Once upon a time, in the far north, there lived a boy named Abdullah. He was ten years old. He had dark blue eyes like sapphire. He charmed anyone whom he met with his devilish laughter. He was also one of those boys so bursting with energy that he drained out others. He had a baby sister named Sara who was six. His father was a farmer and they had a huge farmhouse. He lived with his family in a village named Shanti Van.
Abdullah loved Sara dearly and they were practically inseparable. His love for her was vast and unclouded. She was his universe. In mornings they woke up together and followed their father onto the fields where they did their morning exercise. After that they got ready for school. They went to school with their father on a cycle with Abdullah at the back and Sara at the front. Although their father had a Royal Enfield bike but he always used his cycle to drop them because cycling was good for his health. During lunch Abdullah and Sara ate together and in the evening when school was over, they returned together holding hands and running. They had planned that when they would grow up they will each have a big house of their own and will be neighbours.
Shanti Van was a beautiful village located in a valley. It was surrounded with tall mountains. At winters one could see the top of the mountains covered with snow. There were two streams that ran in the village with cold and clear water. The village was full with fruit trees like apple, pomegranate and pears. The air always had a sweet and pleasant smell because of the flowers. They people there were helpful and kind and always looked out for each other. Shanti Van was a heaven for children as they never ran out of fun and places to play. The entire village was like a big garden when they can enjoy to their heart’s content.
Sara had a hobby of collecting feathers. She had an old tin box underneath her pillow which Abdullah had given her. It had a rusty latch and on its top was a beautiful peacock dancing with a fully open tail. Inside it were all kinds of feathers that Sara and Abdullah had collected over the years. They were Sara’s most cherished belongings. There were rooster feathers, a white tail feather from a dove, sparrow feather, a long grey charcoal like feather from a falcon. What she never had was a peacock feather like the one on the box. It was her heart’s desire to own one of those.
One day the sky was completely overcast. It was as if rains would fall any moment. The weather was pleasant so Abdullah and Sara decided to play hide and seek in their favourite apple orchard. So when Sara was hiding behind a certain tree she suddenly spotted a peacock. The peacock was beautiful and was staring at a spot continuously. Suddenly it started to drizzle and the peacock opened its tail and started dancing. It was as if the weather had cast a spell on him and he was dancing to the tunes of an invisible master. Sara gazed in awe as it danced. She was spellbound by the iridescent green feather of the peacock which had a beautiful large eye at the tip.
Sara called Abdullah at the top of her voice and he came rushing to the spot. He too was amazed by the sight on display there. He stood there rooted and then a thought crossed his mind. Why not get one of its feathers for Sara? He asked Sara to stay there and tiptoed towards the peacock. But alas he did not know what was actually happening there. There was a black cobra under a bush and the peacock was trying to fight it. The peacock had opened its tail to scare off the cobra. Just when Abdullah was behind the peacock the cobra suddenly spat out its venom on the peacock. The peacock dogged and the venom directly fell in Abdullah’s eyes.
At first Abdullah did not feel a thing. But as the seconds ticked by he felt a burning sensation in his eye and the pain became unbearable. He started crying for help. Sara rushed to the spot and by that time the peacock and cobra had disappeared. She saw Abdullah rolling on the ground withering in pain. Hearing his cry other villagers also came running. Immediately they carried him back home and called the village doctor. The doctor gave him an injection to fight the venom, He also gave him a few pills to reduce the pain and help him sleep. The doctor assured the parents and Sara that there was nothing to worry and Abdullah will be fine. After some time Abdullah fell asleep.
It was the middle of the night when Abdullah woke up. He was thirsty and wanted to have some water. It was completely dark in his room so he fumbled on the wall beside him for the switch of the light. He switched on the light but still there was a total darkness around him. Suddenly a fear crept in his mind. He became numb. He realised that something was wrong with his eyes and he could not see. He shouted at the top if his voice crying for help.
