Kolkata-based author Debashree Chakraborty writes a novel about the 19 years of life of Jesus, which, according to some contemporary texts, he spent traveling extensively in the Middle East, Sindhu region and India
[Author’s Note: In the Old Testament of the Bible, there is no information about the life of Jesus for 19 years. There are some contemporary texts where eyewitnesses have stated that he traveled extensively in the Middle East and crossed the Sindhu region to enter India. Through this novel, I have tried to portray the diary of a profound spiritual journey of his life in the initial and final chapters. Foreign powers have tried to erase the history of our continent, Asia. That is why, when Notovitch returned from Hemis in Ladakh and mentioned that ancient text over 2000 years old, Max Müller sent people to Hemis to destroy that ancient manuscript. The mysterious manuscript is also mentioned in the book by Swami Abhedananda about Kashmir and Tibet. What was it that caused Max Müller so much concern over this manuscript? It is noteworthy that love cannot come into the life of the son of God, and he cannot have any children. Even the Gospels attributed to him have been confined to the secret, dark chambers of the Pope’s city, with words implanted into his mouth according to their wishes. In his name, imperialistic aggression is being carried out across the world. His only daughter, Sara, has not been recognized. His entire existence has been imprisoned. There lies an unknown chapter of his life hidden throughout the Middle East, the Sindhu region, and India. I have brought forth this history through this novel. “An Unknown Life” is in no way a novel imitating “Jesus lived in India.” This novel provides detailed descriptions of his presence across the vast land from Israel to India, not just his own, but also the mysterious narratives of many people associated with him. Was Jesus truly the founder of Christianity? If not, why must he still bear the burden of the “Roman Cross”? Is there ever to be a possibility of his release? All answers are coming. Debashree Chakraborty]
An Unknown Life
Location: France, Rennes-le-Château, Year 2022 and two thousand years ago
Nowadays, nothing feels right. As Omkari walks through this mountainous nature, amidst the silent wilderness, a deep philosophical feeling begins to intensify within her. She is torn between physical and mental desires. She doesn’t even know what she wants. She isn’t young anymore; at this age, one needs a companion. After climbing the ladders of success one after another, she has become profoundly lonely somewhere along the way. Yet she has always been alone. The pursuit of knowledge and the search for historical figures have brought her spiritual fulfillment, but in doing so, she feels deprived of the essence, beauty, and fragrance of life’s ongoing stream.
Long ago, someone had arrived, and through the currents of time, that person has departed. Yet she wishes to rekindle the same emotions and feelings, but she cannot find them in anyone. Perhaps that’s why she feels a deep connection to historical figures like Ishanath or Mahaprabhu Shri Chaitanya. She may be searching for that love of the past through these characters. Tears are welling up in Omkari’s chest; she longs to cry on a broad chest and to embrace that warm, affectionate hug once again. But where is it?
At dusk, when day melds into night, in the dimly lit environment of the Ratnagiri Buddhist monastery, that yellow bird and the figure she loved in the past intertwine in a moment of embrace. This feeling cannot be put into words; it is a profound spiritual experience. They are entwined in an embrace, but there is no physical sensation; what exists is a spiritual feeling. This is the essence of the Non-dual Vedanta—their eternal and everlasting bond remains through the changes of time, environment, and circumstances. Maybe love is like this, silent. They have never verbally expressed their love for one another; they flowed along in the current of emotions. She once said that love is infinite like the ocean, which cannot be confined by any rules. Again, she wishes to have that person back. She can’t continue; there is unbearable pain in her heart.
Since coming to Rennes-le-Château, these feelings have intensified. There is a massive tree on the right side of the road, and Omkari does not know its name. However, she feels that the tree is like a shelter. This tree and a person seem synonymous to her. She moves closer and hugs the tree.
She began to weep, overwhelmed. There were no signs of civilization nearby, just the desolate wilderness around her. Omkari’s heart-wrenching cries erupted through her lips as she started to scream and cry loudly. At that moment, an elderly woman emerged from the forest and placed her hand on Omkari’s shoulder, asking, “Why are you crying? I haven’t seen you here before; who are you? Are you a human or a traveler from the past?”
Omkari wasn’t afraid at all by this sudden arrival of the woman; instead, her appearance felt very sincere to her. It had been a long time since anyone had asked how she was. Nevertheless, Omkari felt a desire to open up. She said, “I am really missing someone; since they left, I have been incredibly lonely. Walking alone feels exhausting.”
The kind lady asked again, “Are you a character from the past? From which time have you come?”
Such questions did not seem odd to Omkari. She resided within the currents of time, lost in where she had gone; she didn’t even know what time she was currently in. Omkari replied, “I don’t know where I came from or where I am going. I am getting lost in the flow of time. I feel so very alone.”
