these were inhabited by Chakoras, and wood-peckers and chatakas, and
various other birds, singing in sweet tones pleasing to the ear. And
they saw lakes beautiful on all sides with aquatic birds, and covered
all around with kumudas, and pundarikas, and kokanadas, and utpalas, and
kalharas, and kamalas and thronged on all sides with drakes and ruddy
geese, and ospreys, and gulls and karandavas, and plavas, and swans, and
cranes, and shags, and other aquatic birds. And those foremost of men
saw those lotus-lakes beautified with assemblages of lotuses, and
ringing with the sweet hum of bees, glad, and drowsy on account of
having drunk the intoxicating honey of lotuses, and reddened with the
farina falling from the lotus cups. And in the groves they beheld with
their hens peacocks maddened with desire caused by the notes of
cloud-trumpets; and those woods-loving glad peacocks drowsy with desire,
were dancing, spreading in dalliance their gorgeous tails, and were
crying in melodious notes. And some of the peacocks were sporting with
their mates on kutaja trees covered with creepers. And some sat on the
boughs of the kutajas, spreading their gorgeous tails, and looking like
crowns worn by the trees. And in the glades they beheld the graceful
sindhuvaras like unto the darts of Cupid. And on the summits of the
mountain, they saw blooming karnikaras bearing blossoms of a golden hue,
appearing like ear-rings of excellent make. And in the forest they saw
blossoming kuruvakas, like unto the shafts of Cupid, which smiteth one
with desire and maketh him uneasy. And they saw tilakas appearing like
unto beauty-spots painted on the forehead of the forest. And they saw
mango trees graced with blossoms hummed over by black bees, and serving
the purpose of Cupid's shafts. And on the slopes of the mountain there
were diverse blossoming trees, looking lovely, some bearing flowers of a
golden hue, and some, of the hue of the forest-conflagration, and some,
red and some sable, and some green like unto lapises. And besides these,
there were ranges of salas and tamalas and patalas and vakula trees,