The Meeting

For how long Gandhari cried, she had no idea. Only that her eyes now burned, and it felt as if she had no tears left. And that the sky outside was now turning into a lighter orange colour outside her window. It was morning.

She only came out of her reverie upon hearing her friend's voice floating into her room, as Saumya entered her bedroom.

"Get up you lazy bones!" came Saumya's chirpy voice, running over to Gandhari in the playful way in which they generally greeted each other. "Have you forgotten? We have to –" she stopped, looking at her friend's teary, swollen face, and well cried red eyes. "What happened? Gandhari?... Say something!" Her voice was filled with concern and worry.

Gandhari did not know what to say to her. How to tell her that she was about to break her dear brother's heart? Would she understand? Would she still be her friend? Or would she walk away and blame her for everything?

"O friend! Please. Say something! What has happened? What is wrong?"

"Saumya… I am sorry! I am so so sorry.. I.." Gandhari whispered in a broken hoarse voice. Her soul's pain could clearly be seen reflected in her eyes. She sat up slowly on her bed, then gestured for Saumya to sit beside her. She then held both her hands in her own and said, "I will understand if you never forgive me, but I really wish you do! I have no one else to confide in! No one else that I can show my tears to, else it will be a disaster."

"What is it?"

"I… I can't… I can't marry your brother…"

"What? But.. But… Everyone agreed to the marriage! They are going to come to my home tomorrow to finalize the dated and all.." Seeing that Gandhari was shaking her head, Saumya asked in a worried voice "What happened?"

"Bheeshm!" said Gandhari, anger in voice. "Bheeshm happened!" She told her friend the entire incident, and Saumya was stunned.

She sat speechless, unable to think or say anything, staring at Gandhari. Seconds turned into minutes, but no movement was made by either of the friends. Each was lost in her own thoughts. The silence was broken, not by Saumya, who looked as if she had completely lost her ability to speak, but by a maid, who came in, bowed low to Gandhari, and then said, "My princess! The King has sent a message for you." Saying so, she handed over the neatly rolled parchment, sealed with the royal seal.

"Thank you." Gandhari said, taking it from her, and permitting her to leave the room.

After she was gone, she broke open the seal, and read aloud what her father had written to her. It was a very short note.

 "Dear Child, I had sent your message to Bheeshm early in the morning, and his reply has just been received. He has agreed to meet you, and has requested you to meet him in the Small Darbaar, at Madhyaanh (mid-day) today."

Gandhari sighed. Then she looked at Saumya, who was still silent.

"Well? Don't you want to say something to me? Maybe shout at me or scold me or… anything?"

At last, Saumya spoke, her voice hoarse, "You did nothing wrong. What else could you have done anyway? I don't blame you."

"Really? You don't?"

"Yes."

Gandhari hugged her, and she hugged back. Then, Saumya whispered, "I am proud of you. I understand the sacrifice you are making. You don't have to worry about my support. I am always there for you!"

They gave each other sad, tired, tearful smiles.

***

"I wish…" whispered Gandhari's soul, quietly, "I wish to look at her at a few more minutes. This is the last time I met her. She was my best friend – my true friend. And could never meet or see her again.. Do you.. I mean, could you…"

Seeing her deep wish, and her hesitation, Yam asked Chitragupt to freeze the memory on Saumya's face for a few minutes.

Gandhari's soul stared at Saumya's face with a kind of bitter-sweet love and affection. After a few minutes, she asked Yam, "Where is she now? I never asked about her, or her family, ever again in my life. I don't even know if she is alive or dead!" She gave a rueful smile that did not reach her eyes.

Yam replied, "After you left Gandhaar, she was sad and lonely. A year after your departure, she met a man named Sudhaankar, who was her brother's friend, and had come to her home for dinner. He was an orphan, and was a fellow army commander. Upon noticing that he spent each Diwali alone, Veerbhadra invited him over to his house for a small Diwali celebration."

"Soon it became a regular practice for him to come over, and was treated like a family member. He was a handsome fellow, jovial and well mannered. Saumya soon felt a liking for him, and Veerbhadra, sensing that the feeling was mutual, finally asked Sudhaankar about his intensions. Sudhaankar sheepishly accepted that he had romantic feelings for Saumya, and wanted to marry her. Upon hearing this, Veerbhadra consulted his parents, and fixed their marriage immediately. They were married within a fortnight for their marriage being fixed."

