The Enchantress

13. Routine

"NArayana NArayans," a calm voice inside her mind chanted. She immediately recognised who he was. He didn't sound irritating like in the serials but calm, like the sage he was. For comparison purposes, he could be compared with the Greek God Hermes, with an important personality which triggers events but with playful nature.

"Pranaam (Greetings) NArada Ji," she thought in her mind, hoping that she was not facing schizophrenia.

"Pranaam Goddess. You were wishing to talk to me for a while now so this devotee had to obey," his sweet voice sang in her mind. However, she couldn't see him.

"I did. I never thought I would hear from you, especially not while meditating," she thought back. She heard him chuckle to that.

"W-Who am I?" she thought suddenly, hesitating.

She could hear the smile in his voice, "That you would find out by opening your chakras, Goddess. You know which deity to meditate on and what chanting to use."

She nodded. She remembered her mother's words, always start with Ganesha. The chanting would be:
Om Gam Gampate namah|

Normally, chants starting with Om required initiation because the chants were so powerful that the person would need a Guru (spiritual teacher). However, since people are supposed to start with Ganesha, this particular chant needed no initiation. Besides, she was sure that Narada would initiate and guide her along the journey.

"Good," she heard him.

"A-Am I destined to marry him," she asked again.

"Yes Goddess, you are supposed to marry him," his words vibrated around her mind. She felt like he was mocking her while calling her Goddess. Which Goddess marries a criminal? She wanted to cry so hard.

"I-I'm sorry I can't help you further but do know that your purpose of this birth is to marry him, Goddess. He had to work hard for many lives to make this one life possible. Please don't spoil it," she heard his hesitant voice.

Ignoring him, she tried to open her eyes but couldn't.

"Breath, Goddess, please breath," she realized that she had stopped breathing until he reminded her. Now, after she was in control of her breathing, she could finally open her eyes, reminding her why a Guru (spiritual teacher) was so important when engaging in extreme meditation activities.

"Why are you crying, Maya?" Indrayani asked, looking at her daughter, bewildered.

Mahamaya had not even realized that she was crying. She shook her head, muttering, "N-Nothing Aai, nothing at all."

Indrayani just blinked, surprised as she nodded, "Of course. Just know that you can share anything with me."

"Narada talked to me," she couldn't stop herself from sharing. Her mother however just looked at her like Mahamaya had lost her mind. Did all those stories from childhood get in her head or something?

Before she could respond, her daughter, failing to notice her mother's plight, muttered, "I want to marry. I don't care about matching of the gunas (qualities) or kundali (birth chart), just find me a decent guy like Pappa (father)."

Indrayani was left speechless. What had Mahamaya heard in her schizophrenic experience? Indrayani hoped that it wouldn't bring any calamity on her small family.

"A-Alright," Indrayani muttered as she tried to smile.

Mahamaya snapped out of her daze and noticed her mother's expressions.

"What happened, Aai?" she asked lowly, wanting to curse out her fate.

Mahamaya had been pretty religious and she tried her best to be kind to everyone around her, to perform every duty, yet she was destined to marry a criminal. The thought was like a stab in her abdomen, leaving physical pain even. She however decided to forget all this and focus on her mother.