CHAPTER 10 The Astrologer from Kudandhai
Born and brought up in Kudagu, the River Ponni, once she attains maturity, races over hills and through valleys, over rocks and hollows to join her husband Samudrarajan. As
she approaches Samudrarajan, the joy of knowing that she will soon see her husband makes her swell and expand. She goes a little further, then spouts two arms. She rushes forward in leaps and bounds, her arms outstretched.
Two loving arms are not enough to contain her ardour, so they become twenty, a hundred. Stretching out all her arms expectantly, she rushes to Samudrarajan. How well the foster mothers of the Chozha country adorn the bride who longs to reach her beloved husband! Adada! What a sight! The many green sarees they drape on her! How gorgeously they deck her with flowers! What beautiful fragrances they sprinkle on her! Aha! How can they be described, the punnai and kadambam trees on either side that shower their flowers so lovingly on her, like so many pearls and diamonds. How can one describe the sight? Even the flower-offerings made to the gods pale in comparison.
River Ponni! Which girl would not rejoice when she sees you? Can there be a woman whose heart does not swell when she looks at you in your bridal attire?
Is it not natural for girls to come seeking you, just as young girls surround a bride?
The River Arisilar is one of the golden arms the Ponni stretches out to embrace her husband. This beautiful river is very near the Kaveri, to its south. It has to be pointed out to those who come from other places. A dense clump of trees hides the river well. It is said that the Arisilar can be compared to a royal princess who has never once left the anthappuram since she was born. This virgin river is incomparable in its beauty.
Good! Let the readers put the image of the anthappuram out of their minds now and approach the Arisilar. Let them find their way through the dense trees. Adada! What a marvellous sight! It is like beauty beautified! Like honey sweetened further! Who are these women seated in an elegant swan-like boat? Who is this lovely girl in the centre, shining like the moon among the stars, like a queen born to rule the seven worlds? Who is the gentle beauty seated by her, a veena in her arms? Who are these enchanting gandharva women, whose sweet voices flow so melodiously, the flood of their songs mingling with the river? One has fish-shaped eyes; the other’s eyes are deep blue ; one's face is like a lotus; another's luscious lips are like lotus petals. Aha! The girl strumming the veena, one can watch endlessly the way her fingers move over the frets.
What of the sweetness of their music? Even the flood in the river seems to have quietened in order to listen to it. Even the parrots and koels on the trees have stopped singing and are wrapped in silence. Is it surprising then, that human beings, who are gifted with the capacity to enjoy good music, feel exhilarated when they hear this?
Covering yourself with a garment of beautiful flowers
Around which bees cluster and sing, you walked
With dark fish-eyes, open and rolling
O Kaveri, may you live forever!
With dark fish-eyes, open and rolling
You flowed to the brim because unbent
Was your husband’s perfect spear
So I’ve learnt. O Kaveri, may you live forever.
Your exciting garlands swung near you as you flowed Peacocks danced and, following them
Koels sang in the groves bursting with flowers
O Kaveri, may you live forever!
Your exciting garlands swung near you as you flowed
To the brim, for you have seen The power of his fierce spear So I’ve learnt.
O Kaveri, may you live forever:
Have we not heard these beautiful Tamil songs somewhere? Yes, they are from the Silappadikaram . Sung by these girls, they seem to have an attraction they never had before. The girls must be the river's special friends. That is why they sing with so much feeling. Adada! The lyrics, the melodies, the emotions they evoke, somehow seem to mingle and flow like a stream of nectar. Such music! Such tunes! Such lyrics!
There must be some magical art in them that makes those who sing and those who listen equally mad!
The boat stopped at the embankment, at the spot where there was a clearing between the trees. Two women alighted. One had a personality as forceful and dignified as that of a ruler of the seven worlds; the second was the one whose fingers had flowed over the veena's strings, making such sweet music. Though both were beautiful, there was a difference between them. One had the dignified elegance of a lotus flower, the other, the soft beauty of a rose. One was the full moon, the other, the morning star. One was the dancing peacock, the other, the singing koel. One was Indrani, the other, Manmathan’s beloved. One was the fast-flowing Ganga, the other, the sinuously meandering Kaveri.
