The Second Birth

Md. Harun: The house of Roy Chandal appears as though it were devoid of speech and life due to the iron-hand discipline of Roy Chandal. Should it not be so, because he is a big Hindu saint indeed! While all other Hindu religious leaders of his community are bound to obey his command, whatever it be, that his family members will arise any questions regarding his rule and principle is quite unimaginable!

However, Roy Chandal family has two sons and one daughter. Of the two sons, one is the eldest and the other is a twin with the daughter. The baby girl was born earlier than the baby boy. And she was of good health and of well-built physique. On the other hand, her twin brother was not of good health. Even psychologically, he was very weak. Though Roy Chandal named his elder son Roy Singha at first, he re-named his younger son as Roy Feeble noticing his physical and mental feebleness, and considered him as a disgrace to their lineage! What kind of behavior is this! Could he change his own son’s name in such a cruel way?

Roy Feeble’s mother’s tears made a pond, though not a deep sea, more for the cruelty of a father towards his son than the son’s infirmity! Yet in her mind arose no question as to the right and wrong done from Roy Chandal’s part. Such one-sided and indisputable were the command and rule of Roy Chandal! This is why she wept in silence avoiding Roy Chandal’s presence lest she might offend his image! One day when tears were pouring down from her eyes in front of Roy Chandal, it was difficult for her to save her life that day. At a certain point, she gave up the Maya (affection) of her life and of the world and became bold to embrace death! Only then he spared her! He was a saintly figure and very quickly understood the state of his wife’s ‘Not-Fearing-Death’! He forgave her only that day! He thought what was the use of killing one who was ready to die.

Sita Chandal was also too much wounded when her father re-named her twin brother adding a derogative part to it. She being more courageous and rebellious than her mother, would not mind the presence or absence of anybody when she wept for him. Roy Chandal did not even express the least concern for his daughter’s cry, nor was he vexed with it. After some days, the crying lessened, and one day stopped completely. However, her love and kindness for her twin brother started to grow endlessly!

Though the love and kindness continued growing between the siblings until puberty, the nature of love started changing little by little after they reached puberty. As Roy Feeble was both physically and mentally weak, Sita would try to protect him in all possible ways. They used to play, eat and sleep together. They even bathed together. Sita would take all care of cleaning him well.

Being weaker both physically and mentally, Roy Feeble requires help of others in almost all cases. While bathing her brother, she also started bathing herself. Once she embraced Roy Feeble very passionately and elongated that embrace for a long time! She even caressed him for some time. Nor did he forbid her. Both felt a kind of ecstasy! Soon tears came out from their eyes out of happiness.

Since he was growing amid all-time care and companion of his elder sister, Roy Feeble’s agony for his name started reducing. The worst feeling of agonies of the beginning started reducing. Yet most of the time he would stare at something for an intolerable period! Even if he stared at any girl, she would be reddened too much to look normal. Though his family members and others would get annoyed with that, it mattered not to him at all.

A Muslim girl named Sima frequented their house. She was contemporary of Roy Feeble’s elder brother. Though younger than her, Sima had a kind of strange likeness towards Roy Feeble. Probably it developed for his misery, or perhaps due to her own desire. She always contemplated on Feeble’s sorrows and misery. “Poor Roy Feeble! How cruel is the father too! Should not nature revenge on such a cruel father who named his own son with such a disgraceful meaning? He did not spare the God given infirmity/disability of his son to honour his own megalomania.”

She often thought, if she could look after this poor Feeble and get him as her own asset forever! But no way was he a good match for her from the society’s perspective. He was junior to her. Her society would not approve of any girl marrying a junior boy. If she still determined to do so, she had to overcome many ordeals. Besides, they belonged to two different religious castes. This would lead them to ostracize from the society. Despite these obstacles, Sima started advancing her affection towards Roy Feeble. As Roy Feeble stared to other normal objects, one day he stared at Sima for a long time. His eyes riveted Sima’s eyes, and then were fixed at her headlights in a beautiful way. At the beginning Sima felt ecstatic and after a while her reddened with bashfulness. She remained so for a long time, and Roy Feeble kept looking at her too. Once Roy Feeble felt like taking his eyes away, but he could not. A mesmerizing invitation appeared from Sima! Has Roy got magical spell in her body like the marriage guest in the Ancient mariner story? Sima, by this time, wanted to move away from Roy’s gaze. O God! She too could not move herself from his stare! She tried several time to move away, but in vain. She suddenly started to fear the situation. Her previous ecstasy now turned into a kind of unpleasant feeling. After about two hours later when Roy Feeble turned his eyes away, she could move.

