Chapter 3

Prakriti P.O.V

Everyone started the preparation for my Swayamvar and I spent most of the time in garden practicing on my skills. This whole Swayamvar is making me nervous so I stayed away from all the preparations so that it won't remind me that I am going to get married soon. Every mighty King and Prince are invited all around Aryavarta. This is the biggest function being arranged in Dwarka. All of our relatives are coming for this function, even Brother Krishna foster parents are here as well from Gokul. Aunt Kunti arrived as well, after my training I spend time in her chamber, God knows when I will get the chance again to do that.

The day finally came for my Swayamvar, I woke up early in the morning, even early than sun. I went towards the shore and stare at it. All the jittery feelings I was having gone right now. I took a seat on the stone, inhaling the crisp air. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, today is very big day for me, it will change my life forever. I won't be a Princess anymore, in couple of hours I will become some one wife, some one daughter in law and part of their family leaving my family in Dwarka behind.

"What are you doing here, Prakrite?" Brother Krishna voice said from behind. I opened my eyes and turned my head towards him sighing "I am just thinking about today, Brother" I said, he smiled and came near me sitting beside me. "Aw, my beloved sister is tensed for the first time in her life" he said raising his eye brows. I nodded my head, he is right, for the first time I am feeling a turmoil. He chuckled and put his hand on my head in loving manner. "There is no need to worry, Prakrite, You have believe in me that I won't let anything happen to you" he asked with his divine smile. "I believe in you more than I believe in myself, Brother Krishna" I answered, for once I can be wrong but my brother can never be wrong. "That's it, have faith in me, the new path you are about to take will change the future of this world" he said smiling and I put my head on his shoulder believing his every word. Together we watch the rising of sun, beginning of new day and beginning of my new life.

***

I was in my chamber sitting in front of mirror, I was adored in pink long skirt which was decorated beautifully with pearls, gems and stones, for the occasion my mother and sister in law made me wore tones of jewellery. When I looked into the mirror, I found different girl sitting before, she didn't look like me who always busy herself in training. She looked like a sophisticated Princess.

"My daughter is looking so beautiful" Mother said, her voice heavy and she has tears in her eyes. I stand up and turned towards her giving her a smile. "You will be gone in few hours" she said, tears started falling from her eyes. I quickly went towards her and pulled her in hug "But I will always be your daughter, your Prakriti" I answered with a smile. She sighed and gave me a watery smile. "I am so happy for you" she said caressing my cheek making me emotional. Just then Rukmini sister entered in my chamber with a smile on her face. "There are so many King and Prince gathered for the ceremony to win my beloved sister heart" she said as she walk up to me.

"Is every one here?" I asked curiously, is he here?

She chuckled and nodded her head "Most of them are".

"Well the Swayamvar is about to start, your brother send me to get you" she said giving me an encouraging smile. I sighed and nodded my head.

Its time now.

She put her arm around me, Sister Revati was on the other side of me with my mother. We started walking towards the large court room where my Swayamvar will take place.

Third Person P.O.V

The whole court room was filling with King and Princes who all wanted to establish connection with Dwarka because of the trio. They have heard so much about the Princess Prakriti that she is not a normal Princess, there are some rumors that she is herself a nature like her brother who is an incarnation of lord Vishnu. Which King wouldn't want her as their bride. She was the perfect example of beauty and intelligence. People even said that she is a great Warrior which is unheard that a woman is Warrior. Crown Prince Yudhistira was here with his brother except for one. Prince Duryodhana was here as well with Gandhara King and Anga King. He desperately wanted to marry Princess Prakriti because he thought that she will be the perfect Queen by his side, Prince from south side came for the Swayamvar as well.

Krishna was standing on the stage with his brother waiting for their beloved sister. He ran his eyes around the room and smiled, these Princes are here to win my sister but she is already lost her heart by an Archer. Nothing is hidden from Krishna, he knew that his sister is in love with Arjuna that's why he arranged this Swayamvar because after that there is no time for them because future will not easy for Pandavas after this peaceful time. His eyes went towards the entrance from where his sister entered looking like a goddess. He smiled as she walked towards the stage, her eyes downcast. He could feel her nervousness, she slowly moved her head up and her eyes met Krishna who gave her a divine smile. A smile broke on her face and with grace she walked towards her brother.

There was a silence in the entire court as they stare at the beautiful Goddess, some of them stopped breathing taking in the beauty of the Princess, suddenly there was a calm atmosphere in the entire court.

