Aviditam Navam ( Unknown Nine)

Chapter 1- “He who knows not, and knows not that he knows not, is a fool” 

-Arabian 

1988 

Almost 41 yrs after Independence, India underwent drastic reforms. 

Establishment of security and exchange board of India, Discount and Finance house National housing bank etc took place. Younger citizens were given the power to take part in the formation of the government as the voting age got reduced to 18. Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi historic visit to China was recorded in golden letters making an absolute event in the history of 1988. The year was also recognized by the fact that India saved Maldives via Operation Cactus. But something extremely important also took place in 1988 which remained undocumented ……… 

Bodies of 4 men were found mutilated in a small province in Bihar. No one knew them and people were terrified by the brutality. The local police investigated and after hitting a dead end decided to shut the case.  

Present Day  

‘Professor is it true that our knowledge of ancient civilization is all complete? Do we know everything about it?’ Advaya smiled and answered – We haven’t really fathom the knowledge left by our predecessors. We know what we can comprehend and the rest is mystified by us. What we know is just a drop in ocean. ‘Can we ever truly encompass the ocean?’ another student chimed. ‘Maybe, but are we ready to enter the ocean is still a paradox and with this class is dismissed’. Students sighed and exited the classroom. Prof Advaya, famous symbologist was obsessed with history.

He left his highly paid job to pursue his obsession. Every then and now Advaya would wander off to different parts of the country to uncover the tales and sagas hidden deep in the heart of the mankind. 

Coming back to his house Advaya immediately made a steaming cup of coffee and went to his haven- his study. Ancient relics, scriptures, paintings, books all adorned the place. He took a seat at the kneehole desk and commenced his work. He was currently engrossed in writing a thesis on ‘Consequence of Symbology on Indian culture’. The beeping of his phone snapped him back to reality. The message read- Don’t forget the symposium….. He immediately checked his calendar. He had to be at the symposium in less than 1 hr. He winded up his work and started getting ready. He drove off and reached 10 mins prior to the meeting. The event was related to’ science and religion’ and as he had already spoken and researched a lot about it, this wasn’t particularly an interesting event for him. He went to his friend who waited by the entrance. 

His friend anxiously looked at his direction and was finally relieved to see him. 

‘Thank god you made it’ he said. Advaya grinned and both of them went inside. The stage was lavishly set with ornate chairs and a mauve teak table was made to settle at the centre. Both of them took their seats on the stage and were invited as guest speakers. Advaya eyes caught the sight of the auditorium. It was a central subsurface which can deal with 500 people at most. The wall ceiling contained a concealed light and well acoustic system. The program commenced and all the speakers took their respective places. This went on for a couple of hrs and finally when the announcement for lunch was heard, he breathed a sigh of relief. The dining hall was clattered with many eminent personalities.

Filling his plate with the food, he settled down at the table which was recently vacated. ‘Hello, is this seat taken?’ someone asked. Her salt and pepper look, wrinkles adorning her eyes and forehead with a tint of crimson on her cheeks and lips and eloquent dressing style made it hard for her to look beyond 30. ‘No, it is not’ Advaya replied. ‘I finally met you’. She exclaimed. ‘It’s my pleasure mam’. The words escaped his mouth. She was no less a personage and none other than the great Meghna Mathur- author of ‘Debunking the fables of the Indian culture and heritage and one of the famous archeologist of India. After sipping her chateau Laffite, she spoke I have heard a lot about your work professor and it would be nice to company an old lady like me to discuss ancient stuff’  she beamed. Advaya smiled and nodded. They fixed their rendezvous and left for the rest of the program.

Finally it came to an end and Advaya left the premise with a smile. The next morning was exciting for him as he was going to meet Meghna Mathur. Being excited was an understatement. His fascination for histories, symbols, legends were stemmed from reading her books, so to meet her in person was a huge moment. He reached an Iranian café and saw Meghna sitting by the window. He went up to her and took the chair facing her. They exchanged their pleasantries. She then told him the reason of wanting to meet him. ‘I want you to finish my book’, she said with glimmer in her eyes. Advaya composed himself for a second and asked her’ why do you want me to finish your book’? ‘No one else can do what you can do so you are the best choice’, said she. ‘What is the book about’? He interjected. 

With her lips twitched and eyes gleaming, her hand reached out to the purse and took out some papers that sort of looked like a manuscript. ‘What do you know about the Unknown nine?’ Advaya got startled at this question. Everyone knew that unknown nine is a myth. So deadpanned he replied’ a myth it is’. She stifled her laughter and asked again ‘do you think it is a myth?’ He nodded in affirmation. She dug an old crumpled paper out from her dress pocket and handed it to him. He unfolded the page and Saw a line written” D’KHAY AMA MALKA D’ MALKE”. He reread the line and finally understood it. It was Aramaic language which said- “Alive people of king of king”. Skeptical, he glanced the woman and before he could say something, Meghna replied’ Do you know Aramaic is still alive in India?” He scratched his chin and got lost in thought. Aramaic also k/a language of Jesus were now considered extinct. It emerged around 1,000 BCE in the Middle East, and spread throughout the area nowadays known as Kurdistan – northern Iraq, western Iran and south-eastern Turkey.

