The forest was dark and there were no visible paths. The trees grew so close together even daylight could not penetrate the canopy of leaves. There was barely enough gap between trunks for a man to pass through, and the ground was a network of crisscrossed tree roots, sticking up every which way. The man … More Chapter Twenty Nine
Madri cooed to the baby in her arms. He was too young to recognize her or to respond to her, but she still kept talking to him. There was no one else for her to talk to anyway. She was no fool. She knew Kunti saw her as a rival from start. And the truth … More Chapter Twenty Eight
Sakuni sat near his sister, fuming internally, but calm outside. It had only been a week since the sage had deigned to allow him and the King to visit. Gandhari had given birth to eight babies, the sage had told them. The strain of the pregnancy was what caused the queen to nearly miscarry. The … More Chapter Twenty Six
Kunti opened her eyes slowly. She had drowsed off during the middle of the day. Again. She grimaced as she sat up. The shadows had lengthened, showing it was almost evening. She had felt tired and had meant to lie down for a moment. But the sleepless night attending to her infants had tired her … More Chapter Twenty Five
Vidura was walking down the corridors, frowning. The events of the previous week still fresh in his mind. Queen Gandhari was still in the little hut with the sage Vyasa and his son, and none save her most trusted handmaids had so far been permitted entry. Neither the King nor the queen mothers had been … More Chapter Twenty Two
Queen Gandhari stood before the idol of Shiva, palms joined. Though only a few months pregnant, her belly was already large and she was having difficulty moving around. She needed assistance in doing the most basic tasks. The King and the queen mothers as well as the patriarch Bheeshma were worried about her health, but … More Chapter Twenty One
The moon was a pale crescent, casting little in the way of light into the hut. It stood apart from the others, almost at the edge of the clearing, and the windows had shades unlike the other huts. A beam of the moonlight still found its way into the hut, but not enough to illuminate … More Chapter Twenty
It was a warm day. There was a large area near the river which the children had earmarked for their playground. The girls had marked one corner for their own and the boys another. There was a common area, where both together had planted a garden. The children had marked the area for their own … More Chapter Fourteen
Night was falling when a stranger approached the gates of Hastinapura. He was dark, not very tall, but not short either, and wore the red robes of a sage. He was adorned with bracelets of Rudraksha beads while a long chain of Rudraksha beads hung down to his navel. His Uttariya was wrapped around his … More Chapter Twelve
The night was sultry. Not an occasional breeze stirred the curtains in the royal apartments, or caused the flames of the burning torches or the lamps to flicker. The King of Hastinapura stood on the balcony, and surveyed his Kingdom, a twisted smile on his lips. Pandu was a tall man, and though he looked … More Chapter Ten
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