The Immortals of Meluha Read online

‘Not this time,’ said Shiva holding out his hand. ‘This will change our lives completely. I believe the change will be for the better. Anything will be better than the pointlessness of the violence we face daily. I have told you what I want to do. But the choice to go or not is yours. Let the Gunas speak. This time, I follow you.’

  The Gunas were clear on their tradition. But the respect for Shiva was not just based on convention, but also on his character. He had led the Gunas to their greatest military victories through his genius and sheer personal bravery.

  They spoke in one voice. ‘Your decision is our decision.’

  It had been five days since Shiva had uprooted his tribe. The caravan had camped in a nook at the base of one of the great valleys dotting the route to Meluha. Shiva had organized the camp in three concentric circles. The yaks had been tied around the outermost circle, to act as an alarm in case of any intruders. The men were stationed in the intermediate ring to fight if there was a battle. And the women and children were in the innermost circle, just around the fire. Expendable first, defenders second and the most vulnerable at the inside.

  Shiva was prepared for the worst. He believed that there would be an ambush. It was only a matter of time.

  The Pakratis should have been delighted to have access to the prime lands, as well as free occupation of the lake front. But Shiva knew that Yakhya, the Pakrati chief, would not allow them to leave peacefully. Yakhya would like nothing better than to become a legend by claiming that he had defeated Shiva’s Gunas and won the land for the Pakratis. It was precisely this weird tribal logic that Shiva detested. In an atmosphere like this, there was never any hope for peace.

  Shiva relished the call of battle, revelled in its art. But he also knew that ultimately, the battles in his land were an exercise in futility.

  He turned to an alert Nandi sitting some distance away. The twenty-five Meluhan soldiers were seated in an arc around a second camp circle.

  Why did he pick the Gunas to immigrate? Why not the Pakratis?

  Shiva’s thoughts were broken as he saw a shadow move in the distance. He stared hard, but everything was still. Sometimes the light played tricks in this part of the world. Shiva relaxed his stance.

  And then he saw the shadow again.

  ‘TO ARMS!’ screamed Shiva.

  The Gunas and Meluhans drew their weapons and took up battle positions as fifty Pakratis charged in. The stupidity of rushing in without thought hit them hard as they met with a wall of panicky animals. The yaks bucked and kicked uncontrollably, injuring many Pakratis before they could even begin their skirmish. A few slipped through. And weapons clashed.

  A young Pakrati, obviously a novice, charged at Shiva, swinging wildly. Shiva stepped back, avoiding the strike. He brought his sword back up in a smooth arc, inflicting a superficial cut on the Pakrati’s chest. The young warrior cursed and swung back, opening his flank. That was all Shiva needed. He pushed his sword in brutally, cutting through the gut of his enemy. Almost instantly, he pulled the blade out, twisting it as he did, and left the Pakrati to a slow, painful death. Shiva turned around to find a Pakrati ready to strike a Guna. He jumped high and swung from the elevation slicing neatly through the Pakrati’s sword arm, severing it.

  Meanwhile Bhadra, as adept at the art of battle as Shiva, was fighting two Pakratis simultaneously, with a sword in each hand. His hump did not seem to impeded his movements as he transferred his weight easily, striking the Pakrati on his left on his throat. Leaving him to die slowly, he swung with his right hand, cutting across the face of the other soldier, gouging his eye out. As the soldier fell, Bhadra brought his left sword down brutally, ending the suffering quickly for this hapless enemy.

  The battle at the Meluhan end of camp was very different. They were exceptionally well-trained soldiers. But they were not vicious. They were following rules, avoiding killing, as far as possible.

  Outnumbered and led poorly, it was but a short while before the Pakratis were beaten. Almost half of them lay dead and the rest were on their knees, begging for mercy.

  One of them was Yakhya, his shoulder cut deep by Nandi, debilitating the movement of his sword arm.

  Bhadra stood behind the Pakrati chief, his sword raised high, ready to strike. ‘Shiva, quick and easy or slow and painful?’

  ‘Sir!’ intervened Nandi, before Shiva could speak. Shiva turned towards the Meluhan.

  ‘This is wrong! They are begging for mercy! Killing them is against the rules of war.’

