Banarasidas ARDHAKATHANAK (A Half Story) Read online

  Banarasi relates their names in order:

  The first was Jauna Shah, as known,

  The second, Bawakkar Shah.(32)

  The third who ruled was Surhar Sultan,

  The fourth as Dost Muhammad was known.

  The fifth king was Shah Nizam,

  The sixth Shah Birahim by name.(33)

  The seventh ruler was Shah Hussain,

  The eighth was Gazi Sajjit Sain.

  The ninth king was Bakhiya Sultan

  Whose authority was undisputed.(34)

  These were the nine kings who had ruled that land

  Whose capital city was called Jaunpur.

  To the east the land reached Patna,

  Its western boundary was Itawah.(35)

  To the south the Vindhya mountains hemmed it in;

  To the north the Ghaghra River was its end.

  So much was the territory of this extensive kingdom.

  ‘But,’ says Banarasi, ‘all this that I speak of was three hundred years ago.(36)

  ‘I have heard of all these matters from my elders.

  I have heard their words with my own ears.

  That which I have related here is exactly as I heard it said.

  So let not the blame of falsehood be attached to me.(37)

  ‘All these matters are of the past,

  Much time has gone by since.

  Listen then friend, to the story of the events that took place

  After Samvat 1613.’(38)

  In the city of Jaunpur, there lived

  Madan Singh Shrimal,

  A Jain belonging to the Chinaliya gotra,

  Who traded in diamonds and rubies.(39)

  For the home of Madan Singh, jeweller,

  Kharagsen and his mother searched, asking people for directions,

  Till at last, Destiny determined by their karma,

  Brought them to his house.(40)

  Chhajmal was Kharagsen’s nana;

  Madan Singh4 was Chhajmal’s older brother.

  He welcomed Kharagsen and his mother

  With respect and great affection.(41)

  Madan Singh asked, ‘Daughter, tell me,

  How did you reach this state? How did circumstances thus overwhelm you?’

  Kharagsen’s mother related all that had befallen her,

  And told him the manner of her son’s and husband’s deaths.(42)

  How the Mughal Mir had looted her of all her worldly wealth,

  That too, she related with calm and fortitude.

  Madan Singh, hearing her story, wept,

  ‘Even one son alone can give you everything.(43)

  ‘Daughter, think of it no more.

  Joy and sorrow are as transient as the shadows that come and go.’

  He embraced his daughter and his grandson,

  And gave them fine clothes and jewels to wear.(44)

  Mother and son lived in peace and contentment, unaffected by the passage of time.

  Madan Singh’s home was as their own.

  Three years went by in this manner:

  Each day passed in harmony, in affection, happiness and peace.(45)

  When eight years old the boy became,

  He was sent to school.

  At school he learnt quickly and soon became

  Skilled at assaying gold and silver, and telling real coins from counterfeit.(46)

  He now could keep accurate accounts of goods taken on credit.

  He understood how to keep the books,

  And write debits and credits correctly.

  In his grandfather’s shop, he began learning the business of dealing in gold and silver.(47)

  When four years more had passed.

  Kharagsen wanted to strike out on his own.

  To the east of Jaunpur lies the state of Bengal,

  Ruled in those days by Suleman Sultan, a Pathan.(48)

  His wife’s brother was Lodi Khan,

  Whom he thought of as his son.

  A Shrimal was Lodi Khan’s diwan—

  A man the world knew by the name of Rai Dhanna.(49)

  Rai Dhanna, of the Singhad gotra, had settled permanently in Bengal.

  Five hundred Shrimals worked under him,

  He had made them all potdars.

  Through Fate and good fortune, these men earned and gathered considerable wealth.(50)

  He trusted his men totally and asked for no written accounts,

  But wrote out their deeds of release, and cleared them of their liabilities.

  He practised the Jain rites of prosadh and pratikraman

  And had taken a vow never to build a new house.(51)

  Kharagsen Biholia

  Hearing of the Rai,

  Consulted his mother

  And left home one morning at dawn.(52)

  His mother gave him some money for his journey.

  His grandfather knew nothing of this matter.

  He saddled a horse and mounting it

  Rode away to Rai Dhanna.(53)

  He met Raiji

  And told him everything.

  Rai Dhanna comforted and reassured him.

  He took the Rai’s counsel to heart.(54)

  One day, after some time had passed

  And having given the matter careful thought,

  To Kharagsen the Rai did give

  The charge of four parganas.(55)

  He appointed Kharagsen one of his potdars

  And gave him two assistants to help in his work.

  Kharagsen left for the districts under his charge,

  And started the work of administration and collecting tax.(56)

  He would collect the revenue and send it

  To the Rai or Lodi Khan.

