MAHABHARATA SERIES BOOK#2: The Seeds of War (Mba) by Ashok K. Banker Page A

‘With whom have you been rutting in the dark corners to produce this proof of your misbegotten lust?’
    Sharmishtha had expected this confrontation and had prepared her answers carefully. ‘I was visited by a rishi, mistress. A great man, learned in the Vedas and devoted to dharma. He offered me a boon and I asked for a son. He granted my wish and this is the result. Surely there can be no sin in what I did?’
    Devayani was taken aback. Of all the answers she had thought to hear, this was least expected. She could hardly find fault with such an explanation. ‘Yes, yes, of course,’ she admitted grumpily. ‘This is all very well. But I wish to know the name, lineage and birth details of this brahmin.’ She thought to check the details with her father and verify Sharmishtha’s story. She did not put it past her to lie blatantly to her!
    But Sharmishtha was prepared for this as well. ‘You look more radiant than ever after delivering, Devayani. Motherhoood suits you well. It has brought out your natural beauty.’ Before Devayani could repeat her request, she added, ‘I wish I could provide the details you ask for, but this rishi was so radiant and awe-inspiring. I never thought to ask him such questions. It hardly seemed to matter. After all, he was clearly some great being, possessed of magnificent spiritual energy and luminescence. I was overcome by his spiritual splendour.’
    Devayani was frustrated. But she could not accuse Sharmishtha further without some basis in fact. Such births were quite common, and it was no crime for any unmarried woman to ask a visiting brahmin to seed her with child. Her own father had probably seeded hundreds of such women in his time. It was regarded as a blessing and a benediction. The child remained the mother’s legitimate child, the father’s name being of no relevance at all. In fact, as she thought about it further, Devayani realized, this was the perfect end to her long-lasting fears of Sharmishtha becoming a rival. Now that Sharmishtha was an unwed mother with a child to raise, and was still a maid servant, her desirability had been further reduced. No man would want her, leave alone King Yayati. In the end, Devayani decided, this was a wonderful stroke of good luck. She could finally stop worrying about Sharmishtha stealing her man away. 
    In the wake of this confrontation, rather than dividing the two women, the birth of Sharmishtha’s fatherless child brought them closer together. Rid of the constant anxiety that Sharmishtha might steal her husband away, and flushed with her own motherhood, Devayani was pleased to share both her new state with her long-ago friend, and inasmuch as such a thing was possible under the circumstances, their old friendship revived and flourished again. They spent hours together, sharing information on baby care, caring for one another’s infants, and otherwise enjoying each other’s company at every waking moment. The change in the relationship was striking: no more was Sharmishtha Devayani’s slave and servant. She was almost treated as an equal and friend once more! Devayani in turn altered her outlook and became sweet-smiling and good-tempered again, as she had once been. The other maids marvelled at the change in their mistresses. Soon after the birth of her first son, Sharmishtha was permitted to build a house of her own and reside near the ashoka grove. Over time, she was careful not to invite Devayani to her house or to let her mistress meet her son as he grew older. 
    In time, Yayati had another son through Devayani. Their two sons were named Yadu and Turvasu. Through Sharmishtha he fathered three sons – Druhyu, Anu and Puru. All five boys were magnificent, healthy and possessed of strikingly beautiful features and strong bodies. If placed in a row together, there would have been no mistaking the fact that they were all sons of Yayati, but because of Sharmishtha’s care, that never happened. She took great pains to ensure that