Beauty and the Beast

38.

Menaka just looked in wonder at her sister. This sister of hers who born out of Sage Narayana's thigh to break the arrogance of Indra.

Could she have truly fallen in love with a human and go that far?

Menaka couldn't think of anything or anyone being so dear to her. Apsaras never get attached to anything in general. They always keep themselves free from all such bindings.

For an apsara to perform a tapasya was totally unheard of.

"I don't think it is very odd." Devaguru Brihaspati broke the train of her thoughts. "She is born from a Sage. It sounds exactly like her birth. Sure, her purpose is entirely different than that of a sage but a natural part I assume."

"Devaguru, she isn't a sage herself. She isn't technically considered the daughter of Sage Narayana. Just someone he created. She was created an apsara."

"Love can make you do things, Menaka."

"Love is a preposterous idea for an apsara, Devaguru. When has an apsara's love been true? It is as fleeting as seasons. For such a fleeting emotion, why is she taking such struggle?"

"Fleeting yes but meant to be mithya? I don't think so. It can be fleeting love for Apsaras, but it would harsh to say all of it was a false pretense."

Menaka still couldn't believe it.

Urvashi had began with the idea of wanting to support Pururava but somewhere she had forgotten how it had begun.

All Urvashi heard was a loud roar and she fell out of the meditation. Her heart sped up. The ground felt wobbly to her. Urvashi hadn't ever known sweat and that is what she saw on her skin. Her glorious hair had begun to grow into knots.

"Urvashi..." She saw before herself Menaka, her sister and friend, "This is enough daliance, Urvashi. Let's go home. Earth isn't our home."

Urvashi stood up.

"We aren't meant to do all this. We're Apsaras. All this nonsense needs to stop or soon I'll see that you're asking for Moksha now. Stop this nonsense. Your daliance with that human is enough now."

Menaka grabbed her arm and began to drag her. Urvashi followed for a distance but then stopped.

She turned around to the hill. Pururava was still performing his penance. Her heart tugged to it. His hair was turning into knots too. There was so much dust on his skin. It was drying up. He was growing thin. Almost could see the bones.

She watched Pururava still engaged in penance undisturbed. Though his physical form was melting away slowly due to self-starvation but yet he was filled with a glow that she hadn't seen on him. It was particular to one she had only seen and never known personally.

Sri Vishnu.

The illustrious glory that follows him. As if he burns with the light of ten thousand suns. The one who gives rise to Ananga himself. The most beautiful one in the entire creation.

"Menaka, I can't." Urvashi freed her hand from the grasp of her sister.

"Urvashi, don't be silly."

"I want to be silly, sakhi. I want to make mistake if this is a mistake." Urvashi exclaimed.

When Menaka looked at her sister, her eyes were glittered with a light that she didn't know in her before.

Urvashi returned back to her seat. She took one last look at Pururava who was still deep in his penance. Then returned to her penance.

Fear was there. Sure. Narasimha was naturally an aggressive deity. That was the nature of his form. He was fierce to protect his devotees. Urvashi was completely opposite in her nature. She was the soft breeze that belonged from the realm of Kama.

She was scared of the roaring lion-headed deity but more than her fear of the deity was the love for Pururava. It surprised her as well. Surprised as to what it made her do. Yet, it made her feel happy.

Urvashi paused for a moment and thought of the loving Goddess. The personification of glory and beauty. Sri Lakshmi. The one who ruled the fierce deity with just one look and smile.

The fear disappeared slowly as she focused on the Goddess next to Narasimha.

Thayar was naturally more compassionate towards devotees than Bhaktavatsala himself.

A long interval of penance and Urvashi heard the sound of anklets and jewellery. She opened her eyes to see that from the earth, a form materialized. Dark brown skinned Goddess. Bright green clothes and shining jewels. She wore a crown of jewels and gold.

"Greetings, Bhudevi." She bowed down to the Goddess of Earth.

Her hair was decorated with most colourful flowers. The petrichor filled the air around.

The benevolent Goddess that bore everyone placed her hand on Urvashi's head.

Yet, she didn't see Sridevi, the Goddess of Spiritual Wealth. She uplifted a saadhaka from their state to the higher ones. Bhudevi was the Goddess of Material Wealth.

"Devi, is there a reason I do not have the fortune to have the darshana of Sridevi?"

"She has naturally gone to the end where your goal is. You goal had never been your own spiritual growth. You are doing penance for the sake of Pururava. You do not personally wish for the upliftment. Yet, the prize for your saadhana must be given to you and hence, I have appeared before you." She said with a smile, "Ask, Urvashi, what do you wish for yourself?"

"What can I ask for? I have everything. I have beauty, I have wealth in Swarga, I have the ability to live in Swarga forever, and I have ability to go wherever I want to. I do not wish anything for myself. I only hope that whatever Pururava is striding for, he achieves it."

"Pururava will bring Sri Varaha Narasimha back to these hill. Be assured. Urvashi, you are a symbol from the realm of Kama, the deity of desires. A part of Kama's rein and powers include sexual desires. These sexual desire was symbolised through Apsaras. It is in your very nature to incite sexual desires in men. Yet, you went against your nature and performed a great penance over my Swami. For this reason, once in an year a festive will take place on this hill. My Swami will deliver them from the problems of excessive sexual desire and uplift them in their saadhana. Hence, it will called Kamadahana."

Urvashi bowed to the Goddess.

Pururava then saw Goddess Mahalakshmi first. The abhaya and varada mudra with the other two arms holding lotus flowers. Seated on a golden Lotus. She appeared in the vision of his meditation. All the darkness because his eyes were closed lit up into golden brightness.

"Go look for the idol near a sandalwood tree marked with a tilaka near the Varaha Pushkarni. A large bunch of tulsi plants will be present near the sandalwood tree. You will find a tiger skin there." She instructed him.

Pururava woke up from his meditation and instantly ran towards the temple pond. He desperately looked for the sandalwood tree. After searching the whole of the pond, he finally a budding sandalwood tree. Not yet the large yet but not the little plant either.

A tiger skin was set down nearby on a stone. He found tulsi leave there with a bunch of flowers. He felt as if someone had offered prayers on the ground before while seated on the stone.

The only sign of who could have been came with the sign of a pole inserted in the earth, a pinch of bhasma, and the remnants of a few bilva leaves.

Tripurantaka. Shiva had known the location of the Lord of Simhachala for all the while. He had personally offered all the prayers and rituals to him without retrieving the idol. He had marked it with a sandalwood tree just recently. Specifically for Pururava.

Pururava dug the earth and found the idol covered in hard mud. When he proceed the dig the mud out with his pole, Ganga appeared from the tank.

"Stop, stop, Pururava. You will end up destroying the idol." She hurried and picked up with idol. Then immersed it in the waters and slowly removed the mud off it.

Pururava ended up constructing a new temple in the place and housed the idol there.

They found the idol of Narasimha but the Goddess never instructed where her idol would be found.