|| Aryavarta Chronicles Book Chat with Krishna Udayasankar || - Page 5

Hello Ms. Udayasankar,
I still beg to differ about Dharma's portrayal.
Here is a citation from KMG where he repents for his deeds:

Having heard these words of Nakula, the king as also Bhima and Sahadeva, became sorely afflicted, and hastily ran towards her.

And finding her weak, and her countenance pale, the pious son of Kunti began to lament in grief, taking her on his lap. Yudhishthira said. 'Accustomed to ease, and deserving to sleep in wellprotected rooms, on beds spread over with fine sheets, how doth this beautiful one sleep prostrate on the ground! Alas! On my account (alone), the delicate feet and the lotus-like face of this one deserving of all excellent things, have contracted a dark-blue hue. O what have I done! Fool that I am, having been addicted to dice, I have been wandering in the forest full of wild beasts, taking Krishna in my company. This large-eyed one had been bestowed by her father, the king of the Drupadas, in the hope that the blessed girl would be happy, by obtaining the sons of Pandu for her lords. It is on account of my wretched self, that without obtaining anything hoped for, she sleepeth prostrate on the ground, tired with hardships, sorrow and travel!

also, you have distorted his character a bit too much, sorry but I have to say this.

Let me mention some facts from your book, which are totally different from the original:

1) Epic Yudhishthir was trapped & cheated by kauravas in dice hall, but your Dharma is a compulsive gambler' who is asked to stop by Syoddhan but he himself desires to play. In epic, Dhritarashtra called them when they were on the way to Indraprashtha, but in your book, Dharma wanted to play again even after Dhritarashtra returned everything to them. Epic Yudhishthir deserves sympathy here because others did torture on him, others forced him to play the second game. But your Dharma deserves only hate. Epic Yudhi was never so much greedy or heartless person, but your Dharma is so.

2) You portrayed Dharma as extremely greedy, but in epic, he had no single sign of greed at all. Had he been greedy, he would not have accepted the proposal of ruling a barren land like Khandavprashtha. Had he been greedy, he would not have refused to perform Rajasuya as well as expand his kingdom (I can give citations for each of my words).

3) Your Dharma blamed Panchali for every pain she suffered. But epic Yudhishthir literally wept for her miserable condition, and repented for his own faults. In exile his words were, "For me, only for me, this princess is in this condition!", and also, "I don't feel so much grief for myself or my brothers as I feel for Panchali." (Again, I can prove each of my words). Where is this remorse, where is this pain in your Dharma? Epic Yudhi's faults were lighter than your Dharma's, still the former repented but the later did not! Is this not unfair to his character? Does he not deserve a chance to repent?

4) In both Jayadrath & Keechak incidents, epic Yudhishthir was angry. He killed 100 soldiers of Jayadrath's army, despite of being a follower of ahimsa & forgiveness. Does it not show his love & care to his wife? But your Dharma ignores the whole thing. As for Keechak, your Keechak seems to be far better human being than Dharma, which surprised me to the core! I simply can't take that your Dharma is the worst character of your book, even worse than Keechak! Panchali respected Keechak a lot but she disliked her husband, as a fan of epic Yudhishthir, this is too much for me!

5) After Pandavas saved King Virat, he himself wanted to gift his kingdom to Kanka but Kanka clearly refused. King Virat said, "O Brahmin, I will coronate you as the Matsya King, as you saved both my life and kingdom!" but Kanka replied, "King, I am pleased with your words, you keep serving your prajas with compassion in your heart, and that will be enough!" is this man greedy? Is this man selfish? Sorry, my little knowledge is unable to find out where his greed or selfishness is here! But your Dharma wants the whole Matsya kingdom from the King, what a hell & heaven difference you have made here!

6) Your Dharma tells Govinda many offensive words, which made me shocked to the core. Epic Yudhishthir believed Krishna as his God, his Saviour, his best friend & guide. He respected Krishna like God and loved Him as his friend & brother. Epic Yudhi told Krishna, "You are my mind!" also, he said that none else could know him better than Krishna (Krishnam tu maam veda yatha vad ekah...it is Krishna who really knows who I am!).

7) Your Dharma is so heartless; he had no pain even after Abhimanyu or Hidimbya's deaths! I was shocked to see that his conversation with Hidimbya was so cold, so formal! Epic Yudhi's affection for his both nephews always overwhelms readers! He cried more than Bheem & Arjun after deaths of his nephews.

8) Your Dharma is so happy after breaking of Syoddhan's thigh, but I can clearly recall that epic Yudhishthir was weeping for his enemy, & he forgave Duryodhan at his death-bed!

Sorry if I have said anything wrong, but that is my understanding of his character.

Hi Krishna...
Thank you for those insightful answers...they explained quite a few of the questions I had.

But regarding Dharma Vs Duryodhana, when Govinda makes the choice I am still not 100% convinced. Given Dharma's nature here would Duryodhana not have been a better choice?
His father was still the king agreed, but i am sure Govinda himself or at least the Vyasa could have easily persuaded the king to step down in favor of his son
As for his brothers, Duryodhana had Karna and Ashwathama and even Bhisma who could watch his and his wife's back And if Panchali was married to him, Govinda himself too.
Given that Duryodhana was not a gambler maybe that option would not have led to war at all? Just a thought...

My second one was why did Govinda choose Panchali to be the empress? Was it just because she belonged to the Angirasa line and he wanted some one from that line on the throne also? Or was it because he found her the most suitable in terms of knowledge and temperament? Finally, was she truly his to sacrifice?Agreed she loved him, but he also in effect staked her right?

