Vishnu's Initiative

The Trinity was in a dilemma. The Dwapar Yug has lost its value. Its consequences needed to be faced. Kaali Yug needed to be ushered in. Once again, it was time for Vishnu to take human form and purify the earth of all evils. Ram had removed evil from the Treta Yug; it was now time for Krishna to be born. A meeting was called for all Devas and Gandharvas, Demons and Nagas who reached Swarga Lok. Vishnu spoke to the eager crowd that gathered to hear the Trinity.

Vishnu

“It’s time again, all devas; it’s time to remove evil from Dwapar once and for all… I have decided it’s time to take birth as an Avatar once again. You all have helped Ram usher in Dwapar, and I hope that you volunteer to do the same with Krishna.” He added, happily looking at his family in the crowd, “Laxmi will join me as Yajnaseni Draupadi, and Anant Naga as my elder brother Balaram.”

“I have already heard that you have blessed Hiranyakashipu to be Shishupala, Narayan.” Brahma smiled.

“Yes, and Sanghallad will be born as Shalya, King of Madra. Kalnemi will be born as Kansa to be killed by me for his sins. Viprachitti will be Jarasandha, King of Magadha.”

“Narayan, demons Dirghojibi and Kalketu will be Kasi Raj and Matsya Raj, respectively. Kasi Raja will father Amba, Ambika, and Ambalika, and Matsya Raja will be born out of a fish with a twin sister.” Shiva smiled.

Dev Guru Brihaspati spoke now, hands folded, “ Respected Trinity, I want to be part of your Dharma Sthapana as well, order me, my lords!”

“You will be born as Dronacharya, Dev Guru, your role will be an important one”, Vishnu instructed.

“My ansh will be born as Kripacharya, the great learned man, and Ashwathama, son to Drona,” Shiva ordered.

Asta Vasu now stepped forward, “ We have already been cursed for our misdeed, and Mata Ganga has been ready to be our mother. Our ansh will also be born as Drupad, King of Panchal, and our youngest brother will be reborn as Devabrata.”

Dharma Raja, Yama, offered his part, "My ansh will help bring peace and prosperity. They will be Daasi Putra Vidur and Samrat Yudhisthir.”

The Gandharvas wanted to participate too. “We will be born as Kritavarma and Raja Virat of Matsya.” A Gandharva called Subaru informed, “ I am already cursed, so I will be Dhritarashtra, the blind prince.”

Pulastya volunteered, “I will give my ansh as the 99 sons of Dhritarashtra.”

“I will be the eldest Duryodhan”, the vain Kali demon roared. " I will win over Dharma."

Chandra and Rohini

Yogamaya appeared before the crowd. “Narayan, allow me to be part of your Dharma, let me be born as your sister.”

“You will be Subhadra Devi, my sister, mother to the bravest warrior.” Narayan smiled.

Chandra and Rohini stepped in," Our curse has to be fruitful, so let us be of some use too,” They pleaded.

“You will be born as Abhimanyu, who is the greatest warrior and his wife, Uttara.” Vishnu granted.

Goddess Siddhi and Dhriti also wanted to participate. “We will be Pandu's wives, Kunti and Madri.”

“I will be born as Gandhari.” Replied Maati, the goddess of Intelligence.

Kama Dev stepped forward, “I will be Pradyumna.”

Vayu Dev, Pavan, blessed his ansh to be born as Bheem, the second Pandava. Indra blessed his ansh as Arjun, the greatest archer, and Surya blessed his ansh as Karna. Ashwini Kumaras gave twin ansh in Nakul and Sahadev.

Dwapar the Demon reincarnated himself as Shakuni.”I will help Dwapar end and help Kali.”

Thus began the plan for the greatest war Bharat would witness in the future; the war that would usher in Kali Yug and the fight that would rip apart a whole clan of warriors, princes and learned men; the saga of the greatest sacrifices, the women who sacrificed their everything for the greater good. The epic teaches man the ways of Dharma and teaches us to rectify mistakes. Mahabharata.

