A tiny disclaimer: The only rituals that are part of the original ancient Greek Amphidromia are the Naming ceremony, the acceptance (or rejection) of the child by the father, the subsequent formal introduction to the family as its newest member and the walking of the mother (or in some cases, even father) around the hearth with the child in her arms. All the rest of the rituals and the "words" in the prayers and blessings are fictional and created exclusively for this tale.
Alright, I've talked enough already. Time to let the spotlight fall on our little favourite of the night...
Chapter 261: The Amphidromia of the Little Jha
As the sun began its descent to slumber in the sea, the inhabitants of the Raizada Castle piled into the carriages and the horses headed to the common destination being the North Temple.
Within the head carriage, sat Lady Deviyani and General Shyam, the latter silent and passive as how he'd been the entire week.
Since the child was not to be seen by the family until the procession had reached the Temple, Lady Anjali and her child were in the last carriage and, accompanying her in the ride, were the butler Rahim Chacha and Ram.
As the carriage rode up the hill on which was crested the Temple, Lady Anjali stole a glimpse through the curtains of her carriage window, and noticed a massive crowd of villagers inclusive of men, women and children of all ages.
Amazed and touched by their eager presence, she smiled down at the sleeping bundle in her arms, "If you knew, my little Princess, how much they regard you..."
Rahim Chacha's warm gaze shifted from the babe to her mother's face, "The whole of Arhasia is here to bless your child, my good lady."
Lady Anjali smiled gratefully in return and then she looked at Ram. She noticed that he had his eyes unblinkingly fixed on the bundle in her arms, watching out for any sign of movement that he could delight in.
But the little child, to whom the night belonged, remained fast asleep.
When the carriages halted on the lawn before the long steps of the Temple, the carriage doors were opened and the servants and families, all dressed grandly, alighted and made for the steps.
Lord Arnav held his hand out to help his wife alight from the carriage and when they began walking, she asked him in an interested whisper, "So what have you decided?"
Lord Arnav frowned and then nodded, "I will do it."
Kushi grinned widely and her husband scowled, "Its not for you, and you know very well I won't indulge in such meaningless practices. But she is my Di's daughter and I will do anything to protect her."
Kushi only kept smiling, not bothered by his words or reasons, only by his admission of accepting her offer (which you will be revealed towards the middle of this chapter).
Lady Anjali stayed in the carriage with the child where she was to wait until the occasion arrived that demanded her presence in the Temple. Rahim Chacha took a reluctant Ram along and headed for the Temple to see that everything was set for the Ceremony.
The Temple, as you may remember, was a tall monument of white stone that sparkled gold under the setting sun. It was without doors and windows or walls and its ornately engraved ceiling of height was held aloft by twelve tall pillars also of white stone. The Prakash brothers had already draped long white curtains down the space between the pillars (the curtains, you will remember, from chapter 259) but the evening breeze blowing on the hill allowed the villagers and their children to see everything that happened in the Temple, even from where they thronged on the grassy lawns that stretched around the Temple.
In the center of the Temple was a three-foot tall stone hearth, its heart a golden bed of burning coals and a lively fire blazing bright against the breeze that set the surrounding white curtains of the pillars to dance.
Before the hearth were two armchairs, also of white stone. On one was seated Lady Deviyani who was to conduct the official ceremony and on her shoulder sat Fortune, casting suspicious glances at the fiery hearth and then at the one seated on the other chair of stone, which was none other than the General, the father of the child and the determiner of her fate in the family.
The rest of the Raizada family and the servants stood on the other side of the hearth.
The setting sun glinted against the white of the hearth and the fire roared readily as though sensing the necessity of time by some strange power. The villagers standing expectantly around the Temple watched in silence as Lady Deviyani arose from her stony throne and stepped towards the hearth, her eyes casting its firm gaze everywhere in preparation of her public introduction to the Ceremony.
