Mandodari

by Manini J Anandani

  I was in labour till evening. The pain was much more than I had experienced earlier. I clenched my teeth and tried to breathe deeply to release the pain. My daughter’s face was still clear in my mind. I began to wonder if it was really that painful the first time and I knew it was not. I blinked again and saw the little girl I had once seen in my dreams. She was smiling at me and pointed towards something. But I blinked again and she disappeared. I was in the midst of excruciating cramps and hallucinations.

  ‘Your majesty, you are doing fine. Just push harder once again!’ yelled the midwife.

  ‘Your majesty, keep breathing,’ said the physician.

  Each time I pushed harder thinking that it was the end of it. But this child gave me a tough time. The clouds were thundering throughout and then we heard a loud bang indicating that lightning had struck somewhere.

  I closed my eyes for some time and then saw a woman dressed in black antelope skin. It was the same woman who had appeared in my dreams earlier; her hair was open this time and she was angry. She turned towards me and I heard her saying, ‘A woman will be the reason for your death and that woman will be me!’

  I opened my eyes in terror and heard noises in the room again. The sky was terrorized by lightning too. The thundering was as bad as my labour.

  ‘Once again, your majesty, push harder . . . this is it!’

  I pushed with all my might and heard the wailing of a baby a few seconds later.

  I saw the midwife take the baby in her arms and my dasi hurriedly announced, ‘Your majesty, it’s a boy! You have a son!’

  The midwife declared his birth outside the room. ‘Rani Mandodari has given birth to a boy.’

  I heard Dashaanan asking her, ‘My son! How is he?’

  ‘My lord, he is beautiful. He is healthy and strong. Even the thundering clouds couldn’t drown out the sound of his cries!’

  Dashaanan sounded overjoyed, ‘How is my queen?’

  ‘She is tired at the moment. Your son gave her a rough time but she is a strong-willed woman,’ replied the midwife.

  ‘You have brought me the news I was waiting to hear. I will bestow you with gifts that you cannot count! I want to see my son now . . . ’

  Dashaanan entered the room to see us. Instead of our son, he walked towards me first.

  ‘How are you feeling, my queen?’

  ‘I am delighted, my lord. You wanted a son and you have him now!’

  ‘I have him because of you!’

  ‘I thought you couldn’t wait to see your son . . . ’

  ‘I can’t! But I wanted to thank you first.’

  ‘My lord, I can’t express how honoured I feel right now!’

  He took our son in his arms and I saw a glimmer in his eyes. He was proud.

  ‘My son and the supreme heir of Lanka! A boy whose cry is the sound of thunder . . . I name him Meghanath!’

  I observed a small period of confinement after Meghanath’s birth. I breastfed him twice a day and the remaining time he was fed by a wet nurse. Queens were restricted to feeding their babies so they were free to resume their duties soon after the confinement period. During this period, Dashaanan was not allowed to visit my chambers. We had to observe distance with regards to physical intimacy until the confinement was over.

  Our little son soon became a favourite pastime for the ladies at the palace. Everyone sought new tricks to make the baby smile and giggle. This new phase of motherhood in my life had diminished the unpleasant memories of the past. In between the smiles and giggles of my baby, I discovered a new side of my personality. I became more alert, much more caring and gentle. I was amazed at my ability to sense different feelings. I knew when he was about to cry and I sensed when he wanted me around.

  Dashaanan visited Meghanath every evening after court, and I was happy to see a different side of him. He spoke to him as if the little one could actually understand what he was saying and little Meghanath would look straight into his father’s eyes as if he followed everything.

  One such evening, my little son and I waited for Dashaanan in the garden. But that evening he skipped our meeting. When I asked my dasi to enquire about his whereabouts, she returned with a hesitant look on her face. Dashaanan was on his way to meet us when he was distracted by some scantily clad women playing in a pond. Those women were none other than the maids brought by Nayanadini. They wanted to draw his attention by luring him.

  I was furious. Clearly they were working on the instructions of someone else. I went straight towards Nayanadini’s chambers to confront her.