Sensing the questions in Gandhari's eyes, Yam said, "Sudhaankar was an excellent husband to Saumya. He loved and cherished her, and even helped her with the household chores and childcare. She lived a very happy fulfilling life. He loved her with all his heart, even after her death, and he, too, died within a month of her death."

"She is dead?"

"Yes. She died only a few years before you. Her soul rests in heaven." Yam paused, then added, "She still misses you, and is waiting for you to arrive there."

***

After a few minutes, she both busied themselves with their daily morning routine, trying not to think of what lay ahead.

By the time both friends returned from their morning prayers, and sat for breakfast, it was nearly time for Gandhari to meet Bheeshm. They had a quick breakfast together. Then, Gandhari prepared to leave for the Small Darbaar. Just before leaving, she turned and hugged her friend one last time. Then she whispered in her, "Don't come to my marriage. Don't ever come back here. Don't ever meet me again. This was our last meeting. Now go. GO!"

Then she herself turned away from her friend to avoid seeing her leave. Once Saumya was gone, Gandhari composed herself firmly, and left for the Small Darbaar.

A few minutes later, she was standing in front of the gates to the Small Darbaar. She faltered for a few seconds. Then steeled herself and marched in.

Bheeshm was already in the room, standing by the window, looking out. He had the built and physic of a strong and powerful warrior. He had white long hair that he had tied loosely behind his back, which somehow made him look even more stronger and masculine.

"My humble greetings to you, O great Kurushreshtha!" Gandhari greeted him, folding her hands and bowing her head slightly, paying him her respects.

Bheeshm turned around, and Gandhari was surprised to find that he had the face and expressions of a soft hearted, just and peaceful person. His moustache was white, big, and curled at the ends, in exactly the same way and at exactly the same length, indicating that he was a very particular person, and was probably a very disciplined. He was wearing a plain white dhoti and angavastram, and a white sacred thread that went around from above his right shoulder the left side of his waist. Even in such simple plain clothing, he gave the aura of a very powerful and intelligent person.

Looks could be deceiving though, thought Gandhari. She smiled at Bheeshm in a polite manner, waiting for him to speak, as dictated by common courtesy.

"Ayushmaan Bhav (May you live long)!" blessed Bheeshm and then said, "It is my understanding that you wished to speak with me regarding the wedding arrangements?"

There was a faint note of derision in his voice, which told Gandhari she had not been wrong in assuming that he would have taken it as an insult if she had straight away refused the marriage offer. She also understood that he had assumed her to be a superfluous woman, probably obsessed with looks and arrangements, etc.

Gandhari began. "Sir, first of all, I want to thank you for granting me your precious time to hear me out. I also want to thank you for the honour you have bestowed upon me by choosing me to be the eldest daughter-in-law of your great Kuru clan."

Bheeshm nodded slightly, acknowledging her gratitude, slightly mollified now.

Gandhari continued. "Sir, before I make my request, I wish to inform you about some facts of Gandhaar and also about me, and to speak freely, if you permit." She looked expectantly at Bheeshm. He looked slightly curios now.

"Go on." He said.

"Sir, my father's country is very small compared to your large and prosperous kingdom of Hastinapur, but there are some thing about this kingdom at puts it apart from every other kingdom – here, us women have certain rights. We have the right to choose, or reject, our life-partners. We also have the right to choose to work in a business or a profession or be a housewife. My father is a very open-minded person, and trained all my brothers, as well as me, in the art and science of day to day royal duties, both in the palace and beyond. Often, I have to attend court hearings and give judgement if father or my brothers are away at some work or are simply too busy. Palace upkeep, wage payments and revisions, job allotment within the palace, etc are all part of my day to day work."

Gandhari took a small pause, then continued. "Being a small kingdom, it is imperative that we have a strong network of guptchars (secret agents, spread all over our kingdom, and also in other kingdoms – both neighbouring as well as socio-economically or politically important ones. Such as Hastinapur."

She paused to let the matter sink in, and giving the opportunity to Bheeshm to speak, if he so wished.

He said nothing.

She continued. "Sir, we have our guptchars within our palace as well, and news from there is – well – its not very encouraging to anyone who is to be the future daughter-in-law of your Kuru clan."

She hesitated. Bheeshm still said nothing, though it was clear that he was listening to her intently.

She continued further. "I have come to know that the nephew you wish me to marry is a very well built, muscular, powerful man, with great Malla-yudhha skills. In fact, if rumours are to be believed, he has the outwards personality of a perfect candidate for becoming the crown prince of Hastinapur – except for the fact that he is blind."

