After drinking some wine, and taking Rudradhir’s hand into his, Indradeep said, ‘My friend, a man must submit to the will of the gods. The gods act according to their own purposes, which the mind of man cannot comprehend. A Brahmin has been banished, while a Sudra has been honoured—this in itself will prove to be the instrument of emancipation of Madra.’ Taking another bowl of wine he went on, ‘The Brahmin commander, Pushya Mitra, has not been able to grasp the significance of the Acharya’s message. The day you come back, holding aloft the banner of the caste system, riding at the head of the Magadh army, the destroyer of the low-born, that very day, all the conceited, low-born Sudras of Madra shall atone for their sins by serving as the animals of sacrifice.’ Raising the bowl of wine above his head, he continued, ‘I swear by my noble birth, that for the insult suffered by my friend, I shall not rest content till I have plunged into flames the entire family of Prestha. May the gods bear witness to my vow.’ At this, his listeners also raised their wine bowls and drank, to show their participation in his vow.

Sakrid sidled up to Rudradhir, almost touching his shoulder, and said in a conspiratorial whisper, ‘Friends, we lost one good chance by waiting for Pushya Mitra. Are we going to waste all our opportunities by hanging on like this? I am of the opinion that instead of going to Magadh, Rudradhir should proceed to Darva. He should try to force an alliance with Kendras. Kendras wants to extend the bounds of his empire. By coming to an understanding with him, we can divide the kingdom in half, and set up in the other half the rule of the Paurav dynasty, the protector of the caste system. In the course of time we can take over the rest of the kingdom also. The great sage Chanakya was right when he said, “A wise man will give up half for fear of losing the whole and preserve the rest.”’

‘What did you say?’ asked Rudradhir, coming back to himself. ‘Will the conquering Kendras seek our assistance to administer his empire? Once he captures Madra, he will destroy, body and soul, every possibility of the establishment of an independent state, either of the Paurav dynasty or of the twice-born Brahmins.’

‘What Rudradhir says is quite correct,’ said Vinay Sharma, putting down his empty wine bowl. ‘If the Greek Kendras has any sympathy, it will be for the tonsured Buddhists. They will honour the low-born Kendras with the title of the “Righteous King” as they did Milinda, and he in turn will grant these wretches his protection and support. Once again the religion of holy sacrifice and of the caste system will stand to lose. It goes without saying that the Greeks will oppose the caste system. Our only hope lies in Pushya Mitra.’

‘We have lost a golden opportunity because of the policy of the elders,’ said Rudradhir, trying to shake off his depression. ‘We showed weakness before Kendras; we weakened the Republic. Because of Sarvarth’s policy of capturing state power, we have entirely lost the confidence and respect of the people. If we had removed the aged President by force, at the right moment, and had taken over the control of the army …’ Finding everyone silent, he changed the subject, by saying, ‘But let that be. I think the venerable Vishnu Sharma is right. It is better that I reach the city gate before sunrise, rather than expose myself in daylight to the jeers of the masses. The longer I delay, the more painful will be my departure, since the news will have spread. If I continue to live and breathe, after putting up with that insult hurled at my caste, my family and myself, it is with the hope that one day I may be able to take revenge.’ He bowed his head.