INTRODUCTION
The lockdown was a bolt from the blue. It caught the human race napping. Out went the next big career move, business decision, car, house, dream holiday, etc. It all came down to mere survival. Suddenly, everyone had to cope with not just an unforeseen situation, but an unprecedented and unimaginable context.
Everyone started coping in their own unique ways, though some patterns ran common - like work from home and enhanced sanitisation habits. At the same time each family might have worked out its own unique or creative way to deal with the situation. We gathered around the laptop at lunch time to watch BR Chopra's Mahabharata.
For my wife and me, it was a nostalgic experience. We travelled back in time into the '80s when we had witnessed something like a lockdown due to the Ramayana and the Mahabharata serials on Doordarshan. On days they were aired, streets wore a deserted look as everyone sat glued to their television sets to witness an epic saga of the two most celebrated epics in India.
We grew up listening to the stories of Rama, Sita, Hanuman, Krishna, Arjuna, Draupadi, Dronacharya, Bhishma.....Our moralistic values were built around the stories from these epics. We learnt what was right and what was wrong. So the coming alive of our heroes through television serial characters held the whole country in awe. We watched every episode in disbelief. Many in the country even thought of the actors as Gods themselves.
So the feeling of re-living those episodes during this real lockdown was fascinating to say the least. Were we also fulfilling our parental responsibility by getting our daughter to watch this great drama? Maybe.
I watched all the 140 odd episodes diligently. At every step, I tried to reflect on what lessons does this great epic offer for humanity. Change the era and give the characters a modern look, you may as well be watching a 21st century drama, and not something which is said to have occurred more than 5,000 years ago. Even today, we are grappling with violence, property disputes, deceit, immoral politics, etc. So what really has changed?
Besides the moralistic perspective, there is another fascinating aspect of the Mahabharata. It is one of the greatest stories told. Whether it is historical or mythological, there is no denying that it is a blueprint for great storytelling. Incidents - real or unreal - need to be narrated in an engaging way. What brings stories alive is people and their characters - the roles they play.
In this writeup, I have looked at what lessons we can derive on character and conduct from some outstanding personalities in the Mahabharata, including Krishna, the pivot around which the whole story, plot and sub-plots revolve. Each one of them is great yet vulnerable. They are in possession of some unimaginable gifts, yet their failings are mighty hard to digest. For example, the silence of Dharmaraj Yudhishthir when his wife was being insulted within the palace of Hastinapur. Bhishma, Karna, Draupadi, Dronacharya are all celebrated for their greatness, but at crucial points they let themselves and their followers down.
Through this essay, I have tried to decipher the key lessons we can derive from the lives and conduct of some of these great personalities.
But before we proceed, here is a Disclaimer:
My interpretations are based on what I observed in the serial made by BR Chopra and Team. If somewhere I have got the facts or interpretations wrong, it is purely my failing - the failing of a novice. This is not to be treated in any way as a comment on the makers of the serial and what they have represented. I am not a scholar and have not compared what has been shown in the serial with any other source. I have written this piece purely inspired by what I saw and as a common man. Hope you will take away some interesting insights from this amateurish scholarly attempt.
CHARACTER & CONDUCT: LESSONS FROM MAHABHARATA PERSONALITIES
Bhishma lies on his bed of arrows awaiting the moment when he can decide to leave the world. After all, he has the boon of dying at will, which eventually turns out to be a curse. The Pandavas are by his bedside. They have won the Kurukshetra war and Yudhishthir is the new King. Bhishma is now secure in his knowledge that his beloved Hastinapur is protected from all sides and so is all set to give up his body.
But Krishna has one last request. He wants Bhishma to give some lessons on kingship to Yudhishthir. "When you can do it, why am I needed for this task?," asks Bhishma. "Because I have the knowledge, but you have the experience," replies Krishna.
Bhishma advises Yudhishthir to always put the nation before anything else. Somewhere he holds himself responsible for the Kurukshetra war. His oath not to be King so that his foster mother Satyavati's sons could ascend the throne meant he had little control over decision making. Series of unholy events unfolded in front of his helpless eyes and ultimately he ended up fighting the war on the side of the wrongdoers.
The advise to put nation above everything else is timely and apt for Yudhishthir. He has a chronological advantage as he is the eldest of the Pandavas. But he is also the epitome of righteousness. Yet, he has often displayed his inability to draw the line. He commits without thinking. After a long and nasty war, when all he needed to do was vanquish a hapless Duryodhan, he tells him he will accept defeat if Duryodhan can defeat even one of the five brothers in a one-to-one duel. Krishna is flummoxed and shocked at this indescribable magnanimity. How unfair is this to the scores of soldiers who sacrificed their lives so that the Pandavas can regain their rights?
Yudhishthir had committed the historic blunder of putting his family members at stake after he lost all his material possessions in the dice game. His sense of righteousness blinded his judgement of the powers of a King. His wife and brothers were not his personal property. So Bhishma's advice is not just for Yudhishthir, but for all leaders who often are caught between personal contexts and team interests.
Yudhishthir now has a third chance at the throne. The second time was when after the first dice game, Dridharashtra, ashamed by the insult of Draupadi, returned to Yudhishthir all that he had lost. This time Krishna wants to ensure he is balanced and does not get carried away. He often overcommits and gets everyone into a muddle. This and various other factors contributed to the terrible Kurukshetra war.
Bhishma and Yudhishthir, besides being two pivotal characters, are also great students of life. They are ready to admit to their follies and take corrective action. They introspect and correct. They are great because they are aware of their great shortcomings.
The Mahabharata is often interpreted for management and leadership lessons, and rightly so. But within this epic lie great personalities who offer timeless lessons on character. Whether the epic is a reality or fiction, the lessons for humanity are priceless. In the least, this is the world's best-told story along with the Ramayana.
As in a well scripted movie, there are plots and sub-plots - complex, intriguing and eerie sometimes. Many characters make their strong presence as each of them have a well defined role and script. So the epic can also serve as a great lesson on screenplay and movie making.
The genesis of the war itself lies in King Shantanu falling in love with Satyavati. He wants to marry her, but her father puts a condition that only sons born from her will succeed Shantanu as the King. This is unacceptable to Shantanu as his son Devavruta is the rightful heir. But concerned for his father and blinded by his love for him, Devavruta takes an oath that he will remain a celibate and never marry so that Satyavati's sons can be the heir apparents. Any wonder then that during the Kurukshetra war Shantanu, sitting in heaven, holds himself responsible for it?
Character Lesson 1: Think Before You Speak. Don't make grand impulsive commitments whose price you may have to pay all your life.
TO BE CONTINUED
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