The next afternoon, the Periya Bikshu came once again to see Ponniyin Selvan.

The prince was burning with eagerness to ask him many questions. His attempts to learn anything by questioning the Chinna Bikshu had not succeeded. “Ayya! The Guru Devar will reveal everything,” was the only reply he received, again and again.

As soon as the Guru Devar arrived, he asked, “Prince! How is your health now?”

“Ayya, my body is troubling me greatly. It keeps saying, ‘Why are you lying here idly? Get up and run! Mount a horse! Dive into the river and swim! Wrestle with an elephant! Don’t just lie here doing nothing!’ My stomach too is unusually lively. All the food the Chinna Bikshu brought and gave me was not enough. Acharyare! I can hardly believe that for so many days I was lost in a feverish delirium. Your medicine has worked wonders!” said Ponniyin Selvan.

“Ayya! One should not trust the body’s words too much. When the fever clears, it will be like this; you may feel a little reckless, but if the fever returns a second time, it could endanger your very life!”

“Gurudevar! I am not all that afraid about any danger to my life…”

“You may not be worried; that is well and good! But do you know how much the crores of people in this Chola land have been worrying these past four or five days? The towns and cities are in utter turmoil. From tiny children to the aged, all are shedding tears…”

“Ayya! I do not understand what you are saying. Why should the people be so distressed? Is it because they thought I might not recover from this fever? When they know you are treating me at the Choodamani Vihara, why should they be anxious?”

“Prince! The people do not know about your fever, nor that you are here at the Choodamani Vihara. If the people of this city knew, would there be such peace in this monastery? Wouldn’t they have broken down the walls and rushed in, all of them, to see you…?” “Did they not care? If you had heard the wailing and lamentation that arose in this city when the news came that you had drowned in the sea that morning… Why, even within this very vihara, was there a single soul who did not weep and cry aloud that day?”

Ponniyin Selvan sat up on his bed and asked, “Gurudeva! What is this you are saying? I do not understand a thing. News came that I had drowned in the sea? When did this happen? Who brought such dreadful tidings? And for what reason?”

“No one knows who brought it! One morning, that news had spread throughout the city. People were saying that the ship which brought you from Lanka to Kodikkarai was caught in a whirlpool and sank. Along the shores of Kodikkarai, the officer Pazhuvettarayar searched for you in every way, but even your body could not be found, and so the news spread in alarm that you must have perished in the sea. Hearing this, even I stood at the entrance of this vihara, grieving. At that moment, another bhikshu came and informed me that a patient had been brought by boat and was waiting in the canal behind the vihara. When I went at once to see, I found that the patient in the boat was you. After that, we have been treating you for three days. Only yesterday did you regain your memory.”

“Acharyare! Who was it that brought me here in the boat? Can you tell me?”

“A young man and a young woman brought you, rowing the boat.”

“Yes, yes; even I remember it now as if from a dream. Do you know who that young man and woman are? Was the young man Vandiyathevan of the Vanar clan?”

“No, my lord! He said his name was Sendhan Amudhan. He seemed to be a great devotee of Shiva. I did not learn the young woman’s name. She was strong in body and mind…”

“I think I can guess who she is. The boat-girl Poonguzhali; the daughter of Thyaga Vidangar. Did they not tell you why they brought me here?”

“No, Prince! I did not ask them about that.”

“Did you not inform anyone that I am safe here?”

“No, my lord! Those who brought you here asked that it not be told to anyone. Considering your condition, I too thought it best to remain silent.”

“Acharyare! There has been some conspiracy here. My father, the Emperor of the Three-Crowned Cholas, had ordered that I be brought back as a prisoner. In obedience to that command, I set out from Lanka. But in the meantime, various incidents have occurred. It seems this plot has been staged to accuse me of acting against the Emperor’s orders. They have even spun a tale that I drowned and died in the sea. Gurudeva! By giving me refuge in this Choodamani Vihara, you have already committed an act of royal treason. To keep me here any longer would be a grave offense. Please, send me to Thanjavur at once…”

“Prince! If I am to receive royal punishment for having given you shelter, I would welcome it with joy. Even if, for that reason, this ancient Choodamani Vihara is to be razed to the ground and reduced to dust, it matters not…”

“I am gladdened by your affection, Gurudeva! Yet, how did you accept me here without questioning those who brought me?”

“What need was there to question? What greater duty could there be for a bhikshu like myself than to receive you, who arrived in such distress, and tend to your wounds? Moreover, your noble elder sister, Kundavai Devi, had already informed me in advance that you might come here and stay for a few days.”

“Oh! Is that so? Did the young princess send word thus? When was this?”

“A few days before your arrival. Even Senthan Amudhan, who brought