Uttara's Life

Parikshit has returned triumphant from the hunting expedition. He came to his Grandfather and sought his blessings. "Pranipat. I have returned triumphant, and as per your instructions, I met with Maharshi Jaimini and sought advice."

" What did he say, Putra?"
" He was pleased to know my idea on rewriting and reviving the lost Gyan of the Vedas."
" God Bless You, my child, at this age, you talk more gravely than we, reminds me of your father." Adhirathi Arjuna's face grew sad at the memory of his son. " Go see your Mother. She is waiting."

In the Andarmahal, Queen Uttara sat surrounded by her mothers-in-law and maids. The gossip was about the marriage of the Prince. Uttara had asked the elders to look for a bride. She wanted to do away with her duties towards her family. Thirty-three-year-old Queen Uttara was feeling old. She had now spent most of her life alone in the crowded palace. She wanted to be free and engage herself in spiritual bliss. Her social life was like a cage for her now. Parikshit rushed in and hugged her.

" You have come back, Putra? What is this wound?" The mother in her grew concerned.
" It is nothing, Maata, just a scratch, from the thorns of the forests."
" Daasi, bring in the medicines, Quick!"

Seeing his mother concerned made him smile. His smile made her feel that it was his father smiling at her as she cleared his wounds. Her mind travelled back eighteen years to a terrible memory and a promise, " I will be with you forever." Gathering her thoughts, she told her son, "It's time, dear. I have asked your grandfather to look for a suitable bride for you."

" But mother? Bride? Marriage?"
" Why not? You are eighteen, and your father got married at sixteen."
" Because people were unsure of the future, whether he would be alive to give an heir."

Her son's answer startled her. She remembered that his father had actually not wanted to cause her this sorrow; he wanted to spare her this life. Draupadi came up to the worried Uttara, " Don't worry, let him meet the bride, he will be ready, he is like his father, reluctant to change." Uttara nodded in silence with a smile.

The wedding was a grand affair. Uttara gifted all the jewellery that she had worn only six months after her wedding to her new daughter-in-law. The churamani shone brightly as Uttara prayed to God about her deepest fear. Let her life not be reflected in her Daughter-in-law. May they be together. Uttara's prayers were answered as they lived in peace and had their first child. Uttara held her grandchild, " Janmejaya, one who wins over life." She called him. Her first grandchild. The future. She was sad that the Pandavas could not see this, as they had already left for heaven.

She arranged a grand feast in the palace of Hastinapur. She was happy. Parikshit was holding his son in his arms. He was smiling at his baby. The scene filled her heart. She remembered how much his father wanted to do this. How much he wanted to hold his baby and teach him. Uttara's eyes filled with tears. She ran away from the crowd and into her chambers and drew out a chest. In it were clothes and jewellery. She took out a crown. It belonged to him.

" Arya, see your grandchild is born. Our Parikshit can do what you dreamt of. All because of your sacrifice." She was in tears.
"Maata?"
" Putra Parikshit. Why did you come here?"
" Why did you come away, Mother?"
" I was just..."
" Isn't that father's crown?"
" Yes, I was just... I have something to tell you."
" Yes, maata?"
" Your father had a dream."
" What is it, Maate? Tell me, and I will fulfil it."
" He wanted to hold you in his arms and teach you."

Parikshit was shocked at this. His heart sank. He had always heard of how valiant his father had been; this side of him was unknown.

" He used to talk to you every day through me. He wanted the best for you. He would have been so happy today to see Janmejaya."
" Maata, I don't know what to say."

" Putra, take this crown. Give it to Janmejaya when he understands what this means. Tell him about his grandfather. Make him a valiant man."
" Maata, you will be there to teach him, he will learn as I learnt..."
" No, my Putra, Tomorrow at Pratakal I will leave."
" Leave? Where Maata?"
" To Maharishi Vyasdev's Aahsram."
" But why?"

Uttara smiled at her son. Only if he knew how lonely she had been, how her fight had been, how life had seemed like a cage at times.

" Because it's time I leave my social life and live in a hermitage, till death. But don't worry, your news will keep arriving there, and you can come to meet me."
" I will bring Janmejaya too; he should know his grandmother like I knew mine."
" But ..."
" And I am sorry you did not have a normal childhood."

Parikshit said nothing. He had always seen his mother quiet and composed. This side of her was different.

Uttara left for hermitage, where she got news of her son's several marital ties and the birth of his six other sons. She never returned to the place that stole her life for the sake of thrones. She was happy with her heritage. Peace was at her side at last. Her life was at last not involved in wars anymore. She was happy.

