A-Z April Challenge 2015: J for JARASANDHA’S REIGN OF TERROR

1. The queens giving birth to two halves of one baby; 2. Jara, the demon brings the two halves together to give life to Jarasandha
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At sixteen, the Prince of Magadha was built like a small mountain. And he had a temper to match. What drove him was hatred. When he was born, Jarasandha had been thrown out with the garbage, literally. His eyes turned red as the prince refused to shed the tears of anger that drove him to violence. Neither of his mothers – he had two unlike the rest of the world – had wanted him. Both the royal queens had shun him at birth. Was it his fault that he had been born in two pieces?

While the demon Jara had had the sense to bring the two halves of his body together and breathe life into him, his own parents had just thrown him away. Jarasandha paced up and down the corridor, restless. He had to become the greatest emperor on earth and prove to the king and his queens that he did not need them at any level. 

He turned around to slap the maid servant who had brought him a glass of wine. A sneer turned Jarasandha’s face harsher than ever. Yes! He had no use for women. He hated the species. Once he was emperor, he would turn all women into slaves, to serve him and his warriors.

And thus began Jarasandha’s reign of terror... 

Click Here to read the story of Jarasandha’s birth... 

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A-Z April Challenge 2015: I for INDRA THE LORD OF THE DEVAS

I for Indra sitting on Airawat
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Young Krishna’s father Nandagopan was worried when his son suggested that they pray to Mount Govardhana for the rain and bounty they had received that year. What if Lord Indra punished the Yadava village? After all, they had been worshipping the lord of the Devas every year for the same. But he could not deny his son’s logic either. 

The people of Gokul listened to Krishna and venerated Mount Govardhana while Nandagopan watched the skies fearfully, expecting Lord Indra’s wrath to create havoc. A smiling Krishna did his best to reassure his father only in vain.

A lightning bolt struck, followed by the sound of thunder as he arrived, the lord of the Devas, on his white elephant Airavat. The majestic elephant with five trunks seemed to float down from the skies, Lord Indra seated on its back. Nandagopan’s fear reached its height when Airavat landed on the ground, close to Mount Govardhana. 

The people looked on in awe as Indra climbed down from his huge mount. He folded his hands in greeting to Lord Krishna and his father. Nodding his head at the others, Indra walked to the foot of Mount Govardhana and prostrated on the ground, paying his obeisance to the mountain that gave its bounty to the people of Gokul. 

Nandagopan watched on, his mouth open in amazement!

Click here to read the original story... 

NOTE: I strongly believe that no power of God is negative. Such things as punishing Gods are tales woven to fit into the third dimensional illusory world that we are living in right now. Hence I have given the story of Indra’s wrath a new spin in the above tale. 

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A-Z April Challenge 2015: H for HARISCHANDRA

H for Harischandra greets Sage Vishwamitra
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IN A PARALLEL UNIVERSE...

King Harischandra walked out to the entrance of his palace to welcome Sage Vishwamitra. He bent down to wash the sage’s feet with rose water and greeted him with folded hands, inviting the revered Vishwamitra into his palace. 

A visibly pleased Vishwamitra walked ahead of the king and took his seat right next to the king’s throne, his feet placed on a small cushioned golden stool. 

The ministers and courtiers watched on as their king and the visitor discussed a number of things under the sun. King Harischandra listened more than spoke as he felt that he needed to learn a lot from Vishwamitra who had himself been a king many years ago. 

By and by, the sage arrived at the purpose of his visit. “Dear Harischandra, last night I had a strange dream. You came to me and promised to hand over your entire kingdom for the upkeep of my ashram. I have come to claim what is mine.” Sage Vishwamitra had a benign smile on his face, confident that the king will keep his promise, even if it had been made only in a dream.

The noble and truthful king, with folded hands and bowed head, replied to the sage, “I am so honoured you brought this matter to me Oh Great Sage Vishwamitra! I promise to handover my kingdom to you the very next time I visit you in my dream.” The king raised his head to look sharply at the sage, his eyes suggesting that the sage never visited the king in the latter's dream, ever. 

