FICTION | SHORT STORY

Karma

The cemetery was still and calm in the gloaming. The newest grave had a plain headstone of pure white marble. A single white lotus, fresh and gleaming, lay on the grave.

The carriage flew down the mud road from the cemetery up the mountain. The driver whipped the horses relentlessly as the horses galloped, hoofs churning and mouths foaming.

The hills were treacherous in the evening, and the sun was already a pale smudge in the west, behind the clouds. A gust of wind scooped up wet autumn leaves and blew them around in a mad whirl.

A hand, wrinkled and heavily bejeweled, parted the window curtains slightly. An old, lined face peered out at the gently falling rain. Mists floated and drifted in the steep valley, now obscuring the mountains and now showing verdant greenery.

The gentle yellow of the evening settled into grey. The old woman sighed and dropped her hand on her lap. The curtains fluttered back in place. The carriage raced precipitously on, careening dangerously along the curving mountain road.

In the darkness inside the carriage, the old woman sat still and upright, her only motion the jostling of the carriage. Her keen ears picked up the gentle patter of the rain strengthening above the rattle of the carriage. The wind also picked up speed, keening.

Her mind drifted into the past.

The carriage raced along…

150 years ago

A small hermitage nestled high in the mountains. It sat all by itself, surrounded by towering snow peaks. Down in the valley, a river churned and foamed its way downhill. The deep green pine trees surrounding the hermitage were home to tiny jewel-colored birds that twittered and sang as they hopped from branch to branch. These birds were not seen anywhere else. The air was sharp and sweet. The sky was a clear piercing blue in the morning sun.

Outside the hermitage, a sage sat cross-legged on the cold bare ground. A young woman sat in front of him, mirroring his posture.

“What do you most desire, Darini?”

“Wealth, Master!”

“Why?”

“Wealth is happiness, Master! With wealth, I have the freedom to live how I want, where I want. I want wealth!”

“Darini, you have mastered the 8 siddhis. You can create whatever wealth you want.”

“Master, I want wealth that will never decrease. I want the freedom that wealth can buy me.”

“Ok. Darini, close you eyes. When you open them, pick the green diamond and close your eyes again.”

Darini closed her eyes. The sage smiled slightly, and blew lightly on her.

Darini opened her eyes, and froze. She sat on golden grass. In front of her, a gold mountain rose into the sky. It was studded with precious stones and pearls. A small stream flowed around the mountain, and gems and pearls floated on this stream, resting on delicate golden leaves. There was no sign of the hermitage, the valley or the sage.

Darini stepped forward, careful and alert. With her siddhi, she scanned the gold mountain. Ah, there. On the far side, a large green diamond glittered and gleamed.

With a thought, Darini plucked the diamond from the mountain, without moving a single step. She smiled, and closed her eyes.

When Darini opened her eyes again, she was sitting on the ground in front of the sage, the green diamond winking in her palm.

The sage smiled.

“Go, Darini. This gem will give you all the wealth you desire.”

80 years ago…

“Darini. You are back. Did not wealth please you?”

“Master, my child is unwell. He needs me to care for him all his life. No amount of wealth can buy him my care. Master, please. I need double the span of a normal life.”

“Why don’t you ask for a cure for your child, Darini?”

“Master, if I take away this burden of his in this life, he will pick it up in the next! And I don’t know who will care for him then. So let me. My child is my life. Let me care for him.”

“Ok. Close your eyes, Darini. Pick up the largest pearl from the gold mountain.”

Present

Darini sighed within the confines of the carriage. It was time.

The carriage turned a last curve in the mountain road and stopped. The horses steamed and snorted, pawing the ground.

Darini stepped out of the carriage. It was fully dark now. She stepped off the road and walked into the forest without a backward glance. The carriage driver looked regretfully after her for a moment. He then lit torches fixed on either side of the carriage. He could not tarry; there were bears in the forest. He carefully turned the horses around, mindful of the precipice, and set off back the way he came. At a more sedate pace.

Hidden behind the trees, Darini watched. The light cast by the torches disappeared around a curve. Still, Darini watched. And then, the sound of the horses’ hooves faded into darkness. The only sound was that of the river rushing in the gorge.

She turned and walked on into the forest, not needing even a glimmer of light to see.

In a while, she reached the hermitage. It would have taken a normal person walking about two days; Darini reached in 20 minutes.

She quietly dropped down to sit cross-legged in the soft rain, on the hard ground, in front of the Master.

“So, Darini. Is your goal over?”

“Yes Master. My son has finished this karmic cycle.”

“Why did you not seek to break it?”

“How is it possible, Master? Instead, I lightened his burden with my love.”

“Was he happy, Darini? Did he lead a fulfilled life?”

“He was happy, Master. His innocence and his trust in me kept him happy. His life wasn’t what is usually called fulfilling. But I am yet to see a happier soul.”

“What is happiness, Darini?”

“Living in love and acceptance, Master.”

“Did wealth give you happiness?”

“Wealth showed me that having everything you can buy doesn’t guarantee happiness, Master.”

“Did extending your life give you happiness?”

“Extending my life was just a means to an end, Master. My happiness was in accepting my son’s karma. In doing whatever I could for him to the best of my ability. In living in the present and in appreciating what I had. And I had the wealth of unconditional love from him, Master.”

“If you could, would you change anything you have done with your life?”

“No, Master. I may or may not have added to my own karmic load. Whatever it is, I accept the consequences. I have helped my son lighten his. That is enough for me.”

“Do you want to break out of this cycle of karma, Darini?”

Darini paused for a moment. Then a smile of peace bloomed on her face. The Master caught a glimpse of her youthful beauty in that smile.

“I do not wish to make this choice, Master. I accept what Fate or the Lord has in store for me. I will make the choice of love each time I can.”

The Master smiled slightly.

“Darini, your time has come. Will you put back the green diamond and the pearl?”

Darini smiled. She was shining with the light of peace and love.

“Yes, Master.”

And she closed her eyes for the last time.

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