Chapter 39 The Flames of the Pyre and the Fire of Vow
The Heavy Silence of Grief
Margdarshak Vishrayan words hung suspended in the air Agni has gone into a coma These words pierced everyone heart like poisoned arrows A heavy silence fell over the chamber A silence in which only the sound of Agni slow mechanical breaths could be heard
Tears began flowing from everyone eyes Aksh covered his mouth with his hands and his shoulders trembled lightly Kalpit closed his eyes but tears seeped through his lashes and formed two gleaming streaks on his cheeks Vedika pressed the corner of her veil to her eyes and the cloth was slowly becoming wet
Anvay bit his lips His fists were clenched so tightly that his nails had dug into his palms leaving small red marks
But Margdarshak Anvay voice was broken and each word was born of pain How can Margdarshak enter a sleep from which returning is not possible He is our Margdarshak The master of the fire element Nothing like this can happen to him
Anvay went to Agni and collapsed at the edge of his bed He took Agni cold hand in his own and began to cry Like a child Without shame and without hesitation
Margdarshak Come back You cannot do this to us
Margdarshak placed his hand on Anvay head His palm was warm but that warmth held an infinite sorrow
Even though Agni is the master of the fire element Even though elemental bearers do not age and remain forever young Margdarshak voice flowed like a calm river but held a bitterness But Agni is still human And when a pain or suffering exceeds a human capacity to endure and defeats their strength to bear it Then the human enters a sleep from which emerging is nearly impossible
Anvay rested his head on Agni chest and began crying uncontrollably His sobs echoed in the room and each sob held a shattered trust and a crushed friendship
Aksh and Kalpit came to Anvay Both their eyes were red but they were not crying The tears had now run out Aksh placed his hand on Anvay shoulder
Calm down Anvay Aksh voice held a tired firmness We have lost half our family in a single moment We do not want to lose you now Anvay pull yourself together Get up
Aksh and Kalpit lifted Anvay Anvay body was heavy and lifeless but they lifted him and took him out of the chamber As they walked out the door Anvay turned back once to look at Agni With that broken gaze that would never heal
The Prayer of Margdarshak and a New Chapter
Margdarshak closed his eyes His lips moved murmuring a Naad Sutra Then he placed his hand on Agni head and a faint golden glow emerged from his palm and spread throughout Agni body
Agni Son Your journey will be very difficult son Margdarshak whispered and his voice held a pain that seemed centuries old
He stroked Agni head One final farewell touch Then Margdarshak closed his eyes and his body began slowly blurring in the air like a shadow dissolving in sunlight In a moment he disappeared
Tears were still dripping from Agni eyes Slowly Continuously But his body had frozen like ice He could not move Only tears flowed The sole evidence of that broken heart
The Final Rites The End of a Dynasty
On the other side Akshansh was preparing for the last rites of his parents
King Uday corpse was dressed in new clothes White silk robes with gold embroidery gleaming on them His hair was groomed and his beard was trimmed A sword was placed in his hands The same sword with which he had fought a hundred wars
Queen Urmila was adorned like a married woman Henna was applied on her hands and flowers were placed in her hair Her saree was of red silk The color of wedding now become the color of death
The pyre for both was prepared A pile of sandalwood logs whose fragrance spread across the entire cremation ground
Tears were still dripping from Akshansh and Vedika eyes Akshansh face had become like a stone statue No expression Only an emptiness Vedika held his hand and her fingers were intertwined with Akshansh fingers A firm silent support
Vaishali had also come from Anandpur with the King and Queen The King was supporting Akshansh and the Queen and Vaishali were supporting Vedika The entire kingdom was in mourning Clouds of sorrow loomed everywhere
The soldiers began playing the drums But this was not celebratory music It was a tune of farewell A slow painful beat that echoed in the air and shook every heart
The Burden Lifted on Shoulders
Akshansh gave his shoulder to his father He lifted his corpse It was heavy A lifeless weight that was not just a body but the weight of an entire era He laid him on the bier
Then the shoulders were placed
One shoulder was Akshansh The second was Aksh The third was Kalpit The fourth was the Chief Minister
The Queen corpse was also laid on a bier And her shoulders were placed
One shoulder was Anvay The second was King Shantanu The third was the Commander The fourth was a soldier
They walked towards the cremation ground A long slow funeral procession Hundreds of people walked behind and everyone was silent Only the beat of the drums and the sound of people weeping mingled in the air
At the cremation ground they were laid on the pyre Sandalwood logs were arranged around them and flowers were scattered
Tears had stopped flowing from Akshansh eyes Now there were only two dry red eyes staring at the pyre
The Offering of Fire The End of a Lineage
Akshansh took a piece of wood in his hand He lit a fire in it A small trembling flame that flickered in the wind
He went near the pyre He paused for a moment and looked at his parents faces They seemed peaceful as if they were sleeping Then he lit the fire
As soon as the pyre caught fire flames rose High fierce flames that seemed to touch the sky The fragrance of sandalwood had now turned into smoke and that smoke rose into the sky as if two souls were ascending towards heaven
Akshansh just kept watching those burning pyres He did not move and did not speak He just watched Every flame Every spark Every breaking log
After some time the entire pyre burned down Only ash remained there Deep white ash that began blowing away in the wind
The Vow A Resolve Rising from the Ashes
The King and Queen said Prince Let us go now
Akshansh nodded Mother Father Leave me alone for some time
The King Queen and all the friends left from there Akshansh remained alone Near the ashes of those pyres At that cremation ground where now there was silence and only the faint rustle of ash
His eyes had turned red Not from crying but from a deep burning rage
He sat down near the ashes Slowly he placed his hands into the ash The ash was warm The heat of the burning logs still remained
He picked up the ashes of his parents A fistful of white ash that gleamed in his palm He applied it to his head The ash spread in his hair on his forehead and on his face
I take this vow Mother and Father Akshansh voice was a roar A roar that echoed into the sky I will end your murderer I will erase his very name and trace
Lightning began to flash in the sky Sharp white lightning that tore through the clouds and came down Rain began to fall Heavy drops that fell on the ash and moistened it
But Akshansh did not move He stood right there smeared with ash and soaked in the rain repeating his vow
The Tapobhumi A New Chapter
In the Tapobhumi Margdarshak was watching the sky The raindrops fell on his face but he did not move
A new chapter has begun Margdarshak whispered and his voice held a prophecy Whose end no one knows
He looked at the blue lotus in his hand The same lotus that was always with him Then he pressed it gently into the earth Like a final rite
And in this chapter much blood will flow Margdarshak said and his eyes held a pain that had accumulated over centuries
Outside the rain intensified And at the cremation ground Akshansh was still standing Covered in ash and filled with a vow Preparing for a new war
The sun of Nabhgadh had set Now it was night A deep dark night in which there was only the sound of rain And the echo of a broken prince vow that was fading into the air but would never be erased
© 2026 Aaryaveda All rights reserved Do not copy or repost without permission