|| Shrutakarma ||

१ | Change

Note: I had posted an Author's Note part yesterday. Do check it out!

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Shrutakarma's POV

I loved rivers, the unrestricted flow of water in the rivers and the carefree movements of the waves in the rivers.

There was something impish about the small waves that formed in rivers and counting those waves without feeling an ounce of tiredness until someone called me or basically pulled me away from the riverbank was fascinating.

The kind of freedom, boundlessness, purity, liveliness and abundance that rivers represent, astound me and attract me at the same time.

A river and a child share all these qualities in common.

A child is autonomous, not controlled by the world, knows no limits and rules, is innocent and clean from heart, represents life in its most beautiful form and gives everyone the same infectious merriment that he owns.

That's what Pitamahi had told me about children when I was a child of eight springs while she was explaining why children are perceived as the direct forms of the Lord of the Universe.

Whenever I visited the banks of the river Yamuna after that day, I was able to correlate Pitamahi's description with the rivers. The fact that the rivers worshipped are as the goddesses lent more meaning to my comparison.

My family often addressed me as a child but I knew that I was not one anymore when I was a thirteen-year old boy then. All the known traits of a child were gradually abandoning me.

The external circumstances were controlling me more than my inner self in order to be a good, well-mannered prince. I had no choice other than binding myself with the rules and regulations, which are very important as per all my elders. Though I always tried to be honest and transparent about my thoughts, I realized that I was slowly turning secretive. Stepping into the league of adolescence, life was not as beautiful as it was before. It was still beautiful but not the sort of beautiful that my child self was accustomed to.
Sometimes I was guilty that unlike what Pitamahi said, I did not give joy to all but also a load of other emotions.

Jyeshtha and Bhrata Soma told me that this development was normal, and the change was inevitable, and everyone needs to become an adult from a child.

"We can't regret something that's not in our hands, Karma. If adulthood feels the same as childhood, how would it be any different from childhood?" Agraja Soma's words made complete sense.

But I missed how childhood was. Other than my brothers, it was river Yamuna that could give me the comfort of the liberation that my childhood had. My father's arms and my mother's lap always provided me warmth and solace but unlike before, there was a dawn of duty in my mind. There was a strong desire to prove myself as someone who's worthy of having such divine parents, and I wanted to do something that would make them happy!

When my Pitamahi narrated the tales of the ancient, my Matamaha brought me countless gifts from Panchala or my Matamahi lovingly fed me, my Matulas and Matulanis pampered me with all their care and concern, the child Shrutakarma reacted differently. He was overjoyed, extremely proud and dizzy with all the attention he received. As I was growing up, their precious treatment of me made me feel responsible more than anything else. There was one thing running constantly in my head, that I should make all of them, including my mother and my five fathers, proud of me.

The age where there was nothing but pure merriment was fading away.

I kneeled down on the banks of Yamuna and stared at my reflection in the unsteady waves. My complexion was as dark as the color of the Yamuna and I frowned a little at the amount of change in my appearance from the time I saw my reflection in the Yamuna for the first time many years ago.

When I was a child, I was stubborn and single-minded. I had the track record of keeping my parents on their toes eight praharas a day. If my father went out of the town even for a single day, I would be a crying mess. I would roam around my mother and trouble her through the corridors, the kitchen, the treasury and even the courtroom. How time flies!

The biggest proof that I have matured so much was that it had been months since I saw my father and I hadn't complained even for once this time, though I missed his presence terribly.

Four of my fathers had left Indraprastha for the Digvijaya of the Rajasuya Yajna which would be conducted as soon as they all return home triumphant, after making all the rulers from every corner of the Bharatavarsha accept the sway of the Pandavas over them. Pita Vrikodara had already put an end to the atrocious Emperor Jarasandha and it was already decided that he would be replaced by a virtuous man like Pita Yudhishthira, and he would be the new Emperor of the Bharatavarsha. An illustrious task.

The shift in my mindset and the change in my life were overwhelming but they also had elements that made me happier. It had finally given me the opportunity to give my beloved ones the same pride, bliss and contentment they had bestowed upon me. My elders' names, their virtues, their praises and their glory brought sunshine to my world and in the same way, I wished to be the cause of the shine in their eyes through my accomplishments. At the threshold of growth, the wish to give my parents back the happiness they had given me by merely existing, was my fuel to focus on my Vidya Abhyasa.

I wanted to become a better version of myself and increase the fame of my father like my father had increased Pitamaha Pandu's fame, and become a true delight for my mother like my father was my grandmother's delight.
Guru Dhaumya had taught me that the purpose of obtaining knowledge was Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha.
It was time for me to embark on the journey of life with more seriousness than ever before. I had forsaken all my childishness in the rippling Yamuna before I stood up on my feet.

My heart was much lighter after facing and accepting something that I'd been trying to overlook for a long time.

"Karma, it's time for practice!" Bhrata Soma's loud voice was heard.

Practice indeed!

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♡ Thank you for reading ♡

How's the first chapter?
This was more of an introductory chapter as I wanted to introduce the Protagonist properly before the main story starts. There's a lot coming up in the story so I didn't want to rush the beginning itself. I hope you liked it! I would like to know your thoughts on the chapter and Karma in it!