Pazhuvertaraiyar knew that many people were talking about his marriage in his old age. He had heard that Kundavai was one of those who had spoken abusively. But no one has ever told him what Kundavai said. Now when he heard it from Nandhini's mouth, his heart was like a smith's furnace. Gub, gub! came a fiery sigh. Nandhini's tears served as ghee to further fuel the fire in his heart.
"My dear! Did that Chandala wretch say that? Did she call me an old buffalo? Let it be; Her... Look what I'm doing, her! See, I am crushing it like a buffalo crushing a lily with its feet! Still... Her... She.....," said Pazhuvertaraiyar, unable to speak due to anger. It is impossible to describe the ugly appearance on his face.
Nandhini tried to calm him down. She grasped his iron hand with her flowerlike hand and interlaced her fingers together.
"Oh my God! I know you will not bear my insult. But a lion that is strong enough to split the skull of Matthagaja and drink blood cannot pounce on a cat. Kundavai is a female cat. But the great magician. She is playing magic and magic to manipulate everyone! She is shaking this Chola kingdom! Her magic must be won by alternative magic. Tell me if you don't want to. I am leaving this palace today..." She said and sobbed again.
Pazhuvertaraiyar's anger subsided; Infatuation is overwhelming.
"Don't; Do not! Invite a thousand magicians. You don't have to go! You are my life! What's that? You are my life! What will this body do if it dies?... Your exclusion from me now keeps me alive and kills me! Do you know so much magic? Can't you teach me a mantra?"
"Oh my God! Why magic when you have a sword and a spear in your hand? Leave the magic to me, you silly girl! Why do you need magic and magic?" said Nandhini.
"Sweetheart! My body shivers when you open your coral mouth and call me 'Nada'... When I look at your golden face, my mind spins! It is true that I have a sword and a spear in my hand. I will use them to attack the enemy on the battlefield. But what will I do in this flagpole with those weapons? I don't have anything against Cupid's arrows, do I? You have it, don't you? You ask me what magic is for! It is to quench the fire that is burning my body and soul incessantly. Tell me if you know any magic about it! If not, give me the privilege of touching your flower body! Save my life somehow! Kanmani! It has been two and a half years since you and I were married according to the rules of the scriptures! However, we did not begin to live according to the custom of the world. You are keeping me away by saying fasting and fasting. You are torturing the husband who married her! Or at last poison me with your hand and kill me..."
Nandhini covered her ears and said, "Aiyyo! Dont say such cruel words! If you say it again, I will do as you say. I will drink poison and die. Then you can be carefree and relaxed!"
"No, no; I don't say that anymore. Forgive me! Will I have peace of mind if you die of poisoning? Now I am half mad and then I will be completely mad...!"
"Oh my God! Why should you go mad? The day we hold hands and marry, we have become two bodies and one life. Life and life have merged; Heart and soul have merged; Every beat of your heart echoes in my heart here. Every thought that arises in your heart is reflected here in my inner mirror. When you furrow an eyebrow, my eyes swell. My gut twitches when your moustache twitches. When we are alive like this, why think of this body? This is a body made of earth; This is a body that will one day burn to ashes and turn to dust..."
"Stop! Stop stop! My ears are blistering when I hear your cruel words!" screamed Pazhuvertaraiyar. He did not allow her to speak further: "Did you say that you are a body made of mud? Untruth! Untruth! Do not tell such a great lie with your fruity mouth, which smells of honey! Did you say you made your body of clay? Never. There are so many women in the world. Lord Brahma could have made them all out of mud or stone. It could have been made with charcoal and sambar. But do you know how Brahma made your idol? He gathered flowers that had fallen from the mandara trees of the celestial world; He came to Tamilnadu and collected red lotus flowers; He put the flowers he collected in the golden pot where the nectar of the gods was kept. He mixed the nectar and flowers and took it out after it became a broth. He poured vanilla rays into the broth. He brought the bards of ancient Tamilnadu and asked them to play the lute. He mixed the music of the lute. Brahmadeva created your body with such a wonderful combination ..."
"Oh my God! You are speaking as if you have seen Brahma from the sidelines! Am I the only one caught up in all these descriptions? There are so many women in your harem; They were born into royal families. You have been married to them for so long. It's only been two and a half years since you saw me... Before Nandhini could say that, Pazhuvertaraiyar interrupted. Perhaps he wanted to express in words the emotion that was welling up in his heart. Perhaps he was trying to extinguish the fire that burned with rhetoric.
