Week 6 Reading Diary, cont.: Narayan's Mahabharata

reading: Part D of The Mahabharata: A Shortened Modern Prose Version of the Indian Epic by R.K. Narayan (Univ. of Chicago Press, 2000)

I found The Mahabharata a more complicated and deeper story than The Ramayana. It's difficult to separate out who's right and wrong in the story. Duryodhana is definitely wrong in his persistence in pursuing his own agenda, but everyone else is just caught up in the crossfire, torn by loyalties, prophecies, kinship, and morality. The Pandava brothers question whether what they do is right -- and make plenty of mistakes along the way -- and in the end, they're mainly the "right" side just because they're the protagonists and we want them to win.

The web of promises, allegiances, and prophecies is astounding. Krishna has promised some things to the Kauravas, but ultimately his loyalty lies with the Pandavas, whom he assists to victory. Characters and oaths that have been forgotten since the beginning of the story pop up again, like Amba getting revenge or the sons of the Pandava brothers. It all comes full circle, which I guess is the main point of the epic. Characters may be given opportunities to learn from their mistakes and depart from the destructive paths they've created for themselves, but ultimately, they're locked into this cosmically dictated sequence of events.

I liked Narayan's version for its brevity (I think the Penguin Classics *abridged* version is over 900 pages). I'm reading this mostly for the narrative content, so long lists of wedding guests or military allies or overly detailed descriptions wouldn't be that interesting. Still, having browsed through epic-inspired books, I've noticed how many novelized versions focus on the women of The Mahabharata and wondered how much their story can be expanded from the glimpses Narayan gives us in this adaptation. The battle is epic or whatever, but I really care more about how they live the rest of their lives.

battle scene from Bhagavad Gita, 16th cent.

source: Wikimedia Commons

Week 6 Reading Diary: Narayan's Mahabharata

reading: Part C of The Mahabharata: A Shortened Modern Prose Version of the Indian Epic by R.K. Narayan (Univ. of Chicago Press, 2000)

I found the incident between Duryodhana and the gandharvas highly amusing. Duryodhana is trying so hard to put down the Pandavas, but in this case his plans comically backfire. It's like a scene out of a cartoon: Duryodhana in all his bluster arriving to appear pompous and grand, only to be placed in chains and need to be rescued.

Another comic scene is Arjuna becoming a "eunuch." It's really only a disguise for him, so he doesn't seem too disappointed to be stuck in a group of palace women for a year! In fact, for being exiled and in hiding, the Pandavas don't have a rough time of it during this thirteenth year. It's almost fun for them, pursuing dreams and interests within someone else's royal court, without the kingly responsibilities they will have upon their return.

But the conflict with Draupadi being pursued by the queen's brother disturbed me. There's the old theme of men being ruled by their lust, incapable of resisting acting upon it even when they know it will have negative repercussions for them. And then to want to throw out Draupadi, place her on her attacker's funeral pyre (like how wives traditionally burned themselves with their deceased husbands)?! Talk about victim blaming! While I typically enjoy reading ancient literature like these epics, sometimes the outmoded views of gender relations kill the atmosphere...

Draupadi fending off Kichaka's advances

Raja Ravi Varma, c.1848-1906

source: Wikimedia Commons

Week 5 Reading Diary: Epified Mahabharata

reading: part A of the Epified Mahabharata

The videos were fun to list because of how the images are able to add lots of detail to the quick narration. They provide visual detail - and also sometimes informational, as with the list of authors - as the narrators move along. I found the drawing a little exhausting because it's so frenetic and constant, but with how fast the narrators speak, the images really help me keep up with the pace.

I noticed a lot of places where the video version of the epic differs from Narayan's adaptation that I'm reading. The narrators start with a deeper focus on meaning, talking about how the story relates to cycles of karma and similar concepts. The actions of characters in the tale will eventually come back to them, good or bad. In this same vein, there's a heavier focus on vengeance in this version. The eldest of the three sisters is eventually going to pop again, and there are other cases where characters that Narayan just kind of dropped will probably come back to get revenge.

So there's details in this version, possibly even whole storylines, that were not included in Narayan's novelized form. It's interesting to see more of the original story, but it also gets a little confusing. I start wondering if I just don't remember something from the reading or if it's left out by Narayan. Still, I'm enjoying watching the videos as a way to recap and remember what I read this week.

depiction of Vyasa narrating the epic to Ganesha

Murudeshwara temple, Karnataka

(Wikimedia Commons)

Week 5: Thoughts About Comments

First off, I know I could be better about leaving comments. I generally focus on trying to say nice, concrete things about others' posts...and hitting that word count goal. I'm not so good at giving constructive criticism, because I don't want to criticize what others' are doing. I think the only constructive criticism I've given so far this class was reminding someone that "Google" doesn't count as an image source...so the biggest thing I could do to improve the comments I leave is try to find nice, friendly ways to say more than just what positive things in the post struck me as cool or interesting or especially creative.

For comments on my own posts, of course I like reading what works well for people, especially if it's when I've tried some storytelling technique different from my usual. :) It's helpful to know when these things actually end up working well! There hasn't been a whole lot of constructive criticism, but what people have posted has been good for learning formatting and such that makes for easier reading. It's definitely something I should think about more when I'm preparing blog posts. The most engaging comments are from people who have clearly taken the time to read and think about the posts, and who let their personalities and reactions come through in their comments.

Week 5 Storytelling: Jungle Secrets

Dear Journal,

Today was an adventure full of surprising discoveries. I started out early in the morning, right at dawn to beat the heat of the day. I wandered through the jungle to the north of where I camped last night, continuing down the scarcely-marked path I had discovered several days before and decided to follow. I noticed as I walked that I would occasionally encounter paving stones among the undergrowth as well as spot the remains of walls and markers to the side of the roadway. These once guided travelers along what I realized must have been a major route – but to where it led I could not fathom. Of all the maps and histories I have pored over, none have given any hint of even a small settlement in this part of the country, much less a location that would demand what was once a very impressive approach!

