Everyone goes through the phase of temporary downfall, but successful are the ones who take that leap of faith. One of the most renowned peace activist of the day has said, ‘Dig beneath your feet, there you will find spring.’ I’ll tell you a story of Hanuman.
Hanuman was a notorious child. He was arrogant of his strength and speed and would often chase trouble to the sages and saints. One day he angered one of the sages so much that he cursed him to forget about his supernatural powers until someone reminds him. So when Hanuman stood there near the ocean, fearing he may fail, Jamvant reminded him of his powers. He had to use his powers for a greater cause, to fly to Lanka and find Goddess Sita. He was the only hope for Lord Ram to find his abducted wife. Imagine the courage he needed that time to overcome his fear. But he did and as a result achieved boundless success.
That is how mind overcomes its innate weaknesses and wins in the end,” Pawan motivated Sanjeev.
While they were engaged in their talk, Bhumija came with the imaging report. Her eyes were swollen, and red, however her face showed the immense courage she took to overcome her emotions.
“The MRI revealed glioblastoma multiforme. Lakshman has left thalamic tumor,” she sobbed as she spoke.
Chapter 15
Three months ago…..
The night was getting darker. It was that season of the year when it’s neither too hot nor too cold in Dehradun. The woolens stored in the cupboards were slowly coming out with light shawls and sleeveless sweaters being the first to peep out.
Two men met at a cheap and low standard hotel near the railway station.
“Why are we meeting here? You could have called me at some better place or even you home,” said one with indignation.
“I don’t want anyone to see us together and overhear our talks,” said the other.
“Have you got any information about her research work?” asked the first.
“Yes, I do have some very useful information. She is working on a holistic drug. I think it’s an anticancer drug, but it has CNS activity too,” said the second.
“Oh My God, it will be a major breakthrough if she does that. Such a drug will sell in billions,” said the first in amazement.
“But I’ve realized it’s a very complicated procedure. Her study on rats has shown promising results. The ethics committee and institutional review board have given approval for human trials as well,” remarked the second.
“Are you serious? So when do we steal the drug?” asked the first.
“Have some patience; we can’t steal the drug now. Let her work on the titration values and procedure, and then we will steal the drug. Once we have the formula of the drug, we can steal the ingredients and make our own drug,” said the second.
“That’s a nice plot actually. We can make the drug before her that ways. Patenting and selling will fetch us a fortune then, may be even a Noble Prize,” remarked the first with excitement.
“Yes, that’s true. But we have to be very cautious. I want that drug at any cost. Even if I have to kill her for that I’ll do,” said the second with a wicked smile.
Chapter 16
Tum upkar Sugreevahin keenha Ram milaye rajpad deenha
You rendered a great service to Sugriv. You united him with Shri Ram and he installed him on the Royal Throne.
Tumharo mantra Vibheeshan mana Lankeshwar Bhaye Sub jag jana
By heeding your advice, Vibhishan became Lord of Lanka. This is known all over the Universe.
“What is the prognosis for glioblastoma multiforme?” asked Sanjeev.
The three of them sat in a restaurant near the diagnostic center. Pawan brought both of them there so that they can talk and discuss. Bhumija sat there trying to control her emotions from overpowering her. Though she controlled her tears, her heart was aching with sorrow for her younger brother.
The street was busy outside, mostly with patients and their families who were visiting the nearby hospital. Although the winter had not regressed, the place was warm due to warm sunshine and numerous people bustling around the street.
“Prognosis is poor, without treatment up to three months and with treatment up to one to two years is the survival rate,” answered Bhumija with a heavy heart. “If the drug suggested by Bua has any anticancer potential, it has to be tested now. Else it will be too late.”
“We need to work on it,” said Sanjeev as he passed the tea to Bhumija.
“How much progresses have you made?” asked Pawan.
“We just have a list of ingredients and of course my thesis work on jasmine,” said Sanjeev.
“We need to procure the ingredients. I think there must be some work in Bua's lab as well. We can also check that.”
“I can go back to the college lab and find there. I also know some contacts which Madam gave me. Some of them helped me with my thesis. May be there are some people who can supply us the ingredients.”
“I can ask the same in my pharmacology department of the college. How soon can we start?” asked Bhumija.
“We should begin our work as soon as possible. Infact, it will be better if we divide our work so that we save time. Once we have some lead, we can meet up,” suggested Sanjeev.
“That sounds good. Sanjeev you go to your college. I’ll drop Bhumija to her college. Both of you come to my house in the evening,” said Pawan as he paid the bill and all of them set to leave.
When Sanjeev reached the department, it was not the same. Absence of Dr Anjana was reflected clearly in the department and its workings. It didn’t seem as organized as before. Her students were the most affected. Some of them were in search of another guide who could help them. It was the other professor, Dr Kamalbali, who noticed Sanjeev.
“You’ve been away from the department for quite a while Sanjeev,” remarked Dr Kamalbali.
“Yes sir, I was completing my remaining thesis work,” Sanjeev answered.
