by Lucia Ashta
She shook her head in an effort to clear it and decided that if Kaanra, who was wiser than anyone she knew, believed she could become one with the water, then she would at least try. If he believed she could do it, maybe she could. What had just seconds before been apprehension turned into excitement. It was a challenge. Life and the world were Ashta’s ultimate playground. Eager, she turned on her heels, breakfast forgotten, and ran off toward the waters of the Haakal.
As Ashta reached the water’s edge, prayer and reverence replaced playful excitement. At age thirteen, she knew that there was true power in ritual, in thoughts, and in the spoken word. As she walked, she held her hands folded over her heart center between her developing breasts. Her sweet voice rang out as she sang words of praise for Creator and for the earth.
She thanked the sun who gave life in a burst of intense fire and the moon who gave magic to the world with her cool stare. She focused on the slight breeze that had followed her to the water, and she sang her thanks to the air that was the breath of life. She thanked the earth, the Great Mother of all life on the planet, and she felt intense gratitude ripple through her in a wave of emotion.
Ashta paused before taking the final step that would lead her into the water. She stood still and waited. Patience did not come easily to her. A wild, intense spirit, she had to remind herself to allow things to unfold in their own time instead of forcing them to obey her own desires. It was a lesson she was still learning. Patience went counter to that part of her that drove her into action as soon as she knew what to do.
She stood now with deliberate patience at the bank of the River Haakal. The water lapped teasingly near her feet, beckoning her. She felt instant familiarity at the water’s contact with her spirit. Ashta spoke to the water in her mind as the temple masters had taught her. The water was fully aware of her thoughts and intentions. She could communicate with all living matter. Ultimately, all living beings emanated from the same source.
She told the water of her intention to become one with it. She asked the water to help her learn its sacred wisdom. The water welcomed Ashta to enter her and begin absorbing her teachings. She stripped the tunic off her slim body and tossed it to the side. She then walked slowly and deliberately into the river.
She was aware of each sensation. She noticed the feel of the water on her bare skin, how it glided like silk against her body with so much energy and life. She felt its coolness, the perfect temperature. She bent and scooped some water in her hand and brought it to her lips and drank. The water tasted as sweet as the fruit from the trees that surrounded the temple. She drank thirstily.
With a placid smile, Ashta walked further into the water until it reached her shoulders. She listened for what the water might say to her but could not hear as a surge of panic rose within her. How could she will her body to take in water as breath when it went contrary to her natural impulses?
Ashta realized that the true lesson was surrender. Only with full surrender could she learn to be truly one with the water, to be the essence of water itself.
She would even have to relinquish the very breath of life. Only then, she realized, would she be able to forfeit control of her life to those higher powers that dictated the outcome of her life anyway. In some ways, Ashta knew she could direct the happenings of her life, although in a larger sense, she knew that she had no control over her existence. It was a humbling realization. As real and vivid as life seemed, it could easily be gone in the next moment; life was as much outside of human control as the rising and setting of the sun.
Even though Ashta had always loved the water, this lesson would be one of the most difficult for her to master. She lay in the water, giving her weight to it totally. She floated along its surface for hours, barely noticing the moving position of the sun. She felt at complete peace with the water, but was still unable to relinquish her human impulses to the water’s will. She felt the water’s peace as her own inner peace and felt the rhythm of its cycles and flows.
By the time the sun began to set, Ashta still felt a beautiful calm, but she had not yet managed to surrender to the water’s power. She was not able to relinquish her sense of control over the essence of her life in this instance: her breath. Determined nonetheless, she continued to float in the water, her skin shriveled and soft, and she welcomed the rising moon.
Now bathed in a silver glow, there was something about the combination of the moon and the water that was particularly powerful for her. Under the feminine influences of the moon and the water, she was able to go deeper still within herself. Suddenly, she slipped into the water’s consciousness. She was acutely aware of the magic the water held. The water was a living organism capable of its own creation.
As night settled in, Ashta grew very cold. She began to shiver and could not stay in the water any longer. Once she decided to leave the water, she moved very quickly. Had there been an observer, it would have seemed incongruous that the girl who had lain still for so many hours would rush to the shore.
Shivering violently now, Ashta fumbled as she pulled her tunic over her head. She could not return to the temple until she completed the lesson, and so she ran off, trembling, to collect wood to build a fire for the night. As she looked for firewood, hunger reminded her that she had not eaten all day so she expanded her search to include fruits and berries. She worked quickly under the illumination of the almost-full moon.
10 Just Another Stone
Ashta awoke the next morning with the rising sun. She stretched, forgetting where she was, until she felt her outstretched arms rub against grasses instead of fabric. This incongruity snapped her out of the remaining vestiges of sleep, and she remembered where she was and why.
“Uuugh,” she groaned.
It was the second morning in a row that she awakened with a groan. She was not looking forward to the long day before her and the task that she must accomplish. The undertaking seemed monumental. She tried to shut out the day; she covered her face with her tunic and rolled over, attempting to recall those moments of sleep that could give her refuge. Still, sleep would not come no matter how hard she tried.
