Sanjeev checked the address he had and saw the nameplate which read Pawan Kumar Sharma. He stepped near the door and gave a gentle knock. The same wrestler looking man opened the door with a smile. His head was bald following the usual funeral custom.
“Hello Sir!” said Sanjeev slightly bending forward. “I’m Sanjeev, Dr Anjana’s student, if you remember. You had called me.”
“Oh yes! I remember you. Come inside and have a seat.” Pawan guided Sanjeev inside the house to the living room. Though the room was scantly furnished and had no expensive home décor, it looked warm and appealing.
“Do you want tea?” asked Pawan.
Sanjeev gazed around and then said, “No thank you.”
“I’m single and I stay alone, but don’t worry I can make tea,” said Pawan with a smile and went to the kitchen.
Sanjeev was looking around the house. His mind and eyes were searching for his thesis papers.
Pawan returned in a few minutes with two cups of tea. “I hope everyone is OK now,” Sanjeev empathized.
“Yes, we are trying to return to normal,” replied Pawan.
“You told that Madam left something for me,” said Sanjeev drinking his tea in hesitation.
“Oh yes, I discovered it in the study room. I think Ma left it for you,” said Pawan. “Finish you tea then I’ll take you there.”
“So how was your thesis going?” inquired Pawan.
“It was going good, Sir,” said Sanjeev with his voice lighting up. “It was almost complete. I had given my results and discussion section of the thesis to Madam. If she had corrected and signed it then my thesis would be complete. The remaining work I can complete with my co-guide,” Sanjeev expressed his concern.
“Hmmm! Well I’m not so aware of the details but I had seen Ma working here. I just have a small wrestling school, I’m not a doctor. Ma lived with my younger brother, Suresh and his family, but she did her research here. She said the work she gave you was yielding good results. Come I’ll take you to the study,” he said getting up.
Sanjeev placed his cup on the table and started following Pawan.
“Yes, Madam was very happy with the results and statistical analysis. If she had signed my work then I can appear for my exams next month,” replied Sanjeev.
Pawan brought him to the study room. It was a huge library with all the walls covered with books neatly placed on racks. In the center was a large teak study table with books piled at one side and an antique lamp on the other side. In the center of the table were a glass slab and a pen holder with highlighters and Post it slips. The table had a long comfortable chair covered with red cushions.
On the left side of the room was a door leading to another small room which probably was Anjana’s laboratory. On the right side was a small temple room which was warmly lighted. It had a beautiful deity of Lord Ram, Goddess Sita and Lakshman made of marble. Near Lord Ram's feet was the deity of Lord Hanuman kneeling down with his hands folded.
Sanjeev’s heart was pounding and he could hear his palpitations. “Oh, what luck! Thanks Madam, you’ve been very thoughtful,” he thought. He was staring at the grand table, trying to look for his thesis papers. He expected Pawan to bring them from the table and hand it over to him. His mind was racing, “Finally my thesis is complete. Now I can clear my exams, get my doctoral degree, practice in my hometown, be a renowned doctor and……” suddenly his chain of thoughts was broken.
He saw Pawan making his way to the small temple. He joined his hands in reverence in front if the deity and picked up some box like thing and came out.
“Here, I think Ma wanted you to have this,” Pawan said handing Sanjeev a wooden box and a small red colored booklet with ‘Hanuman Chalisa’ engraved in gold over it.
It took a while for Sanjeev to regain his senses. “This! She left this for me?” Sanjeev thought perplexed. “Aaa…. Sir… Sir, this is not mine,” he blabbered.
“I know it’s not yours. She left it for you,” said Pawan handing over the things to Sanjeev. “Have a look at them patiently; you’ll understand that it’s for you.”
“But…. But I… I left some papers……,” said Sanjeev.
“May be this is more valuable than just papers,” Pawan interrupted Sanjeev. “Take these home and think,” he said and gestured him out of the study room.