She stopped here, waiting for Bheeshm to confirm or deny the rumour. Bheeshm nodded heavily, letting out a deep sigh of regret.

"It is also said, that your other nephew is a sickly young man, lean and thin, and about average in his fighting skills. However, he is still favoured as crown prince as he is not blind."

"True." Said Bheeshm. The faint note of derision in his voice was now gone. He was now feeling that he had made an error in judging Gandhari without having known much facts about her. She seemed to be a woman of substance. Respect for her rose an inch.

"Sir, there is something I have come to know about both of your nephews, which I am a little uncomfortable in discussion with you in the open, but also do not want my brothers or my father to know about these things at all. Therefore, I have no choice but to discuss the matter with you directly, since it is going in impact my whole life."

Sensing her hesitation, Bheeshm said, "You are almost like a child to me. Please speak freely about whatever matter you wish to discuss."

After receiving this assurance, Gandhari continued. "Sir, I have some to know that you were unable to fix your elder nephew's marriage because of his disability, and that you have already fixed your younger nephew's marriage with Kunti, the daughter of Kuntibhoj, King of . Is this true?"

"Yes."

"I have also heard that the both your nephews are very disrespectful towards the females in general, and their mothers in particular. They do not have any respect for women, and often treat them as playthings. In fact, I come to know that last month you had the drown a poor servant girl because she had become pregnant with the child of one of your two nephews, but did not know exactly who, as she had been gang-raped by both of them."

Bheeshm looked aghast. How did she know? He had thought that he had buried the secret quite well. In fact, this was a very reason he was frantically looking for wives for the both of them.

Seeing his expressions, Gandhari clarified "That girl was actually from Gandhaar. She was one of our Guptchars, who was unfortunate enough to have crossed paths with them while they were busy drinking. She must have seemed like a great hunting sport to them…"

Gandhari spoke in a low sad voice, "She had sent me a message regarding the incident, and was trying to find a way to extract her form there before she 'accidently' fell into a well, and drowned, even though she was an excellent swimmer." Gandhari's smile had turned bitter.

Bheeshm looked extremely ashamed of himself, unable to meet Gandhari's eyes.

"I know it was none of your fault. You handled the situation the best that you could. In fact, if I was in your situation, probably I would have done something similar too." Gandhari spoke in a calm, matter of fact voice, letting Bheeshm know she did not held him responsible for the situation.

"Now, before I make my requests, I want to something clarified. Will your elder nephew be chosen as the King?"

Bheeshm shook his head, negating this.

"So, your younger nephew will be crowned King?"

Bheeshm nodded.

"Okay. Then these are the only three demands I make of you regarding this marriage. Firstly, I will not beget more than one child with your nephew. I am sorry but I won't ever be able to forgive him for the atrocities he and his brother committed against Sapna. That was the real name of that poor servant girl you had drowned. I shall accept all the children he begets, from any other women, as my children, but the one I beget will always be treated as the eldest. And the women, who birth the children, will have to become my servants for life, and I shall be the sole judge in deciding whether they will live, or die. I shall, of course, never grant them freedom, as that may cause harm to the prestige of the family. Are you agreeable to this?"

Bheeshm was surprised. He had expected her to refuse. However the condition she was putting forth for the marriage, was ideal for Bheeshm, given the fact that both his nephews were incorrigible womanisers. The woman was actually ready to accept all the illegitimate children of her husband as her own! In addition to this, she was basically trying to save the lives of the poor women too! Such selflessness! In Bheeshm's eyes, Gandhari's prestige increased even more.

Noticing that she was waiting expectantly for his reply, he cleared his throat slightly, and then said, "I am agreeable to this. What else?"

"Sir, I also know that a woman's happiness in tied to that of her husband. If my husband cannot enjoy the joy of sight, then I shall also not do the same. Therefore, from the minute I dress up, to marry your nephew, till the second I die, I pledge to be sightless. I shall tie my eyes in tight blindfolds forever, and shall never experience the joy of sight till my last breath. Are your agreeable to this?"

Bheeshm was stunned. He had never expected this. To be devoted even to unworthy men was common, but to be this devoted as to forever deprive oneself the use of one of her senses, just so she is at par with her husband! Now that was unheard of! To Bheeshm, Gandhari had become like the symbol of sacrifice and piousness. He was so impressed with Gandhari that he could only nod.

"My third request," continued Gandhari, "is that my child be treated at par with that of Kunti's, and be considered for becoming the next Crown prince and future king of Hastinapur, as he will be the eldest son of your eldest nephew."