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OS - Arjun's Shadowed Tales
Characters - Arjuna, Parikshit, Abhimanyu, Ruchiparvan (Arjun's Son by Subhadra, not sure but there is a citation mentioning him), Subhadra and Uttara.
Arjuna dipped his hand in the river stream and washed the strain off his rough fingers. In his wet hands, he could still see the clear marks of his beloved Gandiv, not his any longer. Wetting his face he walked back towards the palace gardens from the opposite side of the main gate side. As he entered the gardens, his grandson, Parikshit came running to him. "Grandpa, you promised you will take me yo your secret place today." he smiled tugging at Arjun's arm. Arjun smiled and held his little hand. "Come. I will." he said. Parikshit clapped his hands in joy and skipped ahead of Arjuna. Arjuna caught up with him and held his hand and they went through the quiet, gloomy corridors of Hastinapur. Every corridor, every corner had so many different memories. Mostly bad but few good. And fewer things were more important to treasure for Dhananjaya always. He sighed as Parikshit skipped beside him eagerly asking about his secret place. They climbed the stairs together going towards the dark upper floors of the golden palace. Broken thrones, crowns, statues and old carpets lay in the way, tawny and dust laden. This section of the palace, none visited. Once there used to be a weaponry here. Its closed now. None fight anymore. And the new weaponry was already there. "Grandpa! A Bow!" the young boy exclaimed. He quickly left Arjun's hand and picked up a dusty, old bow from the corner of the corridor. 'Look Grandpa..A bow. See." Parikshit gave it to Arjun. Arjun took it from Parikshit's hands and smiled, as memories came rushing back to him. He wiped the dust off the bow string, making a black mark appear in his index finger. He delicately blowed the dust away, making the mark clear. Who this bow might have belonged to, he wondered. "Can I keep this?" Parikshit asked clutching onto Arjun's leg. Arjun ruffled his hair affectionately. "Yes dear, keep it. " he smiled. "This is very precious." Arjun said in his breath. "Very few weapons still exist here without the stain of blood." he secretly smiled to himself. Finally he reached the end of the corridor where there was the weaponry room. As a child, Arjun had heard from Pitamaha Bhishma how they used to keep their weapons here, and how coming out from the right side was luckier than the left side. Beliefs. Arjun used to come here every time he was sad. That is how it had become his secret place. He had never got the opportunity to share about this secret with his sons, but thankfully, he could share with Parikshit. "Is this the secret place Grandpa?" Parikshit asked, eagerly looking at his own footprints in the age old dust in the corridor. Arjun felt happy looking at the young child. Children found everything to exciting and new, a fresh interest for everything. They feel they are discovering it for the first time. Even if it is something as simple as a drop of dew on the grass. A secret tear escaped Arjun's eye with memories which kept coming back to him. There were various sorts of things in the room. After the weaponry was closed, old things were stored in this dark corridor and this small room attached to its end. Even after Yudhishthir's coronation, it was only Arjun who bothered to come here. From the busy routine of the kinsmen, none explored the palace. Arjun did. "Grandpa. Why are all the windows closed? Doesn't sunlight make us happy?" Parikshit asked Arjun. "Sunlight." Arjun thought, imagining the room with open windows. "And maybe rains too?" Parikshit asked. "Yes. Nature and its wondorous phenomena. But maybe some places just don't need to be washed by the raindrops, or kissed by the sun's rays. They are unique in their own way. Darkness is beautiful, Son." Arjun said to Parikshit. Parikshit nodded his head, as he roamed about, identifying weapons one by one. He picked up a blue stone from the corner. "Look Grandpa. Lapiz Lazuli. I have seen one in Maharani Panchaali's crown. Isn't this the same?" he asked, polishing in with his small fingers. "Yes it is. When we first came here, our uncle Vidur gave us each a necklace with this stone." Arjun told Parikshit. "Now even I got one. Yeah! I have what Grandpa has." Parikshit said, putting the stone down with the bow. Arjun looked around, letting Parikshit observe. "Grandpa.." Arjun heard Parikshit call. "Yes?" Arjun turned around. Parikshit gestured him to come near him. He was standing on another side of the room, holding a kind of a portrait in his hand. Arjun went near him. "What is it Parikshit?" he asked. "See. Who is this?" Parikshit asked, holding up a small size portrait, ages old. Arjun wiped the layers of dust off it, and examined it carefully in whatever little light was there. Slowly Arjun recognized the boy in the portrait. Princes of the royal palace had their portraits made, and the kings among them had statues too. Their portraits hung on the walls. Others were kept, just as a sign of the royalty chain. This was one of them. Parikshit saw drops of water of the dirty painting. "Grandpa?" he looked up. "Don't cry Grandpa." Parikshit said, standing on his toes to reach Arjun's cheeks to wipe his tears. Arjun bent down, and hugged Parikshit. Parikshit hugged him back. "Look here Grandpa. Who is this? Will you not tell me? Tatshree Yudhishthir always says, its better to lighten up yourself by saying. Am I not your best friend?" A faint smile appeared on Arjun's face, as one of his most precious memory came back to him. It came like storm, soothing and shattering his heart. Breaking, and mending his broken heart. His memories took him back to a day in Indraprastha...
