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Literary Horizon An International Peer-Reviewed English Journal Vol. 1, Issue 3 www.literaryhorizon.com August, 2021

The Mahabharat Conundrum

Dr. Purnima Trivedi Kulkarni Director, Discourses: An English Language Learning Initiative, Pune, Maharashtra, .

B.R.Chopra‟s was a rage on Doordarshan in the 90‟s and the viewers watched it with rapt attention. The Mega Epic was re - telecast during the Corona Outbreak to keep people busy during the nationwide lockdown. After watching a few episodes of B.R.Chopra‟s Mahabharata on screen, got perturbed and approached his mother who was singing a hymn,

Who says the Lord does not appear before us? Try inviting Him like the very devoted, Meera!

Who says the Lord does not eat with us? Try feeding Him like the hermitess, Shabri!

Who says Lord does not dance with us? Try choreographing His dance like the beloved !

Who says Lord does not sleep next to us? Try lulling Him to sleep like the doting Yashoda!

Who says the Lord does not befriend us?

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Literary Horizon An International Peer-Reviewed English Journal Vol. 1, Issue 3 www.literaryhorizon.com August, 2021

Try extending the hand of friendship like and !

Mom, “Why was your unfortunate son christened to be named Karna?” asked Karna and interrupted his mother who was praying. Karna‟s character sketch is the most unsettling one in Mahabharata. “What did I do to you Mom? Were you falling short of names? Couldn‟t you name me after or Arjuna? Do you want me to live such an unfortunate life?” Simran took her nine - year old son in her arms and said “I named you Karna as he was a warrior, a valiant fighter, generous and magnanimous and extremely duty bound. He was self - schooled, self - scanned and self - mastered.” Karna was not convinced one bit. “Mom, I beg to disagree with you. The truth is that he was abandoned by his own Mother, brought up by a person who belonged to a lower caste and was marginalized and victimized throughout the epic. He was labelled as “Sutputra” and denied the right to education by the venerable Dronacharya. He was a , Mom! Yet, he was forbidden from entering the battlefield as per Pitamah‟s orders. He certainly did not deserve this. I request you to change my name without any further delay. My name is disempowering and demotivating. I have googled everything.” At this time, Karna‟s father entered the Pooja room where the argument was taking place. He said “My name is , a character from Mahabharata who lived for sixteen years. I am forty already and fit as a fiddle. What‟s in a name? We write our own destiny. If you are still unhappy with the name, we could get your name changed in the Govt. Gazette Sheet. The procedure is way too simple. I am an atheist and least interested in any of the mythological figures,” beamed Abhimanyu. Karna left the room in a huff. Simran was a Research Scholar who had taken up Mahabharata as a topic for her Doctoral Thesis. She had read Shivaji Sawant‟s Mrityunjay in English translation and had not come across

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Literary Horizon An International Peer-Reviewed English Journal Vol. 1, Issue 3 www.literaryhorizon.com August, 2021

any author other than him, who had done impeccable research about tales of Mahabharata. Shivaji Sawant thoroughly knew the background to each character, the names of food items they consumed, musical instruments played at that time, regions, kingdoms, geography and topography of the place, weapons used in the war, the rivers along with its tributaries and distributaries and the amount of time a horse would to take to commute from one place to another. The entire novel mesmerized her beyond limits. Her father who taught Mythology at the University of Kurukshetra was her inspiration. He had introduced her to the world of Mythology and Literature. The novel Mrityunjay written from his own perspective covered the life and death of Karna, it revolved around all the characters who were close to Karna: his better half Vrushali, his Shon, his friend , his mother and and his Guru Parshurama. The novel was replete with Similes, Metaphors and vivid imagery. She was all the more fascinated with the end as it concluded with Vasudev Krishna‟s point of view and had thus left an indelible impact on her mind. She named her child “Karna.” Her son had thrown a volley of questions to her. He was too young to read the novel full of scintillating descriptions. She decided to narrate the story to her son while lulling him to sleep. “When I held you in my arms for the first time, I could feel myself standing at the banks of river looking into the sun and crying silently at the loss of your Kavach (metaphorically comparing her umbilical cord to Karna‟s Kavach) You were safe inside my womb but the moment the cord was cut, I cried in dejection thinking of the trials and tribulations of the world you‟d be exposed to while experiencing the post - natal life. I wanted my Karna to be the best of his version,” said Simran caressing her son. Karna, “I don‟t want you to be like the Karna in Mahabharat. I want you to write your own History. Karna was always indebted to his friend Duryodhana who offered him a wealth of encouragement and support. And he was compelled to participate in the war and side with Adharma.”

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Literary Horizon An International Peer-Reviewed English Journal Vol. 1, Issue 3 www.literaryhorizon.com August, 2021

Karna listened to his mother‟s story as she continued: “Vasudev Krishna embraced Karna and offered him the Kingdom of , but he declined it saying, he honoured his word more than anything. He willingly parted with his Kavach and Kundal when asked for them to save his son, Arjuna‟s life. This Karna was “Danveer”: a bosom friend and steadfast in his decisions. No other character from Mahabharata, other than Karna made a colossal effort to participate in the decision - making process. Karna had nothing to do with the as it was between the and who were fighting for their rights. Karna was not entitled to any of those rights, yet he risked his life in the war out of selflessness. He had an unfathomable love for Duryodhana, his friend. He was the last person to backstab him.” Karna heard his mother‟s story, spellbound. He was way too small but he very well understood the difference between right and wrong, and adharma. He stated “Mom, Karna actually didn‟t have any vested interest or a selfish motive. That‟s thoroughly admirable. But Mom, he was discriminated. He wasn‟t accepted in the mainstream of the society. He became a victim of casteism despite being a strong powerful and indestructible force.” Simran looked flabbergasted at her son‟s analysis. Karna went further and asked: Mom, “Is Danveer Karna the villain of Mahabharata or the Hero? He was a loser after all. And I am not a loser, Mom!” Simran was totally taken aback at her son‟s question and said “My darling son, no person living or dead is completely black or completely white. We are grey and that is why we are humans. One more thing, if I would have named you Arjuna, you would have depended on Krishna for advice and help. We are born in Yuga. You won‟t be fortunate to have Krishna as your Charioteer all your life who would answer your staggering philosophical questions. I expect you to write your own tale like Karna. Who says only winners inspire you to perspire? Losers teach us the most essential lessons of life.” Karna looked into his mother‟s eyes and said “Mom, if you are head over heels in love with Karna, why don‟t you convert your Hare Krishna chant into Hare Karna”? You love your

