The hero of this story is Kalidas, a young boy, who lived many years back in a remote corner of India. He was an orphan since birth. His mother breathed her last after the baby had been born. His father, who was a woodcutter, was killed by a tiger when he went into the deep forest. Little Kalidas was brought up by his only relative – a half-mad aunt. Life did not offer much mercy on him. They lived in poverty and Kalidas did not get anything for luxury. There was no friend of him as he wanted to live in his own world. The village elders did not have good opinion on this boy as he showed no interest in studies. The old priest of the village shrine used to say, “The great grandfather of this boy was a learned Pundit. It’s a pity that Kalidas doesn’t follow his forefather’s footsteps.” Kalidas hated going to school. When his aunt told him to learn the alphabet, he retorted, “What will those yellow pages do to me? Let me be alone. I would like to enjoy my time with birds and animals in the forest.” He wanted to be a woodcutter like his father. That would give him an opportunity to see the nature abound with plants and animals. He used to collect firewood in the forest and sold them in the local market.
But for one reason, people really admired Kalidas – he was extremely handsome. When he walked down the street, villagers stood gaping at him. They commented, “He must have descended from a royal family. Though he is dressed in simple clothes, his princely features are easily noticeable.” The women on their way to the stream used to look up to this young man from the hide of their saree. They whispered to each other, “Look, the blue-eyed handsome boy is crossing us. It’s sad that he never tries to eye us.” Indeed, Kalidas was completely ignorant of his elegant looks. He was more attracted to the beauty and simplicity of nature.
The king set a condition that Kalidas would live with his wife in the palace itself. He would not be allowed to go back to his village and stay in the house of his half-mad aunt. Kalidas was not unhappy with this arrangement. He did not have much to do in the village. He also liked the appearance of a beautiful princess in his life and wanted to be with her. But he did not know how to speak to the girl of a royal family. He asked her with in a fumbling voice, "Can... can I call please call you Her... Her Highness?" The princess giggled and replied, “You could have called me Her Highness if we were not married. Now I am your wife, and you should call me by my name. I am Kamla, and you are Kalidas.” Kalidas spoke the word “Kamla” and thought the name was beautiful like its owner. The princess was in the mood of testing her husband. She asked him, “There is a kind goddess who is also called Kamla. Do you know who she is?" Kalidas did not know the answer and stared at her with a dull face. The princess asked him again, "She is not the goddess who sits in the first part of your name. But both our names start with the same letter. What’s that?" Kalidas stood confused. He grew in the company of forests, fountains, animals and birds who never asked him questions. Kamla realized from his expression that Kalidas was not educated. That made her upset.
There were a few men who were jealous of the upward journey of Kalidas. They did not like his sudden emergence as the king’s son-in-law. Hence, they started spreading bad rumours about him to spoil his image. Initially Princess Kamla didn't believe what she heard about her husband. She loved him and wanted to help him to be the worthy relative of her father. One of the servants, named Jadu, made a cruel plan. In the afternoon when Kamla was painting a picture on her canvas, he came to her room with a broom. While sweeping the floor near her seat, he said in a confused tone, "Forgive me, Princess. I have heard something very bad about Prince Kalidas. Though I don’t believe that nonsense talk, I know it is destroying his image." Kamla stopped her painting brush and looked sternly at Jadu. She asked him, "What have you heard about him?" Jadu paused a little and replied, "The servants who went to collect fruits in the forest saw him chopping wood like a commoner. Not only that, he was sitting on the branch of the tree that he was cutting! They say that the prince is a man with no knowledge or common sense. I am very sorry to reveal this to you, Princess." Jadu finished his complaint and slowly went out of the room. Kamla sat in her seat speechless. A sudden anger made her forget that the sweeper might have lied to her.
Kalidas didn’t go back to the house of his aunt. Rather he took the way to the forest which he always thought was his shelter. It was about to be dark. He could hear the birds chirping in their nests. They were being welcomed joyously by their families. Kalidas thought he would never have a family of his own. In the twilight he walked down to the stream that flowed in the centre of that forest. He could see a bright reflection of the moon in the water. A cool breeze touched his body and the ripples glittered with the moonbeam. He decided to kill himself in that moment of absolute peace. Nobody would know where Kalidas, the village boy, who had become the son-in-law of the king, went missing. He walked into the stream to move further down. But, to his surprise, he observed a change near him.
He saw an enormous white lotus floating at a distance. The shining petals were trembling in joy, as if they were to welcome someone sitting inside. Kalidas was frightened. He closed his eyes just to look at the scene again. The flower slowly opened its top petals where he saw a goddess in white attire, sitting and playing a majestic Veena. A garland of white flowers was hanging around her neck and her tied hair was adorned with a beautiful crown of gold and white pearls. Her eyes were closed as she was engrossed in her music. Kalidas could hear the sweetest melody from her Veena that made the atmosphere pure, serene and mystic. The goddess felt his presence and stopped her fingers on the strings. She gave him a calm, but unforgettable heavenly smile and said, "Young man, don't give up your precious life. You can accomplish much more than you can imagine. I am Saraswati, the goddess of learning. I know what is awaited in your store for the future." As she spoke hundreds of musical instruments joined her voice. Kalidas asked himself whether he was dead or alive. The goddess continued, “You will be a great writer and will be adored by generations after generations. Take my garland and begin your victorious journey.” She took out a garland of jasmine from her right hand and threw it at Kalidas. The piece of flowers perfectly fell on his neck and Kalidas felt the sweet fragrance of jasmines. He bowed before the goddess with folded hands and closed his eyes in devotion. Saraswati disappeared by the time he opened his eyes. He noticed a reflection of the moon at the spot where the white lotus had been floating. He went out of the water all drenched. The jasmine garland donated by Saraswati was still fresh and fragrant. Kalidas emerged a changed man from the depth of water ‒ a magical door was opening in his intellect. He could feel an expression that was forming like a picture, and it was searching for words to come out. He recited a hymn composed in Sanskrit, the language spoken by gods. Kalidas realized that the goddess chose to sit on his tongue, and it was she who transformed the picture into a verse. He was now fearless. He knew more would flow from his mouth soon. He planned to go back quickly to Kamla to tell her, "I have earned the boon of Goddess Saraswati. She has told me that I will be a learned man and will compose poems in the language of gods. My mind is full of pictures which will soon find expression in words." He knew Kamla will trust him and will bestow him with her love. He walked fast, confidently, through the forest path to reach the palace of wealth. Picture source:
1. https://www.shutterstock.com/
2. https://book.gitapress.org
That's an old story which my granny used to read for us. I feel nostalgic. Thank you for sharing this story.
ReplyDelete