“It’s only natural to feel lonely; this land is that of separation, of suffering. When he came, he brought this suffering with him; his soul knows no death. As long as that longed-for union doesn’t occur, the soul cannot be freed. And without his liberation, this region cannot escape the torture of separation.”
Omkari, now somewhat more composed, asked, “Who are you talking about? Who brought suffering here so long ago?”
In the final light of day across this wild landscape, the elderly woman’s face became even more mysterious. She clasped both her hands on Omkari’s shoulders and brought her face closer to her, saying, “The Holy Grail.” He is the Holy Grail, who came here with the sacred blood in his veins.
“Who is he? Who is the Holy Grail you are referring to? What is his name?”
For a while, there was a profound silence; it felt as if all sounds in nature had come to a standstill. The old woman’s eyes brightened. Through those eyes, it seemed a special character was about to arrive, a long-awaited one. A name emerged from the old woman’s lips in a profoundly mysterious verbal flow: “Mary Magdalene.”
A jolt hit Omkari’s chest, and she fell silent. The old woman then said, “Leave this place; do not seek her. Those who have sought her have been lost.”
Night fell in Rennes-le-Château, and the old woman disappeared into the darkness. Omkari began her journey again, and as she walked, she reached the body of water once more, by the edge of which lay the stone structure with the closed door. She found herself in front of that door again, which seemed to attract him repeatedly. She felt as if he were trapped within a special circle of time, unable to break free. Yet she had to break this circle and escape. At that moment, the door creaked open, and a lady dressed in white emerged from within, holding an emergency light. Omkari was no longer surprised by anything; it felt as if she had been waiting for moments like this.
She saw Elizabeth standing in front of her. Before she could say anything, Elizabeth took Omkari’s hand and said, “Come with me; we will have dinner together tonight, and then I will answer all your questions throughout the night.”
After dining with Elizabeth that evening, they laid side by side on the bed in Elizabeth’s bedroom. A soft yellow light illuminated the room, but it was not bright enough to clearly see their faces. They turned to each other, looking sideways. In such an atmosphere, perhaps those words could not be spoken. Words that people around the world can rarely express openly cannot be expressed even within a closed room. Hence, this puzzling environment had to be created. The house was surrounded by forest, and various sounds echoed from within the jungle in the darkness of the night. Omkari was a listener today, quietly waiting for a special moment. Then, very quietly, Elizabeth began to speak.
“If you wish to know the one you are seeking, you need to understand the context of their arrival in Rennes-le-Château. The search for their tomb had been ongoing for a long time; the question of where they were remained unanswered. Senior did not suddenly find the tomb during the church’s renovation; members of a secret organization had instructed him to locate it. This special secret organization had been searching for this tomb for many years.
Under their direction, he found the tomb, but he also began to blackmail them with this discovery. Senior announced that he would reveal to the world who was buried here. Moreover, the parchment he obtained contained such information that he wanted to disclose to everyone. This is the reason he had to be killed. Senior was in good health, but eleven days before his death, his servant Mary had bought a coffin for him.
—Does that mean the girl named Mary was involved in this murder?
—Yes, she was sent specifically to keep an eye on Senior. So, in due time, she poisoned him to remove the obstacle from their path. When my father was murdered, I was in London at that time, and I started receiving many anonymous letters warning me that if I had any documents regarding the Merovingian dynasty, I should prepare them at a specific location. Someone would then come to collect this information. I had no evidence, so it was impossible for me to provide anything. However, they would not believe me and continued to threaten my life. It was no longer safe for me to stay in London, so I rushed here. The mystery of Rennes-le-Château deeply attracted me. One day, I will die; before that, I must know the real truth.
—Aren’t you afraid here? They could kill you here too.”
—No, I’m not afraid. Because I had a friend with me in London. One night, we went out for dinner, and I don’t know what the Lord’s game was, but I wore her clothes and she wore mine. Prior to that, we had cut our hair and dyed it in similar ways. That night, as we returned from dinner, an accident occurred on the road, resulting in my friend’s death; her face was completely crushed in the accident. I somehow survived. Since I was connected to the world of journalism, I had ties to the darker side of things. That very night, I acquired a fake passport by spending some money. Within a few days, I also arranged for a visa. I came to France under a new identity.
—Elizabeth, what is your purpose for coming here? There must be a reason why you chose to come to Rennes-le-Château instead of anywhere else!
—To seek the Merovingians.
—Merovingians! Who are they that you risked your life to find?
