LOVE: To Infinity And Beyond

The 'Un'popular Child

I was roaming around in the light jungles near our hut, when Bhrata Bheem's loud call pierced through the beautiful silence, "ARJUN!!". Oops... I'm so late. Mata, Chhotima and Pitashree must be very worried. I immediately ran in the direction of the voice. "Bhratashree... Jyeshth...", I called them from behind, making sure that I held the small stock of flowers securely in the cloth piece. "What are you doing here, till so late??", five year-old Jyeshth enquired, his voice almost on the verge of losing its usual calm, but never actually doing so... I have always found it extremely ossifying how Jyeshth managed to stay so calm. I often just wished to get into his mind and see what's happening out there. "Lost in thoughts!!!? Again?!", Bhrata Bheem's exclamation brought me back to reality and I ran to him, again, taking care of the flowers in the cloth. "What's in it?", Bhratashree asked in a few moments. We continued running towards the hut, as I just giggled in answer. There's no way I'll show this to anyone else before Mata.

"Mata! Mata!", I ran to my worried mother, who was sitting in the small front corridor of the hut. She immediately scooped me up in her hands, straight onto her lap, as two-year-old Nakul also came running, followed by a little younger Sahadev. Mata hugged the two of them, too. Bhrata Bheem ran to us and joined in. However, Jyeshth stood away, smiling quietly for a few moments, before finally running to us and joining us. Finally Mata broke the hug and asked me in a little-angry tone, "Where have you been??" I couldn't help the small naughty smile from forming on my lips, before I opened the cloth piece and let all the white jasmines fall on Mata's empty lap. Mata looked down towards them, and then back at me. Her eyes turned dewy. "Oh Arjun.... Mata can't do without you... Who'll look after my daily fashion needs?" I bent my head a little, feeling indeed a bit shy to have been praised so sweetly, while the others broke out into peals of giggles.

Honestly, I was the most pampered one by Mata, till that evening.... That phenomenally unfortunate evening, that changed our lives so much. Mata once remarked about it, in future, "I felt like the sun had set that evening and never risen again, till the day of the competition at Hastinapur... Till the day, the five of you came back ..."

"Mata... Where is Pitashree?", I asked curiously.

Pitashree loved me the most, and that was clearly visible in each of his actions. He often said that I was born to create history, I was born for greater causes--- "Most people are born for themselves, but Arjun, my son, you are so lucky to have been born not just for yourself but for the whole of Aryavart..." He thus had always made sure to give me prominent lessons on not just archery and fighting with wooden swords, or sticks, but also on human values, political values--- as much as was possible for a three-year-old to understand. However, I was always much ahead of my age, or, that was what Pitashree used to say.

"Mata...?", I asked Mata once again when she didn't answer. "And... Chhotima?", I asked yet again, looking around, and not finding Chhotima. Mata looked around for a while and her smile was gone. Her face turned into a mask of fear and worry. She immediately got up and ran towards the hillside.... "Arya!! Madri!!", her calls echoed from the hills, as the jasmines lay on the ground... Waiting....

They never came back... Only Mata did... Chhotima also did, but the very next morning, she lay with Pitashree in the burning pyre. Nakul and Sahadev cried and cried, so did we... so did Mata. But, she was so strong. Always. She held her stance and began healing our wounds.... While, her own wounds were beyond any state of being healed...

In a few days we arrived at Hastinapur. Pitamaha had went to bring us along. As Mata took up Nakul and Sahadev in her two arms while getting onto the chariot, Pitamaha took me up in his arms. He had smiled at me, and I felt, for the first time, what grandfatherly affection really means.

At Hastinapur, the Kauravas always made sure to make us feel like outsiders... Rather, unwanted intruders. Duhshala, however, was quite different. Infact, she was too much of a baby to understand or react to any of these things. Whenever, Mata Gandhari cam to Mata with her, I used to hold her tiny hands and she would giggle in utter bliss.

Things began almost afresh with our departure for the Gurukul. I just couldn't turn back to look at Mata for that last time. I just couldn't... Because I knew that if I did turn back for one more time, I would jump down from the chariot and run to her.

At Gurukul, I first discovered my true position. Bhrata Bheem was tall and his larger frame made him quite noticeable in a crowd of children. Bhrata Yudhishthir was the eldest, and I knew that he will be the King. Nakul was already the most beautiful kid out there and Gurumata, since the first glance, began showering all her affection on him, to no limits. Sahadev was the youngest and thus needed to be looked after properly, with much much more care and love. I was the middle-kid-- dark, lean, not-so-noticeable. The first day, when Gurudev was assigning appropriate weapons to each of his disciples, Jyeshth was assigned with his javeline, Bhrata Bheem with his mace, Nakul with a sword, and Sahadev with an axe. Nakul and Sahadev did not begin training until the next year, they were too small to do so. I felt the most left out.

After everyone had been asked to try to hit the bird's eye and Gurudev had nearly shoved each one away after just hearing their answer to "What do you see?", his eyes finally fell on me. He scanned me head-to-toe and finally called me. I walked up to him. "What's your name?", he asked me. "Arjun..", I replied timidly. "Hmm...", he replied, and then added, looking straight into my eyes, "These hazel eyes....", barely audible. I heard him, and I was as sure as I could ever be, that, no one else did. I walked up to the position from where the others were attempting. "What do you see?", he asked me after I had fixed the arrow in my small bow, and my eyes on my target. I remembered Pitashree's words, "While aiming, remember just to concentrate on the target... Nothing else.. let the rest of the world fade away for you at that moment..."

"The bird's eye...", I replied quietly, my gaze still fixed at the puppet bird's blue eye. I could almost hear giggles and mockeries all around me, the moment the answer left my lips. What can I do? Like them all, I really couldn't see everything around, but just the bird's eye... "Shoot!", Gurudev commanded, his excitement evident in his voice, while my whole surroundings went silent and the arrow left the bowstring with a low whiz. And.... It did hit the target, right at the centre... Gurudev approached me and patted my back.

After everyone was gone, I slowly asked him, "Gurudev.... What is it about my eyes?" He looked at me, surprised for a moment. "You heard that?", he asked, clearly astonished at how I could hear such a low mumble. I barely nodded and he smiled, replying, "Everything..."

Till that day, I didn't know that such an 'un'popular child like me could become the Mahanayak-- the hero of all. I didn't yet know that my tireless trainings and practice sessions would actually sculpt my muscles. I didn't yet know that the constant sun would tan my dull darkish complexion to that of glowing bronze. I didn't know that those 'hazels' would actually make me some heart-throb, that I never wanted to be. But honestly, I did enjoy this metamorphosis... However, the process was never easy...