The epic narrative of Mahabharata had been written ages ago. Yet the legendary tale continues to find prominence in every form of art, and continues to overwhelm us even today. Mahabharata is not just a mythology but many consider it to be a part of Indian history which dates back to 3067 BCE. While we still don't know if it's just a piece of fiction or a real epic passed onto ages, we are taught about Mahabharata and its catastrophe at our homes and our schools. Each Mahabharat character has something to teach us.
KRISHNA
Krishna taught us that one must perform his duty. As an Avatar of the Supreme Being, he knew all what the future held though he never meddled in the fated happenings of the world. There was a time when Jarasandh wished to kill him because Krishna killed Kansa, and so he sent Kalyavan to slay him. Krishna knew that Kalvyavan could not be killed by any other means except the 'yogagni' of a saint. Kalvyavan chased him as Krishna was running away, and said, "The world will call you Rannchod if you do not fight me". Krishna did not mind and continued running and reached a Tapasvi who became the reason for Kalyavan's end.
"Running away from a problem is the best course of action if the problem is not under your control."
कृष्ण: "जो व्यक्ति ये जान लेता है कि वो स्वयं कुछ नहीं कर सकता, उसी के हाथो कोई महत्व का कार्य हो पाता है!"
Arjun's son Abhimanyu was raised by Krishna and certainly Krishna loved Abhimanyu dearly. He knew that the battle of Kurukshetra will murder Abhimanyu and he did not try to prevent his fated death.
"Even the greatest of the mountains cannot prevent the flow of a river no matter how bad it tries to stop the river. Only the ocean has the right over her waters. The mountains which become the hurdles to the river, have to break, they have to shatter. This neither defines the power of the ocean, nor does it describe the helplessness of the mountain, but the destiny of the river."
Krishna stayed with Dharma and he advised the ones who were in favour of dharma. He used trickery, deceit and any other wrong means but in favour of righteousness. Arjuna was hesitant to wage a war against his kin but Krishna reminded him of his duty that one has to stand with Dharma even if it meant going against one's own family.
KARNA
Karna's will teaches us that people should not shy away from pursuing their dreams. Raised as a shudra, he was dejected by the society, but he never lost sight of his ambitions and remained honest to his dharma. His life gives a very important teaching that people can become heroes in spite of having flaws, though choice is theirs as who they choose to side with- good or bad Duryodhana was the only person who treated him with respect, he remained true to his friend Duryodhana, and believed his dharma to stand by his friend who he pledged his vow to, even when he knew his friend was an adharmi. He said if his dharma was in favour of adharma, he's willing to be an adharmi too. Hence, decisions or vow as they are should never be made in a haste.
कर्ण: "धूप सूर्य का साथ छोड़ सकती है, उपज धरती का साथ छोड़ सकती है, दिशा वान का साथ छोड़ सकती है, किंतु ये सूत पुत्र करना दुर्योधन का साथ नहीं छोड़ सकता|"
Karna never turned away the ones who came seeking anything from him, he would never refuse them unless it is out of his reach to provide that. He even gave up his divine armour which was a part of his body.
He had always wanted to be the best archer in the world, but Arjuna was his only competitor. Hence, he wished to defeat him to be the best himself; Arjuna's potential had always made him insecure which overshadowed his own potential in his life. Jealousy, hatred and revenge always brings identity crisis. Even after knowing that Kunti is her mother, he is born as a Kshatriya and the throne is his birthright, he never demanded for any of it and let it remain a secret that no one knows, he was never greedy until his death. At the time of his death, he gladly accepted Arjuna's arrow because he realised that he had always been doing something wrong, not the fact that he sided with Duryodhana but the fact that he always envied Arjuna and tried to pull him down.
DRAUPADI
Draupadi was born from fire, she was dark skinned but the most beautiful woman in the entire Aryavart. She arose from the flames of vengeance, anger and passion, she was shared among five Pandavas as a common wife for which she was insulted by even the reputed nobles of the royal court. One of her husbands gambled her on stake and lost, she was humiliated in front of everyone when she was disrobed. Even after so many injustices, never did she ever let her rage consume her in the flames of revenge. Her life is full of tragedies but the kindness in her heart did not die.
On her swayamvar, she denied Karna to compete saying, she will not marry a suta- putra that made Karna to build prejudices about her demagogue mindset and he eventually started hating her to the point that he did not stop Duryodhana during her Vastra haran and he even badmouthed her for having five husbands. Draupadi Swayamvar teaches us that we should think carefully before we speak, or else we may turn out possible allies into our worst foes.
