Man Crumbles to Ignorance , Everytime ( Part 6 )

"Indeed, my Lord. The rules of engagement in war, the rules of taxation, nine principles of trade, the four classifications in society based on profession, the birth of various creeds and the independence to practice one's own faith…all of these various guidelines to society originated from the Land where Rta Flows. It was once believed that all the land of Aryavarta belonged the Adityas. However, they moved to the inhospitable west at some point because of differences that originated between various hegemons."

"How can there be differences when they are the lords of everything?"

"The Adityas never lord over others, Young Lord. People follow them out of their own accord. Only a few members among the eight Aditya brothers show any interest in conquest. Also, by choice or by coincidence, they were only known to do that when society is filled with unsavoury elements."

"So they moved away when people stopped following them in the mainland?"

"Indeed, my prince. It was believed to have happened around the time slavery first came about in the mainland. The Adityas have declared that Rta flows against this system and have moved away to a distant place where they have isolated themselves ever since."

"Wait a minute. The Solitary Wind Palace where grandpa Shwetasura lives was built during the reign of Kamadeva, the fifth Aditya! That was at least three hundred years ago, but slavery has begun in the mainland only about two hundred years ago…"

The silver clad minister shook his head side to side. "Prince underestimates the foresight of the Adityas. They are true gods, my Lord. Whether it is one out of ten or ten generations combined, they are true Indra, true Varuna, true Agni, true Kamadeva, true Chandra, true Surya and true Mitra who have come from the Devlok itself. The rest of what you see here, whether Devas, Gandharvas or any other kind of divine beings are mere sanctioned beings. They truly cannot compare to the original Adityas. The Adityas can estimate the size of the forest just by studying the sprouts. They can map the river to the sea, just by seeing the spring. Naturally, when man began to have thoughts of subjugating another man so completely that he will lose his sense of self, the Adityas decided it was time to move. After all, they were tasked to build a deity out of man. It cannot be done in a society that was less than ideal."

"Hmm…" leaning on the terrace wall, the prince cupped his chin with both hands, wondering. "But don't all the mainland kings enslave the cities they captured? Are you telling me that all this while, they have been doing this against the principles of Dharma?"

The minister was getting a headache. This conversation had gone way off track. "If you believe in the Adityas, then I must say that is true, my Lord. However, if the Adityas still live in the mainland…perhaps their position might have changed by now."

"Why do you say that?"

"Simply because of the amount of strife the mainland might have seen had the principle continued. In the mainland, strength is the rule. Whoever is stronger wins. If the Adityas keep holding on to their principles, their reign will never be stable because the strife will keep continuing until one party is eliminated totally. In the mainland man steps upon another man's head because that's the only way to stop him from taking over his position. Giving him rights, giving him the means to prosperity will only mean that one day he will come back to take what you took from him. The cycle will never end."

The young prince paused while munching on a fruit. He put the fruit away and became serious, two hands on his hips and he stood in a regal posture. His dark eyes which always seemed to consist a mischievous, even greedy twinkle suddenly became opaque. No one could see through his thoughts. In his mind, a memory flashed from when he was very small. His mother was dragging him to the kitchen in order to put a slave brand on him before she sells him to the merchant the following day. She was afraid the merchant would hurt him if he does it himself.

Kush shivered every time when he thought back to that memory. Not this time, however. He screwed his eyes and said, "It will end when I become the emperor of this world. Cactus once told me one must unite all the lands in order to uproot this rotten tree in the center with roots spread everywhere. If Cactus says its possible, then it's possible."

So that's the Aditya's prescription…

For an instant, the minister wavered. He had always wondered why the Aditya would help the successor of Chandra faction attain such phenomenal achievements. Even the fact that the boy was sitting on throne of Manas was thanks to him. Back then, the Chandra faction was still planning in the shadows how to distance the kid from the Asuras so that the temple may accept him. According to their plans, they were aiming to let him come here around sixteen, before he turns into an adult. If they weren't able to do it before then, they had their eye on another throne in the east where an ancient kingdom rules. And yet, the Aditya simply brought Chandra Kush to Manas on a trip and introduced him to the priests as his dear friend. The priests simply couldn't ignore the words of Martanda after that. It was the catalyzing factor for Kush being accepted as the chosen one despite all the qualifications he himself possessed.

And that wasn't the only instance. During Kush's escape from the drylands along with his barbarian army, the then ten year old Vajradandaka provided vital intelligence. In the next few years, during Chandra Kush's war with the Asuras, he provided strategy. Later on, he advised Kush how to avoid heat from Amaravati.

Kush thought his ministers did not know about all the dealings between him and Vajra, but the princess long since informed them. Whenever Kush met his designated goals years, even decades earlier than what the Chandra faction planned, the superiors had no choice but to get together and discuss what was happening. Eventually, the princess let them know the truth. If one boy providing advice was itself surprising, the other implementing it to the letter and achieving the results was even more shocking. Children were not meant to have such a powerful grasp on the real world…yet among these two, one did in matter of mind, the other did in the matter of martial capability. They were like two peas in a pod. They did everything together despite the great distance that separates them.

It was said that an Aditya's actions always pertains to the flow of Rta in this world. Before he knew the reason, the minister wasn't certain of it, but now he understood what the Martanda hopes to achieve through his friendship to Chandra Kush. Also, according to the original plan, conquering the Central Plains was the only thing on the agenda for the Chandra faction. In the original plan, subduing the Asuras was never seen as a possibility! The Chandras only wanted to engage them long enough in war so as to get them together. It was a screwed up way to have a conversation, but the Asuras only listened to fists and swords. The plan was to form an alliance with them before they were totally suppressed by the Indra faction sitting on the throne of Amaravati and take the initiative to launch an attack on the Central Plateau. The Chandra faction prepared resources to last them in war for at least two decades! Only then was the plateau expected to be conquered. However, the little moon prince took them completely by surprise by directly subduing the Asuras with force! What awkward alliance, what delicate relation? No, he directly stepped on their head and pushed them to the ground! The successor performed a hundred times better than what they anticipated. In that case, entering into a long strife with the Central Plateau as though there was no better choice was indeed not so appetizing. No, now that they conquered the Asuras way ahead of time, it was best to prepare for the future and take Amaravati in one fell swoop. Why fall into contention that will last forever, while the common people suffer…

In order to prepare, the Chandra faction must call for armies from all over the land, they must go on conquests, create vassals, basically dividing the entire Aryan land into two great factions. But even if they were clear about all that, they were still not as clear as those two little boys who began this adventure.

Emperor of the world…how easily he said that.

More and more, the minister was convinced that this was all Aditya's plan and not their Chandra faction's. This was all god's plan…