Vandiyathevan and Azhwarkadiyan rose eagerly and sat down on the floor beside the prince’s cot. The prince began to speak as follows:

“When I was a small boy, there was an occasion when I was traveling with my parents in a boat on the Kaveri river. My elder brother and my sister were also in the boat at that time. They were engaged in conversation about something or other. I alone was watching the swirling flow of the Kaveri’s waters, and how, now and then, some kadamba flowers would get caught in those eddies and spin around. Seeing those tiny flowers trapped and struggling in the whirls caused me pain. Sometimes, I would lean over the side of the boat and rescue the struggling kadamba flowers from the water’s grip. On one such occasion, as I was reaching out, I lost my balance and fell into the river. Since I fell headfirst, I was completely disoriented and floundered helplessly!

“I still remember the sensation of my head striking the sandy bottom of the Kaveri. Then I recall the swift current pushing and dragging me along. From somewhere far away, I seemed to hear the shouts and cries of many people. I began to suffocate. I thought, ‘Well, the Kaveri river is going to carry me away and cast me into the sea.’ The thought struck me of how much pain my parents, my sister, and my brother would feel if they could not find me. At that moment, it felt as if someone scooped me up with both arms and embraced me. In the next instant, I surfaced above the water. Water was streaming from my head, eyes, nose, and mouth. Yet, I could clearly see the hands that had lifted and saved me. Then I saw the face of the one to whom those hands belonged. Though it was only for a few moments, that face became imprinted in my mind. It seemed as though I had seen that face somewhere before. But I could not tell who it was.

“After that, those hands handed me over to someone else. In the next moment, I was back in the boat. My mother, father, sister, and brother all surrounded me. Their sorrow, their concern, their love, and their support completely absorbed my attention. Only after a little while did the question arise—who was it that had lifted me out of the water and saved me? They asked one another; they asked me as well. I looked all around. That divine face was nowhere to be seen. So, unable to answer their question, I remained silent. In the end, everyone agreed that it must have been Kaveri Amman herself who saved me. They resolved that I must have been saved. From the day I survived falling into the river, every year they arranged for a special puja to Kaveri Amman. Yet, only my mind remained unsatisfied. Whether it was truly Kaveri Amman who saved me, or some other mortal woman, the