THE CURSE OF BRAHMA

by Jagmohan Bhanver

‘Last night!’ Ugrasena looked at Vasudev’s astonished expression, and said evenly. ‘Yes, he is still here. He appeared dressed as a traveller at the palace gate late last night. The guards were about to shoo him away but he asked for Airawat. He knows from the past that I trust Airawat completely. He had a brief chat with him after which he handed Airawat an enclosed message for me. Even Airawat didn’t know it was the venerable Narada standing at the gate. After I read the message Airawat brought me, I told him who it was, and asked him to bring in Narada without letting anyone else know his identity. I had guessed by then that Narada must have some grave reason for coming in disguise.’

  ‘I met Airawat today morning. He didn’t mention this to me,’ Vasudev said thoughtfully.

  Ugrasena patted his hand. ‘He wouldn’t, Vasudev. He is bound to me and despite knowing your relationship with me, he will still not disclose confidentialities unless he is told to. That is what makes him so trustworthy.’ There was a note of pride in Ugrasena’s voice. He obviously had a soft corner for Airawat.

  Vasudev nodded. He had shared the fact with Ugrasena not as a reaction to Airawat’s behaviour but more as a matter-of-fact statement. However, his respect for Airawat went up as he realized just how loyal the man was to his king.

  ‘Would you like to meet Maharishi Narada?’ Ugrasena suggested. ‘When I told him you were here he was keen to meet you before leaving.’

  Vasudev’s face lit up. ‘Of course I would love to meet him, tatatulya.’ A meeting with Narada was always refreshing as the Maharishi was known for his lack of pretentiousness and his straightforward nature.

  Ugrasena nodded and went himself to escort Narada from his room. Vasudev waited in Ugrasena’s personal quarters. He had only met Narada once when he was a child and the sage had come to Bateshwar to meet his father, Surasena. He remembered Narada then to have been a young rishi with a great sense of humour. It would be invigorating to meet him again, as an adult this time. Vasudev only hoped that what Narada had to say would be far less serious than what it seemed at the moment. If what Ugrasena had just shared with him was true, then there was grave danger for everyone in Mrityulok.

  ‘This is wonderful news, Mandki,’ Devki shrieked in delight.

  Mandki smiled a little self-consciously, but her happiness was apparent. She had not been certain how Devki would react to her news, and she was glad that her childhood friend was so obviously joyful for her.

  ‘Does anyone else know? Has Airawat told anyone yet? When did all this happen?’ Devki inundated Mandki with a volley of questions.

  ‘Whoa, girl, take a break!’ Mandki laughed, putting up the palms of her hands. ‘Let me answer one question at a time,’ she smiled.

  ‘I don’t have the patience for all this,’ Devki interrupted her. ‘Tell me everything quickly, you naughty woman,’ she playfully teased Mandki.

  Mandki sighed. Devki had never had the patience to wait for anything in her life; and definitely not when she was as excited as she was now. She took a deep breath, ‘No one else knows yet,’ she said quietly. ‘I…I proposed to Airawat yesterday!’

  ‘What!’ Devki exclaimed disbelievingly. ‘Why didn’t you wait for him to propose, Mandki?’

  Mandki didn’t respond at first and Devki thought for a moment that perhaps she hadn’t heard her question. But then she spoke, a little haltingly at first and then more purposefully as she collected her thoughts. ‘In the beginning I thought I wouldn’t let him know that I love him…have loved him ever since the day he got us both to Madhuvan from your father’s palace. You were a child then Devki, but I was old enough to be in awe of his fine character and his selfless nature. Later, as several young men proposed to me I turned them all down, because I wanted to wait for you to get married first. I used to notice Airawat getting tense every time some young man from the palace decided to propose to me. Every time I would reject their proposal, I would observe Airawat sigh in relief. But he never once proposed on his own. I guess he was waiting for the right time to do that; perhaps after your wedding when he thought I would be open to getting married too. I had decided I would wait for him to come to me, as I knew he would one day soon. I knew he loved me too; I had seen him look at me in a particular way. I would still not have proposed to him or let him know what I had in my heart for him. But then…’ And here Mandki faltered, her lips quivering with suppressed emotion.

