chapter 3
Kaminski-pustakāpaṇe
Kaminski’s
Book Shop
pustakāpaṇam prati mārge
gacchan ,
Walking on
the street toward the bookshop,
saḥ paśyati yat rathyaḥ avistṛtataraḥ
kuṭilaḥ bhavati,
he
notices that the street is becoming a
narrow winding path ,
upari
ca gacchan.
tadanantaraṃ
rising in
elevation. After some time,
saḥ purātanam śilāmayam
gṛham āgacchati,
he arrives at an old
stone building
yat gireḥ pārśve uttiṣṭhati.
emerging from the side of a
hill.
kīdṛśam astītītaḥ vaktum na śakyate,
It is not
clear how large the building is,
kā dvāḥ pustakāpaṇe
nayati iti vaktum api
na śakyate.
nor which door will lead to the bookshop.
gṛha-samīpam āgamya
As he
comes closer to the building,
saḥ paśyati yat dvārasya upari pustakam iti
he notices a book
hanging over one of the doors.
laghu kāṣṭha-kartana-citram dṛśyate /
a small wooden carving is-seen
etasya kartanasya varṇaḥ bhavati, yathā gṛhasya śilāyāḥ.
The carving
is almost the same color as the surrounding stone.
dvāram laghu asti, tasya
madhye laghu phalakam bhavati.
The door
itself is small, and with a small panel
near the center.
etad dvāram anyeṣu dvāreṣu asadṛśam
asti,
this
door is
unlike the other doors , unlike
is
yataḥ tasya upari saṃkhyā
nāsti.
as its upper numbere isn’t .
tasya varṇaḥ api purāṇasya kāṣṭhasya
varṇaḥ iti dṛśyate.
And its
color of weathered wood color . is-seen
mahaddvāram
vāmataḥ pūrvaṃ
haritavarṇena varṇitam
āsīt.
A large
door to the left previously painted
with-green was.
adhunā eva tad vivṛtam,
It is now
open,
katipaye narāḥ ca ekaikam utpīṭhikāyām upaviśantaḥ
cāyam pibanti.
and
several men are sitting at each table
drinking tea.
katipayāsām bhāṣāṇām nādaḥ śrūyate
.
of several
languages sound is-heard
.
anyat dvāram dakṣiṇam nayati.
Another door
leads right.
tad
dhūmram kṛṣṇam
ca bhavati tathā hi tat saṃvṛtam.
It is gray and black, and it is closed.
lohā-śilā-dhvaniḥ śrūyate bāhyataḥ,
The sounds of metal
to stone is-heard in the background,
kintu kāryakaraḥ na dṛśyate.
but the worker
is-not-seen .
vāyuḥ
śītalaḥ asti,
kāṣṭhasya śītala-śilāyāh
ca gandham ānayati.
The air is cool, and carries the scent of aromatic
wood and cold stone.
saḥ pustakāpaṇasya dvāram
tāḍayati.
He knocks
the bookshop’s door. c10
katipaya-nimiṣānantam saḥ punaḥ tāḍayati.
a few minutes
later he knocks
again.
dvārasya riṅkhabhāgaḥ vivṛnoti dve netre ca īkṣete tam prati.
A sliding panel in the door opens and two eyes are looking at him. dual
netre harite staḥ,
nāryāḥ ca bhavataḥ.
riṅkhabhāgaḥ saṃvṛnoti .
The 2eyes are green, and are those
of a woman. The panel closes.
dvāram vivṛṇoti .
The door opens.
saḥ unnata-chadaṃ caturaśra-prakoṣṭhaṃ
praviśati.
He enters a square room with high ceiling.
utpīṭhikā āsandaḥ
ca pṛṣṭhataḥ tiṣṭhataḥ.
A table and
chair are at the back of the room.
ind dual
katipayāni pustakāni utpīṭikāyām
santi.
Several large
books are on the table.
pustakāni ekaikena vargena bhitti-trayam bhūtalataḥ
chadaparyantam kṛṇvanti.
Books line each of the three interior walls, from
floor to ceiling.
varga group
class bhutalata ground of floor chada ceiling
ekaika-bhitteḥ
madhye dvāram iva kṛtam saṃdhāyam upari sthāpitvā.
Each of these walls has a doorway framed by shelving. placed
together
upakakṣa-dvayam
atidīpitam vivṛtam
api anyatprakoṣṭhān
prati.
Two of the corridors are brightly lit and open to other rooms.
tṛtīyas tu na atidīpitaḥ,
The third one is dimly lit, ati extremely
very
kintu tasya katipayāni saṃvṛtāni dvārāṇi
santi
yāni śubhravarṇa-varṇitāni dṛśyante,
but
has several closed doors which appear to be brightly colored
aśubhra-dīpane api.
even in the low light.
loha-sopānam
dūrāt kimcit eva dṛśyate.
