Sugandhi Alias Andal Devanayaki

by T. D. Ramakrishnan

  ‘Akka, can you sit in this manner in my workroom?’

  ‘Not like this. I will tie my hair properly and wear my jewellery.’

  ‘Don’t wear too much. My Gnana Saraswathi is sensual.’

  ‘I understand.’

  Desikan gives a detailed explanation about why, in this sculpture, Gnana Saraswathi is portrayed in a sensual form. It is because this is the purest and most beautiful form of the Goddess. Knowledge in human beings works on three levels. The first level is that of basic information, which many mistake for knowledge. The second level is when information is processed to become knowledge. It is a consciousness about everything in this universe, which helps the evolution of mankind. But true knowledge is neither of these. It is the ability to use all of this information to make life more enjoyable. The limitless possibilities that knowledge offers is the ultimate aim of those who seek it. Man always hunts for pleasure. And lust is the greatest way to pleasure. All seekers of knowledge try to make sex more enjoyable. That is why Gnana Saraswathi is depicted as sensual.

  After breakfast, Devanayaki arrived as promised. The only symbol of royalty she wore was the sacred thread that dangled beneath her navel. A raised platform was arranged for her near the idol. She sat on it in padmasana. Rajendra’s glances and chisel moved in tandem. After completing the work, they discussed politics and administration. Rajendra clarified his doubts. But on the seventh day, he asked a difficult question.

  ‘Is it right for a king to fulfil all his desires?’

  In reply, she chanted a verse from the Mahabharata:

  Sarvam balavatham prythyam

  Sarvam balavatham ruche

  Sarvam balavatham dharma

  Sarvam balavatham swakam

  ‘Vyasa says this to Kunti to comfort her. That is how he justifies the Sun God impregnating Kunti against her wishes. A strong man has an appetite for everything, has a taste for everything. Everything he does is dharma. Everything in this world belongs to him. Since you are a strong prince, it has been said that you have the right to possess everything you desire.’

  ‘How did you decide that I was strong without experiencing my strength?’

  ‘It is not just physical strength. It is connected to power. When I am encircled by your arms, it is as if I am within the Chola empire. I will not feel that way in anyone else’s arms.’

  ‘What is the might of a king?’

  ‘That is not a question which can be answered in one sentence. There are hundreds of possible answers, like kingdom, wealth, military … all these answers are correct. But they are not complete. The correct answer is that knowledge is the greatest strength of a king.’

  The prince did not ask any further questions. He touched her feet respectfully. From that day onwards, he addressed Devanayaki as Gnana Saraswathi.

  The idol was completed in less than a week. It was installed on the Thiruvathira of Margazhi, which was the emperor’s birthday. It was followed by Devanayaki’s dance recital. But, remembering Kuveni, she burst into tears at the end of the dance. That night, Devanayaki asked Rajendra for two things. She wanted another child to fill the void Kuveni’s death had left, and she also desired Mahinda’s death. The prince promised to grant both her requests. But, too impatient to wait, Devanayaki set forth on her Arab steed on the eighth day, accompanied by seven of her most trusted spies.

  It is said that the news of Rajaraja’s return after subduing the Chalukyas prompted Devanayaki to flee. Whatever the reason may have been, she couldn’t face the emperor. According to Desikan’s notes, she feared that he would murder her. Also, she did not want to live with him. Though he was in love with her, as the future emperor, Rajendra could not think of marrying his father’s consort. There was no option for Devanayaki but to flee.

  Prince Rajendra later became the emperor. After the death of Rajaraja, he too gained great victories. He defeated those who questioned the might of the Cholas and made the whole island of Lanka his own. He captured Mahinda and his queens and imprisoned them in Vellore. He always remembered his promise to Devanayaki. He kept Mahinda in prison until his death in the hope that Devanayaki would come back to him. As he had conquered territories up to the Ganga, he assumed the title ‘Gangaikonda Chola’. He built a new capital called Gangaikonda Cholapuram. He installed the idol of Gnana Saraswathi in his new capital. Desikan doesn’t say what happened to Devanayaki. We will have to depend on the available sections of the Susaana Supina for that information.

