Reading Guide: 5I. Narayana. Secret of God's Son

See the Reading Overview for Pradyumna and Secret of God's Son. This is the Reading Guide for Week 5-I, the second guide for Secret. In the first part (4-H), you saw how Pradyumna fought Rama to bring back Vikarna to the land of the living, hoping that Gandhari would avert the curse she pronounced on Krishna:

8. Brothers or Foes?

Shiva appears as Pradyumna and Vikarna are leaving Yamaloka, and he praises Pradyumna's victory.

Shiva recalls the story of how his son, Kartikeya, sought knowledge of the Pranava mantra, Om. He then explains the cycle of the Yugas, including the Yuga of the demon Kali, and the power of Vishnu's names.

Before Pradyumna and Vikarna can reach Hastinapura, Samba arrives, intending to kill Gandhari so that she cannot avert the curse.

When Pradyumna and Vikarna arrive, they go first to the home of Vidura, and they find Mayavati, Pradhymna's wife, there already.  She uses kumkum and flowers to perform an aarti for good luck.

(kumkum powders)

Back to Samba: Gandhari prays to Krishna for deliverance.

Pradyumna and Vikarna then arrive, and he is ready to kill both of them also. Krishna's guards arrive and arrest Samba.

9. Thwarted

Gandhari is now ready to avert her earlier curse. She tries to summon her Rudraksha prayer beads, but they do not come. She invokes the punya of her past devotions and tapasya, but she realizes that all her powers are gone. She regrets that she did not see Krishna in his cosmic form, vishwarupa, as he tried to prevent the war; now, after the war, it is too late for her to save Krishna and the Gita: "I cannot reverse my folly. Alas! Your clan will die, Dwaraka will sink into the sea and mankind will lose the wisdom of Krishna’s Gita."

Maya encourages Pradyumna not to give up, and he realizes how she is a valuable helper to him, more than his other wives Rukmavati (mother of Aniruddha) and Prabhavati (the asura princess).

Maya reminds him: "As Narada tells us often, life spins around constantly like Vishnu’s chakra, bringing us both joy and sorrow."

(Vishnu)

10. Return to Dwaraka

Krishna also speaks encouraging words to Pradyumna: "I advise you to view all obstacles as a source of learning. Understand that our greatest enemies are, in fact, the doubts that live within us."

This peaceful visit provides a welcome interlude, as Krishna points out: "My advice to you all is to enjoy the abundant love that you receive and the moments of joy that you experience,’ said Krishna, smiling at the newcomers. ‘For these are what make life worthwhile and sustain you during dark times when all seems to be lost."

(Krishna)

11. The Whirlpool

Krishna urges Pradyumna to undertake a pilgrimage, visiting the holy places or tirthas, as Arjuna did in order to acquire Shiva's weapon, the Pashupata Astra.

The priests bless Pradyumna's journey, invoking the god Pushan, and Maya marks him with a red tilaka.

All seems well, but there is an ominous vulture's egg preparing to hatch...

Pradyumna seeks a vision (darshan) of Vishnu at Badrinath. The place is also sacred to Shiva because it is Kapalamochana, "skull-liberation," when Shiva chopped off Brahma's fifth head and it stuck to his hand.

Pradyumna reflects on his past incarnations as the spoiled Prince Vama, the violent Kartavirya and his life as the god Kama, realizing how much he has learned from Bhargava (Bhargavarama, Parashurama) and from Krishna.

Pradyumna next goes to Kashi (Benares, Varanasi), where he makes an offering to Surya with the water of the Ganges: "the river was the svarga-sopana-sarani, the flowing staircase to heaven. Kasi was avimukta, never forsaken by Shiva; it was the city of Sadashiva, the eternal one." (Sada Shiva, Eternal Shiva).

A priest at the Vishvanath temple tells the story of how the gods went to Vaikunta and saw Vishnu with the Shiva linga in his heart. This is Harihara, who unites both Vishnu and Shiva, receiving both bilva leaves and lotuses from his worshipers. He wears the Kaustubha gem of Vishnu, but is also wrapped in snakes like Shiva. Both Garuda and Nandi are on his banner. He has the Vaijayanti garland of Vishnu, and Shiva's necklace of skulls.

(Harihara)

Pradyumna then has a vision of Shiva's cave, and goes back to the river to spend the night. The next day, it rains, and a calf falls into the flooding river. Pradyumna jumps into the waters to rescue the calf; he has another supernatural vision while in the river's whirling waters, and then brings the calf back to its mother.

Next, he goes to Shiva's cave, and there he meets Shiva's son, Ganesha, who was his playmate when Pradyumna lived as Kamadeva, playing and enjoying laddoos and modakas.

12. A Playmate for Ganesha

Pradyumna is now having a vision of the past, when Vishvakarma made lingas so all the gods could worship Shiva and be liberated from Taraka Asura by Shiva's son.

Vyasa chanted the hundred names of Shiva (Shatarudriya), but Shiva did not hear any of their prayers, grieving over his dead wife Sati. Kama tried to evoke Shiva's passion, but Shiva burned him to ashes.

Little Ganesha found the ashes and made it into a playmate, Bhandasura. This asura brought terrible destruction into the world, so Lakshmi, Parvati and Rati engaged in tapasya to counter his power. The gods prayed to Adi Shakti, and her consort Maha Shambhu instructed them to conduct a great yagna, chanting the thousand names of Lalita Tripurasundari.

(Tripurasundari)

She restored the world, bringing Shakti armies (senas) and Bhairavas to use in battle against Bhandasura. Bhandasura scorned her as a mere woman. She defeated all the forces he sends against her, and then struck Bhandasura himself with her trident; he acknowledged her glory, and then she destroyed him.

Back to Ganesha and Pradyumna in the cave: Ganesha explains how Lalita Tripurasundari allowed the incinerated Kama to be reborn as Pradyumna.

Ganesha then warns Pradyumna about the krodha (anger) of his half-brother Samba: "When used to satisfy your own selfish desires, krodha destroys you."

Pradyumna then hears a woman's voice calling him, but he does not know who it is.

13. A Dance with God

Pradyumna flies south to the Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple. There he finds the woman, Andal, Krishna's most devoted followers, and Pradyumna realizes he is traveling in time, for Andal would not be born yet for many centuries (perhaps around 800 C.E.). She prays to Kamadeva to unite her in love with Krishna, and her prayer makes Pradyumna want to return hom to Krishna.

He decides to go to Vrindavan, the village where Krishna grew up; the people are celebrating Janmashtami, Krishna's birthday, when he arrives. He sees a sacred image of Krishna-the-Butter-Thief, and realizes that he wants to have a grandson, a son of his own son Aniruddha.

Accompanied by a beautiful maiden, Pradyumna visits the ghat on the Yamuna River that makes the spot where the young Krishna defeated the water serpent Kaliya.

The maiden describes dancing with Krishna in the rasa lila, and Pradyumna realizes she is Krishna's beloved Radha. A shatkona yantra marks the spot where that sacred dance happened, expressing the power of Radha Krishna.

(Rasa Lila)

It is now time for Pradyumna to return home.

14. When the Dead Rose

Pradyumna feels compelled to return to Hastinapura, home of the Pandavas. They all go into the forest with Vyasa, where they see Gandhari again.

Pradyumna asks Vyasa to grant them a vision of the dead warriors to console them in their grief. In particular, Pradyumna wants to see his dead friends Abhimanyu (son of Arjuna) and Ghatotkacha (son of Bhima).

(Vyasa at the river)

Vyasa controls Kala (Time) long enough to grant the vision and then, when the ghost disappear, the voice of Ganga consoles them: Ganga spoke to them in her eternal voice. ‘Grieve not, but cherish their love,’ she said.