He had also heard of people of Thrissur district in Kerala trying to give a new life to this language. His silence convinced Meghna that he indeed knew about this. She further added that during Mauryan Dynasty King Ashoka also used this language to communicate to a larger audience for the betterment of mankind. Clenching that paper tightly in his hand he cross-questioned Meghna about her thoughts on the Unknown nine. She simply replied’ The eyes see only what the mind is prepared to comprehend”.’ When is the due date?’ he asked. She closed her eyes, exhaled and said ‘ When the time is right’. With that she left the café leaving the manuscript behind. Advaya sat there in deafening silence, still trying to make out of these strange things. The unknown nine has always been a topic of fascination among historians. No one believes it but still have their own impression on them. Some say It was all made up by the Emperor himself to establish his world dominance, other say it was a cult sort of thing like Priory of Scion and Opus Dei. Some people even went far as to say they are the real Illuminatis and are still alive and working, yet no one knows for sure….. Coming back to his home he flopped the manuscript on one side of the table and indulged himself in a steamy shower. He began working but sadly his mind was too diverted. His eyes kept darting back to the manuscript and eventually he gave in and started reading it. He woke up to the beeping of his phone and noticed the time – 7 a.m. He quickly freshened up and left for the university.  

Work was becoming difficult for him. His mind kept darting back to the unfinished manuscript. He decided to take some days off from the uni. As he turned the pages of the script, his anxiousness grew by leaps and bound. He was perplexed with the information Meghna collected. The demystifying of vast array of sacred knowledge in the form of 9 books raced his heart. He had heard about the power these books contained if they were ever shown the light but none such existed. Everything seemed clear as mud. Blank pages waiting for their silver lining to soak in the information that was beyond the capability of a person’s mind. To quench this unending thirst, he started his research. He looked up on the thing which is said to solve everything in our world- The Internet. He tried to find something but even the lady luck did not smile his way. His desperation grew bigger and bigger by each second. After a few failed attempts and on the verge of giving up, he came across a writer called Walter Galt. He skimmed through his work to find any ray of hope. He stumbled upon his work of ancient history of India. There was something about Walter’s work which made him drawn toward him. He called up his friend who was with him at the symposium.

After a few seconds of hearing the dial tone, a voice replied ‘Yo bud what’s up?’ Advaya in a squeaky voice asked ‘Do you know anything about Walter Galt?’ His friend thought for a while and said ‘No…… but I guess there is a person who could be of help’. Advaya jumped with joy and eagerly waited for him to tell him. After 3 days his friend contacted him and gave him the address of a person who might know Walter Galt. ’John Jones, 10 Downing street, Hammersmith’. 24 hours later he found himself in the British Isles. From the Heathrow terminal, he took the train to find the so called John Jones. As the dusk started adorning the sky he decided to get himself checked in a nearby hotel. With the inception of a new dawn Advaya started his quest. He began inquiring about John which led him to a fancy house with a front porch laden with 2 vintage cars. He rang the bell and was greeted by a voice with a riddle.’ We hurt without moving, we poison without touching, we bear the truths and lies.

We are not judged by our size. What are we?’ Advaya closed his eyes and started rummaging his mind. After a while he said ‘ words’. The gate opened and he was ushered to the living room. ‘Hello I’ve been expecting you’. Advaya saw the man. His tailored suit with a flat hat grazing his head and a light scarf around his neck made him look younger his age. The old man smiled and sat in his bergère. Before Advaya could speak the man replied ‘ No such person as Walter Galt ever existed’. Aghast , Advaya could not fathom the news . All the way from India, he came to find a person who never existed.  

CHAPTER 2-” No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it's not the same river and he's not the same man.” 

-Heraclitus 

Flashes of various emotions across Advaya’s face made John fixated on him. As he started calming down, John said” Walter Galt was a pseudonym used by my dear friend Talbot Mundy. He has the answers you are looking for”.’ But unfortunately, he went missing few years back and since then no one has ever heard from him. This was the bittersweet moment for Advaya. The person who held the answers was nowhere to be found. He downheartedly asked for Talbot’s description his last whereabouts and went on the solivagant journey. 