  Nayanadini was playing a game of dice with her dasis when I stormed into her chambers. She stood up slowly, bowed slightly like she usually did—with condescension.

  ‘What a pleasant surprise! Would you like to join us for a game of dice, your highness?’

  ‘No, thank you! That’s not what I am here for . . . ’

  ‘Well then, how I can help you, Rani Mandodari?’ she asked loftily—something I had never liked about her.

  ‘Those dasis that you presented as gifts to me . . . what kind of girls have you brought to serve us?’

  ‘Well, I hear they are serving the king quite well . . .’ said Nayanadini with the most vicious smile I had ever seen on a woman.

  ‘How dare you! You seem to have planned all this! What kind of tricks are you playing with him?’

  ‘The same kind of tricks that you always play with me . . . ’

  ‘You must be insane. Which tricks have I ever played with you?’

  ‘You don’t remember? You have always tried to lure my husband away from me. You have played your tricks from the very first night of my marriage when you kept him engaged for the whole night and I kept waiting for him!’

  ‘I didn’t keep him away from you! He came to me on his own. On the contrary, I told him that he should be with you! And don’t forget . . . he is my husband too.’

  ‘You don’t need to play innocent with me. I understand you envy me and that’s the reason you always try to draw his attention towards yourself. You must be so insecure. However, you need to understand that our husband needs a change in his appetite. And most importantly, he needs a change from you! Also, what better timing than when he cannot sleep with you; consider us even now.’

  ‘It is a pity that you think this way. I thought you are arrogant but graceful enough to understand how things work when you got married to a king. But I was wrong!’

  ‘You call me arrogant? Certainly you are not aware of the immense dowry that came along with me! A lot more than you, I hear . . . ’

  ‘Choose your words carefully, Nayanadini! Your union with the king may have got him wealth but certainly you can’t love him the way I do. It’s a shame that you planned such a deceitful act to make your own husband bed some petty whores. And all that because you wanted to avenge yourself for that first night and consider yourself even with me.’

  I wanted to say much more but I knew there was no point in engaging with a woman so envious and arrogant.

  ‘Think about what you have done, Nayanadini. You envy other wives of your husband but you are ready to share him with women below your status,’ I said and walked out.

  Dhanyamalini was furious when she heard about Nayanadini’s misbehaviour. ‘You shouldn’t have been so lenient with her. Dismiss her dasis; ban her from the queen’s palace and even the court for that matter,’ she suggested. She was pacing furiously in front of me.

  ‘I cannot do that. Other women at the antapura will make up stories about how I tried to oppress my husband’s new wife. Also, I hardly feel bad about what she has done. I am concerned about his reputation; about the gossip that the king is sleeping with the queen’s dasis!’

  ‘I hope she learns the difference between sharing a husband with other wives and sharing a husband with whores. First, we had women from the antapura and now our own dasis are available to him. But don’t you worry . . . we will figure out a way to keep Lankeshwar away from those girls,’ said Dhanyamali
ni.

  I was relieved after my discussion with her. She was genuine in her concern.

  ‘I don’t know how to say this but I am thankful to you, Dhanyamalini. When you came into our lives, I never expected to share such a bond with you.’

  She smiled, ‘I told you . . . I will be like a sister to you. But now we need to be careful of our new sister! First, let me make arrangements to send her so-called ‘serving gifts’ back to where they came from.’ We smiled at each other like two friends and I went back to my chambers to tend to my little one.

  My confinement period was about to end in a week’s time. Dashaanan had announced that he would perform a yagna to purify us after the confinement and called astrologers to interpret Meghanath’s horoscope. The yagna was to be followed by a formal announcement about the newborn heir. A royal feast was being arranged for the masses to celebrate his birth.

  After the incident with Nayanadini’s dasis, I met Dashaanan directly at the yagna. He visited Meghanath in between those days during my absence. He obviously wanted to avoid my reaction at his indecent actions. Without looking at him directly, I walked with my son in my arms and sat next to Dashaanan for the rituals.

