The fierce afternoon sun scorched the parched earth, leaving cracks and dead plants in its wake. The couple labored along the road towards their destination – anywhere away from their doomed village. Their clothes were tattered and their bare feet were covered with blisters. Their earthly possessions were inside a basket that was being carried by the heavily pregnant woman.
‘We are doomed,’ fumed her husband and slowed down, frustration and defeat written on his sunburnt face.
‘Keep faith, husband. Our God will not desert us.’ She muttered as she reduced her pace of walking to match his.
‘Pah!’ he spat and said, ‘Your God has done nothing for us. He has taken away the water from our well, the plants from our soil, even the cows and goats. Now we are running away from our own place like a couple of rats.’
‘You should work hard, human, instead of blaming your Gods!’ A booming voice reverberated, making them jump. The woman tracked the direction and spotted a pipal tree in the distance. Unlike the dead vegetation in the land, this particular tree was green and thriving. The man ran towards the tree.
‘Who is speaking?’ He asked with trepidation.
‘How does it matter?’ the voice answered before continuing, ‘The Gods desire him who offers worship and works hard. Haven’t you heard of the story of Yavakrita who became a scholar through hard work?’
‘This must be a deva or yaksha,’ the man thought to himself. ‘He is testing me.’ Coming to a quick decision, the man prostrated on the ground before the tree. ‘Bless me, O! Celestial being,’ He chanted.
‘What do you want, human?’
‘Lady luck has deserted me, Sire! Please bless me with all the luck in the world.’
‘What do you have to offer me?’
‘I have nothing to offer you except my obeisance,’ the man mumbled.
‘I’m hungry,’ boomed the voice. ‘I will grant your wish if you offer me what your wife is carrying.’
The woman’s eyes went round with shock and fear. She started mumbling No, but her husband said yes.
‘No!’ She gasped. ‘What have you done?’
‘Huh!’ The man looked confused. ‘I offered the contents of your basket.’
‘You fool! You fool!’ She started shrieking, holding her stomach as the hideous form of the Brahmarakshasa materialized before them.
Note: Brahmins are a class in Hinduism. They are traditionally well-learned scholars, teachers, priests, and the protectors of the sacred learnings across generations. According to Hindu mythology when a Brahmin does evil or misuses his knowledge when he’s alive, he’s cursed to exist as the demonic Brahmarakshasa until he attains salvation. Brahmarakshasas, while being carnivorous ogres, retain the knowledge of the brahmin when he was alive as well. They grant wishes to those who please them and prey on innocent people and children.
Glossary:
- Brahmarakshasa – the demonic spirit of a brahmin (a scholar)
- Deva – Gods/ Angels
- Yaksha – benevolent spirits
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1. Tales With A Twist – A collection of my short stories.
2. Route 13 : Highway to Hell– An anthology of horror short stories.
Brilliantly written…
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What greed and desperation can do to humans! I enjoyed the story.
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The husband is an idiot! Great ending – made me shudder.
Tasha 💖
Virginia’s Parlour – The Manor (Adult concepts – nothing explicit in posts)
Tasha’s Thinkings – Vampire Drabbles
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Thanks, Tasha. Had to use the dumb, greedy husband trope somewhere.
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Classic mistake in traditional stories… people never learn.
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Greed blinds people, whatever the day and age might be.
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Mythology theme brought me back here… I am not sure if my comment on A was received by you…. Anyways, this one for letter B is also another well portrayed post… I love the way the story unfolds and the stupidity of the husband….
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Thank you for your reply. Your comment was, unfortunately, in the spam section and I restored it. I’m glad you liked the story 🙂
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So this theme of mythology means I’m back on your blog again. This is another fascinating entry. These characters, like Brahmarakshasha, could well be part of a Speculative Fiction series from you some day. 🙂
All the best for the rest.
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Thank you for the kind words. 🙂 I love mythology and hope to write a longer piece in this genre some day.
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That’s wonderful. All the best for that. 🙂
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This is knowledge sharing and reading pleasure combined brother. Great thing and gripping narration!
Cheers,
CRD
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great theme*
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Thank you, CRD. Glad you like the series.
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A scary story indeed with a really interesting footnote. I’ve learned from some of the comments too!. Looking forward to tomorrow.
My A-Z tale!
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Cheers, Keith. Glad you liked the story and the myth behind it.
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In Marathi there is a proverb which means there is a Braham Rakshas behind every the timid. However this Marathi Brahma Rakshas has nothing in common with the one in the story you narrated.
Very interesting piece of folklore.
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The stories behind such mythical creatures vary according to geography. In Bengal, the Brahmarakshasas are called Brahmodoityos and while retaining most of the characteristics of the former, they are vegetarians. In the upcoming stories I have tried to find similarities between creatures from different cultures. Thanks for the comment, Anagha.
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Oh, wow! Chilling!
@JazzFeathers
The Old Shelter – Living the Twenties
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Thak you 🙂
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Awesome concept. Very well written.
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Thank you, YT. 🙂
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Comment continued…
These stories of yours are indeed really entertaining and brings back memories of my childhood when my granny used to tell me such tales.
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Thank you, Jai. Glad you liked it.
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This story is new to me. I had heard of the story of the war between indra and the asura you had narrated for the letter A. Thes
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Woah! So in temples in Kerala, we have a section for the Bramharakshas. I don’t think it’s the same as I think what you’ve written is about raakshas while this is rakshas (protector). Now I’ve the urge to find out what ours is.
An intriguing story. I’ll definitely come back for more!
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The interpretation varies based on geography. For example, the definition of Mohinis is completely different from Kerala to Bengal. Thank you for the comment, Ranjini.
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Very well written and interesting!
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Thank you
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Bramarakshasa (si) is a word we use quite often to describe mischievous and adamant kids. Never knew the backstory, though.
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My grandfather used to tell us stories about Brahmarakshasas and most of those stories were scary.
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Thanks for enlightening me. In Bengal, we have a ghost called Bhramhadaityo, when a Brahmin dies in an accident, commits suicide or some other sin he does not get salvation after death and becomes a Brahmadaityo. There is also another concept called Munjia, when an unmarried Brahmin dies he becomes a munjia. Both are carnivores.
https://trinalooksback.com/2020/04/02/boredom-and-creativity-a-zchallenge-april-2020/
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Brahmadaityos and Brahmarakshasas are one and the same, with subtle changes according to the cultures that varies with geography. Thanks for the comment, Balaka, and for introducing Munija to me.
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I read about Munjia in a Ruskin Bond story called ‘the family ghost’
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Not anything I’d want to encounter! I feel bad for the husband and wife 😦
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Depends on the fate of the person who encounters these beings. They might end up with some gold coins or in the belly of the beast.
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Ah!
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In yesterday’s post, it was Vritra, today its Brahmarakshasa. You are going to give me tons of information by the end of this series…keep them coming..
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Thanks for the comment. I’m enjoying writing this series.
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Wow. So much in so few words. And horror: I got the shivers at the end. Like I said before. Your writing + “new” mythology: a big win-win for me. What will C bring?
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Thanks for the comment, Stu. C is already up.
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I had never heard of this. Thank you!
Happy Blogging 🙂
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Thanks, Dream.
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Never heard of a Brahmarakshasa before! Another well-written piece of flash fiction.
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Thanks, Namy.
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