"Father.. Father.." the two young boys came running to Arjuna as he practised. Arjun opened both his arms, and Abhimanyu and Ruchiparvan buried themselves in his embrace. "Father! See what Bhratashree has found!" Ruchiparvan pointed at the potrait in Abhimanyu's hands, which he was hiding behind himself. Arjun looked at Abhimanyu. "Yes Father. See.." Abhimanyu took out the portrait, and laid it down against the wall. It was the same portrait of a young prince, only not as dusty as now. "Who is this?" Ruchiparvan asked Arjun pointed at the portrait. "Yes Father! Tell us who it is?" Abhimanyu agreed. Arjun laughed seeing the innocence of the two boys. "I told Bhrata Abhimanyu it must be some prince of some unknown land like we heard in stories. But he is saying it is someone we know. He is not believing me." Ruchiparvan pouted. Abhimanyu groaned. "Father how can it be a fairy tale prince? I don't think so! Look at his eyes. They are just like yours. And his hair. Just like me." Abhimanyu said pointing at the picture. "And his skintone is like me! I have got skintone like Father. You are like Mother!" Ruchiparvan smiled. "You know Father, Mother says I look alot like you and Mamashree." he said, trying to imitate Krishna's wink but failing. Arjun laughed. "You are the two apples of my eye. Its not a concern who you look like. For me, you are the most beautiful." Arjun said. "Yes Father! And I will become like you when I grow up. Just wait till I am tall like Bhrata Abhimanyu." Ruchiparvan said. "Oh yes. You will get all mine and Keshav's good looks. Both of you.." Arjun said. "And what about me?" a sweet charming voice said from behind. "Ma!" Abhimanyu and Rachiparvan ran to Subhadra, who stood behind Arjun, with a naughty smile. "Very funny Aaryaputra Dhananjaya. Nothing from me to my sons? I am not talking to you. Abhi and Ruchi, you will also be in my side." Both of the boys kept quiet, looking at their parents. Arjun laughed. "Okay Priye Bhadre. If you insist on me proving that I was, or well, I am much cuter than you, then we have the proof here itself." Arjun said, moving away to let Subhadra see the picture. Subhadra's eyes sparked in delight. She smiled as she moved towards the beautiful portrait. Abhimanyu and Ruchiparvan looked at each other, and then towards their father. "Pitashree?" the exclaimed, as they realized who it was in the painting. "Bhratashree! That is why we both have similarities with the portrait!" Ruchiparvan said, excitedly examining the old piece of painting. Arjun bent down and put arms around both his sons. Subhadra looked at Arjun, and then at the portrait. "Beautiful." she said, as Arjun quickly gave her a hug and called both the boys in!
"Grandpa.. tell me." Parikshit asked Arjun again. Arjun turned towards Parikshit, and held his small hands. "I know why you are not telling me." Parikshit said, bowing his head. Arjun raised his chin and said, 'Why?" "Because, it is my Father." Parikshit said, looking away. "No.." Arjun said, softly near his ear. "Then?" Parikshit asked, picking up the portrait again. "He is your friend." Arjun said, as he too looked at the portrait. "Your best friend." he said. "But Grandpa, I don't have any friends except you." Parikshit said, putting the portrait down. Arjun smiled. "Maybe, that is why, I said he is your friend. That boy." Arjun said, pointing at the painting. "Parikshit!" a voice could be heard by Arjun and Parikshit. "Parikshit! Where are you son?" It was Uttara. "Your Mother is here." Arjun said. Parikshit nodded. "But I don't want to leave my friend. Where is he now?" Parikshit asked, not willing to go. "He is always there with you, remember that." Arjun said, as he wiped his tears away. He kissed Parikshit on his forehead, and they together walked back, leaving the darkness to be, towards sunshine. Their shadows melted in the darkness, as sunlight broke through.
