Must be a teenager trying to get his thrills in the graveyard, the vettiyan (Cemetery worker) smirked as he made his way through the quiet smashan, checking for unburnt bodies. He had done this too. Graveyards were fascinating places for young adults. The space were Life and Death meet. Today however, Mari was tired. It had been a long day and he just wanted to wrap things up before retiring for the day. It was past 11pm and the place was lit up with just moonlight and dying fires. The boy stood with his hands on his hips and watched intently at Mari walking towards him. Mari yelled at him asking him to leave. Mari felt a little annoyed at the unmoving boy. These children were such a menace. He came closer and paused. The boy had brown skin, muscled hands and feet, a paunch that looked out-of-place on the otherwise fit body and eyes…eyes red but wise like a 100-year-old.
He quietly stood, fear mounting rapidly within him. This wasn’t a little boy, was it?
The fear bubbled from the pit of his stomach as his eyes met the eyes of something that looked ancient, but resided in the body of a 14 year old. He back away quickly, turned and started running. He didn’t stop till he reached the end of the yard and then turned to see if he was being followed. The fires had all died out and in the dim moonlight, the boy stood unmoving in the same spot, watching intently
The namboodri at the #Bhagavathy temple smiled. Chathan was a mischievous imp and he could drive people up the wall. The Chathan was not someone you can mess with as it was not really a benign spirit. If the Chathan was disturbed or on a mission, he could be dangerous. A Chathan never killed, but there were fates much worse than Death. He did the arati of the revered #Vishnumaya and gave Mari some #guruthy. “You will have to propitiate the Goddess or the #Chathan will harass you endlessly.” Mari nodded. He will come back tomorrow with family and do whatever was required.
Mari hesitated to leave the temple premise, but leave, he must. He wanted to rush home before it got dark. For a man who worked in darkness all his Life, Mari for the first time, did not want to walk in the dark. He stopped at a vendor to buy food and sat under a #Pala tree. He had last eaten 7 hours back and he hungrily ripped the packet open. Foul smelling manure fell out. Mari looked shocked. As he sat quietly in the fading evening light, he heard rough laughter in the background.
The darkness added to his fear. Mari ran towards his house. It was nearby. He had to walk up to the Banyan tree, turn the corner and he could see the lantern of his Kudil. He ran and saw the Banyan tree, turned the corner but couldn’t see the Kudil. He paused & in the dark he saw the Banyan tree. Didn’t he just cross it? He didn’t want to waste time. He again crossed the Banyan, turned the corner and looked for his Kudil. In the darkness, in the distance, he could see the Banyan tree.