"You have to marry her, Nephew, only then we can get the alliance with Dwarka" Gandhara King whispered in Prince Duryodhana ears. He gave a devious smirk and his eyes followed Princess every move. "Of-course Uncle, I will be the only one who will marry her" he said relaxing in his seat. Krishna eyes suddenly went towards them which made Gandhara King backed away a little in panic. This made Krishna smiled and he joined his hands in welcome gesture. Prakriti reached on the stage standing beside her brothers.

"King and Prince of Aryavarta, Welcome in the Dwarka, we all are gathered here to find a groom which can complement my sister, She will make a decision on her own and select the person among you" Krishna announced coming forward. Everyone nodded their head in respond. Prakriti looked around searching for the brown eyed Prince but he wasn't present in the court room, this made her tense all of a sudden. She knew that she has to marry in this Swayamvar otherwise she will always remain without marrying. That is the rule of Aryavarta, if a woman doesn't get married in their Swayamvar, they are not allowed to marry after that. This wasn't a problem to her because her brother Krishna always do what is right. Krishna stand beside Prakriti and lean towards her. "Prakrite, look around and search for your other half" he said giving her a reassuring smile. She moved her eyes around and looked at the Kings and Princes who were present here but there was no one who can make her heart beat faster just merely with his presence. She inhaled a deep breath and move forward "Before I choose my life partner, I want to ask a question, only on the base of it, I will make a judgement about today Swayamvar" She announced moving her eyes around. Murmur started in the whole room but after a minute everyone agreed on this.

"What is the true base of life?" she asked in her serene voice. She wanted to hear the opinion of life from these present Royalties. Her brother smiled at her easy yet difficult question, no body was able to understand the true base of life and when they finally do, their life over. One by one Kings and Prince started answering her question. Some says life is about respect, other answer that base of life is God but non of them could give the satisfactory answer to Princess Prakriti. Then it comes Prince Duryodhana turn, with a smirk on his face, he stood up from his seat and looked towards Princess Prakriti taking her in. He was confident in himself that his answer is right and he will marry this Yadava Princess for sure. "Valor is the base of life, without it, you can not over come the difficulty in your life" he said with confidence in his voice. She smiled at the kuru Prince and shook her head "Valor is a part of life but it is not the base of it" she said gently, Prince Duryodhana clenched his jaw in anger and sat down. All of his dream of marrying this Princess shattered in front of his eyes. She moved her eyes towards next Prince, it was Prince Yudhistira, the crown Prince of Hastinapur. He stood up and the question was recited to him again, he gave a small smile to Princess Prakriti and shook his head "I can not answer this question, I am not here to marry Yadava Princess" he said truthfully, Prakriti sighed in relief because she knew he is the only person who could have answer this question correctly.

Suddenly Gandhara King stood up from his seat "Then why are you here in this ceremony, to disrespect Yadavas?" he questioned with a grin on his face. He never leave the chance to have a go with pandavas. Prince turned his head towards Gandhara King and gave him a soft smile "No, Uncle, Dwarka invited Hastinapur for the Swayamvar and not coming here means disrespecting them and as the Crown Prince it was my duty to be here besides I consider Prakriti as my sister" he said calmly with put Gandhara King on his place and with a scoff he took his seat back. Prakriti gave a thankful nod to Crown Prince who smiled in return. After the turn of Yudhistira, no body gave the correct answer, everyone became silent. Her brother Krishna moved forward and fake gasped "Is there nobody who knows the correct answer" he asked and when nobody answered he fake sighed and turned towards his sister. "I guess, there is no one in the whole Aryavarta who is capable enough to answer your question" he said to his sister who was standing there calmly.

"What is this means Krishna, that our sister is not going to get married today?" Dau asked worriedly, he cares for her sister so much that he can not bear to see her like that. It was their idea to get her marry in Swayamvar but now they can't even find the worthy groom for her. Krishna smiled at his brother "No Dau, our Prakriti is going to marry today" he said smiling.

"But how?" Dau asked, Krishna just gave him a reassuring smile in return.

Krishna move forward in the middle of court room "There are so many noble and wise Royalties present here but is there no one who can give the answer to the simple question" he asked.

"What is the true base of life?" he announced the question again.

"Love" A voice said from the entrance of the court room. Everyone eyes went towards the entrance where stood Prince Arjuna with his bow in his hand. With steady pace he walked towards Krishna who was smiling. "As a human being, love is the base of life. For every developmental stage of human being, these requirements are changing including birth, family, health, education, friends, career, work, sacrifice and it will end in death" he elaborated his answer. Smile broke on Prakriti face as she got the correct answer for her question. "Well done Partha, you figure out the true meaning of life" Krishna said putting his hand on his shoulder and giving him divine smile.