Pradyumna realizes that life goes on, but he also knows that the power of Gandhari's curse has still not been averted.

Reading Guide: Kincaid. Krishna. Chapter 1.

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Shri Krishna of Dwarka

---

[Notes by LKG]. The first chapter of Kincaid's book describes the birth of Krishna and his escape from Mathura.

Kincaid tells a version of the story in which Yashoda's baby girl is an incarnation of Vishnu's own power, but in other versions, the baby girl is an incarnation of Yogmaya, a goddess in her own right.

~ ~ ~

Shri Krishna of Dwarka and Other Stories by C. A. Kincaid (1920), online at Hathi Trust.

CHAPTER 1. THE COMING OF KRISHNA. 

Now it happened many many hundred years ago that the demon Kalanemi, the grandson of Hiranyakashipu, whom the Lord Vishnu killed, was born again as Kansa, the son of Ugrasena, king of Mathura. At the same, time Dhenuka, Keshi, Pralamba, Arishta, and many other such demons came into the world to harass mankind. 

At last the Earth, taking the form of a cow, went to Mount Meru and implored the help of Brahma Deva to rid her of her tormentors. Brahma Deva listened to her story; then going with the god Shiva to the Lord Vishnu, Brahma Deva repeated it to him and urged him to be born again in human form and once more to rid the world of the demons.

The Lord Vishnu, after hearing the Earth’s complaint, pulled out two of his hairs, one white and one black and said, “These two hairs shall take human form. The white hair shall be born as Balarama and shall be the incarnation of my serpent Shesha. The black hair shall be my incarnation. He shall be born as Krishna and shall slay Kansa and the demons who aid him.” 

Now Kansa the demon who especially oppressed the Earth and the human race was, as I have said, the son of Ugrasena, king of the Bhojas and of their chief city Mathura. Kansa’s first cousin Devaki was given in marriage to Vasudeva, the son of the Yadava king, Shurasena. The dowry of Devaki was 400 caparisoned elephants, 15,000 horses, and 200 gaily decked slaves. King Kansa himself, to do his cousin honour, drove the chariot which bore Vasudeva and Devaki in the marriage procession. But suddenly above the blare of the horns and the booming of the drums a voice was heard in the heavens which said, “Today Kansa in his folly honours her whose eighth child will slay him.” 

The demon prince heard the voice and, forgetting the blood tie, turned to cut down his cousin. Vasudeva interceded, saying that it was not Devaki but her eighth child who would kill Kansa. He swore, too, by the word of a Kshatriya that he would himself bring his children to be killed by King Kansa. 

In due time six children were born to Devaki and Vasudeva, and one after the other Vasudeva brought them to Prince Kansa. Kansa, demon though he was, was touched and said that he would not kill them as he had nothing to fear from them. It was the eighth child only who was doomed to kill him. He spared their lives and gave them back to their mother Devaki. 

Thereafter they all would have fared happily, had not the sage Narada come to Mathura and visited Prince Kansa. After receiving the prince’s salutation, Narada told him that in a former life Vasudeva and Devaki had obtained from the Lord Vishnu the boon that he would be born to them as a son, and that as their son he would, as foretold by the heavenly voice, slay Prince Kansa. 

On hearing the words of the sage Narada, Prince Kansa became mad with terror. That he might give full rein to his wickedness, he seized the throne of Mathura, flinging his father Ugrasena into prison. Then he slew the six children of Vasudeva and Devaki and themselves he threw into a dungeon. 

Now in the dungeon there came to Devaki hopes of a seventh child. This was the white hair which at the Lord Vishnu’s bidding entered the womb of Devaki and then became the incarnation of Vishnu’s serpent Shesha so as to be Vishnu’s friend and helper when born upon the earth. But before Devaki’s seventh child was born, the Lord Vishnu caused it to be drawn from her womb and placed in the womb of Rohini, Vasudeva’s other wife who was in hiding in Gokula for fear of King Kansa. Rohini gave birth to a son and called him Balarama. But the dungeon guards told King Kansa that Devaki had miscarried. 

In due time there came to Devaki the hopes of an eighth child. This was the black hair which at the Lord Vishnu’s bidding entered her womb and became his incarnation. Hearing that Devaki was about to be confined for the eighth time, Kansa doubled the guards and the sentries round the prison. At midnight on the eighth day of the dark half of Shravan when the constellation Rohini was visible in the heavens, a son was born to Devaki. His father saw that he had four bejewelled arms and on his brow a diadem; thus Vasudeva learnt that the Lord Vishnu had kept the promise made to him in a former life, and he fell down and worshipped the newborn babe. 

Then he felt a great fear for he knew that the guards would, when day dawned inform, King Kansa. But the heavenly child spoke and comforted Vasudeva. He bade him take him to the wagon of one Nanda of Gokula, who had come to Mathura to pay his taxes and had halted at the further bank of the Yamuna. Vasudeva obeyed the child, and at his command the fetters fell from Vasudeva’s feet and the bolts of the doors yielded. A deep sleep, too, oppressed the guards of the prison and the men of Mathura. 

So Vasudeva bore the babe through the town gates. As they went, low thunder resounded in the sky and above their heads the great serpent Shesha waved his sixfold hood. Before them the Yamuna river raced in flood, but at the babe’s bidding the waters parted and they passed through in safety and thus reached the further bank. 

Now in Nanda’s wagon lay his wife Yashoda. She had just given birth to a daughter. But the baby girl was no mortal child. The Lord Vishnu had caused part of his own vigour to enter the womb of Yashoda. This was her newly-born infant.

Vasudeva, at his son’s bidding, placed him by Yashoda’s side as she slept and took in his place Yashoda’s baby girl and carried her back with him to Mathura. Once again the Yamuna’s waters parted asunder and the locks and the doors of the dungeon opened. At last he placed her by Devaki’s side. 

When the guards awoke and learnt that an eighth child had been born to Devaki, they ran to King Kansa. He hastened to Devaki’s cell. Not heeding her tears, he snatched away from her the baby girl and, holding her by the feet, he sought to dash her in pieces against the marble slab of the bathing place. But the baby girl, being Vishnu’s divine vigour, slipped deftly from his hands and rose back through the air to Vishnu’s heaven. As she passed out of Kansa’s sight, she called, mocking him, “Fool, did you hope to slay me? Your real enemy Krishna is born and is now in safety.”

Devaki and Vasudeva worship the baby Krishna,

while the guards are sleeping. (image source)

Viewing Guide. Peter Brook's Mahabharata 1. The Beginnings.

Peter Brook's Mahabharata 1. The Beginnings. 

LINK. A boy wanders through a deserted temple.

3 minute mark: Vyasa the poet.

LINK. He sees Vyasa, an ascetic meditating. Vyasa has composed a poem, and he needs a scribe. Vyasa. "It's the story of your race, how your ancestors were born, how they grew up, how a vast war arose. It's the poetical history of mankind. If you listen carefully, at the end you'll be someone else."

4 minute mark: Satyavati and the birth of her son, Vyasa.

LINK. Ganesha arrives and agrees to be Vyasa's scribe. Vyasa tells the story of the birth of Satyavati and why she smelled like a fish. She makes love with a wandering sage; he removes the fish smell. Vyasa is their son.

7 minute mark: Prince Bhishma.

LINK. It is a Golden Age without war or misery. There is a perfect prince named Bhishma. Bhishma cannot become king. King Shantanu, Bhishma fell in love with Satyavati, and she insists their son become king. Bhishma swears that Satyavati's son will be king and that he will never father children: "I abjure forever the love of woman." His reward is that he can choose the time of his death. King Shantanu and Satyavati have a son, but he is weak. Bhishma goes to a tournament and wins three brides for the young prince: Amba, Ambika, Ambalika.

9 minute mark: Amba.

