Chapter 1
Tick tock. Tick tock. Tick tock…
She was waiting there, waiting for me to be born. I was waiting in front of her, waiting to take shape, waiting to take color, and waiting to build an identity. Images were my atoms, experience my cells, and thoughts were my organs. I waited for them to come together.
They ran around each other, discovering, organizing, combining and playing. Magically, they meandered in a beautiful line of light and fused. Mrs Time waited patiently. Her eyes gleamed with the light of the fusion.
A moment stopped in its way. And then… I was born.
I felt great. I stretched my arms, threw my chest forward, and took a deep breath. I opened my eyes slowly. I couldn’t see. I couldn’t see. Wait, what the…? I couldn’t see!! Whoops-a-daisy! Are u sure?
I looked and looked. I looked carefully. Wait. I see something alright. That’s Mrs. Time and her glistening needle-like hands.
Oh, of course! I can see. It’s just that the black space doesn’t allow for me to see much. Phew! What a relief.
Mrs. Time walked up to me slowly, with joy and a little bit of angst. I wondered why. Anyway, she walked up and took a little bow and stared. After a pause, she said,
“Welcome, my dear. Welcome to the land of nothingness. Well… almost nothingness.” She chuckled uncomfortably because of the contradictory nature of the statement.
“Now I have a long story to tell you. Come; let’s go sit by the pool of reflection.”
I asked her in amazement,” The pool of reflection? Wow! Is there something like that, Mrs. Time? What I believed is that there is just this land of nothingness and you. What is this pool of reflection? Is there anything else around here? Am I right in the rest of the things I know? Or are those also a misconception?
Mrs. Time chuckled again, this time in a manner implying that she knew of something that I did not. She fluttered her pretty eyelashes and her hands snapped in a very strange snippety sort of way. She looked up at me, trying to control her laughter, and said,
“Ha-ha. Oh my dear. Your curious and contradictory nature has already surfaced! Ha-ha. I must say, you are a handful already! I shall tell you everything little by little. Now come on, let us proceed.”
I was curious alright. I was eager to know a lot of things. I wanted to explore everything around me, so I could grow.
Anyway, we reached the Pool of Reflection.
It was the most beautiful image I had ever seen. It was enchanting and magical. It had a beautiful crescent of wisdom running across itself, and a little tap to its side. Hmmm…a tap? That is a bit absurd. I need to find out about that too.
Mrs. Time snapped her needle hand and a little bit of nothingness bundled itself up into a medium sized rock. She and I sat down on this rock of nothingness and took a moment to look at the pool.
Then, Mrs. Time took a deep breath, and turned towards me. I could feel her voice gain a sense of seriousness and responsibility.
“The pool of reflection this is, indeed. Sigh. Do you know who you are, my dear? And why you were born?”
I thought a bit.
“Well, Mrs. Time, I can’t really say. All I know is that I can feel who I am, what I am made of. But I do not know my nature, my purpose, or my identity. Do you know? Oh, Mrs. Time, I do want to know what I am, and I also want to know what you are and where you come from. Please tell me.”
“Now, now, contain that eagerness, my boy. I shall tell you, of course, partly because I am responsible to do so.
My dear, above you and me, there is a supreme power, a force. She has no boundaries, no form, no anything at all. All she has is the power to rule all. She is goddess infinity.
One day, she decided to bring a part of herself together. So, she beautifully embraced herself to give birth to my basic unit: The moment. The moment wrapped itself together to give the second. The second wrapped itself together to give the minute. The minute wrapped itself together to give the hour. And like this, the week, the month, the year, the decade and so on were born. This magical wrap resulted in my existence: Time.
Goddess infinity took good care of me, teaching me of my responsibilities and power. Once I grew old, she left me a companion, the pool of reflection.
The pool of reflection is for everybody my dear. It is a companion to all. When one is in trouble or fortune, in joy or sorrow, the pool of reflection is by everybody’s side. You must be wondering what that tap over there is.”
“Yes, I do wonder. What is it for, Mrs. Time?”
Well, the pool of reflection ensures that it takes a drop of itself and distributes itself to everyone. So whoever is born into this space and land gets one drop of reflection and over time, a crescent of wisdom as well.”
“Wow! That is so beautiful. So do I also get a drop of reflection?”
“Not so fast, dear. I am not finished yet. After I got my drop, I had the responsibility to give birth to you. So, I gathered the images, experience and thoughts and with a pinch of my moment to work the potion, I built you.”
Mrs. Time turned towards the pool and paused for a while. It almost seemed like a burden was released off her dainty shoulders and that she was done with something she was long meant to do. And then she spoke words of wisdom.
“Remember, dear, that every birth carries a responsibility. Your birth means that you have a responsibility to carry forward.”
The word brought this tingling feeling to my legs. It was a good feeling of course.
“Responsibility? That sounds sort of nice.”
“Yes, but it won't always be as nice. It commands the task of managing well. And I am sure that you will do a wonderful job of it. Let me tell you, my boy, that you have the ability to adapt to anything. You are open and free. You can change and feel you way out of anything. You can spring out of anywhere, and belong to anyone. These are your magical powers. Now with the help of your images, experiences and thoughts and a line of wisdom and a drop of reflection, you have to accomplish the task that you were born to do.
Now listen to me very carefully, my dear.”
“Yes, I am listening. Tell me more!”
“My dear, you are to give birth to something that is vast, beautiful and elegantly woven. You have to give birth to the Universe.”
“The universe…” I repeated slowly, in excitement and anticipation. And then suddenly, something seriously silly hit me.
“But Mrs. Time, who am I?”
“Yes, I was waiting for you to ask me that.
My dear… you are indeed, an Idea.”
Chapter 2
“I am an idea. I can spring from anywhere.”
“Revelation, my dear. It is always a defining moment. Don’t you think?”
“Yes, Mrs. Time. I now feel like I am defined. Thank you.”
“Oh, you are most welcome. But remember one more thing that is very important. You are the kind of thing that is necessary everywhere for growth. So, you have to make sure that you appear in any and every form and manner possible.
