The Queen's Journey.
Of Love, Duty and Sacrifice.
Be sure to read Part 1 first.
What the King did not know on that early morning, before the sun rose, when he commanded his brother to escort the Queen to the forest, banished from his Palace but not his heart, was something the Queen herself, had just barely realized - she was pregnant.
Had he known, would he have made a different decision ?
Was it to preserve both their sanity that the Gods ensured neither knew, in that moment, that not only a wife and a sweetheart but also a soon-to-be mother was forced to leave the comfort of a Royal home and the secure presence of her beloved?
When morning broke, the disheveled King, awake, roused himself from the floor before anyone entered. He stood by the window, gazing at the rising sun. It held no joy for him; his heart had turned to stone, and whatever spirit he had, had left with his Queen.
The brother, meanwhile, had driven his sister-in-law to a forest beyond the Kingdom’s borders. There, he bowed to her, begging forgiveness, bound by duty to the King’s and older brother’s orders. He cried at the fate of his mother-like Queen, who, after all the sorrow she had seen since her wedding, was not spared this moment.
He almost censured his brother, an unthinkable act. However, the Queen stopped him in time and in anger, stating that she would not hear anyone speak ill of her beloved. What had happened, had happened.
She had willingly embraced the life her dearest husband had commanded of her. She knew, in her heart, what it had cost him to exile her. That fact, only she was privy to. So, she would not let anyone in the three realms, and in the Universe beyond, ever speak ill of her husband, who had sacrificed his heart to observe his duty. In so doing, he had relied on her love, duty, and strength to give him courage to continue.
Such temperament and courage were not given to everyone. It was not the choice that anyone else could have made, lived with, and continued with daily life, amid the intense sorrow in his heart. The choice was not ordered onto him; it was one made out of compulsion to a King’s duty that came first, over his personal duties.
The worst kind of fate anyone would wish on a couple. It is easy when the world is railed against you, and you have someone else to hate. But when the sorrow is brought on by one whom you love, and who loves you without limit, what then?
So the Queen reassured her brother-in-law, nay her son, and assured him of her safety. She ordered him to return and take care of his brother, for his sorrow was no less than her own.
The brother bowed, and, watching her go into the forest, left in his chariot. Upon his return, he went to the Palace of the King and found him standing still by the window. The King did not speak at first, then slowly turned to face his brother.
Shocked, the brother stepped forward involuntarily. His brother’s ever-smiling countenance was gone, and no expression of joy remained on his face. Even in the midst of upheaval in the forests, when they had briefly lost sight of the Queen, he had never seen such a vacant expression on his brother’s face.
After a few minutes of silence, the brother withdrew, suddenly realizing the colossal burden the King carried, and understanding that there was nothing to be said or counseled.
The King’s mother awoke to the news from the King’s brother about what had transpired in the early hours. Shocked, she rushed to the King’s side and berated him for the terrible fate he had condemned her beloved daughter-in-law, nay, daughter too. What about the Queen’s father? What was she to say to the King of a faraway land who had entrusted his daughter to her safekeeping?
And what of her son, the courageous warrior and beloved husband who had fought a great war over ten days, vanquishing evil to rescue the same wife from an evil demon-King? She questioned between tears, how he could have had the heart to exile his innocent wife? Had her precious daughter not seen enough sorrow to last a lifetime?
She railed at him, relentlessly for hours, and he spoke not once against her accusations. He heard her in silence, his heart broken, invisible to them all.
What defense did he really have other than to point them to the burden of duty cast on his head? Could he share that he had briefly even thought of abdicating his throne, and making his younger brother the King to retire into the forest with his wife? Yet, his conscience and his oath to the throne, and the honor of his father and the forefathers, forbade him to take the easy way out.
So, in the end, he had sacrificed himself and his dearest Queen on the altar of duty, and dharma (righteous way). There was naught anyone could say to him, that could hurt him anymore. In fact, he welcomed the verbal onslaught of his mother, and the soon to come reactions of his other remaining brothers, his step-mothers, all of whom doted on his Queen.
The Queen trudged slowly through the forest, no stranger to surviving the harsh environment, after sharing thirteen years of blissful living with her husband during their joint exile.