  ‘You don’t know the Pakratis!’ said Shiva. ‘They are brutal. They will keep attacking us even if there is nothing to gain. This has to end. Once and for all.’

  ‘It is already ending. You are not going to live here anymore. You will soon be in Meluha.’

  Shiva stood silent.

  Nandi continued, ‘How you want to end this is up to you. More of the same or different?’ Bhadra looked at Shiva. Waiting.

  ‘You can show the Pakratis that you are better,’ said Nandi. Shiva turned towards the horizon, seeing the massive mountains.

  Destiny? Chance of a better life?

  He turned back to Bhadra. ‘Disarm them. Take all their provisions. Release them.’

  Even if the Pakratis are mad enough to go back to their village, rearm and come back, we would be long gone.

  A shocked Bhadra stared at Shiva. But immediately started implementing the order.

  Nandi gazed at Shiva with hope. There was but one thought that reverberated through his mind. ‘Shiva has the heart. He has the potential. Please, let it be him. I pray to you Lord Ram, let it be him.’

  Shiva walked back to the young soldier he had stabbed. He lay writhing on the ground, face contorted in pain, as blood oozed slowly out of his guts. For this first time in his life, Shiva felt pity for a Pakrati. He drew his sword and ended the young soldier’s suffering.

  After marching continuously for four weeks, the caravan of invited immigrants crested the final mountain to reach the outskirts of Srinagar, the capital of the valley of Kashmir. Nandi had talked excitedly about the glories of his perfect land. Shiva had prepared himself to see some incredible sights, which he could not have imagined in his simple homeland. But nothing could have primed him for the sheer spectacle of what certainly was paradise. Meluha. The land of pure life!

  The mighty Jhelum river, a roaring tigress in the mountains, slowed down to the beat of a languorous cow as she entered the valley. She caressed the heavenly land of Kashmir, meandering her way into the immense Dal Lake. Further down, she broke away from the lake, continuing her journey to the sea.

  The vast valley was covered by a lush green canvas of grass. On it was painted the masterpiece that was Kashmir. Rows upon rows of flowers arrayed all of God’s colours, their brilliance broken only by the soaring Chinar trees, offering a majestic, yet warm Kashmiri welcome. The melodious singing of the birds calmed the exhausted ears of Shiva’s tribe, accustomed only to the rude howling of icy mountain winds.

  ‘If this is the border province, how perfect must the rest of the country be?’ whispered Shiva in awe.

  The Dal Lake was the site of an ancient army camp of the Meluhans. Upon the western banks of the lake, by the side of the Jhelum lay the frontier town that had grown beyond its simple encampments into the grand Srinagar. Literally, the ‘respected city’.

  Srinagar had been raised upon a massive platform of almost a hundred hectares in size. The platform built of earth, towered almost five metres high. On top of the platform were the city walls, which were another twenty metres in height and four metres thick. The simplicity and brilliance of building an entire city on a platform astounded the Gunas. It was a strong protection against enemies who would have to fight up a fort wall which was essentially solid ground. The platform served another vital purpose: it raised the ground level of the city, an extremely effective strategy against the recurrent floods in this land. Inside the fort walls, the city was divided into blocks by roads laid out in a neat grid pattern. It had speci
ally constructed market areas, temples, gardens, meeting halls and everything else that would be required for sophisticated urban living. All the houses looked like simple multiple-storeyed block structures from the outside. The only way to differentiate a rich man’s house was that his block would be bigger.

  In contrast to the extravagant natural landscape of Kashmir, the city of Srinagar itself was painted only in restrained greys, blues and whites. The entire city was a picture of cleanliness, order and sobriety. Nearly twenty thousand souls called Srinagar their home. Now an additional two hundred had just arrived from Mount Kailash. And their leader felt a lightness of being he hadn’t experienced since that terrible day, many years ago.

  I have escaped. I can make a new beginning. I can forget.

  The caravan travelled to the immigrant camp outside Srinagar. The camp had been built on a separate platform on the southern side of the city. Nandi led Shiva and his tribe to the Foreigners’ Office, which was placed just outside the camp. Nandi requested Shiva to wait outside as he went into the office. He soon returned, accompanied by a young official. The official gave a practised smile and folded his hands in a formal namaste. ‘Welcome to Meluha. I am Chitraangadh. I will be your Orientation Executive. Think of me as your single point of contact for all issues whilst you are here. I believe your leader’s name is Shiva. Will he step up please?’