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Krishna more than me, don‟t you?” Simran placed a kiss on Karna‟s cheek and said “Krishna is present in you, me and everybody. He carries the entire solar system in his mouth. Krishna is the Protector. Krishna too faced caste discrimination when he took a human form in Mahabharata. Karna‟s friend Duryodhana insulted him and called him a “Gwala” but he never thought of Karna to be base born. He annihilated caste. Krishna was the avatar of Narayana himself, yet he had to face a lot of criticism from people who felt he was partial towards the Pandavas. He was unbiased and just. He wasn‟t favouring the Pandavas for nothing. He wanted Dharma to triumph over Adharma. That is the reason why I practice Krishna Consciousness.” Karna‟s questions never stopped but Simran gracefully and successfully managed to extract the extreme emotions out of her son. She was happy to know that she had a curious child with a phenomenal IQ. He kept asking questions ceaselessly and that‟s exactly what a researcher needs to do. Raise plenty of questions and substantiate the claims with textual evidence. Simran was delighted and elated to know that her son belonged to the 21st Century and yet he took avid interest in the flaming descriptions of Mahabharata. Simran would watch all the Mahabharata episodes on TV along with her children Karna and Radha and explain to them, the significance of the . Her seven - year old daughter too haunted her with questions. “Mom, why does Radha have such a miniscule role in Mahabharata? Why does Krishna ignore her later? Why didn‟t he marry Radha if he loved her so much?” Simran was awestruck and wonderstruck at her question. Karna would often tease his younger sister Radha saying “I have a significant role in Mahabharata, You just have a guest appearance.” At this Simran would explain, “Krishna and Radha were two bodies, one soul. They can‟t be looked at as two different entities. Radha dwells within Krishna.” Karna then changed the topic and shot another thought - provoking question.

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“Mom, these Rajas and Maharajas had multiple wives. It‟s so confusing. And this Swayamvar thing is so absurd. How could women be won like awards and trophies?” The question stupefied Simran. She was deeply touched to know that her nine - year old son expressed utmost displeasure against the objectification and commodification of women. While watching Krishna Leela on Youtube, Radha would jump with joy and say “Mumma, if Dad would have been present in Kansa mama‟s court, he would have severely punished him for killing Devaki‟s sons. After all he is a Supreme Court Lawyer.” The comparison of Dwapar Yuga with Kali Yuga would amuse Simran beyond limits. Once Karna googled the Child Policy in India and told his Mother, “Mumma, and must have been severely punished for producing 100 children. They must have contributed to Population Explosion in India. At this Simran said, “None of them survived except for Duryodhana‟s half - brother, who sided with the Pandavas.” Both Karna and Radha inherited their love for Mythology from their erudite scholar mother, Simran. Simran was spiritually inclined, whose maternal uncle had married her off to a Supreme Court lawyer in , Adv. Abhimanyu Bharadwaj, an atheist. Abhimanyu was least interested in Mythology, History or Archaeology. He was totally alienated from Gods, Deities and Mythological Figures. Simran would often object to the use of the word “Mythology” and reiterate to her husband that Krishna was a Historical Figure and not simply Mythological. She strongly recommended him to read the book The lost City of Dwaraka written by Dr. S.R. Rao. Rao‟s illuminating piece of Research proved that Vasudev Krishna, the Male Protagonist from Mahabharata was a Historical Figure. She wanted her kids to go through this spectacular piece of research based on oceanographic excavations, of course when they grew up. Simran left no stone unturned to convince her husband that Krishna was a Historical Figure but her attempts were futile.

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Adv. Abhimanyu Bharadwaj was reserved and reticent in his speech. It is often said that opposites attract. Simran and Abhimanyu were like North Pole and South Pole: Simran was evocative and her husband was provocative. Abhimanyu hardly socialized with people while Simran was a Social Butterfly. Abhimanyu was an Introvert while Simran was an Extrovert. She had the capacity of talking to a wrong number for ten minutes. Simran loved her early morning walks, annual treks and adventure trips. She would visit the Goshala every weekend with her children and feed the cows. She taught them the Shloka “Krishnaya Vasudevaya, Gobramhane Hitayacha, Jagaddhityaya Krishnaya, Govindaya Namonamah!” and explain to them how cow protection was synonymous to protection of the Nature and spreading love and good emotions all around. Simran had an undisputed command over and trained the kids in and . Adv. Abhimanyu was different. He would stay glued to his Television Programmes, Netflix and News Channels. He would carry his Podcast to his chamber in the court as well. He was a reservoir of knowledge who revelled in talking about current affairs. Supreme Court Cases would keep him busy and he regretted not spending enough time with his wife and kids. The best part of this relationship was that Simran never grumbled and complained, despite being a die - hard romantic. She was not an attention seeker. She was contented with her life and often wrote poetry for a spontaneous overflow of powerful emotions. Literature and Mythology kept her busy and she copiously read books like a Bibliomaniac. Apart from loving her husband, she loved yet another boy, Vasudev Krishna. She was born and brought up in , which was Krishna‟s Janmabhoomi. Migrating from Mathura to Delhi was painful for her. She was totally

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lost in the and felt estranged. She would then get absorbed in Mahabharata and Bhagavad Gita. Abhimanyu would reprimand his wife saying, “My Mom was a despotic ruler who would compel the entire family to watch the epic series and Mahabharata when they were aired in the 80‟s. I had no choice but to obey her. I don‟t want my children to be put through all this. Let them have an independent mind. Let them think logically. I want them to be rational human beings. History is tolerable but Mythology is a red flag.” Simran would add “First thing, these are our History, not mythology. We want our children to be morally good, to follow parents' instructions, to follow the path of humanity; we have the supreme personality of Shri Krishna who gives lessons on ideal leadership and righteousness. They are watching animated versions of epic tales. As a mother, it is my duty to introduce them to our Literature and Culture.” Simran was a devotee of Lord Krishna and she wanted her children to be brought up with the Sanskars she was brought up with. Simran‟s parents invited the entire Bharadwaj family for Parbat and Abhimanyu had to join the trip as the kids did not let go of their obstinacy. “Govardhan Parvat, and - are the only three things that have existed since the time of Sri Krishna,” explained Simran as the boatman took them on a boat ride on the river Yamuna in Mathura. “At the holy village of Braj Bhoomi, every stone of the hill is sacred. You see the stones being worshipped everywhere. Somewhere they are decorated and given a human feel with eyes and makeup. Priests show you the footprints of cows or on these stones. They believe these stones have seen Radha Krishna do their Leela and they carry their imprints. Each stone is treated like Krishna and Radha,” informed Simran. Abhimanyu thought of the stories to be bizarre and ridiculous. “Why the hell do these superstitious people worship stones? I also heard