"Men, Women and Children of Arhasia..." her aged voice echoed against the tall ceiling and the twelve pillars, "Family and Friends of the Raizadas..." her eyes were on her family and their servants, "Partake with me, in this moment, as witnesses to the Amphidromia of the newest fruit of our family."
No one noticed General Shyam's hands fisting on the stony arms of his chair.
Lady Deviyani looked in the direction of where the carriages were resting and called out in a loud voice, "Seven days have passed in divine respite of your newfound motherhood, seven nights has the gift of your womb been let to survive. Seven days of prayers now turn to glory, seven nights of waiting now a moment of familial welcome. Come hither, daughter, and bring the new babe of your blood with you, for our visions to witness with and our minds to bless."
All eyes turned in the due direction and soon enough, as they held their excited breaths, Lady Anjali walked up the stone steps, dressed in a dazzling red gown, and in her arms the expected white bundle.
The General watched with a wary eye as she ascended the stairs. He uneasily shifted where he sat, as she approached the Temple hearth.
His uncertain gaze caught his wife's eye and he froze.
He had forgotten how beautiful she looked when firelight touched upon her features and now, as she neared the fire of the hearth, the golden glow on her face only made her appear bewitchingly ethereal.
She looked tireder and thinner than was her usual self but her beautiful face was radiant, accented by her motherhood.
The General's gaze slid down and his eyebrows instinctively furrowed on sighting the bundle in his wife's arms.
Lady Anjali had neared the hearth, feeling all the gazes around weighing upon her, but she halted reluctantly when she caught the look on her husband's face as he regarded the bundle in her arms with distaste.
Fear gripped at her insides and she was afraid to take another step.
The initial part of the Ceremony required that the father of the child accept the newborn.
What if he...? Lady Anjali was afraid to even consider the horrific possibility of a heartless rejection, knowing from memory the innumerable instances that the General had openly revealed his strange discomfort of the child in her womb.
She squeezed her eyes shut, mumbled a prayer for strength, and then took a determined step closer to the hearth.
Lady Anjali's hands had begun trembling but she kept her voice firm, as she presented her child before Lady Deviayni and held out the babe, "Mother, this is the child I begot seven days ago. Seven nights have passed and the Divine spirits have blessed her breath to remain in health and heartiness."
With tears in her eyes, Lady Deviayni smiled at the sleeping child in her granddaughter's hands and then the elderly woman turned to the assembly of villagers and family, "Behold the child for whom you have gathered here! I beseech you to be the circle of witnesses to bless the incarnated child of my granddaughter." There was a murmur of willing response from the crowd.
"But foremost," Lady Deviyani turned her attention to the one seated behind her, his eyes cast on the floor, "may the Father of the begotten look upon her and speak his will."
The air was plunged in sudden silence as expectant gazes turned to the father who, realizing his cue had come, lifted his bowed head and looked at the bundle that Lady Anjali had stretched out to Lady Deviyani.
The latter beckoned her granddaughter with a touch of her hand to move towards her seated husband and Lady Anjali, holding the child reverently close to her bosom, traced her steps towards the stone throne on which sat the General.
The General's eyes were on his wife, reading the anxiety on her features and knowing what she feared. His expression remained stony and remote as his gaze slid to the bundle that was presently inches away from him now that Lady Anjali had come to a stop before him.
She looked at him almost pleadingly, to betray at least a smile of assurance, but he remained expressionless and waiting.
Reluctantly, Lady Anjali presented him the child, holding her in her hands and keeping her slightly at bay, closer to her than to him.
"Put the child on his lap, bitiya," whispered Lady Deviayni from behind Lady Anjali.
The young mother felt helpless. After a disturbing pause, she gently lowered the child in her hands onto her husband's lap, and she sensed him stiffen on the soft impact of the child's presence on his person.
Nervously, Lady Anjali stepped back and waited hopefully for the verdict.
The General, after the child had been lain on his lap, had stared coldly at the floor before him, determinedly keeping his eyes away from the bundle.