Characters - Arjuna, Parikshit, Abhimanyu, Ruchiparvan (Arjun's Son by Subhadra, not sure but there is a citation mentioning him), Subhadra and Uttara.
Flashbacks in Italics
Arjuna dipped his hand in the river stream and washed the strain off his rough fingers. In his wet hands, he could still see the clear marks of his beloved Gandiv, not his any longer. Wetting his face he walked back towards the palace gardens from the opposite side of the main gate side. As he entered the gardens, his grandson, Parikshit came running to him. "Grandpa, you promised you will take me yo your secret place today." he smiled tugging at Arjun's arm. Arjun smiled and held his little hand. "Come. I will." he said. Parikshit clapped his hands in joy and skipped ahead of Arjuna. Arjuna caught up with him and held his hand and they went through the quiet, gloomy corridors of Hastinapur. Every corridor, every corner had so many different memories. Mostly bad but few good. And fewer things were more important to treasure for Dhananjaya always. He sighed as Parikshit skipped beside him eagerly asking about his secret place. They climbed the stairs together going towards the dark upper floors of the golden palace. Broken thrones, crowns, statues and old carpets lay in the way, tawny and dust laden. This section of the palace, none visited. Once there used to be a weaponry here. Its closed now. None fight anymore. And the new weaponry was already there. "Grandpa! A Bow!" the young boy exclaimed. He quickly left Arjun's hand and picked up a dusty, old bow from the corner of the corridor. 'Look Grandpa..A bow. See." Parikshit gave it to Arjun. Arjun took it from Parikshit's hands and smiled, as memories came rushing back to him. He wiped the dust off the bow string, making a black mark appear in his index finger. He delicately blowed the dust away, making the mark clear. Who this bow might have belonged to, he wondered. "Can I keep this?" Parikshit asked clutching onto Arjun's leg. Arjun ruffled his hair affectionately. "Yes dear, keep it. " he smiled. "This is very precious." Arjun said in his breath. "Very few weapons still exist here without the stain of blood." he secretly smiled to himself. Finally he reached the end of the corridor where there was the weaponry room. As a child, Arjun had heard from Pitamaha Bhishma how they used to keep their weapons here, and how coming out from the right side was luckier than the left side. Beliefs. Arjun used to come here every time he was sad. That is how it had become his secret place. He had never got the opportunity to share about this secret with his sons, but thankfully, he could share with Parikshit. "Is this the secret place Grandpa?" Parikshit asked, eagerly looking at his own footprints in the age old dust in the corridor. Arjun felt happy looking at the young child. Children found everything to exciting and new, a fresh interest for everything. They feel they are discovering it for the first time. Even if it is something as simple as a drop of dew on the grass. A secret tear escaped Arjun's eye with memories which kept coming back to him. There were various sorts of things in the room. After the weaponry was closed, old things were stored in this dark corridor and this small room attached to its end. Even after Yudhishthir's coronation, it was only Arjun who bothered to come here. From the busy routine of the kinsmen, none explored the palace. Arjun did. "Grandpa. Why are all the windows closed? Doesn't sunlight make us happy?" Parikshit asked Arjun. "Sunlight." Arjun thought, imagining the room with open windows. "And maybe rains too?" Parikshit asked. "Yes. Nature and its wondorous phenomena. But maybe some places just don't need to be washed by the raindrops, or kissed by the sun's rays. They are unique in their own way. Darkness is beautiful, Son." Arjun said to Parikshit. Parikshit nodded his head, as he roamed about, identifying weapons one by one. He picked up a blue stone from the corner. "Look Grandpa. Lapiz Lazuli. I have seen one in Maharani Panchaali's crown. Isn't this the same?" he asked, polishing in with his small fingers. "Yes it is. When we first came here, our uncle Vidur gave us each a necklace with this stone." Arjun told Parikshit. "Now even I got one. Yeah! I have what Grandpa has." Parikshit said, putting the stone down with the bow. Arjun looked around, letting Parikshit observe. "Grandpa.." Arjun heard Parikshit call. "Yes?" Arjun turned around. Parikshit gestured him to come near him. He was standing on another side of the room, holding a kind of a portrait in his hand. Arjun went near him. "What is it Parikshit?" he asked. "See. Who is this?" Parikshit asked, holding up a small size portrait, ages old. Arjun wiped the layers of dust off it, and examined it carefully in whatever little light was there. Slowly Arjun recognized the boy in the portrait. Princes of the royal palace had their portraits made, and the kings among them had statues too. Their portraits hung on the walls. Others were kept, just as a sign of the royalty chain. This was one of them. Parikshit saw drops of water of the dirty painting. "Grandpa?" he looked up. "Don't cry Grandpa." Parikshit said, standing on his toes to reach Arjun's cheeks to wipe his tears. Arjun bent down, and hugged Parikshit. Parikshit hugged him back. "Look here Grandpa. Who is this? Will you not tell me? Tatshree Yudhishthir always says, its better to lighten up yourself by saying. Am I not your best friend?" A faint smile appeared on Arjun's face, as one of his most precious memory came back to him. It came like storm, soothing and shattering his heart. Breaking, and mending his broken heart. His memories took him back to a day in Indraprastha...
