The thought
to write this particular post struck me after reading Neelakantan’s Ajaya. The
very one-dimensional characterisation that the book has for Kauravas &
Pandavas is disappointing to say the least, however the amount of rave reviews
this book & many others are getting is comical and that is what drove me to
write this post before writing Ajaya’s review.
People who
have loved Ajaya & Asura seem to think they have stumbled upon an explosive
read & they have discovered a whole new side to the two Epics. Funnily enough
probably only 5% of us have actually read these epics; because if we did we
would know that Neelakanthan is not telling you anything new at all. Mahabharat
never claims Kauravas are evil & Pandavas are righteous. If a TV serial or
movie claims that, it is not the Epic’s fault right?
To add to
this the two epics are extremely deep & reflective & the beauty of them
is that it is open to so many interpretations, & that is what
differentiates an EPIC from a Bestseller…by eons!! J
Many
re-tellings of the two great Hindu epics are the flavour of the season. Anyone
who has read a bit deeper of the two epics seems to take the pen & write a
spin-off. To my mind it is a super healthy trend. I’m happy such authors are
taking out the deeper stories of the two epics & presenting it, & thus making the Epics reach out to a generation who was
largely cut off from them.
However,
what amuses me is how many authors just take 1 or 2 isolated events & twist
them to suit their own story premise and publish a book. So Ram becomes a
spineless villain, who cannot stand up for his wife & throws her out etc
etc., Krishna becomes an OTT scheming villain who plays with people’s feelings
to get his own agenda, etc etc.
And people
lap it up…and think what they knew all along was wrong.
Well it is
wrong. First up, Ramayan & Mahabharat are NOT religious books. Please do
not let anyone (read elders) tell you to be afraid of them & not question
them. You are absolutely free not only to question but to interpret them your
own way.
Secondly,
using the word “Mythology” for them is very negative. Merely by using this
word, we relegate in our mind that these are not facts but myths, stories,
legends that may or may not have happened. Well, look around you, all these
events still happen. You will be shocked at how you can apply these learnings
to modern day situations & find the exact same results. Mythology was a
word that was thrust upon us by the West, largely British, Europeans & Americans
(who by the way are spending millions of dollars to carry out extensive
researches in fields of astronomy, physics, etc. only to find out that Hindu
scriptures had this information all along from time immemorial). By calling
them “Myth”ology we are negating the work of exceptionally learned men like
Maharishi Valmiki & Maharishi Ved Vyas, & not understanding that
Ramayan & Mahabharat are the biggest & most accurate anthology of human
emotions & behaviour & have an umatched science, philiosophy &
philanthrophy hidden in them.
Thirdly,
before questioning Ram & Krishna, please understand their role in the two
epics & how their respective characters are the pinnacle of what their
respective epics are modelled after:
Ram – the “Maryada” Purushottam - There is a reason why Ramayan was
the first epic to come before Mahabharat. Ramayan teaches you lessons of an
ideal society & hence Ram is a “Maryada Purushottam”, i.e., “a man bound by
society’s code of conduct” – thus he takes decisions that go against his own
happiness, comfort, heart to present to us what happens with a person who is
bound by society’s code of conduct – he will be called an ideal forever, but
maybe at the cost of his personal happiness.
Krishna – the “Leela” Purushottam - Mahabharat on the other hand
teaches you lessons of a society where people are not ready to be bound by code
of conduct & take matters in their own hand for their own gain, hence
Krishna is “Leela Purushottam”, i.e., “a man who plays with/breaks laws &
ideals to reach to his goal” – he will thus present to you how we get entangled
in this World called “Maya” (illusion) & attach ourselves so deeply that we
bring our own downfall.
Problem
happens when we are told to follow “Ram” & “Krishna” as the most holy
& most pious, and we are expected to think of them as some Goody Two Shoes.
In doing so, we hardly get in the depth of their characters & situations
that resulted in their actions. Thus we are looking at them in one dimensional
colour, so obviously when someone writes a book quoting deeper facts (but half
facts), we are confused as to who are we worshipping exactly.
Now, I will
give you an example:
During the
war of Mahabharat, Karna’s chariot wheel breaks down at a crucial time, when he
is in a direct face off with Arjun. Karna requests Arjun to hold on while he
fixes his chariot wheel, & then fight him man to man. He urges him to
follow war’s code of conduct. The minute Karna is down, Krishna urges Arjun to
shoot him right there…Arjun questions him that this will be most uncalled for,
as it goes against the code of conduct…to which Krishna asks him one question “Where
was Karna & Kauravas’ code of conduct when they trapped Abhimanyu by deceit
& all ganged up to murder a boy who was half their age. All of them who claim
to be glorious warriors ganged up against one lone warrior to attack & kill
him from all ends; where was this code of conduct when they wanted to kill all
of you using deceitful methods by building a house of lac and burn you alive;
where was this code of conduct when they dragged your wife out & attempted
to disrobe her just because she refused to marry Karna and laughed at
Duryodhana; So pick up your arrow & shoot him right now, as you might not
get this opportunity again”.
These were simple
war tactics; we attach them with Krishna & ask ourselves, why he being a
God ordered something that was against “dharma”, but we forget that he was
following & using war tactics. He knew Karna was a superior archer than
Arjun, and his death will be a big blow to the other side; and ultimately in a
war you have to choose one side & use every power to make that side win. It
is not a situation of idealism; it is a situation of War.
If I quote
half of this story to you, you will think of either side as white or black, but
if you read all aspects (including the fact that Karna did promise to Kunti
that he will spare his 5 sons, but will kill Arjun, & in doing that he did
not kill any other Pandava brother despite having cornered them, and even
spared Arjun’s life once when the sun had set at the exact time he was about to
strike), you will find each character complex like any other human being &
will be able to draw your own inference.
To sum it up
we need to remember that our texts are largely “reflective” in nature, which is
their beauty. They are not commandments or prescriptions from above on code of
conduct. They just tell you a story, & you are open to interpret them your
own way. We need to stop reading them from the Western point of view, as that
will give a largely one dimensional tone to them & will take away the
underlying meanings.
Therefore,
next time you pick up yet another re-telling of any of these Great Epics…please
remember they are vastly grey & never claim to have black & white tones only,
and of course try reading these Epics too, apart from reading their spin
offs. J J J
Coming Up Next: A review of Ajaya:
Roll of the Dice
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