Changing the Tides

The first story and curse (Part - 1)

Having made the decision, Duryodhan stood up from his seat. He then without looking at any occupants present in the court started to move towards where the great sage was standing. Once there, he looked at everyone and mumbled to himself, "What have I done to land up in situations like these?"

Getting only a smile as a reply from the sage standing beside him, he shook his head indignantly. But deciding to get over with it, he took a deep breath and said,
"Mitra Karna, in his life has received three curses."

Saying which he looked at Vrushali, who was sitting quietly with no outward reaction, but he knew that this is just a façade, a façade to show that she is prepared to hear the truth, a facade to hide her pain, and a façade to put forward a strong front for others. But Duryodhan was not fooled by that.

He and Karna were best of friends, and have been together since Kalapradarshan. And as a result, the relation between their families was also cordial from the beginning, which even improved over time.

Where Karna and Bhanumati became best of friends, he on the other hand found an elder sister in Vrushali. An elder sister who cared for him, who guided him and most importantly who listened to him, which not even the elders of his own family did.

And so, he was finding it difficult to come out with the truth. The truth that his friend entrusted him with, the truth which was kept a secret from Vrushali with the only intention of not causing her any stress, and the truth which he himself hated from the bottom of his heart.

But knowing that he could do nothing in this situation, apart from coming out with the truth about Karna's curses, he closed his eyes in helplessness.

Noticing this, Devarshi felt a little sympathetic for Duryodhan. And therefore, he decided to help Duryodhan get out of this predicament.

With a smile, he turned towards Duryodhan. He then kept a hand on his shoulder, and spoke.
"Putra Duryodhan, you can take your seat back. I think it would be better if I narrate these stories, since there are many details, which even you might not be aware about, and which are important for everyone to know, so as to understand the great Parshuram Shishya."

Feeling the hand on his shoulder, and listening to the words spoken by the great sage, Duryodhan opened his eyes, gave the sage a grateful smile, and with a nod he moved to settle on his seat back.

After Duryodhan had settled down, Devarshi looked at the entire court, and started with the first story,

"Many years ago, there was a young boy. A boy who despite of belonging from the suta cast, dreamt of being the greatest warrior this world would ever see, a boy who believed that with hard work & determination anything can be achieved, and a boy who never believed that capabilities of a person can be determined with their birth.

But being raised in this society, he saw how people were labelled based on their birth, how they were bound to select professions based upon their lineage and how they were not allowed to question the system which was used to oppress them.

But deciding to challenge this system by carving his own path, he started focusing on his dream of being the greatest warrior. He started to spy on the soldiers training in his kingdom, he observed them keenly for understanding the techniques they used, after which he began to teach himself the techniques and skills he observed.

Being fascinated with archery in particular, he made himself a bow, and started to practice in the forests surrounding Hastinapur.

Since he enjoyed archery, therefore practicing with bow and arrows made him feel happy and at peace with himself. Which many a times led to him practicing for hours upon hours, resulting in him missing out on his chariot driving lessons.