Karna: A Fallen Hero or A Sacrificing Sage? (Karna Series 1)

Chapter 98: Brishaketu as king of Anga

"I refute this throne. It's my father's, not mine. After him this is my elder brother's. After him my seven other brothers. Not mine. It was never mine."

A sharply intelligent boy was nodding his head violently in disagreement. He refused to sit on his father's vacant throne. When his father died he was too young to join the war. He even did not have good memories of his father Karna. He only remembered his own playing with his father. He always tried hard to seek his attention. He loved to sit in his father's lap. He loved to hear stories from him. His father was good storyteller. He always loved the story of his parents first meeting. He loved how his father had realised his mother's love to him by seeing that Padmavati hid Karna's "uttariya" under her bedpost. He was fascinated to their love stories. His mother often scolded his father not to tell a young child everything in such detail. But his father did not pay any attention to her. He continued his story.

"Pitashree, kya ma bahat bholi thi?!! (father, was mother too naive at that time?!!)" Brishaketu always nagged his father for the answer who dodged the question and kissed his forehead softly. He always pouted his lips in displeasure. His father was not telling him the entire truth. He did not even suspect that he was not the son of Padmavati, but of Supriya. He had not been informed by his parents. He had to keep in dark to his end. His real mother Supriya did not want her to be named as the mother of Brishaketu since his birth.

Brishaketu sighed hard. Tomorrow would be the auspicious day of his coronation. He did not want to be the king. He wanted to touch his father once more. He wanted to sit on his lap. He wanted to stretch his arms around his neck and blabber anything to him. He himself missed his father too much. He wanted to play with him. And also with his eight siblings. He wanted to be pampered by his three elder brothers Brishasen, Satyasen and Chitrasen. He wanted to learn combat from his other siblings named Shatrunjay and Dpitatva. He wanted to learn Archery from his sibling Banasen. He wanted to roam happily with his two always smiling younger brothers Sushen and Prasen. He once again wanted to be his own younger version. He wanted to be happy. He wanted to free from any duty or responsibility.

"Putro (son), you have no more right to refuse the throne of your father. You promised your mother to follow your father's legacy." Lord Krishna told him calmly.

"But, uncle, I am not qualified like him. I am hesitant. I can't be able to do that." Brishaketu had replied him hesitantly.

"Don't be. The blood in your vein will guide you. Don't forget you are son of great Dan-beer Karna. Your father's blessings will be with you. You will be a fine king yourself." Lord Krishna had replied him. Firmly. With a bright smile.

He touched Lord Krishna's feet. And then told him "please bless me uncle and guide me along. I need your own guidance."

"I will. I promised someone." Lord Krishna told him slowly. His both eyes looked dreamy.

"Whom?!!" Bewildered Brishaketu asked him.

"Your father. Karna." Lord Krishna smiled brightly. But lifelessly while uttering "At his death bed."
....

"Putro (son), are you ready?!!" His mother Padmavati asked him.

Brishaketu was now being ready with heavy heart. He was missing Karna, his father tremendously.

"Yes mother. I am ready now." He was putting his "uttariya" (scarf) on his broad shoulder when she stopped him. She produced his father's uttariya to him. He touched it in his forehead by closing his eyes and then slowly put it on her shoulders. It was looking royal on him.

Padmavati wiped her tears. Her son had grown up now. He looked just like his father. Just one dissimilarity. His father Karna had black wavy hair like his siblings Yuddhisthir and Arjuna, while Brishaketu had firy reddish brown hair like his eldest sibling Brishasen. Both these two grandsons got their hair after their grandfather, the Sun God.

She gently kissed his both cheeks. His cheeks instantly got flustered red in deep humiliation.

"Mate (mother), I am a big boy now." He pouted his thin lips by brewing his eyebrows together in mock anger.

She laughed aloud. This occasion was scarce in her life now. She did not want to loose this opportunity to tease her son.

"You are right. You are boy. Big but a boy. My boy." She tugged his chin to her face and gently pecked on his forehead.

He closed his eyes tightly. He now felt happy for his mother yet he was feeling overwhelmed for himself. He felt sad for his father. But he also felt dignified as his son. These both mixed kinds of emotions bewelidered him very much.
....

"I promise on the name of my father Karna that I will continue his legacy. I promise to be loyal to my statesmen. I promise to be just to my subjects. I promise to protect the weak and to support the men in distress. I promise to fight against injustice and punish the unjust and corrupted men. I promise to break the social dichotomy on the basis of caste, sect, religion or birth. I promise to stay loyal to my promises. The day when I becomes disloyal to any of them, I will leave this throne immediately. I am here as a servant of people. I am for you (He pointed out the masses). You are not for me. Your lives is bestowed upon me but not mine over you. I am not your ruler or emperor, I am your servant or representative. I accept the throne on the behalf of my father and my other siblings. I am representative of them."

Brishaketu stopped talking after giving this elaborate lecture to all of his masses by folding his both hands.

Masses gathered around him in the royal court of Anga province cheered aloud. The hall was erupted in loud cheering and clapping. People looked happy. Their new king was bowing to all of them politely. He looked quite dignified. He was at the prime of his youth. But his posture, his style of talking, his behavior, his innocent face along with charming smile, his politeness to all and most of all his similarities with his father made him instantly popular among masses. They all welcomed Karna son Brishaketu wholeheartedly.

"Hail to the new King. Hail to our dear deceased king. Hail to Anga Naresh Karna. Hail to Brishaketu. Hail to Devi Padmavati." People were cheering in extreme excitement.

Yudhhisthir stood tall proudly behind his eldest nephew. He loved the young boy tenderly. He never differentiate between his own living son, Crown Prince Yaudheya of Shivi province with Shivi princess Devika. He even preferred Brishaketu over Yaudheya who was very young at that this time. He felt quite overwhelmed by seeing this kind of reception.

Lord Krishna already anticipated the reactions beforehand. He looked quite pleased and moved by Brishaketu's promises. He knew that this young boy was the true descendent or heir of his father Karna. He would surely carried on his legacy on his shoulders. As his protegee he felt relaxed and yet nostalgic. He reminded of meeting of his father Karna. This boy was spitting image of his father. He felt relieved too as he had fulfilled his Karna's last wish to be with his son.

Arjuna looked genuinely proud. He lifted his eyes to the sky and perhaps prayed to his deceased brother. He did not want to be here in the fear that people of Anga province would not welcome him. But his suspicion was wrong. Masses of Karna's state were much matured than other states. They forgot about his sin. They just remembered his relationship with the royal family and new King. They had welcomed him wholeheartedly.

Beside him stood respectively Kunti, Draupadi, Subhadra, Padmavati, Gandhari, Bidur, Dhritashtra and others. They all looked satisfied and proud.

Brishaketu looked towards the sky and murmured softly in his mind -

"Pitashree (father), did I make you proud too?!!"

He did not get the answer but he felt the rays of sunshine over his head. His grandfather, the Sun God, was blessing himself. He felt touched and a single drop of tear emerged from his left eye. He did not want to wipe it out a bit. He looked glorified even in his cries. His face lighted up instantly with a bright smile. He knew that his forefathers were satisfied with him. But he knew perfectly that he had to work hard. Nobody took birth as Karna, not even his own father. He had tremendous pressure on him. He became successful by his own. As his only living son Brishaketu had a great responsibility to fulfil his dreams. But he was sanguine that with the help of his two protegees, his uncle Arjuna and his uncle Lord Krishna he could be able to prove his mettle too. He just could not accept defeat. He just had to follow his father's example. He had to keep his father's legacy alive. At any cost.

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