Chapter 13: Clairvoyance
When Nedumaran entered the cave, as directed by the Digambara Samanar, the fragrance of incense made him feel slightly dizzy. He managed to suppress this feeling and walked in. As he walked for some distance into the cave, he saw an extraordinary sight in the large mandapam found within the cave. Large earthen lamps placed on the lamp posts were shining brightly. Smoke was emanating from a vessel which contained incense. The light cast by the lamps and the smoke from the incense added a magical dimension to the occurrences in the cave. Nedumaran looked intently and comprehended what was going on. Ten to twelve Digambara Samanars were sitting in a circle. All of them were chanting a prayer in a co-ordinated tone. One of them was playing an instrument that resembled an udukkai. Another one was strumming the strings of a full-length veenai[i]. The sounds from the two instruments diffused through Nedumaran’s body and caused his nerves to throb.
Amidst the Samanars who were sitting in a circle was a boy who was around sixteen years old. His body gently swayed to the rhythm of the prayers and the music. His eyes were half-closed. As only the white of his eyes were visible, he appeared ghastly. The Samana monk who had brought Nedumaran gestured to him not to speak and to sit quietly. Nedumaran acted likewise.
The pace of the prayers and music quickened. The boy who was sitting amongst the Digambars was also swaying at a rapid pace. Suddenly, the prayers and the music came to a halt. The boy shrieked loudly and fell to the ground. A fearsome silence prevailed in that cave mandapam for some time. The eyelids and lips of the boy who lay unconscious twitched slightly. The Samanar who held the veenai plucked one of its strings and asked, “Thambi! Can you hear this sound?” The young boy murmured, “Yes, Swami!” “In that case, respond to my queries. Is there a difference between the place you were previously and the place you are in now?”
“Some time ago, I lay at the floor of a mountain cave. Now I am floating in the sky. I am able to go wherever I choose to in the sky.” “What do you see in the place where you’re floating now?” “I am surrounded by dense smoke. I can dimly see several figures in that smoke. They seem to disappear and then appear.” “Thambi! Are you able to stand still at one place? Are you able to move forward and backward?” “I am able to move in any direction I desire – forward, backward, up and down.” The Samanar, who was interrogating the boy, looked at Nedumaran and asked, “Pandya Kumara! By the grace of Rishabha Devar, this boy has obtained the power of foresight. He is able to perceive the incidents that occurred twenty thousand years ago and will occur twenty thousand years hence! Are you desirous of knowing anything?”
Though Nedumaran hesitated thinking, “Is it necessary to clear the mist that clouds the future and observe forthcoming events? Will this augur danger? Shall I leave this enigmatic cave without coming to know of the future?” an incomprehensible force firmly restrained him from doing so. Nedumaran voluntarily said, “ Yes, Adigal! I am desirous of knowing about the outcome of the Vatapi war”. The Samanar asked the boy who lay on the floor, “Thambi! Please travel northwards and tell us what is happening there!”
“So be it, Swami! I will travel northwards right away!” said the boy. After some time he said, “Ah! How gory!” The Samanar asked, “Thambi! What gory sights do you see?” “A fierce war is being fought. Countless warriors are attacking each other with swords and spears and are dying. Rivers of blood are flowing everywhere. Gigantic elephants are attacking each other shrieking fearfully. The battle is being fought close to the massive ramparts of a fort. At the main entrance to the fort, a flag bearing the Varaha insignia is fluttering. Ah! The fort gates are being opened! Innumerable soldiers are exiting the fort. The war becomes even more brutal. There are numerous casualties; the entire region is filled with corpses. Ah! It’s impossible to see this sight!”
Observing the slight twitching of the boy’s eyelids, the Samana Guru said, “Thambi! Don’t be scared! No harm will befall you; observe more intently. Look around the battlefield and identify where the most vicious combats are being fought!” “Yes, yes! There is indeed a fierce combat underway at one part of the battlefield. A warrior seated on a horse wielding two swords is battling formidably. His enemies have surrounded him and are attacking him. He is single handedly attacking all of them. The swords he is holding often gleam like lightning. He decapitates one attacker each with one swirl of his sword. Ah! A few more warriors arrive to assist that warrior. A flag bearing the Meen[ii] insignia is fluttering in their midst. They roar, “Long live, Nedumara Pandian! Doom to Pulikesi of Vatapi!” even as they pounce on their foes. Nedumaran who was a tad inattentive till then, sat upright when the boy narrated this. He was extremely eager to know what would happen next.
The boy again fell silent for some time. The Samana Guru prodded him again and commanded him to observe what happened next. “Ah! The combat has come to an end. The enemies have all dropped dead. The victorious warriors surround the brave warrior and cheer, ‘Long Live the Meen Insignia! Long Live Nedumara Pandiar!’ The din of their cheering and the trumpets proclaiming victory is deafening.”
“Another group of warriors is approaching. A chariot is amidst that group of warriors. The Rishabha flag is hoisted atop the chariot. A majestic person is seated in the chariot. The warriors accompanying him cheer, ‘Long Live Mamalla Chakravarthy!’ But their cheering is not as vibrant. The two forces meet. The person in the chariot and the person seated on the horse look at each other. Both of them dismount and approach each other. The warrior holding the flag with the Meen emblem looks at the person leading the warriors holding the Rishabha flag and says, ‘Mamallar! The foes have been decimated. Pulikesi is dead. We have captured the Vatapi Fort. The rest is in your hands; please give me leave!” Mamallar says, “You Pandia reprobate! Haven’t you appropriated the glory that rightfully belongs to me?” and then draws out his sword. The warrior bearing the Meen flag says, ‘No, Chakravarthy! No! Why do we have to fight?’ The man holding the Rishabha flag, heedless, wields his sword. Aiyyo!”
The boy who lay on the floor till then sat up with a shriek, which caused goose bumps to those present. He looked around with widened eyes that conveyed fear and shock. Nedumara Pandian was shivering. He told the Samana monk, “I wish to know what happened next. He woke up at a critical juncture.” The monk responded, “Prince! That’s all for tonight. He will not acquire foresight again tonight. If you wish to know what happened next, you may come to the same place tomorrow night!”
[i] Veenai – A string instrument played in South India
[ii] Meen – Fish in Tamil
