Chapter Twelve: In the World of Deception
Now I'm sitting with my friend Swami Vedanand in a well-ventilated room on the second floor of his monastery with breathtaking views over the hillside that will be the starting point of my perilous journey. Yes, just after the hill lies the forest--the great Patal Forest, which holds in itself the secret gateway to the netherworld.
'I think you should never go alone on such a journey. Also, you've got no right to deprive me of the magical taste of this rare adventure. What do you say?' asks Vedanand. I remain silent for a moment and then try to dissuade him, 'I'm thinking of what would happen to your monastery. Nobody knows when or whether we'd be able to return. Mull over it once again.'
'Don't worry about that. There're some other monks who can do all the work at ease. Seriously, I don't want to miss out on the thrills and spills of the exceptionally adventurous journey.
'In addition, I won't let you make it all alone. Do you see what I really mean?'
'Without a shadow of a doubt. Anyway, go and pack the necessary things. We should not waste time--if everything goes well, we can set out tomorrow morning. Okay?'
'Okay, sir! But we'd better start in the early hours--even before the night comes to an end, even before the mortals wake up.'
'Let it be so.' I confirm.
It's now 3 o'clock in the morning. After making all the arrangements as desired, Vedanand and I are walking side by side along a narrow winding path uphill with the help of torchlight. An owl is hooting very near. Not a single human is being seen anywhere as expected. 'How do you take an owl's hoot?' I look for his opinion. Vedanand answers in a low voice, 'It's generally regarded as a bad omen, an indicative of doom and gloom. But it HAS a special spiritual significance. It may also mean "destruction in your material world and construction in your spiritual world". In Hinduism, both the goddess of destruction Kalika and the god of destruction Shiva bear this highly spiritual denotation. If you worship them, they're expected to primarily impart you spiritual prosperity, not material.'
'You're absolutely right about that. Spiritual aspirants or the seekers of God always put emphasis on their spiritual growth, not their material, because they know it very well material treasure can't give them eternal or endless pleasure, but it's only spiritual wealth that ensures permanent happiness. That's why most of the time such people are seen to neglect their material attainments. The general people of the world call them fools, but at the end of the day, spiritual seekers are seen to come out most prudent and victorious.'
We've already reached the other side of the hill. Now Vedanand comments, 'From here start our ordeals. Let's stay alert all the time. Let's keep all our eyes and ears fully open. Who knows how and when Evil launches an attack?'
I fervently add, 'My Guru has advised me to strongly suspect everything in this forest, which is a veritable world of deception. We may be deceived by anyone and anything anywhere at any time before we find out the hidden temple of Pataleshwar Shiva, where we can get the design of the hidden gate of the silver tunnel leading to the netherworld. The design inscribed either on a wall or the floor of the temple will show us where the secret gate is located and how it looks.'
Suddenly, Vedanand cries out, 'O God, what's that? Look over there.'
Alarmed, I look and look and look. . ..