singers who came to the village from somewhere. Their poems that pictured the spectacular scenes of the Dawn, sent vibrations through the Soul of the Village. The singers sang of the shining orb of Light that majestically arrives from the multicoloured sky at the Eastern Horizon in a magnificent chariot driven by hundreds of thousands of golden horses. Those fantastic songs rained like honey in the eardrums of the Villagers. For them, who knew only the fierce noon sun who burned their souls with redhot rays, this was entirely a novel experience. But they, who waited for the stirring sights of the Dawn that could make a million flowers blossom in their minds, did not succeed. You might think that it was the geographical position of the Village that prevented them from seeing Sunrise. No! Not at all! It is doubtful whether there is any other place in this wide world, which is more suitable than the Village for watching Sunrise. So was it because the Villagers failed to get up early? That too is not true. Not a single day, when the Village failed to awaken from sleep before the Pole Star appeared, has been recorded in history. Then why did they fail to see Sunrise? Dark Clouds! No! Not those who come to give at least a drop of water to quench the thirst of the Earth. These were clouds that covered the sky like a pitchblack curtain, spreading a sickening darkness in the atmosphere. The Clouds were usually accompanied by blinding lightning and ear-shattering thunder. Everyday, near the moment of Sunrise, the Villagers will go to the shores of the Big Blue Ocean, who had the special ability to play any kind of role, like being calm or extremely angry. But what they saw was not the Rising Sun. Instead they saw endless columns of Clouds reminding them of black Ghosts. The troops of Clouds took special care not to allow even a slight ray of the Sun to sneak out of the wall they had built up. The Leader of the Clouds will shout through
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thunder to the depressed Villagers. “You Villagers! Go and do your jobs without wasting precious time. You know the poets and singers. They are frauds. The Rising Sun is not so beautiful as they'd like to have you believe. We've seen this Sun. You people will all become blind if you happen to see the light of that Sun. The rays of the Rising Sun are coloured. They will induce hallucinations and drive you mad. We are staying here to save you from this grave danger. You understand one thing. We are your saviours, your security guards. Without us, this Village has no existence.” The Clouds will stay there till noon. And they allow the noon sun to pour its heart out with rays that could vapourise the life-blood. But who can love the noon sun? It is not possible. How could the Villagers love the noon sun who burns their crops and turns their wells into waterless pits of scorching sand? The Leader of the Clouds offered a concession. “See the setting sun if you want.” But the Villagers who hated that very word 'sunset' declined. Months and years kept flying away without waiting to rest. No change was there in the condition of the Village. But during these years the Villagers grasped fully, the truth that the dark Clouds were not their saviours because they were witnessing the number of people who died due to thunder and lightning, shooting up year by year. So many lives were also lost to the horrible heat of the noon sun. Though the Villagers requested several times that they be allowed to see the Rising Sun at least once, the Dark Clouds didn't even take it at face value. In these hopeless circumstances, some of the Youth of the Village had a brainwave. After getting the permission of the Elders, they met the Birds of the Village. “Dear Birds, we know you love this Village. We want you to do us a favour. Please fly to the Eastern Horizon at the time of Sunrise and return after having a glimpse of at least a single ray of the Sun of our