This story is set in Ancient India, around 200 BC, the same time when trade and cultural ties between Ancient India and Ancient Greece flourished. It's about an Indian King and Greek Hindu Priestess.
As the King's horse galloped along the dusty path, King Vikram could now see the dense forest on the horizon. That was where he was told to go, by the royal sage of the Kingdom. He had left early morning and could now also see the rising sun above the tree tops of the forest. But this wasn't just another one of those pleasure or hunting trips that he took every few months. He was alone unlike usual, and he was on a mission... a special mission.
His kingdom had just come out of a horrific time. The plague epidemic had wiped out half of his kingdom's population. It did not even spare his own mother. Vikram and his brother Jai were the only royals left alive after the epidemic. He had inherited the throne from his uncle about 5 years back. Vikram wasn't married, so his subjects awaited their queen. But soon after becoming the King, the devastating plague set in. If that wasn't enough, once the plague epidemic ended, the neighbouring kingdom waged a horrific war against Vikram. Vikram ended up winning the war and saving his kingdom, thanks to the brilliant military tactics he had learnt as a prince. But the war also led to another tragedy. His brother was killed in war as well, leaving him the only member of the royal family still alive. That was a tragedy and a problem as well.
The throne of the Kingdom was cursed. Centuries earlier, one of Vikram's ancestors got the throne of the Kingdom cursed.
"Whosoever sits on the throne, will never be blessed with an offspring".
That curse came out to be true. Whoever became King never fathered any children. Once he died, the throne and the title of King passed to the King's nephew or some distant male relative, and the curse continued. If a King had children before becoming the King, they would end up dying one way or another. And so was it, that the throne of the Kingdom would always go from one King to his nephew or a distant male relative.
The plague and the subsequent war left no royal alive except for Vikram. He would feel so lonely sometimes. He was effectively an orphan King. And now there was another problem. Who will be Vikram's heir. None of his royal relatives were alive. If he gets married, he won't have children thanks to the curse.
Vikram was more interested in helping making the lives of his subjects better. His people had suffered a lot. Nobody forgot the loss of loved ones brought by the plague and war. But they knew nothing could be done about the same. And with that in mind, Vikram and his people started working towards rebuilding the Kingdom brick by brick. The Kingdom did bounce back within a couple of years. Everyone was happy.
But now, the talks of Vikram's heir began as well. It was a recurring topic of discussion between Vikram and his ministers. Nobody had any solutions to this problem. Vikram decided that maybe he will pass on the throne to one of his trusted generals. But that's when the royal sage Kripa stepped in.
"Go eastwards into the forest and keep going until you find the one who will help you solve this problem." The sage said.
The sage had predicted the plague and the war too, many years ago before Vikram became the King. So, Vikram knew, he could trust his words.
And so was it that Vikram decided to heed the sage's words. He left the Kingdom under the care of his trusted ministers and left on his horse and moved eastwards. He promised them that he would return within one year.
As his horse galloped speedily, he could feel the cool morning breeze on his face. Soon, he was at the edge of the forest and looked at the dense greenery. He turned his face back and looked at his Kingdom one last time before moving inside the forest.
As he moved inside, he had his sword in one hand, in case he gets attacked by some wild animal. He also wore his quiver around him which was full of arrows. His bow was hanging from a hook on his horse's saddle. Slowly, he moved in. He heard the sound of birds singing and monkeys chirping. At some distance, he could hear the sound of deer. That was an alarm call, he knew. A wild animal was nearby. He kept moving. Soon, he was in the middle of the forest not knowing where to go. He just followed his instinct and kept moving forward. Sometime later, he could hear the sound of water. He followed the sound and found a small stream. He followed the stream in the opposite direction of its flow. The sound of water got louder and louder. That stream came bigger and soon it turned into a small river. The stream must have been a distributary of the river, he thought. He could see trees and shrubs along the river laden with fruits.
He followed the river and soon, he saw a hut. The hut was made out of mud and had a thatched roof. Did anybody live there, he thought. And suddenly, he stopped in his tracks. There was someone at some distance. A woman. She was dressed in a saffron saree that she had draped around her body. She was sitting underneath a banyan tree nearby, in lotus position. She was meditating.
"Is she the one who will help me?" thought Vikram.
Maybe she was. He had travelled for hours now and not found a single soul except for her.
He got down from his horse and tied it to a nearby tree. He then, slowly approached her. As she came more into his view, he noticed she looked very different. The woman had beautiful white skin and lovely golden hair. In that meditative position, with her eyes closed, she looked divine. He knew from her looks that she did not belong to India. She was Greek. He had heard of Greek people many times in the last few years particularly from men, who wouldn't stop talking about the beautiful exotic looks of Greek women.
It was a common sight to find Greek people in India. It all started a few decades back, after the war between Indian emperor Chandragupta Maurya and one of Alexander's Generals Seleucus Nicator. Chandragupta decisively defeated the Greeks but after the war, the two men decided to establish friendly trade ties between India and Greece. Chandragupta even married Seleucus's daughter to solidify these ties. Since then, many Greeks would travel to India for trade and business.
But Vikram was confused. This beautiful Greek woman was a Sadhvi (Hindu Priestess)? What was she doing in the middle of a forest? And how would she help him? And why is she dressed like a Hindu Priestess? Does she worship Hindu Gods? Shouldn't she worship her Greek Gods?
As Vikram thought all of this, the Greek woman gently opened her eyes and saw him. There was a faint smile on her lips. Vikram noticed that she had deep blue eyes. He was charmed by her beauty. This woman had descended straight from the heavens, he thought.
"King Vikram..." said the Sadhvi (Hindu Priestess) in the softest of voices and the loveliest of smiles.
How did she know his name, Vikram thought.
"Pranaam, Sadhvi ji! (Greetings, honourable Priestess!)" greeted Vikram with folded hands.
"What brings you here, my King?" asked the Sadhvi.
Vikram sighed. He couldn't help but his heart was fluttering thanks to the beautiful looks of this Greek woman.
He hesitated a bit but then started speaking, "Sadhvi ji... the sage of my Kingdom asked me to travel into the forest. He told me that here I will find the one who will help me solve my problem. I am wondering if it is you who I am looking for?" asked Vikram.
"You have found the person, my King. It is me who you are looking for. Tell me what is your problem?" replied the Sadhvi.
"Sadhvi ji..." he started to tell but then stopped. He had questions.