  18

  When Devanayaki alighted from the Yasodhara, a Kambuja cargo ship, at the Tirukonamalai harbour in Sri Lanka, nearly a year had elapsed since she had left Thanjavur. The Susaana Supina mentions that the ship sported a red Chinese silk flag with a yellow sun on it. It was the insignia of the Kambuja king, Jayavarman V. Devanayaki came to Tirukonamalai accompanied by Cham Prasidh, a rich diamond merchant who was a close friend of Jayavarman’s. Cham Prasidh, who hailed from the Sapthadeva dynasty which had great influence on the administration in Yasodharapura, came to Anuradhapura as a representative of King Jayavarman. He had free access to Mahinda’s secret hideaway, the city of dreams. It was to get there that Devanayaki had become Cham’s mistress for a year. It was a nightmarish period for her, as Cham was a perverted sadist. Devanayaki had changed a lot in that year. To escape from pain, she found solace in liquor and opium, which drove her to the brink of insanity. By the time she got the opportunity to go to Mahinda’s hideout, she had reached a state where she enjoyed everything. But Kuveni’s face, which flashed before her eyes very often, fanned the fires of revenge.

  Though the spring of youth had disappeared, Devanayaki’s figure still held the people of Tirukonamalai spellbound. Like the heavenly nymphs of Kambuja, Devanayaki left the upper part of her body uncovered. She smeared sandalwood paste on her cheeks and breasts. Stepping on Sri Lankan soil for the first time in her life, Devanayaki bowed before Koneswara and to the soil of the country. Plump, balding Cham with a slight potbelly was in no way a suitable match for her. But he walked by her side, touching her as if to proclaim his ownership. Her Chinese maid stood close behind with a mirror, an array of cosmetics and a fan. Two other maids carried her jewellery and clothes. Anxious that age was casting a dark shadow on her glittering beauty, Devanayaki often looked into the mirror her maid carried and, every now and then, wiped her face with muslin dipped in rose water. There were two other maids who were her trusted servants. There were fifteen members in Cham’s team, including his bodyguards and servants. Mahinda’s men waited a short distance away from the harbour, with horse-drawn carriages. Though Tirukonamalai was under the control of Rajaraja Chola, there wasn’t much evidence of the Chola army here. Rajaraja was more interested in adding territories to his empire rather than conquering the rest of Sri Lanka. So Cham could proceed to the city of dreams without much difficulty.

  Sree Vallabha Buddhanar, who was in Tirukonamalai to establish a branch of the Chudamani Vihara, saw Devanayaki when he was on his way to an inn after offerings prayer at the Koneswara temple. Recognizing her as she was getting into a carriage, hanging on to Cham’s arm, he joyfully went up to her. He asked her if she was well, but she pretended not to recognize him and handed him a silver coin as she would to any ordinary monk. Buddhanar politely refused. So she gave him a gold coin instead. He refused that too. Seeing this, Cham was unable to contain his anger. ‘The monks on this island are never satisfied. Why don’t you give him your necklace?’

  Immediately, she took off her emerald-studded necklace. But Buddhanar refused that too, saying, ‘I don’t want anything that has been stained by sin. Give me something that is hard-earned.’

  Devanayaki’s face grew dark with rage. She wore the necklace again and jumped into the carriage. ‘Let’s go. What a nasty man. Is he a monk?’ She sat close to Cham and comforted herself with the thought that he would not have understood what Buddhanar had said. But Cham knew Tamil. He liked the expression ‘stained by sin’. When she turned to her maid to wipe her face with
the muslin cloth, he mocked her in Tamil, saying, ‘Will rose water clean the stains of sin?’ Devanayaki was hurt.

  Buddhanar does not find fault with Devanayaki. Instead, he launches into a story about Poornima, a female monkey. Poornima, a white monkey who belonged to the best of monkey species called Shipanga, lived on the Mahabodhi tree with her friends when the Buddha was meditating under it. When Sujatha came to offer kheer to the Buddha, the monkeys tried to snatch it away but failed. But the Buddha offered half the food to the monkeys before partaking of it himself. Poornima was surprised to see a good soul among human beings. So she plucked some berries for him from a nearby tree. Accepting the food, he stroked her gently. The berries Poornima brought him would be his only food until he attained enlightenment. In a short while, the Buddha went into a deep meditative state. Not realizing the importance of what he was doing, Poornima and her friends continued to live in the tree, fighting for food and sex. As she was the youngest, the male monkeys often fought over her. She always satisfied the victor. All this happened in the tree just above where Siddhartha Gautama sat in deep meditation. He was oblivious to it all. But on the forty-ninth day, when he found enlightenment, Poornima was lucky enough to witness it. Everyone else was sleeping. Poornima too received a ray of the divine light. Several births later, Poornima was reborn as Sanghamitra, the daughter of emperor Ashoka. She became a renowned Buddhist monk. Buddhanar prays that Devanayaki, who was immersed in lust, revenge and anger, would have a fate similar to Poornima’s, at least in the next birth. After that, he asks a question: ‘What do you call a creeper that easily winds itself around any tree?’

