Prophecies

**Prophecies** are predictions about the future, and typically foretell a major event or something that will happen later on. Multiple different prophecies are spoken throughout the Pandava Quintet, many of which are important to the plot of each book.

## The Pandava Quintet

In the Pandava Quintet, Sheela Jagan has prophetic powers. She is known to others as a Clairvoyant, and often makes predictions that tell the other Pandava sisters of events that are going to happen in the future.

## Aru Shah and the Song of Death

### Varuna and Varuni's Prophecy

> *The girl with eyes like a fish and a heart snapped in two*
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> *will be met in battle by a girl named Aru.*
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> *But be careful what you do with a heart so broken,*
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> *for uglier truths will soon be spoken.*
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> *You, daughter of Indra, have a tongue like a whip,*
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> *but be wary of those to whom you serve lip,*
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> *for there is a tale beyond that soon you shall see--*
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> *But all that depends on your surviving the sea.*
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#### **Useful Notes**

* This prophecy is given in the chapter "I Mean, Technically, We're Family," on page 116.
* The first seven lines are spoken by Varuni, and the eighth line is completed by Varuna. Varuni is displeased with Varuna's choice of words, as she feels rhyming "see" with "sea" is lazy.
* The prophecy is about Meenakshi, as she has fish-shaped eyes and her heart was broken by Rama and Lakshmana long ago.

## Aru Shah and the Tree of Wishes

### Sheela Jagan's Prophecy

> *THE SCORNED POWERS ARE ON THE RISE,*
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> *TO CLAIM THEIR STOLEN IMMORTAL PRIZE.*
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> *ONE SISTER SHALL TURN OUT NOT TO BE TRUE.*
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> *WITH A SINGLE CHOICE THE WORLD SHALL RECEIVE ITS DUE.*
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> *ONE TREASURE IS FALSE, AND ONE TREASURE IS LOST,*
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> *BUT THE TREE AT THE HEART IS THE ONLY TRUE COST.*
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> *NO WAR CAN BE WON WITHOUT FINDING THAT ROOT;*
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> *NO VICTORY HAD WITHOUT YIELD OF ITS FRUIT.*
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> *IN FIVE DAYS THE TREASURE WILL BLOOM AND FADE,*
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> *AND ALL THAT WAS WON COULD SOON BE UNMADE.*
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#### **Useful Notes**

* Sheela says the prophecy in whole on page 35 in Chapter 4.
* This prophecy leads Aru Shah to believe that Kalpavriksha is missing after Nikita Jagan deduces that the one in Amaravati is a fake. Aru and her Pandava sisters decide to go on an unofficial quest to find and wish on the real Kalpavriksha to turn the tide in the war between the devas and asuras.
* "The scorned powers" likely refers to the Sleeper and his army, who wishes to "claim their stolen immortal prize" - the nectar of immortality, which makes people immortal. It was stolen from the asuras long ago.
* When Aru finally locates Kalpavriksha, Aranyani, the tree's protector, points out that the prophecy made no mention of wishes, implying that the prophecy might have been about something else entirely. She does, however, let Aru make her wish. Aru's wish is, "I wish we win."

### Boo's Curse

> *Pay your dues and show your worth; a wish will free you from this earth.*
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#### **Useful Notes**

* Opal was the one who revealed the curse's wording in *Aru Shah and the Tree of Wishes*, but she wasn't the person who cursed Boo.
* "Pay your dues and show your worth" refers to Boo's actions while he was Shakuni. Shakuni was the enemy of the Pandavas, and as punishment for his crimes against them, he was reincarnated as a pigeon. "Pay your dues and show your worth" means that Boo must ammend his previous actions by helping the Pandavas and show that he is worthy of redemption.
* "A wish will free you from this earth" refers to when Aru, in her anger, snapped at Boo, yelling, "I wish you would just get out of our lives!" in *Aru Shah and the City of Gold*. Though Boo did get freed from his curse, it was at the cost of dying. He is later reincarnated as a fire bird.

### The Moonlight Prophecy

> *All growing things know where the tree can be found,*
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> *But it takes the right ear to hear the right sound.*
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> *All growing things know, but not all wish to talk.*
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> *The youngest of roots are the best to unlock.*
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#### **Useful Notes**

* The chakora birds help the Potatoes decipher this prophecy after they are paid in secrets.
* Although Rudy initially thought the line,"the right ear to hear the right sound" was about him, it is actually referring to Nikita, who can talk to plants.
* The last two lines refer to how younger plants are more willing to talk and converse with people, according to Nikita.

## Aru Shah and the City of Gold

### The Road to Lanka Prophecy

> *You must remember to be polite*
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> *Even to things far out of your sight.*
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> *Not everything that glitters is gold...*
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> *The truth will lead to the Lanka road.*
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> *Choose poorly and you'll find there's no way out,*
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> *And you'll end up where no one can hear you shout.*
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#### **Useful Notes**

* Sheela says this prophecy right before the Potatoes meet Sonu and Kanak, and Mini Kapoor-Mercado-Lopez later assumes that the first line is referring to the marmots, because the Potatoes are planning to trick them.
* Lines 3 and 4 refer to the Potatoes and Kara having to choose the right ball to throw into a hoop in order to get to Lanka. One is gold and one is lead, and Aru assumes the Potatoes need to throw the real gold one.
* Lines 5 and 6 refer to the Potatoes' fall after throwing they wrong ball into the hoop. They are plummeted into a deep pit, which is the place where "no one can hear you shout".

### Aiden Acharya's Death Prophecy

*Beware, Aiden Acharya . . . The girl you love will be the death of you.*

### Sheela's Prophecy

> *Look for the crack and the sparkle - one to welcome, the other to spend. And ahead lies something new. No way to avoid the fire and the pain, but at least now you know that you are true.*
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#### Useful Notes

* The "crack and the sparkle" refer to the Boo egg hatching and Agni's IO(F)U, respectively. The "one to welcome" is most likely the new bird that hatches from the Boo egg, while the one to spend is Agni's coin.
* The "fire and the pain" most likely has something to do with Agni, since he is the god of fire. This part of the prophecy will probably be explored in *Aru Shah and the Nectar of Immortality*.

## Sheela's Shorter Glimpses of the Future

### Aru Shah and the Tree of Wishes

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> *"Remember this, Aru. There's lots more to find.*" - Sheela to Aru, *Aru Shah and the Tree of Wishes* (page 77)
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* This likely references what Aru is going to learn about the Sleeper throughout *Aru Shah and the Tree of Wishes*.

> *"No! ... He's making a terrible mistake. And you will hate him for his love." -* Sheela to Aru, *Aru Shah and the Tree of Wishes* (page 214)
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* This prophecy refers to Boo, who betrays the Pandavas and makes a deal with the Sleeper, in the hopes that he will be able to return to his true form. Boo thought that returning to his previous, more powerful form would help him protect the Pandavas from the Sleeper better.

> *"He knows. He knows what you seek, and he wants it too."* - Sheela to Aru, Brynne Rao, and Mini, *Aru Shah and the Tree of Wishes* (page 270)
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* "He" refers the Sleeper. This short prophecy implies that the Sleeper knows the Potatoes are seeking Kalpavriksha, and that he wants to wish on Kalpavriksha too.

### Aru Shah and the City of Gold

> *"Two trials before you; two friends will return. One you will welcome, the other you'll spurn."* - Sheela to her Pandava sisters, *Aru Shah and the City of Gold* (page 190)
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* The friend that the Potatoes welcome is Rudy. It is not explicitly stated who the person they "spurn" is, but it can be inferred that it is Boo, who is rejected by the Pandavas when he returns after betraying them.