LINK. Amba tells Bhishma that she is secretly betrothed to King Salva. He releases her to join him. King Salva rejects Amba, even though she insists Bhishma has not touched her.

11 minute mark: Dhritarashtra and Pandu.

LINK. The young prince dies on his wedding day without children. Satyavati tells Vyasa that he must father the children. The first princess closes her eyes in disgust. Her son, Dhritarashtra, will be born blind. The second princess grows pale in shock. Her son, Pandu, will be pale. He becomes king.

13 minute mark: Amba's vow.

LINK. Amba asks Bhishma to take her back, but he tells her to go back to her father. She makes a vow: "I will live with one thought, only one, a thought like a blade: how to find someone to fight you to your death." She insists: "In one of the worlds, I will find your executioner. There's now on this earth a woman who will always think of you. Never forget me, Bhishma. I am your death."

15 minute mark: Kunti.

LINK. Pandu becomes king. We see Kunti: "She doesn't know it, but she's carrying the fate of the earth in her belly. Her children will be glorious, and without them, you wouldn't be here."

16 minute mark: Pandu is cursed.

LINK. King Pandu marries Kunti and another wife, Madri. He shoots a gazelle who is mating; it was a sage in the form of a gazelle, who curses him: "Pitiless man, I show you no pity. I curse you. If one day you take one of your wives in your arms, at that moment you will die, as I do now."

17 minute mark: Kunti's secret.

LINK. Dhritarashtra becomes king, and Pandu goes into self-imposed exile. Kunti and Madri go with him. Pandu wants children but cannot make love to his wives. He accepts this as destiny. But Kunti had a magic mantra from a hermit that gave her the power to call down a god and have a child with him. She already had a child by the sun god. Kunti kept her son a secret, setting him adrift on the river. A chariot driver found the boy and raised him. He is Karna, gifted and bitter: "He didn't know who he was."

20 minute mark: The sons of Pandu.

LINK. Kunti reveals her secret power to Pandu. He tells her to say the mantra. Pandu: "Evoke Dharma. Beyond him all thought must stop." Kunti: "This is our Yudhishthira, our first born, son of Dharma - irreproachable, flawless. Yudhishthira, born to be king." Pandu: "Evoke Vayu, god of the wind." Kunti: "Here is Bhima, son of the wind, strong as thunder." Kunti: "Now I call on Indra, king of gods." Another son is born. Kunti: "He is Arjuna, the perfect warrior. Born to conquer."

LINK. Kunti tells the mantra to Madri. Pandu: "Madri, evoke the Ashwins, the twin gods with golden eyes." Madri: "Here are our two sons, Nakula and Sahadeva, as inseparable as patience and wisdom." Pandu: "Five sons descended from the gods." Vyasa: "They are the five sons of Pandu, the Pandava. We will never leave them; they are the heart of my poem."

25 minute mark: Gandhari.

LINK. Dhritarashtra marries Gandhari. When she finds out he is blind, so she veils her eyes. Gandhari: "I'm putting a veil on my eyes. I'm tying it firmly. I will never take it off. Give me your hand; lead me to my husband. Now I can never reproach him his misfortune."

28 minute mark: The sons of Dhritarashtra.

LINK. Gandhari marries Dhritarashtra. She becomes pregnant, but does not give birth for two years. Finally, she has her servant strike her belly with an iron bar and a ball of flesh comes out. Vyasa orders them to cut the ball into a hundred pieces which will become one hundred sons. Vyasa: "The first to be born was called Duryodhana." Bhishma tells Dhritarashtra that the birth is ill-omened. He urges the king to sacrifice his son Duryodhana. The king and queen refuse.

33 minute mark: The death of Pandu.

LINK. Pandu yearns for Madri. Madri: "Don't tempt Death. Death is seducing you. Keep away." He takes her in his arms and dies. Madri: "I wanted to save him but his destiny carried him away." Madri and Kunti argue about who will join him on the funeral pyre. Madri tells Kunti to be a mother to her children. Kunti: "They will be like my sons; they will share everything." Kunti joins Pandu on the funeral pyre.

ends at 36 MINUTE 10 SECONDS.

Viewing Guide. Peter Brook's Mahabharata 2. Youth and Marriage.

Peter Brook's Mahabharata 2. Youth and Marriage.

36 minute mark: Drona

LINK. Ganesha is writing the story down as Vyasa dictates. The sons of Pandu and Dhritarashtra are grown. A teacher arrives: Drona. Bhishma is delighted. The boys need a teacher: "I decided to raise them together, but since childhood everything tears them apart."

LINK. Drona tests their skills in archery; only Arjuna can focus completely on the target. Drona promises to teach him everything, and he makes him promise: "If, one day, destiny places us face to face, you must fight me and you must fight to kill."

41 minute mark: Ekalavya

LINK. Ekalavya comes to be Drona's student, but Drona rejects him. Ekalavya makes a statue of Drona and regards it as his teacher.

LINK. Arjuna is distressed when Ekalavya seems to have more advanced skills. Ekalavya tells Drona: "Ask what you wish. I owe you everything." Drona demands the thumb of his right hand. The boy asks Vyasa: "Why this act of cruelty?" Vyasa: Because the earth has lost its youth; it's gone by like a happy dream.Now each day brings us closer to destruction, to barrenness."

44 minute mark: Arjuna and Karna

LINK. Arjuna continues to hone his skills. His cousins are jealous and afraid.

LINK. A stranger comes to challenge Arjuna, son of Kunti. It is Karna (remember, Karna is also Kunti's son, but he does not know it). He equals Arjuna's feats. Duryodhana embraces Karna happily. Arjuna challenges Karna's right to participate. Karna taunts Arjuna: "Wherever you look, I'll always be ahead."

LINK. Karna prepares to fight Arjuna. Drona challenges Karna to declare his father's name; Karna say nothing. Drona asks for his mother's name. Karna says nothing. Kunti is distressed. Karna explains he is the son of a driver. Arjuna tells him to leave. Duryodhana then makes Karna King of Anga, and Karna swears undying friendship.

LINK. Bhima taunts Karna cruelly, and Duryodhana is enraged: "Shut your mouth and don't speak of birth. Birth is obscure and men are like rivers whose origins are often unknown. I look at Karna and I'm not mistaken. I see his power edged with mystery and he'll forever be my friend. The setting sun seems to whisper it's true." Karna vows to kill Arjuna someday.

50 minute mark: Draupadi

LINK. Arjuna comes to tell Kunti that he won something; Kunti tells him to share with his brothers what he won. It is Draupadi, Arjuna's bride. Kunti cannot take back her word. All the brothers love Draupadi, and all of them will marry her. Kunti: "Destiny slipped into my words without warning."

This part ends at 53:30.

Viewing Guide. Peter Brook's Mahabharata 3. The Gambling Match

Peter Brook's Mahabharata 3. The Gambling Match

53 minute mark: Krishna

LINK. Ganesha tells the boy about the world: "The worlds swarm with an infinity of creatures, who we see, those we never see. Naga snakes who live in the depth sof the earth or in vast palaces on the sea's bed; Rakshasas, monsers of the forest's night who live off human flesh..." And then the gods: Brahma, Shiva, Vishnu: "When chaos threatens, as it does now, Vishnu takes on a human form and descends among us to play his role. Some hint that he might have come down as Krishna." A flute plays. Ganesha says: "Perhaps he is already here." He removes the Ganesha mask: it is Krishna.

56 minute mark: King Yudhishthira

LINK. The Pandavas and Draupadi come to Krishna. He tells them the Earth needs a just king. Yudhishthira is that king, Yudhishthira has doubts. Krishna and Yudhishthira's brothers seeks to calm his doubts.

