Today, the Indus Valley is a barren desert, broken only by the winding River Indus. A long time ago, when the land was first settled, the Indus Valley was a lush and fertile jungle. It was the home of all manner of wild beasts.
This story tells of that time, many years ago, when the
Indus Valley was fertile and prosperous.
Indatri,
had been born and raised in the town of
Mohenjo-Daro. When she was 12 her father, who was a
trader, moved his family to the coastal city of Balakot.
Balakot was a port on the main trade route. Boats arrived there daily. They
brought goods to the city from far afield. Once unloaded the boats would be
quickly filled with a new cargo and were ready to continue their journey.
A New Beginning
Indatri awoke and opened her eyes. For a moment she didn't
know where she was. She then remembered, she was in her new bed, in her new
room. Her first thought was that she was glad the long journey was over.
It was several weeks since she and her family had said good-bye to their home
town of Mohenjo-Daro. Together they had started the 250 mile journey down to the
coast.
It had been a slow journey for they had with them everything they owned. Their
possessions were packed into bullock carts, and they could travel only as fast
as the slowest cart.
The Decision Explained
Although a beautiful new house
awaited them in the coastal town of Balakot, Indatri could not shake off the
sadness of leaving her friends and everything that was familiar.
She did not blame her father for moving. It had all made perfect sense when he
had talked to them some months ago.
“Your grandfather has become too old to oversee the coastal trade route,”
Avara explained to Indatri. “I must move to the coast and take over that part
of the family business.”
“Your brother, Datri, will stay here in Mohenjo-Daro to take care of the land
routes, and your uncle will stay in Harappa to deal with the inland trade.”
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