After her Vastraharan, she shunned herself in the palace of Indraprastha when Krishna came to meet her, he told her - "Give up on the pain you're feeling Sakhi. What happened to you in Hastinapur was not your Karma, but the reaction you give to that incident will surely become your Karma. If you fill your mind with sorrow and enmity, then you will also experience hell and why do you want to suffer hell for the bad deeds done by them? Forgive the Kuru Sabha or else revenge will consume you, instead try to see the struggle of the society in your pain, try to see the agony of every other woman in your suffering. The person who lives by hugging his own pain becomes weak, but the person who embraces the pain of the entire society close to his heart becomes strong. "
She was violated but she was bold enough to take a stand. She ensured she got justice, not only for herself but several others who would fall prey to the hands of the Kauravas. A woman like Draupadi will not be passive, she will be fiery, she will fight for herself.
कृष्ण: "जो खुदकी पीड़ाओं को गले से लगाकार जीता है, वो सदैव ही निर्बल बन जाता है, किंतु जो व्यक्ति सारे समाज की पीड़ाओ को अपने हृदय से लगाकार जीता है, वो बलवान बन जाता है।"
At the time of the war, she knew her children would die but she did not let her fear consume her in darkness because she also knew that the war against adharma was necessary for the future to be peaceful. When Ashwathamma killed her sons in their sleep, she surely would have felt enraged but she still decided to forgive his sins so that he could face his destiny.
GANDHARI
Gandhari was married to a blind prince, but she never rebelled against him. Rather, she chose to shut her eyes forever because she believed that this was the only way she could prove her selfless devotion and commitment to him. She had always loved her husband. She also believed that a person who is able to see everything with open eyes will never be able to understand the plight of blindness and suffering that envy causes him. Dritarashtra assumed that covering up her eyes is a way of mocking him and so he denied her while she hopelessly waited for him in her isolation. Her husband was the older prince though since he could not see, he was refuted the right to the throne which annoyed him further, his reasoning was clouded by hatred, deceit and envy for his younger one- Pandu; Dhritarashtra's irrational feelings and thoughts always fumed abuses towards Gandhari. Yet she remained by his side trying to empathise with his suffering.
गांधारी: "जब इन्द्रियों पर दृढ़ता से शासन नहीं किया जाता है, तो वे आसानी से विनाश की ओर ले जाती हैं, जैसे अनियंत्रित, अनियंत्रित घोड़े एक अयोग्य सारथी को भटका देते हैं।"
It was the choices that Gandhari made that drew the key difference in Mahabharata. As the Empress, she had immense authority and influence in the royal court, she could have directed the Empire towards prosperity and peace, but as she could not see the pain of her people, hatred among the Kuruvansh, manipulation of Shakuni and the helplessness of Pandavas, Bheeshma and Vidhur, she was as similar as Dhritarashtra who was blinded by both the eyes for the Kingdom and the love for his children. Gandhari taught us that people may shut their paths to great opportunities only by making decisions in sensitivity without using their head.
KUNTI
Kunti never left the side of her husband- Pandu and later her children. When Pandu married Madri, Kunti was heartbroken, but neither did she question Pandu nor did she express any hatred, arrogance or jealousy towards his second wife. Her husband after being cursed decided to give up on the throne and the luxuries of royalty, Kunti again never questioned his reasoning but adjured upon letting her join him in the exile because she had taken vows during their wedding that she would always be with her husband in his good times and the bad until she die. She selflessly devoted her entire life to the husband who she could not even live a consummated married life with because of Pandu's curse.
"वही परमेश्वर जो आपकी प्रार्थनाओं का तुरंत उत्तर नहीं देता वही परमेश्वर है जो आपको आपके पापों के लिए तुरंत दंड नहीं देता है। दोनों उसकी दया के कार्य हैं।"
Pandu died along with his second wife Madri, leaving her and their children behind in misery. Nakul and Sahdev weren't even her own sons but she raised them as hers, she always taught her children to live for each other and stand by one another. Throughout the Mahabharata, she constantly guides her sons on their actions and keeps the family bound as one, never to have them fight among each other. She proved herself to be a strong mother. Kunti for a long time knew that Angaraj Karna was her son because she saw his golden armour appear on his torso in the arena once, but she kept silent about it, which had always led them both to suffer all by themselves. Secrets forever cause misery and people have to take support of lies to defend their secrets. When Arjuna brought Draupadi home, he requested her to look at what he has brought for her, and without even looking at what he meant, she asked Arjun to share whatever he's brought home among all his brothers which led Draupadi to accept a cruel fate of marrying five men. "People should not order others in a haste and always analyse the situation before giving a command."
