Extra Credit Reading: Narayan's Mahabharata B

Hello VagaBuddies!

This week I am covering the second reading of the Mahabharata, Part B! This reading was even crazier than the first reading, covering everything from polygamy to dangerous games of dice to magic bowls of limitless food... also beta-male kings.
King Dhritarasthtra really annoyed me in this reading. He seemed quite powerful and wise and good. earlier in the story, but now he is just weak, easily manipulated, and incompetent; a classic beta-male. I really just wanted King Dhritarasthtra to take a stand, even if it was against the main characters, the Pandavas. Instead he just bent to the will of whomever he was talking to, usually his son Duryodhana. Duryodhana, meanwhile, is a selfish jerk that is bent on revenge, refusing to follow any good advice that doesn't involve hurting the Pandavas. For someone who was supposed to be a really good king, Dhritarasthtra does not seem to be a very good or powerful king now.

Another thing that bothered me about this reading was Yudhishthira's baaaddd gambling addiction. For someone who is supposed to be the wisest of the Pandevas siblings, as well as the leader of the group, I would have assumed him to be impervious or at least resistant to foolish actions like that. Instead, he seems to go against his characterization and gamble away everything he has, including his kingdom, brothers, and wife. Even if it is disrespectful to decline a game invitation, Yudhishthira could have simply played a few rounds at lower stakes and then ended the game early. That would fulfill his obligations as a member of the kshatriya class, while also making the smart decision.

Surya offering Yudhishthira the bowl of limitless food: NY/NJ Bengali

Basically, I dislike characters that make foolish decisions. In this reading, even though he was more vengeful and morally bad, I liked Duryodhana much better, because he was clever and was able to abuse Yudhishthira's weaknesses in order to win. But also he refused to take smart advice, which was not a smart decision.
VagaBuon Voyage for now.

Mahabharata. Narayan. R.K. pp 41-83

Reading Notes: Narayan's Mahabharata Part A

Hello VagaBuddies,

This week we ventured away from the Ramayana and into another classic piece of Indian epic literature: The Mahabharata.
Before I started reading though, I needed to pick what version I wanted to read! I settled on Narayan's Mahabharata, mostly because I had access to a physical copy from a friend. I enjoy reading physical copies of books because it's a lot easier to take it around with you and not have to worry about internet access, charging, etc. In addition, reading from a computer has a good chance of letting you get distracted by other assignments, games, incoming emails, etc, so a book seems to be a good option!

The actual reading for this week was very name heavy. It felt like the beginning of the Ramayana all over again, but so much worse. The fact that there was one king, then a first generation of princes and kings, then another generation of princes and kings, and then finally the generation of the Pandavas (5 brothers of various godly fathers; main characters) and the Kauravas (Duryodhana and the hundred other sons of the blind king Dhritarasthtra), was just too much too handle. This is also not even mentioning all the other confusing intertwining stories such as Ganga drowning the first seven sons in the first generation of princes and kings, Karna being set adrift in the river, and other small side stories. It's so hard to keep straight!

Family Tree in the Mahabharata: Mythical Musings on Blogger

I actually originally found this image as part of this reading, but it is actually so good that I will continue to use it as a reference for further on in this story. Glad I found it!

In terms of stories that I liked, I enjoyed the story of the sage/trainer Drona's revenge against his childhood friend. I can appreciate a good revenge arc, and I thought that Drona was very morally good in this to leave his old friend alive and take half his kingdom, using his own words of being equals against him. Definitely foolish because I think that will be another source of tension and conflict in this already complicated web of relationships, but moral nonetheless. I also enjoyed the secrecy and spy-themes throughout the story, exemplified best in the Pandavas' escape from the burning house. So exciting! 

Since I had such a good time reading the Ramayana, I am excited to get invested in this story too, and the names (although super difficult) are slowly getting set in my mind! 

VagaBuon Voyage!

Narayan, R.K. "The Mahabharata" pp. 1-39