The next stop led him to Palmyra in Tadmorean desert, Syria which connected the Roman world with Mesopotamia and the East. With a few rays of hope on the horizon, Advaya started looking for deets on Talbot. He questioned the localities and since it was an Aramaic speaking area, it did not pave any difficulties. His quest led him to ‘Temple of Baal Shamin’. Its cella, or inner area, was almost damaged and surrounding columns collapsed. He went around the ruins to find some clues. The temple was of Corinthian order and a classical Graeco- roman structure. There were four freestanding columns across the façade which were complemented by engaged pilasters at the sides and back. As the sun started falling into its full demeanor, he noticed a symbol engraved on one of the pilasters.

A hieroglyph of a conch shell was chiseled into it, large enough to be imperceptible to the human eye. He felt the carving and realized that it was one of the Ashtamangala- a sacred suite of 8 auspicious signs endemic to Buddhism and in India, these signs were used at coronation ceremony of a king. He pulled out a Swiss knife and started cracking it. A rumbling sound emerged from the cella; he ushered to find the source of the sound. A partially ajar entrance was seen on the floor. Toiling and sweating, he managed to make the entrance navigable. He was surprised to see an underground crypt with blood spattered on the walls and floor covered in dry mud. He went around and found a vault with a cipher. Random numbers- 10,17,12,23,4,8,7,4,23,22,11,4,8,7,14,11,4,2 were lined up on top, waiting to be decoded. He racked his brain hard and associated these numbers to English alphabets. It wasn’t adding up. Exhaustion steadily crept in making him wail in frustration. He sat down, closed his eyes and calmly thought about the cipher. Maybe these were in guise of real numbers that can break the code, so with this hypothesis, he began working. He tried various combinations and finally reached a combination- 6,13,8,24,25,0,4,3,0,19,18,7,0,4,3,10,7,0,24, . With trembling hand he punched in and voila the vault opened. He smiled as these numbers spoke- GNIYZAE DATSHAE DKHAY meaning ‘Unknown Nine 

Alive’ 

He saw some paper clipping, scrolls and a diary inside. He saw the paper clipping of 1988 stating the 4 mutilated bodies in Bihar. Scrolls carried the information of Buddhism and a map of Ancient India. He then looked into the diary and it belonged to none other than Talbot Mundy. He was ecstatic. Taking those things, he came out of the temple and went to the city to his rented accommodation and started reading his diary.  

-1ST AUGUST 1980  

‘My visit to India is indeed special. After hearing about the Unknown Nine from 

Father Victor, I became obsessed with them. I want to know more about these Nine and their books containing insurmountable knowledge. The place where it all began (Kalinga) will be the inception of my quest.  

24TH AUGUST 1980 

After so many days I finally found a clue regarding these Navratnas. I firmly believe they exist. But now I need to go to Sri Lanka to find my answers.  

16TH SEPTEMBER 1982 

After spending almost two years in Sri Lanka I feel like I am coming closer to those 9 divine books. I met one of Bhikkhunis and they told me to go to Hajipur. 

24th DECEMBER 1986 

 I understood that the 9 books are hidden in various parts of the world. 1 of them is in India in Hajipur, Bihar. These books holding the secret of ultimate knowledge, will finally be accessed. I will finally get the fruit of my patience. 

19TH JANUARY 1988 

As the cold wind approaches this town, I feel desolate. What my eyes visioned, my mind will never forget. I wasn’t the only one looking for them. the people whom I believed have stabbed me in the back as I was nothing but a mere tool for them. The gruesome murder at Hajipur shuddered my soul. The book was hidden under the grave of Ananda, The closest disciple of Siddhattha Gautama , but before I could find the book, that place was being excavated by some hooded fanatics. Some people rushed to that area and got involved in a deadlock. Those fanatics strangled and mangled the bodies beyond recognition. They removed their hoods and as the dawn started setting in, a symbol of a bamboo staff on one of them on the posterior triangle of the neck stood out, they were the patrons of Ajivika, the lost religious sect and an ardent rival of Buddhism. What gave me the chills was that 2 of them in that fanatic groups were the minions of Father Victor. Disgruntled, they talked about Palmyra being their holy grail. They fled the area and couple of mins later, people started buzzing around the crime scene. I became one with the masses. 

Some policemen were approached. One of them had the same symbol as that of the Ajivika sect and I knew for sure that this ghastly scene would be wiped out from the history of 1988. A local newspaper reported as a simple case of quarrel but I know it is much beyond than this.  

21st JANUARY 1988 

I reached Palmyra. There were rumors that the temple had been made by the” unknown nine “.and the secrets lie within. I am very close to the book. The vault has opened and just as I am about to enter the vault, I heard some noises. I knew for once they were here. I closed the vault and after their witnessing, was out of my wits! They came down, looked for the vault and I heard one of them saying” the book has been moved to a different location”, destroy everything”, another one said. Quickly, they ran out and I am keeping all my work safe in the vault. I am at the terminus and I hope someday, someone could actually find the truth…………. 

