AJAYA - RISE OF KALI (Book 2) (2 page)
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Authors: Anand Neelakantan
Afterword ~ DHARMA, A SUBTLE CONCEPT
A
UTHOR’S
N
OTE
WHY WRITE ABOUT THE DEFEATED?
In the first volume of
Ajaya,
I elaborated on my reasons for choosing to write the
Mahabharata
story from Duryodhana’s perspective. Since its publication, I have received numerous e-mails from my readers – some critical, others adulatory or analytical of the perspective I brought to the age-old epic. There were readers who were unhappy that I had cast Krishna in an unflattering light and portrayed the Pandavas in a negative way. Hence, a short note about my portrayal of Krishna and the Pandavas is perhaps merited here.
I have written
Ajaya
from the perspective of the vanquished side –the Kauravas. For them, Krishna was a rival, if not an enemy. If the Kauravas had accepted Krishna’s divinity and agreed to whatever he ordained, the Mahabharata war would not have taken place. It would thus be unrealistic, even ridiculous, for the Kauravas to be seen worshipping Krishna. There would have been no story left to tell. The great sage, Vedavyasa, never portrayed Krishna as God or an
avatar
in his original version,
Jaya.
It was only later, in the
Mahabhagawatam,
that he is seen as an
avatar
of Vishnu. There were many criticisms voiced about Krishna in the
Mahabharata.
Characters like Shishupala, Suyodhana, Gandhari, and even Balarama, his brother, sometimes made scathing verbal attacks on Krishna. Vyasa effectively used these opposing viewpoints to create a rounded story.
The
Mahabharata,
in essence, is a narrative without a hero. Rather, every character is a hero. I suspect the sage Vyasa adopted the title
Jaya
for his great epic in order to point out the irony of violence and a war in which no one wins. For me,
Jaya
is an anti-war story. I have condensed the
Gita
and placed it slightly ahead in the conventional storyline, as a conversation between Balarama and Krishna. The two brothers, though they loved each other, had many disagreements over the Kauravas and Pandavas. While Krishna favoured Arjuna, Suyodhana was Balarama’s favourite. In this rendering, Balarama denounces Krishna before the war for the violence he is trying to unleash. But for Krishna, it is the call of duty and
dharma.
I have used this space to imagine how the conversation between Balarama and Krishna might have gone. Here, as in the original, Krishna is unable to convince Balarama about the necessity for a war; this would have been an argument between two great intellects. I have used this space to voice Balarama’s doubts as he speaks to Krishna. Rather, they are my own doubts on reading the
Gita.
I plead guilty to putting my words into Balarama’s mouth, and occasionally Arjuna’s. Vedvyasa just says Krishna and Balarama disagreed about the war and that Balarama went on a pilgrimage when it took place. I have included the
Gita
in its conventional space, though some of the doubts Arjuna airs are my own. The original
Gita
is a conversation between a mentor and mentee, when Krishna convinces Arjuna to fight the war.
As I have stated in the many interviews I have given and articles I have written, I am a seeker; my stories are more about questions than answers. I claim neither the intellect nor the scholarship to make a critical analysis of the
Gita,
words which have inspired countless men and women over the centuries. My questions are mundane and ordinary, like the doubts that gnaw at a child’s mind when an adult tells him wonderful stories. The child knows the stories are fascinating but curiosity still makes him ask questions for a better understanding.
Recently, on the auspicious occasion of Thiruvonam, the day the great Asura emperor, Mahabali (Lord Vishnu, in his Vamana
avatar
had banished Mahabali to
patala,
the underworld), comes to visit his people on earth, I suffered a shattering personal loss when my mother passed away. I sought solace in Krishna’s message in the
Gita,
but the analogy of the
atma
(soul) departing the body as being nothing but a change of clothes, did not give me any comfort. Death is real and devastating and no intellectual circus can take away the pain of the people who are left behind. When the rituals were over and my mother’s ashes sent to Kashi for immersion in the Ganga, I was left feeling bitter and bereft. I asked the chief priest of my village, who had conducted the rituals, whether there was any meaning in such customs. In response, he told me this story:
Mandana Misra was a great scholar and authority on the
Vedas
and
Mimasa.
He led a householder’s life
(grihastha
), with his scholar-philosopher wife, Ubhaya Bharati, in the town of Mahishi, in what is present-day northern Bihar. Husband and wife would have great debates on the veracity of the
Vedas,
the
Upanishads,
the
Gita
and other philosophical works. Scholars from all over Bharatavarsha came to debate and understand the
Shastras
with them. It is said that even the parrots in Mandana’s home debated the divinity, or its lack, in the
Vedas
and
Upanishads.