Sima always kept an eye to Roy Feeble due to her both affection and fear. When she could not know the all whereabouts of Roy Feeble, Sima felt turmoil.  That's why she came to see Roy Feeble every now and then with various excuses. One day Sima discovered Roy Feeble and his sister Sita in a very close condition. She thought it could not be so as it seemed, because they were siblings, twins! So any such affairs between them....? Impossible!

Mind's doubt forecasts realities. Sima had heard of such saying in her childhood.  So, she became very cautious from then. Another day she again discovered Sita and Roy Feeble in such close condition.  To be sure of her doubt, she hid herself beside a window and waited to see what might happen. To her utter surprise, she noticed the intensity of  Sita's kissing of Roy was increasing gradually. Though Roy Feeble remained inactive for some time, then his hands fell on Sita's back and opened the latch of her bra. From the window, Sima was seeing such scene and feeling unrested. They spent some time in such passionate embrace. Then they separated due to a sound coming from the window side.

Another day Roy Feeble was lying on bed alone. At this moment, Sima entered the room. Roy Feeble felt afraid immediately seeing her at this moment. Why? Sima approached him and sat beside him. She held Roy Feeble's hand; caressed his forehead. Then she approached his lips. Roy Feeble fear and irritation accelerated. Within moments Sima got upon him and started caressing him violently. Roy tried to get off her, but in vain. Still he was trying to get away from her. Sima became angry at Roy Feeble's such behavior, "Why are you trying to escape from me? You didn't have any objection to do this with your own twin sister. Did you think that I have not seen it? I will tell of it to everybody if you do not listen to me. I loved you a lot, still I do love you. But now both a kind of fear and love come in my mind concerning you. Give up the unhealthy affairs with your twin sister. I want to harbour only my love for you. This is the perfect time to show you my love. Hug me now, embrace me tightly and flood me with your kisses. " Seeing his attepmts to escape, Sima gets furious.  Either love me, or I will kill you instantly. If you do not become mine, you can be nobody else’s. I also doubt that you may not be able to love any other girl except your twin sister.  So, killing you is the only option open before me."

The dog that had always been kept untied was tied by somebody that day for some unknown reason. It was running to and fro to get untied again. It tried many times, but could not untie. Weaker Roy Feeble could not get rid of her love-torture. Now Sima had developed a kind of severe hatred for him. She tried to suffocate him with a pillow. After some desperate attempts to get rid of her hold, Roy disappeared magically from the room. After this Sima felt afraid and left the room immediately.

Somehow the dog was freed too, and it was trying to find something from a corner of the house. It was digging a place with its mouth. Sita was trying to dig out that place and wanted to know about Roy Feeble. But the dog could not say anything.

After some time when the house-maid arrived, Sita became very angry towards her thinking that she had done something to Roy Feeble. “Where is Roy? What have you done with him? Did you kill him? Why?” etc. The house-maid could understand nothing of this, but only wept due to the false accusation.

By this time the house master, Roy’s father came into the house and enquired after his younger son, Roy Feeble. He was madly seeking after the so long ignored, despised boy. He had got a tough message of punishment from his saint-father due to his misbehavior with Roy Feeble. He was further ordered that unless he secured forgiveness from his son very soon and repented his past, none could spare him from God’s wrath. He also came to know that his son Roy Feeble was not a simple, common man, he was God’s chosen, one of the greatest creations of God. If he was not ascended into the God’s Throne and given due treatment, all the human beings were supposed to doom.

He was getting mad for not finding out his son. The most powerful master of the family was this lunatic Roy Chandal, this was difficult to believe. Amid such confusions, Roy Feeble’s mother announced that she was to become a mother again. “How is this possible?” Thinks Roy Chandal. His wife had reached her menopause more than ten years earlier. Was it possible that his unfortunate Roy Feeble had come second time in his family?  He pondered, “Are not there many ways to be humans in this unbounded universe then?”

**  The writer is working as lecturer of Department of English, University of Comilla. He completed his Honours and Masters degrees from the Department of English, University of Dhaka. He stood First-Class-First in Masters.

risingbd/Dhaka/October 31, 2018/Harun/Mukul