The Epic of Kautilya : Born To Be King

by Deepak Thomas

Dhanush chuckled. Then he chuckled harder before beginning to laugh outright.

  “What’s so funny?” Kautilya asked.

  “You,” Dhanush said. “You are both the most brilliant and the silliest person I have ever known.”

  Kautilya pouted. “I hate you.”

  “But I adore you,” Dhanush said. “I adore you, dear sister.”

  CHAPTER 13

  The End Of Education

  Kautilya was relieved. Her training had come to an end and she would now be sent back to Aryavrat. There was a spring in her step and everything seemed brighter and full of life.

  “Let’s go, Bali.” Kautilya tried to wake her largest brother. At sixteen he had already become a giant. He swiped Kautilya aside and rolled back into sleep.

  “Wake up!” Dhanush screamed, and jumped on him, scaring both Kautilya and Bali.

  The noise woke up all the brothers.

  “Is it time already?” Varun said. “I wanted to sleep some more.”

  “Father is going to arrive soon,” Kautilya said. The thought of seeing him again put a smile on her face.

  “Father?” Varun said. “Wonderful. That means no more sleeping on the floor?”

  “Yes,” Dhanush said. “And delicious food served to us on silver platters whenever we wish.”

  “A warm bath in the mornings,” Varun said, “with beautiful attendants.”

  “Beautiful attendants?” Bali leapt up. “I’d take a bath the whole day, then.”

  “But you would still stink,” Sameer said.

  All of them laughed, and the whole hut was now as excited as Kautilya.

  Soon they had bathed and dressed, and were ready to leave. Finally, the fragrant princes and princess of Bharat made their way to their assembly point.

  The Lohithas and Akrama were already waiting for them. One after the other they touched his feet.

  “Long live all of you.” Akrama smiled, which was rare even after all these years.

  Hayan was the first one to notice movement in the distance. “Chariots,” he said.

  Kautilya was overjoyed. Her father was on his way.

  Sure enough, after some time, a convoy of chariots made their way to the hermitage. Chandra led the convoy with a handsome young man by his side. He was followed in by the Lohitha king and his wives. They arrived and greeted Akrama, then the boy made his way to Kautilya.

  “How are you, Kautilya?” he asked. “Your brothers and you have grown up so much.”

  Kautilya recognised him. “Jay!” She gasped and hugged him. Jay had matured. He was no longer adorable and awkward. He was handsome and graceful. He had become a man.

  “I am well, Jay,” Kautilya said. “How are you? You look great.”

  Jay blushed. “And you have become beautiful. So many princes will line up to take your hand.”

  Kautilya smiled weakly. Would Jay do it too?

  Soon it was time for the ceremony of graduation. As per tradition, the disciples would be summoned one after the other for a personal audience with the guru. Here the student would give the guru a tribute, as payment for the education and lodgings. After the guru received the tribute he would teach the student one final lesson.

  The first one to be called was Sameer, who had been the biggest thorn in Akrama’s side. Sameer collected a bag of gold from the king and went to Akrama for his final lesson.

  One by one the princes went to receive the final lesson. All of them took a bag of gold from their parents and also a gift that they had found, made or bought themselves.

  “Dhanush,” Akrama summoned him.

  Dhanush stood up. He smiled and patted Kautilya’s shoulder as he made his way to receive his final lesson.

  Kautilya reached into the cloth bag she was carrying. She pulled out the big stacks of palm leaves she had written on. That was her tribute. It had taken many days to complete but she hoped it would impress her teacher.

  After Dhanush was finished, Kautilya walked up to Chandra and touched his feet. He smiled with tears in his eyes.

  Kautilya received a bag of gold from him. She began to walk towards Akrama.

  However, Akrama was already returning. He saw Kautilya and turned his face away.

  “I forgot about you,” he said.

  Even after all these years. Even after all this effort! But she did not let her disappointment show.