  ‘But then what Mandki? Then what happened?’ Devki persisted.

  ‘Then he lost his arm, Devki!’ Mandki sobbed. ‘And for a kshatriya warrior like him, it hit him hard. I have seen him struggle for hours in the training pit, trying to practise fighting with one arm. I have seen his frustration at not being able to balance his body weight with the sword in those complex manoeuvres these warriors use. I have felt his frustration and his rage in my heart every time he has failed in his attempts. He feels he is no longer the man he was. I realized he would never propose to me on his own because he feels he is somehow lesser now than he used to be.’

  Mandki paused to regain her breath and composure. ‘I couldn’t let him destroy both his life and mine, Devki. I had to tell him that he is still the most wonderful man ever. And that I can’t think of a life without him…’ Mandki’s voice faltered, overcome by the emotions she had pent up in her heart for the past few weeks.

  Devki instinctively put her arms around her best friend. ‘I am so happy for both of you,’ She gazed into Mandki’s eyes, ‘Airawat is truly a rare man and he will keep you very happy. And he is the luckiest man in the world to have your love.’ She hugged Mandki tight, just the way they used to hug when they were children.

  ‘Have you fixed the date for your wedding?’ Devki asked, moving away from her friend at last.

  Mandki shook her head, ‘No,’ she said quietly. ‘Both Airawat and I wanted to wait till after your marriage.’

  Devki began to say something, but Mandki cut her short. ‘No, Devki, I will not leave your side till you are married to Vasudev and you leave for Bateshwar with him, as his bride.’

  Devki was shocked at her words. It had never occurred to her that a day could come when Mandki and she would no longer be together. But she knew Airawat would never leave her father and go to Bateshwar, and Mandki would never be truly happy without Airawat. She took a deep breath, ‘I will miss you in Bateshwar, Mandki.’

  Mandki smiled through a haze of tears. Their childhood was behind them. Marriage and love beckoned them. The past was gone and the future was uncertain. But both of them were loved by men who would do anything for them. If that wasn’t being fortunate, then nothing else was.

  Vasudev looked like he had been hit by a thunderbolt. Narada had just turned his world upside down. The maharishi had told him in great detail all that he had shared with Ugrasena the night before. There was no longer any doubt in Vasudev’s mind. There was grave danger to everyone in Mrityulok.

  Ugrasena looked at his future son-in-law. Vasudev resembled his father, with the same cogitative look on his face whenever he was greatly perturbed. Ugrasena started to say something but Narada made a subtle gesture for him to stay quiet. Vasudev was trying to absorb whatever he had just heard and it was important that he be given some time to clear his head before they started discussing any action plan.

  Finally Vasudev spoke, and his first words were addressed to Ugrasena. ‘You mentioned that you have known about the asuras entering Mrityulok for quite some time now!’ Ugrasena nodded his head in agreement.

  ‘Forgive my asking you this, tatatulya…’ Vasudev seemed to hesitate for a moment. ‘Why didn’t you put a stop to it after you got to know about this? And why didn’t you share this with any of the other kingdoms? Even Father is not aware of this!’ The last words carried an unspoken accusation and Vasudev squirmed as he spoke the words. He knew he was putting Ugrasena on the spot and it pained him to do so. But the gravity of the situation did not warrant any subtleties.

  Ugrasena cleared his throat. He was aware of the effort it must have take
n Vasudev to ask him this question, that too in front of Narada. ‘About two years ago, our border security forces captured a group of five asuras while they were trying to sneak into Mrityulok through Madhuvan. They looked a lot like mortals and they might have passed undetected had one of the border security men not heard them talking. They were speaking in the asura tongue and this particular security man happened to be familiar with their dialect. When the demons were captured, they tried to bluff their way out by saying they were traders coming from Magadha. The security forces checked their passports and personal ID papers. They seemed to be fine but when the documents were subjected to rigorous checking, the papers were found to be forged. They were fantastic fakes but there was no doubt about the forgery,’ Ugrasena’s voice exuded pride at the commitment and alertness of his border security.

  ‘Then what happened?’ Vasudev prodded him.

