Vikram Vethal, 25. The Magic Necklace

The Magic Necklace

The dark night and cracks of thunder, preceded by flashes of lightning, revealed weird faces and created a frightening atmosphere. The jackals howled and peals of evil laughter could be heard. King Vikram was however undeterred. He climbed the ancient tree again, brought down the corpse and threw it across his shoulders. He began crossing the deserted cremation ground when the vampire that possessed the corpse spoke up:

“O King, are you doing this to master some supernatural power? It is very risky to possess supernatural power. Bhimsingh was a person who had this kind of power. Do you think it did him any good? Listen to his story. This may enlighten you and bring you some relief from this dreary task”.

The vampire went on: “Bhimsingh was a farmer who worked hard on his farm. One day, while levelling the ground, his shovel clanged against something hard in the soil. And he dug out a jar! He opened it and was surprised to find in it a gold necklace and a palm leaf with something inscribed on it. He took both home, and deciphered the inscription on the palm leaf after a struggle.

The inscription narrated the strange story of a man who lived more than a century before. This man had received a magic necklace from a mendicant. Whenever he wore the necklace, he was able to know the secret thoughts of anyone he met. He misused this power to blackmail many wealthy persons and the king’s officers, who nursed sinful or criminal desires. He became very rich through the bribes he received from them in order to remain silent. One day, when he wore the necklace, he found that his wife did not love him anymore and was in love with someone else. He went mad with fury and killed his wife. After a while, he was overcome with remorse. So he buried the necklace along with his account of the consequences of using the necklace. Then he left for the forest to live the life of a hermit.

The discovery of the necklace and the manuscript amazed Bhimsingh. However, curiosity got the better of him and he put the necklace on, and strolled through the village. He owed money to a certain Lombu Singh, a relative of the landlord. As soon as he saw Lombu, he realised that the fellow was plotting to kill the landlord. Lombu had employed two ruffians to attack the landlord during his daily evening stroll around his grove.

“But isn’t our landlord a noble soul?” Bhimsingh muttered. Astonished, Lombu looked at Bhimsingh with suspicion. Bhimsingh was now sure of the magic powers of the necklace, but he did not reveal anything. He proceeded to the grove where the ruffians were hiding and he himself hid behind some bushes. On seeing the landlord, the ruffians who had been waiting for him, got up and raised their sticks.

Instantly Bhimsingh jumped forward and brought down an iron rod on the ruffians. They fell down and groaned. Bhimsingh called out to the villagers and many came running. The ruffians confessed about their plan implicating Lombu Singh, who then had to flee from the village. Feeling grateful, the landlord gave Bhimsingh a big reward. The landlord praised Bhimsingh constantly.

In course of time, the people realized that Bhimsingh had the power to read the minds of other people. But nobody knew how Bhimsingh had acquired such powers. One day Bhimsingh came to know that his neighbour’s daughter Ratna loved him. He proposed to Ratna and got married to her with her father’s blessings. .

Once while talking to a group of well-dressed travellers, Bhimsingh became aware that they were imposters, who had come to loot the treasury. He sent word to the king, and the king’s soldiers rushed to capture the gang of bandits. In the same way, Bhimsingh helped to capture many bad elements and foiled many sinister plots. He grew famous for his amazing deductive powers. Gradually it became known that there was a threat to his life. Many criminals were waiting for a chance to kill him. But Bhimsingh had an advantage over his adversaries because he could know their plans in advance.

“Can you tell me what I am thinking about right now?” asked the king.

“Your Majesty, you are thinking that it won’t be possible for me to spell out your thought”, replied Bhimsingh.

The king complimented him and appointed him as a courtier. Bhimsingh became richer and more famous. He ran a parallel centre of power since all the court officials paid him to find out what the king thought about them!

One evening, the king sent for him and asked him confidentially: “Do you know why I called you?”

“Yes, Your Majesty, you wish to know the mind of the queen!”

“Excellent. Now, go and meet the queen under the pretext of delivering this message to her and read her mind”, said the king, handing him a letter.

Bhimsingh took the letter to the queen. It contained information that a celebrated musician was expected to entertain them in the evening. Looking at the queen, Bhimsingh realised that she did not have any love or respect for the king. Her thoughts were about several persons to whom she felt attracted.

However Bhimsingh on his return to the king, said: “Your Majesty, the queen loves you very much”. The king was so happy that he gifted him the most precious jewel he was wearing then.

At home, Bhimsingh behaved strangely; he hurled the magic necklace into the fire. Instead of melting, it just evaporated. Later that night, Bhimsingh and his wife left the kingdom for a far away town.

The vampire paused and turned to King Vikramaditya: “Tell me, O King, why did Bhimsingh destroy the magic necklace? Wasn’t the necklace helping him as well as others? Why did he leave the kingdom? Answer me, O King, if you can. If you keep mum though you may know the answer, your head would roll off your neck. Beware!”

The king answered forthwith: “Bhimsingh was a man with essentially good beliefs and values. He made proper use of the powers the necklace gave him as long as he could. But a stage came when he knew it was not possible for him to use the power and remain good at the same time forever. Though one may have special powers, one must be mentally strong, too. Both the qualities may not be found together in any person. Bhimsingh lacked the will to tell the king the truth as he knew it; at the same time he felt wretched for having told a lie to the king. He, therefore, decided to give up his power and position. He had to leave the kingdom, because the king and the others would continue to expect his service and they would only get annoyed if he did not oblige them. Besides, in the absence of the necklace, he knew that he could not survive in that land”.

No sooner had the king concluded his answer than the vampire, along with the corpse, gave him the slip. Vikramaditya drew his sword and went after the vampire.