The Prince of Mewar

Born on 16 March 1559 in the Kumbha Palace of Chittorgarh Fort, Bhanwar Amar Singh was the eldest son of Kunwar Pratap Singh (later Maharana Pratap) and Kunwarani Ajabdeh Punwar. As the first grandson of Udai Singh I, his birth prompted the Maharana's celebratory hunting expedition, during which a sage forewarned of impending danger. Heeding this, Udai Singh established a new palace by Lake Pichola, founding Udaipur as Mewar's capital. Amar Singh exhibited extraordinary valour from a young age, inheriting his father's martial skills and his mother's reputed compassion. His training commenced early; according to James Tod's Annals and Antiquities of Rajasthan, he participated in his first battle alongside Pratap at age eight. By ten, amid Chittorgarh's fall and familial divisions, he assumed responsibility for his siblings. Historical accounts recount his defence of the queens' entourage against enemy soldiers en route to Kumbhalgarh fortress. He shared a clo...

Neel Kanth

In the vast tapestry of Hindu mythology, Neelkanth Sasti holds a significant place, as it honours Lord Shiva’s act of supreme compassion and courage. According to the Puranas, this day commemorates the pivotal moment during the Samudra Manthan, the cosmic churning of the ocean, when the deadly poison Halahal emerged. Halahal, described as the collective essence of all the universe’s negativity and toxicity, began to spread destruction among both Devas and Asuras. Its effects were so perilous that even the gods could not approach it, symbolising the universal truth that adversity and suffering make no distinction between divine or mortal beings. With the balance of creation at risk and the churning brought to a standstill, Mahadev Lord Shiva, the Destroyer and Transformer within the Hindu Trinity, was invoked for help. In an act of unparalleled self-sacrifice, he consumed the Halahal to protect all existence from annihilation. However, the potency of the poison was such that it threaten...

Asuras are not Demons

Demons in the Abrahamic religion are not the same as Asuras of Hinduism. Originally deities of Iranian origin, they were seen in the tribal context as no different from Devas but as counterparts to maintain balance. In early epics and Puranas, asura meant a chosen leader of great capacity. Only later, perhaps due to the Iranian link, their image declined. It was with the Brahmanas that the sharp divide appeared: devas as divine, asuras as evil. Puranic myths demonised them mainly to assert the superiority and immortality of devas, while asuras were cast as symbols of the "other." Since Tribes still worshipped them and embraced their power of negativity, being important to balance, they soon became synonymous with tribes, which was not the case mythologically. There are instances of Bali or Ravana being Kshatriya or Brahmin Asuras and competent kings. Indian demonology itself is vast and layered, shaped by surviving tribes, each with unique myths. Celestial, aerial, and terres...

The Cortege That Shook The Raj: Kanailal Dutta

10th November, 1908 Around late morning, a procession of lacs made their way through the streets of Calcutta (Kolkata), India. Some were chanting “Vande Mataram”, others blew conch shells, and Ululation filled the air. Flowers were being showered from all directions, and garlands made their way through the crowd, being thrown at the procession in the middle. Bhagwat Gita and Ananda Math (Novel by Bamkim Chandra) were offered. No, this was no “ Sobha Jatra ” or celebration. There were no religious festivities either. That dawn, the Alipore Jail, which opened only two years back, witnessed the hanging of Kanailal Dutta, a twenty-year-old member of the “Jugantar Dol”, an anarchist group that was set up primarily by Aurobindo Ghosh (Later Rishi Aurobindo), his brother Barindra and their associates. Kanailal hailed from Chandannagore, and although he was not present in most of their meetings in Kolkata, he was still one of their early members from Chandannagore, then a French province. ...

Jahanara Begum Sahib: The Sufi Princess

Shah Jahan's quarters flanked on either side by identical bungalows for Jahanara and Roshanara. Background: The Timurid Dynasty, better (and wrongly) known as the Mughal Empire, ruled the Subcontinent from 1526 C.E. till the time the British East India Company successfully captured Delhi from Bahadur Shah II in 1857 C.E. (The size of the empire obviously varied). Hence, a large part of medieval Indian history revolves around the characters of this dynasty. Due to the extensive amount of contemporary records right from Babur, the founder of the empire, writing his own memoirs in “ Babar Nama ” to the accounts of court poets like Abu Talim and the extensive details of Abul Fazl, one has a clear idea about the functioning of the Timurid empire as well as the Harem involving the royal ladies of the dynasty. Almost nothing is left to the imagination when it comes to the lives of the first six and most famous and successful Timurid emperors, namely Babar, Humayun, Akbar, Jahangir...

