“Yes,” Tara said as her disappointed gaze was glued to the castle in conflagration.
Knowing what she was thinking, he said, “The truth is not what you perceive it to be with your mortal eyes.” He tapped at Tara’s third eye with his two thumbs which temporarily awakened her pineal gland to enable her to see the true reality. She was surprised to see that the castle perched on the edge of the mountain was not a castle at all; it was a huge cave! The children seated in the sleighs were not humans; they were baby dragons!
Tara blinked her eyes to confirm what she had seen. “Oh my goodness! It’s unbelievable!”
“Trust not your defiled eyes because they perceive your world based on your past conditioning and preconceived notions,” Bo explained.
“Are we in the dragon world now?”
“We are now in the Land of Naga and Garuda, the world of dragons and the giant birds.”
“What’s the difference between naga and garuda?” Tara thought of the two dragons she saw attacking each other in the sky on her wedding day.
“Nagas are dragons; they are serpentine creatures that have no wings and have a pair of short antler horns. Garuda is a type of giant bird with the head of a dragon and the body of a bird. Naga is the guardian of the water whereas the garuda is the guardian of the fire.”
“Why did the garuda want to kidnap the baby dragons?” Tara was indignant as she opposed all forms of illegal animal trafficking.
“Naga and garuda are arch nemesis. The giant birds captured the baby dragons as hostages to get the dragon treasures as ransoms. The gargoyle you saw just now was your mental interpretation of the garuda.”
Tara nodded. She reflected a while and asked, “Then how can we perceive the world, just as they are?” asked Tara.
“Master your mind through meditation to achieve samadhi, and you shall awaken the Hero of the World inside you to perceive the true nature of life.” Bo said dispassionately. His calm and quiet confidence was an inspiration to Tara whose flighty disposition was the exact opposite of him.
CHAPTER 6
PURPLE BAMBOO GROVE
As the sleigh flew high up in the sky toward the East, Tara was mesmerized by the enchanting beauty of the Land of Naga and Garuda. The vast expanse of snow-covered-land stretched out before her like a pristine white lotus, pure and unsullied. The ever-flowing river underneath and the rolling mountain range clad in a snowy white suit brought forth a sense of peace and calm in her heart.
The Land of Naga was demarcated into eight regions. Each region was ruled by one of the eight dragon kings: Dragon King Nanda, Dragon King Upananda Dragon King Sagara, Dragon King Vasuki, Dragon King Takshaka, Dragon King Anavatapta, Dragon King Manasvin, and Dragon King Utpalaka.
Dragon King Sagara was the dragon king in the East. He was also the “King of the Dragon Kings” among the eight dragon kings. Bo decided to bring the dragon babies to the Dragon King Sagara of the East.
The dragons were the guardians of the water bodies. Wherever there was water, they would act as dragon guardian spirits. All types of water bodies such as rains, rivers, streams, wells, lakes, waterfalls, ponds, and the oceans were their domain.
As the sleigh continued to move from north to the east, the season changed from winter to spring. Although awestruck by this sudden change, Tara welcomed the refreshing air scented with the mild sweetness of roses, lilies, and peonies.
Before they were about to enter the territory of the dragon palace in the east, the icy grey sky became darker in hue. Tara was slightly jolted in the sleigh by flashes of lightning and reverberating thunders. Torrential rain poured down like a maelstrom of avalanche pummeling the flying sleighs mercilessly.
“Hold on to the handrail and sit tight,” Bo said as he struggled to maneuver the sleigh and lead the rest of the pack safely.
“Okay!” Tara was terrified, as the sleigh ride became incredibly bumpy. With the seat belt fastened, she closed her eyes and held Coco tightly, bracing herself for the tough journey ahead.
The jerky movements of the sleighs were no fun for the children either. The shrieking children felt dizzy and disoriented. Those with motion sickness succumbed to nausea and vomited.
Fortunately, the inclement weather was temporary. Soon, sunlight pierced through the heavy clouds, casting its illuminating rays upon the sleighs. Having made it through the thunderstorm, they were about to arrive at the dragon palace.