Now, at each step, she remembered long-forgotten incidents when the Prince had taken care of her in the forest and seen to her every need. She also remembered the joy of his expression as it alighted on her, and it brought her some comfort now. His love, she felt, was with her, no matter where she was in the world.
She had not spent more than twenty to thirty minutes walking and reminiscing. Immediately upon reaching a clearing, she encountered a wise old sage in orange robes, a flowing white beard, a knotted lock of hair on his head, and a rosary bead necklace hanging around his neck. Seemingly he came out of nowhere, and yet, showed no surprise at seeing her.
Gently, he bowed to her, addressing her as Queen. However, she protested, claiming to be an ordinary person at his mercy, and called him father. Instantly, he accepted her as his daughter and informed her that he was aware of who she was and how she came to be in that forest that morning.
Such is the vision of mystic sages.
He comforted her, saying the injustice would be undone someday. For now, he begged her to accompany him to his ashram and live there as his adopted daughter.
The Queen hesitated. What if they found out her identity at the ashram ? She could not bear the glances, sympathetic to her, and accusatory towards her husband, nor the curiosity that would surround her entrance.
The sage promised her then that he would not disclose her identity to a soul. Instead, he gave her a new name, as one born of the forest.
The sage also advised her that, in her condition, she should have a place to call home, and she should not hesitate to accept him as her father-designate.
Surprised at the sage’s knowledge of her condition, which she had only begun to suspect and had no opportunity to confirm or share with her beloved, she was won over by the sage’s suggestion.
So, the months passed. The sage had given strict instructions to the inmates of the ashram on how to treat his adopted daughter, to surround her with love and warmth, and accept her as one of their own.
It is said that God does not abandon His own, and in that forest, He sent the sage to offer sanctuary to a desolate Queen. Her heart was also torn asunder, and her days in the ashram were spent between doing the tasks the sage assigned her to distract her and ensuring she took care during her pregnancy. When alone, she wondered how her husband was doing and if he too was missing her.
The eight months passed as time superficially healed her open wounds with the sage’s loving nurturing, and her ashram companions' devotion, just enough that she looked forward to giving birth to her baby. She hid her heartache under the onslaught of daily chores.
The day dawned, as the sage had forecast, and he learned that the Queen had given birth to not one, but two babies - twins, separated by minutes.
The older one he named Kusha, and the younger, Luva, after the two ends of a sacred blade of grass.
The twins grew under the care of the sage and were trained by him, befitting the children of a King, though they knew not who their parents were in reality.
When they raised the topic of their father to their mother, she dissuaded them from asking too many questions. Sometimes, they only got a sad look, and other times, tears as she looked away. Unwilling to be the cause of her sadness, they stopped asking.
Instead, they turned to the sage, their Guru now, and sought answers. But the Guru would not tell them anything other than to be patient.
Meanwhile, he had started to write down the story of the magnificent Prince and the loving Princess, from their childhoods to the day of the Princess reaching his ashram.
He read aloud to the twins daily as they grew up, the story of these two principal characters that he was writing, and instinctively, without even knowing why, the twins immediately defended the Queen and were angered by the actions of the King.
They failed to understand the poor wisdom of the King, who had banished such a woman without fault. So, they resolved, as they discussed between themselves, they would inform the King if they ever met him, that his treatment of the Queen was not one that was befitting that of a just King.
At every stage, they reveled in the story of the Prince, the monkey devotee who helped them, imagined what the Royal kingdom looked like and fought mock battles that the sage described were fought in reality, to rescue the Princess, who was kidnapped by an evil demon-king.
Thus, ten years passed since the birth of the children. Ten long years of separation for the King and the Queen, and the absence of the joy of raising their children together and enjoying their innocent childhood.
The King, blind to the fact that he had twin boys, ruled a kingdom at peace. Its citizens marveled at his benevolence and just ways, counting themselves lucky to have been born at that time.
How he passed those ten years, only he knew.
Distracting himself with the daily affairs of the kingdom, its citizens, and performing his duty towards his mothers and brothers, he fought the memories of his past.