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of people who tried to smuggle the stones out of Braj Bhumi and met with disaster. Eccentric, raving lunatics!” Abhimanyu screamed out of exasperation. “Ecology is best preserved with rituals”, added Simran. The kids enjoyed a Parikrama or circumambulation of the Govardhan Parvat. The whole parikrama route passes by various temples, ponds, and groves and spans 21 kms. They started at a point and walked in the clockwise direction with the hill to their right. They finished the walking Parikrama in 6-8 hours not counting any rest stops. Abhimanyu was happy. “This is a wonderful form of physical exercise! But I am deadly against holding a pot of milk in my hand while walking around the Govardhan Parvat. Is there any need to keep offering milk to an antique stone? What a waste! Why can‟t we offer milk to the needy instead?” Abhi‟s parents chose to do the Dandvat Parikrama which meant performing the circumambulation with their whole body. They lay on the floor with both hands, both feet, both knees, chest, and forehead touching the ground. After each Dandvat they did a Pranam. They did this regularly and took about 8-10 days to finish it. Every morning while drawing Rangoli outside her mother‟s home, Simran would sing and songs. “Man chakar rakhoji, Chakar rehshu baag lagashun, Nit uthi darshan paashu, ki kunjagalin mein, Teri Leela gaashoon.” The kids saw their mother‟s room where she spent her childhood and were completely mesmerized by the Madhubani paintings she had made. They opened a book of which the coverpage was decorated with peacock feathers. They were fascinated to read the verses

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dedicated to Krishna. Their Mom‟s love for Krishna was undeterred, unwavering and unparalleled. Simran would celebrate Janmashthami with pomp and pageantry. Abhimanyu saw the Madhubani Paintings and said “Simi, your Krishna flirted with hundreds of women and married as many as 16,000. He probably ran a saree store. He could supply layers and layers of Sarees to . And that Krishna‟s father Vasudev had two wives and was insanely desperate to copulate in jail and produce eight children.” Simran said “Many of the so- called wives of Krishna were actually women Sri Krishna rescued from the harem & prisons of , king of , who was probably the most powerful king of the then known world. Jarasandha was an evil tyrant who led a clique of like-minded kings like Kamsa. He carried away the womenfolk of many of the kings & nobles he vanquished. When Jarasandha was killed by & his power was destroyed, Krishna apparently took complete responsibility of the women. It is not clear how many of them he married. It is possible at least some of them preferred to be known as Krishna's wives for the security he offered to them.” Simran‟s mother-in-law Mrs. Yashoda Bharadwaj would say “Talking to Abhimanyu is like beating your head against a stone wall. He wants Mythology to be tested in a laboratory. was born in Treta Yug, Krishna was born in Dwapar Yug and we were born in Kaliyug. It is not possible to compare the Yugas and look for evidence and logic. Show them Ramayana and Mahabharataon TV, Give them books to read and teach them Shlokas. Rest is all up to them. When they grow up, they will decide their own path: Spirituality, Agnosticism or Atheism. Continue to do your and don‟t worry about the result.” Simran thought of Mahabharata to be relevant to the present times. She often had intellectually stimulating discussions with her mother-in-law who was well reading scriptures. “If one looks at it as a literary text, one can find injustice, politics, violence against women and moral pollution.”

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Simran was a student of Literature who took up Mahabharata the topic of her Research and chose the University of Kurukshetra, where the great battle of Mahabharata was fought. She submitted her synopsis to the University. A professor of Kurukshetra University asked her to analyse the character of Gangaputra Bhishma in order to test her knowledge related to the scripture. Simran impressed him with her presentation on Bhishma Pitamaha, his vow of celibacy and his profound regard for his step mother, Satyawati. Bhishma‟s words continued to haunt her as she read one of his lines with awe and wonder: “If he was asked to choose between Paradise and , he would choose Hastinapur.” “What a true Patriot he was!” exclaimed Simran. Bhishma was her favourite Character from Mahabharata after Krishna and Karna. Bhishma participated in the war only for his unfailing love for Hastinapur. His weapons were with the Kauravas but blessings with Pandavas. His pledge of celibacy became his fatal flaw and he had to compromise on the quality of Kings who mounted the throne and turned it into a hotbed of profligacy and over - ambitiousness. The powers of appointing a King for Hastinapur were in Satyawati‟s hands. Satyawati was Maharshi Veda ‟s mother. Maharshi Veda Vyasa played a dual role: as a character and author of the grand epic tale of Mahabharata. The two widowed Queens of King , and were “flat characters” and pawns in the hands of the destiny. However, their daughter laws Kunti and had strong personalities. Simran told her Guide that she wanted to do a feminist analysis. Mahabharata had some of the grittiest, undaunted, spirited and determined female figures like Draupadi, , Gandhari and , whose enormous contributions could not be denied by the readers. While the story revolved majorly around the Pandavas and Kauravas, the truth remains that the epic war would have never taken place if the female characters had not sculpted and moulded the chronicle. Simran reconsidered Mahabharata from the feminist perspective. She titled her Thesis “The Five Underrated Women of Mahabharat,” and began her presentation that opened with the images of five not so valued women from the