  Six or seven months went by in this manner.

  Rai Dhanna then set out on pilgrimage to Sammed Shikhar.(57)

  The Raiji had collected a company of Jains;

  The Sultan gave the group his permission.

  All travelled to Sammed Shikhar, where they offered puja at the shrine,

  And then returned to camp.(58)

  Upon his return, the Rai went into his tent.

  It was evening by this time.

  He began the rite of samayik, as prescribed by Jain custom;

  In his hand he held his rosary.(59)

  Fasting, and taking a vow of silence,

  He began to chant the five Navkars.

  Suddenly he felt a sharp pain in his stomach;

  His friends and attendants seeing him collapse, raised a hue and cry.(60)

  He did not utter a single word

  But embraced death that instant.

  The wall that was his body collapsed;

  He left for another existence.(61)

  Good fortune, the reward of his good deeds, had given

  Rai Dhanna carriages, servants,

  And stables filled with elephants and horses.

  Yet all his possessions were a heavy burden that he carried upon his head.

  His great wealth continued to increase as he continued to accumulate riches.

  As his ties to this world increased, his life drew to a close.

  At the end, he left alone.

  Like a tired porter who throws down his load,

  He threw down his burden of wealth and worldly possessions

  And vanished behind a wall.(62)

  When the Rai thus suddenly died,

  Chaos broke out in village and town.

  Kharagsen heard the news.

  Leaving everything, he scurried home to Jaunpur at once.(63)

  Putting on a poor and wretched guise

  And following arduous ways unseen by men,

  He passed through towns and villages, crossed rivers, mountains, forests,

  Till at last he came to the city of Jaunpur.(64)

  It was night when he reached home.

  He touched the feet of his elders in greeting.

  The little wealth that he had hidden on his person,

  That he gave to his
mother.(65)

  In this manner, four years went by.

  Now eighteen years old,

  He set out once again, this time towards the west.

  It was Samvat 1626.(66)

  He came to Agra city

  Where he met Sundardas, his chacha.

  Sundardas was very fond of Kharagsen;

  He was a trader in gold and silver.(67)

  Kharagsen put in some money into Sundardas’s business

  Thus both together putting forward the capital.

  The two in partnership now began to trade.

  They were accomplished in the arts and wealthy and generous.(68)

  They had a deep affection for each other

  Everyone called them father and son.

  Four years in this manner passed.

  Then to Meerut to get married Kharagsen went.(69)

  Surdas Dhor was a Shrimal, a resident of Meerut.

  His daughter Kharagsen married, and then returned to Agra.

  Resuming his business he soon earned enough wealth of his own.

  They did not get along with his chachi, so the newly-wed couple took a house of their own.

  Meanwhile, in the space of two or three years, Sundardas and his wife

  Both died, leaving behind their wealth and property. They had only one daughter, no son.(70)

  Sundardas’s daughter was unmarried.

  Kharagsen got her married with great ceremony

  Giving her, in various ways, both honour and gifts

  And gold and riches too.(71)

  For the disposal of Sundardas’s property

  He followed the ruling of the panchayat

  And gave to his sister all that was hers,

  Keeping nothing for himself.(72)

  In Samvat 1633

  Kharagsen left for Jaunpur town.

  He took with him a single horse, a single carriage,

  Many attendants and much wealth.(73)

  Ten days after reaching Jaunpur

  He opened his shop in the city.

  He entered into a partnership at once

  And prepared for business.(74)

  Ramdas, a wealthy bania,

  An Agrawal of good temper,

  Had entered into partnership with Kharagsen, looking upon him as a friend.

  It was a union based on affection, trust and understanding.(75)

  These two worthy men began to trade in gold and silver,

  Pearls, rubies and the dust of precious stones.

  Time passed well in peace and happiness.

  It was now Samvat 1635.(76)

  In Kharagsen’s home a son was born.

  Delighted, he spent large sums in celebration.

  Ten days later, the child died.

  Kharagsen mourned his firstborn son.(77)

  It was Samvat 1637.

  Kharagsen set off on pilgrimage to Rohtak to the shrine of the Sati there.

  On the way he was robbed. The thieves

  Took all he had, leaving him with nothing.(78)

  Kharagsen and his wife had nothing left but the clothes upon their bodies.

  Somehow they managed to return home.

  They had gone to the Sati to ask for a son

  But the childless Sati Aut rewarded them with this misfortune instead.(79)

  Despite this, they did not realize the falseness of their beliefs

  And went back to the shrine of the same Sati.

  Though it is manifest that such beliefs are worthless,

  Foolish people still do not understand.(80)

  Returning home to Jaunpur, Kharagsen resumed his business.