  Shiva took a step forward. ‘I am Shiva.’

  ‘Excellent,’ said Chitraangadh. ‘Would you be so kind as to follow me to the registration desk please? You will be registered as the caretaker of your tribe. Any communication that concerns them will go through you. Since you are the designated leader, the implementation of all directives within your tribe would be your responsibility’

  Nandi cut into Chitraangadh’s officious speech to tell Shiva, ‘Sir, if you will just excuse me, I will go to the immigrant camp quarters and arrange the temporary living arrangements for your tribe.’

  Shiva noticed that Chitraangadh’s ever-beaming face had lost its smile for a fraction of a second as Nandi interrupted his flow. But he recovered quickly and the smile returned to his face once again. Shiva turned and looked at Nandi.

  ‘Of course, you may. You don’t need to take my permission, Nandi,’ said Shiva. ‘But in return, you have to promise me something, my friend.’

  ‘Of course, Sir,’ replied Nandi bowing slightly.

  ‘Call me Shiva. Not Sir,’ grinned Shiva. ‘I am your friend. Not your Chief.’

  A surprised Nandi looked up, bowed again and said, ‘Yes Sir. I mean, yes, Shiva.’

  Shiva turned back to Chitraangadh, whose smile for some reason appeared more genuine now. He said, ‘Well Shiva, if you will follow me to the registration desk, we will complete the formalities quickly.’

  The newly registered tribe reached the residential quarters in the immigration camp, to see Nandi waiting outside the main gates; he led them in. The roads of the camp were just like those of Srinagar. They were laid out in a neat north-south and east-west grid. The carefully paved footpaths contrasted sharply with the dirt tracks in Shiva’s own land. He noticed something strange about the road though.

  ‘Nandi, what are those differently coloured stones running through the centre of the road?’ asked Shiva.

  ‘They cover the underground drains, Shiva. The drains take all the waste water of the camp out. It ensures that the camp remains clean and hygienic’

  Shiva marvelled at the almost obsessively meticulous planning of the Meluhans.

  The Gunas reached the large building that had been assigned to them. For the umpteenth time, they thanked the wisdom of their leader in deciding to come to Meluha. The three—storeyed building had comfortable, separate living quarters for each family. Each room had luxurious furniture including a highly polished copper plate on the wall on which they could see their reflection. The rooms had clean linen bed sheets, towels and even some clothes. Feeling the cloth, a bewildered Shiva asked, ‘What is this material?’

  Chitraangadh replied enthusiastically, ‘It’s cotton, Shiva. The plant is grown in our lands and fashioned into the cloth that you hold.’

  There was a broad picture window on each wall to allow the light and the warmth of the sun. Notches on each wall supported a metal rod with a controlled flame on top for lighting. Each room had an attached bathroom with a sloping floor that enabled the water to flow naturally to a hole which drained it out. At the right end of each bathroom was a paved basin on the ground which culminated in a large hole. The purpose of this contraption was a mystery to the tribe. The side walls had some kind of device, which when turned, allowed water to flow through.

  ‘Magic!’ whispered Bhadra’s mother.

  Beside the main door of the building was an attached house. A doctor and her nurses walked out of the house to greet Shiva. The doctor, a petite, wheat-skinned woman was dressed in a simple white cloth tied around her waist and legs in a style the Meluhans called dhoti. A smaller white cloth was tied as a blouse around her chest while another cloth called an angvastram was draped over her shoulders. The centre of her forehead bore a white dot. Her head had been shaved clean except for a knotted tuft of hair at the back, called a choti. A loose string called a janau was tied down from her left shoulder across her torso to the right side.

  Nandi was genuinely starded at seeing her. With a reverential namaste, he said, ‘Lady Ayurvati! I didn’t expect a doctor of your stature here.’

  Ayurvati looked at Nandi with a smile and a polite namaste. ‘I strongly believe in the field-work experience programme, Captain. My team follows it strictly. However, I am terribly sorry but I didn’t recognise you. Have we met before?’

  ‘My name is Captain Nandi, my lady,’ answered Nandi. We haven’t met but who doesn’t know you, the greatest doctor in the land?’