  “These are for you, Guruji,” Kautilya said. “I have scribed all your teachings.” She put the texts and the bag of gold at Akrama’s feet.

  “Live long and prosper.” Akrama forced a smile and said.

  Then he went off to meet all the parents and wish each of them goodbye.

  Kautilya remained where she stood. She turned away from the crowd and sobbed. She did not want their pity.

  She felt a familiar touch on her shoulder. Kautilya looked up to see it was Chandra.

  Chandra smiled. “You did well, Kautilya.”

  “Not well enough, I guess,” Kautilya said.

  “It is not hard for gold to glitter, Kautilya,” he said. “Akrama is adept at the art of war yet he hasn’t learned enough about life.”

  Most people thought Chandra was just a warrior. But Kautilya knew him to be a philosopher too, just like her.

  “Do you still remember the statue of the crouching lioness?” he asked.

  Kautilya nodded.

  “Did you know that statue was originally a tiger?” he asked.

  Kautilya shook her head.

  “The Sun God and rains eroded the stripes,” he said, “and now the statue looks like a lioness. The priests considered it a bad omen. Many have asked me to take down the statue, but I consider it to be better as a lioness. It represents what truly makes a king strong.”

  Chandra turned to Kautilya. “Did you know that tigers are bigger than lions?”

  Kautilya nodded.

  “Tigers can beat lions one-on-one,” he said, “but tigers in the wild will always avoid lions. Do you know why?”

  “Because they hunt in groups?” Kautilya said.

  “Yes, the lion has a pride,” he said. “If you attack one, you attack the rest. Similarly, for a king, his greatest strength is not his individual prowess. His greatest strength is those who advise him. The king might be one but it is the whole council that keeps the throne. Do you understand?”

  Kautilya nodded. She was to be Dhanush’s advisor. It gave her some consolation that her father considered her worthy.

  “Have you learned to use astras?” Chandra asked.

  Kautilya nodded. “I can use the ones under the patronage of the Fire God and the War God. Dhanush can use the Storm God’s astras too. I’ve seen some of them. He can destroy armies.”

  “Well, then, on behalf of your guru let me give you your final lesson,” Chandra said. “As a prize for all your hard work, let me teach you the incantation for a very special astra. It is very powerful so use it only when the circumstance is most dire.”

  Chandra then whispered the incantation into her ear. Kautilya committed it to memory.

  “It is called the Hamsastra,” Chandra said. “It was revealed to me by the Creator God. But he is not the patron so I cannot use it. Can you guess who the patron is?”

  It had been easy for her to work out her brothers’ patron gods. But she had always wondered about hers. Whoever it was, they did not give her any great ability. But if the Creator God gave Chandra the astra and it was not under his patronage then that could only mean...

  “Of course,” Kautilya said, “it’s under the patronage of his daughter, the Goddess. And she is my patron.”

  “Perfect,” Chandra said. “You are remarkable, Kautilya. Keep surprising me with your ability.”

  “But I can never be the warrior that Dhanush will be,” Kautilya said.

  “Kautilya,”
Chandra said, grabbing her shoulders, “you are much more than a warrior. You have wisdom and perseverance. You have empathy for others. You have kindness in your heart. You are not born to be a warrior, Kautilya. You are born to be a king.”

  Kautilya got goosebumps along her arms as she heard this. She nodded.

  “Now let’s return to the rest,” Chandra said, “before they start chiding me about spending all my time with my daughter.”

  Kautilya smiled.

  The ceremony concluded. The Shveta and Lohitha princes had been rivals for eight years but now they bade farewell to each other like respectful compatriots.

  Bali and the eldest Lohitha bawled as they hugged each other and bade farewell. Jansa walked up to Dhanush and gave him a farewell hug. Then he walked up to Kautilya and said, “You did well, parrot.”

  “So did you,” Kautilya said.

  “I will be more wary of you than I am of any of your brothers,” Jansa said. “But I promise you I will take back the throne that was my family’s one day.”

