by Mukunda Rao
‘The Truth!’ cried Shambuka, breaking into a little laugh. He threw his arm round Rama’s shoulder again and said, ‘Come on, Rama, let’s go and talk to the Ancient One.’
Rama stiffened, but as Shambuka’s arm held his shoulder in a warm grip, something broke open inside of Rama, like a spring bursting forth from a rock. Suddenly Rama did not know where he was or what was happening to him; everything looked hazy, like swirling waters that had no beginning and no end. Then he saw a figure grow huge and tall, with blinding light pouring from it; the sight was incredible, awesome, frightening. He closed his eyes, unable to bear the vision.
When he finally opened his eyes, Shambuka stood before him, familiar, smiling. Rama smiled too, as if nothing had happened. Or perhaps, he smiled as one who is now awake. He gently clasped Shambuka’s hand. Before long, hand in hand, they were climbing the hill together, like two boys away from home, away from the prying eyes of elders, keen on some adventure.
Shambuka asked, ‘Where is your great bow, Rama?’
‘I have no use for it now.’
‘It’s better to travel light, eh?’ Shambuka winked.
‘Sita was right,’ muttered Rama, reflectively.
‘We must listen to them.’
‘Who?’ Rama asked.
‘Come, she is waiting,’ said Shambuka, and they began to climb down the hill, holding hands and talking, sometimes breaking into laughter. Like iridescent clouds, they moved towards the great sea. Soon, as they emerged from the coconut grove and stepped on the expansive sands, which shimmered like gold and felt as soft as a mother’s heart, the great sea welcomed them with a joyous roar. Wide-eyed, drinking in the boundless vision of the great waters, Rama paused. He had never seen anything like this before: It was like coming face-to-face with the beginning of Time.
‘Come on, Rama, don’t tarry, let’s go and meet her,’ cried Shambuka as he ran to meet his kin. Entranced, Rama raced across the golden sands and, like Shambuka, fell into the cool, inviting arms of the Ancient One. The waters opened up in joy to receive the two, who seemed like long-lost friends finding each other on the crest of a new beginning.
‘Rama, did you find the answer to your question?’ asked Shambuka a little later, a cryptic smile playing on his sea-wet lips.
‘What question?’ Rama asked in wonder, for truly, all questions had dissolved in his mind like the salt in the ocean. He was a mere body, pure and simple, like the eternal present.
ABOUT THE BOOK
Rama, Lakshman and Sita chance upon Valmiki’s ashram in the forest. But what is the Shudra Shambuka doing there?
As Duryodhana lies dying on the battlefield of Kurukshetra, he reflects on all that brought the world to this pass, his guilt and that of his enemies, his loyalties and those of his friends and allies. The story flashes back and forth on the last moments of the Great War – dharma and adharma merge and blur.
In the forest, during the exile of the Pandavas, Bheema, married to Hidimbi, compelled by his love for his son, Ghatotkacha, decides to stay back. Even his mother’s anger and his elder brother’s command will not sway him…
Mukunda Rao tells three classic stories from the epics, shedding new light on them, illuminating corners that we haven’t looked at before. Shambuka Rama: Three Tales Retold is a powerful blend of spiritual search, philosophy and mythology.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Mukunda Rao is the author of six insightful philosophical works, six books of much-acclaimed fiction and two popular plays. After his voluntary retirement from a teaching job in a college in 2000, he now lives with his wife on a farm outside Bengaluru. He can be contacted at [email protected]
Also by Mukunda Rao
FICTION
Confessions of a Sanyasi (1988)
The Mahatma: A Novel (1992)
The Death of an Activist (1997)
Chinnamani’s World (2003)
In Search of Shiva (2010)
NON-FICTION
Babasaheb Ambedkar: Trials with Truth (2000)
The Other Side of Belief: Interpreting U.G. Krishnamurti (2005)
The Penguin U.G. Krishnamurti Reader – edited (2007)
The Biology of Enlightenment: Unpublished Conversations of U.G. Krishnamurti After He Came into the Natural State (1967–71) – Edited (2011)
Between the Serpent and the Rope: Ashrams, Traditions, Avatars, Sages and Con Artists (2014)
The Buddha: An Alternative Narrative of His Life and Teaching (2017)
PLAYS
Mahatma: Khudaka Hijra (1988 & 2009)
Babasaheb Ambedkar (2008 & 2014)
TALK TO US
Join the conversation on Twitter
http://twitter.com/HarperCollinsIN
Like us on Facebook to find and share posts about our books with your friends
http://www.facebook.com/HarperCollinsIndia
Follow our photo stories on Instagram
http://instagram.com/harpercollinsindia/
Get fun pictures, quotes and more about our books on Tumblr
http://www.tumblr.com/blog/harpercollinsindia
First published in India by
HarperCollins Publishers in 2018
First published as Rama Revisited and Other Stories in 2002 by Writers Workshop, Kolkata.
2 4 6 8 10 9 7 5 3 1
Copyright © Mukunda Rao 2018
P-ISBN: 978-93-5277-668-9
Epub Edition © February 2018 E-ISBN: 978-93-5277-669-6
This is a work of fiction and all characters and incidents described in this book are the product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Mukunda Rao asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.
All rights reserved under The Copyright Act, 1957. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this ebook on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins Publishers India.
Cover design: © HarperCollins Publishers India
www.harpercollins.co.in
HarperCollins Publishers
A-75, Sector 57, Noida, Uttar Pradesh 201301, India
1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF, United Kingdom
2 Bloor Street East, Toronto, Ontario M4W 1A8, Canada
Lvl 13, 201 Elizabeth Street (PO Box A565, NSW, 1235), Sydney NSW 2000, Australia
195 Broadway, New York, NY 10007, USA