Mandana was a staunch believer in rituals. One day, while he was performing
Pitru Karma
(rituals for deceased ancestors), Adi Shankaracharya arrived at his home and demanded a debate on
Advaita.
Mandana was angry at the rude intrusion and asked the Acharya whether he was not aware, as a Brahmin, that it was inauspicious to come to another Brahmin’s home uninvited when
Pitru Karma
was being done? In reply, Adi Shankara asked Mandana whether he was sure of the value of such rituals. This enraged Mandana and the other Brahmins present. Thus began one of the most celebrated debates in Hindu thought. It raged for weeks between the two great scholars. As the only other person of equal intellect to Shankara and Mandana was Mandana’s wife, Ubhaya Bharati, she was appointed the adjudicator. Among other things, Shankara convinced Mandana that the rituals for the dead had little value to the dead. Mandana became Adi Shankara’s disciple (and later the first Shankaracharya of the Sringeri Math in Karnataka).
When the priest related this story to me, I was shocked. He was not giving me the answer I had expected. Annoyed, I asked him what he meant by the story if Adi Shankara himself said such rituals were of no use to the dead. The priest replied, “Son, the story has not ended.” And he continued... A few years later, Adi Shankara was compiling the rituals for the dead, to standardize them for people across Bharatavarsha. Mandana, upset with his Guru’s action, asked Adi Shankara why he was involved with such a useless thing. After all, the Guru had convinced him of the uselessness of such rituals (Lord Krishna also mentions the inferiority of Vedic sacrifice to other paths, in the
Gita. Pitru karma
has no vedic base either). Why then was the Jagad Guru taking such a retrograde step? Adi Shankaracharya smiled at his disciple and answered, “The rituals are not for the dead but for the loved ones left behind.”
This demonstrates how critical thinking is the basis of all our philosophy. We have no concept of blasphemy. This openness to criticism is what makes the Hindu religion and its traditions unique. Vyasa did not hide Krishna’s faults, nor did Valmiki remain silent on Rama’s shortcomings. This openness to debate and discussion has helped us evolve over time and withstand thousands of years of foreign rule, reforming as the times demanded. Otherwise, Hinduism would long have been dead, like the ancient religions of Greece and Egypt. It is said that for every village there is a
Ramayana
and for every person there is a
Gita.
In chapter 18:63, Lord Krishna says:
iti te jñānam ākhyātam
guhyād guhyataram mayā
vimriśyaitad aśeshena
yathecchasi tathā kuru
[I have given you the most confidential of all knowledge. Analyze it critically and act as per your wish and understanding.]
Krishna does not ask Arjuna to follow blindly, nor threaten him with hell if he disobeys. In voicing my own doubts, I too have followed Krishna’s advice by critically analyzing the
Mahabharata.
I hope that those who possess a deeper understanding and knowledge of the epic will aid me in finding answers to the questions which have troubled me. I believe I am not alone in my occasional puzzlement. Some of my readers certainly share my doubts. I request you to bear in mind that this is a work of fiction, in the best Indian tradition of
Vada-Prathivada.
The Gurus of yesteryears opined that the best way to understand something is to debate it. I have rolled my dice with the prayer:
vimriśyaitad aśeshena
yathecchasi tathā kuru
[Analyze it critically and act as per your wish and understanding.]
*****
S
ELECT
C
AST
OF
C
HARACTERS
Aswathama:
Suyodhana’s close friend and son of Guru Drona, this Brahmin youth refuses to blindly follow tradition. He believes Suyodhana’s cause is just and is willing to fight even his illustrious father. He views Arjuna as his arch foe.
Balarama:
Leader of the Yadava clan, an idealistic dreamer who wishes to bring prosperity to his people and belives in the equality of all men. He sees the path to progress as lying in farming and trade. A pacifist at heart, he builds an ideal city on the west coast of Bharatavarsha, where he puts his ideas into practice. He longs to prove one can rule without compromising one’s principles. Krishna and Subhadra’s elder brother, he is also Suyodhana’s Guru-mentor, and inspires men like Karna to reach beyond the limitations of caste.
Bhishma:
Grand Regent of the Kuru clan and granduncle to both the Pandavas and Kauravas. Also known as Gangadatta Devavrata. Referred to here as the Grand Regent or Bhishma, a name acquired after he took a vow of celibacy and relinquished his claim to the throne, as a precondition to his father marrying Satyavathi, a fisherwoman (who had another son, Krishna Dwaipayana Vedavyasa, prior to this marriage).
