'Mahabharat- Different Versions -Perspectives' - Page 54

Originally posted by: Ashwini_D

@ abhijitbasu

First of all, it is great to have you here on this forum Sir.

Mahabharata is filled with fascinating characters, but one that I find most interesting is Yudisthir, who might come across as bland and insipid at first with just a cursory reading of the epic, but (I think he) is as layered a character as anybody else. Deemed as Dharmaraj, he seems to have a weakness for dice. He is also central to the plot as the text follows his growth as a person till the very end and it is his victory over earthly attachment that is celebrated at the end. All of us on this forum have tried dissecting his behaviour ad nauseam, especially during the dice game, which is quite baffling to our modern sensibilities. He is supposed to be Dharmaraj, but he seems to slip up during that fateful day, completely losing control of his rational faculties and appears to momentarily forget his dharma, of which he is considered to be an expert. Of course we might be unaware of certain moral codes that were prevalent during those times and hence drawing a judgement based on present day value systems would prove fallacious.

I would be grateful if you could share your thoughts on him.

That precisely is the point. Yudhishthir lacks the glamour of Arjun or Karna, but arguably he is the MB's undeclared protagonist (leaving aside Krishna's transcendental role). After all, the epic's sublime denouement of bodily ascent to heaven features Yudhishthir, and Yudhishthir alone. The theme is dealt with in one full chapter (titled 'Pilgrim's Progress') of my book. Your point regarding his addiction to dice has been a matter of debate. One ethnological explanation is that of Gerrit Held: Dice-play was the means of circulation of tribal wealth (in ancient India and Iran), and Yudhishthir as the Dharmaraja, or acclaimed upholder of tradition had to accept a call to dice, which was also deemed as a Kshatriya point of principle. What really impresses me (and others too) is the way Y keeps learning from the visiting sages and from his own experience and graduates to the level of a true Jnani, a scholar extraordinaire. His answers to the questions put by the baka-yaksha constitute the quintessence of the MB as a sourcebook of liberated wisdom.

abhijitbasu

Sir, Its very interesting to see a renowned author like you in this forum, its a privilege I must say. I often wonder that which translations do renowned author(s) like you follow, since we have had plenty of debate here on which translation to follow, learning your views might help a little.

Originally posted by: TheWatcher

abhijitbasu

Sir, Its very interesting to see a renowned author like you in this forum, its a privilege I must say. I often wonder that which translations do renowned author(s) like you follow, since we have had plenty of debate here on which translation to follow, learning your views might help a little.

@TheWatcher The privilege is mine, because I find it uplifting to discuss our noble Sanskritic heritage with people who are interested in it. As regards your query, personally I follow the original (Sanskrit/ 'Aryashastra, Calcutta') version, which gives the Northern (Nilkantha) Recension of the Veda-Vyasa Epic. It contains all the 1 lakh Sanskrit shlokas, with faithful Bengali translations of the lot. Reading and hearing the sonorously lilting anushtubh verses of MB (or for that matter, Ramayana, or Kalidasa) in pristine Sanskrit is a wonderful experience in itself. I wish I could read some bits to you!
As regards translations, for serious readers or researchers, I would recommend the century-old internationally acclaimed English translation by KM Ganguli, which contains a punctilious translation of all the original verses. The English is Victorian, but that suits the classical subject of study. It is available in book form (many volumes) as also in freely downloadable 'sacred text' electronic form. Here is the link for you to see for yourself:
http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/m01/m01000.htm

Originally posted by: abhijitbasu

@TheWatcher The privilege is mine, because I find it uplifting to discuss our noble Sanskritic heritage with people who are interested in it. As regards your query, personally I follow the original (Sanskrit/ 'Aryashastra, Calcutta') version, which gives the Northern (Nilkantha) Recension of the Veda-Vyasa Epic. It contains all the 1 lakh Sanskrit shlokas, with faithful Bengali translations of the lot. Reading and hearing the sonorously lilting anushtubh verses of MB (or for that matter, Ramayana, or Kalidasa) in pristine Sanskrit is a wonderful experience in itself. I wish I could read some bits to you!
As regards translations, for serious readers or researchers, I would recommend the century-old internationally acclaimed English translation by KM Ganguli, which contains a punctilious translation of all the original verses. The English is Victorian, but that suits the classical subject of study. It is available in book form (many volumes) as also in freely downloadable 'sacred text' electronic form. Here is the link for you to see for yourself:
http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/m01/m01000.htm

abhijitbasu

Thank you for your wonderful insight. KMG is what it is mostly quoted in this forum ( almost all of the time ).

@AbhijitBasu

Originally posted by: bheegi

<font color="#3300cc">@AbhijitBasu</font>

<font color="#3300cc">Sir, I've a question regarding Arjuna and his portrayal in a number of contemporary versions/re tellings of the Mahabharat.</font>

<font color="#3300cc">Books like Parva (Bhyrappa), Bhimsen (Prem Panicker) and Aryavarta Chronicles (Krishna Udayasankar) don't portray Arjuna as much of a hero as Ved Vyas did. There seems to be a feeling amongst a lot of these contemporary authors that Arjuna received more glory than he deserved. While I don't quite agree with their interpretation, what are your thoughts on Arjuna? I feel if he wasn't as glorious as Ved Vyas portrayed him, Krishna wouldn't have chosen him as the recipient of his Gita gyan.</font>

