After bathing with his sons the king summoned his guru's kinsmen and entertained them at a sumptuous banquet till five hours of the night were spent.
Lovely women sang joyous songs, and the night was one of exquisite happiness. As they rose from their seats, all were presented with pan and decorated with beautiful and sweet-scented garlands; then after one more look at Râma and bowing the head they received the royal permission to retire each to his own abode. The display of love and rapturous delight and the beauty of the court at that time was more than could be told by a hundred Sâradas or Seshnâgs, or by the Veda, or Brahma, or Mahâdeva, or Ganes: how then can I tell it, any more than an earthly serpent could support the world on its head? After showing every one the highest honour, the king in gentle tones addressed the queens: “The brides are but children, and have come to a strange house; watch over them as closely as the eyelid guards the eye.
Lovely women sang joyous songs, and the night was one of exquisite happiness. As they rose from their seats, all were presented with pan and decorated with beautiful and sweet-scented garlands; then after one more look at Râma and bowing the head they received the royal permission to retire each to his own abode. The display of love and rapturous delight and the beauty of the court at that time was more than could be told by a hundred Sâradas or Seshnâgs, or by the Veda, or Brahma, or Mahâdeva, or Ganes: how then can I tell it, any more than an earthly serpent could support the world on its head? After showing every one the highest honour, the king in gentle tones addressed the queens: “The brides are but children, and have come to a strange house; watch over them as closely as the eyelid guards the eye.