Dhaumya:
An ambitious and unscrupulous Priest, he is Parashurama’s eyes, ears and arm in Hastinapura. His aim is a perfect society where Priests will decree and the rest follow. He is Kunti and Yudhishtra’s chief advisor.
Dhritarashtra:
Son of Vedavyasa, he is the legitimate, though blind, King of Hastinapura, and father of the Kauravas. Denied the Kingship due to his blindness, Pandu (his albino younger brother), reigns instead; on his death, Dhritarashtra assumes the Kingship nominally, with Bhishma as Grand Regent.
Draupadi:
The wife shared by the five Pandava brothers. Dhristadyumna is her brother, and Shikandi (a eunuch), is an adopted sibling. She is spirited and does not take insults quietly. Fiercely determined, she is perhaps the real ‘man’ in the Pandava camp.
Durjaya:
A man of the gutters, he rules the dark underworld of Hastinapura. A crime lord, he engineers riots and is in the pay of the Gandhara Prince, Shakuni.
Ekalavya:
A tribal youth who desperately wants to become a warrior, he is ready to give his life to achieve some dignity for his people.
Gandhari:
Princess of Gandhara, Bhishma forcibly carries her off to marry his blind nephew, Dhritarashtra. She voluntary chooses to bind her eyes to share her husband’s blindness. She is the mother of Crown Prince Suyodhana and his brothers, the Kauravas. Her brother is Shakuni.
General Hiranyadhanus:
Father of Ekalavya and Commander-in-Chief of Jarasandha’s army, he has risen from the lowliest Nishada caste by dint of his own merit and the friendship of King Jarasandha.
Guru Drona:
Teacher to both the Pandavas and Kauravas; and Aswathama’s father, he will do anything to make Arjuna the greatest warrior in the world. His love for his disciple is legendary, exceeded only by his love for his son. Orthodox to the core, he believes in the superiority of his caste and that no low castes should have the privilege of knowledge. The poverty of his early life haunts him.
Indra:
The last king of the Deva Empire, he lives in penury in the forest. He wishes to make a secret weapon for Arjuna, without which he fears his son is doomed.
Iravan:
Son of Arjuna and the Naga princess Uloopi. In the north Indian versions of the
Mahabharata,
Iravan is a minor character who dies a heroic death on the 18
th
day of the war. In the south Indian versions of the epic, Iravan is the epitome of sacrifice, who gives his life before the war to aid victory for the Pandavas. He is worshipped as a major village deity in the South.
Jarasandha:
The King of Magadha. In his kingdom, merit rules instead of caste.
Jayadratha:
King of Sindh, he is Suyodhana’s brother-in-law.
Karna:
A low-caste Suta and son of a charioteer, he is willing to travel to the Deep South to become a warrior par excellence. Generous, charitable, exceptionally gifted, he is Suyodhana’s answer to Arjuna’s challenge. He is spurned for his low birth and insulted by Draupadi, but Suyodhana staunchly stands by him.
The Kauravas:
The legitimate scions of the Kuru clan that holds suzerainty over all the kingdoms north of the Vindhya ranges. Crown Prince Suyodhana and his siblings are determined to hold on to what is rightfully theirs.
ƀ
Suyodhana:
Meaning ‘one who cannot be easily conquered’, the eldest Kaurava (Dhritarashtra and Gandhari’s firstborn), is the legitimate Crown Prince of Hastinapura. This book narrates his fight to claim his birthright. Perhaps the most celebrated villain in Indian mythology after Ravana of the Ramayana, we see him here as loyal, generous, brash and arrogant, his mind set against the taboos and convoluted arguments of orthodoxy.
ƀ
Sushasana:
Suyodhana’s next sibling, more famous as Dushasana.
ƀ
Sushala:
The only girl child among the Kauravas, she is known as Dushala in popular lore, she is also the loving wife of Jayadratha, King of Sindh.
Khatotkacha:
Son of Bhima and Rakshasi Hidumbi.
Kripa:
A maverick genius as well as a learned Brahmin warrior, he does not believe in caste. He is Drona’s brother-in-law (his opposite), and Aswathama’s uncle. He believes Suyodhana has a point. A carefree soul without boundaries, he is outspoken to the point of arrogance but kind-hearted beneath his rough exterior. He believes knowledge ought to be shared freely.
