Nala Damayanti

NALA DAMAYANTI

The steadfast lovers



Nala, king of Nishadha, was handsome and brave. He was skilled in the use of arms and horses and in games of chance. Narada, the sage ever on the move, told Nala of the beauty and intelligence of Damayanti, daughter of the king of Vidarbha. Nala, longing to convey his love to her, found his messenger in a golden swan in the garden pool. The golden swan brought about the union of Nala and Damayanti. For them fortune turned in a game of chance that Nala played with his cousin. Banished from royalty, Nala and Damayanti had to brave many turns and twists in life. They faced separation, with Nala in the service of a king and Damayanti back to her parents. Damayanti reunited them through a clever ploy. The tale is told here from Mahabharata the world's longest epic in the ancient language Sanskrit. It was translated into Latin way back in the 19th century!