Every dragon palace had three levels: the sky, the land, and the ocean. Bo brought the children to the dragon palace of the east located in the sky.
The dragon palace was a gorgeous maroon and is gracefully floated on an enormous island of magnolia white clouds. It sported curving roofs and overhanging eaves, reminiscent of the imperial architecture in ancient China.
Bo made his unicorn sleigh invisible and stopped it a little distance away, allowing the children to move on to the dragon palace. Once they arrived at the palace, Bo telepathically informed the guards to open the gate for the dragon babies. Surprised to see the lost dragon babies’ arrival, the guards immediately guided the children into the palace.
Tara was moved to tears seeing the children finally reach home and reunite with their families. She secretly hoped for a reunion with her loved ones too. For now, she could only cherish this heartening moment with Bo and Coco.
Spellbound by the enchanting beauty of the Land of Naga, Tara’s heart was leaping with a frisson of joy. The purplish azure sky, the turquoise green rivers, the rainbow-colored mountain, and the golden-brown soil were such a picturesque view to behold. It was truly a pleasure and privilege to enjoy nature’s beauty from a bird’s eye view.
“Ouch!” Tara shrieked with a sudden intense pain. She was so preoccupied with the scenic view, that she did not notice how wildly she had been scratching her arms. After having taken in the picturesque setup, she looked down to see that her hands were full of swollen red rashes. It took Tara one second to realize that it was the work of a pea-sized tiny brown scorpion, which was still sitting on her right arm. She yelled once more and brushed it off with her left arm.
Wheezing and trying to take painful gasps of air, Tara’s head started spinning. Her lips and tongue were swelling, and her mouth was foaming white froth before she lost consciousness. The next moment, Tara went berserk. Her eyes became bloodshot and her arms were flailing about uncontrollably.
Bo remained calm and sober. After a second’s thought, he cast a spell to empower the white unicorn to fly more swiftly, so that he could find a suitable dwelling place for Tara’s healing. Then, he placed one hand on her crown and another hand on her navel, uttering, “Tayata Om Bekanze Bekanze Maha Bekanze Radza Samudgate Svaha. May the Medicine King of the Lapis Lazuli Light heal Tara completely.”
An invisible force held Tara to the bench of the sleigh, stopping her uncontrolled flailing. Bo continued to channel the healing energy into Tara to facilitate the purging of the lethal toxins from her body.
Within minutes, Tara spat out a clump of black gooey ooze. Many bruises still scattered across Tara’s arms and legs even after most of the toxin had been eliminated from her body. There was an especially dark bruise in the middle of her forehead. The bruises were an indication that the poison had penetrated her brain and many of the internal organs. Even though her life was no longer at stake, it would take her quite some time to fully recover.
It turned out that it was not just the scorpion that resulted in Tara’s allergic reaction. Instead, it was the lethal combination of dog flea seated on Coco’s outer skin, bites of the scorpion, and mosquito bites. The fleas were attracted to Tara’s foul human odor when she hugged Coco, and they jumped over to her body.
Coco was no longer its joyful self. Instead, it sat down quietly, knowing that Tara was ill and waiting for her to recover.
The smooth ride ended suddenly when the white unicorn made an abrupt turn into a secluded place called the Nook of Naga. There was a dainty waterfall that flowed into the river which eventual
ly ended up in the ocean. The left side of the waterfall was taken over by a bamboo grove, while a mango grove spread across the right side.
The sleigh landed on an empty space in the middle of the bamboo grove. Immediately, Bo transformed the sleigh into a quaint Japanese Zen hermitage.
Tara was sleeping on the bench of the sleigh, which was transformed into a comfortable futon in the bedroom of Zen Hermitage. On one corner, there was an ikebana under a hanging scroll with calligraphy. A delightful sandalwood scent wafted from the three-legged bronze incense burner in the other corner.
The bedroom was separated from the rest of the hermitage by a translucent screen on a black lattice frame. A cast-iron kettle was suspended over a hearth in the middle of the living room, and Coco was lying nearby to keep itself warm.