LINK. Duryodhana is upset that Dhritarashtra might regard the Pandavas as his sons. Dhritarashtra is torn. He addresses the Pandavas as his sons, and he greets Krishna also. He gives them part of the kingdom: Khandavaprastha. Bhima is outraged. Yudhishthira accepts and thanks him. Bhishma sends them on their way and wishes them well.

1 hour 2 minute mark: The Coming War

LINK. As they leave, Duryodhana tells his father that this will be war. Duhshasana and Karna give him advice about how to defeat the Pandavas.

LINK. Bhishma reassures Dhritarashtra that he did well, but Gandhari and Dhritarashtra know that they favor their own sons. In the war, Bhishna will be loyal to Dhritarashtra and his sons, as well Drona.

1 hour 4 minute mark: Palace of Illusions

LINK. Duryodhana visits the crystal palace of the Pandavas: "It is a palace of illusions where thoughts become real." Duryodhana runs into invisible walls, and they mock him; he is fooled by many illusions, and the brothers laugh at him as does Draupadi.

1 hour 5 minute mark: Shakuni

LINK. Gandhari's brother Shakuni arrives. Duryodhana tells him of his jealousy and anger at the Pandavas. Shakuni proposes a game of dice, and he will throw for Duryodhana, and he promises that he will win. Dhritarashtra approves, but Gandhari is afraid. Duryodhana protests: "But I want to be discontented! Dissatisfied! A man's body grows from birth and everyone is delighted. In the same way, his desire grows, his desire for power. I have doubts about myself. Sometimes I even question my value. I must resolve these doubts."

LINK. Krishna speaks with Bhishma about the game. He tells Bhishma not to interrupt the match for any reason. Bhishma fears the end of the world, the destruction of Dharma. Krishna asks Bhishma what he would do if the destruction of his race were required to save Dharma. Krishna: "Let each one go to his limit."

1 hour 10 minute mark: The Gambling Match

LINK. Dhritarashtra and his court arrive for the match. Then the Pandavas come. Yudhishthira is shocked that Shakuni will play instead of Duryodhana as Shakuni is a known cheater. Shakuni tells Yudhishthira that a true master fears no cheater. They gamble, and Shakuni wins every time: "I have won."

LINK. As Yudhishthira gambles all his possessions, Gandhari asks Bhishma to stop the game. Duryodhana asks Yudhishthira whether he wants to stop; he chooses to go on. Shakuni wins everything. Now Yudhishthira begins to gamble his brothers. Shakuni wins every time.

1 hour 19 minute mark: Draupadi is Lost

LINK. Finally, Yudhishthira stakes himself and loses. Shakuni then prompts Yudhishthira to stake Draupadi. He stakes her and loses.

LINK. Duryodhana sends Duhshasana to summon Draupadi to the assembly. She protests that he could not have gambled her after losing himself, and she tries to refuse to come to the hall, but Duhshasana drags her by the hair.

1 hour 22 minute mark: Krishna's Miracle

LINK. Draupadi denounces Bhishma and Yudhishthira. Bhishma will not express an opinion. Duryodhana demands the Pandavas' clothes, and he orders Duhshasana to take Draupadi's clothes. Bhima vows to kill Duhshasana and drink his blood. Draupadi prays to Govinda (Krishna), and as Duhshasana pulls at her sari, it extends endlessly.

1 hour 26 minute mark: Dhritarashtra and Draupadi

LINK. Duryodhana then orders her to join the slaves. Karna tells her to choose a new husband. Duryodhana shows her his thigh. Draupadi vows that she will wash her hair in Duhshasana's blood and that Duryodhana will die from a blow to the thigh. Dhritarashtra agrees to give Draupadi whatever she wants. She asks for Yudhishthira's freedom. A second favor: she asks for the freedom of the other Pandavas. She refuses a third favor because "greed devours all beings and is Dharma's ruin; I refuse greed; save my husbands." Karna observes: "Her husbands were drowning. Draupadi is the raft that saves them." Dhritarashtra tells them to take back their clothes and leave in freedom.

1 hour 29 minute mark: The Re-Match

LINK. Duryodhana tells his father that this will result in a terrible war. He proposes one final round of gambling. Dhritarashtra agrees: "Better a game than a war." When summoned, Yudhishthira asks, "What does this call of destiny conceal?" His brothers and Draupadi urge him to refuse. Yudhishthira: "I can't refuse my rivals a last chance of salvation." He goes back to play again.

1 hour 31 minute mark: Exile

LINK. There will be one throw. The stakes: twelve years of exile and a further one year of disguise. Shakuni wins again. Duhshasana taunts them, and Bhima repeats his vow to drink Duhshasana's blood, and Arjuna vows to kill Karna. Kunti despairs; she will remain behind, while Draupadi joins the Pandavas in exile.

LINK. Vyasa describes their departure to Dhritarashtra.

This part stops at one hour, 36 minutes. Credits roll.

Viewing Guide. Peter Brook's Mahabharata 4. Exile in the Forest

Peter Brook's Mahabharata 4. Exile in the Forest

1 hour 38 minute mark: Amba

LINK. Amba seeks Bhima. She asks him to fight an old man, Bhishma. Bhima loves and respects Bhishma; he is invincible. Amba: "Hate keeps me young. I only live to kill Bhishma." No man will help her. Draupadi urges her to seek divine aid. The voice of Death speaks; only Death can outwit Death. Draupadi offers her food; she refuses: "All my life I walk and question; I need nothing."

1 hour 42 minute mark: Debate in the Forest

LINK. Draupadi rebukes Yudhishthira for their poverty. Yudhishthira: "Whether there is a reward or not, with all my strength I do what I must do. That is my dharma." Bhima chimes in: "You must protect the earth. That's the truth!" Nakula adds: "You can't answer lies with silence."

LINK. Arjuna announces that is going away to seek weapons.

1 hour 49 minute mark: Duryodhana Plots

LINK. Duhshasana has bad dreams about the Pandavas seeking vengeance. Duryodhana cannot attack them now because of the exile. Duhshasana urges him to stage a hunt where they can kill the Pandavas. Dhritarashtra and Gandhari worry about the Pandavas suffering in their exile; Duryodhana fears their growing strength. Dhritarashtra tries to console him, and Gandhari consoles Dhritarashtra.

1 hour 53 minute mark: Hidimbi

LINK. Bhima watches over his three brothers and Draupadi while they sleep. Hidimba the rakshasa sends his sister Hidimbi to kill them. She falls in love with Bhima and turns into a gorgeous woman; he loves her too. Hidimbi's brother approaches, and Bhima fights him and kills him.

1 hour 58 minute mark: Ghatotkacha

LINK. Hidimbi and Bhima get married, and she carries him through the air to visit places of pleasure. They have a son, Ghatotkacha, a mighty warrior and magician. Hidimbi and Ghatotkacha go away to another world, but Ghatotkacha promises that he will come if Bhima ever needs him.

2 hour 2 minute mark: Vyasa Intervenes

LINK. Bhima runs into Duryodhana in the forest; Duryodhana wants to know where Arjuna is, and he threatens Yudhishthira. Vyasa intervenes. He advises the Pandavas to visit wise men and listen to stories. He tells Duryodhana to go back to the city. The boy asks Vyasa why he does not stop the war. Vyasa: "There are some acts a word can check; others nothing can block.

Viewing Guide. Peter Brook's Mahabharata 5. The Search for Arms

Peter Brook's Mahabharata 5. The Search for Arms

2 hour, 5 minute mark: Kunti and Gandhari

LINK. Kunti urges Gandhari to uncover her eyes. She says Duryodhana is hunting her sons; Gandhari defends Duryodhana, and she will not take off her veil. Kunti threatens to tear off the veil. Gandhari asks Kunti to help keep Duryodhana alive.

