Wednesday, January 1, 2014

Butterflies

(A story based on imagination that doesn't have any real life contexts or individuals)

It was on a full moon night that Alok gave last kiss to his love, Anamika. Their saga of love was full of obstacles and challenges, as usual with majority of lovers. If caste was the issue for old members of the family, lesser assets possessed by Anamika’s parents, was the chief concern for parents of Alok. In a traditional north Indian village, these were more than enough to set ablaze all canopies of love that youngsters build. Alok received double brunt – from both the families. Alok had to receive physical assaults at least twice from the uncles of the girl; and had made narrow escapes from attempts to his life more than twice. Thanks to Anamika’s timely scoops on her uncles’ plots that significantly saved Alok’s life. Then, how could it happen that their kisses ended on that full moon night? Death. Unexpected demise of Alok. How did he die? It was a snake bite. If to say precisely, that night he was returning after planting several sweet kisses on her love’s cherry cheeks and receiving back enough over his eyes and chin. He was just imagining Anamika and humming his favourite Hindi song, when he got the snake bite. But who knew it was a bite from a ferocious viper! 

Even not Alok, who was in a romantic thrill thought he got wounded by some thorny plants that was fencing a leading zamindar’s vast property. He washed the wound with soap water, but the blood was still oozing. In front of the sweet memories he had with Anamika, no pain was a pain. He just wrapped the wound with a piece of cloth and went to bed. Before sleeping he deeply concentrated on Anamika. He practices this deliberately before sleep. He needed sweet dreams in which his darling heart alone comes as a heroine and no other mundane thoughts disturb those alluring moments. Not sure whether he started dreaming or not, in the mid of the sleep, but he was taken to the castle of death. Alok’s mortal body became simply an object for death rituals. He became an agonizing memory for poor Anamika... 

Image courtesy: www.fanpop.com
In between, a very significant thing happened. Alok’s soul left his body and was liberated into the air in the form of a gentle breeze. When the breeze touched red roses in his garden, it became a globule of pale red colour. When it passed over freshly bloomed jasmine, it gathered all the scents of heaven. When Alok, sorry, the globule met the rising sun in the morning, it received a celestial sheen. Right at 8am the globule with all its sheen, shine and enticing scent reached ‘Christ Mission College’ on the side of Sraavan Sarai. It hooked itself over a bright sunflower and remained there... In fact it was the garden spot where regularly Alok used to wait for Anamika; and now the former’s soul is waiting... No she’s not coming. The globule looked at the college clock: time is already 9am – making it evident that Anamika won’t come to college that day. 

Then the globule went afloat in the air and travelled like a spot of light to all places where Alok used to wait for Anamika – cafeteria, tuition centre, bus stop, her close friend Jollin’s portico... But nowhere was a hint of Anamika. 

That night as usual in the moonlight, Alok’s soul, the shining globule went to Anamika’s house. Her beastly uncles were crowded on the veranda. While passing them the globule hit the nose of one of the ferocious men. Suddenly Alok’s soul reversed and waited for an angry reaction. But the man was there as if nothing has happened. Alok’s soul could understand that in the form of soul, nobody would see him or experience him. He, the globule,  entered the front hall and turned to Anamika’s room. It was closed. The globule tried to give gentle hit over the door... but without any effort it could pass through the thick wooden doors. Then Alok’s soul did understand that no obstacle is an obstacle in front of souls!

Anamika was lying on her right side, crouched and clasping both her hands between legs. She was trembling lightly and her hair was unusually disordered. Her eyes were bulged, reddish and overflowing. Alok’s soul didn’t need another second to note that she’s is in deep grief.  

The soul went near Anamika and waved gently all over her face, eyes, nose, red lips... There was no reaction! Alok’s soul was in utter distress. It could not leave Anamika in that pathetic state. It needed the old Anamika, who only knows to smile at Alok, tease at Alok and make petty quarrels with Alok. But  now what is happening! Anamika lying on bed on a moon lit night, not sleeping, but weeping!! Alok’s soul could learn another lesson: communication can be between souls, but not between human beings and souls. 

Souls react to situations far faster than human beings.  In no time, Alok’s soul got into Anamika’s body. It examined all the corridors of her mind, all the annals of her memory, all the entangling meshes of her thoughts... There Alok’s soul found one of her most painful experiences – death of Alok; another thing found was one of the most cherished wishes of Anamika – to join Alok!   Inside the intricate settings of Anamika’s mind, Alok’s soul was utterly confused for a while. If Anamika should join him, she could do that only in the form of a soul... If that happens, her life ends in this present form... Should I do it or not, should I steal her soul out of this mortal body or not... Finally Alok’s soul took a decision: it would enjoy seeing her in her present body and in this present world. In no seconds, Alok’s soul came out of her love’s body. Gathering all celestial shine and grace, it lulled all over Anamika’s face, especially over her cheeks. 

At the daybreak Alok’s soul went inside a beautiful butterfly’s body. Inside the butterfly’s mind and thoughts, Alok found an enticing abode. What a life was it! From one flower to another, one garden to another... And whenever needed, just getting into Anamika’s body and enjoying an extraordinary experience of meeting his love! Thus a soul got literally a soulful sojourn.  Time was passing like a cascade. The moon continued waning and waxing. On one full moon night, Alok saw Anamika peeping through her room’s window. The butterfly that was invaded by Alok’s soul was not nocturnal. It was sleeping, bringing together its angel wings, bending together its limbs into a narrow cluster and adeptly clinging itself under fragrant leaves of a plant. Without bringing the least disturbance for the creature, Alok’s soul came out and flew as a bright globule to reach the red lips of Anamika. From that day onwards, this became a practice on almost all full moon days. 

*     *     *     *     *     *     *

Alok’s soul had already lived in innumerable butterflies. Anamika got married to Harichand, a handsome, well-off gentleman. Sometimes Anamika would stay at her husband’s home when Alok’s soul would follow her. She became mother of two brilliant kids. Even at her husband’s home, Anamika used to peep out into moon lit nights. And Alok’s soul would reach her lips. Years passed like this. Age drew mischievous cripples on Anamika’s face. Harichand is already dead. Children are married and settled in some foreign land. By now Anamika is a grandmother, too. 

Anamika’s natural death came on a dark, rainy night. When her soul got liberated, it was at first carried away by a cold breeze. Then it was hit by three rain drops. It got a tryst with Tulsi flowers before getting into the form of a shining, graceful globule – the soul globule! Myriads of rain drops reflected the shine of that globule and the dark of night was turned into full of lights. Like a piece of iron to a magnet, Anamika’s soul was drawn to a red rose where Alok’s soul was taking a respite within a butterfly. Anamika’s soul invaded the butterfly and met Alok’s soul. Thus the cute little butterfly’s tiny mind became a big world for the meeting souls. Between souls, there is no hugging or kissing. What would generally happen is souls see each other, identify each other, join, mix, merge and transcend together.  

While transcending out of the butterfly’s body, the sleeping insect seemed a bit disturbed. It fluttered its wings and flew into the light of Anamika’s house. There it landed on the dead body of Anamika kept with all ritual mourns. On seeing the butterfly on the corpse, some hushed: “see the butterfly... how it could come at this time!: The listener added: “May be the soul of Anamika”. Hearing this, two giggling globules hovered over and made an eternal transcend into thin air.  
- K.P. Sivakumar

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