तुष्टेन येन देहार्धमप्युमायै समर्पितम्।
स वो ददात्वभिमतं वरदः पार्वतीपतिः॥May Śiva, who has given half his body to Umā being pleased with her, grant your wishes.
निशि विघ्नजितो वोऽव्यात् ताण्डवोद्दण्डितः करः।
शोणश्चन्द्रातपत्रस्य तन्वन्विद्रुमदण्डताम्॥
स वो विघ्नेश्वरः पायात् नमितोन्नमितेव यम्।
अनुनृत्यति नृत्यन्तं सन्ध्यासु भुवनावली॥[May Vighneśvara, whose evening dance is imitated by the entire world by movements of getting up and bowing down, protect us!]
गौरीप्रसाधनालग्नचरणालक्तकश्रियः।
सखी सखाय भूयाद्वः शम्भोर्भालेक्षणप्रभा॥
There is a uniqueness in hāsya as opposed to the other rasas. It is enjoyed by one and all. This rasa has the power of entertaining everyone from small kids to old people. Irrespective of their vocation, whether one is a beggar, a servant, an officer, a merchant, a householder or a mendicant, everyone can enjoy it. This is not the case of the other rasas. The śṛṅgāra cannot be understood by small kids while the elderly might be disinterested. It is forbidden for the sannyāsīs.
Deva! Kaṇva narrated this story and said, “Whoever would face adversities with courage will get all the fruits later, not the people who would run away in front of calamities; so, cast away your worries; Mṛgāṅkadatta will be reunited with Śaśāṅkavatī and he will rule the earth for a long time.” We found courage from his wise counsel and set out to find you.
Vālmīki also finds mention in the Śrīman-mahābhāratam too. In the sabhā-parva (7.19, *7.14 in critical text) Vālmīki’s presence in the court of Indra is mentioned by devarṣi Nārada. When bhagavān Śrī-kṛṣṇa goes to the court of Dhṛtarāṣṭra as the messenger, Vālmīki along with other maharṣis wish him success in the udyoga-parva (82.27, *81.27 in critical text). Later in droṇa-parva we see when Bhūriśravas has renounced the war and is in the state of dhyāna, Sātyaki beheads him.
The minister Vikramakesarin finished narrating the story and said, “O king! The elderly brāhmaṇa narrated these stories and said, ‘Trivikramasena got everything he desired by the grace of the vetāla. You also learn this mantra to bring a vetāla under your control; you’ll find your king Mṛgāṅkadatta.
कूजन्तं राम रामेति मधुरं मधुराक्षरम् ।
आरुह्य कविता-शाखां वन्दे वाल्मीकि-कोकिलम् ॥
[Continuously singing the sweet syllables rāma, perched upon the branch - poetry, is the cuckoo - Vālmīki, we bow down to him]
Story 24
31. The king Trivikramasena carried he corpse for the twenty-fourth time on his shoulders and left. The vetāla started narrating another story –
28. Trivikramasena, for the twenty-first time, hauled the corpse on his shoulder and head out. The vetāla began narrating yet another story:
26. Trivikramasena, for the nineteenth time, picked up the corpse and heaved it onto his shoulder before setting out. The vetāla began narrating another tale: