The sea was bright blue and the naval officer sat in his cabin. India was safe as long as there were soldiers like him, for he was brave, smart, and strong.
He had a strong passion and felt a strange closeness to the sea since he was a boy. It was a love-hate relationship. He was inspired to join the navy at 18 and at 26, he was satisfied with his work at the Navy.
Although he had everything, he always felt something lacking. He used to have nightmares of sinking, of someone close to him dying. He had the same nightmare again one night so he decided against sleeping and sat down with a cup of coffee gazing at the half-moon.
The sky was blue and cloudless. While the kids in the village were overjoyed at the prospect of playing outdoors all day and camping with fire and sleeping on their terraces at night, their parents had something serious to worry about.
The crops had failed for the past two years, and emergency resources were running out rather rapidly. Poverty was rising carelessly and villagers with relatives and friends in cities and villages that were better off had started leaving.
While the rich sustained losses in their businesses and the poor became poorer, all hell went loose for villagers in debt. One such man was Kariappa. Kariappa had taken loans for the past two years to feed his daughter as well as himself because, unlike others, he had no land, to begin with!
He used to work in other farms for livelihood, and when other peasants started having losses, Kariappa lost his job. He had taken a loan from one moneylender who was a pervert as well. The moneylenders’ condition was that Kariappa’s daughter work in the moneylenders’ house till Kariappa repays the amount, and marry him if he asked her to. The scared Kariappa would somehow manage to get wages by begging other people to give him menial jobs. Sadly, for the last few weeks, Kariappa had found no means of employment.
One day, he and his daughter were near the well at the outskirts of their village. Kariappa and his daughter wanted to commit suicide because the moneylender knew Kariappa wouldn’t be able to repay the money which meant he would certainly lay hands upon the teenage girl.
As Kariappa was about to take a leap, a horse came from behind and a pair of hands held Kariappa’s hand and his daughters hand each.
They froze in fear and turned back. What looked like a young merchant was sitting on top of a brown horse with a look of suspicion on his face. “I go around telling people not to give up hopes during these hard times. You both are ending your lives here! I will consider a failure on my part if you two give up all hope and commit suicide! What happened, that drove you to attempt this extreme step?” He demanded exasperatedly.
His look turned to pity as Kariappa explained everything. “Alright, take me to that man right away!” He said while helping both of them onto another horse. Kariappa noticed that this young bloke had a fleet of horses, all carrying what looked like armory. He also had two dozens of men with the horses, each riding a horse. There were brown horses and white horses. A young pony stood next to his mother glancing curiously at the newcomers.
Twenty minutes later, at the moneylenders’ house, an argument has ensued.
“How can you demand money from somebody during a drought? And how can you treat a helpless minor like your personal slave?” The merchant was demanding. The moneylender, with his fat stomach and arrogant style, laughed at the merchant instead of showing one bit of remorse. Disgusted, the merchant finally took out a pouch of money and threw it on the moneylenders face saying, “There! The money has been repaid! The girl is free from slavery, and so is her father! Now, you leave the family alone!”
The angry moneylender attacked the merchant, but the merchant’s men were far quicker. Two of them held each of the moneylenders’ arms, while a third punched the moneylender in the face and stomach. Then, another kicked the moneylender from behind, and together, the four men thrashed the moneylender black and blue. The moneylenders’ back was nearly broken due to this.
Kariappa and his daughter were speechless even ten minutes later as they stood outside the moneylenders’ house. They had tears of gratitude and asked the merchant what he would like in return. The stout man who had started punching the moneylender first replied that the merchant does a lot of charity work. “So, consider this part of the charity.” He added with a smile.
“Atleast you could tell your name, Oh, Nobleman!” Kariappa said.
“Dhananjaya!”
Kariappa exclaimed, “Brave just like his namesake, the great Pandava!”
Kariappa’s daughter asked the merchant, “Where are you going, sir?”
“Call me Dhananjaya, young lass. I am a merchant. As part of my occupation, I keep travelling. I’ve long left my home and do not remember the name of my native.”
Kariappa said, “If you do not mind, sir, could I ask you something?”
“Please go ahead, sir. As an elder, you have much more experience in life!” Dhananjaya said in a very humble manner.
Kariappa first turned to his daughter and asked her if she liked the man. She blushed slightly. Then, Kariappa spoke to Dhananjaya.
”If you don’t mind, as a father I feel it better and safe for my daughter to be with your lot.” Kariappa said. “Yogmaya, my child. I ask this one thing from you. Please go with this gentleman.”
“How can I leave you alone here, Father?”
“He is strong and able.”
After obtaining Yogmaya’s consent, as well as Dhananjaya’s, Kariappa conducted the wedding ceremony of the two in a few days.
Yogmaya learned more about Dhananjaya during the upcoming days. Dhananjaya would trade in countries in South East Asia and would be at sea. The couple lived happily for many months, and within no time, they were blessed with an infant son.
The family was so happy. Dhananjaya took care of Yogmaya, and the couple decided to name their son as soon as they reached land, which was due in a few days’ time.
Dhananjaya watched Yogmaya one night as she put their son to sleep. With his son asleep and his wife in his arms, Dhananjaya felt this was the best moment of his life. Suddenly, water entered the cabin. Screams were heard and the sound of splashing water was heard.
His heart sank as he watched his produce being swept away by the raging sea, and his most trusted men falling into the sea helplessly. He grabbed his wife and their child and made for safety. He wasn’t worried about himself. What concerned him was the safety of his family and the others on the ship.
Someone has made a huge raft and some of his men were going on to it. Dhananjaya held his son in his arms and gave him to one of the men on the raft. Just when he was helping his wife get on the raft, the place they were standing broke apart. Husband and wife drowned arm in arm, never to see land or daylight again. Not in that lifetime atleast.
Tired of the same nightmare, Partha put down his mug and stared at the sky. It was now dawn, and the sun rose graciously, spreading warmth. He looked down from his balcony and his heart skipped a beat! There stood the girl from the nightmares he had so frequently! The woman whose name, in the dreams, was Yogmaya! She was dressed in red and white, talking over the phone. She appeared to have recently started a new business.
At that very instant, Partha knew that she was the one! That the couple was meant to reunite in this birth! He washed his face, changed into a nice pair of clothes, and went outside to introduce himself to what was meant to be a happy reunion after a lifetime.