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grand epic. The listeners and Ph.D committee members were left spellbound as Simran changed slides and explained each female character succinctly. She began her Character analysis with the dynamic daughter-in-law of Bharatvansh, Goddess Ganga. Ganga: One day King saw Ganga, the Divine River and was totally enamored of her. She agreed to marry him only on one condition that he would never question her actions. Shantanu gave his words to Ganga who also warned the King that if in future he was to question her actions, she would abandon him after answering his queries. Soon time elapsed and Ganga gave birth to her first son. The next morning, Shantanu saw Ganga going towards the river and drowning their son. Bound by his promise, King Shantanu remained quiet. The same story continued when Ganga gave birth to her second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh Son. The King was struck with profound grief. The ministers started questioning the silence and inaction of the King. When the eighth child was born and Ganga walked to the river with the same intention, Shantanu could hold himself no longer. He cried out “Stop! You heartless woman. Why do you do this wretched act? You are beautiful but you are psychotic.”As Shantanu restrained Ganga from performing this horrendous act, she replied that the King had failed to honour her word and thus she had to leave him abandoned. However, before leaving, she answered his question and tried to quench the thirst of his curiosity. She informed him that she was goddess Ganga who had taken a human form as a result of Sage Vasishta‟s curse on the eight Vasus. By obstructing the flow of destiny, King Shantanu managed to save his eighth child. She stated that he would grow up to be a noble soul with a dynamic personality but would neither be an heir to the Hastinapur throne nor fortunate enough to see his progeny inheriting the throne. Ganga declared that she would take him away and take complete responsibility for his education. She

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promised to send him to the world‟s accomplished Gurus and marked that he would be a stalwart in the field of Politics, Philosophy, Religion and Martial arts. She assured that he would impeccably follow the code of conduct of a Kshatriya and after his rigorous training in warfare and multidisciplinary Studies, she would send him back to his father, well prepared to face the trials and tribulations of Hastinapur Kingdom. This child known as Devavrata went on to become Bhishma Pitamaha, one of the central characters of Mahabharata. Simran confidently read the character sketch of Ganga and concluded that it was Queen Ganga who taught, trained and transformed Bhishma to become an inimitable strategist, a skilled archer and a multi - splendoured personality. One cannot imagine Mahabharata without Bhishma Pitamaha who often approached his mother Ganga for problem solving and decision making. Ganga made him realize that he never consulted her before vowing lifelong celibacy. So, she asked him to take complete responsibility for his . This part teaches us that our decisions should never be dictated by emotions. The central character of Mahabharata, Bhishma was always addressed as “Gangaputra.” Ganga‟s name is uttered countless times in the story to place an emphasis on the fact that Bhishma was her son and thus he was not an ordinary character. Devavrata (Bhishma) flourished in Hastinapur. He was a handsome prince, but a feeling of solitariness crept into King Shantanu. In such trying times, Shantanu started taking long walks in the forest beside the Yamuna. During one such leisurely promenade, a particular fragrance titillated him and led him to the riverbed, where he met Satyavati, the daughter of the head fisherman. He was smitten by the love bug as Satyavati was a gorgeous woman who could fill the void created by Ganga. Satyavati‟s father agreed to solemnize their nuptials only on one condition that the son who bore his daughter was to be declared as the heir to Shantanu‟s throne.

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King Shantanu was unable to give his word as his eldest son Devavrata was the legal heir to the throne. When Devavrata came to know of this, he sacrificed his claims to the throne in favour of Satyavati‟s children. Thus, that day, he acquired the name: Bhishma. Satyawati is also the mother of the seer Vyasa, the author of the epic. Her story appears in the Mahabharata, the and the . As a young woman, Satyavati met the wandering (sage) , who gave birth to their son Vyasa out of wedlock. This shows that Satyawati was a fearless woman who could break the confines of marriage and parent a child - like Dvaipayana (“one born on an island”) who later came to be known as Vyasa – compiler of the Vedas and author of the and the Mahabharata, fulfilling Parashara‟s prophecy. It was Satyawati who mothered Vyasa Muni and this seer wrote the ancient History of India. After Satyawati‟s marriage to Shantanu, she begot two sons. The younger one Vichitravirya was married to sisters, Ambalika and Ambika. But their premature death left the kingdom orphaned and Satyavati ordered Bhishma to marry them. Bhishma was tenacious towards his pledge. Revealing to Bhishma the tale of her encounter with Parashara, Satyavati decided to call her son Vyasa to aid her. Satyavati suggested Vyasa to have “” with his brother‟s widows. Vyasa finally agreed to that “disgusting task”, but post Niyoga, made an announcement that Ambika kept her eyes closed while mating with him and thus her son would be blind and Ambalika was full of trepidation and anxiety which is why her son will not survive for too long. Taking her son‟s forthcoming blindness into consideration, Ambika was asked to copulate with Vyasa once again but out of apprehension, she sent her maid. The maid co-operated with the seer Vyasa who declared that her son would be the wisest. This way, Vyasa wrote the destiny of his sons and the bleak and dark future of Hastinapur. Consequently, due to Dhritarashtra‟s blindness and ‟s base birth, was crowned as the king of Hastinapur. However, he accidentally interrupted a Rishi‟s carnal session while hunting and got cursed by him. He was compelled to renounce the kingdom and go to the forest to perform penance. Vyasa warned Satyavati that the

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Kurudynasty would never experience happiness and earth - shattering events would occur in the future (leading to the destruction of her kin), which would leave her devastated. At Vyasa‟s suggestion, Satyavati left for the forest to do penance with her daughters-in-law Ambika and Ambalika. Satyawati‟s contribution to Mahabharata is remarkable. She brings Vyasa into this world who later gives birth to the destroyer of Hastinapur Kingdom, King Dhritarashtra who is physically blind, morally blind and blind in his son‟s love. This blindness raised to infinity leads to the complete downfall and wreckage of Hastinapur. Hastinapur stayed absolutely untainted until Satyawati‟s departure into the forest. She is a woman of righteousness, integrity and uprightness. Amba A furious Bhishma stood thundering inside the palace of Kashya to win over the Princesses of Kashi: Amba, Ambika and Ambalika for Vichitravirya, the King of Hstinapur. While Ambika and Ambalika were delighted to be fought over, Amba was distraught as she loved king Shalva. Upon being presented to Satyavati, finally, princess Amba came forward and said she was in love with King Shalva. Bheesma was upset and ordered his servants to send her over to King Shalva. But Amba was rejected by King Shalva. She returned to Hastinapur and asked Vichitravirya to accept her as his bride. He rejected her proposal saying she was a gift to someone else. She then asked Bheesma to marry her but he could not fulfil her dreams as he was bound to his vow. The humiliated Amba tried to persuade other kings to wage a war on Hastinapur and destroy Bhishma. None of them agreed as they did not want to incur the wrath of an invincible warrior like Bhishma. Amba got , Bhishma‟s guru, to champion her cause and protect her rights. However even a valiant fighter like Parashurama could not defeat Bhishma. Amba did severe penance to invoke Lord for a boon to cause Bhishma‟s death. Eventually, her prayers were answered. But, being a woman with the absence of military background and

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training in war tactics, she asked Shiva as to how she could accomplish her goal and he responded that her future incarnation as would bring about Bhishma‟s demise. Amba was reborn as Shikhandi, the transgender child of King . In the battle of Kurukshetra, Gangaputra Bhishma recognized Shikhandi as Amba and not wanting to fight a “woman”, avoided battling Shikhandi. On the tenth day, Shikhandi rode in Arjuna‟s chariot, and faced Bhishma, forcing him to surrender his weapons. Arjuna hid behind Shikhandi and attacked Bhishma with a torrential shower of arrows. Thus, Shikhandi was instrumental in pronouncing Bhishma‟s death.

