Murugaiyyan, the boatman, was startled and bewildered by the shrill cry his wife had let out.

He turned to her again, gesturing with his hands, and said, “Woman! What nonsense are you babbling? Have you gone mad?”

“I am not mad! It is you who are mad, your father was mad, and your grandfather too! Don’t you recognize who this is? Don’t you know who this hero is, who conquered Eezham and drove King Mahindan into the hill country? Can’t you recognize the Emperor’s own son, the apple of the Chola people’s eye, the ascetic’s child whom Mother Kaveri herself saved and gave back? If you cannot recognize him, then why did you set out with him? Where are you going with him?” Raakkammal cried.

At this point, the prince interjected, “Woman! You have mistaken me for someone else. I am a merchant who has come from Eezham. I am the one who brought him along to show me the way! Take him with you! Don’t make a useless scene!” he said.

While this conversation was going on, people had begun to gather around them. The crowd grew larger with every passing minute. All those who arrived stared intently at the prince.

Then Raakkammal, in an even louder voice, cried, “Ah! O God! Has Ponniyin Selvan lost his senses? Did you lose your memory when you drowned in the sea? Or have those wretched Buddhist monks cast a spell on you and made you think you are someone else? Or—oh no! Could it be that you have died, and some sorcerer who knows the art of entering another’s body has taken possession of your form? No, that cannot be! Prince! Think carefully! You are not a merchant. You are the beloved son of Emperor Sundara Chola, born to rule the world under a single parasol. If you doubt it, look closely at your palms. You will see the lines of the conch and discus there!” she shouted.

At once, Prince Arulmozhi tightly closed both his hands.

“Woman! Will you not shut your mouth and keep quiet?” he said, then turned to Murugaiyyan and asked, “What is this nuisance? Can’t you stop her shouting?” Murugaiyyan came close to his wife and whispered in her ear, “Raakkamma! Let this be a merit to you! Be silent! The prince wishes to go to Thanjavur in the guise of a merchant, without anyone’s knowledge!”

“You wretched fellow! Couldn’t you have told me this earlier? Didn’t you say that the prince would never be at the Buddhist monastery? You still have that same foolishness! Alas! What a crime I have committed! Out of excessive eagerness, I have blurted out the truth! The hapless Pazhuvettarayars are waiting for an opportunity to imprison you and take their revenge! Even knowing that, I have exposed you like this! My prince! Still, you need not fear. The Pazhuvettarayars cannot harm even a single atom of your sacred person. There are lakhs and lakhs of people, like myself and my