The villagers, servants and the family awaited for some response from him. He knew all eyes were on him and it made him more uncomfortable that he had to deal with the curse of his nightmares while there were others to witness.
Letting out a feeble grunt of displeasure, Lord Arnav's jaw stiffened with rising anger and Kushi, though herself anxious, tried to calm him down by sliding her fingers through his.
"Bitwa?" Lady Deviyani whispered worriedly, "Is something wrong?"
The General looked up as though he had been awoken and then shook his head.
His eyes met his wife's worried gaze and immediately looked away.
Then he felt it.
The bundle moved on his lap.
He looked down and realized the being in the bundle had come alive, its eyes opening and staring wonderingly at the face above it.
The General stilled.
He stared at the glisten of firelight that danced in the child's dark eyes as she studied his alien face for the first time.
He saw her mouth open as though to make a sound of amazement but instead she yawned and then resumed staring at him with her big dark eyes.
For a moment, he forgot he was staring at a child. Her eyes and her nose reminded him of someone... A flash of a memory and he saw her: The beautiful woman with soot on her cheeks and weariness in her eyes, smiling up at him from where she was crouched...
The General closed his eyes and swallowed down the memory.
Something touched his shirt. He froze and his eyes looked down in shock.
The child's little hand had emerged from inside her blanket and her tiny fingers were fondling the curious button of his shirt.
He could almost feel the heat of her cursed touch searing through his cursed skin even if she were only touching a button. Was she going to burn him to ashes that very moment? Without waiting to reach the age in which she had appeared in his dreams?
Alarmed, he tried to move her hand away and had barely touched her fingers when she clamped them around his ring finger and opened her voiceless mouth to toothlessly giggle at him.
He stared in astonishment and would have attempted to withdraw if Lady Anjali hadn't lifted the child off his lap. But his relief of being released from the child's evil clasp didn't live long. For, in the next moment, Lady Deviyani announced to the crowd, "The Father has accepted his daughter by holding her hand. He is willing to have her raised in the family as a little Jha."
As the villagers applauded and Lady Deviyani took the child from Lady Anjali's arms to resume the remainder of the ceremony, the General's heart sank and he cursed the moment he had let the child hold his finger, giving the overseers the false facade of a paternal connection.
Lady Deviayni, holding her great grandchild lovingly in her arms, prayed, "I beseech the Divine powers to bless, protect and prepare our daughter all through her happy years of childhood, so she may wisely walk the paths she must in her youth, and value the relationships she will nurture in her adulthood, until in the winter of her old-age, she may readily return to the home from where she was sent as a miracle to our family."
Bending down, Lady Deviyani kissed the little one gently on her forehead and whispered her blessing, "Knowing well that you will grow in the love of those gathered here, I bless you, daughter, that you may have a fulfilling life, that you will find your strength in your beliefs and your courage in your conscience. May you retain the song of your innocence and the spirit of your goodness all through your life. May each year of your living, replenish your life in wisdom, health and happiness."
Then, Lady Deviyani looked up and nodded to her son Lord Manohar, who turned towards where Lord Arnav and Kushi were standing.
"It is time," he told them.
Kushi smiled and made to move but Lord Arnav was rooted to his spot.
He frowned at Kushi and then at his uncle, "You never said anything about me having to partake in rituals."
"To be a part of the child's life, you have to be part of her every ceremony," pointed out Lord Manohar, "Now, go with your wife and remain what you've chosen to be."
Grudgingly, Lord Arnav followed after his wife and, together, they came to stand by the hearth, beside Lady Deviyani.
Overjoyed that they had volunteered to her unsaid wish, Lady Anjali introduced them, "May I present the guardian godparents of my daughter."
Lady Deviayni had a twinkle in her eye, as she mumbled to Lady Anjali, "I wonder how long Chotey will manage to keep his calm for the rest of the ceremony."
Lady Anjali smiled, "I have full faith in him that he won't object to the rituals of my child."