Was it surprising that Sage Vishwamitra was left speechless! 

Glossary:
Ashram - Hermitage

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A-Z April Challenge 2015: G for GANDHARI... WHAT IF?

G for Gandhari
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WHAT IF...

Gandhari is left with no choice when her father, the King of Gandhar makes a pact with Bheeshma to wed her to Prince Dritharashtra. Worse it yet to come, as she’s unaware that the prince who she’s going to wed has been blind since birth. 

Her brother Prince Shakuni is greatly upset with his father when he gets to know the truth. “Gandhari, there is no need for you to marry a man who’s blind since birth. Allow me to send a messenger across to Bheeshma, cancelling the alliance,” pleaded Shakuni to his only sister. “I’m ready to face the consequences, even if we have to go to war with Hastinapura.”

Gandhari shook her head to say, “It’s on the part of a daughter to fulfil the wishes of her father. I will not go against the promise that our father has made to the ruler of Hastinapura. Let the wedding take place as planned.”

Gandhari decided to accept her fate. She planned to help the blind prince, heir to the throne of Hastinapura, rule his kingdom to the best of his ability. He could definitely do it. She had a strong enough vision, both literally and figuratively, to take care of his kingdom.

That’s how Gandhari married Dritharashtra and became his eyes. Impressed by her cleverness and wisdom, Bheeshma decided to crown Dritharashtra the king of Hastinapura. The king and queen of Hastinapura lived long and ruled wisely.

And they all lived happily ever after! 

...THE KURUKSHETRA WAR WOULD NEVER HAVE COME ABOUT

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A-Z April Challenge 2015: F for FATHER OF KARNA (SURYA)

F for Father of Karna (Surya)
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The skies turned dark while the wind whistled shrilly. It was barely noon though it appeared as if it was past twilight. Surya, the Sun God, suddenly felt his power reduced. What was happening?

On Earth, the young girl Kunti was excited. Her eyes shining with happiness, she invoked Lord Surya as she uttered the Shloka taught her by Sage Durvasa. Within a few seconds, the Sun God appeared before her, bound by the mantra. Though he didn’t look too happy about it, he gave Kunti what she sought. A baby boy! His work done, Surya rose up into the skies, as it turned light once again.

Aghast, Kunti looked at the newborn baby in her arms. The little one shone almost as bright as the Sun himself. He even wore a golden armour and earrings of gold. Kunti raised a hand to shade her eyes from the brilliance. Karna stared up at the sky, a beatific smile on his baby face, as if in acknowledgement of his father, the Sun. 

Surya watched helplessly as Kunti placed Baby Karna in a basket and let him float in the River Ganga. It wasn’t possible for Surya to take the baby with him. The little one wouldn’t be able to survive outside the Earth. 

Golden rays shielded the baby as the basket floated along the river. Surya gave a sigh of relief when a charioteer picked up Baby Karna and made him his own. Glad to see his baby boy in safe hands, Surya went about his duties.

Surya peeped into the charioteer’s home to check on his son from time to time. He could see that the child was well loved. Surya was proud to see that his son was growing up to be a fearless man. 

Moreover, Karna had acquired one special quality from his father – the art of giving. Karna gave people whatever they asked for - gold, precious stones, jewellery, houses, land, elephants, horses, cattle, just about anything that he could lay his hands on. One just had to ask Karna for something and receive it the very next second. Surya was mighty proud of his son. 

The father of Karna was disturbed when he saw that his son had taken the side of Duryodhana. Duryodhana was the epitome of Adharma. That way lay ruin. But how could he stop his son from taking the Kaurava’s side? Karna was bound by gratitude, the same way his father, the Sun God, had been bound by Sage Durvasa’s mantra. Surya sighed deeply. There was no way he could stop Karna from a sure death in war. 

