Bridegroom For the Mouse Girl
Long long ago there lived a sage on the bank of a river, along with his wife. There was not a soul other than them nearby. The sage did not mind that. But his wife felt lonely, more so when the sage sat in meditation for hours at a stretch. She would have loved to chit chat with another woman, but there was no village at hand which she could visit at will. Besides, it was not safe for her to leave the sage alone. When the sage sat in meditation, he forgets all about the world around him. He won't know if a stray dog or jackal entered the hut and ate up their food. The sage realized his wife's sentiments. One day a crow stole a tiny mouse from a hole and settled down on the branch of a tree in order to kill and eat the prey. Just then it saw that the tree and the cave behind it were the home of owls. It got scared and flew away, dropping the mouse. It so happened that the sage was returning home after a bath in the river. The tiny mouse fell before him. It was half dead. The sage took pity on it. Suddenly a highly original idea occurred to him. Why not transform this baby mouse into a human baby? His wife felt bored with her loneliness. A child can keep her occupied, he thought. He uttered a mantra and waved his hand. Out of the mouse emerged a bonny infant, a girl.
Great was the joy of the sage's wife. She picked up the girl and nursed her with much love and attention. Years passed. The infant grew up to be a charming damsel. "Now, my husband, you must find out a suitable bridegroom for my daughter. She is beautiful and she is good at household chores. Besides, she can sing and even dance. I should expect her to get a worthy bridegroom," the sage's wife told her husband. "Worthy? I can command the worthiest bridegroom to marry our daughter," exclaimed the sage. "Really? Let me see you command a godly being," said the sage's wife. "Well, I can command even the sun god, what to speak of a godly being!" asserted the sage. "Don't boast of your power. Prove it," challenged his wife. The sage closed his eyes and invoked the sun god. There was a spurt of light and the sun god stood before him. "What do you want of me, O sage?" asked the sun god. "Will you please marry my daughter? she can cook for you and sing to you," said the sage. Then, looking at the bride, he asked, "How do you find this bridegroom?" "Father! he is too luminous for me to approach him. Find me a worthier bridegroom," replied the girl, to the sage's surprise. "Who is superior to you?" the sage asked the sun god. "Cloud. He alone can dim my glory!" replied the sun god. The sage invoked the cloud. Upon his arrival, the sage asked the girl, "How do you find him?" "Too dark to match me and too cold for my touch," was the girl's observation.
"Who is superior to you?" the sage asked the cloud. "Wind. He can push me hither and thither," was the cloud's reply. The sage invoked the wind. "How do you find him?" he asked the girl. "Quite unreliable. Always moves about! Don't you know anyone superior to him?" asked the girl. To the sage's query, the wind said that the hill was superior to him because he could never disturb him. The sage invoked the hill. But observed the girl, "He looks too idle. None superior to him?" "The mouse is superior to me. He can bore a tunnel through me!" said the hill. The sage had a mouse brought there. The girl blushed and whispered to the sage's wife, "Mother! What a wonderful bridegroom!" Thus did the mouse girl, at last, find her suitable match in a mouse!
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