  ‘The asuras were brought to me and I met them along with General Atharva, the head of the Madhuvan Border Security Force. They broke down under interrogation and confessed that they were indeed asuras who were trying to enter Mrityulok illegally. Atharva was of the opinion that we should give immediate orders for their execution and I supported his view, even though as a principle, I am against capital punishment.’ Vasudev looked like he wanted to say something here, but Ugrasena put up his hand to stop him. ‘Just as I was about to sign the order for their execution, one of the asuras spoke up. He said he wanted to confess something else.’

  ‘What more did he want to confess?’ Vasudev wondered aloud.

  ‘What he said astonished me. And I think it was his confession that put me on the wrong track in the first place.’

  ‘Ugrasena, get on with it,’ Narada said gently, but with a touch of impatience. ‘You don’t have to justify your decision to us. You did what you thought was right, at that time. Just tell Vasudev what happened.’

  Ugrasena nodded apologetically at Narada and continued. ‘The asura told us that it wasn’t just the five of them who were trying to enter Mrityulok illegally. He said a few hundred of them had breached the borders of various kingdoms over the past few years.’

  Vasudev was shocked. ‘What! Why would he tell you all this?’ he said incredulously. ‘Wouldn’t it give away their plans? After all, you had no idea about this till then.’

  Ugrasena nodded. ‘That’s what I thought. But hold on. Listen to what happened next. When I asked him the reason for the asuras entering Mrityulok, he said that these people had been banished from Pataal Lok by the asura council because they had offended the council members by refusing to follow the gruesome practices prescribed by the council.’

  ‘So they made it look like they were actually aggrieved people who had been thrown out of Pataal Lok because they didn’t want to participate in evil practices?’ Vasudev said contemplatively.

  ‘Exactly!’ Ugrasena exclaimed. ‘And they said that once they were banished from Pataal Lok, the only option for them was to either travel to Swarglok or to enter Mrityulok. They would have been instantly spotted in Swarglok given the tight security there, and the devas would have put them to death given their zero tolerance for asuras. Therefore, the only alternative open to them was a surreptitious entry into Mrityulok through various bordering kingdoms. The asura said that all they wanted was to quietly settle down at some place in Mrityulok, and live out the rest of their miserable existence in peace. He said he had told me everything and by confessing to me he had put in danger the lives of all the asuras who had over the years settled down in Mrityulok.’

  ‘Wow!’ said Vasudev softly, marvelling at the ingenuity of the asura. ‘So he told you all that in order to gain your confidence and make you feel that he trusted you completely. He knew even if he didn’t tell you this, you would have considered the possibility of other asuras having entered Mrityulok, on your own in any case.’

  ‘That’s right,’ Ugrasena conceded. ‘I didn’t realize the asura was feeding me half-truths. His confession made me believe that he was being completely honest with me. And it also lent credibility to the rest of his story about the asuras being banished from Pataal Lok by the asura council.’

  ‘It wasn’t your mistake, tatatulya,’ Vasudev said quietly. ‘Anyone with a heart would have believed the asura and done what you did. But what happened after that?’

  ‘I…I conferred with General Atharva and we both decided that these asuras had already faced a lot in their homeland and we should help them settle down in Mrityulok. We let them go, with the injunction that they should find a quiet place to settle down and keep themselves out of sight of the mortals. At that time, I genuinely believed that their secret was known only to General Atharva and me, and I had given them my word that I would not divulge the secret of their presence on Mrityulok to anyone else. This is why I did not share this with anyone, including your father.’

  Vasudev and Narada were quiet. They knew the king hadn’t said everything that was bothering him yet.

  Finally, Ugrasena exploded in a mass of rage and pain, ‘I trusted these bastards. And then a bunch of asuras attacked my daughter…and…and almost killed my son. Even when that happened, I thought it must have been the work of some asuras who panicked at their presence being discovered and attacked Devki. But what Maharishi Narada told us gives everything an entirely different colour.’

  There was an uncomfortable silence as Vasudev and Narada waited for Ugrasena to calm down. Then something occurred to Vasudev. ‘Tatatulya, have you spoken about the asuras entering Mrityulok with anyone else?’