Uttara's Hope

This is part of the "Uttara Series" You will find under the Mahabharata. The series is also available on Wattpad. She was clad in white attire. Her churamani and jewellery were all taken away. She sat numbly in front of his dead body for a whole day, pregnant with his heir, looking at his face as though he was asleep. He had told her more than once that this day could come and that she had to protect their heir. He feared her future without him. That one day turned the fifteen-year-old Princess of Matsya into an aged lady. She became quiet and aloof. Her only concern now was her baby. Her baby wiggled in her womb. She remembered him saying, " I will always be with you." All she wanted now was a son like his father. But she knew all Hastinapur wanted was an heir to the throne. The war had ended five days after his death, and they were back in the palace of Hastinapur victorious. She, for the first time, entered her real in-laws' home, but without him. All sh...

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...

Maharana Pratap: The Sun of Mewar

Many of you have read my fan fiction as well as historical representations of the life and times of Maharana Pratap Singh of Mewar. I provided small details of his life in many articles. But never have I ever made a separate historical post on him. It is very difficult to put together his life without the help of folklore because historical evidence is scarce. This one was requested, and hence here it goes. Needless to say, this one is very special. This is a blend of history and folklore. Leave your love. ❤️ Background and Birth: The year was 1540. Mewar was under a cloud of uncertainty. Banbir, their ruler for four years now, was a very incompetent ruler who always spent his time in luxury, drinking and dancing with girls. The crown prince Udai Singh was rumoured to have been killed by him. Chittorgarh was in darkness. Around March 1540, Mewar once again saw hope as some trusted generals, along with Kunwar Udai Singh, attacked Chittorgarh, taking Banbir by surprise. He was soon ...

Sisodiya: Kings, Queens and Princes (1538 - 1597)

I am back with another History post, this time it is on the wives and sons of Rana Udai Singh II of Mewar, his son and heir Maharana Pratap and Rana Amar Singh. This is a continuation of the Sisodia Family History I posted some time back. The information has been taken from Annals of Mewar by James Todd, Maharana Pratap by B.N. Rana, and Maharana Pratap by Rima Hooja. Udai Singh II was the son of Ranisa Karnawati and Rana Sangram Singh. He was born on 4th August 1 522, at Chittorgarh and died on 28th February 1 572 at Gogunda . He was the Ruler of the Sisodia Dynasty. He is believed to have 56 sons and 2 5 wives, apart from the many insignificant queens in his Rani Mahal. Here is a list of his main queens and their sons. Maharani Jaivanta Bai Songara of Jalore was his chief queen and consort. Her son is Maharana Pratap. He was married to her before he went to war with Banbir, as her father, Akshayraj Rao, was a friend and ally of his father, Rana Sanga. Saj...

Nawab E Bengal

Background: Nawab Alivardi Khan was ruling Bengal at the peak of Nawabi rule, expanding his strong empire. He had successfully suppressed the Marathas and had given a strong message to the British East India Company’s rising influence at Calcutta. Highly aware of the British Colonial policies across the globe, Nawab Alivardi Khan was strict with his policies and stronghold over Murshidabad, the then capital of Bengal (including present-day Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Orissa, and Bangladesh). He had two daughters and no sons. Amina Begum was the elder one, followed by Ghaseti Begum. Amina had three sons with her husband and courtier, Ahmed Khan. The second son, Mirza Mohammad, fondly called Siraj-Ud-Daulah (light of the country)by his grandfather, was born in 1733C.E. He was his grandfather’s favourite because he was born while he won over the Marathas. Alivardi Khan never let the “fortune child” of the family out of his sight. Siraj grew up accompanying his g...

Mewar: Origin of Guhilots

Origin: Lord Rama had two sons, Labh and Kush . The Ranas of Mewar are descendants of the former. Labh had built his capital at Lah-Kot (Lahore) , and the branch from which the Mewar blue blood arrives resided there until Kanaksen (Often traced as the founder)moved to Dwarika, Saurashtra. "Sen" was used as a title term for many decades by this Suryavanshi clan until it later changed to "Dit" or "Aditya", names of the Sun. Aditya was changed to Guhilot permanently after the expulsion from Saurashtra when they settled in the Ahar valleys (Aravallis). The Sisodia clan sprang from a Prince of Chittoor who had killed a hard chase hare (sissoo in local dialect). The branch often used " Ranawat ", meaning "Royal Blood", as a title, but over time, Sisodia emerged as the retained branch name. Kanaksen wrestled dominance of the Parmar race and founded Birnagar in AD 144. Four generations hence, Vijay Sen ...