—That’s why I called you here tonight; I will tell you everything, gradually. You will understand me, and I will understand you. That’s why we need this kind of environment. Before understanding the Merovingians, you have to walk with me a bit longer. The Merovingians worshipped a goddess named Beliar. This goddess had a bull as her vehicle, and in her hand was a trident like your goddess Durga’s. It is said that the ancestors of the Merovingians, along with this goddess, left Israel and came to this region, and from this goddess arose the Merovingians. She is the primordial mother. Benjamin was the ancestor of the Merovingians. After the crucifixion of Yeshua, eleven tribes left Israel because it was no longer safe for them to stay there. The Benjaminites took their primordial mother and sought refuge first on the Phoenician coast heading west. The Phoenicians possessed the best ships, through which they brought them to France and joined forces against Rome. The goddess that the Benjaminites brought with them upon leaving Israel had a trident in one hand and a pitcher on her shoulder; this pitcher was the Grail, the “Holy Grail.”
—What does Holy Grail mean?
—The Holy Grail is a sacred vessel that held holy blood. It is said that after the crucifixion, when blood was dripping from Yeshua’s wounds, one of his companions, Joseph of Arimathea, collected the blood in a vessel. This vessel is what we call the Holy Grail. During baptism, a vessel is considered the Holy Grail, and the drink from that vessel is regarded as the blood of Yeshua. As long as you are not drinking from the Holy Grail, you cannot be considered a Christian. Hence, the Holy Grail is an extremely important aspect of Christianity.
—So, this means that the goddess brought that vessel with her here to Rennes-le-Château, right? Our Kamakhya temple is an important seat of mother worship; unless the water from this temple is taken in hand and consumed, the worship is not complete. What a strange coincidence!
—Yes, they were pagan; they practiced rituals to summon spirits and demons through tantra. There will be similarities between their practices and yours. However, the goddess’s pitcher here is not the “Holy Grail.” This pitcher represents the womb — the womb in which the goddess held the sacred blood.
—Elizabeth, there has been a lot of hiding; now tell me, what is this sacred blood really?
In the dimly lit ambiance of the room, Elizabeth appeared oddly mesmerizing, with the yellow light reflecting off her open hair, giving her a unique aura. She sat up on the bed, gazing at the wall in front of her and said, “Omkari, the Holy Grail contained the blood of Yeshua. The Grail is the womb of the goddess, in which she conceived the child of Yeshua.”
Images of the red-haired woman kept flashing before Omkari’s eyes. For some reason, she couldn’t help but recall that special burial site within the ancient structure.
—This goddess is Lady Magdalene, who also died in Rennes-le-Château. The place where you and I met today was her tomb temple, but she was later moved to a large church. Omkari, I know you know everything about her; you came here in search of that parchment. That’s why you sought friendship with me. I will provide you the information about the parchment, but in return, you must help me find the Holy Grail. I know very well that you know where it is, where the present living descendant is, Omkari.
Elizabeth’s face started to look somewhat terrifying, and her speaking style seemed different, too. Now Omkari felt a slight fear; she was not prepared for a situation like this. Elizabeth’s face began to lean towards Omkari, as if a gigantic predator were about to swallow a harmless little fish. Out of fear, Omkari closed her eyes, and just then, there was a sound, and Elizabeth fell on top of Omkari.
Omkari managed to shove Elizabeth off and sat up to see that she was dead. There was a hole right in the middle of her head and neck, from which blood was flowing. Behind where Elizabeth was sitting, there was a glass window; the window was closed, and though there were curtains drawn on both sides, there was a gap between the two curtains. Through that gap, a hole had formed, and intense light like that of a flashlight was entering the room.
At that moment, Omkari’s mobile phone rang. She saw that Ali was calling her. As soon as she answered the phone, Ali said, “Omkari, I’m outside. Get everything you have there and come out right now; we need to get out of here immediately.”
That night, Omkari came out of Elizabeth’s house and saw Ali standing in the woods. Ali had been standing in front of the glass window. He firmly grasped Omkari’s hand and began to run. When they reached the road, Omkari saw a car waiting, and Ali practically pulled her into the vehicle, which then drove off. After traveling a short distance, Ali said, “I had no other choice; if I hadn’t killed her, she would have killed you. From now on, we must take a different path than the one we’ve been on.”
At that moment, Omkari realized she had become entangled in some terrifying conspiracy. She had sought knowledge of the unknown throughout her life, had leaped into danger in search of truth, and she found great satisfaction in navigating through the diversities of life. Well, if that is what God wishes, so be it. After regaining some composure, she said, “Ali, I understand very well that I have become embroiled in a rather significant conspiracy. I enjoy navigating through life’s challenges, but you need to tell me everything.”
—Omkari, the people who sent you here sent you in search of the Holy Grail. They must have had strong faith in you that I could carry out this task effectively.
—How did you get involved with them?
