The Girl in the Gym

Heavenly Ball of Fire

In the western part of India, before the states we know today even had names, there was a mountain. And on the mountain lived a holy man, who people believed could talk to god. From him, came a tribe of people, who appeared to be similarly blessed. But over the years, and decades and centuries, this tribe assimilated themselves so well with the local populace that everybody forgot that they did not actually belong. The tribe itself would have forgotten had it not been for the knowledge that had been passed down from father to son to mother to daughter over the years. This knowledge, they shared with no one. To the others, this family came to be known for their devotion to Bhaironath and their extraordinarily long lives. They all lived near the mountain top, tending to the Bhairo temple of their ancestors. They did not care to venture far from it, even though they had the talent and could have made money and fame in the world.

For as long as anybody remembers, the mountain, Girnar, had always been steeped in mystery. It is reportedly an extinct volcano, but several locals claim that a heavenly ball of fire had crashed on the top and that the fire had burned for seven days. On the seventh day, the fire vanished completely leaving the topography changed and giving the summit a unique shape, including a rock that juts out at an angle. It is older than the mighty Himalayas. Even today, you can see the footprints left by the holy man that people traverse from far and wide to see. The family that is the caretaker of the temple also keeps the surrounding areas clean, gives alms to beggars, provide help to the stranded and more. And thus it continued, till about twenty years back. Chitra and Hemnath had been married for about three years and were kept busy by their duties to the temple. Their life was a happy one, except for the fact that they had no child. They had been trying and had even been to dozens of doctors, but to no avail. One day, Hemnath found Chitra weeping by the stream. Deeply anguished, he took her in his arms and promised, "Don't worry Chitra. God will hear our prayers. I'm going into the cave, I'll be back in three days."

There was a cave on the east side of the peak. Taking nothing with him, Hemnath went into the cave. He told his family not to follow him inside, no matter what they saw or heard. On the second day, clouds rolled in and surrounded the peak. It became so dark that it felt like midnight had come early. There was crashing thundering and roaring, but no rain. And all at once, the clouds vanished without a trace. On the third day, just before sunrise, he came back outside. Chitra was waiting for him outside. He never told what happened inside. Exactly nine months later, at dawn, Chitra gave birth to a beautiful baby girl, with skin like gold.