  Guru Shukracharya performed the rituals for us and made a formal announcement in the kingdom to declare Meghanath the prince. Everyone from the family showered their blessings on our son. Next, we gathered at court to hear predictions about Meghanath’s horoscope. Numerous claims were made by all the astrologers present to impress Dashaanan.

  ‘Impeccable timing of birth . . . his kundli shows that he will be an invincible warrior!’ said a voice from one corner.

  ‘Atimaharathi yoga in his horoscope . . . just like you wished for, your highness,’ said another.

  ‘He will defeat your enemies . . . will always obey his father.’

  The claims were getting too ambitious till Guru Shukracharya pointed out something from the horoscope, ‘Only one thing may need caution at a certain time . . . no doubt he will excel and conquer his enemies, but the way Shani is positioned during his birth, it may bring him some misfortune.’

  There was silence in the court. Dashaanan’s proud smile, which hadn’t left his face since morning, suddenly faded.

  ‘I regret but . . . Shani during his birth was positioned in his twelfth house. As a result, he may lose his life while facing an enemy at a certain point,’ explained Shukracharya.

  Dashaanan became furious and ordered his prime minister, ‘Mahamantri, release the lords of navagraha from the tower except for Shanidev! Keep him captive till he repents what he has done . . . ’

  I objected, ‘My lord, I request you to withdraw your command.’

  ‘Mandodari, stay out of this!’ shouted Dashaanan.

  ‘No, my lord, I will not stay out of this matter any more. You told me the purpose of holding the navagraha mentors captive is to gain their influence for your benefit. You tried to force your will on them but it seems it hasn’t worked. You wanted a son with impressive supremacy and you have one. But you can’t control every event of his life. Let him design his own fate.’

  ‘I trust my son, but I will not let anyone play with his destiny. If Shanidev has been too rebellious to support me, then I will show him how rebellious I am . . . ’

  ‘I request you one last time, my lord. I have never opposed any decision of yours expect in case of the navagraha gurus. I beseech you . . . withdraw your command given in anger. Do not invite the wrath of those deities. They may have supreme powers to influence ones destiny but they cannot change what’s written. As a mark of respect, release them all now!’ I appealed stronger than ever to convince him.

  ‘It is for your concern for them that I am going to release them. And remember that this is the first and the last time that I have let someone go because of your appeal.’ And so the navagraha gurus were set free.

  THIRTEEN

  Seasons changed and the months passed by swiftly. Meghanath turned three years old in no time. Nayanadini became a mother too. Her son was named Prahasta and had just begun walking. Dhanyamalini, sadly, couldn’t conceive yet and there were rumours that her womb was barren. Dashaanan discovered a solution to that as well. He prescribed medicines and treatment to boost her fertility and she followed it with utmost discipline. In a few months, her obedient efforts bore results. She got pregnant and delivered a son to Dashaanan too. He was named Atikaya.

  Our differences as co-wives never influenced the affection amongst our children. Meghanath was the eldest and never differentiated between any of his brothers. They ate meals together, played together and sometimes even slept together. Meghanath was four years old when Nayanadini and Dhanyamalini were expecting their second children. Dashaanan wished to see a daughter this time since he had sons from all three of us. But both gave birth to sons again. Dhanyamalini’s second son was named Trishir and Nayanadini gave birth to twin brothers Narantaka and Devantaka.

  Once Meghanath turned five, he was introduced to the scriptures and texts. He started learning different languages too. Guru Shukracharya started teaching him the secrets of warfare. When he turned six, I gave birth to another son—Akshayakumara. Akshayakumara was the prettiest of all our sons. He was the youngest prince. In addition to seven sons from his three wives, Dashaanan also had a few illegitimate children from the other women of the antapura. Surprisingly, none gave birth to a girl and Dashaanan’s longing remained unfulfilled.

  With seven children growing up together in the queen’s palace, we never had a dull day. Nothing much changed over the years. My duties as a regent and queen remained unchanged, my association with the family members remained stable, and so did my relationship with my husband. We had our differences over the years, especially when Dashaanan talked about his illegitimate children from other women.

