Karna

Karna

I am the experimental result

Of my mother's curiosity;

A prime example of

A birth by accident,

Not by choice!

In the river she set me afloat

Just when my eyes were waiting

To be filled with the sight of her

She was gone and, I was...

Abandoned and forgotten

Fortunately, I survived!

I was raised as a charioteer's son

Now I am the price she has to pay

For I represent her grave mistake

It was Duryodhana alone

Who saved me from humiliation

He was the only one, who stood by me,

Put his hand over my shoulder

And generously gifted a kingdom

Without a second thought

When I was facing

Nothing but disgust

It was he, who took my hand

And offered nothing more,

But friendship

When everyone else,

Had forsaken me

For not being of royal blood

Now,
Only in the hour of need,

Only during the time of peril

You come to me

Afraid that my brothers - my enemy -

Will be slain by my own hands

Then, be it so!

Nothing will change my mind,

I won't change my stand

I know he is in the wrong path

But I will not deceive him;

If I do, I lie to my instinct

I won't be a prey of treachery

As nothing can be more

Hideous and cruel

Than betrayal

I will abide by my duty

And it is my moral right

To serve a true friend

I will not fail him at any cost!

I know death awaits me

For I am also in the wrong path

I will die, not as a coward

But as a hero, fighting for a noble friend

I will not dishonor the generosity

Of love and trust he has bestowed upon me

Thus, I will die for friendship

This is how my loyalty will be repaid

Which is due all long

And this is how the world will

Remember me!

Notes:

Karna is one of the most powerful characters in the Hindu mythological epic: Mahabharata. This poem is the retelling of Karna's words when Bhishma, badly wounded by the enemy forces, laying on a bed of arrows, tries to convince him to end the war by making peace with the Pandavas.

October 21, 2013

Mahabharata by C. Rajagopalachari

I picked this book just to refresh my knowledge about the great Hindu epic. I knew most of the short stories of Mahabharata. But it was unclear to me how they are connected to the main story line. I am at loss of words to say anything about this as its a masterpiece and a milestone in the history of Hinduism which was written ages before civilizations by the great Saint Vyaasa.

The book is an abridged version of the epic. It is the word-to-word translation of the story originally written in a native language of India. The usage of words don't match the context and the sentences are contrived. I felt really sad about this. So, the translation fails miserably! Especially, the characters like Karna, the five Pandavas, Duryodhana and Shakuni are so powerful that the book fails to describe even a small amount of trait about each of them in an impressive manner. The loyalty and generosity of Karna, the evil thoughts of the devious Shakuni, the envy of Duryodhana, the suffering of the Pandavas, the agony of Draupadi, the clever game changing ways of Krishna and the final battle of Kurukshetra - all are poorly detailed! I strongly believe that this book could have been written in a lot better way. This book can only be used as a source to replenish the lost knowledge of Mahabharata. But it won't appeal to a reader like me who has moderate knowledge of English literature.

Further Reading:

Mahabharata - Wikipedia

The Reboot of Mahabharatha

How sure are you to believe those 100 Kuravas are children are of both Dritharashtra and Gandhari? How did Satyavati's son Vichitravirya die? Do you strongly believe that five Pandavas are sons of Pandu and Kunti? The version of tale written by Shashi Tharoor gives life to the great epic by being more realistic. There is no magic or wizardry involved. There is no boon or curse. But, it only tells the truth. Its all beautifully presented in The Great Indian Novel. It maps people and incidents of Indian freedom struggle to that of characters and situations in Mahabharata. It marks the beginning of politics. I am not referring to politics by Krishna as stated in Bhagavad Geeta. I am inferring to the birth of Indian politics that is witnessed even today. The only prerequisite to read this book is you need to have knowledge of Indian Independence movement and you should have read Mahabharata.

Do you think that India got its independence due to resistance of our freedom fighters? The book mentions that after the World War, British were tired and lost capacity to rule India. So they appointed the last viceroy to clean up the mess quickly and return home. Indian leaders were given just eight months to form government. Meanwhile, Pandu was unhappy with Gangaji's principles of non-violence. He went mad when Dhritarastra was hailed as Gangaji's successor. He always believed in aggressive means to get rid of British. He left Kaurava Party and went on to build India's army. He took help of Japan for its formation. Eventually his movement wasn't successful and he got killed in an airplane crash.

At this time India was in a great predicament and agreement was never drawn between Kaurava Party and the Muslim Group. So, it was Mohammad Ali Karna parted with Karnistan as a separate state. There were Indian Muslims who backed Kaurava Party and they wanted to prove that there are many Muslims in India and India will help uplift them. And it did happen. Karna's theory was falsified. He stood firm on his belief that Muslims can only flourish if they are in a separate state but definitely not in India. It was under Mohammad Rafi as party president when Manimir was annexed to India overnight by Vidur. It also describes about the aftermath of Partition. What ignited the Manimir issue? Because of Dhritarastra's blind idealism, he was blamed when he got UN involved in this issue. Because of UN, part of it was given to Karnistan and bulk of it to India.

How well did Dhritarastra perform as first Prime Minister of India? He was becoming ignorant about social values that he had when he started the movement. Uplifting rural India wasn't being considered by him. That led to the rise of the Pandavas with Drona as their mentor. They stood for a cause of up bringing rural sections of Indian society. This posed a threat to the ruling party. Between Kaurava Party & the Pandavas stood Ms Draupadi Mokrasi; Ms D. Mokrasi, in short. I hope you got what I trying to say. And this is how she was objectified and exploited between the two. Yet she was protected by the five pillars of the nation: Judiciary, Army, Media, Diplomatic & Administrative Services.