2 hour, 7 minute mark: Duryodhana's Visions

LINK. Karna and Duryodhana discuss Arjuna's expedition north. Duryodhana uses supernatural powers to see exactly where Arjuna is.

2 hour, 9 minute mark: Arjuna and the Kirata (Hunter)

LINK. Arjuna has shot a boar. Another hunter challenges him. They argue, and then they fight. The hunter catches each arrow that Arjuna shoots at him. He even catches on arrow in his teeth and spits it out. The hunter then attacks Arjuna and overpowers him. The hunter then appears as Shiva and Arjuna worships him, as do Duryodhana, Karna, and Duhshasana who are watching. Arjuna asks Shiva for the Pashupata weapon. Shiva warns him of the dangers of this awesome weapon, but Arjuna insists, and Shiva gives him the weapon.

LINK. Duhshasana is terrified; Karna says Arjuna will never use it. Arjuna disagrees and disputes with Karna. Arjuna explains how he ascended to the heavens and there gained the knowledge he needs to wield the weapon: "I arrived at Amaravati where Indra, my father, lives. He took me on his knee, yes, Karna, he caressed me with his hand, a hand burnt black with tracks of thunder. And for five years wit hhim, I deepened my understanding of the use of this weapon."

LINK. Duryodhana urges Karna to seek a Pashupata weapon.

2 hour, 16 minute mark: Arjuna and Urvashi

LINK. The beautiful Urvashi comes to Arjuna in the mountains. She offers herself to Arjuna, but he refuses her. She is outraged at his rejection and curses him: "Remember my words: because you have insulted a woman who came to love you, you will live like a woman, you too, amongst women. You will be despised and you will be deprived of your virility."

2 hour, 19 minute mark: Karna and Parashurama

LINK. Karna serves Parashurama, and he offers him a reward. Karna asks for Pashupata. Now Parashurama suspects that Karna is a warrior, a kshatriya. Karna says he is not a kshatriya; he is only a driver's son. Parashurama shows Karna the formula, and he must learn it by heart. Then Parashurama goes to sleep, resting on Karna's lap. While Parashurama is sleeping, a worm bores a hole into Karna's thigh, but he does not cry out. When Parashurama awakes and finds out what has happened, he realizes that "only a kshatriya could display such idiotic courage." He then curses Karna: "The secret will slip from your memory. You will forget it entirely. And that will be the moment of your death."

2 hour, 23 minute mark: The Voice in the Lake

LINK. A voice from the lake warns Nakula and Sahadeva not to drink before they answer his questions, but they do, and they die. Arjuna also hears the voice, and he drinks and dies. Bhima likewise hears the voice, and he drinks and dies. Yudhishthira finds all four of his brothers dead. When he hears the voice, he agrees to answer the questions. The voice poses a series of riddles, and Yudhishthira answers all of them. What is quicker than the wind? Thought. What can cover the earth? Darkness. Who are more numerous, the living or the dead? The living, because the dead are no longer. What is the greatest marvel? Each day, death strikes and we live as though we were immortal. The voice reveals that he is Dharma, Yudhishthira's divine father, and he brings the dead brothers back to life. He grants Yudhishthira a boon. Yudhishthira explains that they must spend a thirteenth year in disguise; he asks what disguise they should choose. Dharma says: "Choose the disguise of your most secret desires." They drink.

LINK. The boy asks Vyasa why he is composing this poem. Vyasa says: "To engrave dharma in the hearts of men." Krishna joins them, and then Ganesha also appears again, and they proceed together to the court of King Virata, where the Pandavas are hiding.

Reading Guide: 4H. Narayana. Secret of God's Son.

See the Reading Overview for Pradyumna and Secret of God's Son. This is the Reading Guide for Week 4-H, beginning the second volume of the series. This sequel picks up where the first book leaves off, but it begins with a recap of the Mahabharata War. Pradyumna did not fight in that war, but he will be very involved in the war's aftermath:

Prologue

The story begins with the birth of Dhrishtadyumna and his sister Draupadi who both emerge from the sacrificial fire of King Drupada. ‘Draupadi will be the most beautiful woman on earth,’ declared a heavenly voice. ‘And she will bring doom to the arrogant warrior clans.’

The goddess Chandika, avatar of Durga, watches over Draupadi, who becomes the wife of the five Pandava brothers, enemies of the Kauravas.  When Yudhishthira loses Draupadi in a dice game to the Kauravas, Draupadi calls down a curse upon them, and the goddess Chandika watches and rejoices.

One of the Kaurava brothers, Vikarna, tries to defend Draupadi, but Duryodhana, the eldest of the Kauravas, refuses to listen, and his friend Karna (who does not know he is really half-brother to the Pandavas) also taunts Draupadi.

Krishna restrains Chandika from beginning the war then and there, and he also protects Draupadi when the Kauravas try to strip off her clothes.

(Disrobing of Draupadi)

[Krishna is not physically present at the assembly — this is Krishna acting in his divine form. He addresses Chandika as his sister because the goddess Shakti in her form as Yogmaya was born as Krishna's sister.]

Meanwhile, as things reach a crisis point in the assembly hall, Dhritarashtra has a horrifying vision of what is to come, so he begs Draupadi to lift her curse and spare his sons. The Pandavas go free, but it is clear that war will come: They watched in dread as Draupadi led her husbands from the court, her head held high and her lips chanting verses to the dark goddess.

1. Beyond the Curse

The scene now shifts to the end of the war. Duryodhana and his brothers are dead. Draupadi and the Pandavas are alive, but their sons are all dead. The son of Krishna, Pradyumna, did not fight in the war, but he has joined his father on the battlefield now that the fighting is done.

Krishna uses his divine powers to grant Pradyumna a vision of what happened in the war, including how Bhima, strongest of the Pandavas, killed Vikarna.

(Bhima)

Pradyumna thus learns how Queen Gandhari cursed Krishna: ‘Your men will die covered in shame after a drunken brawl,’ she had said to Krishna. ‘You too will die alone like an animal, at the hands of a common hunter. The seas will devour your radiant Dwaraka. And the world will perish in sin as people forget you and your glorious Gita.’

The visions ends, and the celestial sage Narada arrives; he is "a trikaala jnani who knew the past, present and future." Pradyumna wants to avert Gandhari's curse; in particular, he wants to save the Gita. He goes to her on the battlefield; she is still crazed with grief.

2. A Simmering Volcano

Gandhari blames herself for Duryodhana's death; she had tried to use the power of her tapasya to make him invincible in battle, but Krishna thwarted her plan.

Pradyumna begs her to soften her curse on Krishna and the Gita. Gandhari names her price: Pradyumna must bring back her son Vikarna from Yamaloka, the kingdom of death.

Pradyumna goes to his wife Maya (Mayavati) for advice; she is an incarnation of Rati just as Pradyumna is an incarnation of Kama. She consoles him with these words: ‘Yes,’ Maya nodded. ‘We must accept the truth—no one can stop the wheel of Time. We are bound by our destiny, living out our lives inside a circle formed by a snake holding its tail in its mouth. Only Krishna stands beyond this circle and shows us the way to safeguard the universe and preserve his wisdom.’

(Rati)

3. Sporting with Death

Pradyumna and Maya go to find Krishna, and he reveals himself in his cosmic form: Dharma samsthapanarthaya sambhavami yuge yuge [Gita 4.8: reestablishing Dharma, I appear, age after age].

You can read more about Karma, Dharma, Kala, and Lila at Wikiepdia, and you can find the saying Dharmo Rakshati Rakshitah at Wikiquote.

Krishna explains that he cannot help simply bring Vikarna back from the dead, and he discusses with Pradyumna who stood for and against Dharma in the war.

Pradyumna brings up the example of how Savitri rescued her husband from the dead, while Maya recalls how Krishna rescued the son of Sandipani from death. Krishna urges Pradyumna to follow swa-dharma, his own dharma: You too must follow your chosen path if you wish to become my weapon against adharma.