Thankful that no one from the temple was around to see her groaning and complaining about her assignment, she let the tunic fall from her eyes and sat up. She knew she should be grateful that Kaanra thought her ready for such an important lesson. She was always eager to please the temple masters. But the truth, which no one was around to witness, was that she was scared. Only thirteen, she still felt like a girl much of the time, like right then. In this moment, she would have happily turned from the water to go to her mother’s arms.
A single tear slid down her cheek. She had not seen her mother since the time of the winter solstice and that had been almost six months ago. Her life was intense with activity and change; her teachers expected much of her. Perhaps one day she would become wise like her instructors, but on this day, she felt small and vulnerable.
Having indulged herself in the luxury of self-pity, she summoned her will toward the goal. It was rare that she would allow herself to be that discouraged—she knew it was a waste of valuable energy—but the last few days had been more challenging for her than usual. She folded her legs into her accustomed meditation position and sat with her back straight and her gaze inward. She knew, perhaps today more than ever, that she needed to focus.
Once she found what she was looking for, the trust that all was perfect, that she was an instrument of Creator’s will, she opened her eyes. She uncrossed her legs and headed straight toward the water, pulling her tunic over her head as she walked. This time, she did not wait for an invitation from the water. She already knew that the water was willing to share wisdom with her. She walked straight into it and waded until the water reached her neck. Then she flipped up to float with her eyes closed. She was ready.
The entire day before, Ashta had floated in the water, trying, wanting to be one with her. But just as the day before had been uneventful, this day would be filled with accomplis
hment. Unexpectedly, Ashta felt an intense knowing that allowed her to surrender. In that instant she gained access to the understanding of the universe’s functioning. It was one of the moments she would later remember as having changed her life. It was the moment in which she became a true believer, not just in the mysteries of life, but also in herself. She connected to the water intrinsically and, through it, to all life.
She moved to lie in the river as if she were just another one of its stones. Her body was still as if it were lifeless, as if the water itself would give her life. She took one last breath, but felt no fear, only tantalizing possibilities. Exhaling, she released her head and allowed it to sink below the water’s surface.
Her body lay curved upward, a rock at the small of her back supporting her in an arch. Her form was organic, molded by the water’s flow. Her head sank further so that the water completely covered her face. Even her nose dipped under the surface. The rock also cradled her head. She felt supported by Mother Earth.
The peace and joy she felt dispersed whatever thoughts were roaming through her mind. Only knowing and being remained, and timelessness. There was only the water and her within it, melding as one. There was only silence within the sounds of nature. She was in perfect harmony with it all.
She felt at one with everything on the planet. Finally, she was ready. Without effort, or conscious thought, she breathed in water. It was no different than air, although she was not consciously aware of that. She was experiencing one of the greatest moments of inner peace and understanding of her life.
She lay in the water, as part of the water, for hours, or days, or perhaps it was just minutes. She did not know whether she breathed air or water. She did not care. Everything was pure wonder. To her, in that moment, there was not a being on the planet that was not perfect and connected to her.
The water flowed. It cleansed Ashta of her human limitations. It strengthened her, giving her the knowledge and power that we can all access through the gateway of Creator. The beauty of life moved her, and her tears flowed into and with the water.
The coolness of the water became her body temperature. The water became her essence, even the texture of her skin. She breathed in more water. She learned more with each breath. She expanded. And she cried joyous tears.
Ashta could have lain in the water like this forever, but her trance was disturbed. Her dolphin friend, Vilu, came in from the sea to find her. She had met him before in her play in the water, but it had been months since she had last seen him. It was perfect that he should come now in this culminating moment of shifting consciousness. The whole world seemed a fairy tale to her.
Ah-né Vilu. Ah-né Ashta, Ashta thought in her underwater world. I am Vilu. I am Ashta. Ashta felt one with all beings, and so she was one with the dolphin. Vilu woke her from her stupor. He nudged her with laughter, and Ashta instantly knew Vilu’s joy. She opened her eyes to see his dolphin face smiling through crisp water. There was no thought of her humanness or of her previous need to breathe air. She skimmed the water with her body as she swam after Vilu.
She swam until her muscles were heavy with exhaustion. When she could swim no longer, Vilu came up to her so that she could ride on his back. She held onto his fin, entranced in the moment. It seemed almost unreal, yet she was certain it was happening. She realized that bliss could be ours if we just choose it. And with that realization, once again her life was transformed.
Vilu led her out to the sea. It was a sea of sweet water, and Ashta had always felt at home in the waters of the sea just as she did in those of the river. She and Vilu glided as mystical water beings.
Ashta was pulled out of her reverie when she realized that Vilu had led her to a pyramid she had not known existed. Jewels encrusted the pyramid’s surface as if they had fallen onto it in a divine shower. Even deep underwater, the jewels shone. Somehow, they had escaped the fate of most sea objects and were free of the elements that would dull their shine. Red, green, and purple stones stood out against the sand-colored pyramid walls and glittered in the flashes of sun that filtered through the clear water.
