“PEGASUS, I FOUND YOU” Clyde screamed.
Pegasus abruptly rose up, and within a second, lifted off to escape from the crazy man.
As he soared through the sky towards the land of Kapilvastu in Nepal, where Kanthaka lived, his heart was full of both hope and strength. The day turned to night, then the night once again to day. Pegasus was so determined that he did not break from his journey. He knew that he was supposed to fly until he saw the largest palace of all the lands.
It appeared that storms were forming up ahead, and frightened, Pegasus lowered his head to fight through it. After a few minutes, he was then passing through thick gusts of wind accompanied with heavy rainfall.
“I just don’t know how I can continue,” he thought.
An image then floated through his head of Mr. and Mrs. Doubtfire seeing Pegasus so discouraged, and picking him up when he fell victim to it. Immediately the sky cleared, and Pegasus spotted the largest building he’d ever seen, as if it was a coincidence that the situation perfected when he thought of his family.
“That must be the palace,” he thought, preparing himself for the sudden landing.
He was in awe at just how beautiful this place was. It appeared to be made of heavy stone with intricate designs throughout.
As he walked towards the palace, he felt that something was just not right. People were crowding around the outside the building, and he faintly heard the speaker say, “It was a life well recognized here at the palace…”
Confused, Pegasus crept closer and closer to the gathering. A man came running towards him, shouting, “I’m so proud you came! It’s nice to have one of Kanthaka’s great friends here to support her.”
“I’m sorry, sir, I’m not sure we’ve met. What’s going on? I do not personally know Kanthaka,” Pegasus replied.
“Oh, I must have mistaken you. I’m so glad you’re here. My name is Channa, best friend of Gautama Buddha. Kanthaka is the most skilled and treasured horse in the entire world. She’s more than a horse. She's a legend,” Channa stated.
Pegasus tried to toss in a few words, but Channa interrupted him. “I need your help. Gautama Buddha has departed from the palace, and Kanthaka will not speak to anyone. He’s in the deepest rut of depression, and no one seems to be able to pull him out of it.
Saddened, Pegasus replied, “I’ll do the best I can. When can I meet him?”
***
“Pegasus, I must inform you of this culture first. Buddhism was founded by Gautama Buddha, formerly known as Prince Siddhartha. The prince owns Kanthaka, and she’s his pride and joy, or was. She was basically his sidekick. Wherever the prince wanted to go, Kanthaka got him there safely. After the prince got married to the Sakyan princess, Yasodhara, the prince had determination to succeed in life. For this, she even broke Siddhartha out of the palace on his journey to become an ascetic. After getting the prince to his destination, Kanthaka returned to give the weapons back to the palace of Kapilavastu, which I would not allow her to leave again. She’s now heartbroken and destroyed. She misses her only love in life, but it is not safe for her to leave without the Prince astride,” Channa said.
Full of emotion, Pegasus let out a loud whinny. He wondered where Kanthaka was, and why she was not at the large gathering in honor of Siddhartha’s departure. He immediately took off for the palace in an attempt to spot Kanthaka. He busted through the heavy wooden doors at the opening, ran through the hallway, up the stairs, and immediately halted.
There she was, obviously saddened. The most majestic and beautiful white horse, lying on her side tucked under the covers…
Author’s Note:
In this story, the Buddhist horse, Kanthaka, is used as a potential source of love for Pegasus on his journey. The story of Kanthaka is very interesting, as he actually is said to have died of a broken heart after being left by Siddhartha. Kanthaka is originally a male horse, but I decided to keep the trend the same throughout the stories, and change him to a mare horse. I did not like this sad ending, and I thought that maybe Pegasus could pull Kanthaka out of her great sadness. Pegasus could save her life. The setting for this piece of Buddhist history was set in Kapilvastu. Kanthaka was the most skillful and favored white horse in all of the land, and most treasured by the prince. I followed the same storyline, as I think the Buddhist cultural approach is very important in writing a story about one of their legendary characters, Kanthaka. The characters in my story (Channa, Siddhartha, Kanthaka, etc.) are all a part of the original setting, and I did not change their roles in my story. Channa informed Pegasus of the lifestyle and situation, as he was the one closest to the prince, and one of the reasons that Siddhartha was able to escape on Kanthaka. This idea will lead straight into the next story, where more information is discovered about Kanthaka and Siddhartha's relationship.
Bibliography:
Header Image: An image of Kanthaka and Siddhartha located on Wikimedia Tagalong.
Kanthaka Information located on Wikipedia.
Guatama Buddha Information located on Wikipedia.
Four Sights information located on Wikipedia.