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Year 1910 - Somewhere in the Himalayas, Indian subcontinent.
Urmi sat on a rock near the gurgling stream, her feet in the water. She looked on sadly at the funeral pyre burning on the other side of the stream.
A lone man in his early 60s stood beside the pyre, tears streaming down his cheeks. The man could not see Urmi; she was a Yakshini, after all. Mortal eyes could never perceive the celestial beings, even though she was always around him and his mother. The mother was now gone, having passed away peacefully in her sleep the previous night.
Urmi felt a rift, in the dimensional fabric of the world, behind her. She turned back and saw a sliver of bright light coming from a thin line suspended in the air. The light grew brighter as the rift widened and another Yakshini came through it. The visitor sealed the rift behind her, closing the portal, and walked towards Urmi. The grieving man, on the other side of the stream, saw nothing.
"Chandrika! Glad to see you. I hoped you'd come," said Urmi, getting up from the rock.
The two Yakshinis embraced each other in greeting.
"Of course, I came. There are so few of them left anyways. These two were one of my recent favorite couples."
They watched the burning pyre in silence. "I am done, Urmi. I am ready to go back to Swarg Lok," said Chandrika.
"How can you say that? I thought, we both agreed to stay and continue the task, like Lady Rati had assigned us."
"And how is that task progressing? Huh! Once there were thousands of us here. Now it's just the two of us that still linger, like fools!"
"I still have hope."
"Hope! What hope is left? Look around. Humans no longer act on their incestuous desires as they once did. Everything is taboo for them now. It's over Urmi. Accept it."
Urmi was well aware of Chandrika's frustrations. Every time a member of an incestuous couple died, Urmi would hear these angry outbursts from her. They missed the old days when humans were more expressive with their sexual desires, sans boundaries.
Chandrika calmed down and said, "I am going home, Urmi. I urge you to come with me."
"I can't. I have to try."
Chandrika nodded as if she expected this reply. "Farewell then, old friend." She embraced Urmi. "Until we meet again."
Urmi watched as Chandrika's essence started sparkling and disintegrating in the air with the last rays of the setting sun. Within few moments, her last friend disappeared from the mortal world. Urmi stood alone near the stream, contemplating her next move.
Year 1914 - The village of Vrindavan, Western Ghats, India.
The collective mood in the council meeting was gloomy. All five members sat on the floor in a circle with somber expressions on their faces.
"What about the other crops? Can we save them?" asked Shakuntala. She was 40 years old and a teacher at the gurukul.
"I have no answers at this point," said Sharad. He was 45 years old and an experienced farmer, who also dabbled in botanical studies. He assisted other farmers in the village with fertilizers, pest control and better cultivation methods. "Could be some new type of pest we've never dealt with before. But I can't see the actual pest itself, only the symptoms and the damage."
Sharad had just come back from visiting farmer Jayant's farm on the outskirts of the village. The plants had decayed suddenly in a matter of days without any apparent reason. The entire crop in the farm had been destroyed and the disease was spreading quickly to the other farms. The farmers had called upon the village council to assess the situation and suggest a solution.
Shakuntala looked at Acharya and Yashoda who were deep in thought. The 75-year-old man was the head of the council and ran the gurukul with his 70-year-old wife. In addition to being the village school, the gurukul also served as the council's office.
"See if you can find some cure for this new pest. Losing entire crops like this is disastrous," said Acharya.
"Yes sir. I am already on it," said Sharad.
"What else do we have on the agenda?" asked Yashoda.
"I have another troubling matter to report," said Omkar. He was 46 years old and served as the village doctor. "When I visited Jayant's farm earlier today with Sharad, I noticed the farmer looked unwell. I went with him to his house and checked him and family. They all seem to be afflicted with some strange ailment. I pray it's not some kind of plague. I have given them medications for now but will monitor them regularly."
"Our village in secluded and cut off from rest of the world. Getting help from the villages on the other side of the mountains would be difficult," remarked Yashoda
Shakuntala looked at the idol in the corner of the room. Oh, Lord Ganesha, what's happening?
***
The events discussed in the council meeting still weighed heavily on Shakuntala's mind the next morning. Her reverie was broken by a sudden splash of water on her face. She recoiled with the sensation and heard laughter from her friends.
It was early morning and she was in the waterfall, bathing with her friends. Omkar's wife, Rukmini, was 42 years old and a fellow teacher at the gurukul. Sharad's wife, Narmada, was 39 and a home-maker. They were her closest friends and confidant.
