Incarnate.
Then the giant worm swayed and crashed down to the earth once more. Raising a great cloud of dust and debris, it plunged underground, the entire hillside and countryside shuddering as it burrowed its way through the ground, seeking to bury itself deep within its natural habitat. Trees were uprooted and knocked off, trunks split, the air filled with dust and debris. Cattle lowed and reared and turned their heads in alarm, and it was only through the efforts of his expert gopas and gopis that a stampeded was prevented.
In a moment, the entire thicket ahead was concealed from view by the rising cloud of dust. The earth underfoot continued to shudder mightily and from somewhere deep inside, the sounds of the beast could still be heard, making that peculiar trumpet-like sound of distress or rage, or perhaps both.
Yashoda came up beside him, breathless from having run too quickly. He glanced back and saw her sisters and the rest of their clan approaching as fast as they were able. His wife put a hand on his arm, clutching it tightly. He felt her fear and anxiety through her tight clasp, knowing her every gesture well enough to read her heart’s innermost secrets without her having to say a word.
She read him as easily, not saying a word for a moment, just staring at the enormous cloud of dust drifting slowly in their direction. He was glad she had missed seeing the beast itself. Yashoda was a strong person but the sight of that creature was enough to give any grown Vrishni nightmares for the rest of their life.
Finally, she spoke, putting into words the inevitable question. All around them the other gopas and gopis were pointing and staring and talking in hushed anxious voices.
‘Krishna?’ she asked, her tone suggesting she already knew the answer but had to ask anyway.
He gestured at the cloud ahead. There was no need to say more, even if he could describe such a sight as he had just witnessed.
He felt her hand tighten on his arm, squeezing hard enough to choke off circulation. He let it stay, saying nothing.
They stood like that, watching, for a long while. There was nothing they could do except wait. And pray.
8
KRISHNA was in the maw of the beast. From the sensations rippling through its body he understood that it was attempting to burrow deep inside the earth. Its intention was plain. Burrow into the ground, swallow and digest him. Any normal human would suffocate from lack of air. Even if he survived, he would be crushed by the grinding maw, then have his flesh dissolved by the beast’s powerful intestinal acids.
But of course Krishna was no normal human.
He felt the shuddering sensations of Aghasura breaking through packed earth, shattering stone and igneous formations as it burrowed. He felt also the vibrations of its segmented body underfoot as it shifted its own flesh and tissue, carrying him deeper into its innards, like a moving floor that slid food down its digestive tract. From all around him he felt and smelled the fetid odor of rank juices oozing. The ground underfoot grew squishy and squamous, the air rancorous, and he felt himself spattered from all sides with disgusting fluids.
Aghasura was attempting to digest him.
Like any worm of any size, the demon was basically one long digestive tract. Its entire being was devoted to the single-minded act of feeding and processing food. The first part of the process was to shower the digested prey with stomach acids which would break it down into its constituent parts, all the while pushing the food further down the length of its body. Like any large creature, it probably needed to feed constantly. He wondered how it found sufficient nourishment.
That answer came soon enough. Krishna heard and felt the worm-demon slowing in its downwards progress, then the distinctive sound caused by the unwinding of its gigantic maw as it opened up, followed by
Then the giant worm swayed and crashed down to the earth once more. Raising a great cloud of dust and debris, it plunged underground, the entire hillside and countryside shuddering as it burrowed its way through the ground, seeking to bury itself deep within its natural habitat. Trees were uprooted and knocked off, trunks split, the air filled with dust and debris. Cattle lowed and reared and turned their heads in alarm, and it was only through the efforts of his expert gopas and gopis that a stampeded was prevented.
In a moment, the entire thicket ahead was concealed from view by the rising cloud of dust. The earth underfoot continued to shudder mightily and from somewhere deep inside, the sounds of the beast could still be heard, making that peculiar trumpet-like sound of distress or rage, or perhaps both.
Yashoda came up beside him, breathless from having run too quickly. He glanced back and saw her sisters and the rest of their clan approaching as fast as they were able. His wife put a hand on his arm, clutching it tightly. He felt her fear and anxiety through her tight clasp, knowing her every gesture well enough to read her heart’s innermost secrets without her having to say a word.
She read him as easily, not saying a word for a moment, just staring at the enormous cloud of dust drifting slowly in their direction. He was glad she had missed seeing the beast itself. Yashoda was a strong person but the sight of that creature was enough to give any grown Vrishni nightmares for the rest of their life.
Finally, she spoke, putting into words the inevitable question. All around them the other gopas and gopis were pointing and staring and talking in hushed anxious voices.
‘Krishna?’ she asked, her tone suggesting she already knew the answer but had to ask anyway.
He gestured at the cloud ahead. There was no need to say more, even if he could describe such a sight as he had just witnessed.
He felt her hand tighten on his arm, squeezing hard enough to choke off circulation. He let it stay, saying nothing.
They stood like that, watching, for a long while. There was nothing they could do except wait. And pray.
8
KRISHNA was in the maw of the beast. From the sensations rippling through its body he understood that it was attempting to burrow deep inside the earth. Its intention was plain. Burrow into the ground, swallow and digest him. Any normal human would suffocate from lack of air. Even if he survived, he would be crushed by the grinding maw, then have his flesh dissolved by the beast’s powerful intestinal acids.
But of course Krishna was no normal human.
He felt the shuddering sensations of Aghasura breaking through packed earth, shattering stone and igneous formations as it burrowed. He felt also the vibrations of its segmented body underfoot as it shifted its own flesh and tissue, carrying him deeper into its innards, like a moving floor that slid food down its digestive tract. From all around him he felt and smelled the fetid odor of rank juices oozing. The ground underfoot grew squishy and squamous, the air rancorous, and he felt himself spattered from all sides with disgusting fluids.
Aghasura was attempting to digest him.
Like any worm of any size, the demon was basically one long digestive tract. Its entire being was devoted to the single-minded act of feeding and processing food. The first part of the process was to shower the digested prey with stomach acids which would break it down into its constituent parts, all the while pushing the food further down the length of its body. Like any large creature, it probably needed to feed constantly. He wondered how it found sufficient nourishment.
That answer came soon enough. Krishna heard and felt the worm-demon slowing in its downwards progress, then the distinctive sound caused by the unwinding of its gigantic maw as it opened up, followed by
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