THE CURSE OF BRAHMA (14 page)

Devki wasn’t interested in the history of the Jyotirlingas. All she knew was that she found a peculiar sense of peace whenever she was in the presence of the magnificent structure. And she had never come away unsatisfied after offering prayers at this temple.
Shiva, give my brother peace of mind
, she muttered to herself as she set about starting the puja.

She put the puja thali on the brass tray kept in front of the Jyotirlinga, and began chanting the mantras she had been taught while she was a child.

As she approached the end of the mantra, she lit a set of thirteen dhupa battis (incense sticks) at the base of the gigantic Jyotirlinga. It symbolized that while she was praying at the Madhuvan Jyotirlinga, she was seeking the blessings from each of the thirteen Jyotirlingas spread across the great land of Bharat.

Having lighted the dhupa battis, Devki shut her eyes in prayer. Once in a state of deep meditation, she gradually became more aware of her surroundings, even with her eyes closed. She could hear the almost muted sputter of the burning dhupa battis. She was conscious of the night dew collected on the temple roof, falling as drops of water on the ground somewhere at the entrance of the temple door. The gentle breeze rustling through the inner corners of the temple sounded much louder as it caressed her face. Then her enhanced consciousness became aware of a malodourous smell, overpowering even the aromatic dhupa battis.
The smell…the awful smell…Oh God, what is that stench
? She thought to herself as she reluctantly opened her eyes.

Her attention focused on the Jyotirlinga in front of her. She thought she saw something reflected there, in the gleaming surface of the black stone. Her keen observation told her something was wrong, terribly wrong, even before she heard the maniacal cry of the creature behind her. Without thinking, she swerved and threw herself towards her left in one rapid motion. In the brief instant that she took to regain her balance and stand up, she saw the brass tray holding her puja thali sliced into half, by a huge sword held in the hands of a creature that didn’t seem to belong to her world.
If I hadn’t moved away, it would have been my head instead of that tray
, she thought, desperately afraid. And then, as the wind blew from the other side of the room, she caught the stink of the creature standing in front of her. She involuntarily turned up her nose in disgust. It was the stench of death; a putrid smell of defecation mixed with the disgusting odour of something rotten.

The Pisaca smelt the wind through the fine orifices in his tentacles. It seemed the princess’s companion was returning. He looked in the direction of the bonara, who too, appeared to have caught the smell of a human body. The pisaca made a hooting sound, too low for the human ear to catch, but to the bonara, it was as loud as if the pisaca had said something right in his ears. In a swift move, the bonara was off the tree and moved stealthily in the direction of the human smell. He hid behind a tree as he heard approaching footsteps. It was an old pundit, the keeper of the temple. The pundit was moving in the direction of the temple. The bonara looked towards the pisaca for instructions, who grimaced and made a slicing action with one of his tentacles. The bonara understood; he had to take out the pundit before he entered the temple, but it would have to be done swiftly so there was no chance of a scream or cry escaping the pundit’s mouth that could alert the soldiers at the base of the hill. He waited for the old man to approach the tree, and just as he did, the bonara came up behind him. Sensing an alien presence, the Pundit turned around, but he was too late. The only sound that escaped his lips was a final prayer to his God, ‘Aum-Num-Ha-Shi-Vai
’
, as the razor-sharp talon of the bonara sliced through his neck like a knife cutting through butter.

‘Who are you?’ Devki glared at the monster standing in front of her.

The kalakanja licked his greyish-black tongue, his sunken eyes shining brighter at this moment than they had in a long time.

‘I asked…who are you?’ Devki repeated her question, examining the monster closely. His emaciated body was all bone; whatever little skin was there, resembled dried up leaves. The veins were stretched tight all over the body. He stood towering at a height of three gavutas (eighteen feet). There was no sign of any clothing barring some tattered rags that were tied around his waist.

‘I…am…your…death,’ the kalakanja growled; the smell of fetid liquid gurgling in his throat almost gagged Devki.

