Duryadhan OS:- I - The Unconquerable One (My Thank you note at Page 2) - Page 10

Originally posted by: abstract2

Unbelievably good! 😃

You bared Duryodhana's soul so perfectly! I am seriously left speechless!

Keep doing what you are doing.

Originally posted by: abstract2

If anyone is interested, I once heard of a play called Urubhangam or Shattered Thighs.

It is a narrative of the epic from Duryodhana's perspective. Pretty interesting take on the story as it paints as more of an anti-hero than an anti-villain.

Also, Peter Brook's version has a very nice battle and ending scene between Lord Krishna and Duryodhana.

Originally posted by: panchaali

I know about Peter Brook's Mahabharat, but can u share something about Urubhangam?

Originally posted by: Brahmaputra

Panchaali Urubhangam is a very famous Sanskrit drama on Dury. There is also another very famous Sanskrit drama on Karna, by the same author, Karnabharam (the burden on Karna). These plays (11 or 13) in total are the first of their kind. They were written by the great poet Bhasa. Based on the language used, his date is supposed to be around 5th century BC. Unlike other Sanskrit poets, Bhasa wrote works more on tragic characters who are usually considered as grey or negative by many, brilliantly explaining inner layers of their mental disturbances, confusions and uncertainty! As I'm too lazy to type more, just doing copy paste of the gist of the drama from wikipedia.😆

Urubhanga focuses on the story of the character Duryodhana during and after his fight with Bhima. Although Urubhanga contains the same core storyline as that in the Mahbhrata, Bhasa's altering of certain aspects results in a different presentation of the story. The most extreme of these altercations is Bhasa's portrayal of Duryodhana, who, in the Mahbhrata, is viewed as a villain, but in Urubhanga is given more human qualities. While tragedy is rare among Sanskrit dramas, Bhasa's presentation of Duryodhana's side of the tale adds certain tragic elements to the play.

Although portrayed as a villain in the original play, the protagonist Duryodhana is presented in a different light in Urubhanga. He isn't exempted from his original evil deeds, but he is shown as a character with heroic qualities. The play centers around events that happen preceding his death; Duryodhana is shown repenting his past, reconciling with his family, and realizing the futility of war. In the beginning of the play there are three soldiers that are marveling at the battlefield between the Kauravas and Pandavas. They describe the scene before them in gorey detail, each taking turn to muse and exclaim over the various details that they observe. As they progress through the battlefield, they arrive to the battle between the middle Pandava Bhima and the Kaurava Duryodhana.

The soldiers then proceed to describe the fight between Bhima and Duryodhana. The audience is seeing the battle entirely through the description of the three soldiers; ultimately, Bhima falls from Duryodhana's incessant blows. Duryodhana, refusing to kill Bhima while he is on the ground, instead has his thighs crushed by Bhima from false play and violation of rules. After Duryodhana has fallen, Bhima is carried away hurriedly by the other Pandavas, and Duryodhana is left on the battleground. This act of false play incites the anger of Balarama, who wants to seek justice.

However, Duryodhana stops him, having become resigned; this begins the part of the play that starts to emphasize the heroic qualities of Duryodhana.

Duryodhana blames Krishna and forgives Bhima, as the play progresses, he is reconciled with his blind parents, then his queens, and his son. Duryodhana is distressed about his situation, as he can no longer salute his father, nor can he let his son sit on his thigh. He also rejects the futility of war.

At the end of the play, Ashvatthama appears with the intent to seek revenge for Duryodhana and kill the Pandavas during the night, and Ashvatthama names Durjaya, Duryodhana's son, as king of the kingdom right before Duryodhana dies.

However, it needs to be noted that the play does not end completely in a tragic note, as there are signs of hope for the future, since it is unorthodox for Indian Sanskrit dramas to end only on a sad note.

PS- Karnabharam is more emotional and highly tragic in nature. It is a must read for Karna lovers.

