Lord Matsya looks so much like the dolphins I’ve seen in the rivers here. Only He is much larger.

Shiva bowed down and paid his respects to the Lord. He said a quick prayer and then sat down against one of the pillars. And then he thought out loud.

Vasudevs? Are you here?

Nobody responded. No one from the temple came to see him.

Is there no Vasudev here?

Absolute silence.

Is this not a Vasudev temple? Have I come to the wrong place?

Shiva heard nothing except the gentle tinkle of the fountains in the temple compound.

Damn!

Shiva realised that maybe he had made a mistake. This temple probably wasn’t a Vasudev outpost. His thoughts went back to the advice Sati had given to him.

Maybe what Sati said is right. Maybe the Vasudevs were trying to help me. They did help! I would have been devastated if anything had happened to Kartik.

A calm clear voice rang out loud in his head. Your wife is wise, great Mahadev. It is rare to find such beauty and wisdom in one person.

Shiva looked up and around quickly. There was nobody. The voice was from one of the other Vasudev temples. He recognised it. It was the one that had commanded the Kashi Vasudev to give him the Naga medicine. Are you the leader, Panditji?

No, my friend. You are. I am but your follower. And I bring the Vasudevs with me.

Where are you? Ujjain?

There was silence.

What is your name, Panditji?

I am Gopal. I am the Chief Guide of the Vasudevs. I bear the key task that Lord Ram had set us: Assisting you in your karma.

I need your advice, Panditji.

As you wish, great Neelkanth. What do you want to talk about?

Sati, Kali, Ganesh and the Branga-Kashi soldiers were marching towards Kashi. Loud conversation amongst them disturbed the silence of the forest.

Vishwadyumna turned to Ganesh. ‘My Lord, don’t you find the forest oddly silent?’

Ganesh raised his eyebrows, for the soldiers were creating quite a racket. ‘You think our men should be talking even louder?!’

‘No, My Lord. We are loud enough! It is the rest of the forest that I’m talking about. It is too quiet.’

Ganesh tilted his head. Vishwadyumna was right. Not a single animal or bird sound. He looked around. His instincts told him that something was wrong. He stared hard into the woods. Then, shaking his head, he looked ahead and goaded his horse into moving faster.

A short distance away, an injured animal, massive in his proportions, with his wounds partially healed, crept slowly forward. The shaft of a broken arrow, buried deep in his shoulder, caused the liger to limp a little. Two lionesses followed him silently.

Chapter 18

The Function of Evil

This country is very confusing.

Gopal thought softly: Why would you say that, my friend?

The Nagas are obviously the people who are evil, right? Almost everyone seems to agree. And yet, the Nagas helped a man in need, in the interests of justice. That’s not how evil is supposed to be.

A good point, great Neelkanth.

Considering the mistake I’ve already made, I’m not about to attack anyone till I’m sure.

A wise decision.

So do you also think the Nagas may not be evil?

How can I answer that, my friend? I do not have the wisdom to find that answer. I am not the Neelkanth.

Shiva smiled. But you do have an opinion, don’t you?

Shiva waited for Gopal to speak. When the Vasudev Pandit didn’t, Shiva smiled even more broadly, giving up this discussion. Suddenly a disturbing thought struck him. Please don’t tell me the Nagas also believe in the legend of the Neelkanth.

Gopal remained silent for a moment.

Shiva repeated, frowning. Panditji? Please answer me. Do the Nagas also believe in the Neelkanth legend?

As far as I know, great Mahadev, most of them do not believe in the Neelkanth. But do you think that would make them evil?

Shiva shook his head. No, of course not.

Silence for some time.

Shiva breathed deeply. So what is the blessed answer? I have travelled through all of India. Met practically all the tribes except the Nagas. And if none are evil, maybe Evil hasn’t arisen. Maybe I’m not required.

Are you sure it is only people who can be Evil, my friend? There may be attachment to Evil within some. There may be a small part of Evil within them. But could the great Evil, the one that awaits the Neelkanth, exist beyond mere humans?

Shiva frowned. I don’t understand.

Can Evil be too big to be concentrated within just a few men?

Shiva remained silent.

Lord Manu had said it’s not people who are evil. True Evil exists beyond them. It attracts people. It causes confusion amongst its enemies. But Evil in itself is too big to be confined to just a few.

Shiva frowned. You make it sound like Evil is a power as strong as Good. That it doesn’t work by itself, but uses people as its medium. These people, maybe even good people, find purpose in serving Evil. How can it be destroyed if it serves a purpose?

That is an interesting thought, O Neelkanth, that Evil serves a purpose.

What purpose? The purpose of destruction? Why would the universe plan that?

Let’s look at it another way. Do you believe there is nothing random in the universe? That everything exists for a reason. That everything serves a purpose.

Yes. If anything appears random, it only means that we haven’t discovered its purpose just as yet.

So why does Evil exist? Why can’t it be destroyed once and for all? Even when it is apparently destroyed, it rises once again. Maybe after much time has elapsed, perhaps in another form, but Evil does rise and will keep rising again and again. Why?

Shiva narrowed his eyes, absorbing Gopal’s words. Because even Evil serves a purpose...

That is what Lord Manu believed. And the institution of the Mahadev acts as the balance, the control for that purpose. To take Evil out of the equation at the correct time.

Take it out of the equation? asked a surprised Shiva.

Yes. That is what Lord Manu said. It was just a line in his commandments. He said that the destroyers of Evil would understand what he means. My understanding of it is that Evil cannot and should not be destroyed completely. That it needs to be taken out of the equation at the right time, the time when it rises to cause total annihilation. Do you think he said that because the same Evil may serve the purpose of Good in another time?

I came here for answers, my friend. You are only throwing more questions at me.

Gopal laughed softly. I’m sorry my friend. Our job is to give you the clues that we know. We are not supposed to interfere in your judgement. For that could lead to the triumph of Evil.

I have heard that Lord Manu said Good and Evil are two sides of the same coin?

Yes, he did say so. They are two sides of the same coin. He didn’t explain any further.

Strange. That doesn’t make sense.

Gopal smiled. It does sound strange. But I know you will make sense of it when the time is right.

Shiva was silent for some time. He looked out across the temple pillars. In the distance, he could see the people of Vaishali outside the gates, waiting patiently for their Neelkanth. Shiva stared hard, then turned back towards the idol of Lord Matsya. Gopal, my friend, what is the Evil that Lord Rudra took out of the equation. I know the Asuras were not evil. So what Evil did he destroy?

You know the answer.

No, I don’t.

Yes, you do. Think about it, Lord Neelkanth. What is the enduring legacy of Lord Rudra?