In another corner that was closer to the door, Bo was seated in meditation next to a bonsai. His meditation channeled the flowing energy force of the environment into Tara’s body to promote her healing.
CHAPTER 7
CLASSICAL CHINESE DANCE
It was a new day and the sun bloomed on the horizon, with its golden petals unfolding outwards into the azure blue sea like a lotus blossoming resplendently, heralding the arrival of hope and joy. The canary, song thrush, and common nightingale were singing delightfully to create a melodious acapella of nature.
Inside the hermitage, Bo was playing his flute. Tara was still lying down on the futon, dreaming about dancing in the lush greenery of nature with butterflies fluttering around her and the flowers in the sky cascading in a downward spiral. Listening to the birds and bamboo flute ensemble, Tara’s heart was buoyant with light-heartedness. Slowly, she opened her eyes and took a deep breath of the sweet, fresh air that was entered from the half-opened window. Panicked, she sat up on the bed and looked around the room, wondering where she was, and who she was.
Due to the penetration of toxins into her brain, Tara suffered from temporary memory loss. She had forgotten everything about her past, and she could not even remember her name or who she was.
Bo stopped playing his flute and walked over to Tara’s bedside with a glass of water.
“Tara, how’re you feeling?” Bo asked tenderly, helping her drink some water.
“Tara? My name is Tara? Where am I?” asked Tara, who was a little confused and disoriented.
“Yes, you are Tara, and I am Bo. You have just recovered from an illness and you will need some time to regain your memory,” Bo said in a gentle voice.
Bo had wanted to help her remember her past through his magical powers. Yet, due to his respect for the privacy of her past, he decided to let her undergo the healing process on her own to regain her past memories.
She instinctively rubbed her temple, trying to remember something, but her brain was just blank.
“Bo, my brain is just blank, I can’t remember anything,” said Tara, shaking her head and feeling disheartened.
“Take your time to let your brain heal naturally. You should eat something now.”
At the mention of food, her stomach gave a loud rumble. “I guess I’m famished.”
Bo conjured up a small dining table, followed by a simple sweet potato porridge with scallop and wolfberries.
Jaw-dropped and flabbergasted, she asked, “How did you do that?”
“Well, that’s my natural ability. Let me feed you the porridge.” Bo scooped up spoonful of porridge and fed Tara slowly. She was touched to have someone with a tender heart to care for her.
“How’s the porridge? ” he asked.
“It's delicious and... heart-warming,” said Tara, looking into Bo’s tender blue eyes and feeling bliss and peace in her heart.
“That’s good, have more porridge then.”
Tara nodded shyly when she saw how stunningly attractive Bo was with his golden aura, golden curly locks, and a pair of deep blue eyes. She did not know where she was or how she ended up there, but she was glad to be in the company of him and a cute stray dog.
Tara became stronger as the days went by. Within one week, she was fully recovered.
One morning, when Bo was playing the flute, Tara suddenly felt the urge to dance with the melody. Her lithe body started to leap, twirl, turn, tumble, and flip in a repertoire of classical Chinese dance techniques.
Tara executed the dance techniques with such precision, flexibility, control, and flawlessness that she was breathtakingly elegant and exquisitely graceful beyond words. Even Bo himself was impressed by her natural talent in dancing and the control she exercised over her body.
“Well done, Tara.” Bo gave her a resounding applause once her dance routines were completed.
“Thanks Bo! I’ve never felt so liberated in my life! Dancing makes me feel more like my true self.”
During her stay in Purple Bamboo Grove, dancing became the joy of her life. She bounced and pirouetted, dancing wherever she went. For Tara, classical Chinese dance was the way to enable her to enter the zone beyond time and space; it was the way for her to gain spiritual freedom.
Tara discovered her talent and passion for aesthetic Chinese classical dancing when she was still young. She had practiced ballet as well as many other dance forms such as the ballroom, contemporary and hip-hop dancing. She had an instinctive awareness of how to maneuver her body in a way that would achieve the highest aesthetic sense in every dance movement.