  Cham, along with his entourage, proceeded to the city of dreams in horse-drawn carriages. They seemed to be ordinary, but the carriage in the middle was equipped with all sorts of luxuries. They reached a dense forest, one quite unlike any Devanayaki had seen before. There were trees taller than the towers of fortresses. Teak, rosewood and mahogany trees, more than six hundred years old. Beneath them were smaller trees and plants. One could barely see one’s way through the dense foliage. The screeching of birds frightened by their presence and the chirping of crickets was deafening. No ray of sunlight could penetrate the forest even when the sun was at its peak. Devanayaki wondered how they would move forward. But plants had been cut away to create a path just wide enough for the carriages to pass. Mahinda’s men walked in front of and behind the carriage, bearing lit torches. When the carriages entered the middle of the forest, everything became quiet. A frightening silence descended. Terrified, Devanayaki clutched Cham’s hand.

  ‘I’m scared, Bong.’

  ‘Dev, don’t fear. Do you want to hear a joke? Though this island is known as the country of Sinhala, or lions, there aren’t any tigers or lions here. There are quite a few elephants, but not in such dense forests where they find it difficult to walk. There might be leopards, but they run away scared by all this noise. Here, we need fear only snakes.’

  ‘How much further, Bong?’

  ‘Three yojanas. After that, there is a mighty river. But as there are bamboo rafts strong enough to carry horse-carriages, we don’t need to worry. Beyond this lie bamboo forests. There are plenty of elephants there. Six yojanas beyond that lie forests similar to this, but denser and more dangerous. But Mahinda has created green tunnels for us to pass. We don’t need to go out of the forest.’

  ‘Why?’

  ‘Sinha Saila is in the middle of that forest. The people here call it Sigiriya. There are large towering rocks in the middle of the forest, nearly six hundred feet high. Mahinda’s city of dreams is above that. We will reach there before twilight.’

  ‘Why is it called the city of dreams?’

  ‘You will know when we get there. It is a place of celebration for kings, queens, mistresses, diamond merchants, spice traders, iron manufacturers, shipowners and other wealthy people. The best of everything is available there, the best food, wine and women, the most enchanting dancers, melodious music. Once you enter the city of dreams, you enjoy ultimate freedom. There are no wrongs, only rights. Everyone can do what they want. The only condition is that what you want shouldn’t go against anyone else’s wishes. Everything has a price. Only those who can pay it come there. The identities of the visitors are kept secret.’

  ‘How does this benefit Mahinda?’

  ‘Dev, I have told you that Mahinda was the king of Anuradhapura. He lost his country in a war with Rajaraja Chola. Don’t you know all this in spite of having been a dancer in Rajaraja’s court?’

  ‘I was a mere dancer. What do dancers and courtesans know about matters of state? We merely do what we’re bid.’

  ‘Though some land to the east of the island belongs to him, he cannot make use of it. He has possession only of this city. So, every man has to pay ten gold pieces to enter, but he can take a woman there without paying a fee. Whether man or woman, a tenth of the money you make belongs to Mahinda. His close associates always gift him something special.’

  ‘Why don’t you show me the gift you are giving him?’

  He laughed.

  ‘Look into the mirror. You will see the beauty I am going to offer him.’

  She was shocked. She hadn’t expected this. There was no escape. Though he had lost the war, Mahinda was about to win. She looked into the mirror. Her reflection seemed to mock her. ‘You fool! You cannot escape.’ She spoke after a while, her voice heavy with grief.

  ‘Bong, are you tired of me?’

  ‘Yes, Dev. I never stay with a woman for more than a year.’

  Journeying over river and forest, they reached Sinha Saila by twilight. With the rays of the setting sun falling upon it, the place looked beautiful.

  It was difficult to believe that such a magnificent place existed in the middle of the forest. A city perched atop boulders that were six hundred feet high. Sena and Anula, Mahinda’s chief servants, were waiting to welcome them. They garlanded Cham and Devanayaki and escorted them to the beat of drums. They washed their feet in a lotus pond and ate fruits and drank tender coconut water. Cham gave Sena a hundred gold coins, which ensured their stay for ten days.