The beauty of goddess infinity is that she can make anything anywhere like herself. And so me, as time, can be infinite, and you, as an idea, can be infinite as well. Therefore, everything that you build from here forth should be applied to this quality.
Of course, it is certainly not necessary that the thing has to be aware of this fact though. It could be hidden, like in the unconscious.”
“The unconscious? What is that?”
“Oh, doesn’t matter. You’ll find out soon enough, because you could be well on your way to live there. Sometimes I travel into the future. It’s a pastime you know.”
“Right”, I thought. Now what could be funnier than me being curious, and time having a pastime. Hmmm… I am quite muddled.
“Uh, Mrs. Time, if I am capable of being infinite, then how can I keep my identity? You know, be different?”
“That is quite simple. Give yourself a name. Some name that everything will recognize you alone with.”
“Let’s see…how about differentia?”
Mrs. Time frowned distastefully. “Now come on, you can do better than that.”
I thought a bit more. Differentia. Entia… Netia… Nautia… Naution… Aunus… Tionus… Auntionus… Nautionus…
NAU-TI-ON-US!
That’s it!
“Mrs. Time, how about Nautionus?”
“Hmmm… that’s quite good, my boy. Nautionus…it’s different already.
Okay Nautionus, it’s time you got started. I’ve given you enough food for your thought. Run up and get your drop of reflection and crescent of wisdom, carefully.”
I have a word of advice, Nautionus. You will know the rules of the game, as you run along and begin your task. Just remember, follow your feelings, and if you’re stuck, adapt yourself. It’s your power after all.”
Aha. The thought of that excited me. I ran to the tap by the side of the pool and looked around, wondering what would happen next.
I looked down into the pool. There was a minute of silence.
Suddenly, there was a pitter-patter sound below my body.
Plip-plop, Plip-plop, Plip-plop.
The pool slowly transferred a drop of itself to me.
I stared at it for a while and stood up. I found a silver lining around my head. The crescent of wisdom happily perched itself there. Preparing for work I suppose.
I got up and walked back to the rock, only to see that Mrs Time had already left. I guess she had her ticking work to do. But, something else caught my attention.
It was, amazingly, staring at me, and I was staring at it, amazed.
I wonder what it is. Is it supposed to be with me? Oh, right! Maybe Mrs Time left me a companion too, just like goddess infinity left the pool for her.
This creature of Mrs Time was peculiar, something I had never seen before.
It slowly walked up to me, and gave me a very intent gaze. It didn’t speak, I presumed. It just gazed at me, and smiled for a while. I sat down, on one knee, and stroked it. Its weird extensions curled. Its crescent of wisdom gleamed a little, and its drop of reflection was very visible and formed a large part of its body.
“So do you think we should name you? How about you be named differentia? No?”
Frentia… Friendia… Friendosa… Frencompanio… Panio… Panfrenio…Frenpanio.
FREN-PAN-IO!
Frenpanio sounds good. Let’s go Frenpanio. We have a universe to build. Follow me.
Chapter 3
So, Frenpanio and I walked away from the pool. I was losing myself in my thoughts on how to build the universe, trying to memorize the rules and guidelines that Mrs Time gave me.
“Follow your feelings…and it will all begin.” she had said. I was quite lost by now indeed. I snapped myself back to my senses and realized where I was. With the thoughtfulness and the blurry image of the task ahead, I kept walking. I kicked a pebble of nothingness that was in my way, and it tossed around and bounced off nothing and hit Frenpanio’s curly extension. It smiled in a little bit of pain.
“Sigh…sorry, I didn’t see that coming. You know, Frenpanio, Mrs Time did so much for me. I feel like giving something back to her. She did have the responsibility of bearing me, but she loved me nevertheless. You actually are the symbol of that love. I wish I could make a symbol for her, a symbol that would remind everything and everyone of Mrs Time. It would tell everyone the difference between night and day, of seasons and eras…
Hey! That’s it! Frenpanio! I think I should start building the universe with this symbol as the basic unit. Let me see. I have the power to adapt. Maybe I should try the magical wrap.
So I crouched and embraced myself, and thought, I thought of the shape-something like Mrs. Time’s frame: round. I thought of a wise, fiery sphere, just like Mrs. Time. Mrs. Time was aware and stern sometimes, but always warm and loving.
Suddenly, there was a loud noise. Everything in me vanished in thin nothingness and took the shape and form that I had thought of. After a while, things felt slower than normal. I came back to my same old self. Strange…Something obviously must have gone wrong. Maybe I didn’t do it right.
Frenpanio was trembling a little, and twirled its curly extension around me and looked up. I looked at him, and then looked up myself.
Wow!
I was indeed successful. This felt magical and so amazingly thrilling. I felt like building more now. The fiery wise sphere was right in front of me and was warm and radiant in a beautiful vibrant color. An orange color maybe.
“The sun.”
I just had a strange feeling that it should be called the sun.
It was beautiful. I decided to designate it as the central force of the system, the basic unit of the universe, the symbol of time. This was a dedication to the one responsible for my existence.
After a while, when the excitement slowly subdued itself, I sat down to catch a moment or two.
“Every birth carries with it a responsibility.” These lines that Mrs Time spoke kept echoing in my head.
It made me reflect on all that I had done so far. I still had a lot to do. I had various tasks to complete. It made me wonder what it would be like ahead.
The birth of the sun meant that it has a responsibility too. I had to designate it as the life-giver of a system.
“You know, Frenpanio, I think the sun ought to be told its responsibilities, just like Mrs. Time told me of mine.”
Frenpanio looked at me with an agreeing expression on his face, curling his extensions up and down as if it were nodding a yes.
The sun had probably heard our brief conversation. He ran up to me, stumbling and picking himself up clumsily. “Did you say that I have a responsibility?” he asked. I gasped in surprise. I never thought he’d come up and talk to me yet.
“Uhh…hi. Yes, you have a responsibility. You are the sun, the life-giver of this system. Let’s call it the solar system. You are responsible for building it and making it a self-sufficient and functioning unit of the universe.”