Pradyumna has a vision of the cosmic Sudarshana chakra and does reverence to the god: Om namo bhagavate Vasudevaya.

(Vishnu)

He then declares that he will embark on the quest: As your son, I must fight to preserve your name and your Gita. I will fight the curse and, if need be, the Kali demon himself. Bless me, O Para Brahman, O Supreme God! [Don't confuse the goddess Kālī with the demon Kali.]

Krishna urges Pradyumna to go to Shiva and ask for his trident, Trishula. He encourages Pradyumna by telling him how he as Vishnu went to Mount Kailash and offered Shiva his own eye, in return for which Shiva granted him two sons: Samba and Pradyumna.

4. Besieged

As Pradyumna and Maya leave Krishna, they encounter Samba, Pradyumna's half-brother, drunk. He declares his hatred for both Pradyumna and for their father Krishna.

During the night, Pradyumna has visions of the war.

(Garuda)

Garuda then appears, and Pradyumna is transported to a mysterious garden where there is a talking peepal tree.

The next day, sages prepare Pradyumna for his journey to see Shiva. Samba again confronts and insults him, and then vows to kill both Pradyumna and Krishna.

5. Shiva’s Trident

Narada arrives and encourages Pradyumna, reminding him that Shiva is Ashutosha, "easily pleased," and that he once saved the world by drinking the poisonous halahala. Narada also tells him the story of how Shiva rescued Markandeya from death, and how he taught people the Mahamrityunjaya mantra to remove the fear of death.

(Shiva)

And now Pradyumna must hurry: once Vikarna's soul crosses the Vaitarani rvier, it will be too late, so he flies on Garuda to Mount Kailash.

There the lotus Indivar speaks to him, and Pradyumna hears a voice from heaven, Surrender to me. For I will set you free. Pradyumna silently pronounces the word of surrender: saranaagati. As Pradyumna then rises, the lotus warns him to beware of brothers like Karna (who was a foe to his own half-brothers in the Mahabharata War).

Shiva now appears, but he refuses Pradyumna's request for the trident. He tells Pradyumna the story of how he humbled Vishnu's Sudarshana chakra, and he also tells the story of the Nila chakra of the Jagannath Temple in Puri.

Pradyumna denies that he is acting out of pride: I am here in order to serve my people, O Shiva,’ he tried again. ‘I seek sudarshana for all of humankind—true vision that will help them distinguish virtue from evil. And to attain this, they need the light of the Gita and the glory of Krishna’s name.

6. Yamaloka

The scene now shifts: the Yamadutas are dragging the dead Vikarna off to Yamaloka.

Back to Kailash: Shiva strikes Pradyumna, and then he hears the sound of Shiva's drum; he regains consciousness in the cremation grounds and thinks that he too is about to die.

Back to Vikarna: he reaches the cave where the dead stand in judgment before Yama, with Chitragupta reciting their crimes. Vikarna wonders to which of the narakas he will be condemned.

(Narakas)

7. Crossing Swords

Back to Pradyumna: he boldly faces Shiva, insisting on the righteousness of his quest: You seek to protect your devotees from sin by awakening wisdom in their hearts. I wish to do the same by preserving the Gita that lights their path to moksha.

Back to Vikarna: he boldly faces Yama and says, Salutations to the lord of dharma before whom everyone—fool and scholar, beggar and aristocrat—is equal.

(Yama's Court)

Yama condemns Vikarna to be thrown into the Vaitarani river for his role in the war.

Now Pradyumna is transported to Yamaloka: he gives one of his two swords to Vikarna and together they face Yama and his minions. Pradyumna still has hope that he will be able to summon Shiva's trident by speaking the Shiva mantra.

The trident comes flying to Pradyumna, and Yama surrenders; he sends Pradyumna and Vikarna back to the land of the living. As they leave Yama's kingdom, though, Pradyumna realizes that he and Vikarna are not alone. . .  read on to find out who has joined them!

Reading Guide: Brook. Mahabharata (Script)

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Overview - Reading Guide: Mahabharata (Script)

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The script mostly matches the film, but not exactly; it is for the theatrical performance; this was a play first before being made into a film. If you want to do an additional one or two weeks of reading, you can read the play — but watch the film first, since it is hard to visualize the script of the play if you have not seen the film.

TITLE: The Mahabharata: a play based upon the Indian classic epic
AUTHORS:  Jean-Claude Carrière and Peter Brook
Bizzell Reserve Desk Call Number: PQ 2663.A78 M3413

WEEK 1:

Reading A pages 1-56
The Beginnings
Youth
Marriage and Kingdom
The King of Kings

Reading B pages 57-123
The Game of Dice
The Pandavas in Danger
In the Forest
The Search for Arms
The Court of King Virata

WEEK 2:

Reading A pages 123-185
The War of the Cows
On the Battlefield
The Masks Fall
Duryodhana and Arjuna with Krishna

The Embassies

Krishna's Last Efforts

The Bhagavad-Gita

Kunti and Karna

The Death of Abhimanyu

Reading B pages 186-239
The Death of Ghatotkacha
The Death of Drona
Karna Takes Command
Duhshasana's Death; Karna's Death
Duryodhana's Death; End of the War
Krishna's Death
By the River

The Last Illusion

Reading Guide: 1A. Pattanaik. Business Sutra.

Be sure to check out the Business Sutra Overview for more information! The ideas that Devdutt Pattanaik (DP) presents here in the Introduction are important for the book overall, but there are not a lot of stories for retelling, so make sure you read Part B this week to look for stories you might want to retell. As you take notes for this section, just look for ideas that can help you understand the purpose of telling (and retelling) ancient myths — and remember: the Greek word mythos meant exactly that: a mythos was a story.

I have focused on providing information about Indian terminology, along with links to Wikipedia articles and other online resources:

Acknowledgements

Sanskrit Terms:
rishis - holy men
ananta - un-ending, infinite
sukshma - subtle; it is also a form of yoga

INTRODUCTION

Connecting Belief to Business

The idea of "subjective truth" is central in all of DP's writings: "Belief is subjective truth, my truth and your truth, the lens through which we make sense of the world."

Sanskrit Terms:
satyam: what is true (compare also Gandhi's satyagraha)
shivam: what is good (as in the name of the god, Shiva)
sundaram: what is beautiful (as in the Ramayana's Sundara Kanda)
shanti: what is peace (as in the Shanti Mantra)

Sanskrit Term:
sutra: string, thread - also refers to a book which is composed of short sayings which are like threads you can use to weave a philosophy

(Jain Kalpa Sutra; more info)

DP compares the goal-oriented assumptions of Western business practice as being related to Greek quest for Elysium, and Biblical quest for Promised Land.

Belief, Myth, and Mythology

DP contrasts believers who think their belief is objective truth with the subjective truth of mythology: "For the believer, his belief is objective truth; he therefore rejects the notion of myth, and shuns the subject of mythology."

Like DP, I embrace myths and mythology in a positive sense, and also the crucial role of imagination for human existence: "every human being inhabits his own customized personalized subjective version of reality that no one else has access to. [...] This brings about the awareness of the self (my view versus the view of others), and the need for language, creativity and reason (to communicate my view and convince others of my view)."

Decoding Culture

STORY: The priest and the pot of gold.
(this is really the only story in the Introduction, but after this Introduction, the book will feature many stories drawn from the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, and also stories about the gods and goddesses of India)

DP now contrasts Western quest for objective truth with a different Indian perspective: "Ancient Indian sages would have been wary of it for they looked upon the quest for the objective and absolute as the root cause of intolerance and violence."

