The Tale of Arulur: The Heard

In the quaint village of Arulur, nestled amidst the lush landscapes of Tamil Nadu, an air of mystery hung heavy in the atmosphere. It was believed by the villagers that unravelling the secrets of the revered God Arul would bring forth disastrous consequences, a curse that would befall the entire village. However, unbeknownst to the villagers, a family had arrived with a hidden agenda. They were not ordinary visitors but a group of skilled professionals in disguise.

The family consisted of six members, each with a specific role in their clandestine mission. The matriarch, a wise old lady named Parvathi, was a retired officer who had spent her life pursuing knowledge and seeking truth. Her experience and guidance served as an invaluable asset to the rest of the family members. The father, Suresh, was a respected historian, while the mother, Meera, was an archaeologist specializing in ancient artefacts. The elder sister, Priya, was an expert linguist and deciphered ancient scripts, and the younger sister, Kavitha, was a talented artist who could capture the essence of ancient artefacts in her sketches. The youngest member of the family, the curious and adventurous Ravi, possessed an uncanny intuition that often led them in the right direction.

It was the year 1786, and as the family arrived in Arulur, they disguised themselves as merchants to integrate with the villagers. Their primary objective was to gain the trust of the locals and establish connections, particularly with the women, by offering to sell intricately designed gold jewellery. Behind this ruse, however, lay their true intention to uncover the secrets of Arul God’s temple, which they believed held the key to the mysteries surrounding the deity.

As night descended upon the village, the family ventured into the darkness in search of the hidden temple. They carefully avoided arousing suspicion and insisted to the villagers that there was no actual god named Arul, dismissing it as a superstitious belief. They portrayed themselves as researchers, seeking to enlighten the village with the truth.

Their claims were met with scepticism and resistance, except for one young man named Saravanan. Driven by his own curiosity and a deep-rooted suspicion towards the village’s superstitions, he agreed to help the family in their quest. However, his wife, Ananya, was fiercely opposed to his involvement, fearing the repercussions of meddling with the village’s ancient beliefs.

Undeterred by Ananya’s reluctance, Saravanan joined the family on their nocturnal expeditions. They traversed treacherous terrain, facing numerous obstacles along the way. Tragically, the family suffered heartbreaking losses, as the middle sister, Kavitha, and the younger brother, Ravi, succumbed to the dangers that lurked in the night.

Finally, after enduring immense hardships, the family stumbled upon the temple’s hidden location. However, their excitement turned to confusion when all they found inside the temple were the garments of Arul God. As they closed the box containing the garments, they were suddenly transported back to the village in a blinding flash of light. Startled, they turned around to see a figure illuminated in the glow.

At that moment, as they reappeared in the village, a figure stood behind them, bathed in an otherworldly glow. The young man who had aided them, Saravanan, vanished without a trace, leaving the family bewildered. The villagers, quick to jump to conclusions, attributed Saravanan’s disappearance and the concurrent vanishing of his wife to his alleged malevolence. They believed he was a ghost leading the family astray, and suspicion and fear gripped the hearts of the villagers.

In their desperation to make sense of the situation, the villagers demanded answers. Enquiries about Saravanan and his wife revealed no trace of their existence, leaving the family perplexed and the villagers further convinced of their sinister intentions.

The calm of the village was shattered as natural calamities struck, reinforcing the villagers’ belief that the family’s actions had brought forth divine retribution. The village turned against the family, seeking to expel them as the source of their misfortune.

Amidst the chaos, the family implored the villagers for a chance to elucidate their true purpose. They pleaded for an opportunity to explain their role in helping the village and their intention to safeguard its ancient traditions. It was a desperate plea born out of the realization that they had unwittingly tarnished the name of Arul and brought anguish to the village they had grown to love.

Reluctantly, the villagers allowed the family one last chance to prove their innocence. Together, they ventured back to the temple, hoping to find answers that would absolve them of the villagers’ accusations.

Inside the temple, they were greeted by the sight of a figure resembling the young man who had aided them before. It was Saravanan, standing resolute amidst the ancient stones. Curiosity and relief surged within the family as they approached him, eager to uncover the truth.

He explained that the village’s folklore had a grain of truth. According to a manuscript he had discovered beneath a stone, the villagers had once conspired to loot the temple for their own greed. In response, Arul God had banished those with malevolent intentions to a place called Arulapuram, where they existed as spirits, undetected by the villagers but forever plagued by their own wicked thoughts. However, the humans who encountered them could remember these lost souls.

In a moment of desperation, the family, believing themselves to be trapped spirits, confessed to Saravanan that they were not researchers but thieves. They pleaded for his understanding, explaining the circumstances that had led them to Arulur. However, unknown to them, their supposed demise and the appearance of Saravanan were merely illusions created by a potent herb scent released from the box.

Saravanan, in a calm and steady voice, revealed his true identity. He was, in fact, the embodiment of the revered Arul God himself. It was his duty to protect his village from greed and selfishness. In reality, the villagers had no knowledge of Saravanan or his wife, as they were part of his divine plan to safeguard the village.

Realizing their mistake, the family confessed their true purpose to Saravanan. Overwhelmed by guilt and remorse, they asked for forgiveness for tarnishing the name of Arul and the villagers. They acknowledged the sacredness of the deity and expressed their desire to make amends.

In a moment of divine grace, Saravanan forgave them and assured them that Arul’s true intentions had been served. The family was filled with a renewed sense of purpose, vowing to dedicate their lives to preserving the sanctity of Arulur and ensuring that its ancient traditions and beliefs would endure for generations to come.

And so, with their newfound understanding, the family immersed themselves in the village’s cultural heritage, working alongside the villagers to protect and preserve the mysteries of Arulur. In doing so, they discovered a unity and harmony that transcended their differences and forged a bond with the people of the village that would last a lifetime.

In the end, the family became guardians of Arulur, forever intertwined with its ancient past and divine belief, embracing the village as their own and honouring the secrets of Arul God’s temple for generations to come.