Originally posted by: KrisUdayasankar

Dear Friends,

Thank you all very much for inviting me to be a part of your discussion here. I really loved reading your questions, and hope to do some justice to them.

Please find below a pretty long post in which I try to cover some of the main/ recurrent questions so far. My intent here is to a) allow us to move deeper into these issues, or move forward with new questions in the evening's chat and b) make the most of the ten posts per day that I am currently restricted to L

Consequently, I will also have to combine reponses to your questions later on too.

I have not directly addressed some of the more detailed questions some of you have posed. I shall go through the posts again over the next some days and try to cover what has been missed.

Thank you for your patience with me, and if I have inadvertently not responded to you, please do feel free to post your query again.

Now, on to the questions (and my attempt at answers):

Why did Govinda choose Dharma to marry Panchali/ become Emperor?

Many of you have pointed out possible reasons, and all of these are, to some extent part of the larger web. Govinda's distrust of Syoddhan's brothers, the intent to put a Kuru on the throne... all of these are part of the web of reasons. I will add one more:

What we must also remember is that Govinda was not working in isolation, but was working to weave his own plans around those of Vyasa and other players. He did the best he could with what he had. He wasn't always right, and he knew it, which is why he descends into despair when things backfire. But at the end of it all, he discovers a deeper strength and meaning that brings him back to Kurukshetra.

Negative (really?) portrayal of Dharma 😊

Let me say this, many of the statements Dharma makes are taken directly from the KMG ed, sometimes even the critical ed. I too was initially shocked to find that Dharma's behaviour was not always consistent with the picture that was painted of him. But I feel I've done little extra to make him seem negative, and this is really the impression he gives of himself, when we view him from contemporary perspectives.

For example, Dharma does not believe himself to be in the least error in staking his subjects at dice - not even after the war. If you went and asked him today, he'd probably protest saying he did no wrong (I think there was a question about why he does not repent). He does not repent because he thinks he does right. And I agree that he is undoubtedly principled and honest about that. Nowhere have I said that he did wrong. All the other characters say is that his beliefs, which are representative of the larger system, are wrong. Dharma is a symbol of the (then and now) existing hierarchy. And that structure is, I think you'll agree, not a positive one at all.

Arjun/Partha

We are used to thinking of the epic characters as one-dimensional, perfect from the get go, and that, IMHO is a disservice to their true heroic natures. Heroes are those who rise above themselves, who learn and grown. And that is what happens with Partha - he is the symbol of... well you and I, really. People who are not Govinda, but who realize that life is all about trying to get there. Over the three books, Partha is one of the characters who changes the most - from being a womaniser' to someone who is clear and noble in through and intent. But to see this characters growth, you'd have read all three books J

The same goes for his relationship with Govinda. It evolves over time (and the books). Also, Partha was the only one to say anything in question of Dharma's authority at the dice game (other than Bhim's ineffectual rants) - something that would certainly serve to strengthed the bond between Govinda and Partha - not just emotionally, but also at a rational, philosophical level.

As for his getting educated' on flame tailed and flame-tipped arrows by Uttara - why is that such a shock. I doubt a truly noble warrior such as he would have had ego-issues when it came to knowledge of that sort. It doesn't diminish Partha in the least that there are things he does not know - he is willing to learn, that is more valuable than all knowledge he holds.

Why is Panchali childless?

First, let me state for the record that I personally object to the notion that a childless Panchali is incomplete.' Women are not defined by their wombs alone. She is completely capable of being a mother - not just to Abhimanyu - but a woman who feels like mother-like compassion beyond ties of blood and kin. At the same time, she does not have to be a mother, to be deserving of our compassion. She is human, that is all that matters.

Second, both timelines as well as event descriptions are pretty sketchy when we come to the Upa-Pandavas. Nor, as you all know, do the five have any major roles to play. I remember a statement which, roughly rendered, said "by giving each of her husbands a child she fulfilled her duty to them." - suggesting it was put in as a matter of propriety. Otherwise, it does seem quite a feat to deliver exactly one child each with calendar precision, and then have no further children, no?

Missing events

One word answer: Interpolation 😊

Please see my blog (I can't post the link here coz Im a newbie) for more on this.

The War

Why war? What purpose did it serve? Why did Panchali want it? Why did Govinda want it? These are precisely the questions that made me begin writing The Aryavarta Chronicles. How could rational and compassionate individuals like these two want or sanction the killing of hundreds of thousands. Many years and 500K words later, I have an answer, though I do not claim it is the only answer: revolution.

Thanks, and look forward to continuing the discussion!

PS. The books are not available in the US because the publisher does not have US rights (ie US rights available for sale, hint hint!)

Thank you for answering the questions Mam. Especially about Arjun/Paartha. Yes I agree that he has grown quite a lot in Kaurava and mainly in Kurukshetra though I still can't connect him to the epic Arjuna or the Arjuna we know. Yes some of his feats may have been exaggerated in the epic but that doesn't mean he didn't perform any feats at all. I'm sorry if I come across as rude but I mean no disrespect and apart from the Arjuna issue I quite like your books especially Kurukshetra is pure genius. I especially loved the "narayanastra" part. I've always wanted to read a non-divine version of Mahabharata and I want to thank you for providing it.😊

And I still want to know why poor Uttar got written out😭

Originally posted by: AnuMP

And I still want to know why poor Uttar got written out😭

Yeah. He's another example of how a person can rise above his fears

Isn't it 7.30 IST yet? Or has the venue changed?

Originally posted by: shindes

Isn't it 7.30 IST yet? Or has the venue changed?

Hello Mam. I'm glad you too joined it. 😊

Yes, it is on. She is limited to 20 posts as she is a Newbie and is trying to combine answers