To end the suspense in the reader's mind, we will now tell you who these two were. The one with the dignified presence was Kundavai, the Emperor Sundara Chozhar’s beloved daughter, the sister of Arulmozhi Varman, who became famous in history as Raja Rajan. The people called her Ilaya Piratti, the young eminence. Loved by the Tamils, she laid the foundation for the greatness of the Chozha empire. She was the brave woman who brought up Rajendran, the son of Raja Rajan, who grew up to be a great king and an incomparable warrior.
The other, a princess from the vassal state of Kodumbalur, had come from there to be with Kundavai Piratti. She was later to become a notable historical figure. At that moment, she was the personification of modesty, sweetness and peace.
The two women came ashore. Kundavai turned to her companions and said, “Wait here, all of you. We will be back in a short while.” All the women were daughters of chieftains and had come to Pazhayarai considering it a privilege to be a companion to Kundavai.
When they knew that only one of them had been chosen to accompany Kundavai, the others were filled with jealousy and disappointment.
A horse-drawn chariot was waiting for them. “Get in, Vanathi,” said Kundavai, and got in herself. The chariot surged forward.
“Akka, where are we going? Will you tell me?” asked Vanathi.
“Why not? We are going to the house of the Kudandhai josier, the astrologer,” replied Kundavai.
“Akka, why are we going to the josier's house? To learn what?”
“What else but to ask about you! You’ve been wasting away for some time now, and behaving as if you’re in some kind of trance. We’re going to find out when you’ll come out of it and feel better.”
“Akka, I beseech you, there's nothing wrong with my health. Let's not go to him. Let's go back.”
“If you say so, we won’t ask him about you. But I want to consult him about myself.”
“What do you want to find out from the josier?”
“Will I get married? Or will I remain unmarried all my life? That's what I’m going to ask.”
“Akka! Why ask a josier that? Isn’t it something you should ask yourself? At a single nod from you, won’t the rajas from the fifty-six countries from Kumari to the Himalaya arrive to compete for your hand? Why, they’ll even come from across the seas! Which brave prince will be lucky enough to clasp your hands? Surely, it’s for you to decide.”
“Vanathi Even if what you say is true, there's an obstacle. If I marry a prince from somewhere else, I’ll have to go to his country. I don’t want to ever leave this Chozha Nadu through which the Ponni flows. I’ve taken an oath never to go to another country.”
“But that’s not an obstacle. Any prince who marries you will be willing to fall at your feet and be your slave. If you want him to stay here, he will.”
“Aha! That’s asking for trouble: it will be like holding a rat on one’s lap. How can we have a prince from another country staying here? Don’t you know the problems that would cause?”
“Anyway, if you’re born a woman, you’ll have to get married someday.”
“No shastram says so, Vanathi. Look at Auvaiyar. She was a virgin and lived for many years as a poet who had no equal.”
“But God gave Auvaiyar the boon of premature old age. That hasn’t happened to you.”
“All right then. If I have to marry, I'll marry a Chozha warrior who has no one of his own. He'll have no country of his own then. So he will not want to take me away. He'll stay here in Chozha Nadu.”
“Akka! Then you’ll never leave the Chozha country?”
“Never! Even if they promise to make me queen of Heaven, I will not go.” “Well. It’s only today and now that I feel at peace.”
“Why?”
“If you were to go away, I would have to come too, since I can’t bear to be separated from you. I too don’t want to leave Chozha Nadu.”
“If you get married, we'll have to part.” “Akka, I’ll never get married.”
“What about the advice you gave me just now?” “Am I like you?”