A metal staircase is barely visible in the
distance.
eṣaḥ
upakakṣaḥ purāṇaḥ
na dṛśyate.
This corridor does not appear to be old.
guru-loha-dvārasya prāntam prapaśyati,
He notices the edge of a heavy metal door,
prāyeṇa
picu-tiraskariṇyā saṃvṛtam.
mostly covered by a cotton curtain.
ind picu cotton
vāmanapuruṣaḥ vakti: ‘ tvam kimcid cāyam icchethās ?’ iti.
a
smallish man says. ‘ would you
like some tea. ‘ mid.
Jack
na hi dhanyavādaḥ, tvam Kaminski asi ?
no thanks ,
are you Kaminski
?
Dick
na hi, tu ahaṃ
svāmī, mama nāma Dick Donavan, iti
no,
but i am
the owner , my
name is Dick
Donavan
J mama nāma
Jack Kaine aham atra
sammilitum rebekām asmi
my name
is Jack Kaine,
i am here to-meet
Rebecca
D vayam tvām pratīkṣāmahe
we
have been expecting
you, īkṣ c1
praviśa pṛṣṭha-prakoṣṭham.
come
to the back
room
tām upahvayāni, tadanantaram saḥ vadati ‘sā āgacchati’ iti
‘ i-shall-call her ‘
a moment later
he says ‘
she is on
her way ‘
kṣaṇa
moment
J tvam jānīse Dick ,
tvam na ikṣasi pustakavikrīḥ
yathā .
you
know Dick, you do
not look
like a book
dealer
D eṣaḥ pustakāpaṇaḥ yuddha-sīmā
asti,
this book
shop is a
front,
aham CIA saha kāryam kṛṇomi iti.
i am
with the CIA
J
kathaṃ CIA smithsonian-viśvavidyālayena
sammilitum aśakat ?
how
did the CIA
get involved with
the Smithsonian Institute ?
D saṃbhāvyam rebekāyāḥ washington-nagare saṃparkaḥ bhavati,
apparently
Rebecca has connections
in Washington,
vayaṃ
apṛchma
dātum
tasyai sahāyam
we were
asked to help
her
tibet-deśataḥ
pustakāni avaidhena ānītum iti’
smuggle manuscripts
out of Tibet
with-unsanction
J
tibet, na kaścana kimcid eva avadat Tibet adhikṛtya.
Tibet, no body
said anything about Tibet vac c2
D vipralapa rebekāyai, sā eva tava īśvarī,
na tu
aham’ iti
Complain
to Rebecca, she’s
your boss, not i.
aham bhavāmi atra
dātum tvām saṃparkam, sūcanām saṃnāham
ca
i’m to
give you contacts ,
intel and equipment.
tvam icchasi āvaśyakaḥ
didyuḥ
anyāni ca vastūni na ?
you
want necessary weapons
and other things . no ?
J aham beretta-dvayam ekam ca walther ppk ichāmi .
i want 2
Berettas and one
Walther PPK
D
cintā māstu, atra rebekā āgacchati.
no
problem, here comes
Rebecca.
dina-trayaṃ didyu-viṣaye dehi mā
give
me 3 days
for the guns
sā anyaiḥ
vastubhis sahāyam dadyāt tā.
she
should-give you help
with the rest
of the stuff
namaste rebeke, ayaṃ jack kaine.
Hello Rebecca ,
this is Jack
Kaine. ‘
R saṃmilitum tvām anugṛhītāsmi. kathaṃ tvam asi ?
Nice to
meet you . How are
you doing ?
J aham samyak asmi , vayam
Tibet gacchāmaḥ ?
i am
doing well we are going
to Tibet ?
R
ām , cinajanāḥ purātana-pustakāni dahanti,
the
Chinese are burning
ancient manuscripts
vayaṃ ca yathaśakti tartum icchāmaḥ.
and
we want to-save
as many of
them as possible.
tarhi vayam tvām tatra
preṣitum
icchāmaḥ
tāni svīkartum iti.
So
we are going
to-send you in
there to-retrieve them . ‘
pra iṣ c1
seek send c6 want
J
tādṛśena dhanena, yat dāyi me,
by the
amount of money
that was-given to-me
ao. pass.
ohiṣīya etad laghu na syāt iti.
i should
have guessed it
may not be
easy
uh is ao. op. mid.
c1 remove
R atra samasyā
nāsti, athavā asti kim ?
there is
not a problem
here , or
is there ?
f
J na hi
samasyā nāsti eva.
no
problem here
f
R sādhu dick, yadi yuvām narau samāpāthe
,
well
Dick, if you2
guys have finished , perf. du2.
mid.
tarhi tasya
gṛham tasmai darśayāni.
i shall
show to-him his
apartment
D samāpivahe eva, jack
ca sāvadhānam bhava
we2
have finished , and
Jack be carful
āp perf. 2du.
mid.
yataḥ cinajanebhyaḥ
spaḍbhyaḥ pratīkṣa
look
out for Chinese
spies, spaś
te sarvatra bhavanti
they
are everywhere .