  ‘Thank you, Captain Nandi,’ said a visibly embarrassed Ayurvati. ‘But I think you exaggerate. There are many far superior to me.’ Turning quickly towards Shiva, Ayurvati continued, ‘Welcome to Meluha. I am Ayurvati, your designated doctor. My nurses and I will be at your assistance for the time that you are in these quarters.’

  Hearing no reaction from Shiva, Chitraangadh said in his most earnest voice, ‘These are just temporary quarters, Shiva. The actual houses that will be allocated to your tribe will be much more comfortable. You have to stay here only for the period of the quarantine which will not last more than seven days.’

  ‘Oh no, my friend! The quarters are more than comfortable. They are beyond anything that we could have imagined. What say Mausi?’ grinned Shiva at Bhadra’s mother, before turning back to Chitraangadh with a frown. ‘But why the quarantine?’

  Nandi cut in. ‘Shiva, the quarantine is just a precaution. We don’t have too many diseases in Meluha. Sometimes, immigrants may come in with new diseases. During this seven—day period, the doctors will observe and cure you of any such ailments.’

  ‘And one of the guidelines that you have to follow to control diseases is to maintain strict hygiene standards,’ said Ayurvati.

  Shiva grimaced at Nandi and whispered, ‘Hygiene standards?’

  Nandi’s forehead crinkled into an apologetic frown while his hands gently advised acquiescence. He mumbled, ‘Please go along with it, Shiva. It is just one of those things that we have to do in Meluha. Lady Ayurvati is considered to be the best doctor in the land.’

  ‘If you are free right now, I can give you your instructions,’ said Ayurvati.

  ‘I am free right now,’ said Shiva with a straight face. ‘But I may have to charge you later.’

  Bhadra giggled softly, while Ayurvati stared at Shiva with a blank face, clearly not amused at the pun.

  ‘I don’t understand what you’re trying to say,’ said Ayurvati frostily. ‘In any case, we will begin at the bathroom.’

  Ayurvati walked into the guest house, muttering under her breath, ‘These uncouth immigrants...’

  Shiva raised his eyebrows towards Bhadra, grinning impishly.
r />   Late in the evening, after a hearty meal, all the Gunas were served a medicinal drink in their rooms.

  ‘Yuck!’ grimaced Bhadra, his face contorted. ‘This tastes like Yak’s piss!’

  ‘How do you know what yak’s piss tastes like?’ laughed Shiva, as he slapped his friend hard on the back. ‘Now go to your room. I need to sleep.’

  ‘Have you seen the beds? I think this is going to be the best sleep of my life!’

  ‘I have seen the bed, dammit!’ grinned Shiva. ‘Now I want to experience it. Get out!’

  Bhadra left Shiva’s room, laughing loudly. He wasn’t the only one excited by the unnaturally soft beds. Their entire tribe had rushed to their rooms for what they anticipated would be the most comfortable sleep of their lives. They were in for a surprise.

  Shiva tossed and turned on his bed constantly. He was wearing an orange coloured dhoti. The tiger skin had been taken away to be washed — for hygienic reasons. His cotton angvastram was lying on a low chair by the wall. A half lit chillum lay forlorn on the side-table.

  This cursed bed is too soft. Impossible to sleep on!

  Shiva yanked the bed sheet off the mattress, tossed it on the floor and lay down. This was a little better. Sleep was stealthily creeping in on him. But not as strongly as at home. He missed the rough cold floor of his own hut. He missed the shrill winds of Mount Kailash, which broke through the most determined efforts to ignore them. He missed the comforting stench of his tiger skin. No doubt, his current surroundings were excessively comfortable, but they were unfamiliar and alien.

  As usual, it was his instincts which brought up the truth:

  ‘It’s not the room.It’s you.’

  It was then that Shiva noticed that he was sweating. Despite the cool breeze, he was sweating profusely. The room appeared to be spinning lightly. He felt as if his body was being drawn out of itself. His frostbitten right toe felt as if it was on fire. His battle scarred left knee seemed to be getting stretched. His tired and aching muscles felt as if a great hand was remoulding them. His shoulder bone, dislocated in days past and never completely healed, appeared to be ripping the muscles aside so as to re-engineer the joint. The muscles in turn seemed to be giving way to the bones to do their job.