"We'll see about that," whispered Lady Deviyani, and then she spoke aloud to the 'godparents,' "The godmother may take the child while the godfather holds the incense."
Kushi eagerly stepped towards Nani and took the child fondly in her arms. The little babe beamed up at her cheerful face and Kushi's heart danced with delight!
Lord Arnav, disinterestedly, took the smoking bowl of scented incense that his uncle offered him.
Holding it before him, Lord Arnav watched as his Nani flourished her hands as though directing the scented fog of wafting incense over the child, "May the Divine Spirits of Air Soothe her Mind and Cleanse her Soul for the trickling of Wisdom that Life will stream for her."
Lord Manohar took the bowl of incense from Lord Arnav and handed him, in exchange, a clay jar filled with water that had a single white lotus floating inside of it.
Lady Deviyani looked importantly at her grandson, "Dip you hand into the jar and lift the lotus."
Lord Arnav, despite his annoyance of getting his hand wet, obliged.
He put his hand into the jar and extracted a wet, dripping lotus, the water droplets of its white leaves glistening gold in the firelight of the hearth.
Lady Deviyani took the lotus from his hold and then, with a single wave of her hand, rained the tiny droplets onto the child, who blinked her eyes in the unexpectedness of the watery attack.
"May the Divine Spirits of Water wash her from all the impurities of her birth and preserve the Goodness of her heart as white and refreshed as this Lotus," said Lady Deviyani after which she dropped the lotus back into the jar which Lord Arnav, then, handed back to his uncle and won, in substitute, a clay basin filled with mud.
"Kushibitya," Lady Deviayni beckoned Kushi, "Lay the child in the Basin."
As Kushi held the child, Lady Anjali carefully removed the blanket off her child.
Then Kushi stepped towards Lord Arnav who held the basin before him.
As she placed the child gently on it, the baby's soft back touching the coolness of the mud, he looked down and marveled at the smallness of the baby. The pretty little thing, its little fingers and toes, smaller than the basin he held...
Lady Deviyani's voice brought him back from his thoughts, "May the Divine Spirits of Earth always find in her a compassionate companion whose deeds and words will beckon Earth to gift her all the goodness she deserves."
Lady Deviyani instructed Kushi to hand the child over to Lady Anjali, who was then told to walk around the hearth thrice, holding the child in her arms.
Lady Anjali did so as her grandmother invoked, "May the Divine Spirits of Fire protect her soul from every evil, and teach her to keep her Will burning bright and her Spirit fiery and compassionate."
When Lady Anjali returned back to her grandmother's side with her child, Lady Deviyani asked her, "Hast thou decided upon a name for your daughter?"
"Yes," said Lady Anjali, her eyes glancing at the crowds of villagers and the baskets of pomegranates that were lining the Temple edges.
"The child's cognomen?" asked Lady Deviyani.
"Jha," answered the young mother. The General inhaled hotly.
"The child's praenomen?"
"Anarkali," smiled Lady Anjali.
Lady Kushi and Lord Arnav stared in surprise.
Lady Deviyani smiled and then asked, "Do you wish to give the child an agnomen?"
Lady Anjali looked down at the happy bundle in her arms, "She is my little princess. OUR little Princess."
"Our 'Princess' she is," assured a delighted Nani, who then turned to Kushi and Lord Arnav.
She addressed Kushi first, "Do you, First Lady Kushi Singh Raizada, offer yourself as godmother to Anarkali Jha and promise to be her friend and guide her as she shall need; and in concord with her parents, to watch over her and love her as if she were your own, until she is ready to choose her own path?
Kushi nodded, "I willingly offer myself as little Anarkali's godmother."
Lady Deviayni turned to her grandson, "Do you, First Lord Arnav Singh Raizada, offer yourself as godfather to Anarkali Jha and promise to be her friend and guide her as she shall need; and in concord with her parents, to watch over her and love her as if she were your own, until she is ready to choose her own path?"