The Warrior and Princess

Dasharatha was very protective of his sons. He had got them after almost a lifetime of waiting and yajnas, so they were his lifeline. Ram, the eldest, won hearts with his humble, generous ways. Bharata, the second, was his favourite queen's brave son, and Laxman and Shatrughan were the twins to the lesser queen, who followed their brothers like shadows. They were a peaceful, happy family. Sage Vasistha was their Kulaguru, teaching them the Vedic hymns and the righteous ways of life. The Princes grew up in the luxurious, protected premises of the palace. The King of Mithila, too, was childless. Mother Earth granted him a daughter. Sita grew up learning and curious, followed by the king's second daughter, Urmila and their cousins Mandavi and Shrutakirti. They grew up knowing the natural ways of life, and their father took them to learn from men to know more about man and his natural instincts. The princesses were curious and always questioning the traditions, and the Princes lear...

Rakhi Tales

A Rakhi to the Enemy: The year was 1535 CE. The Rajmata of Mewar, widow of Rana Sanga, was in a dilemma. On one hand was an attack from Bahadur Shah of Gujarat as a threat to her capital, Chittorgarh, and the throne of her beloved teenage son Vikramaditya. On the other hand, there was the son of her husband's archenemy, Humayun, who could be of some help. Rani Karnavati wrote a letter to Humayun, who was in the east at that time. Along with it, she sent a Rakhi, a thread of brotherhood, asking him, as a sister, for protection against the enemy. But the road was too long, and time was of the essence. Humayun arrived at Chittorgarh, in response to her letter, keeping his end of the bargain but a little late. Rani Karnavati had already performed the Jauhar. They never met. Humayun established Rana Vikramaditya on the throne of Mewar, as he had promised as a brother, and returned to his post. Two dynasties, political rivals and sworn enemies, from Sanga-Babur to Pratap-Akbar and even R...

The Annals of Rajputana

Col. James Todd’s Annals and Antiquities of Rajasthan describes Rajputana through History, Geography, Mythology, Folklore, Veer Gathas, Traditions, Cultures, Heritage, Rules, Valour and its people. However, one must remember that he was commissioned to write the narrative and his resources are not based on historical evidence. However, it is worth a read and very interesting. The following excerpts are from his book. Please take note that Todd's accounts are based on hearsay, stories, and commissioned by royals and hence aren't treated as historically accurate. However, his book is important as it is the first English-language book to have extensive work done on Rajputana. Rajputs are commonly believed to be people from Rajasthan; however, their branches have spread far and wide into Punjab, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra and even parts of Bengal. The initial origination-based clans/tribes had been subdivided first in the book Prithvirajraso by Chand Bardai; howev...

DAMODAR GANGADHAR RAO : The Ill Fated Heir

In the shadowed halls of Jhansi's royal palace, a nine-year-old boy named Ananda Rao stepped into a destiny of struggle he was not born into. Born in 1848 to Vasudeo Rao and his wife, Ananda Rao was surrendered to the childless King Gangadhar Rao and his fierce young queen, Manikarnika (Manu), better known as Rani Laxmi Bai. It was November 19, 1853, on the king's deathbed, amid whispers of adoption rites that bound the boy to a throne teetering on the edge of empire. Queen Laxmi Bai was just nine when she married the 29-year-old widower Gangadhar. She had already endured heartbreak. Her biological son, Damodar Rao, arrived in 1851 but slipped away after three short months. With Gangadhar's death in 1853, Vasudeo, a distant royal relative, was instructed to hand over Ananda's adoption papers. Renamed Damodar Rao, the boy became Jhansi's last hope. But hope was fragile under British eyes. Enter the Doctrine of Lapse, Lord Dalhousie’s ruthless policy that devoured pri...

Chawand: The Maharana's Capital

The road from Udaipur quickly fades into quiet countryside as you head toward Jaisamand Lake and Chavand, a journey that few package tours offer, but one that is forever imprinted on my memory. Just shy of an hour and 59km from the city bustle, you reach Jaisamand (Dhebar Lake), the “Ocean of Victory,” sprawling as Asia’s once-largest man-made lake . Built in 1685 by Maharana Jai Singh, who followed his father’s legendary tradition of dam-building, this vast sheet of water shimmers in the sunlight. I watched local ferries pass, and marble stairs dip into blue shallows, imagining bygone queens slipping into cooling water beneath the massive embankment. Even today, friendly boatmen linger, eager to usher you onto the lake for a breezy ride. They tell you stories of how once a Maharana roamed these dense forests in search of freedom. Do pause here and soak in the peaceful air before venturing further southwest, toward the forgotten echoes of Mewar’s pride. The drive to Chavand, ...

A Journey To Discover Life

Search This Blog