  “You can try,” Kautilya said.

  Jansa smiled. “Take care, parrot. Goodbye.”

  “You take care, Jansa,” Kautilya said. “A parrot never forgets.”

  Jansa’s smile faded as he walked away.

  After a long exile, Kautilya was on her way back to the palace.

  CHAPTER 14

  The Rebellion

  A few days into her time back at the palace she began missing the gurukul.

  As soon as she was back her old routine began again. She was kept out of any actual work. Her job was to look pretty, which she felt she was not very good at. She missed the plain cotton attire of the gurukul. The gaudy silks and chiffons of a princess’s wardrobe were not comfortable. And every day the handmaidens would spend hours bathing her. Their primary goal was to clear up the tan she had got in the forests. Before long, Kautilya felt she was turning yellow from the application of too much turmeric on her skin.

  Once in a while, Jay would come to visit her. But now that both of them were adolescents the palace folk disapproved of them spending time together. Conversations turned awkward and very soon his visits became rare. On many days she would wistfully wait for him to arrive. She would look up expectantly at the sound of any man, only to see that it was a servant or an occasional soldier sent to deliver a message from her father.

  All her brothers except Dhanush disappeared from her life as soon as they were all back at the palace. She had expected this. Dhanush would visit whenever he could find some reprieve from the daily royal affairs. They would chat for a few minutes on some questions Dhanush had about state policies or the law and then he would have to go back to the courts.

  Some days they would go out into the forests to practise astras. Both of them improved but Dhanush was still much better than her.

  She visited the king’s chambers on the nights when Chandra was in. But his age was catching up with him. His eyes were sunken and exhaustion marked his every breath. Soon the handmaidens were her only company, and the only topics they ever talked about were their love lives and how to cook.

  She began to get restless and wondered what she could do to pass her time.

  One day, Dhanush came to her. “We should join the proceedings of the courtroom, Kautilya. There is bad news.”

  Kautilya and Dhanush made their way to the courthouse where there was a huge commotion. Chandra had his head in his hands.

  Kautilya noticed a familiar face among the courtiers.

  “What’s Jansa doing here?” she asked.

  “He is the new Lohitha ambassador,” Dhanush said. “The sight of him makes me retch.”

  “Why did you call me here?” Kautilya asked.

  “The humans have suffered their first defeat in Dandaka,” Dhanush said.

  Kautilya gasped. Dandaka was a jungle province that had been ruled by Bharat for several years. The original inhabitants of the country were apes and bears, but the ape rulers had been defeated centuries ago by the Lohithas and the country had become a part of the Bharat Empire.

  However, the descendants of the deposed ape ruler continued to rebel against their human masters. Their primitive weapons, haphazard military training and refusal to use horses meant that they were usually only a trifling threat.

  But recently there had been reports of a new ruler taking charge and bolstering the ape rebels so that now they were making advances. Jay’s father, the general, had been sent to lead the human forces against the new threat.

  However, finally, after several years, the rebels had achieved their first victory.

  “What about Jay’s father? Is he back?” Kautilya asked.

  Dhanush pursed his lips. “He is missing.”

  Suddenly a messenger ran into the courtroom and fell to his knees. “Your Highness.”

  Chandra leapt from his throne. “Is it news from Dandaka?”

  The messenger lifted up torn blood-soaked clothes and broken sandals.

  “The general is dead,” the messenger said.

  Jay wailed and collapsed.

  Kautilya was stunned too. The general was the one elder noble other than her father who treated her decently. It was unfair how the good people in the world were stolen away before everyone else.

  And Jay – his heart must have been torn from him.

  Chandra clenched his fists and looked up. “Prepare my battalion. I am setting out for Dandaka.”

  “Father,” Dhanush said, “you are needed here. Let the Raptors go to Dandaka. We will lead the campaign against the ape rebels.”

  Chandra shook his head. “No, I will not lose my sons.”

