Suryamal and his bride’s dilemma

Suryamal and his bride’s dilemma

Betal started telling a story… There was a famous Devi temple in Patliputra which people used to visit from distant towns. Once, two men named Suryamal and Chandrasen had come to visit this temple from another town. Just after paying their respect, when Suryamal turned he saw a beautiful woman praying. He immediately fell in love with her and thought of getting married to her.Suryamal told this to his friend Chandrasen.

Chandrasen was very excited to hear this and advised him to go and talk to the girl’s parents if he was really serious about her. Both of them went to her place to seek permission from the girl’s father for their marriage. Her father agreed on one condition which was, that she would continue praying to the Devi twice a day even after their marriage since she was a great devotee of Devi. Suryamal agreed to the condition and got married to her. Just when they were about to leave, the girl’s father asked them to stay back for another day but they refused saying that there was Devi’s puja at his house the next day and his mother had asked him to come back before that.

On their way, in the jungle a few robbers attacked them and beheaded both Suryamal and Chandrasen. The robbers then escaped. When the bride came out of her carriage, she saw her husband lying dead. She was shocked and tried to kill herself. Just then Devi Maa manifested and stopped her from committing suicide. Devi asked her to arrange the heads with the respective bodies.Because of her nervousness the bride interchanged the heads with the wrong bodies. By sprinkling nectar, Devi Maa brought them back to life but as the bride had interchanged the heads; her husband’s head was now a part of Chandrasen’s body and vice versa. The bride was confused.

Betal asked Vikram whom should the bride accept as her husband? Should she go with the one who has the head of her husband or the one who has the body of her husband? Vikram wisely replied that all the bodily functions are controlled by the brain (head) and they act according to the command of the brain. Hence head is the most vital part of the body and so the bride should go with the one who has the head of her husband. Betalwas very happy to hear this but as Vikram had opened his mouth to speak, Betal flew away.