Thanks for sharing😃

Originally posted by: Sanskrutiii

Dii I read it again its awesome...👏

.I luv this os🤗

Its your best dear😃

Originally posted by: mmroyalkaterick

First of All...Please accept my humble reverence and salutation...
Next I don't know how to describe my feelings after reading your OS?...I read this again and again and again...from last night and thinking...
It is difficult to see a situation from ground level because one is tended to see things from one's own perspective and refuses to realize the other one's view. So one must have to climb up the mountain to expand one's vision and mind...and you have accomplished this task with such a beauty and poise that I am awed. And also assign me that same uphill task of realization...(which I love very much😳😳) let me see what I can gain...
Let me comment on the surrounding of our illustrious villain:
1. Before His birth, his father who was blind from birth was raised and taught like a normal prince who one day would be a king of his kingdom despite of his blindness. But when the time came he was rejected on the ground of physical disability(blindness). The Irony here is his name "Dhritarastra" without him the state was ceased. Yet he was denied the throne..and the people who orchestrated this hard, tough path of Dharma...by the name of Dharma, made Pandu the consecrated king. And doing this hard work simply closed their eyes at Dhritarastra's agony and sufferings.
Q. If Dharma prescribed that the worthy one should ascend onto the throne then why Pandu? He too had dsiability(he was sterile, to coverup the fact later the curse of Rishi Kindam was designed.). It should be Vidura. Because he too was the son of Vichitravirya.
2. Before his birth his mother was forced to marry a blind man who wasn't even king and she chose her husband's path and made herself blind. Her silent wails were suppressed under the huge round of her praising...SATI.
Q. Dharma stated that Husband's path should be wife's path too. But did it say to embracing his path means makes him more weak and confused? Did it not say wife's duty is to take care of her husband in his better and worse? And where were the keepers of the Dharma then when a young aspiring woman had chosen the path of darkness for throughout her life? They couldn't talk some sense into her too?
3. His Mamashree Shakuni, King of Gandhara...had pleadged a revengenda against the whole Kuru clan for the deceit.
Q.Forcing girls to marry the Kuru Princes, capturing and threatening their families did this any of act sound like right?
So before his birth, the whole stage was set for the enactment...

4. So here comes our Villain and Heroes...
when I was little I watched MB of BRC on TV. My father used to tell me that Dury's original name was Suyodhan...but his parents' blindness and incapability and his Mama's influence made him Duryodhan...then I questioned him if that is true then why Krishna chose Pandav's side not his? He smiled and talked me to read the Gita with him...just imagine...how old may be I then? 7-8...yet again he described Micheal Madhusudan Dutt's perception to me saying "Ravana should be the hero along with Meghnad...I hate Ram." Quite contradictory for a man who read Gita everyday reverendly and agreed with Micheal's POV.I just asked why...now I realized what he tried to say is what is wrong and cruel is wrong and cruel for all time. And only its God's act...doesn't earn the merit to be the right. But again the question is what is wrong and what is right who could decide and by which scale? What is correct in one's measure scale that may be incorrect to another's view, isn't it?
So the famous Villain when took birth Wise people saw bad omen...and the child must be slayed...no matter he was the boon child of Lord Shiva(well in Mahabharata Vyas sketched him as Destructive side of God)...woohoo so by this logic shouldn't Kartikeya and Ganesha (No offence my Bros...I am just arguing) be consider as evil or demon or destroyer?? Au contraire Vyas had invited Lord Ganesha to be his scribes...condition was Vyas couldn't omit or alter or rectify or modify any fact of his tales while dictating and Ganesha had to understand what he was telling and then he had to jot it down.
Q. This is considered as Itihasa as it described our social curtoms, life, everything during that time along with follies and flaws...yet it is considered the source of wisdom. But do wisdom is only partial to the winning side? Wouldn't a loser get a chance to share his learning experience? And most important this epic repeatedly questioned what is Dharma? How it works? By which rule and norm it advised to kill a newborn? Is it really Dharma or righteous conduct or the society's blind believes what should be and should not be? This question still hasn't lost its value...a child, a King's child, a Prince was born and that time due to some reason the weather seemed bad, in panic some Donkeys cried out loud...and that considered as bad omen.
Okay now tell me its may sometime earlier of that very tale, a child took birth and the whole city covered into the darkness. Clouds covered the sky and the moon and the heavy downpour was showered onto the region. Even that child got a dark complexion like the night sky...didn't he consider the same as the former one??

