Dear readers,
You will remember King Vikram’s story about the adventures of the four friends, and his final question: “Tell me, with whom should the young girl spend her life?” Here are some of our readers’ thoughts:
Now, Queen Abol-Rani remained silent behind the four veils that hid her from view. Her maids-in-waiting were also present in the reception room, and they too were listening, smiling mischievously and whispering. Not daring to address the queen directly, King Vikram had narrated his story to the queen’s earrings. They answered him that it was certainly the one who gave her life who should become her husband.
Queen Abol-Rani could not refrain from uttering a cry of disappointment upon hearing the answer. She said, “He who gave her life loves her as God is love. One who crafted her loves her like a creator, like her father. The one who clothed her protects her with the love of a brother. It is the one who adorned her with jewels who loves her for who she is. In truth, the girl should marry the goldsmith! “
Then she continued, “It is said that our heart is like a violin that vibrates with love by reproducing the notes it heard during childhood. It reproduces them in all our love relations. Thus we learn to love. Our heart is like a violin with a few inherited strings. We resonate to all forms of love always with the same strings. We have to discover new strings for our violin, learning the nuances of love until we find the most subtle form of love.”
The queen had hardly uttered these words than the first veil fell and only three veils remained behind which the queen was hidden from the eyes of the king.
A little disturbed by the words of the queen, King Vikram asked permission to retire for a few moments to meditate. Listening to the warm, rich voice of the queen, he felt a powerful vibration in his heart, like a cosmic Om. He felt connected with his inner Self, in resonance with everything that feels right. This time it was no longer the curious king who was responding, but his heart that began to beat at the rhythm of his fate with the quiet confidence of the intuition of the heart.
A few minutes of meditation were enough to inspire him with a new story in response to the queen’s wishes. “I have heard your request, O queen. Please will you allow me to answer with another story?”
Only silence answered him. “So if you do not want to answer me, my queen, I think your necklace will!” The girls were enjoying the conversation, smiling and giving each other knowing looks, while the necklace jingled and replied, “I am listening to you, O king.”
So King Vikram began a new story.
“In a certain town, there lived a shopkeeper, with his wife
and two sons. After a while, the wife gave birth to a daughter and they named her Chandraprabha, which means
moonlight. When Chandraprabha grew up, she was the most beautiful girl in the kingdom. Suitors began to arrive
at the merchant’s house to ask for her hand.
Among all of them, the shopkeeper chose a strong, skilled craftsman who could build wonderful flying machines that carried people to heaven. The same day, the wife, who did not know the decision of her husband, promised her daughter to a healer who often helped her and could bring people back to life. The first son, who had no idea what his parents had done, promised his sister to a mighty warrior. The second son ignoring the actions of the others, promised his sister to a young musician who had known the girl since childhood.
When the merchant, his wife and sons all met that evening, they discovered that each of them had promised the girl to a different fiancé. They were dismayed and greatly embarrassed.
Observing the position of the astral bodies, the astrologers determined a favourable day for the wedding. on that day, the artisan, the healer, the warrior and the musician all arrived at the house of the merchant, but the graceful Chandraprabha was nowhere to be seen. The whole family started to look for her, as it was not her habit to go without informing anyone. No one could find her and the waiting grew longer and longer; all were concerned. “What if something has happened to our little girl,” thought her father.
A neighbour finally arrived carrying the dark news: the lifeless body of the beautiful Chandraprabha had been found, as she had been fatally bitten by a snake.
“Alas! What misfortune.” moaned the mother. “Alas, my beloved daughter, I will never see you again.”
The whole family fell into total despair. Then the mother remembered the healer and asked, “Is there a way to bring her back to life?
“ The healer closed his eyes, thinking for a moment and said, “I can make an
antidote. All the ingredients are easy to find, except for two: the first is a plant which can only be found on
the exposed south face of Kanchenjunga, in the high Himalayas, protected by steep rocks; and the second is some
amazing water, an elixir of life, found in a cave in a glacier in Tibet. There is a terrible and ferocious
dragon guarding this cave and no one has ever managed to enter it.”
“Never mind,” said the artisan, “I’ll build a flying machine and we will be there before you know it.”
“As for me,” said the warrior, “I will carry you on my shoulders on the steep slopes to find this famous plant, and I am not scared of any dragon! I will fight everything that comes across our path.”
The artisan began to work on his flying machine, the healer went in search of the other ingredients, and the warrior gathered his weapons. Soon the three boys were ready to set off on their quest. As for the musician, sickened by grief, he sighed and cried to his beloved as he sat near her lifeless body.
The flying machine went straight to the Himalayas. The healer easily guided the three of them and recognised the plant instantly. The artisan skilfully flew the machine close enough to the slopes so that the warrior could reach the plant, while avoiding the deadly rocks.
Next the company flew swiftly to Tibet and reached the glacier. At the entrance of the cave, the dragon threw himself on them with a dreadful fury, but the warrior stood fearlessly before him, brandishing his weapons. With incredible power, he shot an arrow fitted with a half-moon tip, killing the dragon instantly. Carefully they collected the precious elixir and started their journey home.
On their return, the warrior took the girl in his arms, and the healer poured a few drops of the potion he had prepared onto her lips. The artisan was anxiously watching, and the musician was praying. Suddenly Chandraprabha’s chest moved and she opened her eyes. Miracle of miracles, she was alive! everyone began to dance with joy, and her parents and brothers were so happy to see Chandraprabha healthy and sound. After much rejoicing the question arose: which one of the four contenders was the worthiest and should take the girl’s hand in marriage?”
What do you think? In truth, to which of the four suitors should Chandraprabha be married and why?
Will you find the right answer and bring down the second veil of Abol-Rani? Please send your answers to contributions@heartfulnessmagazine.com.
Next month, we will listen to the end of this story and the next one from King Vikram.
To be continued…
Artwork by VERONIQUE NICOLAI