ARJUNA
Arjuna always followed his passion for archery. Even past the sunsets, he wouldn't lose his focus from his targets. He sacrificed endless nights to practise that built him to be the greatest bow bearer to ever exist in history. During his childhood spent in Guru Dronacharya's ashram, he met Eklavya who had better abilities than himself which did not cause him jealousy but intrigued him in learning Eklavya's level of abilities too, so he worked harder. When confronted with a competitor- Karna, who always tried to pull him down, Arjuna never felt jealous of Karna's abilities even when he knew that Karna had an upper edge against him because of his divine armour. Arjun taught us about the single minded focus, when you want something in life, you must be as focused on it as Arjuna. As Krishna often said, "uttam bano, sarvashreshtha banne ki spardha mat karo", people should not try to compete with others and just follow their passion, only then they can achieve perfection.
"मैं केवल पक्षी की आंख देखता हूं, पेड़ या आप को नहीं। मैं केवल गिद्ध का सिर देखता हूं, उसका शरीर नहीं।"
Arjuna had deep faith in Krishna, not for his potential but his company. He knew that Krishna would never let him stray towards the wrong path. Before the war, when Krishna told him and Duryodhana that they could only choose one between himself and his Narayani Sena and both would stand against each other, Arjuna chose Vasudeva without a second thought, which tells us how deeply devoted he was to Krishna.
ABHIMANYU
Abhimanyu was only 16 years old when he sacrificed himself in Kurukshetra. As a warrior, he was fearless and courageous. He smiled while he was dying, as he said, he was prepared for his death but not the loss of dharma (righteousness). Abhimanyu before entering the battlefield said, "Desiring victory to my sires, soon shall I in battle penetrate into that firm, fierce and foremost of arrays formed by Drona. I have been taught by my father the method of (penetrating and) smiting this kind of array. I shall not be able, however, to come out if any kind of danger overtakes me". He knew how to penetrate through the Chakravyuh while he did not know the way back which indicates how half knowledge is dangerous for us.
"मैं अपने पूर्वजों की विजय की कामना से शीघ्र ही युद्ध में द्रोण द्वारा निर्मित उस दृढ़, प्रखर और श्रेष्ठ व्यूह-रचना में प्रवेश करूँगा।"
If you win, you win. If you fail, yes you failed, yet you failed with dignity. What is the purpose of winning, when the means of winning is unethical? What is wrong in failure, if you failed, yet doing the right things? You might be laughed at, mocked, even ridiculed for your naiveté, but certainly not forgotten.
"Anger is in this world, the root of the destruction of mankind, The angry man commits a sin; the angry man murders his preceptor; the angry man insults his ciders with harsh words. The angry man cannot distinguish what should be and should not be said by him. there is nothing which cannot be said or done by an angry man."
"Time creates all things and time destroys them all. Time burns all creatures and time again extinguishes that fire.”
SHAKUNI
Shakuni's greatest motivation to be the greatest villain was the feeling of revenge that stemmed from his beloved sister Gandhari's wedding to a blind prince. He believed if her sister had married a blinded man and chose to blind herself too, at least her children should have the direct and lawful claim to the throne as compensation. Shakuni's resolution to take revenge led to destruction of the entire Kuru clan. Revenge consumes us all!
DURYODHANA
From Duryodhana, we learn that ‘pride comes before the fall', he had always been obsessed with himself that led him to become highly intolerant to anything and anyone that could outshine his presence. In his self obsession, he brought his doom closer to him.
YUDHISTHIRA
Yudhisthira decided to gamble with Duryodhana. Was it an act of dharma or rather greed? Yudhisthira teaches us that greed and hubris only brings humiliation, demolition of self dignity and desolation. He was considered to be one of the most righteous people- one who never spoke a lie in his entire life, then, he kept gambling after each loss as he promised Duryodhana that he would play the game of dice with him. Righteousness unless paired with foresight is useless and at times leads us to act in unrighteous ways.
CONCLUSION
The epic of Mahabharata has countless other teachings for us to learn from. Out of all other timeless lessons, the greatest of them all remains "Vinaash kale vipreeet buddhi", as Krishna goes on telling Arjuna in the battlefield, when a person's end is near, his wisdom is the first to leave him.
"विनाश काले विपरीत बुद्धि"
"जब व्यक्ति का अंत पास हो तो सर्वप्रथम उसका विवेक उसे त्याग देता है!"
Hope you imbibe some of these teachings in your life to improve as an individual.