śraddhām na
kuru eva tām
madhum vastum
do
not trust that sweet
thing
tvam adya amethas
you
today met mith c1
J dina-traya-paryantam melāva
we2-will-meet in
3 days until
-------
pustakāpaṇa-bahirgamanam
Leaving the
book shop
kukkuṭigaṇena tau saṃ-amilatām mārgamadhye,
they2 ran
into a group of Hens
in the middle
of the road
mil c6 3du. imperf.
J phiṭ, ete
kukkuṭyaḥ kasmātcid abhītāḥ santi.
Damn, these Hens
do not seem afraid
of anything
R sarvatra tvam tān paśyāsi
you
will see them
everywhere,
tatra tava gṛham asti.
your
apartment is there .
tvam sa rakta-bhittim paśyasi vā ?
do
you see that
red fence ?
J
ām, tatra samīpam sa unnata-vṛkṣam
yes,
there by that
tall tree
R tatra tava aśvaḥ
veśaraḥ ca
sthiyete.
that
is where your
horse and mule
are-being-kept sthā pass. du.3
te tau rakṣānti ,
they
will take care
of them
atra tava gṛham asti.
here
is your apartment.
tvam anugṛhītaḥ bhavisyasi iti manye .
i think
you will be
pleased.
upari asti, navama-saṃkhyā.
It
is the top floor ,
number 9.
atra tava kuńcikā, paryāptaṃ dhanaṃ ca asti .
Here
is your key and
a good amount
of money
śvaḥ madhyandine milisyāmas Kaminski-sthāne.
we
will meet at
noon tomorrow at Kaminski’s.
kimcit deśīya-vastrāṇi vayam dai tvām ichāmaḥ
.
We
want to-give you
some local clothes
susāyam.
good
evening.
bodha , cinajanāḥ
jānānti vayam atra
santi iti.
and be aware
that the Chinese
know we are here. ‘
--
prakoṣṭhaṃ praviśya pańcāśat-vayaskāṃ
nārīṃ milati.
Entering the
apartment he meets
a woman around
50 years old.
sā atīva buddhimatī.
bright and
attentive.
tasyāḥ
mukhe nepala-samskritiḥ
itihāsaḥ ca dṛśyete.
with
Nepalese culture and
history etched in
her pleasant face.
tasmai sā rocate.
He
likes her.
Jack tvam ca kā
asti ?
and
you are ?
Binā aham bīnā, tava sevikā.
i am
Binā
your servant,
tava gṛhasya adhastāt prakoṣthe nivasāmi,
i live
in a room
underneath your apartment
tvām abhitas paśyam vā ?
shall I
show you around
?
inj.
J
tathā , kati rūpyakāṇi rebekā dadāti te ?
So,
how much is
Rebecca paying you ?
B
sā mām pańca-viṃśatiḥ rūpyakāṇi pratimāsam dadāti .
She
gives me 25 rupees a
month
J
kathaya me, bīne, kim tvam
cina-rāṣṭram manyase ?
Tell
me Binā, what
do you think
of the Chinese
government ?
B atīva duṣṭāḥ santi.
Pig
scum
J uttamam nūnam
very good , now
tvam pratimāsaṃ pańcaśataṃ rūpyakāṇi
prāpe
ichasi
?
would
you like to-make
500 rupees a
month ?
dat. inf.
B tat ichāmi eva , manye .
i think
that i would
like that
J etad kimcid
bhayaṃkaram bhavati.
It is
a little dangerous.
aham Tibet-deśāt purānā-pūstakāni
āniye arhāmi atra.
i am
involved with smuggling
manuscripts out of Tibet
dat. inf.
te cina-janāḥ mama bhāsadam anugacchān .
The
Chinese will be
after my ass.
yadi kaścid gūhyena mām anugacchet,
i am
going to need
someone to discreetly
follow me
teṣām janānām
citram prāpnuyāt, ye mām
pratīkṣante.
and
photograph people who
are watching me.
tvam etat
kāryam kire icchasi
?
to-do you
want the job ? ‘
B ām, niścitam.
‘
most definitely yes ‘
J
sādhu, tvam saṃyujyase .
‘ OK
you are hired.
atra sapta-śataṃ
rūpyakāṇi asti .
here is 700
rupees.
adhastāt goṣṭham prati gaccha ,
Go
down to the
stables,
teṣām dūravāṇi-saṃkhyām prāpnuhi ,
get
their phone number
mama aśvaṃ
veśaraṃ ca parīkṣasva
and
check on my
horse and mule.
kimcid ca yavasurām ānaya ,
and
bring back some
beer
sutamam tvam prāpe śakyase.
the
best you can
to-find.
B
ām, svāmin !
OK
boss