Prakriti P.O.V

I walked forward with the garland of flowers in my hand moving towards Prince Arjuna who stole my heart since the day I met him. A genuine smile on my face as I stand in front of Prince Arjuna, he looked at me in awe and I lower my head blushing. "Prakrite, You got the person of your heart" Brother Krishna said smiling brightly. I put the garland around his neck, flowers started falling from above. Prince Arjuna smiled as we stood side by side. "My sister finally found her life partner, kindly gave her and Prince Arjuna your blessings for their future" Brother declared around the room. I could hear cheers from Dwarka people. Dau was smiling as well, his eyes glinting with tears.

After the ritual of our wedding, "Now take blessings from your elders" Brother said gesturing towards our elders

I looked at my other half as he looked at me with his heart warming smile. We both move forward towards my parents and by touching their feet, they blessed us. Next we went towards Aunt Kunti or as I say Mother Kunti. I bent down and touched her feet followed by Prince Arjuna. She put her hand on my head "Your future will be filled with happiness" she blessed and pulled me into a motherly hug. When we reached Dau he was smiling from ear to ear, we took his blessing. He pulled me into hug "I am very happy for you, my nature" he said happily. Next we went towards Prince Yudhistira and Prince Bhima, both gave us blessings.

"You have become our sister in real now, you are not allowed to hide my ladoos anymore" Prince Bhima said smiling and everyone around us chuckled. I smiled and shook my head "Now I am going to hide them every time" I teased him.

At last we went to Brother Krishna, I bent down and touched his feet, he smiled and put his hand on my head "Always stay happy" he said, Prince Arjuna took his blessings as well. He gave me hug and caress my head "Prakrite, you are starting new chapter of your life, use your intelligence and calmness whenever you face any problem" he told me. I nodded my head taking the advice.

***

We started our journey towards Hastinapur, they already got the news of our wedding and we were asked to go back home as soon as possible. When we reached Hastinapur, everyone was cheering on our arrival, flowers falling from above on us. Arya and others were on the horse, I was in the carriage while Mother Kunti was riding on chariot. My carriage stopped before the Royal Castle, Arya get down from his horse with other brothers as Mother Kunti came towards me. I took her hand and got out of the carriage following brothers. King Dhritarashtra was standing at the entrance with Queen Gandhari and Mahamahim, Prince Duryodhana was there as well with Anga King and Gandhara King. We moved forward. One by one they took blessing from their elders as I stayed back with Mother Kunti. Just then Queen Gandhari asked me to come towards her so that she can welcome her daughter in law. I smiled and moved forward and Arya Arjuna joined me. We made our way towards King Dhritarashtra and touched his feet, taking his blessings, next we moved forward towards Queen Gandhari who has a platter in her hand. She dotted my forehead with sandalwood and did the ritual to welcome me, I bent down and touched her feet taking her blessings. We moved towards Mahamahim who was smiling happily, we took his blessings as well. "Now you are my grand father for real" I teased smiling at him. He laughed "You were always my daughter".

"Take good care of her Arjuna, she is precious" he said to Arya who nodded his head smiling.

Then we walked towards Gandhara King and took his blessings. He smiled at us "Always stay happy" he said but his eyes were saying something else, nonetheless I smiled at him and moved towards Prince Duryodhana who was scowling at us. He is older than us so it is right to take his blessings. I joined my hand in greeting gesture, he gritted his teeth in frustration but gave us blessings. Next we went towards Anga King who was standing beside Prince Duryodhana. We took blessing from him, with a smile he said "God bless you" and we entered in the Castle.

***

I was in Arya Arjuna chamber siting on the bed waiting for him. We haven't got the time to spend alone, after the Swayamvar, we had wedding ceremony and then we arrived Hastinapur. This will be the first time we will be alone. He entered in the room with a box in his hand. He has a soft smile on his face as he walked towards me and sat beside me. "Can I ask you something, Arya?" I said before he could say anything. He nodded his head and stared at me waiting for my question.

"Where were you during the Swayamvar, you knew I was waiting for you and only you, what happened if I married to someone else" I huffed, I was scared for a moment when I couldn't find him in the court room but I trusted my brother that whatever he do, he would do for a reason. He laughed, he actually laughed at my serious question. I scowled at him and seeing the look on my face he controlled his laugh and pinched my cheeks "You are too cute when you are angry" he said in adoration, I swatted his hand away "I am serious here, what was the reason?" I asked again, he can not avoid my question anymore. He softly smiled and put the box he was carrying with him in my palm. "For this" he said motioning towards the box. I blinked and looked at the box with curiosity. "Come on, open it, my dear bride" he said putting his hand around my shoulder.

