Wages Of Sin

IT WAS THE ERA OF MAHARAJAS . LET ME TAKE YOU TO THE PRINCELY STATE OF KUTCH (THEN CUTCH)

THE BEGINNING OF 18 CENTURY

PLACE KUTCH 

She was running as fast as her feet could carry her, panting looking around and then again running,tying her odhani tight at her waist , there was no one following her,but even then she was running as if she was in race with time.

Maya

Maya was an orphan who was given shelter by the Pandit Ji of Royal Temple of Kutch, Pandit Jasraj.

She was very young when she was brought there by a traveller who told Panditji that he had found this girl crying near Indus river,he couldn't locate his parents so he brought her to him so that she could be safe.

Nobody knew anything more about Maya( the name given by Panditji)her birth,her religion, her antecedents were a mystery to the people of Kutch but her melodious voice made them forget everything and they started considering her one of them.

Maya would spend her day running errands for Pandit Ji, learning mantras shlokas and bhajans.

doing aartis ,and would sleep at mandir courtyard at nights. Time passed. Maya was now knocking at the door of adolescence,with all the charm and grace that world could contain. She had become a talented dancer and singer.

One evening Rao RajendraThe Emperor Of Kutch was moving in disguise. Maya was performing Sandhya Aarti, hypnotised by her melodious voice he went towards the temple and saw Maya dancing and singing there. He was smitten by her beauty. She looked like moon in the night,dressed in yellow sari and pink embroidered blouse, which effortlessly enlightened her suaveness and beauty. A strand of hair was dancing around in the warm summer breeze nestling on the nape of her neck ,a slender silver chain grazed her neck a pendent of Krishna hung from it.And there was a strange mark on her neck something like a Trishul.

Disguised Rao enquired from all the villagers about Maya as her aura was speaking volumes of her bloodlines.But everyone ensured him that she was daughter of the land.

Rao Saheb returned only to send summons for Maya. Was it fortune or misfortune that was knocking on Maya's doors,Only time could tell that.

  Maya was appointed Royal courtesan and was conferred the title of Rajanartiki. She was given a palace.

Rao would spend all his time with Maya now. What was pleasure and lust for Rao,was divine and worship for Maya. He loved her like an animal who didn't know emotions and she loved her like her God with all the devotion.

 There is lust and there is love they are related yet are poles apart. For one it was a desire to touch ,to feel and crush and for the other it wasn't a feeling of wanting or longing, or a moment of locked lips or infatuation. It was deep feeling of affection,trust,pain and love .

Maya had Rao's love breathing in her womb.

   

IT was a long summer day when Rao got a messanger announcing that King of Jamnagar would be paying a visit to Rao's palace,as he is on a hunting spree in nearby jungles.

Kutch had good relations with Jamnagar but still Rao knew in his heart that Kutch is in no comparison to Jamnagar's military power. Kutch had to pay some old debts to Jamnagar which had been piling for the last few decades and King of Jamnagar Raja Inderjeet had come there to remind him that in the garb of hunting.

Maharaja Inderjeet came the next day, Rao gave him a grand welcome. When they were sitting in their chambers after Royal Lunch, Maharaj Inderjeet came up with the what Rao dreaded the most ,he asked him to pay the dues at the earliest or face the consequences.

Rao was in deep trouble now.

He couldn't sleep that night ,he knew his treasury couldn't afford to pay the debts nor could he afford to annoy Raja Inderjeet. Rao was anxious, lost in thoughts,he was pacing in the garden of his palace,when suddenly some idea struck him,a wicked glow brightened his face ,and he went to sleep.

Next day he offered a deal to Maharaj Inderjeet, he offered him the priceless,the rare , incalculable gem of his treasury.

HE OFFERED HIM MAYA

Inderjeet had heard tales of Maya's beauty, he asked Rao to show him Maya first. Schematic Rao showed Maya's portrait to him. Something clicked inside Inderjeet's heart. Her eyes(Maya's eyes) were telling a tale,her eyes were interpreting her soul's voice but unfortunately, Rao could not or rather did not want to read that script.