4. "History remember legend over truth, Triumph over bloodshed"---So by this logic Duryodhan became the most formidable enemy, worst of the human being...He poisoned Bhima when he was a boy, he conspired along with another villain Karna to burn all the pandavs alive in Lakshagriha, he ordered the dyuta and insulted his sister-in-law Draupadi...and he finally fought the great war Kurukshetra from the adharma's side...he killed cruelly Abhimanyu within the Chakravyuha and then he died a adharmik's death by Bhima...and Pandava Yudhishthira ascended the throne.
People say out of jealousy and spite Duryodhan did that...exactly...he became so abhimani, so egoistical that he fell.
Yet...he never suffered in his life in poverty, he got to be taught from Balarama--- elder brother of Krishna, he married the woman and loved her till his last breathe and never ever did anything that may cause her discomfort, he bestowed all his love upon his children and brothers. And he befriended with Karna...a low caste man who stood by his side till his last breath. Nothing could made him to refuse his side neither his mother Kunti, nor Lord Krishna...( Krna and Duryodhan both consider him the great statesman and adviser in that time...and revered him no less than Pandava.) And the last but the most important part of this epic tale is when Yudhishthira, the son of Dharma himself reached the heaven he found out Duryodhan there enjoying the pleasures of the paradise..and he welcomed him there with open arm and warm heart...but Yudhishthira disgusted that fact and asked why he was there? Demigods answered, because of his merits and reminded Yudhishthira about Duryodhan's life on earth. He ruled his kingdom well, he took care of his subjects well, he loved his children and wife and respected and revered his parents...and he died like a true warrior in Kurukshetra, the sacred field where Parashurama another manifestation of Lord offered his father the Tarpan with blood of Skhatriyas...the place where King Puru ploughed the land with his own blood and urged to the King of demigods Indra to grant him a boon that whomever would die in that sacred land battling would reach the paradise at once and stay there forever...so with all these merit Duryodhana reached the paradise. But this couldn't make Yudhishthira happy...he refused to stay with him and then he recalled his brothers and wife...and ready to be in Hell...
Q. Dharma says protect the meek and punish the bully...and here as child Dury and his brothers kept bullied by Bhima again and again, their teacher favored Arjuna, their Patricach Bheesma and Uncle Vidura preffered Yudhishthira and Arjuna...well in that case what should he do? And the pandavas are not exactly evil but they are not saint either. Ekalavya or Karna each time an aspiring student had to be lost so the royal prince e.g. Arjuna became the best. We talk about jealousy and insult and insecurity and ego of Kauravas...what exactly Arjuna had towards Ekalavya initially or later towards Karna what was that? He may be a excellent archer but was he a better human? Or Bhima or Yudhishthira? They taunted on Karna and insulted him at Rangabhoomi, they married collectively Draupadi, yet they failed to protect her dignity...and vowed to seek revenge like what? Cowards? Dharma sought compassion, empathy, affection and a stand against the wrong...yet in the Royal court of Kuru neither one from Panadav stood for Paanchali, nor Pitamaha Bheesma, Dronacharya, Kripacharya or Vidura...
Duryodhan and Karna that day called Draupadi a wh**e, invited to sit on his thigh-ordered to stripped her naked before the court.-----it is undoubtedly a heinous act, worst crime against a woman...they should be and must be punished brutally...then and there...but that day none say a word. None say a word to Duryodhan may be Suyodhan back then when he was beaten by Bhima badly, None say a word, a comforting, soothing and calming word, neither his father nor his mother...neither taught him anything...nothing. Yet when they all died they became enraged and cursed the world and God.
Dharma prescribed include everyone into your world...yet Pandava chose to exclude him and his brothers...and even after death when everything was left Yudhishthira stuck to his 1 point---not to stay with Duryodhan...he could easily include Karna there but not Duryodhan!? Like dog clang onto his bone...
It is say if Duryodhan was a sharer, if he shared his kingdom, wealth with his cousins...the war never happened. If he didn't insult Draupadi, if he apologized and let it go ...the war never happened.
May be yes...but wouldn't in a relationship...it should come from both side? Did Pandava ever treated him with affection and care? If they ever try to see beyond his apparent spoilt facede? Did they ever include him??

Your OS raised so many questions in my mind...makes me restless...
They said Kurukshetra was Dharmayudha, where villain, evil Duryodhan died...and reached heaven. ANd Pandava lived rest of their lives in utmost misery and sufferings. They neither lived in peace at forest nor lived in happiness in palace...so ultimately who is the victorious?