“You liar! I know everything. Are you trying to throw dust in my eyes? You have no special bond with Chozha Nadu. The Chozha Nadu you really love is fighting in Eezham, sword and lance in hand. Do you think I can’t see deep into your heart?”
“Akka, Akka! Am I such an idiot? Think of the sun. Think of a dewdrop early in the morning. Of what use is it for the dew drop to desire to be the sun’s friend?”
“The dewdrop is small. The sun is large and bright. But at the instant when it reflects the sun, the dewdrop imprisons the Sun within itself.”
Vanathi asked excitedly, “You say so? You mean the dewdrop can also capture the Sun?” Suddenly, she became dejected. “The dewdrop desires the sun and is trapped. But to what end! Very soon, the dewdrop gets the punishment it deserves. It evaporates without a trace in the sunlight.”
“That's wrong, Vanathi. The sun, realizing the dewdrop's desire, captures it and merges with it. He does not want his beloved, the dewdrop, to be seen by other men. At night he releases her, and then she comes out again.”
“Akka, you’re saying this only to comfort me.”
“That means you’re worried about something. And yet you insist that you’re not. That’s why I'm going to the Kudandhai josier.”
“If I’m worried, what's the use of asking the josier?” Vanathi sighed deeply.
The josier's house was in an isolated spot in a corner of the city, near the Kali temple. The chariot skirted the city and reached the house so quickly that it seemed as if the charioteer had been there many times.
The josier and his disciple greeted them with deference and respect.
“Great lady, embodiment of Lakshmi and Saraswathi Come in, come in! This poor hut is fortunate that you have come to visit us once more.”
“Josier! Nobody else will come to see you now, will they?” asked Kundavai.
“No, Thaaye! Not many people come looking for me these days. Only when the sufferings of the world increase do people come in search of josiers. But now, in the reign of your beloved father, Sundara Chozhar, people do not know what suffering means. Everybody is happy, prosperous and comfortable. Why should they come in search of me?” replied the josier.
“Are you saying I’ve come to you because I’m in trouble of Some kind?” The josier answered diplomatically.
“No, great lady! Which blind fool would ever, say that the daughter of the prosperous king of Pazhayarai is in trouble? No one in this kingdom has difficulties, so it’s the poor josier who suffers. No one cares for me. You have come like a goddess to save me. Amma, please come in. It is unforgivable on my part to have let you stand here.”
Kundavai asked the driver to move the chariot under the banyan tree near the temple. Kundavai and Vanathi followed the josier into the house.
The josier told his disciple, “Appane! Guard the entrance carefully. Nobody must enter, even by accident.”
The inner hall had been made ready to welcome the princess. On one wall was a decorated picture of the goddess, [4] Ambikai. Two seats were placed in readiness. A lamp had been lit. Kolams had been drawn on the floor. Charts, horoscopes and palm leaf manuscripts were scattered all over.
The women sat down first, then the josier.
He said, “Ammani, please tell me the purpose of your visit.” “Josier! Can't your astrology tell you that?”
“Yes, Thaaye!” said the josier. He closed his eyes and chanted some mantras.
Then he opened his eyes and said, “You’ve come here to consult me about this girl’s horoscope. Devi Parasakthi tells me this. Isn’t it true?”
“Aha! Wonderful! How can I describe how great your power is? Yes, josier! I’ve come to ask about this girl. She came to the palace a year ago. She was very happy for eight months. She was the happiest, the most playful and cheerful of my companions. But over the last four months there's been a change. She seems tired all the time. She looks as if she's in a trance. She's forgotten how to laugh. She keeps saying there's nothing wrong with her. If her elders ask how she is, what will I tell them...?”
“Thaaye! Isn’t this girl the younger Kodumbalur chief’s beloved daughter? Isn’t her name Vanathi” asked the josier.
“Yes, you seem to know everything.”
“I already have this young princess's horoscope. Please wait.” The josier opened an old box by his side and went through its contents. He picked out a particular horoscope and studied it intently.
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