“It sounds big, but exciting.” It showed on his face. He looked just like what I did when I was first told of my responsibilities. I explained to him all the rules and guidelines of giving birth. I mentioned all the ones that Mrs. Time had passed on to me, but didn’t do it as well as she had.
After I finished speaking to the sun, I walked back to the pool of reflection, just to sit and think through today’s events. It had been a long day indeed.
Meanwhile, I could see the sun enjoying his responsibility of system building. He thought and thought and thought for a while, and then magically wrapped himself. There was a bright explosion that blinded my vision. I shut my eyes and opened them to see nine beautiful spheres, just like the sun. They were unique in their own sense. They differed in sizes as well. They all swirled around each other, intertwining into a large spiral like structure.
The sun came running up to me more excitedly than ever, and sat down close to Frenpanio.
“Look! Did you see that? Wasn’t that amazing? Well, I built nine ‘planets’. Yes, I decided to call them that. Of the nine of them, the fifth one is the largest, and the last one is the smallest. Aren’t they a lot like me? But they’re still different. They seem more solid. If I cooled down or something, I would probably look like them.
Chapter 4
The sun went on and on, talking non-stop about them. He had already named the nine planets. They were called Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. They were of different colors as well. Saturn was a little special. It had crown-like rings around itself, almost like it was the enlightened one of the lot.After the sun finished with me, he got up and ran off to do his duty with the planets.
At this time, I felt a little incomplete with the way I went about doing my duties with the sun. I suddenly realized that I did not give him any companions. I thought of beings, not frozen, but fiery and fluid just like him. They were lots of them, countless in number, bright and radiant. They were little specks that twinkled just like Mrs. Time’s needle-like hands. I thought of how infinite they could be and how they would light up the land of nothingness along with the sun.
I looked down into the pool of reflection. It was calm and still. Suddenly, there was a twinkle in the pool: a speck of a twinkle. It looked exactly like the beings I wanted to make! I closed my eyes, anticipating what would happen next, and carefully registering the image I saw. I slowly opened them. Voila!
There were a countless number of these specks of twinkles!
They were burning bright in nothingness. Some clustered together like a community of its own, and some were dispersed far away from each other, seeming like they almost enjoyed their isolation.
“They’re wonderful, aren’t they?” a strange voice spoke form nowhere.
I was taken aback. After a moment, I realized it was no one but the pool of reflection talking to me.
“The pool of reflection? You can talk? You can actually speak? Then how come you are so silent most of the time! That is really strange!
“A time for reflection comes with silence. The conversation is between you and your thoughts and no one else. But I couldn’t resist in this instance. The stars have always fascinated me and so I had to tell you about them.”
“So you know about the stars already? That is stranger than you being able to speak. I thought that I just built them up.
“Oh, I know everything that you think about with the help of your drop of reflection. I watch over everyone that way. The truth is that you actually have thought of building these stars much before in your unconscious. “
“The unconscious? You know, Mrs. Time spoke of this unconscious before. What is it?
“Ooh, you’ll find out soon enough. You might be well on your way to live in someone else’s unconsciousness.”
“That’s what she said too!”
“Ha-ha. You’re amusing, Nautionus, really; A truly bright idea.”
“Yeah, I have heard that one before as well Mr Pool. So what do you have to say about the stars?”
“Well, Nautionus, the stars are a sign of someone’s existence in this land of nothingness. Every birth here is marked by the birth of the star. They, like everything else that exists, have the quality of infinity. Now, it’s all up to you to explore everything and build it. There’s another fascinating thing to mention, that from now on, after the birth of the stars, this land shall no longer be called the land of nothingness. There’s too much that’s starting to take form. So this land shall be called the outer space, or the sky.
“Oh, that indeed is fascinating Mr Pool.”
Chapter 5I wondered about everything that was told to me. I remember the quality of infinity that was to take form with me as well. It was a task I hadn’t yet done. I thought about it for a while, when funnily, a bright idea hit me.
“You know Mr Pool; Mrs Time said that I needed to create these things, systems, through which I could carry forward my quality of infinity. I was thinking of making these creatures. They are like systems themselves, which would produce more and more of me. I would spring from them, and by giving them powers of various kinds, they could probably put me to application. And since this system has to be sustainable, I could create two kinds of them: Man and woman. When the man and woman come together, they would give birth to more of their kind. They can teach their offspring of the responsibilities of birth. This way, I could be infinite. What do you think Mr. Pool? And you know, maybe I could also build them a companion. And this time, this companion could be larger and more powerful than man and woman, so the system could be regulated and controlled well. This companion could act as a stimulus, an inspiration, so more of me can spring in these creatures. It could preserve these creatures and help them grow. Let’s see. I shall call this powerful companion Nautre, after me. I think it would be marvelous, Mr Pool. I know it sounds complicated, but it’s actually not. What do you think?
I got no response. But I didn’t pay any attention as to whether I did or not. This brain wave just had to be translated to form. I was dying to get started on building the circle of Nautre, man and woman: The circle of life.
I jumped in triumph at having had such a splendid idea. I threw myself in the middle of space, swirled and ecstatically wrapped myself, eager and thrilled, waiting for things to take shape, form and life literally. I swirled again in space, closing my eyes, dreaming of the world to be, dreaming of the system of my infinite existence. I opened my eyes, wondering whether it already had taken form. But it wasn’t so yet. It was pitch black. So I closed my eyes again, my soul in a state of euphoria. When I opened my eyes again, there was still no adaptation or change. Abruptly, the euphoria sucked itself into a tiny speck and disappeared from within me.
I looked up....for the first time in my existence, I felt a bit weak. It was almost like someone was trying to take away my freedom of adapting, of springing up in any form and manner.
Something moved behind me. I turned swiftly: Nothing. Again something shifted on the other side. I turned back. It was nothing again. There was a moment of absolute stillness. Suddenly there was movement above me. I looked up. Something glistened. I cringed in fear… fear? It was a feeling I had never felt before. What is happening?