Krishna:
A Yadava Prince who many consider an
avatar
of Vishnu – one of the Hindu Trinity. He believes he has come to save the world from evil. He is also Arjuna’s brother-in-law and mentor. He sees the Great War as an inevitable conflict for
dharma
to be reinstated. His greatest challenges come from men like Jarasandha, Suyodhana, Karna, Ekalavya and Carvaka.
Krishna
[black]
Dwaipayana
[born on an island]
Vedavyasa
[chronicler of the
Veda
s]: The great scholar-author of the
Mahabharata,
the
Mahabhagavatha
(the longest epic in the world), and 18
Puranas.
He codified and edited the
Veda
s and is considered the patron saint of all writers. Son of Satyavathi, a fisherwoman and Parashara, a Brahmin saint, he is the Grand Regent’s stepbrother. He is also the biological father of Pandu, Dhritarashtra and Vidhura, and hence the grandfather of all the main protagonists of the
Mahabharata.
Kunti:
First wife of Pandu and collective mother of the Pandavas, she has an illegitimate son as well. Ambitious, ruthless, and self-righteous, she is determined to ensure Yudhishtra succeeds to the throne of Hastinapura.
Mayasura:
A great architect and a low-caste Asura.
Pandu:
Dhritarashtra’s younger brother and briefly King of Hastinapura until his premature death. Cursed never to have marital relations, his two wives, Kunti and Madri, are impregnated by sages and Gods. There are, however, enough hints in the
Mahabharata
that their five sons were not, in fact, of divine origin. The sons, called the Pandavas, are recognized as Pandu’s sons though he did not father them. He dies attempting sexual union with Madri, who commits
sati,
leaving Kunti to care for all five boys.
The Pandavas
(Five Sons of Pandu):
ƀ
Yudhishtra (Dharmaputra):
The eldest, was born to Kunti, fathered by Dharma or Yama, the God of Death. His claim to the throne of Hastinapura rests on the fact that he is considered Pandu’s son, has divine lineage, and is older than Crown Prince Suyodhana by a day. The whole
Mahabharata
hinges on this accident of birth.
ƀ
Bhima:
Kunti’s next divine progeny is the Crown Prince’s archenemy. Renowned for his brute strength, he is ever ready to use it on his brothers’ behalf.
ƀ
Arjuna:
Youngest of Kunti’s three divine sons, he is a great archer and warrior, and Yudhishtra’s only hope of winning against the Kauravas.
ƀ
Nakula & Sahadeva:
Madri’s twins, also of divine lineage, play minor roles in the epic as sidekicks to their three older siblings.
Parashurama:
Drona, Kripa and Karna’s Guru, friend-turned-foe of the Grand Regent, and the supreme spiritual leader of the Southern Confederate. A fanatical Brahmin and the greatest living warrior of his time, he curses Karna for duping him about his caste. He yearns to defeat Hastinapura and bring all of Bharatavarsha under his sway. He rues the peace treaty he signed with the Grand Regent years ago and awaits the opportunity to ignite a great war.
Parshavi:
Vidhura’s wife.
Purochana:
A corrupt but efficient bureaucrat in league with Shakuni.
Samba:
Son of Krishna and the Vanara woman, Jambavati, he is credited with starting the civil war that destroyed the Yadavas, and is often portrayed as irresponsible and impulsive.
Shakuni:
Prince of Gandhara, Queen Gandhari’s younger sibling and maternal uncle to the Kauravas, his only ambition is the destruction of the kingdoms of Bharatavarsha, in order to avenge himself against Bhishma for sacking Gandhara, killing his father and brothers, and abducting his sister. Skilled at dice and intrigue, he always carries the loaded dice made from the thighbones of his slain father.
Subhadra:
Suyodhana’s first love, and later wife of his greatest foe, Arjuna.
Takshaka:
Leader of the rebel Nagas, who wishes for a revolution whereby the Shudras and Untouchables will become the rulers and the high castes their slaves. He is a fierce warrior and a megalomaniac dictator in the making.
Uluka:
Son of Shakuni.
Vasuki:
Deposed Naga king, he is old and frail, but desperately wants the leadership back. He believes Takshaka is leading his people to destruction.
Vidhura:
Youngest of Bhishma’s three nephews, he was born of a lowly
dasi
and the sage Vedavyasa. A renowned scholar and gentleman, but of low caste, he is the Prime Minister of Hastinapura, and the conscience-keeper of the Grand Regent.
Yuyutsu:
The son of Dhritarashtra and the Vaishya woman, Sugadha. He is older than both Yudhishtra and Suyodhana, but never lays claim to the throne. The merchant-warrior is a master strategist and one of the survivors of the Great Mahabharata war.