Devayani, the daughter of Sukracharya, and the asura princess, Sarmishta, were bathing in a pool one day. Their clothes lay in a hoop by the pool and when they got out of the pool and picked out their clothes, some of the clothes got mixed.

Seeing the king's daughter dressed in her clothes, Devayani said in jest, ``how inappropriate that a disciple's daughter wears the clothes of the master's daughter.'' At this reference to her father, the king, as the disciple of Sukracharya, his advisor, the princess got angry.

Sarmishta was angry. ``Is your father not a beggar who lives on my father's generosity?,'' she asked, ``Have you forgotten that I am of a royal race, a race that gives while you are of a Brahmin race, a race that begs?''

Things came to a head and Sarmishta pushed Devayani into a well and went away. It became dark and Devayani was still stuck in the well. At that time, Yayati, the king of the Bharata race, chanced by and stopped at the well to drink some water. He saw the beautiful young maiden lying in the well and helped her out.

Devayani looked at the handsome Yayati (remember, the whole Mahabharata is related to King Janamejaya who was a descendant of the Bharatas) and was filled with love. ``You lifted me holding my right hand,'' she said to him, ``by all tradition, you should marry me.''

Perplexed by the request, Yayati asked her who she was and when she told him, said, ``but that can not be for I am a warrior, a Kshatriya, while you are born of a Brahmana. The sastras say that can not be.'' Glad to have gotten out of the predicament, Yayati sped away. Devayani did not want to return to the capital of the asuras. She sent for her father and told him what had happened by the poolside.

``Am I the daughter of a beggar?,'' she asked her father. Her father replied that she was the daughter of one who was revered through out the world. ``No worthy man extols himself,'' he told his daughter, ``be patient and let's go home.'' Devayani would not go back with her father. ``I want that uppity princess to apologize to me,'' she said stubbornly.
Sukracharya was not pleased with his daughter's vengefulness. ``He is the true charioteer who controls his horse, not the one who merely holds the reins but lets his horses wander,'' the wise Brahmana told his daughter.
Devayani refused to listen to all reason and finally, Sukracharya went to the asura king and said to him, ``Majesty, you tried to kill Kacha, a brahmana who was under my care  I bore it. My daughter who values her honor was insulted by your daughter. I will bear it no longer. I am leaving your kingdom.''

At this, the asura king was worried. He ran to Devayani who was still sitting outside the city gates and fell at her feet, asking her forgiveness so that Sukracharya would stay and teach the asuras. Devayani insisted that the only way she would agree to reenter the city was if the asura princess Sarmishta would become her maid. The king sent his daughter Sarmishta to be Devayani's servant and Devayani was pacified.

One day, Devayani spied Yayati again. She reminded him that he had clasped her right hand when he helped her out of the well. This time, Yayati agreed to speak with Sukracharya who agreed that although the sastras prohibited a warrior from taking a Brahmin girl as his wife, there were exceptional circumstances. He didn't explain what the exceptional circumstances were but Yayati had to marry Devayani.

Yayati and Devayani were married and they spent their years happily. Sarmishta, who was born an asura princess, remained Devayani's maid. Out of bitter hatred for Devayani who had robbed her of her royal rights, she started to meet Yayati in secret. When Devayani found out, she went to her father Sukracharya and told him that her husband was cheating on her.

Sukracharya cursed that Yayati would become an old man, devoid of all sexual pleasure. Yayati aged immediately and was struck by the power of a Brahmana. He begged for forgiveness but Sukracharya could not void his curse. Remembering that Yayati had saved his daughter's life once, Sukracharya granted that if Yayati could find some one to take on his old age, he could give it away.