"Mrs Time? Is that you??"
"Ha ha ha...still thinking of her, eh?"
"Huh? Who is this?"
It was a flat, thin voice. It felt a bit cold and distant...yet it felt like it was coming from three different directions.
"Don’t be so alarmed, my boy. I am just a relative of yours. I came to check on how your work was progressing."
I felt anger. Anger....it was a feeling that I had never sensed before. This one creature, whoever he was, made me feel so many things at the same time. Things I had never sensed at all. It didn’t feel very good.
"Excuse me? My relative? How are you related?"
"Oh, I am your uncle. Mrs Time’s dear brother. I am an abandoned brother, of course. She wasn’t very pleasant with me. She seemed to hate it when I was around her...I wondered why. But now I know. She had to give birth to you, and obviously, if I am around you, who has to create the vast universe....then I would have made you lose your freedom to adapt."
"I don’t understand. Please tell me who you are. Do not complicate things. You are making me feel things I have never felt before. They do not feel so right."
"That’s right, my dear Nautionus. You are obviously very intelligent and sensitive about your feelings. Now let me make things clear to you. Come, let’s have a little chat. Ha ha ha.
I didn’t feel very comfortable being around this creature. But if he was Mrs Time’s own dear brother, then I obviously had to listen to what he had to say. He was my uncle, after all.
"Nautionus, I have heard you came up with that name for yourself. Very few creatures in this land have the freedom and power to decide their own personal identity. I was one of the lucky ones. "
He snickered in a disgusting, noisy kind of way.
“I am Menseniota, your uncle. Your mother, Mrs. Time and goddess infinity did not like me very much for some reason. They didn’t give me powers. So a black hole gave me the power to give three planes to everything that existed and that will exist in the coming future. One plane is called Exus, the second plane is called Visus, and the third plane is called Zeesus.the x, y and z planes. In short, I am the dimensions.
"Menseniota, the three dimensions..."I was a bit angry that Mrs Time had not told me of all this before. I felt I had the right to know, not just discover for myself one fine day.
"Mrs Time was supposed to be the fourth plane you know. But of course, there were crazy tiffs and fights in our family. Your mother is always in a hurry to get somewhere. She is running away to catch someone or slip away from someone all the time.
Now, my darling Nautionus, knowing the curious nature that you possess, have you ever wondered, why Mrs Time was a Mrs. and not a Ms.??
Oh yes, of course, that question. It did pop in my head. It has popped in my head a million times over by now. I always wondered. But I respected Mrs Time’s silence for some reason. It felt like a silence with a reason, a quiet lesson to be learnt. Maybe that's why she didn’t tell me about Menseniota too. Who knows? But the last thing I needed was this Mrs or Ms. question to be answered by Menseniota. I didn’t really have a choice, as strange as that is.
"So, why is Mrs Time a Mrs and not a Ms. Who is her companion? She only told me of the pool of reflection."
"Ha ha… your mother Mrs Time was with Mr Tide. They were absolutely perfect for each other. They always moved away, way too fast so that nothing could stop them. It was quite a sad state of affairs.
Then what happened after that? I mean, I don’t see Mr Tide around really.
"He he...oh yes. He is around alright. Just that he is quite stationary. Ha ha ha. You know why?
"Why?”. I asked, a little scared...wondering what this monstrous creature could’ve have done next.
“Because I used the power of my three dimensions to sober him down, flatten him a bit....ha...it's sad for you, but I had to take my revenge on Mrs Time disowning the post of being my fourth dimension.
“That is just mean of you....so where is Mr Tide now?”
Oh, Mr Tide is nothing but the pool of reflection that you see now, my dear Nautionus. Guess what, he is just a mere pool of water with his magical powers....and you know what the funny part is...that now, Mrs. Time has to stop and wait and be with the pool. Ha ha ha. They can’t run around together anymore.
How dreadful and horrid of Menseniota. I took a closer look at him. Ironically, he had his very own drop of reflection and crescent of wisdom.
The strange part was that his drop of reflection wasn’t like everyone else’s. It was triangular in shape. It was contained in a little frame around his neck. It wasn’t as free and fluid as in the case of the rest of us.
So I asked him
"Strange. You made the pool of reflection...and you have a drop of it. But it's stranger that it’s not in the usual fluid form. How come yours is contained?
"Smart you are after all. Time did a good job with you."
I scorned.
"Well...my drop of reflection is triangular, simply because it’s a sign of my power.
It symbolizes the fact that I can give dimension and flatness to anything and everything I want to, even to something as fluid as the drop of reflection.
“Very nice, Now leave me alone!” I told Menseniota. “I have responsibilities to take care of.”
“Oh, yes of course, you need to build the circle of life. Not so fast, my dear Nautionus.”
“I’ll tell you what, let’s challenge each other.
“Challenge each other? Why? What will you gain from it.?”
“Oh, an excuse to use the power of my dimensions, Nautionus, I believe that there should be structure to life, a certain defining flatness to it. It makes the circle of life a little less complicated.
I felt nervous now. After the various things that Menseniota had revealed to me, I felt pathetic. But then, I remembered Mrs Time and her strength. She always believed that I was strong. So I had to be strong and fight this challenge. I had to fight to win. I couldn’t afford to be so weak.
“What is the challenge, Menseniota?
“Hmmm… I knew you’d have the courage. I am not as bad as you think I am. I just have to do my duty of using my powers, just like you have to multiply yourself; I have to apply myself, all to infinity, right?”
I half-believed and understood him for some reason. My intuition couldn’t tell me too well if he was good or bad. All I know is that I had to fight to win this challenge.
Menseniota was thinking about what the challenge would be. All I knew is that it should be in my capabilities to meet this challenge. If not, then I wouldn't be able to create the circle of life with the freedom of form and flexibility.