  “You will not lose your sons, father,” Dhanush said. “Let me go. I’m sure that together the Shveta brothers can take on any enemy.”

  “It is a good idea,” Jansa said. “Let us see what the next generation of your esteemed dynasty is capable of.”

  “Do not doubt their ability for one second, Jansa,” Chandra said. “Fine, Dhanush. You and your brothers prepare yourselves. I will loan you my battalion and if you need any more troops you can ask me.”

  Dhanush put his palms together and bowed. Chandra raised his open palm. “Go with my blessings.”

  “And also your daughter,” Dhanush said. “I request your permission to take Kautilya with us. Her knowledge of strategy could aid us.”

  The whole court was stunned.

  “A woman on a battlefield?” some murmured.

  “No, Dhanush,” Chandra said. “Dandaka has become very dangerous in these past few months.”

  “We will protect her, father,” Dhanush said. “We are her brothers, after all.”

  This was Kautilya’s chance to escape the monotony of palace life. She looked up at Chandra imploringly. She knew her doe-eyes would melt his heart.

  “Very well, go on,” Chandra said. “But if one scratch should mark her body...”

  Dhanush nodded.

  Kautilya bowed her head and her father blessed her. Then she and Dhanush left the courtroom followed by cheers of approval.

  Kautilya started to sweat. War... She was marching headlong into a real battle.

  CHAPTER 15

  Dandaka

  They travelled for several days along the river to reach their destination. Kautilya spent the time mulling strategy and occasionally playing chess with Dhanush.

  Jay was also accompanying them on the journey. However, he had been silent the whole way. Kautilya wished she could take him in her arms and soothe away his anguish. But to do that before marriage would be a great scandal.

  The capital of Dandaka was a verdant paradise built along a river around the Kishkinda hill. Marble and stone buildings dotted the green mangrove swamps and meadows.

  To the north of the city, the river meandered gracefully.

  The r
iver was not a natural watercourse. It had been built by the Riverbuilder, a legendary sage who did intense penance in the name of the Great Preserver. The penance was rewarded with the appearance of a mountain-sized boar that could carve into any rock or soil.

  With the boar under his control, the Riverbuilder began his long endeavour to connect Kishkinda to Aryavrat. Kautilya had seen paintings of the saffron-clad sage standing atop the behemoth, digging up the land and allowing water to flow through. Any creature in the way, human or not, would be carved up along with the land.

  They say many hundreds of people died and many families were displaced. Several of them went to the Riverbuilder and pleaded him to stop. However, he did not.

  Kautilya had memorised his famous reply: Mighty nations are built on the carcasses of the weak.

  The Riverbuilder and the boar continued their rampage through Bharat.

  As they neared Kishkinda, a bear whose hut was just outside Kishkinda wanted to save her home. She talked to a flock of woodpeckers and they flew into the boar’s eyes and blinded him.

  The blind boar began bucking and screaming. The Riverbuilder fell off its back and was trampled to death. After that, no one touched the strip of land where the bear resided. Only after many decades when she moved away did builders bring ape slaves to break down the final section that was needed to connect Kishkinda to the new river.

  Kautilya was always intrigued by what she might learn from that story, but for now she let go of the thought and continued to observe the myriad buildings around her. The city and its surroundings were enveloped in lush greenery, and the climate would ensure that the weather was constantly pleasant. Kautilya preferred Kishkinda to the capital.

  Thousands had assembled to welcome the famous Raptors. The crowds cheered as Dhanush waved from the deck of the boat that carried them to the dock.

  Kautilya observed the assembly. Most of them were humans whose ancestors had settled in Dandaka long ago. The humans had made the place their home just as much as the apes and bears who had lived here for millennia.

  Kautilya saw the aboriginal inhabitants of the land too. They looked like large humans except that their bodies were covered in fur. Most had the faces of monkeys and some had the faces of bears. They were confined to the edges of the crowds. They stooped low in fear.