Kenchi, November 630 CE
The serting sun cast its balefial glance over the beautiful city of Kanchi. Or so it seemed to the well-built young man standing on the terrace of one of the principal palaces in the city. A more sympathetic observer might have waxed lyrical on the sunlight glinting off the gold-plated gopuram, the shimmering lakes, and the soaring towers and palaces. But baleful was the word that leapt to the mind of the usually cheerful young man, as he stood looking out over the city. Since the events at Pullalur all those years ago, the city seemed to have slowly sunk into a state of apathy, the setting sun seemingly a fitting counterpoint to the general mood in the city.
Of course, he reflected, his mood was shaped in no small measure by news of his father's illness, an illness of the mind rather than of the body, as the palace physician had explained to him. The vaidyar? could work miracles with diseases of the body. However, when the mind itself lost the will to live, there was not much that the esteemed members of the medical profession could do. And his father's mind had given up the will to live, it seemed. The events at Pullalur had not just robbed the country of significant chunks of land, but also his father's will to go on living. It was as if the loss of the physical had resulted in a mental lassitude that was far worse than any wounds suffered in a hundred battles.
A sigh escaped the young prince as he gazed at the city shrouding itself in the darker veil of the gathering dusk. Torches started to be lit in the houses, palaces and temples of his ancient hometown in a vain attempt to dispel the gathering gloom. Melancholy can be very dangerous for anyone, especially one in his position, he thought, as he gave himself a small shake to lift himself out of his dark mood. Just then, a measured tread on the steps leading to the terrace, one that he had heard countless times a day since his childhood, announced the arrival of Chittan, his factorum. "You are as difficult to find now that you are grown up, as you were when you were a young lad playing hide and seek, my lord," said the old man, gasping for breath from the exertion of climbing up four flights of steps.
"But you can always find me, can't you?" asked the young man, a smile playing lightly on his lips. "That's because you always liked heights and I have always known that you would find the highest places to hide."
The prince chuckled as he let the old man catch his breath. "Not as young as I used to be," remarked Chittan as he leaned over the balustrade, gulping in great quantities of air into his lungs.
"It's okay, aiyya, take your time," replied the young man, using the honorific that he used to address one who had raised him from childhood.
Hindu (946)
Agriculture (125)
Ancient (1105)
Archaeology (806)
Architecture (567)
Art & Culture (931)
Biography (732)
Buddhist (550)
Cookery (165)
Emperor & Queen (584)
Islam (245)
Jainism (323)
Literary (889)
Mahatma Gandhi (393)
Send as free online greeting card
Email a Friend
Visual Search
Manage Wishlist