“You know, Nautionus, three has always been a good number for me. You see this pebble of nothingness? This one pebble is the only one that exists in this space. If you could resist my power of dimension, and manage to wrap yourself, use your freedom to adapt, and turn this pebble into a pool, then you can create the circle of life on the third planet that your sun has made. However, if you lose, then you have to build the circle of life, according to my will. “
Hmmm…I was looking at this in a positive way as well. I could still build the circle of life. Only if I lose, then my freedom of form would be taken away from me in this instance. So, I gathered all my courage and strength; or whatever little I had of it.
“Menseniota, I am ready. Let’s get to the challenge.”
“You are? Alright Nautionus, be prepared. ”
I stood there, a little vulnerable, pretending to be strong, but certain of my decision of fighting this challenge. Menseniota glanced at me, paused, snickered and within a Milli-second he picked up the pebble of nothingness and threw it at me.
I shut my eyes and imagined. I imagined this pebble as a pool, just like Mr Pool. No wait, Mr. Tide. I had to call him Mr Tide after what Menseniota told me. I thought of Mrs Time also. Her strength and beauty was so overwhelming. Wait, I was getting distracted. This cannot happen. I cannot afford to get distracted. I shifted my concentration back to the pebble. I thought of the pebble as a pool again.
Nothing seemed to be working. I opened my eyes, and alarmed I stared at Menseniota. The pebble was floating in the middle of space, right in front of me, and with a snap of his exuses, it got flattened into a line with a triangular head. It suddenly swooped straight towards me. I hunched quickly and narrowly missed its sharp attacking form. I was horrified.
Chapter 6:
“You lost, Nautionus.”
Sigh. I was just recovering from the frightening experience of that attacking form. I was blank. I didn’t feel one bit great. Bitter with the thought of that quick but heavy loss, I surrendered in dignity. What could I do? The earth was a beautiful planet. It was one of the few ones with beautiful colors painted on itself. I wanted to make it very special. Now, it would be flat and three-dimensional, thanks to Menseniota and his silly powers. I never understood it.
“Don’t be so glum. Ha ha ha. You can still build your circle of life. It’s just that it won’t look exactly the way you want it to.”
“That is a huge deal, you know, Menseniota. I really wish you understood the beauty of free form. But how could you. You’re the being of structures. Freedom is a concept beyond your understanding. If I ever was stronger than you, you would be ecstatic with the way you could feel about yourself and your form. But it doesn’t matter now. I surrender to your powers. I am just glad that I still get to build the circle of life. It will always be beautiful, no matter what you try doing to it. Over time, your powers will surrender to its beauty. The idea of Nature isn’t a small insignificant thing. You will bow down, Menseniota. You will someday.”
Menseniota looked at me with a cold, blank expression, almost as if I was in someway right and in someway wrong. He looked at me almost regretting that he had let me build the circle of life. However, he couldn’t stop me, because he would need something to apply his powers on. He was dependant on me, and I think he hated that fact.
“Whatever you say, Nautionus doesn’t matter to me at the moment. I get to use my powers on your creation. I am a happy being.”
That of course burnt me inside. But it was time I got over this. I know Mrs Time and Mr Tide wouldn’t be disappointed in my losing. I know that they would be more proud that I am to build the circle of life.
So I got down to the task with Menseniota.
Chapter 7:
Nature was my prime focus. I gave it life, and the ability to sustain itself. It was to be the prime source of inspiration, and a stimulus for the human mind. The mind of the humans would be my birth place. I could be born in them, even without them being aware of it. I could live there. Maybe this was what the unconscious state of being was all about. The concept that Mr Tide and Mrs Time always talked about, but never explained to me.
I thought of how man and woman’s union would result in a beautiful race of humans, who could protect my quality of the infinite, and apply me to this space and time. The sun would rise and set, standing for the symbol of time. It would tell day and night, seasons and eras to the humans, just as I wanted it to. It would be the life giver of Nature as well. I decided to have huge pools of reflections, in dedication to Mr Tide and his undeterred resilience. The earth could have its own drop of reflection and crescent of wisdom as well. It would be like the crown of the earth, which would look after itself and turn from a crescent to a drop every twenty eight days. I called it the moon. It was the most gorgeous thing I had imagined.
So I gathered all my thoughts, my experiences and images, I wrapped myself in possibly the most magical and biggest wrap ever to build this circle of life.
It was the most divine feeling I had ever experienced. I closed my eyes and opened them to see goddess infinity herself. She embraced every element of my wrap, and mixed it up and put a pinch of herself and let it go. She then swished herself and disappeared and everything fell to the earth and took their respective forms.
The forms were of course Menseniota’s doings. They took various shapes, and sizes, some looking quite restricted, and some looking as liberated as they could be under his power. He pulled his three dimensions together, and made all the planets circle the sun. They had their own paths to follow, something which he called as orbits. After this, he gave all the creatures, specific shape and size, which would be the same for generations.
The very first man and woman were quite different from what I imagined them to be. They had four weird extensions, something like what Frenpanio has. Their drops of reflections froze into their eyes and their crescent of wisdom became their hair and nails. The growth of these things marked their age and their learning as well.
I was too tired to be happy about all that had occurred. I left Menseniota’s side to retire for the day. I walked back to the once upon a time of nothingness and decided to stare into the sky at the millions of stars that adorned it.
I had a long day. I learnt of fear, loss, surprise, resilience, anger, compassion, love and birth. The universe had finally been set in motion. It was time for me to spring from everywhere. It was time for the millions of ideas to take form. So I waited. I waited.
Chapter 8: The story I shall write…
To go down memory lane and think of how the universe was set in motion; the entire story was an overwhelming experience. But of course, a lot more happened. I decided that I shall pass on this story of mine to everyone who was born to read and preach the philosophies of life. I shall be the source of their inspiration, their spark of thought, just like I have always been.
It was a little after dusk, when the light of the sun poured through the mesh of my little cottage. Ah, the cottage: it was a gift for me from Menseniota. He said it was important for me to understand structures and how it could function for the good. So he gave me this structure called the cottage. Menseniota was not such a bad soul after all. After this little gesture of his, he went away to take care of the other planets I think. After all, I am not aware of what else the sun has given birth to. There must be races and communities elsewhere by now. I can’t keep track of everything. Menseniota must be fighting other battles. I wonder if he could ever lose.