His parents and Sara came rushing in and found him sobbing. Abdullah then told them about his condition. He was then immediately rushed to the village hospital. The doctor there gave him several medicines but it did not help him. In the morning he was rushed to the city where the doctors examined him and said that they need to perform an operation. The following day Abdullah was operated. The operation lasted for five hours. The doctors gave in their best effort but they still were not sure of the results. The bandage was to be opened after two days and then only they would know if the operation was successful or not.
The next day the bandage was opened and to the dismal of Abdullah and his family, he still could not see. After a few days rest when he was discharged, his parents took him to another hospital and to another doctor. He still had no clue what was wrong with Abdullah’s eyes and could not help him. His parents then took him to another doctor. This went on for almost a year. Abdullah and his parents went to different doctors in different cities but still no were able to help him. All hopes seemed shattered. The famous boy with the sapphire eyes of Shanti Van had lost his eyesight.
One night Abdullah and Sara were sleeping in their room dreaming. Little did they know that both of them were having the same dream at the same time. The brother and sister found themselves in a vast garden surrounded by mountains on three sides and a huge gate on the other. The mountains were capped with snow and the gate was made of solid gold. The garden was beautifully landscaped, with rows of flowers in all colours, neatly trimmed, with knee high bushes and peppered with fruit trees and swarming with birds and butterflies. In the middle of the garden was a tall black tower rising into the clouds. Abdullah and Sara started walking towards it.
Suddenly the ground around them started shaking and then started flying carrying them sky wards. They went up up and up till they were above the clouds. The sight there amazed them. The tower ended with two long spires. There was a gigantic lidless eyeball that sat atop the tower between the spires. It appeared that the eye was composed of pure energy. The eye spoke to them. He said that he had been watching Abdullah and Sara for a long time. He was really moved to see the unconditional love the siblings had for each other. Impressed with that he was willing to restore the eyesight of Abdullah. Abdullah and Sara were delighted to hear it. He continued that he would put both of them through two tests and if they passed both then he would restore the eyesight of Abdullah. But before the duo could ask him about the tests, they woke up.
Abdullah and Sara sat upright in their beds. They looked at each other and immediately shared the dream they saw. They were surprised to find out that both of them had exactly the same dream at the same time. It was same to the minute details. They arrived at the conclusion that it was not merely a coincidence that both of them had the exactly the same dream. They were excited and waited for the tests of the huge eye.
A week passed by but nothing happened. Then one day their father was sick. So Sara had to go to school alone. That day she started early from home as she had to walk the entire distance. When she reached her school she saw an old man sitting under a tree near the gate. The man was in rags. His hair formed a bun on his head sticking together with dirt and mud. His face was covered with ash and soot from the fire he lit last night to keep him warm. He had covered himself with a torn blanket. He appeared hungry and not eaten for a few days.
Many students passed by but none of them looked at him. Some students were frightened ran away when they saw him. Then Sara saw a group of boys pick up some small stones and started throwing at the man. She immediately ran towards them and yelled at them to go away. The group ran away. Sara then looked at the man. She realised that he needed help. First she took out her water bottle and gave him water to drink. Then she took out her tiffin box and gave the man her lunch that was packed by her mother. The man happily ate the food. Sara sat near him till he finished his food.
The man thanked her. He said that he did not have any money and had not eaten for days. No one was willing to help him and Sara was the first one to feed him. He said Sara was a good and kind person. He then got up walked away thanking her again and blessing her with a long and happy life. Sara felt immensely happy and stood there for some time. Then she walked towards her school and her classroom.
Back at home Abdullah was sitting in their garden. This had become his new pastime. He used to sit in the garden entire day and hear the birds chirping and smelling the fragrance of the fruits and flowers. He had joined a school for the blind in the nearby city but the classes were yet to start. So he had no other work than to sit at home. That day Abdullah was a little tired due to the extra exercise he did in the morning. So he had dozed off while sitting in the garden.