Sanjeev was flabbergasted. He took the box and the book and left the house. Soon he was walking down the lane outside the house staring at the things in his hand. Then he kept them in his backpack. Confused where to go, he made his way to the Tapkeshwar Mahadev Temple where he usually went when he was perturbed.
Tapkeshwar Mahadev Temple was situated around 6 km from Dehradun on the banks of the Asan River and was a very well-known pilgrimage spot. Situated in the forest side, this temple was an old Lord Shiva temple where the Shivlinga was inside a cave. There was a continuous water stream trickling down on the Shivlinga from the roof of the cave. The flowing gentle river added to the beauty and serenity of the place.
Sanjeev stepped towards the temple slope immersed in his thoughts. He crossed the magnificent golden gate and reached the holy cave. After praying in front of the Shivlinga, he decided to sit by the banks of the river to ponder for a while. So he went to the back of the temple, down the stairs and reached the foot of the river. He sat there, on one of the steps beneath a 20-feet tall idol of Lord Hanuman. The brightly colored idol of Lord Hanuman facing the river was a huge sculpture where the God was shown standing tall with a mace in his hand. The sculpture clearly depicted the valor of the Lord.
“Where have you brought me, Oh Lord?” Sanjeev thought. “There was a small ray of hope which has also extinguished. How will I ever complete my thesis? All the work has gone waste. Now I have to repeat my entire work. What a loss!” Sanjeev cried and a small tear dropped down from his eyes.
Chapter 3
Jai Hanuman gyan gun sagar Jai Kapis tihun lok ujagar
Victory to thee, O'Hanuman! Ocean of Wisdom-All hail to you O'Kapisa! (fountain-head of power, wisdomand Shiva-Shakti) You illuminate all the three worlds(Entire cosmos) with your glory.
Sanjeev was in a self-pity mode when his cellphone rang. He picked it up when he saw Ravi calling him.
“Where are you? It’s lunch time. Did you get your papers?” he asked.
“No,” Sanjeev answered in a heavy tone.
“Are you crying? Where are you, I’ll come in a minute,” asked Ravi expressing his concern.
“I’m at Tapkeshwar Temple,” Sanjeev said and hung up the phone.
True to his word, Ravi reached there as early as possible and found his friend near the banks of the river.
“What happened? I’ve never seen you lamenting so much over anything. You weren’t so bad even after your last break up with Sunita,” said Ravi trying to console.
Sanjeev handed his backpack to Ravi. “This! He gave me this. She had left this for me,” he said with his voice filled with anger and disappointment.
Ravi opened the backpack and took out the wooden box and the Hanuman Chalisa. He looked at it for a while, rotated, turned it upside down, shook it and then finally said, “Well, I’m not sure why he gave this to you, but there does seem something mysterious about it.”
Sanjeev looked at him bewildered and said, “What?”
“Yes, there’s something about it. Did you notice this box carefully?” asked Ravi.
He handed over the box to Sanjeev and showed him, “Well, I’m not a doctor like you but my eyes saw something. There’s a note of caution written on the underside. It reads: Caution: This box contains inflammable material. Any attempt to open the box by force will lead to disintegration of the box and loss of valuable information.”
When Sanjeev saw the note his face turned white. He grabbed the box from Ravi’s hand and stared at it. He then examined the box in detail.
The box was made of wood with intricate carvings in the borders. It had some grooves on the top. There were three grooves in line a
nd one groove on the left side in the front of them. On one of the long side, there were two drawers which were locked. On the underside was the note of caution.
Sanjeev then took out the small booklet. It was the size of his palm, red colored with Hanuman Chalisa written in gold. Inside was written the Hanuman Chalisa in red on a yellow paper. However, some of the words of the Chalisa were in bold font.
“Oh My God! What is this puzzle?” said Sanjeev in amazement.
“I’m not sure what it means, but it seems your guide left you something more valuable than just your thesis papers. You need to find it out,” replied Ravi.