DP's comments about the "era of remixes" definitely applies to this class where you will read a lot of remix stories: "Ravan could be worshipped and Ram reviled." [note the Hindi versions of the names Ravan=Ravana and Ram=Rama]

Connecting Mythology and Management

DP refers to the era of the Licence Raj in Indian business; you can read about that at Wikipedia: Licence Raj: "the elaborate system of licences, regulations and accompanying red tape that were required to set up and run businesses in India between 1947 and 1990."

Did you notice the allusion to the Middle Eastern story of Aladdin and the lamp? "The more I explored mythology, the more I left like Aladdin in a cave of undiscovered treasures."

DP refers in passing to Jungian archetypes (which he sees as Western, not universal); you can find out more about Jungian archetypes at Wikipedia.

DP declares his affinity for symbolic and psychological readings over historical and sociological readings: "I realized how mythology tends to be read literally, causing it to be seen through a sociological and historical lens (did Ram exist?) when, in fact, its greatest value comes when it is read symbolically and seen in psychological terms (what aspect of our personality does Ram represent?)."

And so this is how he characterizes mythology: "Mythology is, after all, the map of the human mind."

That idea is the foundation for the whole book: "Since the most popular mode of expression in India was the mythic, I chose to glean business wisdom from the grand jigsaw puzzle of stories, symbols and rituals that originated and thrived in the Indian subcontinent, especially in the Hindu, Jain, Buddhist and Sikh faiths."

Check Wikipedia for all four of these religious traditions which will be represented in this book's stories: Hindu — Jain — Buddhist — Sikh

Sanskrit Terms:
"Mythologies of Indian origin value the nirguna (intangible and immeasurable) over the saguna (tangible and measurable), in other words the subjective over the objective."

Becoming Chief Belief Officer - Design of the Book

DP explains that a sutra is a "string" (see above) which relates both to the design and goal of the book: "There is no standard answer. There is no correct answer. The point is to keep expanding the mind to accommodate more views and string them into a single whole."

Another great expression of the goal of this book: "It celebrates my truth and your truth, and the human capability to expand the mind, thanks to imagination."

Sanskrit Terms:
Dharma: this is a central term in both Hinduism and Buddhism; it can be translated in many ways into English: truth, law, duty, justice
yajaman: this can be translated as "leader" but it is related to the Sanskrit word yaj (sacrifice), about which DP will have much to say later

Term from Indian cooking:
ghee: clarified butter

I love this statement about "connecting the dots" — if you think about how people tell and retell interconnected stories, you will see that storytelling is a very similar process: "A book by its very nature creates the delusion of linearity, but the subject being presented is itself not linear. Think of Business Sutra as a rangoli or kolam, patterns created by joining a grid of dots, drawn for centuries every morning. [...] Every idea in this book is a dot that the reader can join to create a pattern. Every pattern is beautiful so long as it includes all the dots. And no pattern is perfect. Every pattern is usually an incomplete section of a larger pattern known to someone else."

You can read more about rangoli, kolam, and alpana at Wikipedia.

(rangoli in Hyderabad)

Here is the concluding paragraph of the chapter, which ends with a saying that DP often cites: "Ideas presented can always change, or be further elaborated, or explained differently, by different people in different times and different places faced with different challenges. For now, every time you disagree, and wish to argue, and are driven by the belief that there must be one truth and only one truth, find peace by reminding yourself: Within infinite myths lies an eternal truth; who sees it all? Varuna has but a thousand eyes; Indra, a hundred; you and I, only two."

Sanskrit Terms:
Sahasraksha: thousand-eyed
Shataksha: hundred-eyed
Varuna: god of the sea
Indra: king of the gods

(Varuna, god of the sea: V&A Museum)

Reading Guide: 1B. Pattanaik. Business Sutra.

Be sure to check out the Business Sutra Overview for more information, and you can also review Reading Guide 1-A. DP stands for the author's name, Devdutt Pattanaik:

The chapter begins with the story of the race between Ganesha and his brother Kartikeya, the sons of Shiva and Parvati. This is a story illustrating the difference between objective truth and subjective truth, and it is a story that DP often invokes as an example of "your truth" and "my truth" (remember the discussion of subjective truth in Part A?).

You can see a cute animation of it here; it's not in English, but you can follow the story easily: Narada arrives and provokes a contest between the elephant-headed Ganesha and the six-headed Kartikeya. They decide to have a race to see who can go around the world three times the fastest; Kartikeya flies off on his peacock vehicle (vahana), while Ganesha instead goes around his father and mother, Shiva and Parvati, three times — they are "his world," and so he wins the race. Bal Ganesh:

DP then speculates about the different "subjective truths" of Western, Indian and Chinese cultures. These are "sweeping generalizations" as he admits, so you might even find it most useful to see in what ways you resonate with these different types: the literal truth-seeking type (Western), the pragmatic and orderly type (Chinese) and the peace-seeking, contextual type (Indian).

WESTERN

DP breaks down the Western type into Greek and Biblical streams of thought; these two streams are both similar but also different: "What separates the two belief systems is the value they place on the individual over the collective, on defiance over compliance. What unites these two belief systems is belief in one life, and hence the sense of urgency to do the great thing, or the right thing, in this—our one and only—life."

Some of the Greek stories that DP invokes are Achilles, Odysseus, Theseus, Jason, Perseus, and Sisyphus, along with the Olympian gods and the Titans.

For many people in the West, the Islamic world is "the other," but for DP, the Islamic world belongs to the West: "from the Indian point of view, Western thought stretches beyond Europe and America to include the Islamic world, for the quest for objectivity shapes Islam too."

DP describes how this insistence on objectivity leading to conflict among the Western religions, and also the conflict between science and religion: "Every side believed in one God, one life, one way of living life, but they differed violently over who had the patent over the right way."

DP sees a merging of religious evangelism and materials in Western management science, and his comments apply to education also: "The innovator is the Greek hero, standing proud atop Maslow's hierarchy of needs, self-actualized, and secure in Elysium. Every advocate of any idea from greed to good governance is convinced they know the truth, hence the moral burden to evangelize and sell."

CHINESE

DP sees connections between modern and ancient China: "The mythological lens reveals that China functions today just as it did in the times of the Xia and Shang dynasties, over five thousand years ago, with great faith in central authority to take away disorder [luan] and bring in order. A pragmatic culture, the Chinese have never invested too much energy in the religious or the mythic."

On the contrast between China and the West: "In the West, nature is chaos that needs to be controlled. In China, nature is always in harmony."

Just as there were two different streams of thought in the West that DP highlighted, so too with China: "the more sensory, individualistic, natural way of Tao proposed by Laozi and the more sensible social way proposed by Confucius," which is based on relationships among people (guanxi or gwanji).

As Buddhism moved from India to China, the Confucian stream emphasized the Bodhisattva as Kwan-yi, while Zen Buddhism shared similarities with Taoism. DP also briefly discusses the Chinese novel Journey to the West; you can find out more about that in the Monkey-King unit of the Myth-Folklore UnTextbook.

DP also includes a story about Sun Tzu, the author of The Art of War. When Sun Tzu became famous after writing the Art of War, the King of Wu wanted to test him by asking if Sun Tzu could lead an army of women. You can read a more complete version of the story here: Anecdote about Sun Tzu.

INDIAN

The first encounter DP describes is the famous one between Alexander the Great and the Indian "gymnosophist" (naked wise man): "Alexander asked him what he was doing. The gymnosophist replied, "Experiencing nothingness. What about you?" Alexander said he was conquering the world. Both laughed. Each one thought the other was a fool."

You can read more about the Gymnosophists at Wikipedia; in addition to DP's story here, you will find lots of story material in that Wikipedia article. See also the article about the remarkable Indian wise man named Calanus who traveled with Alexander.