It also discusses about expulsion of colonial rule in Comea and finally it was joined with Indian union. This happened under the leadership of Dhristarasta's most trusted minister: Kanika Menon. Kanika was India's representative at the UN and notorious for long speeches. The book elaborates about cause for Indo-Chakra dispute and also throws light on how India failed to defend Tebia. Indan jawans fighting in mountain regiments had no all weather rations and were obliged to wear canvas tennis-shoes in Himalayan snow. Dhritarastra was so immersed in the company of his popular minister Kanika that he had no desire to listen to the warnings. Our soldiers with their unprotected backs turned, warming glove-less hands before domestic stoves in icy mountain passes, as Defense Minister Kanika danced with a mask of confirmed conquer while Dhritarastra makes visionary speeches about non-aligned unity and brotherhood of Indians and Chakras. So he was criticized for his negligence and his decline was gradual but decisive. Gradually his daughter Priya Duryodhani gears up and takes the role of India's CEO. Her stubbornness and her will to operate as per her wish was her sole objective. Many initiatives were taken by her despite strong opposition. Her only appreciative accomplishment was India's victory in the Gelabi Desh war. She was found guilty corrupt electoral practice. The famous scene of Draupadi cheer haran is associated with how Duryodhani and her handpicked minions had been stripping the nation of the values and institutions we had been right to cherish.

It is no doubt that as we read along, our minds will start associating characters of the epic to the real people involved in Independence movement. Today's youth will definitely be enlightened after reading this book because I honestly did not understand what Manimir issue is all about. I couldn't make head or tail of it when I read about it in the newspapers or when I watched on television. I feel so relieved and inexplicably happy now to know all these things about my country. I was startled to discover so many things about Indian freedom struggle and its aftermath. The cunning nature, the shrewdness and the wickedness of those people whom we think as noble men are justified.

The language used is at its best. It is one of finest English literary works I have ever read. You will definitely start reciting the conversations as mentioned in the book.  It has a modern touch of everything. Sarcasm and humor are both just brilliantly played. And, you will also admire Tharoor's skill in the way this twice-born tale is organized and narrated. Definitely this book must be made a TV series with Tharoor as a screen writer and director, and cast should consist of acclaimed actors filling the screen with astounding performances portraying the characters - delicately and carefully - as described in the book. Undoubtedly, this book is a must read for every Indian.

Further reading:
The Great Indian Novel - Wikipedia

The other side of Mahabharata

101 Kauravas - good figure; but only one female child: Dhushala - not fair. This thought triggered me to think about the great Indian epic when I was travelling for work. Out of 101 Kauravas, I remembered my mother sharing her bit of knowledge, most of their names start with "Dhu". Well she is not fully correct on this but,  its really surprising to know Saint Vyaasa was able to think 101 names in a family! If you are interested to know the names, here is the list: Kauravas

During my childhood, I used to listen to the stories of Pandavas. I came to know about their bravery, their self respect and respect to humanity, and all other characteristics about each one of them. When I read the the epic few months ago, I was unhappy with some characters being portrayed. For example, take Shantanu - the great grandfather of Pandavas & Kauravas. Despite his great qualities of honesty, bravery and capability to rule a huge kingdom, he was a womanizer.  He was not even satisfied when he and Ganga gave birth to his eighth son - Bhishma. He in turn falls in love with Satyavathi, a daughter of a fisherman, marries her and has two more children. God! this is the limit. And yet, this character is of great importance. Its a fact that some attributes of parents are inherited by children, but by what measure? Arjuna broke all the records set by Shantanu. He got married four times and had at least one kid with each of his wives. He may be having noble qualities, but having such a list of marital relationships raises questions on his character! On a funny side of the matter, I appreciate Bheema, who had only one extramarital affair with Hidimbi, They produced a warrior - Ghatotkacha. Among the five Pandavas, I believe in Yudhistir - a noble man; honest, obedient and a strict follower of Dharma. Marital affairs of Arjuna

Shakuni - The bad guy of bad guys! But, I believe he is the good guy. I know he is the master mind behind war of Kurukshetra. I don't know how many of you know, but as a matter of fact, he was against Kauravas. He could not digest the bitter truth that his sister - Gandhari is married to a blind man. Dhritarashtra, on the other hand, destroyed Gandhari's family when he learned he is her second husband. This enraged Shakuni and he came up with a clever plan. He knew well in advance that Pandavas will be victorious. So, he added more fuel to fire to make the war happen. Read more

During the war, I suppose everyone knows the live feed by Vidur(Sanjay) to Dhritarashtra. Vidur was most respected as an advisor by the Pandavas whom he forewarned on various occasions of Duryodhana's plots to exterminate them. Krishna respected him for his devotion to the people's welfare and his proficiency in every sphere of knowledge. Now, how could Saint Vyaasa imagined the live telecast ages before existence of TVs, video cameras and satellite communication? All these techno stuff came into being only in the late 1900s. This is what I call incredible foresight!

What I most liked about the epic is, at the end of it, no one is spared if he has committed crimes. No escape from sins - not even the great politician Krishna is forgiven. He might have played smart in political games against Kauravas or even exploited their weakness, but all are sins according to Dharma. The only verdict is death - whoever he may be!

The stories in it are so peculiar that I believe each of instances described in it happen in everyone's lives in one form or the other. And it also teaches how to face difficult situations and solve them. I also believe all  the situations covered in this epic take place from a man's birth till his death in one form or the other. Its not only an epic, but a lesson of life. Haa, that's all I have to say about this eternal epic. What are your thoughts about this which made you feel different?