My thoughts always wander. It is one thing I can never have full control of. So I shift my concentration back to the story. What happened after I lost? Well… the birth of the first man and woman. The transitory souls:
Chapter 9
A long long time ago, after I lost to Menseniota, the first creatures of life on earth came into existence. Menseniota gave them legs and hands, very similar to what Frenpanio had, and he gave them unique drops of reflection and crescents of wisdom.
After this very special day, it was time for earth’s life to start its cycle. This special day marked the birth of the transitory souls. The transitory souls were nothing but the first creatures of mankind to have been brought to life on earth. They came directly from my hands, from the divine land of nothingness.
They were a race and community of their own. They were embraced by nature and they had the most beautiful home that any creature on earth could have asked for. The entire clan stayed in the beautiful
Some of the other 'transcendary' souls were Devimara, Maddox, Anitora, Sitarelia, Gehora, Hazeliara, and Pritanomia and so on. Maddox and Gehora were the brothers of
The day of the Nautionus, which is a day of celebration for the transcendary souls, is celebrated to honor me. It is celebrated one day before the solar New Year, and is marked by decorating the land of the souls with long strings of suspended paper. These papers which have all the ideas and theories written by the clan, every single day of the year, are put up and respected and honored. The strings are then tied up into one large string and tied around the tree of Nautre, which was a large redwood tree in the middle of the land where all the intellects used to gather for discussions and meetings. The paper is then soaked by the rains of the monsoon and embraced by the earth in the hope of inspiring the clan in more numbers of ways than it did thus far. Thus they pray for growing intellect and innovation. The day is usually full of festivities and song and dance, and goes on from dusk till the New Year’s dawn.
When the first Nautionus day was celebrated in the
It was at the end of dusk when the song and dance illuminated the soul of
“
Chapter 10
Mornings were always pleasant in this land. It was bustling with activity for most souls of the community. This was when
Today was to be an extraordinary day, for it brought to man movement and heat. These two things spun stories around themselves later on.
As he thought and thought and thought, Hiroshima walked deep into the forests and then stopped at its heart to rest and feel the sweet air and the fresh greenery around. He was thinking of the rattle snake. The one he had spotted just a while ago, trying to understand why it curled itself so perfectly into a sphere-like shape. It moved away slowly, crawling into a thick bush.
His thoughts wandered off into different worlds, while having a strong feeling that he was going to built what no man has built before. He looked up into the sky crinkling his eyes from the bright sunrays. He then bent down at the spot he was, and picked up a long stick. He dragged the stick, around him, like he was the centre and the stick was the radius, and he drew a huge circle. He then, collected some water from a near by stream and poured it around on the circularly marked mud. He looked up, and prayed. He prayed in hope of the two gifts to mankind. Movement, like that of the curled up snake, which would help mould wet mud and move man from far and near. It would help carry the onus of the beasts, help spin yarn in the hands of great people and sometimes be a toy to the restless children.
“Lift this space, into the wheel, and help me recreate movement to mankind, oh sun, for like your energy and drive, may this wheel drive people and facilitate movement from community and community. May it bring peace and harmony.”
He opened his eyes to find the structures, beautifully built from a mixture of the tree’s wood and some wet mud.
It was dark by the time; he explored the wheel, and he decided to start on this new idea. He rubbed his hands together, closing his eyes, and concentrated hard on the warmth that was generated. He thought carefully, of the sun and the warmth and light that it gave to mankind everyday. The sun’s rays kept nature alive. It helped flowers bloom and fruits ripen. It gave soul to the overenthusiastic and eager seed that waited to germinate and breathe life. The sun’s rays were the inspiration. His recreation would be of the warmth and the light, just like the sun did. It would ward off evil and satisfy the hungry souls. It would soften meat and crisp the bread everyday. Children could dance around it, warming up their tiny cold feet on a long winter’s night.
He rubbed his hands a little more and clapped it once and raised it above towards the sky. In the dark sky of the night, among the glistening stars, the clouds parted and one gleaming ray of the sun danced and perched itself on his palm. And in a moment of magic, a spark of fire fell to the ground and lit the dry leaves below.
And so it happened, one of the most remarkable moments in human history, the fire was sacred, the fire was important; the fire was a significant part of most human activities. It is worshipped, like I Nautionus is. It brings the rains; it drives away evil, and even inspires passion between moment and time.
Chapter 11
And so the invention of the wheel and the creation of fire by
It was a sunny afternoon, when
Her sisters hurriedly took her into a separate room, while Maddox went to spread the good news to everyone in the community.
As he grew up, naughty and courageous, he slowly learnt of his father’s wisdom and knowledge, and gained strength and tenacity from his mother. He was a responsible lad, and helped the community to carry their ideas forward. From the birth of the plant to the moulding of the vessel, he helped bring about agriculture and breeding of animals. Slowly, the community started dispersing and moving into unknown lands with the help of the wheel. Then they spread out far and wide, trying to understand the land, the space and came up with ideas to best utilize it. The barter system, the seasons for crop, the domestication of animals, the study of plants, all was done with the guidance of Ofia.
Things started to grow more complex, and Ofia was now as wise as his father. As the community grew bigger, it became more and more difficult for Ofia to and
This complexity in the human intellect was to serve the mankind to come. Little did the people know that with every idea that they built, and reached a level higher in the human brain, they took a step closer to the most powerful battle of mankind. The intellect was to fight the heart’s desires. Ofia would be the giver, and would sacrifice himself for the benefit of every human being. He was selfless and pure at heart, and so he decided that for everything that his father had built, he should be a part of the battleground.
Chapter 12
For there was war of the head and the heart in the human body itself, It was in the temple of the earth that this battle began.
After reaching so far, man was pulled between his growing intelligence and innovation to serve mankind. But there were the desires of the heart- of owning, possessing and feeling for what was his.
So this battle was played out in one body and only one. This was the body of Ofia. One half was possessed by my strength and the other half was possessed by the demons of desire.