Sanjeev gazed at the massive Hanuman idol behind him. His mind had gone blank. He didn’t know from where to start, what to do and how to react in this situation.
He again gazed at the booklet and started reading the Chalisa from the beginning. It was nothing new for him, he recited it daily. He read it once and nothing struck him. Then he handed it to Ravi who read it too and found nothing in it. It was the usual Chalisa which had been sung by Indians since ages.
“There should be something in them. We need to figure it out,” said Sanjeev to Ravi.
Ravi shook the box again and said, “There’s a peculiar sound coming from the box. It seems as though there is some liquid inside it and some keys.”
“Yes, you are right,” said Sanjeev. “This Chalisa has some bold letters. Let’s see if it makes some sense.”
Shri Guru Charan Saroj Raj Nij mane mukure sudhar
Varnao Raghuvar Vimal Jasu Jo dayaku phal char
Budhi Hin Tanu Janike Sumirau Pavan Kumar
Bal budhi Vidya dehu mohe Harahu Kalesa Vikar
The first few letters means lotus feet of the guru which indicates my guide, Dr Anjana’s feet I think,” said Sanjeev.
“Yes you’re correct I feel. Probably that’s why she left this for you because you were her student,” deduced Ravi.
“Here, see the next line. Pavan Kumar is in bold. Oh! You know her elder son’s name is Pawan Kumar Sharma. And the next few words say that one may gain strength and wisdom through him. He is a wrestler so I don’t doubt his strength. But wisdom? I don’t know how he can do that,” expressed Sanjeev.
“But that clearly means that we must go to him. He seems to be an important lead here. After all we don’t have anyone else to solve our query,” said Ravi.
“Come fast. We must go to his house immediately,” Sanjeev said packing his stuff and holding Ravi’s hand to help him get up.
“Wait!” Ravi said holding Sanjeev back. “I want this story.”
“Story? What story are you talking about?” Sanjeev was puzzled.
“I want to cover this death mystery of your guide for my newspaper. If people are spreading so many rumors there has to be some truth behind it. I want to explore that; it will be a big story for me and a boost to my career. Can you help me establish myself in my journalism world?” asked Ravi.
Sanjeev thought for a while. He wanted research papers to complete his thesis, but in exchange he can be of help to his best friend, it was a good deal for him.
“Ok, but you will not publish anything which will demean her name,” Sanjeev said.
“Done,” asserted Ravi and moved ahead.
He gazed up at the Hanuman deity again with devotion. He, the supreme Lord of intellect and wisdom, He who illuminated all three worlds had also illuminated Sanjeev’s world. His heart was filled with hope. He thanked Him in his mind, “Just lead me to the right answer God.”
Chapter 4
It was late evening when Sanjeev and Ravi reached Pawan Kumar's house. The winter days were short. The darkness had started falling and coldness was creeping in like a soft mist flowing over the mountains. The house still looked beautiful and majestic. It was lit by yellow lamp posts and the awning had dimly lit yellow colored light emerging from it.
Sanjeev and Ravi traced their steps to the stairs when suddenly Sanjeev gestured Ravi to stop. Unlike the usual silence of the house, there was some murmuring heard. It seemed that Pawan had some guest who was loud and harsh in his tone.
“But, Mamaji, Ma never told me anything about it,” said Pawan.
“Pawan, this house belonged to me as per my father’s will,” he said. “Anjana was staying here with you and was using it as her laboratory. But now I need it back.”
“As far as I remember, Nanaji has changed his will and given this property to Ma. He wanted her to have her Ayurvedic studies here and start a yoga school one day,” replied Pawan.
“Do you have the property papers?” inquired Anjana’s brother.
“I don’t have with me. But it must be somewhere in the house,” stated Pawan.
“See, unless you show me the papers, the property still remains mine. I want to build a resort here. It’s a good tourist attraction,” he said. “You are my nephew. I don’t have any grudges against you. But I need to see interests of my children too.”
“I can understand. However, this is an important property issue. Ma would have told me about it if she knew,” Pawan said.