This shows that a woman is an epitome of “.” A woman's greatest power is in her verbal strength. Men are physically strong but a woman can bring down a man just with her tongue. Amba‟s power of words could weaken Bhishma and turn him weaponless. Amba thus rung the deathknell of Hastinapur by crumbling its wall called Bhishma. Kunti/Pritha Kunti, who was adopted by King Kuntibhoja, was Krishna‟s paternal aunt. As a young girl, she completely submitted herself to the will of Gods and fervently prayed and propitiated the deities. Muni was extremely pleased by her devotion and gave her a which could help her invoke any god of her choice and have a son born out of him. An unwed Kunti could not resist the temptation of chanting the sacred mantra and invoked – the Sun God. An appeased Surya appeared and blessed her with a son with “kavach” and “kundal.” This Maharathi came to be called, Karna. Apprehensive of mothering a child before marriage, Kunti floated the child away in river Ganges. Kunti chose the gallant Pandu as her husband. Sometime later, Pandu married the extremely attractive princess Madri. Kunti‟s life was a bed of thorns. Her husband erred unpardonably and sinned irrevocably by killing Rishi during a sexual intercourse. The boiling seer cursed

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Pandu and deprived him of paternal rights which compelled Kunti to invoke Dharma, and Indra, who blessed her with three sons Yudhisthir, Bheem and Arjuna respectively. Kunti then taught the mantra to Madri who chanted the mantra and invoked celestial physician Ashwini Kumaras who gave her two sons, Nakul and Sehdev. After Pandu‟s death and jumping of Madri in the funeral pyre, the widowed Kunti raised the five children singlehandedly and brought them up into intrepid, heroic and valorous soldiers. The Game of thrones cost them their lives when Duryodhana and hatched a conspiracy against them and to burn them in a Lakshagraha. She was a democratic parent who rebuked her sons when they went wrong and rewarded them on their achievements and accomplishments. She kept them united, connected and bound at all times and this quality helped the Pandavas triumph over treacherous Duryodhana, Dushyasana and their ninety - eight brothers who reluctantly fought the war and perished. Kunti abided by the rule “United we stand and divided we fall.” The War was a 5:100 ratio, five Pandavas versus the hundred Kauravas. The credit of their victory goes to Kunti as safety and security of Hastinapur Kingdom was more important to her than her sons. We have forgotten this underrated mother of five whose invaluable teachings led them to victory. Hidimba: Last but not the least, History cannot fail to remember Bhima‟s wife Hidimba, the demoness from Manali who turned into a Goddess by invoking Kali. She too brought up her son without paternal support. Though his maternal parentage, made him a half Rakshas, he never strayed from the path of righteousness. Ghatotkacha played a pivotal role in Kurukshetra war by using his illusion powers and scaring away the Kuru Warriors. On Duryodhana‟s strong instigation, Karna usedhis weapon „Ekaghni‟ which he had obtained from Indra and killed Ghatotkacha. Karna had preserved this weapon to kill Arjuna, but since this was the only way to silence Ghatotkacha, he was compelled to use it. Thus, Ghatotkach sacrificed his life for Arjuna, his uncle by succumbing to Indra‟s weapon which could be used

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only once. Krishna expressed his gratitude to Hidimba who brought up a son like Ghatotkacha. He not only proved to be an ideal son to Bhima but a life giver to his uncle Arjuna who was indispensable for the Kurukshetra War. The ‟s sacrifice would not have been possible without his mother‟s laborious efforts into flawless parenting. Thus, the researcher re - historicizes the five women from Mahabharata and marks their enormous contributions to feminism.” Simran‟s offbeat, power loaded presentation was lauded by the selection committee of Kurukshetra University and she was also chosen to present a paper at Khalsa College, Amritsar on “The Relevance of Mahabharat in the 21st Century.” Abhimanyu encouraged Simran to pursue her interests. Her husband funded her studies and motivated her to participate in Seminars, Conferences and Symposia. Simran was a woman of titanic intellect and deserved to climb the success ladder in her career. Kurukshetra University selected three students for the paper presentations: Simran Bharadwaj, Rigved Shukla and Jasvinder Bhatia. The Three scholars discussed the mega epic on their way to Punjab. This was Simran‟s first visit to Punjab without her family. The trio reached Amritsar: the divine abode for people of all religions. The bewitchingly beautiful Harmandir Sahib (Golden Temple) was the highlight of Amritsar. The first and foremost thing in their mind was to offer their prayers at the Gurudwara. One the way to the Golden temple, Simran saw shops selling multi - hued Fulkari Dupattas and restaurants serving “Sarson kaa Saag” and “Makke di roti.” Punjab hadn‟t forgotten its roots. Simran was always very fond of the traditional attire. Her dream was to walk among the mustard farms, in close proximity to the rural life of Punjab. Simran walked towards the Harmandir Sahib in her White Kurta with a Fulkari Dupatta shimmering with flamboyant shades. Her dress showed her pulchritude however if you could look beneath the pulchritude, one could see her pure heart and unconquerable soul. Simran quietly sat under the “Dukh Bhanjiani Ber Tree” and

