For the next few days Nil remained engrossed in the report and completing the report he sent it by e-mail to the office of Mitra. As soon as he was relieved of the heavy burden of work a feeling of utter blankness took possession of his heart. He could not decide upon the work he was to get engaged in to be relieved of the emptiness. Soon the memories of the hill returned and the sweet face of Doma came to the surface of his mind and an uncanny ecstatic feeling coursed through him. He spontaneously started humming a modern Bengali song, but it was interrupted as his mobile phone rang. The call was from the office of ‘Smart News’, a daily he used to write articles in. He heard the voice of a sub-editor and thought it would be a request for some new article.
But he was thrilled to learn that Sangey Tamang, their staff reporter at Gangtok, had come to Calcutta to have some personal talks with Nil. If Nil agreed he may give him Nil’s mobile number. Nil asked if he was in the office and the sub-editor said he might be in the toilet. Nil told him to give Mr. Tamang his number and request him to call Nil as early as possible. He guessed it was something to do with the hill staff and his mind got a thrilling sensation. After a while the desired call came. He was right. Sangey was sent by the Lama to contact Nil.
‘The matter cannot be discussed over phone and tell me whenever you’re free to have face to face talk and where to meet you’, Sangey said in a hushed tone.
‘I’m free all through the day. You may meet me at my house anytime today before evening. If you’re free you may come to my house right now’, Nil replied.
‘That would be fine but how to get to your house?’
‘You take any bus or minibus that goes via Sinthee junction and get down at the junction. Call me after the bus crosses Shyambazar and I’ll be waiting for you at the bus stop.’
‘Okay, I’ll start after lunch and likely to reach Sinthee by about 2 p.m. I’ve gone to Barrackpore several times by bus and so it would be no problem for me.’
Nil finished his lunch in time and after a few minutes’ rest proceeded for the Sinthee more and the call came at about 1.35 p.m. and Sangey got down from bus just a few minutes before two. Nil could easily recognize him by his features and after they had exchanged greetings Nil took him right into his drawing room.
Sangey took a glass of water and seated comfortably on the sofa came to business,
‘I’m well acquainted with the Lama at the Lepcha village and the family of the blessed girl. In fact, my father in law, a distant relative of Yalmo Lepcha, still resides in the village. I learnt the detail of the curse from my father in law but could never guess that I could be of any help to them in this matter. So I was a bit puzzled when my wife informed me that Doma, her childhood friend, had come to our house and asked her to send me right to the Lama’s cottage as soon as I returned from Gangtok at the weekend. I hurried to the cottage of the Lama who took me to confidence and gave me a brief idea about your sacred mission. He requested me to meet you and inform you that everything is ready and they are waiting for your arrival to initiate the mission. I at once agreed to the proposal and I knew that I could easily get your contact number from our paper’s office at Calcutta. Tell me now when it would be possible for you to visit the village. Remember that the mission may take a few months and you should decide your travel plan accordingly. You may take some time to decide and inform me later on over cell phone.’ Sangey looked at Nil with questioning eyes.
‘No need of much thinking. I’ve completed the project at hand and not likely to undertake any new project right now. So it would be no problem for me to spend a few months in the hills now.’ Nil said with assurance.
‘What about your office?’
‘I’ve much freedom and perfect understanding with Mr. Mitra and therefore, there would be no problem from his side. I’ll propose a visit to North Bengal for a few months to conduct a survey of the Terai region and investment opportunities there and he would for sure gladly accept the proposal.’
Sangey handed out a file from his bag and said, ‘I was also asked by the Lama to collect some background information about you – your strong points and weaknesses – so that they could take precautions and appropriate measures accordingly. Here’s the report and you please go through them and suggest if any modification is necessary.’
‘How have you collected the information about my past?’ Nil asked.
Sangey said, ‘I went first to Mitra Mansion, the address you had left with the Lama. I thought I’d get both your background and present address from your office. I happened to meet one Mrs. Sen there who helped me a lot about your background. But she told she was unaware about your present address and contact number. Only the proprietor Mr. Mitra may know this and I could not contact him as he was outstation. Then an idea occurred to me that you are a free lance journalist and my office may help me about your whereabouts and I was right. Now the report of your background at your first job at college is written in the following pages. I’ve got all these information from Mrs. Sen who told she had been your colleague at the college. You go through them and tell me if she has given correct information.’
Nil felt a bit perturbed at the mention of Mrs. Sen. But he took care not to reveal his feelings in his face and to this end he overplayed himself and said enthusiastically, ‘O.K. leave the report with me. I’ll go through it tonight and make modifications if necessary. Now tell me your next plan.’
