The forest was buzzing with spirits that dwelled in it, spirits which were mysteriously connected and seemed omnipresent. Peering piercingly on anyone or anything that entered, without them being aware, from where exactly they were being looked at: but nevertheless feeling a burn on the nape of their necks. It had its tongue and ears too, this magical forest, and the word passed on from one tongue to another, “ She is coming, the maid of the mountains, she is coming, to become the mistress of the jungle”
It began with the sensitive birds tweeting and shrieking loudly in their shrill pitch. Not to be left behind, the mischievous baboons also started shrieking, jumping wildly from one tree to another, in exaggerated exuberance. The much ‘calmer in contrast’ deers, looked up from the green grounds, their beautiful big eyes inspecting the whole landscape fervently , as if to spot a family member, another of their tribe.“Ah yes, there she is, the doe eyed princess from Himalayas, scion of mighty Himavat Himself, pretty daughter of the most gracious Queen, Mena Rani”
“ What a divine time!” said the langurs. The langurs prided themselves to have been granted a boon of being associated with all divine humans.
“Yes it will be the return of the Divine period” spoke peepla, the wise old peepal tree .
“Return of the divine?” asked the chimpanzees
“Sati” replied peepla with a monosyllable, and shuddered his mighty shoulders, to release thousands of leaves, as if to confer timeless blessing to the forest ground.
Everyone was excited, from the tiny squirrels who couldn’t stop their teeth from incessant chattering, to the Huge elephants, who were behaving like little children about to see their mother after a long gap.
Even the sulking wild tiger was smiling, displaying a fine array of pearl like teeth matched by equally sharp paws, which he held up to his own face and smirked in self appreciation,
“ I am ready for you Parvati, my Master from time immemorial, Master of the king of the jungle Himself, The one and Only who can ride even me , as a mere vehicle” he whispered, “ What do these meek folk know about the back that is needed to carry a Goddess” he beamed at his own fabulous physique.
“Hss hsss, what a stupid and vain animal” Hissed the snakes to each other, “ What does a tiger know about love and longing, loyalty and lifelong association like we snakes do? What does this feline fool know about the secret songs and Hymns that the Mother sang to us as Sati Ragini, he is just a driver, whereas we are co passengers! It is to us , as Shiva’s beloveds, that she sang, to exchange places with: to us it was, that Sati said she was envious – if only she could be the one wrapped around Shiva’s neck in embrace! hsss hsss. And now she comes again!”
“ Not long ago,” thought Peepla to Himself, “ He was here, in our midst as Pasupati, and now, here she is, in our midst, as His Queen.”
“Hahaha Peepla, you old fool” laughed his best friend Vrikshavrata, “ Not long you say? Don’t gauge everything by tree years. It has been more than a thousand years since Rudra was here as Pasupati, and Sati was our Pasupatinathini”
~ From the book SHIVA, The Ultimate Time Traveller. Part 2. (Humesha)
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Parvati art by Pieter Weltevrede
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