Jaya: An Illustrated Retelling of the Mahabharata

by Devdutt Pattanaik

Vibhishana, king of Lanka and leader of the Rakshasas, refused to bow to Yudhishtira stating that he bowed to none but Ram, king of Ayodhya, who had defeated his brother, Ravana, and was Vishnu on earth. Krishna, who was also Vishnu on earth, fell at Yudhishtira’s feet stating that any king who upholds dharma on earth is like Ram of Ayodhya. Seeing this, Vibhishana changed his mind and fell at Yudhishtira’s feet.

How Vibishana is still alive in Mahabharatha period.

To protect her son, Shishupala’s mother gets from Krishna a boon that he will forgive a hundred crimes of her son. But she does not bother to warn her son never to commit a crime. Thus Vyasa draws attention to a peculiar human trait of trying to solve a problem through external means without bringing about any internal transformation.

Yudhishtira’s coronation is surrounded by inauspicious events. It is preceded by the death of a king, Jarasandha; it witnesses the humiliation of another king, Duryodhana; and finally the ceremony itself is followed by the killing of yet another king, Shishupala, leading to an uproar among all Kshatriyas.

Shakuni, the youngest, was the chosen one and alone he ate the food being served while the rest of his family starved before his eyes. Before dying, Suvala struck Shakuni’s foot with a staff and cracked his ankle. ‘Now you shall limp every time you walk. And every time you limp, remember the crime of the Kauravas against your family. Never forgive them.’

In other versions of the story, Suvala is put in prison along with his sons for refusing to let Gandhari marry a blind man. Thus Gandhari, like Ambika and Ambalika, is a captive and so is Shakuni.

The story of Gandhari and the goat comes from the Jain retellings of the Mahabharata.

The notion of big fish feeding on small fish is known as ‘matsya nyaya’ and denotes the law of the jungle. By promising to save the small fish, Manu, in effect, establishes the code of civilization or ‘dharma’ where even the weak can thrive.

In Vedic times, gambling with dice was considered a sacred ritual. Just as no king could ignore a challenge to a duel or a call to a battle, no king could turn down an invitation to a gambling match. Gambling showed if a king was blessed with intelligence and luck. Krishna embodies intelligence and Draupadi luck. The Pandavas enter the gambling hall with neither.

It was said that in the game of life, Yama, god of death and destiny, threw the die while humans guided by Kama, god of life and desire, had the power to move the coins.

By making a game of dice the cornerstone of his tale, Vyasa reminds us that ultimately all of life is a game.

Naked, the Goddess is Kali, bloodthirsty and wild as the undomesticated forest. Clothed, she is Gauri, gentle as a domesticated orchard or field. The unclothing of Draupadi is not merely the unclothing of a woman; it represents the collapse of civilization, the move from field to forest, from Gauri to Kali, when dharma is abandoned and matsya nyaya reigns supreme, so that might dominates the meek.

megalomania? Is it because, as many folk versions suggest, the palace women including Gandhari and the wives of the Kauravas rise up in protest? Vyasa leaves the reader guessing.

goddess. In Bangalore, during the Karaga festival, a man dresses up like a woman and travels through the city surrounded by brave men carrying swords, known as Veerakumaras. The man is supposed to represent Yudhishtira, the eldest Pandava, undergoing ritual humiliation as he asks his wife, the goddess, to forgive him and bestow her grace upon his people.

A solar eclipse is supposed to have occurred when the Pandavas went into exile. This is described by Vidura in the Sabha Parva.

In both the great Indian epics, the Mahabharata and the Ramayana, the forest is both a physical reality as well as a metaphor for the unknown, untamed realms of the mind.

ends as a great learning experience that transforms the Pandavas into better human beings and hence better kings.

For Kshatriyas, it was a matter of great pride that whoever visited their houses left after being refreshed and well fed. This was the law of hospitality. This is why, even today, many households in India insist that whosoever enters their house must not leave without having at least a glass of water or a cup of tea or a small snack.

The ceremonial counting of cows suggests that the society described in the Mahabharata depended on livestock for its sustenance. The cities were mainly established to protect cows and pasture lands.

The Hindi phrase ‘chandal chaukdi’, or menacing foursome, comes from the villainous quartet of the Mahabharata: Duryodhana, Dusshasana, Shakuni and Karna.

why blame external factors when the root cause is our passion,’

Let us be governed by what is right. Let us be governed by dharma.’

The Mahabharata, by contrast, is

more about imperfect kings and their imperfect reigns. In the Ramayana, Vishnu upholds rules as Ram, while in the Mahabharata, Vishnu changes rules as Krishna. In the Ramayana, God is king, while in the Mahabharata, God is kingmaker.

we believe our problems are the greatest and our misfortunes the worst, there is always someone out there who has suffered more. And just as they survived and triumphed over their suffering, we must too. Together, the Ramayana and the Mahabharata are known as Itihasa; they need to be distinguished from the Veda and the Purana. Itihasa is about the struggle of man to uphold dharma in his pursuit of perfection a...

embody these principles in various divine beings and tell stories of how God cyclically crea...

