Soon the dragon king again emerged from the Ganges and went up to the younger sage. And the sage said to him, ‘Sir, give me the gem. I want the gem.’ The dragon thought, ‘The monk is asking for the gem; he wants the gem,’ and he left in a hurry. Once more the dragon king emerged from the Ganges and approached the younger sage. The sage saw him coming and said to him, ‘Sir, give me the gem. I want the gem.’ When the dragon heard him, he turned around right there. Yet again the dragon king emerged from the Ganges. The younger sage saw him emerging and said to him, ‘Sir, give me the gem. I want the gem.’ The dragon king then spoke these verses to the sage: ‘My food and drink are abundant and sublime, And they appear because of this gem. I won’t give it to you—you ask too much—Nor will I return to your hermitage.