SITA’S SISTER (28 page)

‘No, Ma Kaikeyi, she won’t escape so easily!’ refuted Urmila vehemently. ‘She shall not be put to death, though she truly deserves the death penalty. She shall not be sent away—she would corrupt more people, poison their happiness and spread the sickness. The dark dungeons below are the best place for her. She can plot and scheme amongst the rodents and the cobwebs. And when Ram returns after fourteen years, I am sure he will pardon her. She can secure her freedom then.’

Sweat was running down Manthara’s white, wrinkled face. She looked petrified and vicious. ‘No, God, no! Not the dungeons!’ shrieked the old lady, throwing herself at Urmila’s feet. ‘I am sorry for all the wrong, for all the wicked words, for all the evil schemes…forgive me. Oh, pardon me, please!’

‘As I once told you, I don’t waste time doing idle talk with subordinates,’ said Urmila unfeelingly. ‘Guards, throw her in the darkest, smallest prison cell where she can count each minute of the fourteen years she is to be there! And along with her, put in her little army of spies she had pegged so insidiously in the palace—Mrugnaini, Kamini, Pranjali… Are there any more? Don’t worry, they’ll squeal quickly enough! Lead her out, guards!’ she ordered, with a ruthlessness her sister Mandavi knew existed but had yet not witnessed. The others looked astounded, if not impressed at her quick, brutal decisiveness.

As the sobbing Manthara was led out by the guards, Urmila turned to the grim-faced Bharat again. ‘Bharat, go and meet the queen mothers,’ she said, easily changing her previously harsh tone into a gentler pitch. ‘They are waiting eagerly for you. There have already been a lot of unnecessary interruptions and you have been delayed enough. And Shatrughna, please let Guru Vasishtha know that the funeral rites need to be done today itself. That should not be delayed further.’

The obsequies of the dead monarch were performed by his two younger sons. They were torn apart by their swelling grief—mourning for their dead father as well as their exiled brothers. Shanta consoled them and Bharat wept like a child in her arms. Urmila gave a small sigh of relief; the sister was reunited with her brother. By refusing the throne, Bharat had gained moral credence in her eyes and, in all nobleness, earned the late king’s sanction to perform his last rites. The son had not disappointed his father; he had made his father’s troubled soul rest in quiet content at last.

Bharat got busy with court matters but refused to meet his mother. Kaikeyi had become a recluse, rarely stepping out of her palace. Kausalya swung between vocal despair and bouts of depression, constantly under Sumitra’s care as she tended to her frail health. Each was living in her own pain, their chambers their refuge.

Urmila remained in hers as well, finding herself staring often at the easel in front of her. She had not touched the brushes since he left. She sighed, thinking of Lakshman.

‘Urmi?’

The spell broken, Urmila saw Mandavi and Kirti who had come in to meet her. She was unusually glad to see them, thankful she had them with her now, affording her a much needed solace. They were like a fresh shower on the hardened earth, soaking her in a sprinkle of love and comfort.

‘Do come in! We haven’t really had a chat since long, have we?’ said Urmila with an anxious smile, making place for them on the couch to sit.

Mandavi looked tense, twiddling her fingers nervously. ‘What can we talk of except what has happened? I still can’t get over it…it was all so sudden, so terrifying! I feel lost, all seems lost!’ cried Mandavi. ‘If it had not been for you, I wouldn’t know how I could have handled Bharat. He just collapsed, he crashed out!’

‘It was his world crashing down on him,’ said Kirti. ‘To face the horrible truth of having such a mother and to be known as her son!’

Urmila winced; the anger against the queen mother would take a long time to subside. She was quick to notice Mandavi’s rising emotional distress. ‘How can you take it so calmly after all what she has done to you, Urmi? And what must you be going through?’ cried Mandavi. ‘You were there all alone taking it all in…the horror, the strain, the trauma and the awfulness of it all! And Urmi, how could you bear to part with the two people whom you loved most? Both Lakshman and Sita! And yet you appear so calm and stoic…how can you do it, Urmi?’