Although reincarnation was known in the West (as in the Pythagorean tradition), it was not widely believed. DP emphasizes this contrast: "Rebirth means the denominator of your life is not one but infinity. When you live only once the value of life is the sum total of achievements, but when you live infinite lives, no matter what we achieve, its value is zero. The point then is not to control life but to understand it, not achieve but introspect. [...] Rebirth demands we accept the existence of infinitely diverse, even paradoxical, contexts existing simultaneously as well as sequentially."

I love the way this illustration captures the contrast in perspective:

As a result, DP sees India as place where "there are no fixed goals." Instead, there are "continuously changing plans [...] and a reliance on reliance on resourcefulness that gives rise to contextual, non-replicable improvizations: the jugaad." You can read more about the jugaad ("hack") at Wikipedia.

DP sees this accommodating diversity in the religious and mythological traditions of India: "India celebrates both the rule-following Ram and the rule-breaking Krishna  [...]. India celebrates both the royal Vishnu and the ascetic Shiva."

Likewise with the realm of the goddess: "In India, nature is both danger and power. Embodied as the Goddess, she is wild as Kali and demure as Gauri. For Ram, she is Sita. For Krishna, she is Radha. For Vishnu she is Lakshmi, for Shiva she is Shakti."

Because DP is most interested in mythology and stories, he is going to focus more on the saguna tradition of the epic Ramayana and Mahabharata plus the Puranas, as opposed to the Vedic tradition that is more abstract, or nirguna.

DP also notes the contrast between the astika traditions of the brahmins and the nastikas (both Buddhist and and Jain, striving for nirvana or kaivalya as a Buddha or a Jina) "who believed more in austerity, meditation, contemplation and experience rather than transmitted rituals and prayers favoured by priests known as brahmins." What unites both the astika and nastika traditions is a belief in rebirth and in karma. DP provides an incredibly elegant chart that shows the relationships between these interrelated traditions:

DP also discusses the emergence of Sikhim as a faith in the Punjab, where there was the influence of Islam along with the bhakti movement.

He characterizes all of them as follows: "These religions that value rebirth can be seen as fruits of the same tree or different trees in the same forest. All of them value thought over things, the timeless over the time-bound, the infinite over the finite, the limitless over the limited."

DP also makes a wonderful contrast between "truth that is bound by space, time and imagination (maya)" and "truth has not such fetters (satya)."

All these traditions and truths fall under the label of sanatan, which means "timeless" or "ever-lasting."

 You can read more about sanatan at Wikipedia; some people have proposed the use of this term as an alternative to "Hinduism," which is a European, non-native term.

DP values the diversity of sanatan: "Unfettered by history and geography, sanatan is like a flowing river with many tributaries. At different times, at different places, different teachers have presented different aspects of sanatan in different ways, using different words."

There is a contrast between the impermanence of nature (prakriti, the world of the Goddess and of karma) and the world of human beings (purushas, separate from nature, imagining their own worlds, walking the dharma path).

The role of imagination is key to this concept... and so the great affinity between DP's approach and imaginative storytelling! "While truth in the West exists outside human imagination, in India, it exists within the imagination.In the West, imagination makes us irrational. In India, imagination reveals our potential, makes us both kind and cruel."

Animate beings (sajiva) fear death, but for humans, imagination adds another dimension to that response: "Humans are special as they alone have the ability to outgrow the fear of death and change, and thus experience immortality. He who does so is God or bhagavan, worthy of worship. Those who have yet to achieve this state are gods or devatas."

DP briefly introduces some terms from Indian philosophy, as these same questions can be explored not just in mythology but also in philosophy.

In terms of stories, DP sets up a contrast between rule-following heroes like Rama but also rule-breaking heroes like Krishna, and rule-following villains like Duryodhana and rule-breaking villains like Ravana. What do you think about that? One possible storytelling experiment this week would be to explore one of those heroes or villains, picking an incident where you see DP's theory being really true, or maybe you will have a different perspective of your own based on how you see these characters.

DP then provides a details discussion of the difference between the related terms brahman as the "infinitely expanded mind" (which is also swayambhu, self-contained), Brahma the god whom you know from mythological stories, and brahmanas or brahmins, the priests (these form a class, which you can see as a jati or varna; DP will have much more to say about jatis and varnas later in the chapter).

DP also discusses the sons of Brahma: devas, asuras, yakshas, and rakshasas. These are also characters you meet in the epic stories. There are also the rule-enforcing prajapatis and the rule-renouncing tapasvins.

DP then overlays this concept of brahman (fearless) and Brahma (fearful) with the characters of Rama and Krishna (who are Vishnu ~ brahman) and the sons who descend from Brahma like Ravana and Duryodhana: "Fear makes Ravan defy other people's rules. Fear makes Duryodhan pretend to follow rules. Both are always insecure, angry and bitter, always at war, and trapped in the wheel of rebirth, yearning for immortality. This is rana-bhoomi, the battleground of life."

DP notes that it is fear, not evil, that drive these villains: "The point is not to punish the villains, or exclude them, but first to understand them and then to uplift them. They may be killed, but they will eventually be reborn, hopefully with less fear, less rage and less bitterness."

Rama and Krishna, avatars of Vishnu, are different: Vishnu offers "the promise of ranga-bhoomi, the playground, where one can smile even in fortune and misfortune, in the middle of a garden or the battlefield."

Another theme is amrita: "Amrit, the nectar of immortality, takes away the fear of death."

You can read about the famous churning of the amrita here (DP will have a lot to say about this story later in the book): Churning the Ocean of Milk.

For DP, the amrita is a powerful symbol: "Both the brahmanas and the shramanas knew that amrit is not a substance, but a timeless idea. This idea cannot be forced down anyone's throat; like a pond in the forest, it awaits the thirsty beast that will find its way to it, on its own terms, at its own pace."

The rest of the chapter is a really powerful exploration of the way that the colonization of India led to many negative consequences, still felt today: "Indianness today is understood within the Western template, with the Western lens and the Western gaze."

The study of Indian religions and mythology has been eliminated or constrained: "Indian universities dare not touch mythology for fear of angering traditionalists and fundamentalists who still suffer from the colonial hangover of seeking literal, rational, historical, and scientific interpretations for sacred stories, symbols, and rituals. Western universities continue to approach Indian mythology with extreme Western prejudice, without any empathy for its followers, angering many Indians, especially Hindus. As a result of this, an entire generation of Indians has been alienated from its vast mythic inheritance."

CAUTION!

I hope you will also want to read the postscript to this chapter which is entitled, "Caution!" — DP's discussion of caste in terms of a contrast between jatis and varnas is really fascinating. For those of you who have been learning about growth mindset in this class, it might remind you of the distinction between fixed mindset (jatis) and growth mindset (varnas): "Jati is tangible or saguna, a product of human customs. Varna is intangible, or nirguna, a product of the human imagination. Jati is fixed by virtue of birth but varna can flow and rise, or fall."

In this section, DP mentions a story from the Mahabharata in which the sage Markandeya tells the story of a butcher and a hermit; this famous story is known as the "Vyadha Gita," or "The Butcher's Gita," and you can read about it at Wikipedia: Vyadha Gita.

There is also a wonderful story at the end of this section about a teacher and a chandala, someone who works in a crematorium (shmashana): because of his wisdom, "the chandala clearly belonged to the brahmana varna. But because he belonged to the shudra jati, he was shunned by society."

In addition to making a sharp social critique, DP also calls for personal transformation: "The time has come to realize our evolutionary potential, open our eyes once again, and do darshan. Darshan means looking beyond the measurable. [...] Trusting human potential is not easy. Including other truths is not easy. But to rise in grace, we must outgrow gravity."

As you read the rest of the book, you will learn much more about the possibilities of darshan and imagination, expressed in the traditional mythologies of India.