'​The Test of Excellence' : Episode: 3

The Web of Illusion and the Bitter Truth

​In the Previous Episode:

"Greetings, friends! In the last part, we saw how the celestial beauty Menaka brought down the mighty fortress of Sage Vishwamitra’s penance with the mere chime of her anklets. Years of meditation were swept away in a moment of impulse.

Today, in this third and decisive part, we move toward that morning where the mist of desire clears, revealing the harsh reality. Will Vishwamitra be able to accept his immense loss? What will happen when he realizes that what he considered his destiny was merely Indra’s conspiracy? Let us witness this heart-touching saga of a seeker’s fall and his awakening conscience."

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​For a long interval, the Sage remained completely oblivious to the pace of time. For him, the distinction between day and night had vanished, and the changing seasons remained merely a blurry shadow. The disciplined routine of the hermitage now lay buried under a shroud of indulgence. However, one morning, as the sharp rays of the sun fell upon his eyes, the dormant instincts of his years of practice suddenly awakened. He was abruptly reminded of his 'Sandhya Vandan' (evening prayers), which was once the very foundation of his life.

​He spoke suddenly, "O Divine One! My thirst for your beauty remains unquenched, yet I must go for my evening prayers now. The rules are mandatory. I shall return to you immediately after my daily rites."

​Hearing the word 'rule' from Vishwamitra’s lips, a spark of surprise flashed in Menaka’s eyes. She burst into laughter—a laughter so sharp with sarcasm that it pierced Vishwamitra’s heart. Tending to her tresses, she said, "Oh my! What rule, Arya? How did you suddenly remember the rule of prayers today? Was there a flaw in my adornment, or is today something special?"

​The Sage was startled; the confusion on his face began to deepen. He adjusted his matted hair, which was no longer neatly kept as before. He spoke with disbelief, "Today? Devi! What do you mean by 'today'? This is my daily vow. It is through the power of penance and meditation that I stand at the pinnacle of spiritual excellence."

A grave and mysterious smile now played on Menaka's face. She rose slowly and stood close to Vishwamitra. Placing a hand on his shoulder, she looked at him with a captivating gaze and said, "What penance? Which spiritual powers? Lord, which rule are you talking about? In the interval of these years, I never once heard you speak of penance or rules. For so long, I have been your Goddess and desire has been your only meditation. In this, considering me your everything, you surrendered all your spiritual brilliance to me." Menaka’s voice now carried the strike of truth.

​It felt as if the earth had slipped from beneath the Sage's feet. Before he could say anything, Menaka stood directly before him, looking him straight in the eyes. Her eyes no longer held playfulness, but a piercing sharpness. 

She spoke in a powerful yet calm voice, "Forgive me, great Sage! Years have passed while you reveled with me. Until today, you were so immersed in my beauty and charm that you lost all sense of time. King Indra sent me to test your devotion, and in my eyes, you have failed the test. Arya! You were so consumed by the ego of your penance that you forgot your supreme duty to protect your meditation from the god of love. Surely, you performed harsh penance in the past, but bound by ego and negligence, you could not maintain the continuity of your practice. Forgive me, Sage! I did not wish to say this, but I must—you did not need to abandon your penance to be with me. You could have balanced desire and renunciation like a householder. But you were arrogant about your asceticism. You considered yourself a perfect ascetic and fell into the trap of negligence. I believe that in penance, it is not perfection, but continuity that matters." Having said this, Menaka fell silent.

​A bolt of realization struck the Sage’s heart and mind. Suddenly, the reality dawned on him, and he felt as if cold water had been poured over him. Before his closed eyes, the labor of years, that difficult penance, and that accumulated brilliance appeared to collapse like a castle of sand in a single moment. On one side was the grief of that great loss, and on the other, the arrows of Menaka’s words and the fear of future public ridicule. His remaining ego flared up in the fire of insult.

​Yet, amidst that anger, the 'seeker' within him had awakened. He realized that he himself was primarily responsible for this fall; the mistake was his own. But how could his masculine ego accept defeat before a woman? Thus, he continued to glare at Menaka with a gaze mixed with anger and hatred. Just then, his eyes fell upon Menaka’s form—he sensed that she was pregnant. On one hand, Menaka’s womb was direct evidence of his fallen penance; on the other, her every word, though true, was piercing him like fierce arrows. Yet, he could not bring himself to punish her. Moreover, a lingering tenderness remained in his heart for that heavenly nymph, with whom he had enjoyed pleasure for so long, whom his heart had accepted as a beloved, and who had provided the coolness of love to his heart weary from long years of penance. His heart hesitated to let his anger rain down upon her. Furthermore, in his view, that nymph was not entirely or solely to blame for his downfall.

Though the ego within him whispered, inciting him against Indra and Menaka, the seeker’s wisdom was not entirely dead. Therefore, forcibly restraining the tide of anger rising within him, he looked at Menaka with a sharp gaze and said in a voice trembling with rage, "Menaka! I have realized you came here bound by the command of King Indra, and under the pretext of my trial, you have brought about my ruin. However, I do not blame you entirely. You spoke the truth—my own ego and negligence are more to blame for my fall. Nevertheless, I am currently distressed by defeat and anger. I cannot bring myself to harm you, therefore, before I curse you with my remaining power or my rage causes you any ill, leave this place this very moment. Return, O Devi, to the pleasures of your heaven... go, leave from here!" As he spoke the final words, his voice, though trembling with emotion, roared with fury.

​Vishwamitra's body was burning with rage and remorse. In his eyes, that old ascetic brilliance was now flickering like a destructive fire. Hearing that roar and rebuke, Menaka shuddered for a moment. She understood that the time for argument or staying had passed. With trembling hands, supporting her womb and wiping the tears of grief from her eyes, she departed from the hermitage toward heaven.

'To be continue..'

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​In the Next Episode:

"Wounded between the scales of love and trial, Menaka has departed, but what remains for Sage Vishwamitra? Can a meditation once broken start again from zero? And the biggest question—what will happen to that debate between Indra and Virochan? Will Sage Kanva's 'service to humanity' now outweigh Vishwamitra’s personal 'ego'?

Find the answers to these questions in the next issue— 'Helplessness and Ruthless Resolve'."

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Next Part is here:

http://meetu2nishabd.blogspot.com/2026/04/the-test-of-excellence-episode-4.html

✍️ Pen by ‘Nishabd’

🖌️ Image created with the assistance of Gemini & Copilot