Lord Arnav fidgeted mentally for the right words, "I have decided to be the godfather to my sister's daughter. I will to protect her with all my strength and sustenance even when her fath-"
Kushi tugged at his hand, interrupting his speech, as she flashed a grin at Nani, "He's not too poetic with words, Nani, but he means he's happy to be her godfather."
Lady Deviayni cast a suspicious glance at her grandson, before accepting Kushi's justification, and then his Nani told him, "You must take the child, Chotey, and present her to the rest of the gathered."
Lord Arnav strode to where his sister stood and Lady Anjali handed her bundled child from her arms into his.
As he carefully received his sister's babe, he looked solemnly at his sister, "I will protect her, Di. This is my word."
"I know you will, Chotey," whispered Lady Anjali, her eyes moistening as she watched her child being cradled in her brother's arms.
Lady Anjali caught Kushi's eye and knew Kushi had also been staring at Lord Arnav, in his almost-fatherly poise of holding the baby.
One day, Kushiji... Lady Anjali told herself as she leaned down and kissed her babe's head, One day it will be your child in his arms...
Again, the First Lord couldn't stop himself from wondering at the littleness of the being in his arms which suddenly seemed too big.
Lady Deviyani, who had been watching him with an admiring look, came and stood beside him. His Nani instructed him to repeat after her the words that were to present the child to the gathered. She began with a prayer, "Divine powers..."
Lord Arnav remained mute.
"Chotey," whispered his Nani urgently, "Whether you like it or not, you must."
Lord Arnav looked at the child and then disinterestedly mumbled, "Divine powers..."
"We thank you for the gift of this child of our blood, into our family."
"We thank you for the gift of this child of our blood, into our family."
Nani looked to him, "Now, walk to her father."
"What?!" Lord Arnav was taken aback.
Nani was surprised by the raise in his tone.
After a studying pause, she told him in a composed voice, "Chotey, the child must first be presented to her father before she can be presented to the assemblage."
Frowning, Lord Arnav found himself turning around, with the child in his arms, to head for where her father was on the other side of the hearth.
The General, standing tall and proud, watched coldly as Lord Arnav approached him. My two enemies heading in my direction... helpless I stand, watched by this crowd, the General tried to not give away too much indignation on his features.
With his back to the others, Lord Arnav halted a few steps before the General, holding fast to the child, as he glared at the General.
From behind him, his Nani continued her prompting, "Here is your child, Anarkali Jha agnomen Princess, a child of your blood and who has rightfully taken your cognomen."
I am to repeat THAT? Lord Arnav was furious.
Kushi shifted uncomfortably where she stood beside Lady Anjali, Please, Lady Mother, give him the strength to stay calm and say it...
The First Lord looked at the child and then at the General and then, knowing he would make matters worse the more he delayed, commenced, "Here is..." he inhaled coldly, "your child...Anarkali-" he paused, "-Jha, agnomen Princess, a child of..." Lord Arnav paused again, hating every moment, "...your blood..." He felt nauseous at the thought of holding close to him what had the imprint of his enemy's blood in it, but he geared up his sanity and resumed, "who has rightfully taken your..." Damned! Cursed! Lord Arnav added a few adjectives in his mind before concluding with the noun that went with them, "Cognomen."
He breathed out in relief of having gotten in over and he could see the General relaxing too. There had been a cold war between them, one having to utter the damned words and the other have to stand and smile for the crowd while listening to the voice of his enemy's direct address.
As per his grandmother's orders, Lord Arnav faced the assemblage and declaimed them, "This is Anarkali Jha, agnomen Princess, a daughter named by her mother, taking the cognomen of her father who permitted her to be part of the family. She has been blessed by the Divine powers, by the spirits of air, fire, water and earth and is now embarking on her earthly life, to find her home in the Raizada Castle here in the land of Arhasia. You are all faithful witnesses to her Amphrombia, now culminated."