  Nayanadini had become much calmer than before. In between responsibilities of her three children and the constant pursuit of Dashaanan’s favours, she had lost her ability to create troubles. We still spoke to each other only on occasions, and if required. Also, we only spoke to each other publicly in order to avoid any unwanted gossip from other women in the palace.

  As co-wives, Dhanyamalini, Nayanadini and I spent most of the time parenting our children together. We took a planned approach to our responsibilities of supervising their studies and learning. I took care of their studies related to literature, the Vedas and the shastras. Nayanadini and Dhanyamalini supervised their lessons in the arts, music and statesmanship.

  Our children were as brilliant as Dashaanan. At the age of eleven, Meghanath had not only learnt but mastered all the weapons and warfare strategies from Guru Shukracharya. He was also knowledgeable about politics. He took a keen interest in occult science. He also mastered the art of sorcery and magic. Meghanath was indisputably his father’s favourite.

  The other children too developed different talents. Prahasta, along with Dhanyamalini’s son Trishir, learnt unique combat skills. Atikaya mastered archery and could shoot five arrows at a time. He learnt secret mantras to invoke divine weapons. At the age of ten, Dashaanan gave him an invincible armour, which was won by him and Kumbakarna when they had performed penance for Prajapati Brahma’s favours. Dashaanan was a proud father seeing his children developing talents at such an early age.

  One day, we received an invitation for a swayamwar at our court. Nanashri read the correspondence written on a scroll. A swayamwar was the practice of choosing a husband for one’s daughter by inviting prospective suitors from neighbouring or overseas kingdoms. Mainly, the suitors were asked to participate in some kind of contest to win the bride. A father who wished to wed his daughter to the most suitable man would host a swayamwar and send invites to all possible suitors. The bride would then choose her husband from among those participants.

  Along with the scroll, came a long and heavy arrow wrapped in a blue velvet case. There were other pleasantries that accompanied the invite too—dried fruits of various kinds, essential oils and an embroidered silk stol
e for the king or prince who would participate in the swayamwar. We were anxious to know the host as a swayamwar was an expensive event. I sat next to Dashaanan observing the details. Nanashri pulled the arrow out of its fancy cover and presented it.

  ‘At first I thought it is polished, but this arrow is made of panchdhatu—an alloy of five metals,’ said Nanashri and handed it over to Dashaanan.

  ‘Indeed, and it is heavier than it usually is. Who brought the invite?’ asked Dashaanan.

  ‘Two guards along with their minister. The invite comes from the king of Mithila—popularly known as Raja Janaka of the Videha region,’ answered Nanashri.

  ‘Raja Janaka from Mithila . . . Well, I am impressed with the invitation. But why would someone only send an arrow without a bow? Does it symbolize something?’ asked Dashaanan.

  ‘It sure does, my lord!’

  ‘Hmm . . . so what does the invite say, Nanashri?’

  ‘Raja Janaka has sent his humble invitation to Lankeshwar Ravana. He is hosting a swayamwar for his daughter and is requesting your honourable presence. His beloved eldest daughter Sita turns thirteen this year. He says his beautiful daughter possesses the greatest of womanly virtues and is now of marriageable age. The swayamwar will be held for three consecutive days and includes a contest. The winner of this contest will be considered eligible to marry his daughter,’ said Nanashri.

  ‘Considered eligible? So the contest does not guarantee a wedding?’ asked Vibhishana.

  The minister from Mithila stepped forward and bowed. ‘I am honoured to present this invite to the mighty emperor Ravana on behalf of my king—Janaka of Mithila. Kindly accept the invitation.’

  Dashaanan nodded in appreciation.

  ‘My lord, are you considering it?’ I asked Dashaanan in a hushed tone. I was certain that Dashaanan wouldn’t take another wife and that an alliance with the kingdom of Mithila did not interest him much.

  ‘I am not sure. Let us hear about it anyway,’ said Dashaanan in the same tone.