“You think I’m lying,” Anjana’s brother said with anger in his tone. “You are Anjana’s son and younger to me. Stop arguing with me. Is this how Anjana has raised you up?” Anjana’s brother was shouting at Pawan. “I’m giving you a month to vacate the house. Else I’ll call my people who know very well how to get the house cleared off trash.”
“Ma has raised me well,” answered Pawan in a composed manner. “I’m not afraid. You know well that I’m a wrestler and I can manage any kind of trash cleaner alone. Please leave, I’ll see you after a month,” said Pawan gesturing him out of the house.
Sanjeev and Ravi saw the angry Anjana’s brother marching out of the house. Ravi immediately pulled Sanjeev to a hide out.
“Not a good time to speak to Pawan Sir, “whispered Ravi. “Let’s leave.”
“Yes, some other time,” said Sanjeev sighing.
“Just a month’s time to demolish the house. What if something is hidden there?” thought Sanjeev as he left from the house in darkness.
Chapter 5
Rāma dūta atulita bala dhāmā
Anjani putra pavana suta nāmā
"You are the messenger of Rama (to Sita), You are the abode of incomparable power. You are also called by the names of 'Anjani Putra' (Son of Anjana) and 'Pavana suta' (son of wind god)"
Early in the morning Sanjeev was standing in front of Pawan's house with his backpack wondering if he should go inside or not. Yesterday’s night was a restless one for him. He was unable to sleep. Weird thoughts and dreams were haunting him. Still, he gathered courage ad reached Pawan’s house as he was the only important lead till now.
He knocked the door slowly and cautiously. “Mind you Sanjeev, he’s a wrestler. One punch and you’ll be done forever,” he thought.
Pawan opened the door and asked, “What happened?”
“Sir, I wanted your help… I mean can you please help me?” he muttered.
Pawan stared at him for a while then said, “Come in.”
“I was observing the relics you gave me yesterday. Can you help me decipher them?” said Sanjeev said feeling scared.
“So you saw them!” exclaimed Pawan. “Well I knew you would come, but didn’t know so soon. Take them out. “
Sanjeev took out the wooden box and the booklet from his backpack and laid it on the table.
“Tell me what you observed,” ordered Pawan.
“Ss…Sir… I saw the grooves and the caution note on the box. It also has some keys because it tinkles when shaken. The booklet has some words in bold font. See… see here, Sir,” Sanjeev blabbered and showed him the booklet. “Your name is in bold. That too twice. See Sir, see….
Anjani putra pavana suta nāmā
Your name is in bold,” said Sanjeev showing him the book and emphasizing his point.
Pawan took the booklet in his hand and observed it closely. His eyes twinkled when he saw something in the b
ooklet. He immediately grabbed his spectacles and examined the booklet again.
“Did you notice this?” Pawan said showing Sanjeev the booklet. “It’s written in red ink on yellow paper. Such kind of book is supposed to be very powerful. And yes it has words in bold fonts. On the first page I can see some red Roli and a piece of akshat stuck on it. That means Ma must have prayed with this booklet. It smells of camphor too.”
Sanjeev saw and realized that he had missed those fine details.
“So what kind of help you want from me?” asked Pawan.
“I don’t know Sir. Actually I’m very confused. I don’t know how to proceed. So I came to you. Probably you can show me a way out,” said Sanjeev his eyes filled with genuine sorrow.
“Next month I have to submit my completed thesis and thereafter appear for exams so that I can complete my doctoral. When you told madam has left behind something for me, I thought she left my corrected and signed thesis. Without it all my efforts will go waste. Truly speaking, I was disheartened to see what she left for me. So I don’t know what to do with these relics,” cried Sanjeev.
“Hmmm… I can understand your dilemma now,” said Pawan. “But if Ma has left you this it means something precious. Maybe it leads you to what you want and even more than that. You need to trust your guide, after all she was a genius,” added Pawan.
The Secret of the Chalisa Page 2
