'She is my wife, and therefore your superior,' said
Sunda. 'She is my wife, and therefore your sister-in-law', replied
Upasunda. And they said unto each other, 'She is mine not yours.' And soon
they were under the influence of rage. Maddened by the beauty of the
damsel, they soon forgot their love and affection for each other. Both of
them, deprived of reason by passion, then took up their fierce maces. Each
repeating, 'I was the first, I was the first,' (in taking her hand) struck
the other. And the fierce Asuras, struck by each other with the mace, fell
down upon the ground, their bodies bathed in blood, like two suns
dislodged from the firmament. And beholding this, the women that had come
there, and the other Asuras there present, all fled away trembling in
grief and fear, and took refuge in the nether regions. The Grandsire
himself of pure soul, then came there, accompanied by the celestials, and
the great Rishis. And the illustrious Grandsire applauded Tilottama and
expressed his wish of granting her a boon. The Supreme Deity, before
Tilottama spoke, desirous of granting her a boon, cheerfully said, 'O
beautiful damsel, thou shalt roam in the region of the Adityas. Thy
splendour shall be so great that nobody will ever be able to look at thee
for any length of time!' The Grandsire of all creatures, granting this
boon unto her, establishing the three worlds in Indra as before, returned
to his own region.
"Narada continued, 'It was thus that Asuras, ever united and inspired by
the same purpose slew each other in wrath for the sake of Tilottama.
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