I felt sad for Ofia, for he sacrificed himself to the opposing forces. It created so much of tension, that his chest was physically being torn apart.
I created the spirits: geniuses they were really. They occupied the right side of the temple. They prepared for days, starting to think of what was to come before them. Soon, they were ready to take on anything that came their way. They created and innovated, over time, fascinating things which later became significant parts of mankind. Man started heavily depending on these creations. They exercised their ideas and reached their full potential, trying to break the boundaries of the human mind, they thought of things that no man had thought, and they built what no man could build before. Over time, they cracked the complex codes of human existence and nature’s existence; (all very scientific in nature.) they discovered and studied the mystery of the DNA, gravity and nanotechnology, from the telephone and television to the safety pin and pencils. They even created art and found different ways of making food delicious. They travelled the moon and created nuclear energy as well.
Then there were the demons of desire. They were strong competitors and challenged the geniuses to a great extent. They created everything that drew away the strength of the human mind. They created the greed of money, lust and jealousy, gluttony and sloth. But the worst of them all, these demons had created. It was the strongest weapon that was to destroy the future of life on earth: the sense of possession, the human ego.
They battled each other day and night, some creating and some destroying. Dark clouds enveloped the earth some days, when nature slowly realized the doom that was to come. The human mind was growing, but so was the human ego. There would be one day when it would completely take over and take advantage of all.
And so, the day did come, when the geniuses slowly started falling for desire. As their ideas grew and grew, they wanted more and more of recognition and fame, possession and money. It started slowly in the form of copyrights and patents, and later these selfish motives of mankind started the deterioration the relationship of man with nature.
It was evident by now, that however strong these genius spirits were, it was of no use. I lost again, trying hard to not give in. but there was always something about me that I could never fully understand. It was a flaw or a hole inside me that kept growing and growing every time I failed to accomplish something. I almost felt like I was in the control of someone else, and I don’t know why, but I never felt this strongly before as I did now.
Standing helplessly, I watched man slowly being taken over by his very own ego: the weapon of desire. They slowly started to destroy everything they had by creating more only because they wanted more.
Chapter 13
It grew and grew like a gigantic bubble, almost ready to burst. It was to be of great harm some day. Nothing of this scale was seen before by anyone on the earth. Everything that was around, he thought, belonged to his intellect.
“Everything I have created. For everything, I have the answer. One wonders now if there ever is a super power. One day, I shall find the answers to the creation of this universe. Everything shall be nothing but a slave to me!!!”
He laughed like a beast: A beast that was growing from the greed and the overconfidence, little did he know that the earth was boiling under his feet, waiting to consume him, and his growing ego. The one thing that he created long existed. Has he forgotten that? The fire that was born from his ancestor's palms was long brewing under his very own feet. It was almost like nature predicted that this day will come. The Fire that gave warmth to the human life and soul, will it now betray him.
Hearing these self - obsessed lines only added more fuel to the fire. After all these days, nature came pleading to me. She spoke with a burden and helplessness in her voice
“How dare they think so high of themselves? Their ego has consumed everything that they were. There is no humility left in these creatures. We were born from the same hands, the hands of Nautionus, and they have forgotten our very own powerful roots. They have forgotten the companionship that we were born to serve
for each other. They have disconnected themselves from the rest of the earth. They know not what they have gotten themselves into. I have tried, tried very hard to make them understand. With birth comes responsibility… with power comes responsibility. They have very obviously not followed the philosophies of the ancestors.
Nature looked up to me, with helpless but angry eyes, and said…” I know my powers and responsibility. And I have always understood it. I needed to have taught them. You have given us this power and I feel I should exercise it in the time of need. I tossed huge waves on human shelters. I took lives from them in the form of plague. I tried teaching them of the wrath of rain, and the pain of earth’s tremors. But what have they seen? They saw nothing but human suffering; nothing but human pain. What about me? They never sympathized with my very own state. I who give selflessly, day in and day out, have never uttered a word till this moment, only for I considered that we were one, we were together. I was Nature, their once loving companion. Mankind worshipped me once, dear Nautionus. What am I to do?”
Betrayal in your very own family is the worst thing one could ever face. But what can one really do when one calls it upon oneself?
Chapter 14
Bitter sweet moments they were, to watch what was born from your hands grow so much, but only to know that they were growing to destroy themselves. I saw myself grow in them, every moment, every second, into something so complex and beautiful, I saw myself being applied, being used, being adapted. This was the soul reason the creatures of this earth came into existence, and I saw it all of it unfold in front me. I survived to see this day, this time of mankind. To see him grow to his full potential, and to build things so unimaginable even by me, was a true delight. But little did I know that I also seeded monsters on this earth, and for this reason these moments became bitter. What if my idea of the human creature itself was wrong? Maybe I built it all wrongly in my head. Maybe something went wrong when dimensions were applied to them. Maybe, just maybe it was meant to be, this cycle of life and death. How am I supposed to know of it? I sat and watched weakly listening to their prayers. They wanted to grow more, they wanted to build more, and they wanted to conquer more. They desired more and more and they never wanted to stop with what they had. The once upon a time dream of mine was turning into a nightmare.
Meanwhile, the mistress came. She was the mistress of knowing it all at once, objectively and truthfully, as things were meant to be. Her name was Whizkipedia. She danced like it was Nautionus day all the time, whenever she benefited out of something of course. She laughed like a hyena and always played the meanest pranks on everything that caught her attention. But she always spoke the truth. She spoke the truth that sometimes a creature would deny himself of and pretend to be blissful. She spoke of truth like a sharp knife that cut the skin of the soul. But she spoke the truth, nothing but the truth. She was evil for she loved taking people for a ride, but she always tuned in to her serious mode when she needed to.
Whizkipedia came down from the family of Menseniota, but didn’t turn out to be as destructive as he was. She was his black hole, the same one that Menseniota got his powers from. Funnily, that entire side of the family always got me to an end or a beginning of something new.
