Arcane Rhapsodies - A tale of two cousins

Tropenmuseum, part of the National Museum of World Cultures [CC BY-SA 3.0
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

The Prince, Ajatasattu, became his ardent devotee,

“Your father, our King, is unable to see,

He aids Gautam despite Gautam’s old age.

A Prince?! Huh! Where is your warrior’s rage?

A canary in this golden cage!”

“You desire to rule, do you not?”,

Little by little, Devadatta began to plot.

“I shall win, if the Prince takes the throne,

Gautam must die.”, he was maligned by that thought alone.

He wished to be the leader, the supreme one,

He lost his ‘iddhi’ as soon as this thought he spun.

But Buddha had himself refused to let him have his way,

Devdatta meandered along hate, he had lead himself astray.

Not only did he coax a son to torture his father,

But he weaved a plan that would lead to slaughter.

He would kill Buddha with some help from the King.

He spoke wildly, “Ajatasattu, great news I bring.

Soon, Gautam shall pass through your kingdom,

Position your archers as I say and He shall be overcome.”

The King nodded and did as he was told,

Not one but sixteen archers patrolled.

Each was given a different road to man,

One to kill the other, such was Devadatta’s plan.

About the post: This an excerpt from "Arcane Rhapsodies". It narrates the tale of two cousins, Gautam Buddha and Devadatta, who were so different from each other, in thought and action. Devadatta aspired to be greater than Gautam Buddha and form his own order of Buddhism, there are several stories that depict his envy and hatred towards his cousin, so much so that he tried to kill Gautam Buddha. Ajatasattu was his devotee, the prince of Magadha, who imprisoned & tortured his father and King at the behest of Devadatta. 

You can find more about the book here:

Arcane Rhapsodies on Goodreads

Arcane Rhapsodies on Amazon.in

Arcane Rhapsodies on Authorspress website

Arcane Rhapsodies-The Witch's Well

"John William Waterhouse - Magic Circle" by John William Waterhouse - Tate Britain. Licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons - http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:John_William_Waterhouse_-_Magic_Circle.JPG#/media/File:John_William_Waterhouse_-_Magic_Circle.JPG

She bit his hands until she was gagged,

He struck her, towards the forest she was dragged.

The moon was witness to the woman’s plight,

On the eve of that Walpurgis Night.

He unsheathed his sword, his eyes were cold,

She mumbled her last words, the future she foretold.

“I shall meet you again, reward you I must.

A soirée awaits, it begins, only just.”

His mighty sword dealt the fatal blow

That’s how the witch fell ages ago.

The valiant soldier wiped his bloodied blade,

The price of heresy, the woman had paid.

He said a solemn prayer by the sacred well,

One and all would remember the day she fell.

He removed her rings, her beautiful locket,

He shoved her into the well, the jewellery in his pocket.

With a glint of greed and a dash of pride,

Off he went, to his newfound fame he applied.

The Walpurgis Night descended soon,

Witches from across the land began to commune.

They revelled freely upon the Brocken heights,

They chanted their spells and finished their rites.

As the night began to draw to a close,

By the sacred well, a young witch froze.

They all gathered around the sacred well,

“Daughters of magic, we must invoke a sacred spell.

Our sister is taken much before her time,

The murderer must be punished for this crime.”

One by one, they said an ancient prayer,

Each plucked out one strand of hair,

Each wished aloud for their sister fair.

Each gave her part of their souls’ share.

That Walpurgis Night, the slain witch did rise,

Amidst her sisters’ mystical cries.

The arcane verses of the spell made her undead,

“Farewell till we meet again.”, they said.

The witches dispersed as daylight raced with them,

The undead witch cast a spell for a hem.

It stitched her wounds, it sewed her back,

But no spell or stitch could dispel the black.

About the post: This is an excerpt from my book, "Arcane Rhapsodies", the poem being "The Witch's Well". Will the witch exact her revenge? Hope you enjoyed this read.