A shiver ran down her spine. But she knew that if she gave in to the chilling fear that gripped her at the sight of this monster, she would surely die. She needed to buy time. Maybe some of the soldiers would come up the hill, looking for her if she didn’t return soon. And Mandki would also be coming up anytime now…
Oh God! Mandki!
She thought as she realized that her dearest friend would be here at any moment, and would encounter the same danger. She had to warn Mandki before she entered the temple compound. And she had to save herself from this creature. Devki knew the only way her cries would be heard by the soldiers downhill was if she were able to get out of the temple.
I have to find a way of getting out of here
, she resolved.

The kalakanja saw the determined expression on her face and felt a shiver of excitement run through his decaying body. He hadn’t had a woman in a long time, and she looked so desirable. Maybe, he could have some fun with her before he decapitated her. His eyes were drawn to the ochre-coloured blouse covering her breasts, and he felt his excitement grow.

Devki noticed the creature’s lewd interest in her and she felt a fresh tremour of fear. She knew whatever the monster had planned for her would not happen now, not before the vile creature had satisfied his lust. She forced herself to go beyond her fear and focus on the fighting tactics Kansa had taught her, when she had become old enough to take up weapons. She looked around for something with which to defend herself but she could see nothing except the trishul lying behind the Jyotirlinga. That was too heavy for her to lift. She hadn’t carried any weapon on her body either. Meanwhile, the kalakanja was circling her, taking his time, trying to trap her against the wall. But Devki knew what he did not; there was a small opening in the roof, on one side of the temple, about three gavutas from where she was standing right now. The wall adjoining the roof at that point had small footholds built into it. If she could somehow reach there, she could haul herself up the wall and climb through the enclosure to get outside. The towering kalakanja would not be able to crawl out through the narrow opening.

She started moving in the direction of the wall. At the same time, she deliberately took a deep breath so that her breasts would get pressed harder against her blouse. The ploy worked. Blinded by his lust, the kalakanja failed to notice her slow but gradual progress towards the secret exit. Less than a minute had passed since the kalakanja had attacked her, but it seemed like hours. By now, he was dangerously close. Devki realized with a feeling of horror that the creature may be on top of her before she had a chance to reach the wall with the footholds to the roof. She decided to risk taking a subtle look in the direction of the escape zone. It was now just a little more than one gavuta away. At the same time, the kalakanja too saw the footholds in the wall. In a flash he knew what she was planning. He snarled in fury. Abandoning all pretence, Devki turned and ran towards the wall. The kalakanja threw down his sword and darted after her, his hands outstretched. Devki felt the tip of his nails cut through her ankle just as she climbed out of the small enclosure in the roof. And then she ran with all the power she could muster.

She knew it wouldn’t take the kalakanja much time to realize that he couldn’t take the same route as she had. With his speed, he would still be out of the temple within the next few seconds. She jumped off the roof and hit the ground running, just as the temple door crashed open and the kalakanja hurled himself at her, snarling in fury.

‘My Lord!’ Airawat bowed, surprised at seeing Kansa.

‘How are you, Airawat?’ Kansa smiled at the cavalry commander.

‘I’m good, My Lord,’ Airawat replied, his respect for Kansa evident in his voice. ‘I was just going back to the palace. Princess Devki apparently needed something from there,’ he said, not wanting to embarrass the princess by telling Kansa she had forgotten to carry the ash for her prayers.

Kansa looked at Airawat, and then at Mandki standing next to him. He laughed. ‘Would she by any chance be looking for this?’ he asked innocently, taking the urn filled with ash out of his saddlebag.

Mandki grinned sheepishly. Airawat stood looking discomfited. Kansa gave him a friendly slap on his back. ‘It’s okay Airawat…women do forget these little things from time to time.’

Airawat looked relieved, and returned a brief smile. Kansa looked at Mandki and asked her gently, ‘Would you mind if I were to give this personally to Devki?’

‘Not at all prince. I’m sure Devki will be delighted that you are here. Perhaps you could sit for the puja too…’ she half-suggested, not sure whether Kansa would like her telling him what to do.