He reserved to himself the unmitigated sorrow he experienced each night after he could no longer be distracted by the affairs of the kingdom, and his family had left him alone.
He stood by his window, gazing out to the night sky, and on some days, the moon and the stars, remembering and deepening his sorrow at the memories that arrived to torment him in the still of the night. For the moon had always reminded him of her, such that on days he knew it was full, he avoided looking at the sky though his beloved’s face was never far from his mind.
As the twins grew, sheltered from the turmoil of their parents’ heartache, and each day passed in tutelage, they felt more drawn to all of the characters the sage introduced them to in his writing.
One day, they admired the courage of the Prince and his brother, and another day, they disliked the Prince turned King for his actions towards his Princess.
Thus, the twins were confused, torn between the conflicting emotions they experienced. Unable to fully seek resolution of this contradiction, they leaned towards defending the Princess.
Little did they realize what these characters in the story being woven by the wise sage had to do with them.
The King’s spiritual and religious advisors, that every Royal family had for wise counsel, convened one day with the King and his family, and suggested that the King perform a special sacrifice to establish his supremacy over the lands, and to commemorate the ten years of peace in the kingdom.
They suggested it was right for the people to have a cause to celebrate after the dull nature of these ten years since the Queen had left, and the people need to experience some joy of the King’s rule.
As was custom, the King bowed to the wishes of the royal priests, and his mother and step-mothers beamed, happy that at last, the King’s mind may turn from the sorrows of the past.
The news spread like wildfire, the King was to conduct the Ashwamedha sacrifice, a sacrifice only the most renowned and bravest of warriors would undertake, and one that would bring untold joy in the land.
For it was known that this type of sacrifice could not be undertaken alone; it had to be performed as a couple.
Given that the Queen was no longer in the King’s life, it came to reason, that the King must marry again, and take a new wife.
The names of beautiful princesses from neighboring lands began circulating, and the populace weighed the pros and cons of each candidate.
Though saddened by the Queen’s departure, they reasoned that the King deserved happiness and could not remain single forever.
Moreover, concerns arose about the need for an heir to the throne.
After all, ten years had passed, and it was time for the King to consider sharing his life with another Queen, fulfilling his duty for the kingdom's future.
So they planned, shared, and rejoiced, as those with average understanding are wont to do, insisting it is the right way forward.
The rumor of the King marrying and taking a new wife spread like wildfire, first from the wise ones, and then, like all rumors do, from everyone.
As though the news was as certain as truth, the people of the kingdom began to hope that this meant their King might at last experience some personal joy.
The rumor, now turned into a fact, reached the boundaries of the forest, and soon, it reached the ashram through a wandering minstrel.
The Queen, still incognito, heard this news, shared in such a cavalier fashion by her companions, that the pot of water she was carrying slipped and fell, spilling its contents on the mud floor. Her beloved was to be married? Her mind and heart went numb at the news. How? When?
Did this mean he had forgotten her? Was it possible that, as a man, he could only love for a little bit of time, and not forever like she was compelled by her heart to do?
What of his promise to her?
Was it contingent on her being with him? Or was it just for convenience, uttered in the throes of a first love?
Was it so weak that it had broken under the pressure of society, religious order, and the separation of time and distance?
Why then did her heart still beat as it did on the first day she had met him in the garden, and her memories of the love they shared, as new as it was freshly made that day?
She went into the forest quietly to be still with her thoughts and the agitation caused by a rumor turned truth. No news was certainly not good news in her case, as she had no means of ascertaining any facts, exiled without any Royal aides to bring her news at her command.
After the birth of the twins, she had stopped crying, afraid her tears might bring on questions from the twins she could not answer, and wishing only to show them a neutral countenance.
Though she laughed at their antics and took part in every aspect of their rearing, the absence of her sweetheart always cast a shadow on her countenance, and her eyes appeared haunted, her face burdened by the memories of the past. No one at the ashram dared ask her why.
Now, for the first time, sitting by the stream in the forest near the ashram, she stared at the waters, unable to tell if they flowed from her eyes or from the river afar.
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India itself is a land of tales. You prove that.
Jayshree, You are a very good story teller. D