Daakshaayini was dreaming!
She was imagining what would happen when she went to her father’s house.
The moment father hears that his daughter is coming, he would rush outside. All his attendants also will follow him. Mother also would come to meet her dear daughter. Her father would embrace her. He will apologize for forgetting to give the invitation, or he will ask her in a stern voice, why she was delayed. Maybe he would be annoyed that her husband had not arrived. He would send forth attendants to bring Shiva with honor.
All her sisters would be envious of her wealth. They would pester her with so many questions.
She laughed gently. Her eyes closed in blissful contemplation!
Vijaya gently touched her mistress on the shoulder. Daakshaa woke up from her reverie. They had reached the destination. The GANAS were still singing Shiva’s name. But, nothing more had happened.
Where was her father? Why had not anybody come to receive her?
Maybe all were busy in the Performance of the YAJNA! She should not disturb a religious function in this manner. Holding her trembling heart which spoke of disasters to follow, she climbed down from the palanquin. She stood at the door-way with her maid at close quarters!
Her mother saw her first. She signaled to her other daughters.
As they eagerly rushed towards the bride of Shiva, Daksha’s glaring eyes slowed them down.
Controlling their emotions, they slowly walked towards Daakshaa and welcomed her in the most formal manner. Her father did not even recognize her. None who were present recognized her or greeted her.
Daakshaa felt a sharp weapon piercing her heart.
Her eyes were filled with sharp tears.
No! She would not cry! She was the wife of the ‘Great Rudra’!
She calmly saluted her parents.
Daakshaa looked at the surroundings.
The grandeur!
The crowd!
The relatives!
Yes! Her husband was right! Her father had not invited Rudra intentionally!
He had insulted her husband! He had insulted her also!
Tears in her eyes became sparks.
Her sharp voice rose echoing in all quarters.
She was ‘RUDRAANI’!
The Vedic hymns stopped.
Everyone became silent as if mesmerized by her voice!
Even the birds in the garden were quite!
Even the fire stood ‘unmoving’!
All raised their eyes to look at this form of DEVI.
A fear arose in all their hearts.
Silence reigned as if before a storm.
Daksha sat with his head bent in meditation.
Daakshaayini, the spouse of Rudra was there!
Daakshaayini, the daughter of Daksha was not there!
Her voice thundered. Lightning sparkled in her eyes!
Her hair spread out like dark ominous clouds!
Was she another ‘cloud of destruction’ Shiva had created?
Shivaa spoke:
“Why did you not invite Shambhu?
Don’t you know that the whole world is purified by His Presence?
A Sacrifice, without the presence of Shiva?
Who do you think Shiva is? An ordinary person like you?
He is the very essence of all Sacrifices!
He is the very Knowledge contained in the Sacrifices!
He is the very goal of all Sacrifices!
And, here you fools are performing a Sacrifice, without honoring Him!
He is the Very Form of Auspiciousness!
Without Him, your Sacrifice is going to end up in inauspiciousness!
What wealth can equal the presence of Shambhu?
And, my dear father! How low can you get in character?
You consider Shiva as an ordinary God?
The very Gods you have honored here, Brahma and Vishnu, they have got their Godly Status because of His Grace! How dare these Gods participate in your Sacrifice, where Shambhu has not been honored!
Have all of you lost your senses?
Hey! You, my so-called father! Who can be more foolish than you?
You Vishnu! Don’t you know the Principle behind Shiva? Don’t you know that HE is the goal set by the Vedas? Has he not rendered his helping hand in destroying your enemies, even when you descended down
to the mortal world? You wicked Hari! Even then, you are acting without sense? You have not learnt the greatness of Him who has created you?
O Brahma! For the meager essence of the YAJNA offered by my foolish father, you have come here even when Shiva is not there! You never improved! Did you not parade with five faces in front of Shiva? He cut off one of your heads! Have you forgotten all that?
And you Indra! The King of Gods! Even when you had to kill Vajra, Shiva had to help you by burning him up! And, you are participating in a Sacrifice created for the insult of Shiva!
And, ye foolish Gods! Don’t you know the power of Shiva?
