Sita's Sister

THE SWAYAMVAR Pt.-4

Recap- 

Sita was the adopted child, her elder sister and she was never to be allowed to feel socially or emotionally bereft. But she loved her as much and even more and she was never to forget that too. Urmila had been all of seven years of age when she had been so informed and from that day, she had bid goodbye to childhood and grown up suddenly to a wiser maturity. Sita was her sister, not her competitor....

                                                        ~*~

Now coming back to the story ..

As Sita placed the garland over Ram's handsome head, there was a thunderous disruption. Swivelling her head toward the sound of the sudden interruption, Urmila saw the figure of a tall, towering man, a rishi, silhouetted against the framed doorway. Even from a distance, Urmila could guess that he was angry...rather, incensed. As he walked purposefully towards her father, each stride echoed with a violent belligerence. He was very old but his straight back and powerful arms seemed to wipe out the years. He was fearsome in appearance, with long, matted locks, a bow on one shoulder and a gleaming axe in his other hand. And when he spoke, the high-domed room seemed to tremble.

'Welcome back, Rishi Parshuram!' said Janak, folding his hands in deep veneration.This figure of livid wrath was Parshuram, Urmila's heart sank in dismay, the immortallchiranjeevi rishi whom no one on this earth could defeat. He was that Brahmakshatriya— the first warrior Brahmin — who had received a parshu, an axe, as his weapon from Shiv as a boon, and from where he had got his famous, dreaded name. The man who had triggered a genocide on twenty-one generations of kshatriyas twenty-one times over to avenge his father, Jamadagni's senseless murder by kshatriya Kartavirya Arjun.

'Who dared break the Shiv dhanush?' He growled, turning his glittering eyes toward Janak. The very sight of the mystic bow pitifully broken into two pieces seemed to fuel his fury further. 'This bow was given to me by Lord Shiv and I had handed it to your forefather, Devrata, to be kept in safe custody,' his said in his rasping voice. 'But today I see it splintered and smashed into pieces...Who is the culprit, Janak? He will not escape my wrath!'

'I am the culprit, sir,' said Janak self-effacingly, trying to propitiate the angry rishi. 'I decided to keep this sacred bow as a test of worthiness for the suitors of my daughter Sita who were asked to lift and string the bow. None were successful, not even the mighty Ravan. But this young prince of Ayodhya, Ram, did it !'.

'But why was the bow the object of contest? Did you not know it was hallowed?' the rishi thundered.

'Yes I did, sir,' her father said steadily. 'But many years ago, Sita, then a child, while playing with her sisters, had accidentally picked it up—so easily...''It otherwise took a hundred people from the palace to move it...' her father continued in polite earnestness,'...and taking this incident as a good omen, I decided to make the bow the coveted prize of her swayamvar. He who could string the bow could marry her. But it would take an incomparable man to do that.'

'And my brother is that unparallelled man, the only one to pick up the bow when others could not even move it,' intervened Lakshman, stepping forward and bowing courteously to the enraged rishi. 'But in the process of being strung, the bow snapped in half since it was old...' he elaborated in explanation, attempting to make him see reason.

His remark, instead, infuriated the sage even more. His face flushed red, the blood rushing to his head and gleaming eyes. Urmila saw him flexing his fingers and rearranging his hold over the axe. Grasping the dangerousness of the situation, she was quick to understand that this would lead to bloodshed. Parshuram would not hesitate to kill Lakshman. She had to intervene. No one dared to confront the rishi when he was an imposing inferno of rage but Lakshman had done the unthinkable.

Urmila could feel the fear leaping at her throat; she was gripped by an unknown terror for the man she loved...there, she had said it! In her most horrifying moments, she was admitting to it at last. Her heart beating wildly, Urmila knew she was ready to face the full fury of the rishi —anything to save Lakshman from the bloody fight from which he would never escape alive. Quaking inside but with unfaltering steps, she went up to Parshuram and with her head bowed, her eyes beseeching, her hands folded, she sought his blessings.

'We are indeed blessed by your visit,' she started softly, her eyes steady. 'Sir, you must be tired...please take a seat and rest.'Saying this, she bent down to touch the sage's feet, hoping desperately her ploy had worked in distracting the angry man. The rishi instinctively murmured, 'Bless you, princess. May your husband live in your lifetime!'

( A/N - clever ! isn't she ?  anyways back to the story ...) 

Realizing the full impact of his words, Urmila stepped back, hoping frantically Lakshman would now be safe from the rishi's wrath and his brandishing axe. The sight of Lakshman, with his faintly arrogant expression, though, refuelled the rishi's rage. 'You audacious young man, how dare you dismiss the bow so impertinently?I can easily behead you with my parshu!' He shouted, swinging his axe.

A surprised but a likewise belligerent Lakshman retaliated and took out his sword,ready to tackle the rishi. But when the rishi turned to confront Lakshman, he was unableto lift his axe, and his arm froze. The rishi looked amazed and a sudden comprehension hit him. He was being held back by his own words. There was a frozen second of realization as the impact of his words sunk in. He turned to Urmila, but before he could say or do anything further, Ram interceded.

To be continued ....

Hey Viewers its your author again after a loonnnggg time ! Please forgive me for not updating for such a long time .

So please do comment about how you liked the chapter and pleasee do vote and follow me it helps a lot .

Will see you guys in the next chapter till then ...

JAY SIYA RAM !!