You can find more about the book here:

Arcane Rhapsodies on Goodreads

Arcane Rhapsodies on Amazon.in

Arcane Rhapsodies on Authorspress website

Arcane Rhapsodies - The Pharoah's Display

"Menphis - Egypte - 500before JC - Troop of funerary servant figures shabtis in the name of Neferibreheb" by Serge Ottaviani -
Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

“Lord of the Lords, my Master and King,

Act I must, at his bidding.”

The Shabti had such inscriptions carved in its stone

They all plead allegiance to the Pharaoh alone.

The Pharaoh was still King, though he was dead,

The Shabti were to toil in his stead.

There were other interesting finds in the tomb,

Riches, artwork, scriptures of destruction and doom.

All was kept in the display as was instructed,

All in all, the Pharaoh had been abducted.

The curator smiled like a Cheshire Cat,

With a final look, he removed his hat.

He secured the doors and locked the display tight,

He intended to stay at the museum that night.

He lit up the fireplace and lounged in his chair,

It was all worth it, the price had been fair.

The tiring expedition in the sand dunes,

The scorching, long and dry afternoons,

The many bribes that had to be paid

To get the permit, officials he had to serenade.

The museum would soon be back on its feet,

His business would soon be complete.

He called his wife and checked on his boys,

He hung up soon and was rattled by a noise.

He turned his attention to a packed, wooden box,

Hesitant at first, he finally undid the locks.

He opened the huge box and peered inside,

“Misha, nowhere else could you hide?”,

He cradled his cat and petted its head,

“You know better than to disturb the dead.”

He examined the Sarcophagus hidden in the sand,

“Tomorrow, the Pharaoh travels far, as I had planned.”

The cat kept busy while the curator soon slept

Unaware that a gust of sand there swept.

He opened his eyes when the sand was hurled at him,

He woke up to find the room dark and grim.

He struggled to find his footing in the dark,

He slipped but finally he lit a spark.

The fireplace lit up with greater force,

He shook his head, his throat felt hoarse.

As he turned, he gasped, he was taken aback,

He was surrounded, they were all ready to attack.

About the post: This is another excerpt from "Arcane Rhapsodies", the poem being, "The Pharoah's display". Will this turn out to be a nightmare or a dream come true for the curator? 

Hope you enjoyed reading this post.

You can find my book here:

Arcane Rhapsodies on Amazon.in

Arcane Rhapsodies on Authorspress Website

Check out Arcane Rhapsodies on Goodreads

Arcane Rhapsodies- Enter, The Playwright

Arcane Rhapsodies

Poems by Navya Jain

That week brought Henry much surprise,

A critique reviewed him, sans any disguise.

"The actors and the direction had flair,

But for the playwright, I could not care.

Even Thespis could not consume the verses,

And so he did bestow his curses.

The playwright failed to please,

Elements missing from his melodies."

So it is that Henry found himself at a tavern,

Looking for ancient tales that he wished to learn.

He hoped to draw inspiration from his travel,

He wondered what mysteries he was bound to unravel.

He gaped as the minstrel played unknown keys,

Singing ancient, arcane rhapsodies.

About the post: This is an excerpt from "Prologue-Arcane Rhapsodies" from my book "Arcane Rhapsodies". An unexpected critique urges Henry, the playwright, to rediscover his creative light and so he begins his journey. 

A word on Thespis, Thespis is considered to be the father of Drama. We've all heard the word "Thespians", right?

About the book: ‘Arcane Rhapsodies’ weaves together some known and some unknown folklore, myths and legends from around the world.This collection of short stories(in verses) takes the reader back and forth in time, in and out of fables, open to the reader's own interpretation. 

Henry, a renowned playwright sets out in search of inspiration for his verses. Explore with him, the dark and the light, the seen and the unseen, the imagination and the reality that surrounds us and occasionally binds us. Sometimes there is more than meets the eye, so watch out and don’t hold back as you embark on Henry's adventure that is bound to leave you thrilled.

Publisher's page-Arcane Rhapsodies