The Giving Lake

As I walked through the forest, searching for food and water, I came to a path. The path was worn and beaten down with footprints and animal tracks. There was another path, more grown over and not as beaten down, almost untouched. Almost like a path that was less traveled. Me, being the outgoing and adventurous person that I am, I chose to take the path less traveled.

As I walked through the thistles and thickets that were entangled on the path, I began to hear an angelic hum coming from in front of me. The sounds reminded me of the Sirens from Greek mythology. I became slightly frightened by their ominous hum. I felt overtaken by the sound but chose to trudge on towards the noise. The hum grew louder and louder almost to the point to where it was giving me a headache. Finally, I came out from the forest and was in the presence of the most beautiful thing I had ever seen, a crystal-clear blue lake.

The lake was immaculate. The water was still and glassy. It was encompassed by beautiful evergreen trees with different shrubs and flowers lining the banks. The birds sang and flew over the lake creating a euphoric setting. The water glistened in the sun. The fish swam through the lake and the animals drank the cool water from it. It was astounding.

Since I had been walking through the forest for so long, in the hot and humid conditions, I decided to kneel down and get a drink from the lake. As I began to scoop my hands into the water, a deep rumbling voice came up from the water.

It said,"Why are you placing your hands into the water that I provide for the creatures of the Earth?"

Shocked at the question I replied, "I am thirsty. I have been walking all day and I need something to drink."

The lake responded, "You may have a drink as long as you answer this question. What is your reason for walking through the woods?"

I was puzzled at first. I didn't think of this as a real question. I thought for a moment and replied, "I am walking through these woods in order to get to the palace. I need to meet the king so that I may be excused from the reaping."

The reaping was an annual event that occurred in my village. It consisted of the firstborn son in every family being taken captive and forced to labor for the king. The only way to avoid this was for the firstborn son to go and ask for pardon from the king himself.

The Lake responded, "Go ahead and drink. You have shown great bravery and courage by passing through the woods alone. You have also spoken the truth as to why you are doing such a dangerous task. The reaping is a blemish on the face of this society and I support you in the rest of your journey."

Relieved, I drank the cool fresh water that the Lake provided me. I stood up and continued on my journey to the palace to ask for pardon.

Author's Note: This story is based on the voice in the lake from the Mahabharata. In this part of the book, some Pandavas are tired and thirsty and go to get a drink from the lake. The lake asks them questions/ riddles, but most of them ignore them and drink the water. Several of them die(all four of his brothers to be exact) until Yudhishthira comes to the water and responds to the questions. It turns out that Yama was testing them. The ones that died come back to life but receive the gift of being non-recognizable in their thirteenth year of exile.

In my version, I told the story from the first person point of view of Yudhishthira but more kid-friendly. I took out the extra characters that died to make it more of a bedtime story that could be accepted by children of all ages. I added some details about the village and the kingdom as well to make it easier to understand for someone that is not familiar with the Indian history and stories. I wanted the story to be more uplifting and have a positive message to it. I also gave the Lake a loving / giving tone (hence the title). I feel that it helps the reader relate to the lake and appreciate what he does with in the story. I gave the lake an opinion on the whole reaping idea as well to show that he is against the king and his doings. I hope you enjoyed it!

Source : Narayan's Mahabharata - Part C- The voice in the lake