King Dasharatha and his wife had been waiting patiently for so long to finally have an heir to their kingdom. Finally, after years of trying King Dasharatha decided to go in to town and talk with the local seer. Now, this was frowned upon by everyone in the kingdom because the seer was not to be trusted. She lied frequently and took everyone's money. However, Dasharatha was desperate and he was looking for any possible answer to gain an heir and a son.
That night Dasharatha made his way to the seer. He cloaked himself with robes and snuck out of the castle so none of his guards would see him. He also didn't tell his wife where he was going. He didn't want her to think less of his for going to speak with the seer.
As soon as King Dasharatha walked into the seers hut she sensed him.
"Hello, King Dasharatha. I was wondering when you were going to come see me."
Shocked, King Dasharatha said, "How did you know I would come see you? Have you heard about my wife's inability to give me an heir?
The seer shook her head in agreement. King Dasharatha asked if she knew of anyway for his wife to give birth and she nodded again.
"How?!", King Dasharatha exclaimed.
The seer said, "You must sacrifice a horse on a full moon. This is the only way the gods will grant you and the queen a child to be an heir of your kingdom. It can't just be any horse though. It must be your truest, most valiant steed that you own."
This saddened the King because he loved all his horses very much, but especially the one that he always rode into battle. She was a beautiful white color and was the bravest steed he had ever known. But he knew that if this is what the gods required of him to make a sacrifice in order to be blessed with a son he would do it because he wanted a son more than anything in the world.
The King paid the seer, thanked her for her time, and left to go back to the castle.
The next full moon would be two nights from now so he had some time to accept the fact the he must sacrifice his favorite horse and get everything ready for the sacrifice.
Two nights later as the King went to go to sleep and in his dreams Vishnu appeared to him, and he was very displeased with Dasharatha and his lack of faith.
"How dare you go visit the seer instead of coming to me and the other gods in prayer? Have you really that little faith in me? That seer lied to you. If you were to sacrifice your horse you and you're wife would never have children AND you would be damned to lose the rest of your battles."
Dasharatha was so upset that he had trusted a seer over the gods. He should have known better, but he was so desperate. He pleaded with Vishnu to forgive him and promised to not follow through with the sacrifice.
The next day he stopped everything that had to do with the ceremony and had the seer arrested for blasphemy.
Soon the king and his wife became pregnant with an heir and the king couldn't be happier!
Bibliography:
PDE Ramayana - Dasharatha's Sons
Authors Note: I kept most of the original story because I liked the loose end of it, but I decided I didn't want Dasharatha to sacrifice a horse in order to get a son. I also made most of the story have to deal with a seer because I thought that would add an interesting twist. Having Vishnu appear to Dasharatha was inspired by the biblical story of Abraham having to sacrifice his son and getting a vision telling him to do so. I mainly just wanted this story to have a happy ending without any sacrifices or multiple wives and children. Just one happy family who wanted a child for themselves and their kingdom
That night Dasharatha made his way to the seer. He cloaked himself with robes and snuck out of the castle so none of his guards would see him. He also didn't tell his wife where he was going. He didn't want her to think less of his for going to speak with the seer.
As soon as King Dasharatha walked into the seers hut she sensed him.
"Hello, King Dasharatha. I was wondering when you were going to come see me."
Shocked, King Dasharatha said, "How did you know I would come see you? Have you heard about my wife's inability to give me an heir?
The seer shook her head in agreement. King Dasharatha asked if she knew of anyway for his wife to give birth and she nodded again.
"How?!", King Dasharatha exclaimed.
The seer said, "You must sacrifice a horse on a full moon. This is the only way the gods will grant you and the queen a child to be an heir of your kingdom. It can't just be any horse though. It must be your truest, most valiant steed that you own."
This saddened the King because he loved all his horses very much, but especially the one that he always rode into battle. She was a beautiful white color and was the bravest steed he had ever known. But he knew that if this is what the gods required of him to make a sacrifice in order to be blessed with a son he would do it because he wanted a son more than anything in the world.
The King paid the seer, thanked her for her time, and left to go back to the castle.
The next full moon would be two nights from now so he had some time to accept the fact the he must sacrifice his favorite horse and get everything ready for the sacrifice.
Two nights later as the King went to go to sleep and in his dreams Vishnu appeared to him, and he was very displeased with Dasharatha and his lack of faith.
"How dare you go visit the seer instead of coming to me and the other gods in prayer? Have you really that little faith in me? That seer lied to you. If you were to sacrifice your horse you and you're wife would never have children AND you would be damned to lose the rest of your battles."
Dasharatha was so upset that he had trusted a seer over the gods. He should have known better, but he was so desperate. He pleaded with Vishnu to forgive him and promised to not follow through with the sacrifice.
The next day he stopped everything that had to do with the ceremony and had the seer arrested for blasphemy.
Soon the king and his wife became pregnant with an heir and the king couldn't be happier!
Bibliography:
PDE Ramayana - Dasharatha's Sons
Authors Note: I kept most of the original story because I liked the loose end of it, but I decided I didn't want Dasharatha to sacrifice a horse in order to get a son. I also made most of the story have to deal with a seer because I thought that would add an interesting twist. Having Vishnu appear to Dasharatha was inspired by the biblical story of Abraham having to sacrifice his son and getting a vision telling him to do so. I mainly just wanted this story to have a happy ending without any sacrifices or multiple wives and children. Just one happy family who wanted a child for themselves and their kingdom
Hi Chelsee,
ReplyDeleteGreat job on this story. You did a really great job of taking the original and making it inot something of your own. You also did great with your characters and developing throughout the story. This was a very vivid story with a lot of detail. Great job!