Inspired by Tara’s natural talent in dancing, Bo created a new series of martial arts movements known as the “Twenty-One Movements of the Phoenix Silk Dance.”
“Tara, will you be keen to learn a new martial art?” asked Bo, seated in the lotus position in the living room of Zen Hermitage. He knew that to navigate out of this world and go back to her own world, Tara would need some exemplary skills of battle.
“Sure, that’ll be splendid! Thanks Bo!”
“Tara, this martial art is called the ‘Twenty-One Movements of the Phoenix Silk Dance.’ Silk ribbon is your weapon.” Bo passed her a stick with a golden silk ribbon.
“Can we get started now? How do you plan to teach me?” asked Tara eagerly, taking over the golden silk ribbon stick from him.
“Follow your instinct and dance to your heart’s content, all the martial art movements will flow out of your dance and I’ll guide you along the way.”
“Wow, that’s cool!” Having said that, Tara started to perform her favorite classical Chinese dance techniques and routines using the golden silk ribbon stick.
Tara could feel a surge of energy flowing within her whole being, guiding her to dance in a certain way. Bo was using his magical power to guide her on the dance steps that were translated into martial art movements. There were lunges, pouncing, leaping, spinning, thrusting, springing, hurling, and darting integrated into the motions. Her every movement seemed like a dance- graceful, elegant, and fluid- yet there were hidden strikes that were deadly and powerful, and seamlessly woven into the movements.
Once she had completed a series of dance steps that formed one martial art movement, Bo would utter the movement’s name. “This is the first movement, it’s called Ravishing Beauty and Heavenly Fragrance…..this is the second movement, it’s called Beauty of a Flower and a Moon,……This is the 21st movement, the last movement, it’s called The Power of the Heroine.”
Ravishing Beauty and Heavenly Fragrance
Beauty of a Flower and a Moon
Loveliness of the Flower and Jade
Diving Fish and Falling Goose
Eclipsing the moon and Embarrassing the flowers
The Femme Fatale
Charming and Captivating Smile
Slender Waist and Pristine Lotus Face
Graceful and Elegant
Sophisticated and Decorous
Svelte and Dainty
Opulent and Glamorous
Exquisite and Surreal Beauty
Smooth and Exquisite Skin
Natural Beauty
Lady of Kindness and Compassion
Stunning Beauty of
a Heavenly Maiden
Seductive and Bewitching Enchantress
The Udumbara Flower
Unsurpassed Beauty
The Power of the Heroine
After just two weeks of intensive practice, Tara had already mastered the ‘Twenty-One Movements of the Phoenix Silk Dance,’ Tara and Bo were standing on the vast empty plain outside the Zen Hermitage, ready for the application of the martial art movements.
“Now that you have mastered the movements, it’s time to apply what you know in actual battle. I will conjure up some demons for you to apply your martial art skills.”
“Okay, I’m ready!” Tara held her golden silk ribbon stick and started dancing.
The next moment, a giant spider appeared, charging at her. With a deft swing of her golden silk ribbon, she applied the fifth movement of The Femme Fatale to quickly bind the spider and subdue it.
“Good,” said Bo. He then conjured five different types of giant creatures – spider, cockroach, scorpion, mantis, and snake.
Intimidating though it was for her to handle five creatures all at once, she managed to rise to the challenge. She skillfully subdued the five creatures by using five different movements to bind them.
“Excellent. You’re talented and astute. Now, let’s see how you fare against something more challenging.”
A swarm of giant locusts, about hundreds of them assailed her. Gasping with exasperation, Tara struggled to deal with all the locusts at the same time. Soon, her movements became haphazard and disorganized until she dropped her golden silk ribbon and lost the battle.
“Perceiving emptiness is the key to dealing with immeasurable demons. It’s time to master your mind through meditation.”
Tara’s initial pride in her achievement was catapulted to the abyss of dejection. Her defeat was like a burst balloon falling from the sky.
Tara Zenyora : and the Seven-Jeweled Lighthouse Page 6