Vilu took Ashta to the pyramid, deposited her there, and then swam away. There was no farewell. Vilu gave no importance to the moment of parting for there was no separation when they were connected.
Now all alone in the water, Ashta examined the pyramid. It was small compared to the pyramids near the temple; it was only four times Ashta’s height and built with four vertical sides. She leaned against it and spread her arms out on the sandstone. As she was one with the water, she became one with the pyramid. Instantly, she felt it imparting its knowledge to her, though she was not yet able to absorb that knowledge at a conscious level.
She rested there for several long moments. She was at peace. She lay against the sandstone, knowing in her mind that it was foreign to her skin, yet feeling no true difference between it and her. This was the foundation of magic that she would incorporate into her life more in years to come. This magic of her youth captivated her and became the wellspring of her practices in adulthood.
She knew instinctively what to do. She held one of the flat sides of the pyramid. Now she was fully alert; she was aware of her actions. She breathed water in deeply, filling her lungs, and her body processed the water with ease. Then, fully in her power, she released her light. It was gold—the color of pure love, and it burst forth from her body. It was neither aggressive nor foreign. It was her essence.
When the golden light shot out of her body, it transferred to the pyramid. The pyramid’s stones absorbed the light, and the pyramid began to vibrate with the light’s power for a long moment that seemed frozen in time. Then, it released the golden light to the heavens. The light went to the air, to the earth, to the water, and to the fireball of the sun. It infused all the elements of life.
Ashta did not feel drained. She did not lose life force energy. She felt only an increase in her own energy as she too benefited from the energy that had moved through her. At that moment, she felt vague notions floating on the periphery of her consciousness that hinted at her purpose on earth at this time.
After the light faded from the sky, Ashta leaned back against the pyramid in awe. She had just become like a character in the tales she had loved as a young child. She could not think of a way to explain what had just happened without considering magic.
A subtle current in the sea’s waters moved some sand in an eddy, and the water kicked up one of the red jewels that lay at the base of the pyramid. The ruby moved directly in front of her face. It hovered there in line with her gaze before she realized it was a gift for her.
As soon as she extended her hand to capture the jewel, the water current abruptly ceased, and the gem landed firmly in her hand. The water grew very still. The ruby sparkled the deepest and most beautiful red she had ever seen, and it was large enough to fill most of the palm of her hand. She closed her hand around it. She leaned back against the pyramid wall in mild shock and took another deep, unfathomable breath underwater.
Ashta walked back to the temple so slowly that her yellow hair was almost dry by the time she returned. She was lost in thoughts of a different reality. She meandered and mused in her rumpled tunic, her hair loose and wild about her face, clutching nothing in her hands but a single jewel. It was past midday, and the sun was almost directly overhead. The excitement she had felt after her experience with the water and the pyramid had worn off. Exhaustion had crept in its place.
She wanted nothing more than to go to her little room. It was so small that it could only fit a narrow bed and a petite bedside table, and it had a tiny fireplace just large enough to warm the space. However, it was her own room, and she could go there and be undisturbed.
Her bedroom also had a window. She very much loved this window; it allowed her to look out onto the River Haakal and the large trees that dotted its bank. She could hear the running water. She had always felt that the water spoke to her, and, after what she had just experienced, she knew it was true.<
br />
As soon as she reached the gates of the Temple of Laresu’u Kal, she headed straight toward her room. But before she could reach its solitude, the master Kaanra intercepted her in the open-air corridor. He knew exactly where to wait for her.
As Ashta rounded the corner, she was startled to see Kaanra. She surprised herself by running up to him and embracing him in a hug. It was an uncommon display of affection. The gentle Kaanra held her until she was ready to let go. He felt a special tenderness for the child.
When Ashta was ready, she pulled back and looked Kaanra in the eyes for several heartbeats. What Kaanra saw within Ashta’s fiery, amber eyes excited him. He could see change and growth there. He wondered if it was possible that through this one lesson the girl could have already seen the extent of her powers. Ashta spoke a single sentence to him and in that single expression, Kaanra knew with certainty that she was the one that the great prophet, Dann, had foreseen.
“It is done,” Ashta said. Then, with a calm smile, she walked past Kaanra toward her room.
Kaanra turned to watch the girl retreat. Now that he was convinced that she was one of the twins that Dann had spoken of, that could only mean that the prophecy was figurative instead of literal. Kaanra turned his mind to the boy he had heard of that lived in a temple on the other side of Arnaka. The suspicion that this boy had something to do with the prophecy loomed foremost in Kaanra’s thoughts. He began to make plans.
11 Old Friends
Kaanra was weary. He had been traveling for several weeks, and he felt every year of his body as he rocked back and forth with each step. It was a tedious journey. As he traveled across Arnaka to the other edge of the island, the scenery proved monotonous until he reached the water.
Arnaka was a desert of sand except around its waters, and water sources were scarce inland. As Kaanra neared the ocean that flowed along this side of the island, he felt transported to a completely different place. Lush vegetation was teeming with life. Animal calls rang out in the dusk.