  ‘Are you going back so soon? I thought you’d stay for a month.’

  ‘No, Sena. I have work to attend to. Anula, this is my companion Devanayaki. You must take her around the city.’

  Anula looked carefully at Devanayaki. Though she felt envious, she put her arms around her.

  ‘Where will my servants stay?’

  ‘All of that has been arranged. Devanayaki’s maids too can stay here comfortably.’

  ‘Oh! Can’t I bring my maids upstairs?’

  ‘Sorry, the rules don’t allow that. They can only come up to the entrance.’

  ‘But my clothes –’

  ‘– will be brought upstairs. The maids of the city of dreams will fulfil all your wishes. Come, let’s move on before it gets dark.’

  The ‘lion entrance’ was halfway up the rocks. The eighteen-foot lion’s statue looked more ferocious than a real beast. The entrance was through its mouth. Then, there were steps to climb. As they climbed up slowly, enjoying the scenic beauty on the way, Anula told them the story of Sinha Saila. The Sinhalese king, Kasyapa, had built this palace six years ago. Kasyapa, who had no claim to the throne, being the son of one of the king’s mistresses who hailed from Pallava, usurped power by imprisoning and later killing his father Dhatusena. The legitimate heir to the throne was Moggallana, who escaped to the Pandya kingdom. Fearing that Moggallana would return seeking revenge, Kasyapa left Anuradhapura and established a more secure capital here. The fear that he would be punished for his sins haunted him constantly. He sought solace from guilt in women and wine. From then on, Sigiriya became the pleasure palace of the kings of Anuradhapura. Kasyapa ruled Lanka for eighteen years. Then, Moggallana returned with the help of the Pandya king. He wrested power from Kasyapa and killed him. He shifted the capital back to Anuradhapura.

  ‘Mahinda is also trying to grab power from the Chola kin
g who defeated him. We are sure to win if all of you help us.’

  Devanayaki was silent. Sena continued talking to Cham. Anula changed the topic, feeling that Devanayaki did not have much interest in matters of state.

  ‘Do you really belong to the apsara dynasty?’

  ‘Yes, the Sapthadeva dynasty. The most powerful family in Yasodharapura.’

  ‘The other two apsaras who came here resembled you, but they were very slender. Seeing your voluptuous face and striking features, I feel that you will become the queen of the city of dreams.’

  ‘Don’t tease me.’

  By the time they reached the summit, night had fallen. The palace was bathed in the light of the full moon. There were hundreds of guests thronging the vast gardens. The palace resounded with laughter and music. Mahinda’s family did not stay in the palace – it was filled only with guests. When she looked down from that great height, Devanayaki felt that she had reached the sky. She felt that the breeze would carry her away. Anula poured some toddy into a goblet and handed it to her.

  ‘Drink. This is the beginning of your life here. After this, there is no difference between kings or mistresses. All are equal. Call them only by their names.’

  ‘Dev!’

  She was startled. Cham and Mahinda were just behind her.

  ‘Mahinda, this is the gift I brought for you.’

  He looked over her lazily. Then, as if receiving the gift with pleasure, he pulled her close and kissed her on both cheeks. Not wanting to look at him, Devanayaki closed her eyes tight.

  19

  The moment she spent in Mahinda’s arms was the longest in Devanayaki’s life. The man she most hated, the brain behind her baby daughter’s murder – his arms were around her. She felt like a doe caught in a lion’s cage. Thinking about the cruelties of the Sinhalese king, she felt fear creeping down her spine. At the same time, the memory of his mischievous eyes, which had gazed at her with longing when he was her father’s student in Kanthalur, offered some solace. She remembered Shasthri’s advice to defeat fear with intelligence. This was the time to act intelligently, to move carefully, controlling her emotions with her intellect. Mahinda would certainly look at her when he raised his head after the second kiss. As expected, after the formal kissing ritual, Mahinda looked carefully into Devanayaki’s eyes as she slowly opened hers. Darkness had fallen and it was time for the lamps to be lit. The golden glow from the oil lamps flowed onto her face. She looked at Mahinda with an enticing smile that adeptly conveyed the promise of intoxication. He could not believe that the beauty he had longed for all his life was in his hands. With wonder in his voice, he said, ‘Devanayaki!’ Nodding, she fell on his chest. He led her into the palace. He only let go of her when he reached the main room that lay to northwest of the top storey.