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meditated for a little while. She observed thousands of people working tirelessly and indefatigably towards the service of people. Hundreds of volunteers worked towards cleaning, chopping vegetables, making parathas. The temple had a deeply peaceful, serene and calm ambience. The travellers prayed at the Akal Takht and stayed gazing at the magnificence of the Golden Temple till late evening reading its History. How could she not love the state of Punjab that celebrated divine love, lip smacking food with unabashed and unrepentant generosity? Tall bearded men with turbans, thick lassis, fluffy parathas and Shri Harmandir Sahib shimmering in the centre of it, Punjab celebrated Indian Culture with pomp and pageantry. “There is so much that this shrine of architectural marvel has witnessed,” exclaimed Simran as she admired the temple‟s reflection in the Sarovar. “How are you feeling Simran”? asked Rigved in a muffled tone. “Bliss!” said Simran experiencing the tranquillity from within. The next day the three musketeers decided to go sight - seeing. They were put up in the Khalsa College Hostel and their conference was three days away. On the first day, they decided to visit Harike Wetlands Bird Sanctuary which was a couple of hours away. Harike Wetlands was an unravished forest region. They discussed how the Rajas and Maharajas would hunt birds and animals and enjoy the royal sporting activity. Rigved recalled the incident from Mahabharat where King Pandu visited the forest with his wives and accidently killed Rishi Kindama while he was having a sexual intercourse with a woman on a deer hide. Before breathing his last, Rishi Kindama cursed Pandu saying, if he ever indulged in love making, he would die. The King was filled with utmost remorse and returned to the jungle with his wives Kunti and Madri and handed over the reins of the kingdom to his blind brother, Dhritarashtra. King Pandu meditated in the woods and gained enormous knowledge. Kunti too invoked the deities to beget children as she could not have them the biological way.

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While listening to the twittering of birds, the three research scholars discussed how different life must have been 3000 years ago. Nature must have been in its full bloom. The research scholars studied Ornithology in order to identify the birds they saw at Harike wetlands. The next day, the trio proceeded towards the Jallianwala Bagh where General Dyer fired bullets had butchered thousands of innocent people. The three sat in the bagh for an hour and discussed the massacre. The discussion led to the Partition massacre and how Mahatma Gandhi, the father of the Nation had recalled Mahabharata. He compared the battle of Kurukshetra to the Partition Riots. It was a forceful comparison as he considered Mahabharat to be a sacrosanct epic of Mother India. The Father of the Nation studied the Epic in detail and realized the futility of violence. The Research Scholars recalled the iconic History of India at the Partition museum and got a lot of references for their research work. Rigved‟s Topic was relevance of Mahabharat in the 21st century and he found the Partition museum answering his questions. He realized that Gandhi was inspired by the Epic that has continued to be an integral part of Indian Culture for centuries together. Gandhiji and his followers had read about the feats of Heroes of Mahabharata and in it, he found a flexible medium for his message as the book was quasi spiritual, encompassing diverse aspects of Indian life: its History, Geography, Philosophy and Language. Simran once again revisited the Sanskrit epic and realized that it was the bloodiest battle fought in Kurukshetra. Mahabharata battle had cousins fighting to control Bharat, India. The and Muslims of India, who once upon a time lived like brothers, were doing the same. The Mahabharata Dharma Yuddha was a decade long fight between the royal brothers that culminated in an apocalyptic violence. The Pandavas and Kauravas both practiced deception, betrayal and homicide. Hindus and Muslims, the children of this Motherland fought like dogs, raped, betrayed and killed each other mercilessly. Eighteen million people died in the Mahabharata war. In the battlefield, Arjuna was compelled to rise up in arms against his own

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Gurus Dronacharya and Kripacharya including Bhishma Pitamah who was made to lie on a bed of arrows. The Kingdoms were divided. Duryodhana, the son of Dhritarashtra ruled and controlled Hastinapur while the Pandavas established Indraprashtha. Same was done at the time of Partition. Muslims had a new Country called Pakistan and the Hindus had the present - day India. Gandhiji spent his own life practicing and propagating and non - violence to defeat the British empire and he could do it with ease as he had felt the pains and pangs of Mahabharata and realized the meaningless of war. He felt the characters in Mahabharata were bloodthirsty, vengeful and uncouth. Rigved kept taking down notes as he walked into the multiple sections of the Partition museum. Simran concluded “Ved Vyas Rishi wrote the Mahabharata to evoke the hopelessness, devastation and annihilation caused by war. So, in myriad of ways the epic practiced the doctrine of Ahimsa.” “Gandhiji turned to Mahabharat in an attempt to illustrate to Hindus and Muslims that the conflict was destructive and pointless. In the grand epic, cousins fought amongst themselves for a piece of land and the brothers of India (Hindus and Muslims) wrote a sequel to the epic by penning the tales of Partition,” added Jasvinder deeply, pained by the articles and videos she came across. Simran recalled her visit to Purana Qila in Delhi where the Pandavas had established their independent Kingdom known as Indraprastha. Hindus and Muslims grew up together in the cities of Delhi and Lahore. Muslims had taken refuge in Puarana Qila, the Old Fort. While citing references for his paper, Rigved stated “Gandhiji had compared the dispossessed Muslims to the plight of Pandavas who were disowned by their Cousins, thrown out of the kingdom and sent into exiles.” Simran was restless that night. The gory sight of Mahabharata war and Partition stories kept haunting her mind and had a nightmare. She dreamt of a train arriving from Pakistan choked with corpses. She had never had such a terror - stricken dream. Simran saw herself getting into the train and witnessing the bloodbath. She saw dead bodies butchered and thrown into the river

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Sutlej and the Hindus and Muslims fighting with swords and spears like the Battle of Kurukshetra. Simran got up with a jerk. The next day she was supposed to visit the Wagah Attari border along with her friends and participate in the event organized by Border Security Force. The three scholars hired a six-seater from Putli Ghar, Grand Trunk Road and proceeded towards the Indo- Pak Border. A large crowd had gathered to salute the Bharat. Very few people know that Wagah is a village situated on the Grand Trunk Road between Amritsar of India and Lahore, Pakistan and that Wagah is only 27 kilometres from Amritsar. The trio looked forward to the flag lowering ceremony at Wagah Border which is done before sunset. Simran participated in the entertainment ceremony by displaying her skills in a patriotic performance. Her loud shouts and heavy foot stamping was heard by the soldiers. The BSF performance gave her goose bumps. The patriotic songs which were played made her love her country a thousand times more. It was such a visual treat! “I love Bharat as much as Bhishma Pitamah must have loved Hastinapur!” exclaimed Simran as she saw the Radcliffe line passing through village Wagah on the Indian side. Simran waved the tri-colour in the air and displayed tremendous enthusiasm at the Border. Some foreign nationals approached her with queries. Why did the partition happen? Why couldn‟t it be stopped? Simran answered “Because we allowed History to repeat. We did not learn a lesson from Mahabharata war. We are clearing our karmic debt, according Lord Krishna.” Simran had an engaging conversation with the foreign nationals who attended the Retreat Ceremony at the Border to gather information on the History of Mother India. When the ceremony was over, the crowd got dispersed and Simran lost her friends amidst the large gathering. Rigved and Jas frantically looked for Simran. Simran‟s eyes travelled everywhere. She was lost. She felt exactly like Abhimanyu (Arjun‟s son in Mahabharat) who

