1] The first visit - Vyas gufa.

     The date is 7th April 2019. Yes, it is the 21st Century period and Patel family was one of the few families that followed Hinduism. The branch itself had many different followers. So many different families followed many different ways to reach the same goal. Some did Yagna. Some did idol worshipping. And some lived through their Karma. They were truly blessed to have such faithful children. As Acharya Chanakya once said, A man who has a faithful wife, obedient children and hardworking servants, has already achieved heaven. Tonight was different. Tonight, Veer and his little brother Yash had begun asking questions. Questions about why the gods of India are so different. Why are there animals? So, like every parent, even their parents prayed after their teachings did not work. So, Narad - the messenger of god decided something special for them.

  ‘Where do you wish to go first children?’ he asked gleefully, and the children were on their feet!  

  ‘Ganesh!’ yelled Veer. ‘Hanuman!’ yelled Yash.

  ‘Narayan! Like every action starts by erasing the bad omens by praying to lord Ganesh. Let’s start with him.’

In a blink of an eye, Sage Narad and children were in a different place altogether. 

  ‘Where are we?’ Veer asked. 

  ‘In truth, we are inside your mind. You know all of these, but I am just helping you relive it. Actually, we are in Vyas gufa. Near the Himalayas.’

  Narad stopped the boys from going any further. Veer and Yash recognized Lord Ganesh and sage Vyas. But the boys were confused. ‘They look so...just like us.’

  ‘Narayan. You two were thinking Ganesh as a elephant god with a big belly?’

  ‘Yes. But he is so fit and healthy.’ Yash was confused. Narad laughed.

  ‘Lord Ganesh is writing the longest poem and an epic the world has ever seen. The Mahabharata is an epic comprising one lac verses. Before writing this, his condition to Vyas was that he should not stop for anything.’

  ‘Then how did he write so fast?’

  ‘Lord Ganesh utilised the time that Vyas spent framing the poem to write the verse which was commanded before. In this way, he kept writing. Vyas could have gotten anyone to write this epic, but he chose Ganesh. He was the only one, who would treat his work with respect and unbiased and would not break the chain of thoughts.’

  They witnessed Vyas continuously speaking and lord Ganesh writing it diligently. Naradji continued. ‘The trunk is the symbol of adaptability. Which is, to treat the work, big or small with the same respect. The big belly represents the will to digest all good and bad in life along with holding secrets and not spilling them out. The big head is the storage of knowledge. The head of an elephant, never forgets anything. And the big ears...’

'For listening more. Even shakespear said that!' Yash yelled and Veer hushed him.

  Veer and Yash bowed down to the great lord of Wisdom and vanquisher of the bad omens. 

  ‘You know, he is known to solve the problems that no one can. He inherits qualities

like patience, wisdom and skills of a warrior.’

  ‘Naradji. If that were the case, then do we keep symbolising them? Why can’t we perceive him the way he is?’

  ‘The way he is? Do tell me Yash. You know for disobeying Mahadev’s orders, Ganesh was beheaded?’

  ‘Yes.’ Yash replied.

  ‘Then how come Mahadev chose the head of an animal? If a head were to replace. He would have attached the same head he had beheaded.’

Yash wondered. He was right. The symbolism was for us to understand. In this scenario itself, Veer had discovered many things. The way Vyas spoke continuously. How lord Ganesh kept writing without any problems or complaints. He did not get tired even after writing many hundred pages, that were lying beside him.

  ‘We have understood the importance of the elephant.’ the boys said together.

  ‘Narayan. Where now?’ Narad asked and the boys smiled again.