Lesser Known But Admirable Characters of MB - Page 5

The South India cults that worship Iravan put great focus on a pastime in which he died a heroic death during the 18-day Battle of Kurukshetra. With great ceremony they honour Aravan's self-sacrifice to the goddess Kali, which he is said to have enacted in order to ensure her favour and thus bring victory for the Pandavas. According to Kuttantavar legend, Lord Krsna awarded three boons to Aravan for this self-sacrifice. One of these boons the Lord satisfied in His female form of Mohini, who became married to Aravan.

This pastime is re-enacted in Tamil Nadu with an 18-day festival. First there is a ceremonial marriage, then a celebration of their widowhood following the ritual re-enactment of Aravan's sacrifice.

The Draupadi cult emphasizes another boon associated with Aravan and the Kurukshetra war. In this pastime, Krsna allows Aravan to witness the entire duration of the Mahabharata war through the eyes of his severed head, which was hoisted on a pole overlooking the great valley battleground. The severed head of Aravan is a common motif in Draupadi temples. In the taluks of Thajavur, Kumbhakonam and Pattukkotai, Aravan's head is enshrined permanently in a mandapa or within a temple niche. The largest known Aravan head is found at the Hajiyar Teru temple in Kumbhakonam.

http://www.harekrsna.com/sun/features/12-13/features3032.htm

Originally posted by: j_joshi

Hello everyone, Lola let me know that a few of my books have been quoted here. So nice to know that people enjoy my work!

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Originally posted by: deboleena.manna

hey in the upapandav's entry epi's beginning Dury mentioned about his son Laxman...can anyone post about him?

Originally posted by: bheegi

Here is another lesser known character:

Babruvahana (Arjun's son)

After conquering many lands, the horse of the Pandavas reached Manipur where it was stopped by its ruler, a young man called Babruvahana, who turned out to be Arjuna's son by Chitrangada, princess of Manipur. Babruvahana welcomed his father, who he had never met before, and would have let the horse pass through the city when Arjuna said, This is unbecoming of a warrior's son. Challenge me. Fight me. Don't give in so easily.' In deference to his father's wishes, Babruvahana raised his bow and to everyone's surprise turned out to be more than a match for his father. He very ably destroyed the arrows released by his father and it took a lot of effort on Arjuna's part to destroy the arrows released by his young son. Then, after hours of fighting, the unthinkable happened" an arrow that left Babruvahana's bow ripped through Arjuna's heart killing him instantly. Chitrangada let out a cry and Babruvahana was shattered for he never intended to harm his father. He hugged the lifeless body of Arjuna and began to wail. Suddenly, there appeared on the scene a Naga woman. Her name was Ulupi. She was the mother of Iravan, sacrificed on the ninth night of the war. You have done nothing wrong, Babruvahana,' said Ulupi, Your father brought this upon himself. You were but an instrument of destiny. Your father killed his granduncle, Bhishma, who was like a father to him. For that shameful act, Bhishma's mother, the river-goddess, Ganga, cursed Arjuna that he would die at the hands of his own son. That curse has just expressed itself through your arrow. But fear not. I bring with me Naga-mani, a magical gem from the realm of serpents that has the power to bring the dead to life.' Ulupi placed the magical gem of serpents on Arjuna's fatal wound and, to Babruvahana's utter astonishment, the wound healed itself.

Pattanaik, Devdutt (2010-08-16). Jaya: An Illustrated Retelling of the Mahabharata (p. 318). Penguin Books Ltd. Kindle Edition.