Bhadra stood at the gate of her royal tent that had been erected at the beach off the shore of Dwarika. As she felt the cold, salty breeze of the ocean on her face, her mind floated back to the rocky terrain of Kaikeya. The roar of the powerful waves crashing on the rocks scared her. She was used to the complacent gurgling of the river Parushni flowing along her chambers in the city of Rajagriha. She was used to the wind beating and howling against the cold mountains, but here the wind too sang a different song. She and her brothers had travelled a long way to come here. It had taken them almost half a year to reach while dodging robbers and enemy kingdoms. They had crossed dark forests and arid deserts. They had laughed and cried on the journey, learned from the people on their way, accepted their heartful gifts, and left some behind. One of her attendants had even got married and settled with her lover in the temple city of Kashi.
Bhadra had not understood why her future husband had insisted that she make this journey before their marriage until she had actually walked it. She had learnt to complain about the sweltering heat and dance in the rain. She had learnt the songs of the local people, and delighted in their delicacies. When she had stopped in Mathura, so many people had come to see her from the adjacent village that she had basically resigned to sleeping in the living room itself. An old lady called Yashoda had also come to see her, barely visible behind the mountain of gifts she had brought. Bhadra had later learnt that this was the foster mother of her future husband. She had doted on Bhadra for a week straight, showering her with love, before they had to bluntly bring up the issue of missing the auspicious date set for the marriage to continue their journey forward. Even then she had followed her chariot to the end of the city, sobbing and on foot. The same chariot, on which Bhadra could barely fit now because of the mountains of snacks Yashoda had packed her for the journey, with tearful promises exacted to save some for her husband too.
---
She stared at the bridge of rocks that led one to the city of Dwarika, an island in the middle of the ocean. The city was barely visible, partially shrouded in a veil of mist. Occasionally, when the sun shone at a particular angle, the entire city lit up, glaring and gleaming at the rest of the world. City of gold, they called it. Bhadra had seen it happen the evening before, but it had intimidated her more than inspiring. Even though her brothers kept encouraging her, she still felt apprehensive looking at the tall spires looming down on her.
She was here to marry the younger prince of the Yadavas. She had only heard stories of the man from her mother Shrutakirti, an aunt of his. Bhadra had always held that stories never could properly gauge a man's character. This was the reason why despite having heard the multitude of stories singing his praises, she had remained anxious. What if he was as fickle as these impatient waves? What if she made a mistake and he turned out to be as harsh as this jarring ocean that so harshly created the layers of foam atop the rocks? She stared at her friends who were busy picking out seashells at the beach, unaware of the worries that troubled their princess.
Her eldest brother Santardana was standing at a distance very animatedly conversing with their aunt's son, Arjuna. He had brought the auspicious gifts from the mist-clad island. She had also heard stories about him being very good friends with her soon-to-be husband. In fact, as far as rumours went, those two were inseparable. Only the previous evening her friends were joking, "It's a two-for-one deal, princess!" She had seen Arjuna only once before this but had never spoken to him. She smiled politely as her brother waved at her. Arjuna came bouncing up to her, "How are you finding this side of the land princess?" He asked her kindly. She again nodded politely. Arjuna smiled, "Don't worry, everyone is a little scared of the Yadavas, myself included," He grinned, "But, I'll introduce you to Subhadra, my wife, and your husband's sister. She's the brightest person of all time, trust me, she'll have you laughing and joking in no time! She actually wanted to come meet you now only, but you know, she's expecting, so we told her not to. Totally our fault!" He laughed a little shyly. Bhadra laughed, genuinely after a long time. She had a hard time believing this young lad was about to be a father himself! Later, she was even more amused to learn that he was a father already, three times over!
---
That evening at the moment when the sun's last strong rays hit the city of Dwarika, its doors flew open. Every rooftop of the city gleamed with a blinding golden aura and the beaming notes of a thousand conch shells simultaneously filled the air of the beach. Her brother put his arms around Bhadra as he led her out to the edge of the bridge. Bhadra could make out but a vague outline approaching them.
As the figure advanced towards them she could slowly make out more details. His tall crown was the one that gave him the golden aura against the setting sun. A garland of lotuses and tulasi leaves hung from his neck along with the glistening red kaustubha gem. From his slender waist hung a bright yellow garment. As he drew nearer, she could see the peacock feathers dangling from the sides of his crown, playing with his fish-shaped earrings which framed his bright smile along with the dark-blue locks of curly hair. His bracelets bore markings of a snake and bells jingled in his anklets when he walked.
As soon as he was close enough Santardana fell at his feet and Bhadra followed suit. So, this was Krishna! He gently lifted both brother and sister and embraced Santardana. Then he outstretched his palm. Her brother then gently placed her palm on Krishna's and poured holy water from Parushni and Ganga over both of their palms thus completing the ritual of kanya-daana. Krishna then, retrieving from Arjuna, a garland not unlike his own, placed it around Bhadra's neck and took her hand.
Understanding his nudge, Bhadra gingerly took one step onto the swaying rocky bridge. Immediately she felt the rocks sway beneath her feet followed by the tightening of Krishna's grasp on her hands. "Easy now!" He whispered, "Even I didn't like these waves at first, but eventually they will grow on you." Bhadra looked up to a quick nod from him. She smiled. She looked into the eyes of her husband. She truly appreciated that he had taken the time to come out and personally escort her into the city. From the distance, various chants could be heard hailing both him and his new queen.
Turning around she waved goodbye to her brothers and friends. Yes, she would miss the solitude of Kaikeya but the ocean no longer frightened her.