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found it difficult to come out of the Chakravyuh. She just chanted the name of Shri Krishna and continued her promenade. Simran and Jas dialled Simran‟s number to check with her location however mobiles do not work at the Border as jammers are installed. There was a stampede kind of situation. Then a terrible thing happened. A man tried to misbehave with Simran. He pulled her Dupatta and tried squeezing her chest. A soldier saw this and flogged the miscreant black and blue. The soldier introduced himself as Veer Pratap Singh asked Simran “Sister, how can I help you? I will personally make arrangements to drop you to Khalsa College Hostel and ensure your safety.” Simran was deeply overwhelmed by this experience. She kept visualizing the Pakistani flag and the tri-colour. She ceaselessly visualized the battle of Kurukshetra and the slaughtering and butchering of Hindus and Muslims in her inward eye. She did not know her visit to Punjab would be such a life changing experience. Simran bowed to the soldier saying “Nothing can happen to Draupadis like us as long as come in the form of soldiers like you.” Simran heaved a sigh of relief as she hired a rickshaw to reach the hostel. She had her paper presentation the next day and she changed her topic on the spur of the moment. She chose Chitra Banerjee Devkaruni‟s novel A Palace of Illusions: A novel written from Draupadi‟s (Panchaali) perspective. Simran had felt pierced and lacerated by lecherous hounds at the border. Simran typed her paper, took a print out at night and presented her paper amidst a large gathering of academic luminaries. She was all fire as she elaborated Panchali who was born out of fire. Her Presentation was as follows: Panchaali was a dynamic princess who was born from Agnikund. She grew up in the palace of her father, King Drupad, who wished to seek revenge on his nemesis, . When Panchaali was young, sage Vyasa had foretold that she would reign over a massive empire and be married to five husbands. When Panchaali was old enough to be wed, King Drupad hosted a contest to

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find her a suitable match. The King of Angaraj, Karna was the only one who passed the contest‟s test by lifting the bow but Panchaali flatly refused to marry him on Krishna‟s request. An already enraged Karna left the palace in a pique. Arjuna, disguised as a Bhamhana won the tournament and married Panchaali. Krishna was deadly against the objectification and commodification of women. He strongly felt that they were not trophies or awards to be won in contests. As soon as Panchaali travelled home to meet Arjuna‟s mother, Kunti, the archer decided to surprise his mother saying he had got alms. The mother who taught them the art of sharing insisted that the alms be equally divided amongst the five brothers. Arjuna and Kunti unintentionally objectified Panchali and this objectification rose to gigantic proportions in the dice hall when Karna asked Yudishthir to wager his wife, calling her a whore with five husbands. Draupadi was not present in the court. She was menstruating and thus reclining in the private quarters. wagered his wife, and lost her. Duryodhana roared in delight as she was reduced to a slave. A male messenger was not allowed into the queen‟s chambers, particularly at this time of the month. When the messenger was turned back, Duryodhana sent his lecherous brother to get her. Dushasana broke open the doors, entered Draupadi‟s private chambers, took her by the hair and dragged her through the corridors of the palace and brought her to the dice hall. Her clothes were stained with blood. Vidur screamed out in exasperation and pleaded the King to put an end to the dice game that had outraged the modesty of Draupadi, the daughter in law of Bharatvansh. The humiliated Draupadi appealed to Bhishma to interfere, but he put his head down in remorse. The expert in law that he was, Bhishma gravely said, “According to the dharma, even a slave has the right over his wife. So even as a slave, he had the right to wager her.” Duryodhana asked Panchaali to sit on his lap. A wild Bhima threatened to smash Duryodhana‟s thighs. Duryodhana asked his brother to disrobe her and strip her naked. All the people present

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in the dice assembly watched Draupadi‟s “cheer haran” with their naked eyes. King Dhritarashtra was blind but he could very well listen. Bhishma Pitamaha, Dronachrya and Kripacharya all the so-called protectors of Dharma witnessed Draupadi‟s rape attempt. Krishna came to Draupadi‟s aid and saved her from molestation. An ashamed and mortified Dhritarashtra asked Draupadi to ask for a boon and she earnestly requested him to return Indraprastha to the Pandavas. He did the needful but his troublemaker son Duryodhana invited the Pandavas for another round of dice game and choose a thirteen-year exile into the forest plus incognito for a year. The Pandavas once again lost the dice game and went to the forest. Draupadi left her hair open and pledged to tie them only on receiving Dushyasan‟s blood. Ved Vyasa claimed that Panchaali, the Queen of Indraprastha would sound the death knell of Hastinapur Kingdom and incite her husbands to wage a war on her rapists. The King of Sindhu, tried to abduct Draupadi during her exile and abused her. His name too got added up to the list of rapists. Later when the Pandavas chose the Virat Kingdom for their incognito period, Queen ‟s brother Keechaka too threatened to rape her. Draupadi disguised as a maid, Sarhandari scorned the advances of Prince Keechaka and asked her husband, Bhima to murder Keechaka. Bhima slaughtered Keechaka and as a result of this violence, vengeance broke out between the Pandavas and the Kauravas. Draupadi was the only female participant in the Kurukshetra War who avenged her spirit on all the Antagonists, Criminals and Accomplices who disgraced her. Arjuna killed Jayadratha with “”(Shiva‟s weapon), Bhishma, who kept quiet during the rape attempt was made to lie on a bed of arrows, Draupadi‟s brother Drupad killed a weaponless Dronacharya by trickery. Arjuna killed Karna who verbally raped Draupadi by calling her a Prostitute. Bhima smashed Duryodhana‟s thighs and got Dushyasana‟s blood for Draupadi‟s hair. The death of Duryodhana and Dushyasana demoralized the Army. The way was responsible for the war between Rama and Ravana in Ramayana, Draupadi‟s gang rape for responsible for the Kurukshetra war.

