What happens when the boundaries between life, death and the supernatural begin to disappear? In Aghori 3: Death and Beyond, Mayur Kalbag takes readers deep into the mysterious world of Aghori sadhus, ancient mantras and forces that defy human understanding.
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A week after the transferences of the mantras, I woke up with a painful rash. When it did not go even after a day, Swamiji came to me along with someone I had not met before.
Swamiji said, ‘Please understand, Subbu, you have been through a lot during the process of mantra extraction. I would like you to take complete rest today. I have called someone to help you heal from this deadly rash. His name is Dakshinya. Subbu, you must diligently follow the advice that Daksh will offer. I shall see you tomorrow morning, 4 a.m., in the temple. Daksh, you will also attend the puja.’ Saying this, Swamiji returned to his room.
‘It is indeed wonderful to meet you, Dakshinya,’ I said.
‘Same here, Subbu. The rash you have is extremely rare. Normal medicines will not have a curative effect on this rash. This is why Swamiji called me urgently. Contrary to the popular belief in the village and other towns, I am not a doctor, but I am here to cure you. I am just lucky that I was born in the village called Hakkalpai, whis is just three hundred kilometres from here. It is known for a family that has knowledge of the ancient medicines that are created from herbs, flowers and, most importantly, nocturnal insects. These medicines are not so popular in large towns and metro cities, but are well known among the village people, especially those from the south of India.’
‘Oh, is that so!’ I exclaimed. Dakshinya told me to have my breakfast and join him at the lake near the garden. ‘Subbu, eat as much as you want, but avoid anything that is spicy or pungent, as it may hamper the effects of the medicine,’ he cautioned me with a half-smile. ‘Swamiji wants me to heal you completely, and he wants it to happen within the next couple of days, as he plans to take you and me to the Sheshgiri cave deep inside the jungles of Dandeli.’
I rushed to the temple canteen and had sumptuous amounts of idli and sambhar. I consciously refrained from having chutney and mango pickle. One of the temple priests who noticed this came to me. ‘This is very shocking. I recall you gorging on pickle and having two helpings of chutney with idli and dosa. And today I see you with neither! Is everything okay, Subbu?’ he asked with a subtle hint of sarcasm.
‘My brother! Everything is good. It is just that I have developed a bad rash, and it is at a place that I cannot even show you. Interestingly, I don’t feel any itch, but there is excruciating pain when that area gets exposed to water. Therefore, bathing has become a very big challenge. I have been instructed by the healer to stay away from pungent and spicy food. But don’t you worry, I will surely make up for it once I am healed completely.’
‘Subbu, I am really sorry that I joked about this. I had no idea about the rash. I will pray to the Devi to make you well soon. Once you get healed, I will personally feed you your favourite Lonchaeku pickle.’
‘Are you aware of the Lonchaeku?’ I asked, surprised.
‘I am a cook in this temple, and I was one of the first to be told about it by Swamiji. I was only joking, Subbu.
Although I have heard about it, I don’t have the recipe.’ Saying this, he giggled mischievously and left. Although having the idlis without the chutney was a bit of a struggle, but thanks to the awesome sambhar, I managed to eat almost half a dozen.
I reached the place where Dakshinya had asked me to come. ‘You need to take off your clothes and sit on the floor.’
‘Everything?’ I asked him nervously.
‘Subbu, the rash is mostly in and around your groin area, so you need to keep that area open.’
‘Hey Dakshinya, how did you know that my rash was in that area? I don’t recall telling you about it.’
‘Subbu, I was able to locate the area of the rash from the way you were walking towards the canteen. I also can smell it, and through the smell, I have been able to locate the main area of the rash.’
Listening to all of this, and especially about the emanation of smell, was deeply embarrassing, to say the least, and I think he noticed my awkwardness.
‘Dear Subbu, please understand that you have an infection, which may have been caused by multiple reasons. However, it is this infection that has created the rash, and if we don’t treat it now, it will not only spread all over your body but also lead to the formation of pus and decomposition of tissue, even muscular dystrophy. Also understand that we are the only ones here, and no one else will venture here.’
I inhaled a deep breath, composed my nervous mind and removed my clothes. To my surprise, my innerwear was almost stuck to my skin, and each time I tried to pull it away, I felt the most excruciating pain.
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