“Hello Nautionus. I see nature pleading at your feet to unleash his true powers, eh?”
“Whizkipedia! What brings you here? It’s funny how you and your relatives talk so similarly. I shouldn’t be surprised actually.”
“Just dropped in to fill you in on some advice I have for you.”
“Is that true? That is a bit odd. How come you have this sudden interest in me? “
If I have not mentioned before, Whizkipedia and I had first encountered each other, when Menseniota was busy building the earth. I did not take much notice of her then, but it seemed like she took very good notice of me. She assisted Menseniota in times of need, and did a good job with it too. It was later that the sun told me of her stories and character, the ones he had heard from around the rest of the universe. I am not too well connected. We encountered each other again after that, during the first Nautionus day, when she came to wish me.
“Why, you always had my attention Nautionus, because I pierce the knife of truth and reality into those who need it. In this case, some sensibility is needed.”
“Ah. What is it that you have to say?”
“Well, Nautionus. Nature is still at your feet. And I think you should make your decision.”
Decisions: I had to decide whether I could - man or nature. I had to practically choose between the two. They were something I built for each other, and now they stand apart-Waiting to cut each other’s throats. All this was in my hands, to let nature unleash all the power she had. And she, who was ever selfless and caring, came to me to ask. She did not have to. The powers were hers. She only asked, because man was my baby. The universe was my baby.
Whizkipedia looked at me intently. She said, “Look Nautionus, let me tell you something. This mankind you have created is a very powerful force. But sometimes, power can go out of control too. It lies within the person to identify and understand his powers and its capability. Mankind has not done so yet. He has used it for the wrong reasons in a lot of instances. Now let nature show the capabilities of what power she possesses. She is exercising it the right way. Nothing should be stopping her now, for you should remember, that there is a cycle of life and death as well…and she needs to live now.”
I looked at Whizkipedia, not knowing what to say, but being sure of my already hesitating decision. Of course, I felt strong about letting this happen. But I think I needed to, only because there needs to be a justified way of doing this. What mankind did is unfair. And he needs to fight his way to justice.
“I admire your strength and courage, nature. Teach them a lesson if you feel they have not learned enough. If mankind was bound to be destroyed, he shall be. Or.He shall fight his way to the top. It’s the test of his intellect. More importantly, it is the test of his heart.”
And so I let it go, fully sinking myself into the sense of Whizkipedia words, nature’s power, and mankind’s destruction.
Fierce it was, as nature had no mercy now. She tried teaching the lessons long ago, only man did not quite understand. So she planned for doomsday,
She tossed huge waves of lava on man, which consumed almost every man that existed. The hot orange liquid moved slowly and lethally around the earth. This was followed by heavy torrential rains. The torrential rains cooled the earth’s surface and solidified the orange liquid and laid new ground. Every human skull seemed to have been fossilized. There was not the slightest chance that any human could have survived such a catastrophe.
Chapter 15
Watching the earth sowing the seed of its own destruction was the most painful event to be a witness to. What had mankind done?
A million questions kept sprouting up in my head, and I was longing for peace and quiet. I felt absolutely helpless and futile, just sitting over everything and not be able to take action.
All that I built was falling apart. I had created monsters! All of them had turned out to live only for their own selfish motives and everything revolved only around them.
Faint were the thoughts of my own family. I didn’t even know if I could call them so anymore.
I was just sitting down to get in touch with my drop of reflection, when Wikipedia landed up from thin air. Like all this wasn’t enough, she was someone I really didn’t have the patience for.
“Hmmm…getting in touch with your inner self I see, eh?”
“Yeah…so?”
She was a bit startled by my remark.
“Oh my my! So bitter you have become. I see you can’t bear the fact that your crumbling into little pieces, can you?
“I never said anything like that!”
Oh sure. You did not have to. It’s quite obvious. What happened now? Is the crumbling bothering you that much?”
“No Whizkipedia! I am just mad. I am mad at everything. I am mad that suddenly everything makes no sense anymore. Everything seems to be loosing its meaning, its purpose, its identity. It has come to the point where I am starting to doubt my roots. I mean, I do respect everything that Mrs. Time and goddess infinity had strived for. I respect it with all my soul. But it is almost like there is a loophole somewhere. It feels like something is missing. “
I snapped out of it. Wait…what was I doing?
“Wait… why am I telling you all of this?”
Whizkipedia snickered at me, and then looked at me with an understanding and wickedly wise expression on her face.
That is the part I hated most. As much as she had this sadistic habit of bursting everyone’s bubble, she used her crescent of wisdom to its maximum capacity. It made her approachable and understanding, almost like she knew the nature of everything around her, inside out.
“Nautionus, you are starting to question your very own existence. I do hope you realize that.”
“Yes. I am.”
“Well, Nautionus. Tell me something, you claim to have created these magnificent machines called man and woman who would give birth to you till infinity, right?”
“Well…yes. I did give birth to them. They didn’t exactly turn out to be how I wanted them to be. But, essentially, they do what I built them to do.”
“See, that is the thing. Have you ever wondered why you have such human like qualities to yourself?”
“Huh? What’s that supposed to mean? Coming to think about it, maybe I do. But what sort of coincidence is that?”
“That is exactly my point, Nautionus, that this is no coincidence. You claim that you are an idea that was born from Mrs. Time and that Mrs. Time was born from goddess infinity. But what are they really?”
“Why? What are they? They are what they are!”
“Ah, well, what are they? They themselves could be ideas, Nautionus, Ideas that belong to a certain someone: A concept. They might not really exist.”
“So what are you trying to tell me? That all this is just in someone’s head? Just like I am? You are saying that time and infinity, my very own family, does not actually exist!”
“It could be all the doings of the human world.”
“So, what I believed that I had built all this while has actually been such that they have built me…”
“….and made you believe that you built all of this: The universe, the system, the earth. I am sorry; Nautionus, but this could be the truth. It has always been said, that what is time and infinity but a concept in man’s head? One wonders if these exist beyond the spaces of the human mind.”
(THE END)
No comments:
Post a Comment