My trials, tribulations, triumphs and more... - Arjuna.

Chapter 1: Childhood in the forests ...

Narration by Arjuna...

Let me dwell into my childhood...

Our childhood spent in the forests was so lovely, and it remained a sweet memory for us. It was a memorable phase, where we had lots of fun and enjoyed life to the fullest.

Our father Maharaj Pandu was a loving man, and our mothers Kunti mata and Madri mata were very kind and generous. We were brought up in such an environment, where there was kindness, compassion and love all around. It was quite a stark contrast to what, we had endure later on in our life.

We were five brothers, and were so close and bound to each other like each side of a pentagon. Eldest one was named as Yudhistir, after him it was Bhim, then myself Arjuna, and after me my little twin brothers Nakul and Sahadev. During our childhood, there were constant murmurs going around the ashram, that we were born in fact through the boons of various Gods and not the true blood of Maharaj Pandu. People used to murmur that, Yudhistir bhai was born through the boon of Yam Dharmaraj, Bhim bhai of Pawan Dev, myself of Indra Dev and Nakul/Sahadev of Ashwini Devtas. But, nevertheless we always identified ourselves as sons of Maharaj Pandu and were proud of that. Maharaj Pandu instilled in us a sense of discipline and brought us up with good morals and values. Even though, our father pampered and loved us a lot, but when it came to reciting of scriptures, learning of various mantras, preparing for physical exercises or conducting training exercises with various weapons, he was very strict.

In our childhood at various times, we were reminded that we were of royal lineage and our father a king. But, we had to move to forests, as our father had to do lead a simple life doing tapasya for some kind of redemption. We never understood, what was this all about in our childhood though.

Our home was located near the mountain valley surrounded by thick forest cover and nearby there were quite a few water falls and rivers. It made for a picturesque and serene environment. There was constant chirping and melodious singing of various birds which made for a musical environment. 

Our home used to be very busy with movement of people all the time, some bringing in materials for worship, others some cooking materials and some others vegetables/fruits and maids assisting our matas with daily chores and so on. There used to be regular sessions of Vedic hymns chanting conducted by the sages and their students. Our father used to spend quite a lot of time with the sages discussing with them on different subjects like dharma (sense of duty), karma (resultant of ones actions/inactions), moksh (liberation), devotion and so on.

Our daily schedule used to start very early in the morning and we were greatly indebted to our father for bringing us up with strict discipline which proved to be so valuable for us later on in our lives. Our father, used to wake us up early and then we all would go to the nearby river to take a dip in the cold water and have our bath and then used to offer prayers to Lord Surya Narayan. After that, we used to return home and have our breakfast, it was a modest breakfast as our father was against indulgence. We sensed that he was practising some kind of tapasya and restrained us in over indulgence of any kind. Normally, we used to have rotis and saag along with some fruits and fresh salads. And, on special occasions like Dussehra and Diwali, we were served with delicious sweets mainly made up of milk. I usually was very reluctant to have food and tried to avoid my quote of food by tricking my matas, as I was more keen to roam around the forests and take my little brothers along and play with them. But, Madri mata never used to allow that and she used to make me sit in her lap and made me eat food. She used to pamper me a lot and never allowed anyone be it Kunti mata or our father or elder brothers to shout at me or scold me. Sometimes, I get tears when I reminiscence my childhood and how my Madri mata loved me and showered her affection for me.