Summary
Jagan returns home and barricades himself in his room, making it impossible for people to enter his space. He reflects on his extended family and the fact that no one is still in contact with him. Shortly after this, he runs into Grace and Mali in the street. Mali stops his car and offers to give him a ride somewhere. Jagan says he is fine. Mali asks what he has been doing to make so much noise lately. Jagan cryptically answers that he has been trying to "clean [his] surroundings."
He sees Mali again later and asks about Grace. Mali responds harshly, asking why that concerns him. They talk in the garden and Mali tells him Grace has gone to stay with friends for a few days. Mali grows indignant about these questions. Jagan tells him he must get married soon. Mali screams at him for listening to "gossip." Jagan says there is a small temple close by where they can get married. Mali denies Grace's claim and says that she is unwell and needs a psychiatrist. Mali turns and leaves. Jagan chats briefly with a neighbor and wonders who is telling the truth, Mali or Grace.
Jagan grows anxious again. He visits the Lawley statue and reflects on a happier time in the past. He remembers when he first met his wife, Ambika. He recalls traveling to meet her family for the first time. He is nervous and does his best to act properly. The two families talk and Jagan notices that Ambika is very beautiful. He does not look at her for the duration of their visit, but shoots her a single glance before they leave. On the train ride home his family discusses the visit and he becomes concerned he jeopardized things in some way.
When Jagan arrives home, he learns that the visit was deemed a success and that he and Ambika will be getting married. Everyone is ecstatic in the house. Many letters are exchanged between the two families in preparation for the wedding. Later there is a feast. A massive crowd comes to the wedding. The commotion of the wedding is overwhelming and although it goes smoothly, Jagan wishes it could have been smaller.
After the wedding, Jagan is given space in his parent's home and begins to spend all of his time with Ambika. He fails several of his examinations and misses a great deal of class. His parents are angered by this development and become critical of Ambika. Ambika is somewhat embarrassed by this situation and is worried about Jagan's parents' complaints about her. Ten years pass and Jagan still has not passed his exams or had a child, to the growing frustration of his family. He begins to feel insecure, as they repeatedly try to conceive but have no success.
At his father's suggestion, Jagan visits a temple on Badri Hill to pray to a fertility goddess. Shortly after this visit Mali is born and the family is overwhelmingly happy. Jagan and Ambika receive a number of gifts. Jagan recalls Ambika's happy face at Mali's birth celebration. She feels thrilled to have added one more grandchild to the group picture on the wall in Jagan's family home.
Jagan falls asleep beside the statue. He wakes up and returns home. Later that day, he runs into his cousin who informs him there has been a kind of emergency. He tells Jagan that Mali has been caught with alcohol and is currently under arrest. They discuss the conditions of the jail as well as Mali's odds of winning a case against the police department. Jagan tells his cousin that some time in jail might do Mali good and says he will not become involved in the matter. He says he wishes only to become the bearded man's patron. He leaves his business to his cousin and says that if Grace needs a return ticket home, he is happy to pay for it, as she is a good person.
Analysis
The ending of the book marks the conclusion of Jagan's character arc, as he engages in a final confrontation with Mali. Fresh off of his spiritual experience with the bearded man, he has an entirely new perspective on the world around him and begins to clear away the things that he has deemed unnecessary. Disturbed by Mali's callous treatment of Grace and absurd demands for money, Jagan is finally able to take a definitive stand against him, and in doing so, marks a transition in their relationship.
The climax of the novel occurs in the eleventh chapter, when Jagan speaks to Mali about his marriage to Grace. He asks where Grace is and Mali responds to him sharply. Calmly, Jagan informs Mali that he knows they are not married and that they can get married at a temple close to their home. This sends Mali into rage. Mali responds by saying Grace is mentally ill and then storming off. Jagan's collected demeanor shows how the power dynamic has shifted between them. Where in past conversations, Mali has gotten exactly what he wanted because Jagan was too nervous to stand up to him, Jagan now has the ability to recognize how little power Mali has and how clouded his judgment has become from his endless pursuit of unearned riches. In refusing to properly marry Grace, Mali also reveals his inability to heed the wishes of others, a flaw which will come back to hurt him at the novel's conclusion.
The twelfth chapter is mostly spent recalling the courtship and marriage between Jagan and his wife, Ambika. He remembers the electricity of their first meeting as well as the bliss of their early days of marriage. His memory concludes with her beaming face at the celebration of Mali's birth. He is happy throughout their marriage and cherishes their time together. Jagan's joyful recollection Ambika shows a marked contrast with the cold cruelty Mali displays towards Grace. Unlike Mali, Jagan wants to spend all of his time with his wife to the slightly humorous detriment of his studies. Here, Narayan seems to suggest that what Mali (and others) have been referring to as generational differences have merely been excuses to cover up unkindness. Mali does spend time away from Grace because they are a more modern couple, he does so because he has grown tired of her.
At the end of the novel, the theme of money reappears. Jagan decides to cut Mali off. His cousin is shocked by this response. In this way, the book suggests that Jagan has let go of a desire for material wealth, as he seems to recognize it has done more harm than good in his life. He knows that the best thing he can do for Mali is let him suffer the consequences of his actions. Similarly, his business has only allowed him to enable this financial support as he profits off other people in the town who have less than he does. His choice to retreat into a life of solitude shows that he now desires to live simply and cause no harm.
Jagan's final line in the novel is his comment about giving Grace the money for the plane ticket. Besides the patronage he intends to give the bearded man, she is the only person he offers to give money to directly. This brief quote suggests that he has not only grown very fond of her, but recognizes that she is a kind and caring person, who values the happiness of the people around her. His decision to help her reflects Jagan's own generosity but is also, like many of Jagan's other choices, deeply connected to the loss of his own wife: Jagan feels a spiritual connection to Grace that mirrors his relationship with Ambika, and in many ways his support of Grace becomes his way of keeping Ambika's memory alive.