It was Day 17 of the Kurukshetra war. Karna was still going strong as he faced Pandava Arjuna. Suddenly, his chariot wheel got stuck in the soil. When Karna got down to lift it, Lord Indra appeared before him in the form of a Brahmin seeking alms. This was one time when Surya so wished that his son wasn’t a giver. Not having anything else to give the old man, Karna took out his knife to cut off his golden armour and earrings that he was born with and handed them over to him. Surya watched in anguish as Karna did away with the last vestige of protection that he had given to him at birth. Knowing that there was no way that he could stop Karna’s death, Surya hid his face behind dark clouds as the skies opened up and poured on the land of Kurukshetra, just as Arjuna released the arrow that drove into Karna’s unprotected chest. 

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A-Z April Challenge 2015: E for EKLAVYA VICTIMISED

E for Eklavya
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Eklavya stood with both hands folded in front of the clay statue of Dronacharya. He prayed to the man he had accepted as his own Guru and began practising his archery late into the night. Well, during the day, Eklavya had been busy watching the Acharya teach the Kaurava and Pandava princes. That is how he had been learning the skill so well.

One night, some of the princes happened along the path where Eklavya was practising his archery. Arjuna was amazed at the Nishadh boy’s prowess. Drona followed his students and was equally impressed. But soon, the Acharya’s mind began to play. What if this boy became a better archer than Prince Arjuna? That’s when he decided to ask for Gurudakshina.

Eklavya’s surrender to his Guru was so complete that he agreed to give Dronacharya any Gurudakshina that he sought. He did not even wait to find out what was it that the Acharya sought. 

And Drona could not have asked for anything worse. It would have been better if he had asked for Eklavya’s life. The cunning Dronacharya requested Eklavya for his right thumb, the thumb without which the boy would never be able to wield an arrow. Did Eklavya refuse? Of course not. He did not even hesitate before taking out a small knife that he carried in his waistband and cutting off his thumb, presented it to his Guru. 

While Dronacharya had done his best to remove Arjuna’s competition, he never foresaw Eklavya’s determination to become a skilled archer. That he became, despite the lack of his thumb. It is proof of his greatness that Eklavya never sought to compete with Arjuna nor did he ever lose respect for his Guru in the process. 

Glossary:
Acharya / Guru - Teacher
Gurudakshina - Teacher's fee

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A-Z April Challenge 2015: D for DRITHARASHTRA’S HEARTBREAK

D for Dritharashtra
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Dritharashtra thrashed around like a mad bull elephant. The servants stayed away from the prince for their own safety. He appeared capable of crushing someone with his bare hands. But no strength or intelligence of his had been enough to garner Dritharashtra the throne of Hastinapura. And all because he had been born blind!

Dritharashtra pressed both his hands against his blind eyes, wishing to pull them out of their sockets. Oh why! Why had he not been born normal? Why had he learned all the scriptures and the many methods of warfare? To what avail? Why had Bheeshma had him trained in all the virtues of a king if he had never meant him to become one? They could have killed him as a child. It would have been so much better. Dritharashtra rued his fate.

And hatred gushed from him towards Bheeshma, mother Satyavathi and his brother Pandu. Pandu had no qualms about accepting the crown of Hastinapura. How dared he? Did that mean that his, Dritharashtra’s, descendants would never ascend the thrown?

The keening sound emanating from Dritharashtra’s chambers made the servants move further away. They did not want to bear the brunt of the Arya prince’s anger. But Gandhari could sense her husband’s pain, his heartbreaking disappointment. She shed tears of sorrow for his broken dreams, his aspirations to rule the mighty kingdom of Hastinapura. She walked into the chamber to commiserate with her husband. And that night, that very night, Gandhari was impregnated. 

All the disappointment, anger and jealousy in Dritharashtra got transferred to her womb – to be born as the hundred Kauravas. That night the seed of Kurukshetra was sown in Gandhari’s womb by Dritharashtra’s heartbreak. 

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