Just as I began to grow footsore and weary from the growing day’s heat, I emerged into a more open area, where a pleasantly cool breeze blew off several pools of water scattered around. It had been hundreds of years, maybe even thousands, since people had last inhabited this space, but still the jungle had not completely eradicated the loveliness of what they had built. Here and there I saw large walls, expertly constructed of some foreign stone of gorgeous color, peeking out from the vines that now entangled them. I walked towards what appeared to be the largest of these remains, locating through the vegetation a doorway I could clear with my machete. 

Journal, what I found inside was astounding! My attention caught by a spot of color shining through on the floor, I cleared the dirt and leaves – and about had a heart attack, thinking I must be about to fall into another pool of water! Even with age, the vibrancy of the painting on the floor had not faded enough to dispel the illusion. What looked so realistically like water was nothing more than a fantastic trick, a solid patch of floor designed to appear as a pool covered in lotus blossoms. I have never seen anything like it!

I continued walking through the palace, of course, for now I assumed that only a great king could have constructed something like this. There were other illusions: doorways that were solid walls, ever-flickering lamps that were no lights at all, a full garden that, when one tried to step into it, was found to be nothing more than another one-dimensional depiction. Here and there I saw glistening jewels, the remains of tall, wide marble pillars, and much other evidence of past opulence and grandeur…

On the wall behind a collapse throne, I found the inscription. It was written in a strange ancient script, but one similar enough to those I have studied for me to be able to make out most of the text. It spoke of a set of five kings and their single wife, in competition with their cousins to rule wealthy, splendid kingdoms. Each group built their own palace such as the one I was exploring, to prove to posterity their power and grandeur. A shame, I thought, that this place had so long languished in neglect. I was the first to reach it in centuries, and surely by the time the next explorer makes it this far north, the jungle will have covered any trace of this once-monument to kingly ego.

Author's Note: I was inspired this week by the palace built by the Pandavas in The Mahabharata and the envy and recreation it inspires in the jealous Kauravas. It seemed so futile to me to be this concerned with display and splendor, which will inevitably fade with time. The details of illusions were drawn from The Mahabharata as the most characteristic features of the palace the Pandavas built and the sources of embarrassment for Duryodhana (see image below).

Source: R.K. Narayan, The Mahabharata: A Shortened Modern Prose Version of the Indian Epic (Univ. of Chicago Press, 2000). 

Image: illustration of Duryodhana falling into the water (Wikimedia Commons).

Week Five Reading Diary, cont: Narayan's Mahabharata

reading: Part A of The Mahabharata: A Shortened Modern Prose Version of the Indian Epic by R.K. Narayan (Univ. of Chicago Press, 2000)

As in The Ramayana, I'm struck by the choices given to the characters in these Indian epics. Even with influences from deities and sages, a certain amount of decision is left up to the characters in determining their own fates. For example, the blind king is given repeated chances to cast off his evil son and do what's right regarding his nephews. He even follows this advice occasionally, though, torn between his nephews and his sons, he tends to lapse back to bad decisions.

At the same time, determining what's up to fate in the epic and what's caused by human choices is difficult. Yudhistira has to accept the challenges for games, but at the same time, he take it too far with his wagers -- but isn't this part of the greater story, the set of events he, his brothers, and their wife must go through?

For storytelling this week, I'm not sure which route to pursue. One thing I considered was based on the descriptions of the royals' lavish palaces. The rivals spend so much time, money, and effort on trying to top the Pandavas -- and for what? In the long run, all of them will eventually die, and their palaces will fall to ruin with the passage of time. So one story I thought of was having someone return and discover the ruins, to reflect on their past majesty and the futility of all this competition and scheming.

the Pandavas escape Lakshagraha

source: Wikipedia

Week 5 Reading Diary: Narayan's Mahabharata

reading: Part A of The Mahabharata: A Shortened Modern Prose Version of the Indian Epic by R.K. Narayan (Univ. of Chicago Press, 2000)

The first thing that struck me about The Mahabharata is the similarity of storytelling structure and motifs between this epic and works from the Western canon. The "unquestioning spouse" at the very beginning reminds me of Chaucer's Clerk's tale. Unlike Chaucer, however, the unquestioning spouse is the husband, not the wife, and there's mythological purpose behind the wife's actions towards her husband and children.

Other aspects of this section reminded me of biblical Old Testament stories. A baby is hidden by being floated in a basket down the river, to be taken in and raised by strangers until his return to his homeland. There's also a similar concern in the epic about proper sexual partners and worry over having heirs (with women allowed multiple marriages to relatives, etc. in order to produce such) that crops up in the Old Testament. Finally, the competitions between the cousins and over a wife are pretty stock motifs in folklore, but they reminded me in particular of medieval Arthurian epics with their knights and quests and whatnot.

I was also struck/bothered by the final portion of this section. These epics have had polygyny before, but here's a case of polyandry! Yet there's still conflicts here. In polygyny, the man is allowed time with all wives, but in the polyandrous marriage here, the wife must spend a year with each brother, while the other brothers can't even think of her. There's also sexual freedom for the woman apparent in her past life, with being rewarded by the fantastic 5-in-1 husband for her previous unconditional devotion -- but at the same time, her desire is mentioned as holding back her husband's spiritual condition. It's still not the most enlightened view of female roles.

Draupadi and the Pandavas

Ravi Varma Press, c.1910 (source: Wikimedia Commons)