Inderjeet was intrigued by the smile on the face and sadness in the eyes. Something was pulling him towards Maya. Something was mysterious about those eyes.

Inderjeet was stunned seeing such a beautiful face ,he readily agreed to all the terms and conditions of Rao and cleared him of all his dues.

Maya meanwhile came to know about the deal.

She was shattered, broken into thousand pieces. She could not believe that Rao could do

this ,he used her , he offered her in trade. He played a game with her. She was stoned.

     

She stood by the palace window, tall and still,gazing absently at the blurred distance. She had two choices: both unattractive, out of which she would have to make a decision

Nothing hurts more than being betrayed by the person whom you loved the most. She was deeply betrayed, her heart was pierced ,wounded and left open to bleed. Now an unforeseen fear was engulfing her. She was sinking,What about this child, will it live to see the world or not. So many thoughts were crossing her mind. She had two choices either to kill herself and her child or to run away from there.

She ran out of her palace.

She was running as fast as her feet could carry her, panting looking around and then again running, tying her odhani tight at her waist , there was no one following her, but even then she was running as if she was in race with time. After some time her body gave up this race, she realised that she cannot escape from Rao.

She stopped under a Banyan tree , cried her heart out there. Cried till her heart melted out what she had been holding up till now. She needed a good cry to understand that she had been misunderstanding Rao's lust for love.

Then the moment of realisation came when she begged herself to stop crying and face the world for the sake of her child.

She returned to her palace.

Rao's entourage was waiting for Maya,they had brought her a new bridal dress and jewellery. Maya was decorated and presented as an offering to Maharaja Inderjeet.

That night Inderjeet came to Maya's palace. This Maya was different from what Inderjeet had seen in portrait,It was a corpse of Maya, lifeless.

Rejecting all this Inderjeet sat near Maya and held her cold hand, suddenly he realised Maya is pregnant, she is carrying a child 

Inderjeet was furious and shocked at this realisation, he pushed Maya, and pulled out his sword, Maya held his hand, during this melee

Inderjeet noticed something, he asked Maya

"Who are you", Maya told him everything about her, her being saved by a traveler at Indus river than being brought up by Panditji, and then about Rao's lust story.

Inderjeet had seen the mark of Trishul on Maya's nape, this was a royal mark, this was a mark which was put on all children who were born in the royal family in Jamnagar.

Inderjeet too had that mark on the back of his neck. 

So was Maya related to Inderjeet??

Maya was actually twin sister of Inderjeet who was given away to the maid as girls were unwelcome and birth of girl was considered as a bad omen. So out of fear Queen gave away Maya at the of time her birth, but revealed this to her son Inderjeet on her death bed.

The world turned upside down in front of Inderjeet's eyes,he was stupified,he felt the ground slipping under his feet, He was about to commit a heinous crime.

He revealed to Maya that he is his brother. Inderjeet is Maya's brother.

He knelt on Maya's feet and begged for an apology. Maya too hugged and embraced him both were undergoing a medley of feelings of guilt, affection, betrayal and love.

Inderjeet asked his royal troupe to take Maya to Jamnagar immediately. He asked Maya to leave for Jamnagar, and he would be following them after killing that treacherous Rao.

But Maya held his hand and gave him her oath, She said, Bhaiya let him go, I had loved him, what he does in return is his choice, God will decide his fate, let us return to our home.

Inderjeet looked at her generous and kind-hearted sister. He could not say anything to her.

The whole troupe returned peacefully to Jamnagar without any conflict.

Maya was accepted back in the family with full love and honor. In few months Maya gave birth to beautiful twins boy and girl. Inderjeet loved them more than his own kids. Maya was now Rajmata to all the royal kids. She would teach them Dharam Shiksha.

Karma spares no one, whatever you give rebounds in leaps and bounds to you.

There was an earthquake a huge earthquake in Kutch, everything was destroyed, The whole Kutch was swallowed. Indus river too changed it's course after this earthquake isolating Rann of Kutch from its delta.

Now Rann of Kutch is a huge barren salt marsh desert.

Maya and Indus river both left Kutch to its karmas and destiny.