"Nandhini! You spoke of the ladies of my harem. I married them so that the ancient Pazhuvur royal tribe could flourish. Some of them became barren. Others gave birth to women. I was relieved that 'God's grace is all'. For a long time I had lost sight of women. It was diplomacy that occupied all my attention. There was no place in this heart for any memory other than the greatness of the Chola kingdom. It was during this time that the final great war with the Pandyas came. There were many young generals, but I could not stay behind. If I had not gone to the battlefield, such a great victory would not have been achieved. After destroying the Pandyan army and hoisting the flag of victory in Madurai, I went to Kongu Nadu. From there I was returning along the banks of Aganda Cauvery. On the way I found you in a thick forest. At first I couldn't believe you were standing there. I closed my eyes and opened them. You still stood. 'You must be a fairy; You'll disappear when you get closer! I thought and approached. Even then you did not disappear. 'She must have been a celestial maiden or a Gandharva woman who came to earth after receiving a curse from heaven, as told in the Puranas; You don't know the human language!' Who are you?" he asked. You replied in good Tamil. 'I am an orphan girl; I have taken refuge in you; Please save me.' When I brought you in a palanquin, my mind thought of all the things that I did not think. It was as if I had seen you somewhere, sometime before. But when I thought about it, I didn't know where. Suddenly the veil of illusion that had covered my mind was lifted; Truth dawned. I have never seen you before in this life. But I know that I have seen it in many previous births. All the memories of that previous life came crashing. You were born in this world as a devotee; I was Devendran then. Renouncing the kingdom of heaven and daring to curse the Rishi, I came in search of you. Then I was born as King Santanu. I saw you when I went hunting along the banks of the Ganges; I loved you, Ganga, who took the form of an earthly woman. Then once upon a time I was born as Kovalan in Kaveri Poompattinam; You had incarnated as Kannagi. I forgot you for some time because of the delusion that obscured my knowledge. Then the veil of illusion lifted. I know your love. I took him to Madurai. On the way, I left you at the pastoral hut and went to sell silambu. I lost my life because of deceit. As revenge for that, I saw you on my way back after destroying the Pandyan tribe of Madurai in this birth. I realized that you are the Kannagi who separated hundreds of years ago...."
When Pazhuvertaraiyar was telling stories of his previous births, Nandhini was looking in another direction without looking at his face. So Pazhuvertaraiyar did not notice the expression on her face. If he had, it is doubtful if he would have continued to speak.
When he paused to catch his breath, Nandhini turned to him and said, "Natha! The examples you have given are not very relevant. Everything is a little ominous. If you want, call yourself Manmadhan and me Rathi!" she smiled as before.
Pazhuvertaraiyar's face was beaming with joy and pride. No matter how ugly a man is, who does not rejoice if he is called 'Cupid' by the woman he loves? However, he spoke as if he did not like vanity:
"Sweetheart! It is very appropriate to call you Rathi. But is it appropriate to call me 'Cupid'? You are saying this out of great love!'
"Oh my God! You are Cupid in my eyes. Beauty is heroism for boys. The world will tell you that there is no brave warrior like you in this South. Next, it is the compassion of the apalis that gives beauty to the manly. I am proof that you have that mercy. You brought this poor orphan girl who did not know her village and tribe and gave her shelter. You showered me with unparalleled love and support. I will not make you wait too long. The end of my vow and fast is near..." She said.
"Sweetheart! Just tell me what you are fasting and what you are fasting! I will finish it as soon as I can!" said the Pazhuvur king.
"The descendants of this Sundara Cholar who thinks that there is no one more than him should not ascend the Thanjai throne. The pride of that proud Kundavai should be suppressed..."
"Nandhini! You can assume that both things have been accomplished. Adithan and Arulmozhivarman do not have titles. All the leaders of this kingdom have agreed that Mathuranthakan should be crowned ..."
"Has 'everybody' agreed? Is it true?" asked Nandhini emphatically.
"Except for two or three, everyone agreed. Kodumbaluran, Malaiamman and Parthipenthiran will never agree with us. I don't care about them..."
"But you have to be careful until it's over, right?"
"There's no doubt about it. I have been doing all the precautions. It was because of the stupidity of others. Even today, such a mistake has occurred. A young man from Kanchi has deceived Kalanthakan and met the emperor and handed over a letter ..."
"Aha! You are constantly praising your brother. Didn't I say he's not smart enough?"
"He's been foolish about this! He says that the young man showed us our palace seal ring!"
"Those who have been deceived will come up with such an excuse! Didn't you try to catch the young man who cheated?"
"What's not to try? The hunt has begun in and out of the fort! They'll catch it anyway. All this will not harm our work. When the emperor passes away, Mathuranthakan will definitely ascend the throne...."
"Oh my God! The time has now come to let you know what my vow is..."
"Sweetheart! That's what I'm asking you to say."
"Mathuranthakan – that silly boy – who grins his teeth if he is a woman – my vow will not be fulfilled if he comes to the throne..."
"What else can be accomplished? Tell me what you want! I'm here to accomplish . . .
"King! When I was a child, a famous astrologer looked at my horoscope. He said that up to the age of eighteen I will undergo many troubles ..."
"What else did he say?"
"After the age of eighteen, the muscles change," he said. He said that he would attain an unparalleled high position..."
"What he said is true! Tell me who that astrologer is! I will perform Kanakabhishekam for him."
"Oh my God!"
"Darling!"
"There's still something the astrologer said. Shall I tell you that?"
"You must tell me! I have to tell you!"
The astrologer said, "The husband who takes me by the hand and marries me will be crowned with jewels and will sit on the throne of a great empire as an emperor in submission to fifty-six kings. Will you fulfill it?"
As soon as these words reached Pazhuvertaraiyar's ears, Nandhini in front of him and the couch on which she was sitting rotated. Lata Mandapam spun. The columns of the hall spun. The dark grove in front swirled. The treetops spun in the moonlight. The stars in the sky spun. The mansions on both sides swirled. The world is spinning!