  Madan Singh had grown weary of this world,

  Giving up all worldly desires, had achieved peace and tranquility.

  Three years passed in this manner.(81)

  In Samvat 1641

  Madan Singh died.

  His good deeds were recounted and remembered by all.

  When two years more had passed(82)

  Kharagsen was reminded again of the Sati.

  He set off once again to make offerings at her shrine.

  In Samvat 1643,

  In the bright half of the month of Magh,(83)

  On the eleventh day, a Saturday,

  When the moon was in Taurus and the reigning nakshatra Rohini

  Was in the third quarter,

  In Kharagsen’s house a son was born.(84)

  The child was named Vikramajit,

  The women sang songs of celebration,

  Kharagsen, overjoyed, gave alms generously—

  A son had been born after eight long years.(85)

  In this manner, some six or seven months went by.

  Kharagsen then set off on a pilgrimage to Parshvanath.

  He took his entire family with him.

  They offered ritual puja to Lord Parshvanath.(86)

  With folded hands they offered puja

  And placed the newborn child before Him.

  The pujari, with folded hands, then said,

  ‘This child is at your feet.(87)

  ‘Give this child long life.

  You are the protector of all who come seeking shelter.

  Have compassion on this child,

  He too is now your slave.’(88)

  Then the pujari held his breath.

  In feigned meditation and false silence.

  When almost half an hour had passed,

  He turned his head and said, ‘Listen, friends,(89)

  ‘I saw a vision,

  Which I shall now relate to you:

  The yaksha who serves Lord Parshva,

  Appeared before me.(90)

  ‘This is what he said to me:

  “There is no worry for this child.

  Give to the child the name

  Of the city of Lord Parshva’s birth.(91)

  ‘“If you do so, the child will live long.”

  Saying this, the yaksha vanished.’

  When the pujari spoke these words

  Kharagsen felt in his heart that they were true.(92)

  In joy the whole family cried out,

  ‘Parshva and Suparshva are our lords!

  Both were born in Banaras,

  This child must surely be Banarasidas!’(93)

  In this manner, the boy was given a name.

  They returned to Jaunpur

  And the boy began to grow up in happiness and peace.

  In Samvat 1648(94)

  His past deeds appeared as Fate.

  The child fell ill with dysentery.

  Many cures and medications were tried

  But nothing eased the child’s distress.(95)

  For one long year the child suffered.

  Then the illness cured itself and the child was restored to health.

  One year went by well.

  In Samvat 1650, the child was afflicted with smallpox.(96)

  The main distress caused by it was the smell.

  Soon the boy became free of disease.

  In Kharagsen’s house a daughter was born,

  The result of karma.(97)

  When the boy was eight years old

  He was sent to school to learn.

  His guru was a brahmin pandit.

  The boy learnt to read the alphabet and write.(98)

  For one year the boy studied.

  His knowledge increased daily

  And he became proficient in his studies.

  It was Samvat 1652.(99)

  In those days Kharagsen was dealing in precious stones,

  In diamonds, rubies and coral.

  In the meantime, the boy Banarasi

  Became nine years old.(100)

  In the town of Khairabad

  There lived a man called Parbat Tambi.

  His son Kalyanmal

  Had one daughter and lived in the same town.(101)

  Kalyanmal’s purohit came to Kharagsen

  Bringing Kalyanmal’s barber with him.

  Kalyanmal had written a letter,

&n
bsp; Which the purohit gave to Kharagsen.5(102)

  Kharagsen accepted Kalyanmal’s daughter’s hand in marriage for his son,

  Formalizing the engagement with a tilak on Banarasi’s forehead.

  He wrote back saying that the wedding should take place two years later,

  And fixed an auspicious date for the wedding day.(103)

  Banarasi’s engagement took place in Samvat 1652;

  In Samvat 1653 there was a famine.

  Grain became dear, and was even then not available.

  People were desolate.(104)

  The famine ended and many days passed.

  In Samvat 1654,

  On the twelfth day of the bright half of the month of Magh,

  Banarasi set off to get married.(105)

  After his wedding Banarasi returned home.

  A second beautiful daughter was born

  In Kharagsen’s home

  And his old nani died on the same day.(106)

  A grandmother’s death, a daughter’s birth,

  The coming home of a daughter-in-law—

  All three events took place on the same day

  In the same house.(107)

  The irony of this world of illusions

  Is clearly manifest in such grief and sorrow.

  Wise minds renounce it;

  Foolish ones cannot recognize it.(108)

  In this manner two months passed.

  The bride’s chacha came to Jaunpur.

  A Shrimal, his name was Tarachand,

  He took his niece away with him.(109)