CHAPTER 3-“The future can never lie about the past. In the end, you will see the beginning” 

-Michael Bassey Johnson 

 

 Advaya’s eyes widened He shoved the diary in his back pocket, quickly packed everything and set off for Hajipur. He started inquiring about the newspaper clipping of 1988 from the local post office. After toiling day and night, he finally reached the inspector’s dwelling who had investigated the crime scene. A young boy opened the door and welcomed him in. Advaya asked about the news in the clipping and the boy told that his grandfather had seen this horrific scene but sadly he demised a few years ago. He also told that his grandfather was eccentric. He might have been in some sect and was an ardent believer of it. He always talked about how his sect would one day become the rulers controlling every event that is happening in the world. But later died under suspicious circumstances. 

Advaya expressed his desire to see his grandfather’s room. He went inside and saw a modest standard of living. He searched the drawers, cupboard and bookshelf. An unidentified sound led him to a covert chamber. The walls were filled with articles, scriptures, information related to the Unknown nine. He stumbled upon a handwritten note which stated that’ on 19th January 1988, the people of my sect murdered 4 people which might’ve been associated with the Unknown Nine. The book had been moved again from the grave and maybe hidden in the Aramaic speaking areas as most of the travel of the Unknown Nine concerned these places in the past. Even after reaching the temple, no traces of books were found. After searching for more than a century, we came to know that the Unknown nine is still alive and has hidden the books in Dhauli. The sect’s involvement with the church will lead us into chaos’. He took all the papers and hurried to Dhauli.

According to those papers, the books would be in Panch Pandav Gumpha. He went inside and searched every nook and corner for any tip. A shrill sound made him jumped on his feet. He turned around and saw John and his men standing at the entrance of the cave.’ Thank you for leading us here Advaya’, John spoke. His stupefied face made john answer him. He said’ I am a disciple of Father Victor. He was convinced that Unknown nine are the real Illuminatis and wanted to find their source of power. He reassured Talbot that the church believes that this knowledge and divinity could end all the sorrows, mishaps and poverty prevailing in the world. But his skepticism made him question The Father and he concealed his work. We aren’t the only one wanting to acquire it, Ajivika sect has also been involved with us, but only the one can obtain it and thanks to you, we will finally have the ultimate source of power and will become the wire pullers of the creation. You have done your part and now it is time for you to say your final prayers.’ With this, they thrashed Advaya so hard knocking him nearly half dead and burying him alive in the ground. The sudden regain in consciousness made him aware of his surroundings. He was in a standard-sized casket or a coffin. He banged the lid of the entrapment in order to attract the attention of the passer-byes.

He also made sure to calm himself down as panicking would lead to an increase in the depletion of the oxygen levels. After an eternity of this torture, when the rays of sun finally touched his face, he slowly opened his eyes and gasped for breath. He saw his friend standing at the edge of the casket with a hoe in his sweaty hands. ‘ Do you know the whereabouts of the books ?’ his friend asked. Advaya, a little taken aback replied ‘maybe’. He saw a tattoo on his friend’s half-exposed chest and realized that he is a member of Ajivika sect. To meet a member of the perished sect and that too being your friend made his hair stand. Advaya stood up and told him all about John, the Gumpha and the Palmyra. His friend stomped his feet in despair. He told Advaya that his work has been done and now he has to go back to his life or he would lose his life in this quest. He took his advice and went back to his house and had a hearty laugh. The cave did not contain any book neither did the Palmyra nor Ananda’s grave.  

The truth was such that there was no such thing as divine books. The knowledge that those books contained is everywhere. When Ashoka made the secret society, he was afraid that the knowledge these people possessed if made to be documented can stir up the world, so he asked them to cipher their mastery in such a way that it remains in the eyes of the people but still remain shielded from the greed of the people so that their legacy could continue for thousands of years. 

The stupas, monasteries and all the structure built under the guidance of Emperor Ashoka in the world contained the knowledge in every language from the Unknown nine. Just like Ceaser’s cipher, the words had to be rearranged for cognizance. This realization struck upon him when he was in the inspector’s chamber. The articles, scriptures all pointed to the fact that the books hold the key to the ultimate power but no one could ever find them. Some of the articles suggested that those books have been burnt down during 

Nalanda university demolishing. In Meghna‘s script, it has been said that King Ashoka did everything in power in order to keep the Unknown nine a secret and make their ken immortalized, so writing some books which can easily perish did not make any sense. His traveling to Palmyra, the temple, finding Talbot’s research, going to Hajipur, and Dhauli was all preordained. He was just a tool like Talbot in this never-ending quest, for some he was a tool of distraction, for others, he was a stepping stone for the fulfillment of their desires. ‘The eyes only see what the mind is prepared to comprehend’ echoed in his head. No one knows about the Unknown Nine and the people in the sect are a mystery. They are always watching us and orchestrating our lives………..  He finished the script and is now waiting for the right time to come’.