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Conclusion: Draupadi is the epitome of women empowerment who rose up in arms against womanizers and rapists to protect the honour of the entire women community. One can see Draupadi in each woman who was raped during the Partition of India. Violence against women was an extensive issue when the two communities turned belligerent. As per the documents displayed in Partition Museum, as many as 75,000 and 100,000 women were kidnapped and raped during the separation of East Pakistan. The Violence against women began in March 1947 at Rawalpindi district where Sikh women were tortured by Muslim mobs. Pathans abducted Hindu and Sikh women from refugee trains while Sikhs in turn targeted Muslim women. It has been estimated that the number of abducted Muslim women was double the number of abducted Hindu and Sikh women. Simran looked up and said “I do not wish to be a perpetrator of communal violence by uttering the word “Hindus” and “Muslims.” Hindus raped Muslims and Muslims raped Hindus and one can effortlessly envisage Draupadi in each woman who was subjected to violence and mental trauma. Draupadi is not just the Female Protagonist of Mahabharat or the Queen of Indraprastha. She is not just a Goddess from Hindu Scripture. Draupadi has no religion and if she desires to practice one, it would be “justice” which is equal to all the women, irrespective of the caste, class, race and religion they belong to. We can see Draupadi in all the Nirbhayas and all the acid attack victims like Laxmi Agarwal who suffered violence and bestiality at the hands of inhuman and brutish males. One can see Draupadi in Oprah Winfrey who was verbally and physically abused when she was barely nine. Draupadi becomes a role model for all of us, for every modern woman who silently bears the atrocities in silence. The audience was dumbstruck and simultaneously teary eyed as Simran concluded her presentation. A chiselled scholar from Jalandhar University, Dr. Punita Salwan got up and gave Simran a standing ovation. “I salute you Ms. Simran Bharadwaj for your brilliant presentation. You just nailed it!”

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Dr. Punita Salwan invited the research scholars: Simran, Rigved and Jasvinder for a scrumptious meal at her place and offered them a trip to Darbar Sahib, Kartarpur, an abode that is situated in Pakistan now. This is the place where Guru Nanak settled and dissembled the Sikh Community after his missionary travels and chose to settle for 18 years till his death. Kartarpur was a Visa Free Border. Simran Bharadwaj said “This corridor is a sign of good Karma as it could certainly help in easing out the tension between the two communities and countries.” The next day Simran and her Chaperons were at Kartarpur corridors. After eating Langar at Dera Baba Nanak, the travellers reached Gurdaspur District where the Salwans drove them through a scenic road, full of captivating sights. The entire area was devoid of any human soul. The sight was heavenly. The village of Nawapind Sardaran always held a special place for Simran. It was here that she was finally able to realize a long - awaited dream of draping a white dupatta over her shoulders and strolling amidst the mustard fields. Running through Gurdaspur for 75 kilometres, the Salwans arranged a dreamy accommodation at a beautiful farm house called Kothi. Simran looked at the quaint ambience of this genteel homestay dripping with colonial charm, A rambling red brick building with an open court yard, was just too gorgeous. The book shelf contained History books like Ramayana and Mahabharata and fiction revolving around the partition of Punjab. There was a gramophone playing Punjabi Folk songs. In the morning, Simran walked through the village along the river. She came across Takht a Akbari an almost forgotten platform on which Akbar was crowned to be an Emperor at the age of thirteen. Each meal served at the dining table looked like heavenly manna. Phirni, the Kashmiri kheer was lip smacking. Dr. Punita Salwan said “Tomorrow we‟ll leave for Mukteshwar caves and temple is located about 21 km from Pathankot city of Punjab. These caves were built by Pandavas during their exile on the banks of river Ravi. The place is breathtakingly beautiful. You‟ll love me for it, Simran!”

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Simran lovingly embraced Dr. Punita Salwan and exclaimed “You are my guardian angel! I‟m so glad we met. You are driving me through Punjab like a charioteer. I think I met my „Saarathi‟ Krishna in a female form.” Dr. Punita, “I must have done good Karmas in my previous birth. Our love for Mythology, Literature and History has brought us together,” beamed the very enthusiastic Simran Bharadwaj. Simran and her friends packed their bags and left for Baisakhi Celebrations at Mukteshwar, the exile place of the Pandavas. Simran was guided by Dr. Punita Salwan throughout the journey who said, “Mukteshwar is known to be as the most sacred places around Pathankot. This ancient temple stands on a hill and exudes resplendent beauty and charm. It is an important cultural and historical landmark for locals living in and around Pathankot. It dates back to the time of Mahabharata and according to a legend, the Pandavas found respite in the caves for six months during their Agyaatvas and built a Shiva temple and worshipped the Lord. The Havan Kund made by them is still present at the temple.” The three research scholars entered the historical Mukteshwar Temple which had a Shivling made up of white marble with a copper yoni. The surroundings to the temple looked absolutely stunning and the 250 steps of climb were totally worth it because of the delicious views on the way up to reach the main shrine. The scholars from Kurukshetra University and the Salwans celebrated Baisakhi together and attended the Mukesran da Mela. Simran chanted Shlokas, distributedPrasad and said “Mukteshwar is definitely worth a visit with family to experience the scenic beauty and breathe in the serenity and positive vibes. I wish to bring Karna and Radha here and show them this picturesque temple located at a hilltop, surrounded by the breathtaking terrain of Pathankot and the Ravi River.”

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Dr. Salwan reminded the scholars that with special permission from Irrigation Department, they could visit Ranjit Sagar Dam constructed on the banks of River Ravi which was in the vicinity. Simran, Rigved and Jasvinder thanked the Salwans for a memorable trip which transported them to the time of Mahabharata. An epic written ages ago was still so relevant and apposite even in the 21st Century. Despite the foot prints, caves and archaeological excavations, why was Mahabharata called a mythological epic? Simran got lost in a maze of thoughts and thought of entitling her next research paper as The Mahabharat Conundrum. By the time, she reached the University of Kurukshetra, she was totally immersed in the pastoral pleasures of Punjab and her power loaded paper presentation.

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