“Remaining work?” said the professor with a devious laugh. “A similar study has been published; don’t you think you should rewrite your thesis? This time it will be under my guidance.”
Sanjeev was spellbound at his words. “How does he know about the paper?” an obvious question arose in Sanjeev’s mind.
“A new thesis will take another year to be redone. You should better leave this exam and enroll under me like other students,” Kamalbali said arrogantly.
“It was not the same research sir, only a part of it has been published. My thesis still remains an original work which I will complete during the stipulated period,” Sanjeev said.
“A month, my dear, just a month is what you have,” the professor said barbarously and left the department.
Sanjeev left for the laboratory unheeded by the remark. While he was searching for some papers and materials which would be helpful, one of the student who had been junior to him arrived.
“Oh, Sanjeev Sir, where were you? You don’t know what all happened after Madam’s death. The entire department has gone haywire,” he said.
“Are you pointing to Kamalbali Sir? He always had rivalry with Madam. He’s not as good as her,” replied Sanjeev.
“Not only that sir, there are other things that also happened. Do you remember there was a theft last month in the department when some of the materials and papers from the lab were stolen? Madam was looking into the matter and had set up an inquiry for the same. Bali sir stopped that search. He proclaimed that it was false and not worth wasting time. There was some doctor by the name Dr Vikram, who would meet him secretly. Rumor was they both were involved in the theft, so it was stopped after Madam’s death. But the worst was yet to come. He asked me to stop my research which I was pursuing under Madam, and resubmit a new synopsis for another study,” he poured out all the information to Sanjeev.
Sanjeev was astonished at the discovery that Kamalbali and Vikram knew each other, but it was clear to him that it was Kamalbali who would have leaked his doctoral work to Vikram.
“What was your study on?” he a
sked.
“I was studying the nausea and vomiting relieving properties of Shankh Bhasm in cancer patients,” he answered. A smile swept across Sanjeev’s face. It was one of the ingredients he was in search for.
“Oh! That’s very ruthless of him,” Sanjeev replied. “Can you give me your material and synopsis? From where did you gather your study ingredients,” he asked inquisitively.
“One of Madam’s old students helped me. He’s in Sri Lanka now. He helped me procure the material. His name is Satyavrat. He told me that once he was falsely accused for some illegal crime in his department. With Madam’s help he was able to produce evidence to prove his innocence. Ever since he’s so grateful that he’ll give any kind of help you want. I’ll give you his address and contact number.”
Sanjeev was so overwhelmed at the information that he couldn’t believe his ears. He took the information and left the department.
On the other hand Bhumija was also keen to find the ingredients which would help cure her brother’s illness. She was engulfed with two extreme emotions, love for the life of her brother and the fear of losing it. She determined that she would do anything for her brother.
She reached the pharmacology department of her college to meet the head of the department. Dr Chandrasekhar Banergee, was a renowned professor of pharmacology with numerous research papers to his credit. He had patented a number of drugs and was a visiting professor in foreign universities.
“Good afternoon Sir, I needed some help from you. Can you please help me?” the sincerity with which she spoke moved Dr Banergee and he said, “Yes sure, if it’s within my scope.”
Bhumija explained how her aunt was doing some research before her death and procurement of some important ingredients may be helpful for brother. The mere mention of Dr. Anjana took Dr Banergee by surprise.
“Are you Dr Anjana’s niece? Oh, why didn’t you tell me before? She had spoken to me many times. There are some papers on which we had done research together. In fact she had ordered some materials when she knew that I would be traveling to Tibet and Mansarovar. It will be my pleasure to hand over those to you,” he said as he moved to the large wooden cupboard placed in the corner of his room.
He brought out a large green waterproof envelope which was marked ‘private’ and placed it on the desk. From it he took out a small plastic box which had three zip lock pouches.
“Here, this is what she asked for. These are lotus seeds,” he said as he took out one pouch. “And these are extracts from turtle and tortoise shell which are used in Chinese traditional medicine. This third pouch has cinnabar concentrate.”
For a moment Bhumija was bewildered. She didn’t know whether she should cry in amazement or admiration. She held the box in her hands and sigh a small ‘Thank you’ in response.
“Well I’m not sure how you’re going to use it. But extraction of concentrates from them is a tedious task and needs to be done in a well equipped laboratory. Mine is open to you whenever you need it,” he said.
“You don’t know Sir how grateful I am to you. I will surely come back if I’m stuck,” Bhumija said as she picked up the box and started to leave.
Bhumija came out of the college and thought of going to Pawan’s home. She prayed that Sanjeev too would have got some important clue to work on.
It was evening when she reached Pawan’s house. Cold was slowly seeping in and a blanket of mist was gradually covering the city. The house was lit by the lamps outside and the usual fireplace kept the interior warm. Bhumija stepped in and found Sanjeev and Pawan seated near the table.
“Professor Chandrasekhar was very helpful. Bua had asked for some ingredients which he gladly gave me,” she said as she placed her bag on the table and took a seat on the sofa.
