Strength!

 

Nala & Damyanti wrapped in a single cloth came upon a shelter in forest & sat down on the bare ground, soon fell asleep. Nala was filthy & exhausted, and the innocent & delicate princess was tired too. Nala was plagued by constant remembrance of his lost kingdom & his sleep was soon interrupted. His mind was pained & tormented & he thought: What is the use of living in such a wretched condition? Would death be better than this? My poor wife is so devoted to me & so she is suffering

 

If she didn’t worry about me, maybe she would return to her family at Kundina. With time, she would forget all her troubles & be at peace. If she stays with me & shares my misfortune, she’ll have no such chance. Thinking like this for a long time, Nala concluded that to desert Damyanti was his best course of action

 

As Nala’s mind was under control of wicked Kali, he felt justified in deserting the poor woman who innocently slept beside him. With a rusty sword found nearby, he cut the cloth which he & Damyanti shared, and prepared to leave. But again & again after walking few distance, he came back with split feeling about should he go or stay back. His heart was torn in two by the contending forces & like a pendulum & he kept departing & coming back

 

Finally, after lamenting to himself very pitifully, Nala left for good, forsaking his sleeping wife alone in the forest

 

When Damyanti woke up from her sound sleep, she failed to see her husband by her side. In tears, she said-You’re ever truthful in speech & conversant with principles of morality. How then you can leave me here alone in this frightful forest. I’m doomed & I continue to live for even a moment after being deserted, since human beings are destined to die at their appointed time

 

Don’t joke with me as I’m frightened. Pls come back & show yourself! I know that you’re hiding behind one of these trees. Why don’t you answer me? Damyanti loudly lamented & wept inconsolably, her heart burning with grief looking for Nala. Like a madwoman, she wandered here & there searching for her husband. She was then hungrily seized by a gigantic serpent & captured in the coils, she wept not because of her own misfortune but for that of her poor husband

 

Tormented due to separation, she cried out-O Nala! Why you’re not rushing to my rescue from this snake? How you’ll feel when you remember me? Eventually when you would be freed from your present oppression, regain your kingdom & your healthy state of mind, how you’ll feel when you would remember me?

 

A hunter who was roaming in the forest heard Damyanti’s wailing & quickly came running. When he saw the helpless beautiful woman in serpent’s coil, he cut-off snake’s head with his knife. When Damyanti regained some composure, hunter gave her some food & comforted her with reassuring words. She still cried for Nala & asked if the hunter has seen his husband

 

We often leave our real friends in testing times, swayed by our fickle mind & thinking about a way out or for some petty gains. We assume a scenario & are convinced of the outcome, the way we see it. In our professional lives too, we tend to sideline our real benefactor, whose only intent is to help us keeping in view the bigger picture & advantage. But alas we sideline them & give up our responsibilities too

 

We need to remember; testing times are the criterion to check our adherence to principles and be strong for a lasting impact

 

Thoughts? #gameoflife