The stranger was watching Anika in the rear-view mirror. Whenever she looked at him, he looked away. The driver of the car was explaining the road to the guests.  It was the steepest part of the hills. The view from the window was breath taking. A slight drizzle, an overcast sky and the light from the houses in the valley shining like stars. The twilight made the view even more beautiful. In the distance, one could see the snowcapped peaks of the Himalayas.

“Welcome to Harshalaya, the blissful wellness center”! All guests were ushered in to a big room with antique wooden furniture. The welcome drink was a concoction of basil and honey mixed with lime. Anika felt very relaxed. She badly needed this break and the wellness center seemed to be the perfect destination.

“Ma, I’ve reached. This place is heaven on earth. I wish you were here with me.” Anika was watching the valley from her balcony where in the distance she could see the river Ganges flowing as she spoke to her mother. 

Tired from the journey, Anika fell into a deep sleep.

The man in the black robe had a chain in his hand. “The curse on you will make you suffer forever. Whoever you love will leave you and go away”.  Anika could see a lady walking in tattered clothes climbing the steep mountain. Her feet were bleeding and she was struggling to breathe. The man in the black robe suddenly hits the lady on her head with the chain. Anika woke up gasping for breath.  This recurring dream in different formats had kept Anika awake many a night.

She walked to the balcony. The scent of the place made her feel refreshed. The daylight was slowly creeping in.  She dressed up and went to the yoga area. “Breathe deeply and relax your body”.  Soon Anika was in deep meditation.

The therapy session for Anika was to start at 9:30 am where she was to meet one of the masters. On the way to her session, she encountered the stranger from yesterday’s trip. He was tall, handsome but had a worried face.  Wonder what brings him here, she thought to herself.  The Harshalaya wellness center is a place for the rich and famous with troubled lives or with mental illnesses. It also caters to short breaks for corporate clients like Anika. The therapy is based on the natural herbs and meditation and administered by people whose forefathers were Rishis in ancient times.

Anika knocked and slowly opened the door. The room was dimly lit.  On the floor there was a mat and next to it sat a person in white clothes. He smiled as Anika entered.  “Please sit down”, he signaled Anika on the mat next to him.

After what seemed like a long time, Anika opened her eyes. “Aha, this looks like your bad karma from an earlier life. These kinds of curses are very difficult to break”. Anika looked sad. “The recurring dream is a good sign. It means that some soul in the universe wants to set you free.  You would need to go deep into the abode of the Rishis to see if you can find the good soul”.  

The restaurant was full. “Are you together? We have one table free?” Before Anika could react Soham the stranger said, “No problem” as he ushered Anika towards the table.  “Hi, I am Soham,” he stretched his hand towards Anika. “Anika”, she mumbled.  There was a very awkward silence for a long time. “Rare to see a lady come alone here,” he said. “Do you come often?” Anika asked. “This is my third visit. The first two were with my fiancé.” A long pause and then he said, “I used to bring her here for therapy. She was extremely possessive about me. I could never have a female friend or speak to another lady without her getting upset to the level of threatening to commit suicide.”  Anika found this very strange.  “And why did you not bring her this time?” she asked curiously. “I finally ended the relationship. It was too toxic for me to handle; the therapy had made absolutely no difference.”

Anika was curious to know why then did he come here again, but decided to let the question be for some other day.

After that day, Soham and Anika met frequently. Both of them tried to find reasons to be together. They went for long walks in the hills. They shared some stories of their lives.    There was peace and a lot of silence between them. Anika felt she had known him somehow earlier. She also told him how whenever she got into a serious relationship the person left her midway. “It is a curse from some previous life time is what the master says”, she told Soham.

“Madam, are you sure you want to go to the top at this time? It is a full moon night and …” the gurkha in his broken English was asking Anika. She nodded.  The road was steep and Anika was panting. The moon was glowing bright.  Anika was referring to the directions given by the master with her torchlight to find the Rishi’s abode. After what looked like a few hours, they reached flat land where in the distance they could see a hut with a simmering light. She knocked and slowly opened the door.  In the dim light she could see a Rishi in deep meditation. Sandalwood incense was burning in the corner of the room filling it with smoke. What hit Anika was that he resembled Soham but for the beard. She smiled. “You are imagining things” she told herself.  When Anika returned from her deep meditative state, she found that the Rishi was not there. She asked the gurkha. He said, there was no Rishi in this hut when you entered it. Anika insisted with the gurkha that she had seen the Rishi. The time was around 4 am. While walking down, on one of the turns of the path, she could see a person in a white robe looking towards the valley. The gurkha smiled and said, “Madam this is the Himalayas, the abode of the Gods and good souls. But you see them only when you are tuned to the frequency of the universe.” 

Anika felt light and relaxed. She had her final session with the master today. She was all excited to tell him about her experience with the Rishi. “So, the soul found you? You are lucky!  Love is what runs the universe and it is our duty to love everyone and everything that touches our lives. The good soul loved you in some life time”.

Anika was getting ready to return when she realized she had not met Soham for two days. How will she keep in touch with him? They had not exchanged any numbers. She went to the reception desk to enquire about Soham, when they told her he had left the previous day. Anika felt sad. She walked towards her room dejected. 

There was a note for her on the table with a box.

“Dear Anika,

By the time you see this note, I would be gone.  The brief time we spent together will remain sweet memories for me for a life time.  After what happened in my life between my fiancé and me, I thought love is a curse. But after meeting you and sharing moments with you, I realized how wrong I was.

I am not sure if I am worthy of you or what you feel about me.  That is why I am leaving without meeting you so that in my mind I take a picture of you loving me.

I am sending a small gift for you. Whenever you wear these earrings, think of me.

I wish you a wonderful life and hope your mission for coming to Harshalaya was accomplished.

I am going without leaving my coordinates because I truly believe that if we are meant for each other, we will meet again.

Yours forever, Soham”.

Days turned into months. Anika was once again immersed in her work and spent late hours at office. Often when she wore the earrings she remembered Soham.  Today was one such day. She was getting ready to go to the Young Entrepreneur Awards at the Taj Hotel. She was late because of the Mumbai traffic and rains.  Just as she entered the hall, the hostess announced, “And the winner of the Entrepreneur of the year award is the dynamic and dashing Soham Sinha for his new venture Anikanjali”.

Soham was surrounded by the press.  After a very long time Anika got a chance to speak to him. “So delighted to meet you once again”, he gently hugged Anika. “Why didn’t you ever tell me you are a celebrity?” cutting Anika mid-sentence a lady came and held Soham’s arm.  “You had promised me you will never talk to any lady when I am not there. Who is she?” Anika missed a heartbeat. Did he return to his fiancé? She wondered. Soham smiled and as if reading her thoughts said, “Sandhya is my sister who is ‘also’ very possessive about me, and” he winked and said “This is my soul mate Anika. We’ve met again after many life times”.