“I too got some valuable information. One of my junior will give me the Shankh Bhasm which he had ordered. Moreover he has given me contact information of madam’s old student. We need to speak to him for remaining facts,” Sanjeev updated others of his progress.
“Dr Kamalbali seems to be a very strange figure. If you take a third eye perspective, the rumors appear to be true. Kamalbali and Vikram must have known each other in the past. Kamalbali would have passed the research information to him and he acted innocent in front of Ma to gather all the information. Then he published your thesis work under his name by stealing material from your lab, that too with the help of Kamalbali. Now since Kamalbali is running the department, he has stopped all investigation leading to this matter. On the other hand, Vikram came to us for help so that in future we do not suspect him for any wrong. Hmm... Smart move I must say,” contemplated Pawan.
“Actually, I’m worried for something else. If Vikram and Kamalbali have seeped in to the secrets so much, do they know of this sanjeevani buti research too? If they know anything, it will have arduous consequences,” remarked Sanjeev.
“You are right, I think you should immediately contact Dr Satyavrat for his help,” Bhumija said her voice shaking with panic.
Sanjeev took out his mobile phone and dialed the ISD number. However, despite calling twice no one answered the phone. “Leave a voice message,” suggested Bhumija.
“If you people have seen the booklet again, the following two verses denote the current circumstances,” observed Pawan.
“Actually I saw, but I couldn’t relate anyone to Sugriv or Vibhishan,” answered Sanjeev.
“That’s because you didn’t read in between the lines. The first one describes about the friendship of Lord Ram with Sugriv, but it happened only when Ram killed the elder brother Bali who was a shrewd ruler and had confiscated Sugriv's wife and kingdom. So it’s about defeat of Bali. Doesn’t your Dr Kamalbali fit well into the scene? His name in fact has ‘Bali’ too. The illegal happenings at the department were indirectly conveyed to us by Ma. So maybe the rumors were not the rumors, they were correct.
The second verse talks about Vibhishan, and how he became the ruler of Lanka after the death of Ravana. It was with his help that Ram was able to kill Ravana who was Vibhishan's brother. But important point to highlight here is that in his previous birth Vibhishan was a prince named Satyavrat who always spoke the truth and walked the path of dharma. Surpanakha in her previous birth was the daughter of the guru of Satyavrat and wanted to marry Satyavrat. However he refused saying that a guru’s daughter is like a sister to him. This raged her so much that she falsely claimed despoilment against Satyavrat, which led to death sentence. Before his death he cried to God. When the Lord appeared, He gave him the boon of being born as Vibhishan and a devotee of Lord Ram, an incarnation of Lord Vishnu.
Dr Satyavrat, who is currently residing in Sri Lanka, may be a valuable asset for us. I just have this gut feeling that he has more than just an ingredient of the drug. If he was a sincere student of Ma he must be in possession of some other information as well,” pondered Pawan.
Just then Sanjeev’s mobile phone rang which startled the others. It was an ISD number. Sanjeev answered the call with a usual ‘Hello'.
“Hello, this is Dr Satyavrat. I just received your voice message. Sorry, I was busy in a conference so couldn’t reply,” he said.
“Yes Sir, I’m Sanjeev, Dr Anjana's student. I believe Madam asked you for some ingredients, Shankh Bhasm to be particular. Can I have them?” Sanjeev asked.
“I’m sorry, I don’t understand. Someone called me from the department last week and asked me to courier it. Shankh Bhasm and antimony extracts were asked, so I sent them. I sent the courier in the name of Dr Kamalbali. He said he’s looking after the department and ongoing researches.”
Sanjeev and others were horrified at this unexpected development. There was a strange pause in the call.
“But are you Dr Sanjeev who was doing the research on jasmine extracts?” he asked.
Somehow Sanjeev muttered a ‘Yes' and explained him the situation of the department in short after the death of Dr. Anjana.
“Oh My God, I committed a blunder. But there’s something
more important I want to tell you. Madam has left with me some rare relics which she asked me to hand it over to you. I wasn’t aware of her untimely death until one of your junior told me. I need to hurry now, I’ll take the next flight and reach as soon as possible,” Satyavrat replied and disconnected the call.
Chapter 17
Yug sahastra jojan par Bhanu Leelyo tahi mhur phal janu
On your own you dashed upon the Sun, which is at a fabulous distance of thousands of miles, thinking it to be a sweet luscious fruit.
Prabhu mudrika meli mukh mahee Jaladhi langhi gaye achraj nahee
Carrying the Lord's Signet Ring in your mouth, there is hardly any wonder that you easily leapt across the ocean.
The three of them were waiting at the airport next morning to receive Dr Satyavrat and being cautious that this information was not leaked to anyone. Bhumija had taken leave from her hospital and was fully dedicating herself to this mysterious hunt.
“I wonder how much we should let him in our secret related to the relics and Chalisa,” questioned Bhumija.
Sanjeev stood there with a placard of Satyavrat’s name. “I agree, telling department related stuff is OK, but can we let him into our sanjeevani buti secret?” said Sanjeev.
The Secret of the Chalisa Page 9