‘Grief demands answers but one doesn’t always get them. We just face it,’ Urmila smiled tiredly. ‘Let’s talk about something more pleasant. I thought you were here to chat about nicer stuff…’ she chaffed weakly.

Mandavi could see Urmila’s heartache but could not bear to look at it. She could not stop herself from talking; she was pursued by an inner pain as well.

‘I never got to see Sita at all,’ Mandavi looked stricken. ‘After all the horrible things I said to her—and you—I did not have the courage to even meet all of you. It’s been gnawing me from inside since the day we left so hurriedly for Kekaya…neither could I apologize to both of you…Urmi, will you be able to forgive me?’

Urmila took some time to understand what Mandavi was talking about. Their quarrel seemed ages ago; it had slipped out of her mind due to the torrent of swift events that had overturned their lives forever. She recalled that unforgettable day and the empty days that followed when her cousins had abruptly left for Kekeya and how Lakshman had tried to console her with his thoughtful words of sound reasoning.

She smiled at Mandavi. ‘Oh, dear, I had almost forgotten about it, and what was there to forgive? You are not the only one who should be feeling ashamed and guilty about it—all of us should. We said some harsh words to each other but that revealed who was behind them…that was the bitter lesson all of us got to learn, didn’t we?’

‘Yes, but who would have imagined that Manthara would finally triumph over us? She was successful in inflicting a larger damage,’ said Kirti. ‘It’s a relief she is no longer at the palace now but she has left a permanent scar, never to be healed…’

‘…and a reminder,’ shuddered Mandavi, ‘of the little evil residing in all of us…’

‘She shan’t trouble us anymore,’ said Urmila firmly. ‘Right now, there are other worries. Mandavi, take care of Bharat, he needs you. He is broken and disillusioned.’

‘He doesn’t say much to me; he stays quiet and broods. He is depressed most of the time, or sullen and angry. I have never seen him like this! It’s terrifying.’

‘That’s what I meant, dear, don’t worry about Sita or me. Look after him,’ said Urmila. ‘Right now he has no one but you. He feels betrayed by his own mother, whom he looked up to besides Ram. Ram was his guru, his father, his God…and now he is rudderless without him. He blames himself for his brothers’ exile and his father’s death. He has taken over the guilt of his mother’s crime and taken upon himself to repent for both. It is going to be a very difficult time for him as well as you, but you need to be stronger to help him get over this crisis. Or he’ll break down,’ she sighed. ‘These are hard times for all of us and there is so much to be done once the mourning period gets over…’

Fourteen days thus went by and Shatrughna helped Urmila with the affairs of the state. On the last day of the king’s mourning, Urmila called the ministers and the gurus in the assembly hall.

‘It is time Bharat took up the reins of the kingdom as his father had commanded. The preparations of the coronation ceremony are done,’ she said. ‘Bharat, the citizens, ministers and the gurus are waiting for you to sit on that throne. The kingdom cannot function without a king. This is the legacy of your great forefathers. It is but right that you are anointed king.’

Agreed Vasishtha, ‘The throne and the kingdom has been given to you by your ancestors, your father and your brother Ram. It is your duty to rule the land in your best capacity.’

Bharat stared long at the ceremonial robes and the coronation paraphernalia. ‘I cannot wear these,’ he said finally. ‘I am not worthy of them. Please do not request me to accept the throne; it is not mine. I have refused it once and do so again. Do you not believe my innocence? Is it because I am the son of the sinful Queen Kaikeyi who exiled Ram? Does that make me part of her conspiracy? I beg of you, I am guiltless. You talk about the citizens and the royal ministers who all believe that I have seized the throne from my brother. They think I am a conspirator, the treacherous brother, the murderous son who rushed his old father to a premature death. I have to win back their love and trust. And that can only be done by bringing back Ram from the forest and giving him back his rightful throne. He is the worthy king, not me. As per tradition, the eldest son sits on the throne and so shall Ram. So, keep these ceremonial robes aside and let Ram wear them when I get him back.’

There was a roar of applause. Bharat had won over his ministers, Urmila thought with relief. They had been too shaken due to the questionable intrigues of the royal family since the past few weeks. With his simple sincerity, his heart-warming genuineness and his repentant earnestness, Bharat had proved that he was innocent.

