On the banks of Godavari, there was once a place called Pratishthanam (प्रतिष्ठानम्), which was ruled by King Trivikramasena (त्रिविक्रमसेन). He governed the kingdom with wisdom and made the citizens prosperous and happy. 

 

One day, a Bhikshu named Kshantishila (क्षान्तिशील) came to the king's presence. 

 

A Bhikshu is a wandering mendicant who has the appearance of a Sage. 

 

The Bhikshu placed a fruit in the king's hand, sat down for a few minutes and left without speaking a single word. The next day, the Bhikshu returned. He placed another fruit in the king's hand and left. He repeated this ritual for several weeks. And every day the king, as soon as he received the fruit, gave it to the superintendent of his treasury who was near him. The king never ate the fruit.

 

One day, when the Bhikshu came to the palace, the king was outdoors. The Bhikshu placed a fruit in his hand. But the fruit slipped and fell to the ground. A monkey that was standing nearby snatched the fruit and tore it open. Immediately, a splendid priceless jewel fell from it. The jewel was so radiant that no one could bear to look straight at it. 

 

King Vikrama asked why the Bhikshu had given him such a precious jewel and the Bhikshu replied, "O King! You ask me about one ruby, but I have been giving one such ruby every day for several weeks now."

 

Vikrama asked his treasurer to bring all the fruits he had given him. He ordered that all of them be opened. When they were cut, he was astonished to find a precious jewel in each of them. He turned to the Bhikshu and asked him, "Please tell me why you have been gifting me so generously."

 

The Bhikshu replied, "O King! I wish to perform a Yajna in a cremation ground on the banks of River Godavari and become a master of the eight mystical powers. I want you to spend a night with me so I can achieve my objective. The Yajna is to be conducted on the coming new moon night. I desire your help then."

 

Vikrama agreed to the Bhikshu's request and promised that he will be there on the night designated by the Bhikshu. The Bhikshu was pleased and left the palace. 

 

When the night came, King Vikrama, sword in hand, went to the cremation ground fearlessly. The cremation ground was obscured by a dense and terrible pall of darkness. There were ghastly flames from the burning of the funeral pyres. The king saw bones, skeletons and skulls. In them were present formidable Bhūtas (भूत) and Vetālas (वेताला), joyfully engaged in their horrible activity. The place was alive with the loud yells of jackals.

 

After searching for a bit, the king found the Bhikshu. He was seated. He was playing unsavory music on his droning pipe instrument. Vikrama addressed the Bhikshu, "I am here as requested. Tell me, how can I serve you?"

 

The Bhikshu replied, "Four miles south of here is another cremation ground. In it, you will find a dead man hanging from a Shimshapa (शिंशपा) tree. Go bring him to me."

 

Vikrama immediately left on the journey. It was dark and gloomy. It was raining. There were tigers. Wild elephants. Serpents. The king marched on, warding away the dangerous animals of the forest. When he reached the cremation ground, he heard strange noises. There, at a distance, he saw the Shimshapa tree. It was scorched with the smoke of funeral pyres. A dead body was hanging from it by a rope. 

 

Vikrama approached the tree. He climbed it, sword in hand, and cut the rope. The body fell down. As it fell, it shouted, "kill him! Kill him!" When he heard the voice, Vikrama was convinced that it was a Vetala – a spirit that had possessed the corpse. He climbed down from the tree and asked the Vetala who it was. The Vetala laughed wickedly and immediately rose off the ground and began to hang from the tree again. 

 

Vikrama was astonished. But he was not scared. He climbed the tree again, jumped on the Vetala and pushed it down to the ground. He wrestled with it and throwing it on his back, he started walking towards the Bhikshu. 

 

The Vetala sat himself on Vikrama's back and started speaking to the king, "Who are you and what do you want with me?" The king explained his interaction with the Bhikshu and his promise to him. The Vetala warned the king, "O King! On the way, you should not speak a single word. If you do, I shall at once go back to the burning ground. If you obey my orders, I shall go with you."

 

The king agreed. And the journey continued. 

 

After the king walked a few steps, the Vetala spoke, "The wise pass their journey engaged in something. Fools spend it in slumber. Therefore, to keep ourselves engaged in this journey, I will tell you a story. Listen to it."

 

And the Vetala told the first story to King Trivikramasena.

 

In certain versions of this story, a Deva forewarns King Trivikramasena about a certain Bhikshu who would try to trick him and kill him. Knowing this, Vikrama proceeds to honor his word to the Bhikshu. This act shows us that Vikrama was a brave king who also wanted to keep his promise despite being warned about impending dangers.