The animal to be sacrificed at the sacrificial performance of King Ambarīsa having been stolen away by Indra appearing in disguise, the arch-priest enjoined the king to secure a human beast as a substitute. Wandering in search of such a beast, Ambarīsa saw the sage Rcīka at Bhrgutunga and requested him to hand over his juvenile son in exchange for a hundred thousand cows. On the parents declining to part with their eldest and youngest sons, the middle one, Śunahśepa by name, voluntarily offered himself for being sold and the king returned with him to his capital.