Bharat turned to Sumantra. ‘Hasten the preparations as we leave tomorrow. I request all the gurus and you to accompany me. I shall be taking with me the two senior queen mothers, so make adequate arrangements for them, too. Queen Kaikeyi shall remain in the palace,’ he added tersely.

The instructions so given, the assembly swiftly dispersed, a new hope surging through. Bharat approached Urmila as she was returning to her palace, the day’s deed done. ‘I hope you are not disappointed anymore,’ he said, his eyes downcast.

Urmila was completely taken aback, shocked with Bharat’s presumption. ‘But Bharat, I never was!’ she clarified hastily. ‘Did I ever give you that impression? I did not, even for a moment, doubt you or your intentions. Please don’t torture yourself with unnecessary guilt—you had nothing to do with this conspiracy. I know that and the world will soon get to learn of this too. You are too pure-hearted to harbour such treachery. You have always been so devoted to Ram; you couldn’t harm him or anyone!’

‘But you have been harmed, dear sister, and grievously so, by my mother and I can neither forget nor forgive that.’

‘No, Bharat, your mother had nothing to do with Lakshman’s decision to accompany Ram to the forest. It was completely his own. Do not blame it on Mother Kaikeyi!’

‘She is not my mother!’ he said violently. ‘She may not have directly told him but she is responsible for the fact that my brother is not by your side today. She must have been glad to see the last of him because he was one person who could have stood against her. Lakshman would have seen to it that Ram got his throne back, would have revolted, would have instigated the ministers and persuaded the people to rise against the injustice and fought for Ram’s rights, especially because Ram would not. But by leaving for the forest, he, too, surrendered before her wickedness. I cannot forgive her, Urmila, I cannot! Each time I look at you, Mother Kausalya and Mother Sumitra, I feel like a petty thief. I have stolen your happiness, your peace, your love. How can I ever be happy? Mother Kausalya has gone almost insane with grief—she lost her son and her husband! So has Mother Sumitra, but the noble lady that she is, she never shows it. She has been the kindest to me, making me feel guiltier. All I can do is try to correct the damage in whatever way I can. That is my penance. Getting back Ram and Lakshman is my sole aim now. And if they refuse to come, I swear I shall perform my penance there and never return to the palace either!’

Urmila was touched and horrified at his self-flagellation. ‘Bharat, don’t be so cruel to yourself. And penance for what? You have not sinned, not committed any offence…’

‘Neither had Ram, Lakshman or your sister Sita,’ he remarked sadly. ‘We are paying for someone else’s sins. Or why would you be separated from your husband? Or the two mothers from Ram and Lakshman? I can recompense with their return to this palace. Won’t you come with us to bring them back?’

Her heart leapt. The hope that she might get to see Lakshman again filled her with unadulterated, sweet happiness in every pore. It overwhelmed her but before she got drowned in that colossal wave of unexpected joy, Urmila quickly came to her senses. It had been a mirage: she dared not look further.

‘No,’ she replied quietly, swallowing the hard knot in her throat. ‘It wouldn’t be fair on Lakshman. Or me either. If you can, get them back. I would be eternally grateful for that.’

‘Not fair? Why? Life’s not been fair with either of you. Won’t my brother be happy to see his wife again?’

‘Yes, he will be. That is why you should try to get him to return but please don’t ask me to go with you.’ She said it almost brusquely and Bharat could not argue further.

‘…But please take Mother Kaikeyi with you, Bharat,’ she continued, more gently. ‘You are being heartless to her. I agree she is responsible for this tragedy, but it was a tragic blunder nevertheless. She realizes it, and like you, she is repenting. Give her a chance…’

‘…to make further trouble? I don’t trust her anymore!’ he shrugged. ‘How can I take her with me when it was she who banished Ram?’

‘Take her. There is nothing more moving than the tears of a repentant person,’ said Urmila astutely. ‘Possibly that may move Ram’s strong resolve. She might be the only one to be able to persuade him to come back.’