Sangey said, ‘I’ve some works here. It would take a week at the most and thereafter I’d leave by plane. It would not be safe for you to go by flight that may attract attention of unwanted persons. So you try to book ticket by Darjeeling Mail as early as possible.’
Nil called his travel agent who informed that tickets of Darjeeling Mail would not be available for the next sixty days. He could, however, travel anytime by the Tista Torsha Express but the journey would be troublesome and lengthy. Then checking up again the travel agent said that only a few tickets were available for 26th of that month. But it was an inauspicious day for the Hindus. Nil said that he had no superstitions and requested the agent to book a ticket for that day.
At night he opened the file and went through it and was amazed to find the vivid and exact information given by Rita. She had remembered all these for such a long time. Nil himself could not have given such details. He got a start to think of Rita’s keen interest in him. Was it true love? Anyway, whatever it was he ought not to fall in the trap and spoil his noble mission.
Next day he decided to disclose everything about the mission to Shyamal as he was a reliable person. He contacted Shyamal over mobile phone and met him at his residence at Rasbehari Avenue. Shyamal listened to him with rapt attention and after Nil had detailed him about the mission, Shyamal looked very much impressed and said,
‘I encourage you whole heartedly about the sacred mission. By the way, what is your own opinion about the tantric? Do you think he’s a real benefactor of the hill people?’
‘The hill people including the Lama believes so but to me the tantric appears to be a complicated person.’
‘I may help you to some extent in this regard. You told me the tantric had been to Tarapith before he settled in the hills.’
‘Exactly.’
‘My wife’s guru is a renowned tantric who had resided at Tarapith for a long time. So he might know the tantric in the hills.’
‘Thanks for the information, but where does the guru reside now and how can I meet him?’
‘Now he is staying near Nimtala burning ghat but no body can meet him without prior appointment. Anyway I’ll arrange for an appointment through my wife and inform you over cell phone accordingly.’
‘But make it as early as possible. I’ll leave for North Bengal on twenty sixth.’
‘I’m going to his ashram right now and arranging for the meeting. Nil-da rest assured it won’t be later than twenty third’, Sima, Shyamal’s wife, assured.
At night Sima called Nil and said, ‘guru
dev has consented to meet us the day after tomorrow after 8 p.m. when he is free from the visitors.’
‘Should I go to your house or go direct to Nimtala?’ Nil asked.
‘Why should you take trouble to come over here. We’ll be waiting for you outside the Bhutnath temple at Nimtala after 7 p.m.’
Sima handed over the receiver to Shyamal and the two friends talked for some time.
In the evening Shyamal and Sima were waiting in front of the temple when nil arrived at Nimtala. They waited for some time and after the last visitor had left the tantric guru came out of the temple and they offered him pramam. He directed them to follow him. The tantric in red robe was tall and had a broad shoulder and curled hair. He had a large red mark on his forehead, sharp nose and brilliant eyes. There were several garlands of rudrakshas in his neck. His residence was close to the Anandamoyee kali temple and it was a one storey wooden house with a drawing room for visitors, a bed room and a small kitchen. A timber merchant and devotee had gifted the guru the house. Nil, Shyamal and Sima waited while the tantric guru entered his bed room for rest. After some rest the guru came out and laying in reclining position on the armchair queried Nil about the hill matters. Nil related everything since his mishap in the snow storm. The guru listened to him with rapt attention. After Nil had finished, the guru said in a grave tone, ‘it’s unquestionably a risky mission but still I advice you to go ahead.’ He then passed on to the tantric in the hills.
‘I know him very well. He was my disciple to start with. He is indeed a very powerful and dedicated tantric but thirst for power might have spoilt him. I advised him to be free from power mongering in order to make further spiritual advancement. But he was aggrieved at my advice and left me and fell in the trap of a crazy Kapalic and left with him. Thereafter I knew nothing about his whereabouts. Now I learnt from Mina that he is in the hills and I’m afraid he is engaged in mischief. Nothing is impossible for a misguided tantric. But we cannot come to any conclusion about that without definite evidence. His exhortations of helping the hill people may be true. After all he is a good person and he could have been a great spiritual man but for his morbid love for power. All is Ma Kali’s lila.’
The guru asked nil to get closer and inspected his forehead and displayed a broad smile and said, ‘it’s time for meditation and I’ll have to leave.’ Then turned toward Nil and said, ‘go ahead with the mission and unravel the mystery in the hills.’
They came out of the guru’s residence and on his way back Nil thought that the smile of the guru after examining his forehead indicated that the trident mark might be really significant as believed by the hill people.
The journey was finalized at last and Nil informed Sangey the detail of his journey and the approximate time of his arrival at Manebhanjan from where the journalist would pick him up.