REDEMPTION 172
The Irrawaddy River or Ayeyarwady River is a river that flows from north to south through Myanmar. It is the country's largest river and most important commercial waterway. Originating from the confluence of the N'mai and Mali rivers, it flows relatively straight North-South before emptying through the Irrawaddy Delta into the Andaman Sea. Its drainage basin of about 255,081 square kilometres (98,487 sq mi) covers a large part of Burma. After Rudyard Kipling's poem, it is sometimes referred to as 'The Road to Mandalay'.
The native Kachin people named the river Mali-Nmai-Hka.The Burmese name of Irrawaddy is derived from a Pali name for the Ravi River of India, Iravati.Airavati was the Pali version of the name of the elephant mount of Sakka, an important deva in Buddhism. Elephants were often a symbol for water and was used as the name for several others rivers, such as the Achiravati.
As early as the sixth century, ancestors of the Burmese were using the Irrawaddy river, which runs through the center of Burma, to gain power in the region through trade and transport on the China - India route. By the twelfth century, a well-developed network of canals made for flourishing rice cultivation. Later, the river became a key economic tool of Imperial British interests, who set up trading ports along its shores.
LANDFALL
"I thought how lovely and how strange a river is. A river is a river, always there, and yet the water flowing through it is never the same water and is never still. It's always changing and is always on the move. And over time the river itself changes too. It widens and deepens as it rubs and scours, gnaws and kneads, eats and bores its way through the land.Do I change like a river, widening and deepening, eddying back on myself sometimes, bursting my banks sometimes when there's too much water, too much life in me, and sometimes dried up from lack of rain? Will the I that is me grow and widen and deepen? Or will I stagnate and become an arid riverbed? Will I allow people to dam me up and confine me to wall so that I flow only where they want? Will I allow them to turn me into a canal to use for they own purposes? Or will I make sure I flow freely, coursing my way through the land and ploughing a valley of my own?" Aidan Chambers, This is All: The Pillow Book of Cordelia Kenn
Everyone on the ship stood with their eyes and bodies quivering with excitement for the land was now clearly visible.The captain of the ship ordered all sails to be unfurled and the wind that flowed over the sea as if understanding the need of the moments flung itself gently and filled the sails and with a sudden surge the ship leapt forward towards land and soon they all saw the shores on both sides as a mighty river ploughed its way to meet the sea.
Thenmozhi stood with one leg on the bow,her right arm holding a rope for balance,her long black hair fluttering in the winds as if it was a sail and wanted to help the ship sail much faster.Her long sword hung like a deadly viper on her slender waist and her slim but muscled tanned body was covered with a saffron robe of a buddhist monk.
The warrior monk and Queen mother stood facing the fast approaching shoreline and her eyes leapt forward and raced towards the mouth of the river and in the bright light she saw the muddy,silt laden,river water that had travelled from somewhere distant finally coming to a halt in the arms of the salty sea.
She turned her face into the sun and sang quietly
" my lord Azhagan,is the river me,muddy and brown
racing to meet you the mighty sea
will you take me in your arms and mix me in your soul
so that both of us are one
as vapor,formless when water left the sea and rose into the skies
i too rose,drifted far from you
but now as the vapor turning to rain and falling to the earth as water
i too race as those rain drops to be with you in eternity"
Suddenly her all seeing mind,keener than her eagle eyes picked up the presence of many people,hidden behind the trees and watching the ship closely.Thenmozhi immediately knew that both sides of the shores were lined with armed men and all well hidden behind the thick vegetation.
Thenmozhi turned and faced everyone in the ship " There are armed people hiding on both sides and since we are arriving from another land,surely we are not going to be received warmly and until we can be certain of their intentions,i want all able bodied people to arm themselves and carry their shields with them in case of arrows being shot at us.All nursing women and children should go down below deck and wait until this problem clears."
The ship was surging on the waves of the sea's tidal force and soon it met the turbulent area where the force of the rivers flow crashed into the sea and wobbled and shook dangerously but then the might of the sea lifted the sea and bore it into the brown waters of the river and soon the sea was left behind.
Thenmozhi saw that their ship was steadily moving inland and still both sides of the shore were about a km away from the vessel on both sides.
She raised her hand and requested the captain to drop anchor and turned to address them.
" We are here,so near to the shore and yet we have no idea as to what dangers lie in wait on the shore.So for now we will remain here,while i and a few others will lower a boat and reach the shore that lies to the right of us and see firsthand what we are up against.Listen to me carefully for a sudden attack could be launched from the opposite shore and so be prepared to engage them at an instant's notice."
Thenmozhi and a half a dozen men who were by now well trained and tuned to their leader's instincts and cues jumped down into the boat and quickly took to the oars and rowed towards the shore.
As they neared the shore,thenmozhi saw that a dense growth of mangrove forests made their life right up to the edge and stopped at a clearing which was just large enough for a few people to stand on.She asked her men to row towards the clearing and readied herself to launch an attack on those who stood hidden among the trees.
The boat moved quickly and then they hit ground and thenmozhi got out of it and nodded to the others who brought out their shields and drew their swords.
A shrill cry of a bird alerted them and they looked at the skies and a large eagle dove at high speed with its wings closed and in the last minute opened its wings and slowing itself gently came to rest on thenmozhi's left shoulder.
Thenmozhi smiled and gently stroked the bird which playfully nibbled at her fingers and then they came, forty to fifty well armed natives with their spears and arrows aimed at thenmozhi and her men.
Thenmozhi smiled and shook her head in irritation and thought " i wanted to avoid a conflict but it look's we are going to have to fight our way through this small group.My only regret and worry is that my men might be injured or killed and it looks like there is no way forward but through these tough looking native men."
A huge roar shook the forest and vibrated through all of them and the natives trembling and screaming in fear ran and vanished into the jungle.
Thenmozhi and her men knew what the roar meant and it surely meant a huge carnivore and just as their thoughts and fears gripped all of them,they heard branches breaking as a huge tiger made its way out of the mangrove and came towards them and halted a few feet before thenmozhi.
The men who were battle hardened warriors and who had seen many a terrible fight nearly fainted in fear for none of them had ever faced such a large tiger and most of them had never seen a live tiger and only had seen it in paintings and had heard scary tales about the massive beast.
All of them stood frozen in fear and holding their swords and spears tightly and all their eyes were on the tiger as he stood facing them with his eyes that seemed to burn with a blazing sight.
Then the tiger went down in a crouch and slowly bent its head to Thenmozhi who walked towards it and sat on her knees facing it,staring into its eyes.
Then they both embraced and thenmozhi whispered " thank you mighty one.i give you our wishes and greetings."
The tiger nudged thenmozhi " my queen,i am here and will now be your eyes and ears until we reach our destination.This is my land and i am worshipped here as a god and now they will worship you along with me."
The tiger lifted its massive head and made a strange kind of growl and then the native warriors came from all directions and they knelt before thenmozhi and she bent her head low with respect and accepted their friendship.
She took out the white conch that lay on her right side of her waist and blew into it and the air filled itself with the noise and the tiger roared in pride and in challenge.
I am Thenmozhi.These are the stories of my voyage to a new life and a new destiny.I am heaven and hell.I am fire and water and i will bring peace to you.
Edited by deepak_satish - 8 years ago