Suddenly he felt a burning sensation in his eyes and he woke. He opened his eyes and to his astonishment he could see a blurred vision of the garden. He could not believe what had just happened. He rubbed his eyes and opened them again. He still could see. Although the colours he saw were not as bright as it should be and it appeared as if he was looking through a piece of cloudy glass. But he still could see. At first he thought he was dreaming but then he realised he could really see. His eyesight had been restored partially.
Abdullah ran out crying in happiness. His parents were overjoyed to see this improvement. When Sara returned from school in evening she too was delighted to see this. Both Abdullah and Sara danced in joy and celebrated. That night they thanked God for the miracle. They agreed among themselves that it was the work of the huge eye and somehow they had passed its first test. With fingers crossed they waited for the second test.
Days passed and it was winter. The family had gone for a picnic to a river side nearby. It was their favourite picnic spot. As the parents were setting up the tent and making arrangements for lunch, Abdullah and Sara ran away to play in the river. The current in the river was strong but they knew a spot with big rocks where there was no current and they could play in the water. The rocks were arranged in a semicircle with the ends on the shore which cut the current of the water making it stable. The water was crystal clear and they could see the bottom of the river and the countless smooth pebbles of different shape and sizes lying on the river bed.
Abdullah and Sara were playing with their football in the water. Suddenly they heard a howling noise. When they looked at the direction they saw a dog drowning in the water. The dog was trying his best to stay afloat but the current was too strong. He was rapidly waging his limbs but it was of no use. The current kept on dragging him. When the dog reached near the rocks, he grabbed them with his paws. For a moment he was steady and felt relived. But then his paws slipped and he was again in the water drowning and howling.
Seeing this situation Abdullah dived into the water. He did not, for one moment, even care for the fact that his vision was blurred and he was partially blind. He swam using all his strength and finally reached near the dog. He caught him with one hand and fought his way back to the rocks. On reaching the rocks he set the dog on it and climbed out of the water and lied on a rock breathing heavily. The dog stood there for some time and looked at Abdullah. He dried himself by shaking his body vigorously. Then wagging his tail the dog walked towards the shore along the rock platform and finally disappeared.
Sara came running to the panting Abdullah and asked if he was okay. Abdullah gave her a thumbs up. Then almost immediately he felt the same burning sensation in his eyes. He blinked and voila… Abdullah could see everything clearly now. His vision had been fully restored. He was speechless. He looked at Sara and tears welled up his eyes. Sara knew that he could see again.
Suddenly there was a bright flash of light in the sky and a portal opened in mid-air. It was the lidless eye on the tower with spires. Abdullah and Sara stood there stunned unable to move a muscle in their body. The eye spoke. He said that he was the omnipresent and omnipotent third eye of Lord Shiva. The eye had an overwhelming spiritual presence everywhere and saw everything happening everywhere. It was he who took the form of the poor old man and the dog to test Abdullah and Sara.
Abdullah and Sara bowed down before the eye in respect. They had a lot of questions to ask but they could not speak anything out of shock. Abdullah just said a small thanks and kept staring at the eye. The eye said that Abdullah and Sara were really special and it was his honour to talk to them in person. He asked them to keep up the good work and keep helping everyone around them. The eye blessed them with a long successful life and disappeared.
The siblings stood there for some time unable to digest what just happened. When they recovered they went running to their parents to tell the events. Their parents were delighted. They embraced them and tears fell from their eye in happiness. The entire family knelt down with folded hands and thanked God for the miracle.
The next day they arranged for a feast at Shanti Van. Everyone in the village was invited and there was a grand feast. People ate and danced to their hearts content and blessed the boy with sapphire eyes and his sister. It was the best party the village had ever seen.
So was this the end of adventures for Abdullah and Sara? Maybe or maybe not. Let’s find out next time…
Moral:- We should always be kind and helpful to others. God is one and never discriminates peoples on the basis of religion.