  Ugrasena’s face grew suddenly grim as he recalled the last conversation he had had with Kansa in Jarasandha’s presence, just before they left for Magadha. He quickly narrated to Vasudev and Narada the entire discussion. Narada listened tight-lipped as he heard what Jarasandha had told Kansa about the asuras’ presence in Mrityulok, and Vasudev whistled in astonishment.

  Devki looked at the sun settling down in the west. She couldn’t decide whether it was the impending darkness or the eerie silence in the garden that made her feel the first symptoms of sadness and imminent danger. It had been several days since the attack on her at the Shiva temple, but she could still feel the fetid breath of the towering kalakanja on her neck, as he chased her. The thing that was making her more restless was she had a premonition that it wasn’t over yet; that the worst part was yet to come. And that in some way, whatever was going to happen involved Vasudev and her, and perhaps even Kansa, the person she loved second only to Vasudev.

  She shook her head. The memory of how Kansa had risked his life to save her was difficult to forget. And the images of his bloodied form lying lifeless on the ground would be impossible to take out of her mind, ever. Kansa is so alone, so anguished after what Father told him about his birth. I wish I could make everything right for him, she thought poignantly. If only he would talk to Asti and Prapti, he might feel better. Kansa had not allowed anyone, including both his wives or even Devki, to discuss how he felt after Ugrasena had told him about his birth father and his mother’s feelings towards him. Devki knew the inability to voice his feelings was suffocating Kansa inside and would in time change him as a person if he didn’t let people in.

  She heard a twig snap under someone’s feet behind her. She turned around with a smile, expecting Vasudev to have returned. But her face fell as she saw it was Mandki. Normally, she loved to spend time in the garden, alone or with Mandki. But today she had looked forward to being with Vasudev. His long absence irked her. She was peeved at her father for calling him to a meeting today of all days, and with Vasudev too, for not returning soon. But a closer look at Mandki’s face made Devki forget her anger momentarily. ‘What’s wrong, Mandki? You don’t look too good,’ she said with concern.

  ‘Something’s not right, you know,’ Mandki mumbled. ‘I was with Airawat when a messenger from your father came in and whispered something to him. I couldn’t hear what he said and Airawat obviously wouldn’t tell me, but he excused himself immediately and
rushed off to the king’s chambers. The only thing he said was that it might be a while before he returned.’

  Devki was thoughtful. ‘But isn’t Vasudev too with Father?’

  Mandki nodded her head. ‘It looks like the king wanted Airawat for the same meeting’

  ‘Hmm. I wonder what is going on,’ Devki mused. ‘You know, last night I couldn’t sleep for some reason. I was standing in my balcony and I happened to see the lamps on in father’s room. I found this strange as he usually sleeps quite early. I strained to see what he was doing, since his room is a little farther down the hall from mine. I saw him talking to someone in his room. It was a man, but he had his back towards me. Father seemed to be reading something the man had given him. After a while, I saw him speak to the man, and the man turned to leave. You know who this man was?’

  Mandki looked confused. She shook her head.

  ‘It was Airawat,’ Devki said slowly.

  Mandki looked surprised, ‘What was he doing in the king’s room at that hour?’ she wondered aloud. Devki nodded and continued. ‘It isn’t just what he was doing there at that hour. What happened later was more intriguing. After he left, I saw Father pacing in his room. He seemed very agitated, as if something bad had happened or he was expecting it to happen.’

  Mandki looked at Devki. All of this sounded rather odd.

  Devki continued, ‘In a few minutes, I saw Airawat return with another man. I couldn’t see this man’s features as his face was covered with a cloak. It looked like he was taking pains to hide his identity. What surprised me the most was that Father bent down to touch this man’s feet as soon as he entered his room. The man blessed Father and took a seat. Father drew the curtains after that and I wasn’t able to see anything further. Airawat left the room after a couple of minutes. I stayed in the balcony to see if the other man would come out, but after waiting for a long time, I gave up and went to bed.’

  ‘This is bizarre,’ Mandki muttered. ‘Why didn’t Airawat tell me about this today?’