What can it be?

Slowly I opened the golden box and gasped in surprise, tears pooled in my eyes. I looked at him, my eyes showing the love I have for him. How come I got so lucky. I pulled the sautoir out of the box and looked at it in affection. It was the same sautoir we made together when we were kids, I vaguely remember telling him that I want it before I start my new life. He still remember the small detail. It was adorned with pearls we collected together, It was nothing special for common eyes but for me it was the most precious thing. "Arya, you still remembered it?" I asked in daze turning towards him. "How can I forget, it was the first thing my Prakriti asked me" he smiled, I pushed the chain forward, he took it and I turned around. He put the chain around my neck and I looked at it, admiring it.

"Besides you didn't have to worry about anything because we are meant to be together" he said further taking me in his arms, I sighed and relaxed closing my eyes at the comfort.

We are meant to be.

Human and Nature

Purusha and Prakriti

"Now you got the courage to tell me what is in your heart" I teased remembering our conversation when we were on the shore. He chuckled and tighten his hold around me. "I was afraid that maybe you wouldn't have reciprocate the feeling after being away for so many years" he said somewhat hesitant. I smiled "You are the only one for me, there is no other" I responded.

"And you are the only one for me as well, you will always hold my heart forever, I promise you that there will be no one besides you, just you and me" he said with sincerity, I was touched with his feelings.

Just you and me.

After couple of months

I was in Mother Kunti chamber, I was massaging her legs "I have decided to travel to Varnavrat with you all, Purochana kindly invited us to live in the Castle there and he also organised a ritual for lord Shiva in the memory of your father in law" she said with a faraway look in her eyes. I frowned, all of a sudden, why did she decide to went out of Hastinapur when Brother Yudhistira has just become the crown Prince. He has so much responsibilities on his head and on other hand Prince Duryodhana is not leaving any chance to make the situation worse for him.

"What is Brother Yudhistira's suggestion?" I asked, it doesn't feel right. "Actually he is the one who convince me that we should leave for Varnavrat and stay away from Hastinapur for some time" she responded, I nodded my head, if Brother Yudhistira thinks it is right decision then it must be right.

Next day, we prepared ourselves for the journey. I was lost in my thoughts, I had uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach. "What happened Prakriti?" Brother Bhima asked, he was standing in front of me staring at me with question in his eyes. I breathe in "I don't know, I don't feel that we should go on this journey" I said my thoughts aloud.

"Why do you think that?" he asked cocking his head. I shook my head "I got a feeling that we shouldn't go".

He chuckled "Don't worry, if something happen, we all are capable enough to take care of ourselves" he said trying to reassured me. I guess we will found out in the Varnavrat about the reason of my uneasiness. I nodded my head and gave him a small smile. "Come on, lets go, everyone is waiting" he said moving towards the entrance. I sighed and followed him. Everyone was at the entrance of Castle to watch us depart and give us their blessings for the journey, one by one we took leave from the elders. I went towards King Dhritarashtra and then Queen Gandhari getting their blessing with my Arya. Then we moved towards Mahamahim, he looked unhappy, I bent down and touched his feet, he put his hand on my head "May God bless you" he said in firm voice. I stand up and looked at him. "My heart doesn't want you all to go on this journey" he said with a grimace, I gave him a soft smile. "Don't worry Grandfather, we will be back in no time" I responded, he put his hand on my head and gave me a small smile. I moved towards Gandhara King and joined my hands in 'Pranam' gesture, he smiled a little too sweetly and raised his hand to bless me "It is too soon that you have to go out but we all will miss you" he said giving his fake smile. I raised my eyebrow at his behavior, What does he mean by that? I gave him a small smile and move forward towards Prince Duryodhana and bowed my head, he looked at me troubled but nodded his head. I furrowed my eyebrow, they are acting too suspicious. At last, I walked towards Anga King who has tears in his eyes, I joined my hand in 'Pranam' gesture. He avoided eye contact but raised his hand in blessing.

We took our farewell from everyone and moved towards the chariot to start this journey while all the brothers were riding horse in front of us. I looked at the people who I was leaving behind. A feeling of discomfort circled around me and the environment around us started to change. Clouds started gathering in the sky hiding the sun. Everyone looked at the sky suddenly "This is no time for rain" Mother Kunti said in confusion from beside me looking at the dark sky. I closed my eyes, took deep breathes to control the emotions by remembering my brother's face, his smiling face came into view and all of my uneasy feelings evaporated into thin air clearing the sky as well.

Our chariot moved forward leaving Hastinapur behind.

Next chapter