royal highway that runs from Anuradhapura to Simhagiri. Tamballai is less than half a league away. We can reach there by nightfall,” replied Azhwarkkadiyan.

“Could we not have traveled comfortably along the royal highway? Why did we take the forest route?”

“Had we come all the way along the royal highway, we would have been stopped and questioned at a hundred places. In Anuradhapura, they would have detained us completely. I have learned that the person we seek has gone towards Simhagiri. That