‘That, my Lord,’ said Anandmayi, smiling happily at being spoken to first, ‘is the
Ramjanmabhoomi temple, built at the site of Lord Ram’s birthplace.’
‘You have built a temple to Lord Ram?’ asked a startled Parvateshwar. ‘But he was a
Suryavanshi. Your sworn enemy.’
‘We did not build the temple,’ said Anandmayi, raising her eyes in exasperation. ‘But we
have refurbished and maintained it lovingly. And furthermore, what makes you think Lord Ram
was our sworn enemy. He may have been misled to follow a different path, but he did a lot of
good for the Chandravanshis as well. He is respected as a God in Ayodhya.’
Parvateshwar’s eyes widened in shock. ‘But he had sworn to destroy the Chandravanshis.’
‘If he had vowed to destroy us, we wouldn’t exist today, would we? He left us unharmed
because he believed that we were good. That our way of life deserved to survive.’
Parvateshwar was perturbed, out of arguments.
‘You know what Lord Ram’s full ceremonial name is?’ asked Anandmayi, pressing home her
advantage.
‘Of course I do,’ scoffed Parvateshwar. ‘Lord Ram, Suryavanshi Kshatriya of the Ikshvaku
clan. Son of Dashrath and Kaushalya. Husband of Sita. Honoured and respected with the tide
of the seventh Vishnu.’
‘Perfect,’ beamed Anandmayi. ‘Except for one minor mistake. You have missed one small
word, General. You have missed the word Chandra. His full name was Lord Ram Chandra.’
Parvateshwar frowned.
‘Yes, General,’ continued Anandmayi. ‘His name meant “the face of the moon”. He was
more Chandravanshi than you know’
‘This is typical Chandravanshi double talk,’ argued Parvateshwar, gathering his wits. ‘You
are lost in words and names rather than deeds. Lord Ram said that only a person’s karma
determines his identity. The fact that his name had the word moon in it means nothing. His
deeds were worthy of the sun. He was a Suryavanshi, through and through.’
‘Why couldn’t he have been both Suryavanshi and Chandravanshi?’
‘What nonsense is that? It’s not possible. It’s contradictory.’
‘It appears impossible to you only because your puny mind cannot understand it.
Contradictions are a part of nature.’
‘No, they aren’t. It is impossible that one thing be true and the opposite not be false. The
universe cannot accept that. One scabbard can have only one sword!’
‘That is only if the scabbard is small. Are you saying that Lord Ram was not big enough to
have two identities?’
‘You are just playing with words!’ glared Parvateshwar.
Shiva had stopped listening. He turned towards the window. Towards the temple. He could
feel it in every pore of his body. He could feel it in his soul. He could hear the soft whisper of his
inner voice.
Lard Ram will help you. He will guide you. He will soothe you. Go to him.
It was the third hour of the third prahar when Shiva stole into the chaotic Ayodhya streets by
himself. He was on his way to meet Lord Ram. Sati had not offered to come along. She knew