-: Pancha Vastra :- ( By Shailu )

[shailu4ever]

 
Through the open window, Arjun can see the nine women on the beach.
They have reached the shrine.
Standing in a circle.
 
Heads bowed.
 
Hands joined.
 
Their breaths slow and deliberate.
 
They are deciding.
 
Choosing his fate… and their own.
 
The shrine stands where the sand meets the black rock of the island.
 
Tiny bells hang from its carved wooden frame.
 
They ring softly in the wind.
 
Arjun leans closer to the window.
 
“They look like they’re praying.”
 
Amma Lakshmi nods.
 
“They are.”
 
“For what?”
 
“For clarity.”
 
A pause.
 
“And courage.”
 
Arjun watches them.
 
“Do they all have to agree?”
 
“Yes.”
 
“And if one refuses?”
 
Amma Lakshmi’s smile returns.
 
“Still the ritual continues with out that person. That person who refuses will have to follow our tradition and prepare herself for a sacred offering”
 
“How?”
 
“That,” she says gently, “is another story.”
 
Arjun exhales.
 
“How long do I have to decide?” he asks.
 
Amma Lakshmi watches the circle of women in the distance.
 
“They’re deciding now,” Amma replies. “If they all choose yes, if all nine want to offer this, I'll return tonight with their answer. Then you decide.”
 
She rises slowly.
 
She rises and moves toward the door. Her sari whispers softly against the wooden floor.
 
Arjun watches her go.
 
Something inside him tightens suddenly.
 
“Amma,” he calls. She pauses, turning her head slowly. “The women… what are their names?”
 
Her smile deepens slightly.
 
“You will know everything Arjun… You saved their lives.”
 
He hesitates.
 
Then asks quietly,
 
“Do you know anyone decided yet?” he asks, voice tight.
 
Amma Lakshmi glances toward the distant beach again.
 
“I don’t know,” Amma says, her eyes glimmering with something both gentle and inexorable.
 
“But I saw how they looked at you before the fire. And I saw how you looked at them as well. Sometimes the heart decides before the mind even knows.”
 
She pauses.
 
She pauses, letting the words linger.
 
Then she speaks again.
 
Her voice softer now.
 
Older.
 
“Remember, Arjun… each choice here is voluntary, but the tradition guides them. The bond must be honored in some form, either Pancha Ratri itself or another sacred offering. Every life given back demands an acknowledgment. Every thread that ties two souls must be recognized. This is the wisdom of our ancestors, passed down for generations.”