And, you Sages! You seem to follow this great Sage Vasishta! All foolish sheep following a blind sheep!
Which hell-hole are you going to end up in? You all cursed Shiva when he was roaming in the forests of Daaru-vana as a beggar! And He, in his anger burnt the worlds with his Linga! Have you forgotten all that? There seems to be a memory lapse in everybody! Or, have you all decided to get destroyed once and for all? Otherwise you all wouldn’t be acting so foolishly!
You are all reciting Vedic hymns! What for? Don’t you know that Vedas have arisen from His mouth!
And, even the Vedas cannot comprehend Him!
And you all have dared to insult Him, in this manner?”
Thunder had stopped!
Lightning was still sparkling!
Storm was brewing!
Silence prevailed!
But a frog croaked! Daksha glared at his daughter and spoke:
“Hey you girl! Get out of here! Who asked you to come here?
If you want to remain here, be silent. Who is missing you here?
Your husband is the most inauspicious person ever there!
No family! No house! Not even a proper retinue!
Roams around with spirits and ogres!
What a ridiculous figure he would be in front of these benign Gods!
If this Brahma had not forced me, I would not have given you in marriage to that beggar!
If you heed to my advice, you need not go back to him at all!
I will give you all the pleasures you want! Even a better husband!
Come! Stop acting like a foolish child and accept you portion of the Sacrifice!”
‘Another husband indeed! A beggar indeed! A person without status indeed!
How dare he! How dare he!
Why was I born to this sinner supreme!
Curse on this body which had eaten the food provided by him!’
Shivaa bit her lips! Blood trickled out of her rosy lips, making them rosier!
Her eyes were also turning red with anger!
Her fingers clenched tightly making the hands look like red lotuses!
Her face got reddened by fury!
The fire burning in the Sacrificial Altar reflected its own golden color on her face!
The ornaments she wore shed an ominous light on all those who were seated around the Sacrificial fire!
Was she the Pralaya fire? Fire of Dissolution? Had she decided to take over the duties of her husband?
The female fire roared!
The Sacrificial fire was silent!
A calm voice filled the quarters!
“Those who hear disrespectful words about Shiva, and those who speak them, both go to hell!
Fie on this body which bears the status of your daughter!
After such an insult to my husband, what do I have to live for?
I only regret that I cannot cut the tongue that spoke ill of my Lord!
Since I am helpless, I close my ears, and leave this world once for all!
This body which is polluted by being in the cursed state of your daughter, I do not feel like offering it to my Lord! It carries your essence! I feel like I am the very form of sin!
I am not able to remain in this form even for a second!”
She paused.
Nobody said anything!
Nobody even had the power to move!
When Power itself decided to stop existing, what power can exist in anybody?
All looked on as if caught by some unknown evil power!
She continued:
“You father! Having insulted Shiva, you will suffer endless pains.
You are the only enemy who thinks ill of a person who has no enemies at all!
What else can a wretched person like you be capable of!
Only the dust sticking on to His feet can fill you with sense!
Two letters! SHI! VA!
Just uttering them once a person gets rid of hosts of sins!
But, even uttering His name infinitely, how will I get rid of this body born to you?
I hate the very name of Daakshaayini!
I do not even want to enjoy the fire of Shiva burning you all!
Before He comes to save me, let me offer this tainted body into this Sacrificial Fire!
May this YAJNA become polluted by this dirty offering of my body!
Let this inauspicious body burn in pain before the auspicious form of my husband knows about this!
Fie on you, my father!
Fie on all these assembled here!
Fie on this body born to you!
O my Lord! Forgive me! Forgive me!
The ornaments on her person were thrown helter skelter! She threw off all her divine attires!
She took the hot ashes from inside the Fire-altar and applied them all over her person!
Her tender body withered like a burnt creeper by their touch!
Her hair spread out like Pralaya clouds!
Tears welled up inside her elongated eyes!
Her mouth repeated the name of her Lord incessantly!
She stepped into the fire as calmly as she had gone round it at the time of her wedding!
The fire rose into ablaze! Each fiber of her body withered in painful agony!
A black mass of flesh filled the Sacrificial Altar!
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