—Long ago, the French government was searching for the Holy Grail. Many secret organizations participated in this highly confidential project. Investigations later revealed that several of these secret organizations no longer existed. The identities of those who were correctly identified in this particular project included some secret groups appointed by the Catholic Church, whose task is to hunt down and eliminate the descendants of Yeshua — much like how the Medici were eliminated in the time of Leonardo da Vinci. In the presence of the Pope, he was stabbed multiple times and killed. After Yeshua’s crucifixion, he was rescued and kept in various secret locations, and Mary Magdalene cared for him and helped him recover. During this time, it is said that Mary Magdalene became pregnant and that she was married to Yeshua. When she conceived, they must have certainly planned to spend their lives together. However, just as Yeshua…
In Galilee and its surrounding areas, the flames of rebellion had been ignited, making it unsafe for him to remain in Roman-ruled territory. Danger awaited him at every moment. Therefore, he entrusted his pregnant wife to his friends Lazarus and Joseph of Arimathea to ensure she reached a safe shelter. Lazarus was the elder brother of Mary Magdalene. They brought the pregnant Mary Magdalene safely to Rennes-le-Château, ensuring she delivered the child well and kept him safe. Mary Magdalene gave birth to the child here, and around this descendant, an empire developed in the region, formed by groups that had emerged from Israel, uniting to foster this empire. They established their original and secret religious practices in the area.
When news of Yeshua’s child and his family reached the Church, they initiated a crusade in the region. The Church assembled a massive army by gathering troops from the surrounding areas, and the attack began. However, it was the responsibility of the Templars and several secret organizations’ soldiers to protect Mary Magdalene’s tomb and her family. They continued to fulfill that duty, and the two parchments from Mary’s tomb ended up in the possession of my father and his friend. Unfortunately, they were murdered. After my father’s death, I began the quest for the lost parchments. In the course of that search, I learned about the secret project to find the Holy Grail initiated by the French government. During that time, I discovered through my father’s secret contact number about Robert, whose family had been secretly investigating Yeshua’s life and his family since the crucifixion. This is how I became involved in this endeavor. Our brothers are scattered across various regions following territorial division, and I was instructed to stay in Alexandria. At that time, I learned that the only daughter of my father’s friend, who had been murdered, was also killed in London, and that girl was…
The girl who was with him was a lesbian and has gone missing. My father’s friend’s daughter had some important documents that we believe she has taken with her. We had received information from various sources that the girl was hiding in Rennes-le-Château. They had been searching for the two parchments, but after the death of my father’s friend’s daughter, they ceased the search for the parchments. In fact, my father and his friend had hidden the parchments with my father’s friend’s daughter. Therefore, when the attackers found nothing on them, they killed them. The girl had gone into hiding in the region with these parchments. She was actually an agent employed by the Catholic Church, whose job was to find and eliminate the descendants of Yeshua in the present time.
How did she know that I had come here in search of Yeshua?
You yourself informed everyone here that you came in search of Yeshua. Everyone holds great respect for Mary Magdalene here, but everything is governed by the rules of the Catholic Church. They will not recognize her child. Many kings, including Charlemagne, were said to be part of this holy bloodline.
There is a ghost hiding among the mustard. The driver who brought us here, I believe, was acting as a double agent. I was supposed to leave here with you early this morning, so I asked one of our organization members to instruct this driver brother to come. We have all the fake identification documents ready; we will go straight to Portugal from here. This car will take us to Portugal.
You killed Elizabeth, how will you find the parchments for which you came here?
Every night, Elizabeth visits the temple at Mary’s previous tomb. I received instructions to set up hidden cameras in various places on the way down to the tomb. I did that. There, I saw Mary easily remove a stone from the wall, and then she looked at something there. Just like that, when Mary left the tomb last night, I entered and immediately found the two parchments as soon as I removed the stone from the wall. Now, I have those two parchments with me.
We will go straight from Portugal to Massachusetts to Robert. If I can hand these treasures over to him, I will find peace.
Why give them to Robert? The rightful owner of these parchments is you.
No, Omkari, I am not a descendant of Yeshua, so I must complete my father’s unfinished work. (Continues)
Click here for Part-1, Part 2, Part-3, Part-4, Part-5, Part-6, Part-7, Part-8, Part-9, Part-10, Part-11, Part-12, Part-13, Part-14, Part-15, Part-16, Part-17, Part-18, Part-19, Part-20, Part-21, Part-22,
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Debasree Chakraborti is a renowned novel writer of Bengali language. Based in Kolkata, West Bengal, India, she has done Master’s in Modern History from the Kolkata University, and authored some thirty books, mostly the novels, with historical perspective and themes. Her novel is ‘Maharaja Dahir’ that covers the history of Sindh from 662, the year of first attack on Sindh by the Arab armies till date, was published last year and translated by Nasir Aijaz into Sindhi language.