"Father.. Father.." the two young boys came running to Arjuna as he practised. Arjun opened both his arms, and Abhimanyu and Ruchiparvan buried themselves in his embrace. "Father! See what Bhratashree has found!" Ruchiparvan pointed at the potrait in Abhimanyu's hands, which he was hiding behind himself. Arjun looked at Abhimanyu. "Yes Father. See.." Abhimanyu took out the portrait, and laid it down against the wall. It was the same portrait of a young prince, only not as dusty as now. "Who is this?" Ruchiparvan asked Arjun pointed at the portrait. "Yes Father! Tell us who it is?" Abhimanyu agreed. Arjun laughed seeing the innocence of the two boys. "I told Bhrata Abhimanyu it must be some prince of some unknown land like we heard in stories. But he is saying it is someone we know. He is not believing me." Ruchiparvan pouted. Abhimanyu groaned. "Father how can it be a fairy tale prince? I don't think so! Look at his eyes. They are just like yours. And his hair. Just like me." Abhimanyu said pointing at the picture. "And his skintone is like me! I have got skintone like Father. You are like Mother!" Ruchiparvan smiled. "You know Father, Mother says I look alot like you and Mamashree." he said, trying to imitate Krishna's wink but failing. Arjun laughed. "You are the two apples of my eye. Its not a concern who you look like. For me, you are the most beautiful." Arjun said. "Yes Father! And I will become like you when I grow up. Just wait till I am tall like Bhrata Abhimanyu." Ruchiparvan said. "Oh yes. You will get all mine and Keshav's good looks. Both of you.." Arjun said. "And what about me?" a sweet charming voice said from behind. "Ma!" Abhimanyu and Rachiparvan ran to Subhadra, who stood behind Arjun, with a naughty smile. "Very funny Aaryaputra Dhananjaya. Nothing from me to my sons? I am not talking to you. Abhi and Ruchi, you will also be in my side." Both of the boys kept quiet, looking at their parents. Arjun laughed. "Okay Priye Bhadre. If you insist on me proving that I was, or well, I am much cuter than you, then we have the proof here itself." Arjun said, moving away to let Subhadra see the picture. Subhadra's eyes sparked in delight. She smiled as she moved towards the beautiful portrait. Abhimanyu and Ruchiparvan looked at each other, and then towards their father. "Pitashree?" the exclaimed, as they realized who it was in the painting. "Bhratashree! That is why we both have similarities with the portrait!" Ruchiparvan said, excitedly examining the old piece of painting. Arjun bent down and put arms around both his sons. Subhadra looked at Arjun, and then at the portrait. "Beautiful." she said, as Arjun quickly gave her a hug and called both the boys in!
"Grandpa.. tell me." Parikshit asked Arjun again. Arjun turned towards Parikshit, and held his small hands. "I know why you are not telling me." Parikshit said, bowing his head. Arjun raised his chin and said, 'Why?" "Because, it is my Father." Parikshit said, looking away. "No.." Arjun said, softly near his ear. "Then?" Parikshit asked, picking up the portrait again. "He is your friend." Arjun said, as he too looked at the portrait. "Your best friend." he said. "But Grandpa, I don't have any friends except you." Parikshit said, putting the portrait down. Arjun smiled. "Maybe, that is why, I said he is your friend. That boy." Arjun said, pointing at the painting. "Parikshit!" a voice could be heard by Arjun and Parikshit. "Parikshit! Where are you son?" It was Uttara. "Your Mother is here." Arjun said. Parikshit nodded. "But I don't want to leave my friend. Where is he now?" Parikshit asked, not willing to go. "He is always there with you, remember that." Arjun said, as he wiped his tears away. He kissed Parikshit on his forehead, and they together walked back, leaving the darkness to be, towards sunshine. Their shadows melted in the darkness, as sunlight broke through.
END
Pyaar Kii Ye Ek Kahaani
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