Having waited long for the Ceremony to get over so she could hold the baby, Lady Deviyani took the child eagerly from Lord Arnav's arms and, kissing on her forehead and cheeks, she uttered emotionally, "Oh my little Princess! Welcome to the family!"
Lord Arnav smiled silently, watching the emotional union of two generations, his grandmother's and his niece's.
Ram rushed to Lady Deviyani and stood on tip-toe to see the child wrapped in his blanket.
Lady Deviyani bend down to let him have a glimpse of the family's Princess as Lord Manohar turned to the waiting villagers and announced happily, "You may now see the child and her mother and offer her your humble gifts of love personally!"
There was an uproar of delight from the crowd as the parents beckoned their children to gather up their baskets and make their way to where Lady Anjali stood, receiving her baby from her reluctant grandmother.
Lord Arnav watched the crowd wash like excited waves around Lady Deviyani, Lady Anjali and Ram.
Gentle fingers circled around his arm and he looked down to see his wife smiling up at him, "I am proud of you, my lord. You did amazingly."
A proud light in his eyes, Lord Arnav frowned, "I told you, I didn't do it for you. It was for Princess."
Kushi's eyes lit like her smile, "That is why I am proud of you, my lord: you've started caring for those who are weaker and littler that you..."
Lord Arnav was on his defensive, "Ofcourse I am accustomed to caring for those weaker and littler than me! How else do you explain my marrying you and keeping you by my side?"
Kushi frowned playfully, "Back to your arrogant self again. Well, permit me to remind you: I can take care of myself and seek not your protection, Lordy!"
"Lordy?" Lord Arnav scowled, "Where are your wifely manners, woman?"
Looking away, Kushi lifted her head in a proud nod, "I purposefully forgot them in our chamber in the Castle."
A sly glint shone in Lord Arnav's eyes, "Then let's go get them."
Kushi shot him an astonished look, "My lord, do you forget we are standing in a Temple? Such talk is forbidden within these pillars."
Lord Arnav leaned closer to her, "I am the Lord of this land. I can talk any way I fancy with my wife any where that my moment finds me."
And then he planted a quick kiss on her cheek, making her blush with embarrassment for some toddlers had been looking in their direction.
"You are unlawful!" mumbled Kushi, annoyed, but she didn't shirk his arm off when it wrapped itself around the back of her shoulder.
A few distance behind them, watching their playful moment, was the General, whose fists had turned pale with the clenching getting harder by each passing second.
He turned in a huff and, watched by none, disappeared into the night, seeking to scour his bitterness in sad solitude.
Before you thrash me for giving the little Jha a name like Anarkali, permit me to explain. I had spent MONTHS trying to find the right name for the kid but my search, that led my name-finding-expedition even to many ancient days and alien lands, was fruitless and I returned to the Inn, bitter and hungry. I was dining, by the fireside, a warm meal that the InnKeeper had provided me (that is, I was in bed one night laying myself to sleep) when I shot up with a start upon the strike of a realization.
The InnKeeper must have gotten flustered by the suddenness and he would have become worried that it was something wrong in his food but he had been too accustomed to my flights and fits of imaginative insights, so he simply stayed behind his counter, waiting for me to tell him what I'd found for he knew well that even if he didn't ask the question, I would tell him.
Sure enough, I did. I called myself a fool (like Coelho's Alchemist) for having gone so far and so long to find a name for the child when the name was right where I had started from. If the characters came from the show, so would the names.
Interestingly, all I had to remember was Anjali, in the show, had sat with her other female family members and discussed possible names among which only one did the "carrying mother" utter which was the REASON I picked on pomegranates and made all the red symbolisms surrounding Anjali and Shyam be conveyed in the story.
I know you didn't understand much of this, but maybe this dust-covered scroll that was written during the days the show was on air will help you find.
It's an episode interpretation when Kushi was an active entrepreneur for the "Dabba Business" with Shuklaji for the employees at the AR Firm. But you need to only read the "Anarkali" part at the very end of the post which is in green.
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