<font color="#3300cc">I feel some of the authors haven't forgiven Arjuna for allowing his wife to be shared. Are we right in judging his actions? We really don't know how people operated during the dwapar yuga. Mothers and elders were revered much more than spouses or lovers...</font>

<font color="#3300cc">Would love your POV on Arjuna's character</font>

<font color="#3300cc">P.S: For that matter, a lot of authors are less appreciative of Yudhistra/Dharma's character also</font>

I tend to agree with you. Have read Parva but not the other two. Bhyrappa's thrust was demythologising MB. Hence most of his characters are portrayed with minimal hyperbole or flamboyance. But Arjuna of Vyasa's MB, by his very nature is a flamboyant but authentic 'action hero'. And perhaps he is the most consistently noble of all the epic's star cast (except his petulantly selfish and uppity role in the Ekalavya episode). You would have seen my analysis of him as a thrice dying-and-reviving hero, and a constantly travelling 'land-bound Odysseus', who almost matches Alexander in his transnational conquests, including Tibet and Central Asia. His feat of fighting Lord Shiva in the Kirataarjun episode is unique in the annals of Indian epic tradition. Lastly, as you have so unerringly pointed out, he was the instrument of Lord Krishna (nimittamaatram bhava savyasaacin), the reincarnate 'Nara' of the Nara-Narayana divine pair, who was absolved of all consequential sin of fratricide by Krishna himself. Yet, he had the nobility to resist Krishna's suggestion of telling that fatal lie to Drona, a seemingly sordid but strategically crucial ploy which, even the Dharmaraj Yudhishthir, couldn't resist.
P.S. Sharing Draupadi was ordained by Kunti and supported by Yudhishthir. As you have correctly posited, the Dvaapara familial/social norm enjoined obedience to elders and (as reasoned by Arjuna himself to Yudhishthir), not marrying before an elder brother. According to modern anthropological view, polyandry was a practice not uncommon among hill tribes, and the Pandavas are viewed by some to have been of tribal filial stock.

Abhijit Sir,

We are fortunate to have you in this forum.. Since you already described your views on Karna, Arjuna and Yudhisthira, I would like to know what are your views on my favourite character, Bheema ..

Bheema has been my favourite from the very beginning.. He is passionate, expressive, protective, fearless, straight forward, loving and caring.. At the same time, he is short tempered, impulsive, possesive, vengeful, unforgiving.. He has such beautiful contrasting personality.. He is the actual hero who slays the main antagonist.. He slays numerous rakshasas, Jarasandh, Keechak, and of course the Kauravas..

Yet he is always overshadowed, always second in line, everytime.. He loved Panchali with all his heart yet he never got the same love.. Even today, he does not have the same respect that Arjuna or Karna has.. He is always the unsung hero..

I would like to know what do you think of him ?

Originally posted by: RonMione4ever

Abhijit Sir,

We are fortunate to have you in this forum.. Since you already described your views on Karna, Arjuna and Yudhisthira, I would like to know what are your views on my favourite character, Bheema ..

Bheema has been my favourite from the very beginning.. He is passionate, expressive, protective, fearless, straight forward, loving and caring.. At the same time, he is short tempered, impulsive, possesive, vengeful, unforgiving.. He has such beautiful contrasting personality.. He is the actual hero who slays the main antagonist.. He slays numerous rakshasas, Jarasandh, Keechak, and of course the Kauravas..

Yet he is always overshadowed, always second in line, everytime.. He loved Panchali with all his heart yet he never got the same love.. Even today, he does not have the same respect that Arjuna or Karna has.. He is always the unsung hero..

I would like to know what do you think of him ?

@RonMione4ever I rather like the way you have characterised Bheema with two strings of adjectives to cover all his plus and minus points. Yes from that perspective his is a personality of striking contrarieties. But paradoxically, he is also one of the most predictable of the MB heroes. Place him in a situation of adversity or deemed injustice and he will be all sound and fury. If put under restraint by his revered elder brother, he will fret and fume and try to concoct some spurious sophistry to counteract the senior's philosophy and logic. He has the native cunning to tell Yudhishthira, after spending just 13 days in vana-vaasa, to consider those 13 days as surrogate for the pledged 13 years in forest and reclaim his rightful kingdom by force, invoking the simile of certain scriptural dispensation of considering pootikaa (spinach) as the surrogate of somalataa (Vedic herb); he further tells his dharma-abiding brother that if he still has doubts regarding that expedient course he can satisfy an honestly load-carrying bull with lot of food -- that would wash away any consequential sin! That indeed is Bheema, a loveable blustering Hercules with a canny penchant for artfully using brain where brawn is not enough. Second, as you rightly observe, he is the real fire-fighter among the Pandavas -- the macho man, the all-subduing wrestler who kills demons Baka and Kirmir, as also the formidable Jarasandha and Keechak by his bare hands. He is, as much as Arjuna is, also Krishna's instrument, as evidenced by Krishna's guiding role in his slaying of both Jarasandha and Duryodhana. You have a point in saying that for all his labours, he does not get due credit in our perception of him. The other point - his blind love and adoration for Draupadi - is also very well taken. He would undertake any mission on earth and beyond to serve Draupadi's whims and fancies. Irawati Karve's Yuganta gives a sensitive portrayal of the last great journey, when a dying Draupadi, as her last thoughts, thinks of the doting Bheema as one who loved her the most among her five husbands.

@Abhijitbasu