Kalia

A wily native uses his wits to deal with the arrival of a stronger, more aggressive foreigner just as the local kings did when the invading forces first arrived to lay siege to the mountain.

Kalia cocked his head and raised his right ear to listen as he sat comfortably on the cool stone, framed by the intricate designs carved on the walls behind him. Some said he got his name because of the color of his fur. Others, who knew better, smiled indulgently at such outlandish conclusions, preferring to adhere to the facts. Kalia was born near the Kali-mata temple and spent much of his time in its environs. Kalia was clearly Mataji’s favorite. Her blessings were evident in the color of the puppies born along the pathway each year. 

The canine peace along the pathway, from the ropeway to the temple, was reminiscent of the reign of Jaisingh, fondly known as Patai Raval. No thieves broke into shops and homes at night, no leftover food got wasted, and all visitors were greeted by smiling faces, eager, expectant eyes, and wagging tails.

Perhaps it was the one occasion when an omelette disappeared from a customer’s plate, or maybe it was just an ill wind that led Munirbhai to bring to his stall his pride and joy, his large, imported Doberman, Jackey.

“Not Jockey, Jackey,” Munirbhai admonished the ignorant. “He is dog, not ganji.”

Muscles rippled across Jackey’s shoulders and legs. His cropped ears framed menacing teeth perpetually bared in an ever present snarl. The stub of his lopped-off tail was always on alert. No smiling faces or eager, expectant eyes and wagging tails ventured into the circle around the tree stump to which Jackey was tethered.

One fine, warm winter morning Kalia strolled over to the tree stump tethering a sleeping Jackey and anointed it.

Infuriated and insulted, Jackey howled and strained his powerful sinews to break free from his shackles and teach the insolent Kalia a lesson.

Kalia sat on the padi and watched. 

When Jackey finally broke free, Kalia trotted off, picking his way through thickets and paths he knew so well, making sure the enraged mass of muscle chasing him did not get left too far behind.

Jackey flexed his shoulders and poured his energies into his long powerful legs. Kalia felt the ferocity slicing through the air. He loped forward as fast as he could. Then, suddenly, he veered off to his left just as the menacing teeth began snapping at his heels.

Jackey braked desperately when he saw the precipice beyond the maut ni bari. He scrabbled frantically on to a small ledge as he fell off the cliff. 

When Munirbhai and his search party found him late that night, Jackey was a quivering, whimpering mass, which is how he stayed from that day on, tethered to his tree stump.

With the canine peace restored along the pathway, Kalia started spending more time at his comfortable perch on the cool stone, framed by the intricate designs carved on the walls behind him.

He cocked his head and raised his right ear to listen once in a while to make sure all was well.