Strange things began to happen.
A sudden flood tore through the lower fields, drowning the crops. A child slipped into the river and was saved only at the last moment. Livestock sickened.
The villagers grew restless. They said the goddess was angry, for Meera had not accepted her fate. The elders gathered before her hut.
"Daughter," one said gravely, "if you do not go willingly, Maa Satluj will destroy us all."
Meera wept. "But I love Arjun. How can a river take me away from him?"
Her cries fell on silence. Fear weighed heavier than love.8