Arjuna’s tryst with Shiva is not just about obtaining the Pashupat; it is also about learning a lesson in humility. Arjuna cannot bear the thought of being trounced by a forest dweller, who he considers socially inferior.

In Garhwal region is found the Pandava Leela that retells the legend of Kalia Lohar, the blacksmith who helped forge weapons for the Pandavas in exile. Some say that the blacksmith was a form of Shiva, hence is worshipped locally as a deity.

how confrontation and conflict does not necessarily happen when one is right and the other is wrong; it can happen simply because two people follow different value systems.

The Mahabharata identifies the Himalayas as the stairway to the paradise of the gods because their peaks touch the sky.

peace of mind does not come from renouncing worldly life; it comes from knowledge of the soul and a true understanding of the world as it is. With this knowledge in one’s heart, one can carry on doing one’s worldly duties.

One must accept that one’s life is the result of past karmas and that one has the power to choose one’s response to every situation.

Both travelling to holy spots and listening to sacred stories are believed to reduce the burden of karmic debts and increase the load of karmic equity.

Travel, realized the wise men, was an important way to widen the outlook of otherwise inward-looking communities.

Even today, the Pandava Leela recounting the heroic deeds of the Pandavas is an integral part of the culture of the Garhwal region.

The Newar community of Nepal worships Bhima as Bhairava, the violent form of Shiva, and offers him blood sacrifices.

Shiva who had taken the form of the most ferocious bull. Bhima tried to catch the bull but it disappeared; the hump remained above the ground and was worshipped as Kedarnath.

‘He is Sesha, the remainder. He who exists even when God is asleep and the world is dissolved. He is Adi, that which exists before the beginning, and Ananta, after the end. He is the great serpent in whose coils reclines God in the form of Vishnu.’

At a philosophical level, one can see the conflict between arranged marriages governed by the intellect and love marriages governed by emotions. What is appropriate conduct? Krishna clearly favours the heart over the head in matters of marriage. Or does he? For the marriages do impact political alliances, something that Krishna is well aware of.

Just as Shiva teaches Arjuna, Hanuman teaches Bhima a lesson in humility. The forest transforms the Pandavas, makes them better kings. The tragedy of exile thus seems very much part of a divine plan to help men be better rulers.

The people of the Himalayas possessed different features from the people of the plains. That is why rationalists say they were described as demons and goblins, or Rakshasas and Yakshas, by the Aryas.

The romance of Bhima and Draupadi is the stuff of many folk legends. In the horse dance of Tanjore, the riders of the dummy horses represent Bhima and Draupadi.

The Goddess is the earth itself. Her relationship with Vishnu, the world-affirming form of God, expresses the changing relationship of man with the earth over time. As the first quarter of the world cycle drew to a close, marking the end of the world’s innocence, the Goddess was Renuka, mother of Vishnu who descended on the earth as Parashurama. As the second quarter of the world drew to a close, marking the end of the world’s youth, the Goddess was Sita, wife of Vishnu who descended on the earth as Ram. As the third quarter of the world drew to a close, marking the end of the world’s maturity, the Goddess was Draupadi, who God in the form of Krishna treated as a sister and a friend.

destiny. In the Upanishads, Yagnavalkya says that life’s chariot has two wheels—desire and destiny. One can depend on one or both. Savitri changes her destiny through intense desire manifesting as unshakeable will. Herein lies the root of the rituals known as ‘vrata’ observed by Hindu women. Through fasting and all-night vigils they express their desire and determination and thereby hope to influence the destinies of their households.

In the Upanishads, Yagnavalkya says that life’s chariot has two wheels—desire and destiny.

will. Herein lies the root of the rituals known as ‘vrata’ observed by Hindu women. Through fasting and all-night vigils they express their desire and determination and thereby hope to influence the destinies of their households.

who is a Brahman?’

He is one who by mastering his senses and by disciplining his mind has attained Brahma-vidya, knowledge of the eternal, infinite and boundless soul.

Sachi, the wife of Indra, is considered to be a form of Lakshmi. She is the goddess of fortune. It is said that any one can become an Indra by earning more merit than the previous Indra. On becoming an Indra, one has access to Sachi. Sachi is faithful to the rank of Indra, not to the person who is Indra. Nahusha is not yet Indra; he is a temporary replacement, a lesser being. Though not worthy, he dares desire Sachi and thus pays for it. The tale is less about morality (do not desire the wife of another man) and more about prudence (do not aspire for things until you are worthy).

The tale is less about morality (do not desire the wife of another man) and more about prudence (do not aspire for things until you are worthy).

‘What makes a Brahman?’ ‘Understanding of the Veda.’