Reminiscence Of Amore - A Mahabharata Story

THE BEGINNING-16

The night before the Pradarshan
Gurugram

~Author pov~

The night was still young and busy in the gurukul of Dronacharya.The 105 princes were preparing for their journey back to their homeland, Hastinapur.
But one particular prince was in his own world, his thoughtful eyes were aimlessly admiring the ceiling, his composure was externally calm, his lean physique hinted his expertise in spear fighting, the lines on his forehead was as usual creased, The eldest prince of Hastinapur was lying with one hand behind his head.He was rarely alone, always surrounded by brothers pestering him he never got his solitude, not that he was complaining, he loved them more than anything but being the eldest was a task, he sometimes wished he had an elder brother.

His hands clutched a rudraksha chain made of black thread, his eyes fell on it and a slight smile paired with a dash of bashfulness emerged on his face. If anyone who knew Yudhishthir saw this sight, they would think he had gone bonkers.Yudhishthir, blushing??, nahh.
He stroked the chain and remembered his first encounter with that special person.

Flashback

"What brings you to this part of the jungle devi"

"Oh, that's a long story, even if I tell you you won't understand, what brings you to this part Yudhishthir" Tara asked.

"Well, I was asked to look for a certain boy by my guru, the great Dronacharya"

"So much hastle for a boy, who is he"

"Ekalavya"

Yudhishthir noticed Tara's expression change.

"What happened "

"Nothing" she fumbled"soo, what did he do"

"That is a long story" and then he told the incident of ekalavya's lost thumb.

"That's soo wrong, don't mind me saying but your guru was unfair"

"But isn't Ekalavya a nishada, according to Dharma only kshatriyas and Brahmins can learn shastra kriya"

"Seriously, who told you such nonsense, talent does not differentiate between the social statuses of people, what your guru did was wrong, you should not deny the right for someone to learn because of their caste.From your words Ekalavya is more talented than your brother, if he had got proper training he would have become an accomplished archer, you guys not only crushed his opportunities but also his soul.Just try to think from his perspective, how he must have felt, with this shallow mind even if you be a king you will not earn the love and respect of all your subjects, this is not Dharma, this is the suppression and enslavement of people and their talents"

Yudhishthir was feeling so many emotions at the same time, he felt offended when she spoke about her guru and brother, he was appalled by her bluntness, but above all felt admiration and respect for her knowledge and straightforwardness.

"I..I"

"And I am not sorry if I offended you in any way, I know what I said is true"

Yudhishthir was now totally stumped.He thought about what she said, she was correct in so many ways, his mother always taught him to support the higher classes and he never gave a second thought about that.This was a new perspective for him, for the first time he felt his guru was unfair to the poor nishada boy.

"Yes devi, what you said is true, I apologise for my narrow thought"

"As you should, I forgive you, now come on let's go fast"

End of flashback

He smiled at the memory, she was the first to teach him the real meaning of Dharma and over the years he had developed a feeling of respect and love for her.No one has ever talked to him this way, as the eldest kuru prince he was always talked to with respect and people always agreed with him.