Teeja Saka Chittor Ra

23rd February 1568. The sun rose on the eastern horizon, not with the hope of a new day. But, with the horror of what was to follow. The first rays of the Sun God were met by the chants of “Jai Bhavani!” that echoed in the air of Chittorgarh. The Mewaris knew it was time. Four months back, when the Mughals camped at the base of the fort, a helpless Chittorgarh had watched. Rana Udai Singh had left with his closest aides to make the new city westwards, his capital. If rumours were to be believed, he had left behind a cavalry of 8000 soldiers, under Rao Jaimal of Merta and Rawat Patta of Kelwa, to look over the fort. He had also left behind some of his lesser queens and infant princes, as an assurance to the people that Chittorgarh was invincible. Their safety and hope had lived in Kunwar Pratap. Truth be said, they had already taken the Crown Prince as their King. Ever since Ranisa had left with him till he became the Senapati, he had time and again proved to be a better lea...

Prithviraj Chauhan: A Saga

Note: This piece is a work of fiction based on folklore and the Prithviraj Raso, an epic saga by Chand Bardai, who happened to be the court poet of Prithviraj Chauhan. The dates corresponding to wars, names of people and places are, however, historically fact-checked from various sources, including the works of Todd (semi-historical), The Amir Khusrau and contemporary sources like R.C.Majumder. The incidents are fictionally woven. Rai Pithora Around the year 1140 A.D., Ajmer was ruled by Anangpal of the Tomara Dynasty. Delhi was the seat of power of the Sultanate, which was a constant power struggle for them. He managed to capture briefly most parts of west Rajputana, and present-day Haryana and Punjab were also part of his kingdom. The old king had a son and two daughters. His concern grew as his son Surya was not talented enough to rule Ajmer. His youngest daughter, Princess Karpuri Devi, was married to Someshwar Chauhan of the famous Chauhan clan. Their son, Rai Pithora, helped...

Charumati's Love

T his is written based on folklore. This is a representative work of fiction and does not claim any historical happening in the conversations. This is to show the spirit of the women of Rajputana. The year 1657. Shah Jahan had taken ill and was rumoured to be dying in Agra Fort. He was about eighty, and the pressure of having an empire had taken a toll on his body. The seat of power was slowly shifting from Agra to Delhi since the prominence of the Laal Quila had increased, and if the news spread was to be believed, his sons were in a battle for the throne already. It was time each king chose sides once again. Dara Sikhoh was the eldest and the righteous Heir to the throne. He was believed to be a man who held high morals and was hence respected by both enemies and allies as well. Aurangzeb was his sibling and the youngest of the brothers. Short-tempered and cunning, he was always dreaded by the court. As Shah Jahan took ill, Aurangzeb took this as a golden opportunity to wa...

Rani Padmini: The Valiant Queen

This story is a retelling of some parts of Malik Mohammad Jayasi's Padmavat, which was a historical fiction poem written in 1540, an odd 200 years after the siege of Chittorgarh by Allauddin Khilji. Historically, the Rajputs of Mewar didn't keep accounts of their queens, even by name, so the name Padmini or Padmavati was made up by Jayasi to represent the women of Chittor who chose the Jauhar. Historically speaking, Allauddin Khilji wanted the trade route to Surat for himself, which went through Mewar and Rana Ratan Singh, a patron of art, was not known for his military skills. So when Khilji surrounded the fort, the only way out was the Saka and Jauhar. Rani Padmini's Jauhar, as it is now popularly called, is also not the first Jauhar Khilji witnessed. The Jauhars of Ranthambore and Jaisalmer happened before he attacked Chittorgarh. Also, the act of Jauhar happened as early as the Greek invasions of Porus's state, when it is described as the "Mass immolation of Sa...

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