Urmi sat on a rock near the gurgling stream, her feet in the water. She looked on sadly at the funeral pyre burning on the other side of the stream.
A lone man in his early 60s stood beside the pyre, tears streaming down his cheeks. The man could not see Urmi; she was a Yakshini, after all. Mortal eyes could never perceive the celestial beings, even though she was always around him and his mother. The mother was now gone, having passed away peacefully in her sleep the previous night.
Urmi felt a rift, in the dimensional fabric of the world, behind her. She turned back and saw a sliver of bright light coming from a thin line suspended in the air. The light grew brighter as the rift widened and another Yakshini came through it. The visitor sealed the rift behind her, closing the portal, and walked towards Urmi. The grieving man, on the other side of the stream, saw nothing.
"Chandrika! Glad to see you. I hoped you'd come," said Urmi, getting up from the rock.
The two Yakshinis embraced each other in greeting.
"Of course, I came. There are so few of them left anyways. These two were one of my recent favorite couples."
They watched the burning pyre in silence. "I am done, Urmi. I am ready to go back to Swarg Lok," said Chandrika.
"How can you say that? I thought, we both agreed to stay and continue the task, like Lady Rati had assigned us."
"And how is that task progressing? Huh! Once there were thousands of us here. Now it's just the two of us that still linger, like fools!"
"I still have hope."
"Hope! What hope is left? Look around. Humans no longer act on their incestuous desires as they once did. Everything is taboo for them now. It's over Urmi. Accept it."
Urmi was well aware of Chandrika's frustrations. Every time a member of an incestuous couple died, Urmi would hear these angry outbursts from her. They missed the old days when humans were more expressive with their sexual desires, sans boundaries.
Chandrika calmed down and said, "I am going home, Urmi. I urge you to come with me."
"I can't. I have to try."
Chandrika nodded as if she expected this reply. "Farewell then, old friend." She embraced Urmi. "Until we meet again."
Urmi watched as Chandrika's essence started sparkling and disintegrating in the air with the last rays of the setting sun. Within few moments, her last friend disappeared from the mortal world. Urmi stood alone near the stream, contemplating her next move.
Year 1914 - The village of Vrindavan, Western Ghats, India.
The collective mood in the council meeting was gloomy. All five members sat on the floor in a circle with somber expressions on their faces.
"What about the other crops? Can we save them?" asked Shakuntala. She was 40 years old and a teacher at the gurukul.
"I have no answers at this point," said Sharad. He was 45 years old and an experienced farmer, who also dabbled in botanical studies. He assisted other farmers in the village with fertilizers, pest control and better cultivation methods. "Could be some new type of pest we've never dealt with before. But I can't see the actual pest itself, only the symptoms and the damage."
Sharad had just come back from visiting farmer Jayant's farm on the outskirts of the village. The plants had decayed suddenly in a matter of days without any apparent reason. The entire crop in the farm had been destroyed and the disease was spreading quickly to the other farms. The farmers had called upon the village council to assess the situation and suggest a solution.
Shakuntala looked at Acharya and Yashoda who were deep in thought. The 75-year-old man was the head of the council and ran the gurukul with his 70-year-old wife. In addition to being the village school, the gurukul also served as the council's office.
"See if you can find some cure for this new pest. Losing entire crops like this is disastrous," said Acharya.
"Yes sir. I am already on it," said Sharad.
"What else do we have on the agenda?" asked Yashoda.
"I have another troubling matter to report," said Omkar. He was 46 years old and served as the village doctor. "When I visited Jayant's farm earlier today with Sharad, I noticed the farmer looked unwell. I went with him to his house and checked him and family. They all seem to be afflicted with some strange ailment. I pray it's not some kind of plague. I have given them medications for now but will monitor them regularly."
"Our village in secluded and cut off from rest of the world. Getting help from the villages on the other side of the mountains would be difficult," remarked Yashoda
Shakuntala looked at the idol in the corner of the room. Oh, Lord Ganesha, what's happening?
***
The events discussed in the council meeting still weighed heavily on Shakuntala's mind the next morning. Her reverie was broken by a sudden splash of water on her face. She recoiled with the sensation and heard laughter from her friends.
It was early morning and she was in the waterfall, bathing with her friends. Omkar's wife, Rukmini, was 42 years old and a fellow teacher at the gurukul. Sharad's wife, Narmada, was 39 and a home-maker. They were her closest friends and confidant.