This winter afternoon, sitting cross-legged in the meager sunlight that managed to find its way through my slit of a window, she said, “When your brother stepped out of the sacrificial fire onto the cold stone slabs of the palace hall, all the assembly cried out in amazement.”
She was shelling peas. I watched her flashing fingers with envy, wishing she would let me help. But Dhai Ma had very specific ideas about activities that were appropriate for princesses.
“An eye-blink later,” she continued, “when you emerged from the fire, our jaws dropped. It was so quiet, you could have heard a housefly fart.”
I reminded her that flies do not perform that particular bodily function.
She smiled her squint-eyed, cunning smile. “Child, the things you don’t know would fill the milky ocean where Lord Vishnu sleeps--and spill over its edges.”
...
“Even before we’d finished cheering and clapping, even before your father had a chance to greet your brother, you appeared. You were as dark as he was fair, as hasty as he was calm. Coughing from the smoke, tripping over the hem of your sari, grabbing for his hand and almost sending him tumbling, too--”
“But we didn’t fall!”
“No. Somehow you managed to hold each other up. And then the voices came again. They said, Behold, we give you this girl, a gift beyond what you asked for. Take good care of her, for she will change the course of history.”
- Palace of Illusions
By Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni
@agnisuta || Havan २०२२ || Day ७
I'm not getting enough time to complete all other prompts I'll probably post them on some later date once I get to it :')
You, reader, might argue that this quote is more applicable to Yudhishthira, the eldest Pandava. But in my opinion, even though Yudhishthira was the one who wore the crown, Arjuna was the one who beared it's weight. Arjun, who saved his family time and time again. Arjun, who always put others before him. Arjun, who was selfless to the very end. Arjun, who was fiercely loyal, even to people who perhaps did not deserve it. A character whose fate is tragic in its own right. There is much debate about whether he is the superior Archer, and perhaps he is not. But Arjun is superior not because of skill, but because of his devotion. His devotion to his craft, to the pursuit of knowledge, to learning. Arjun stands out because of his curiosity, his selflessness and for staying true until the very end. Arjun was Dronacharya's favourite because he was an amazing student, and Reader, an amazing student is not inherently the one who is the most skilled, but the person who has a genuine thirst for knowledge. Arjun had that, which is why he was loved by many, and still is now. And I don't know about you, but to me, that's what makes him, the hero.
@agnisuta | Havan 2022 | Day 1, Main Character - Yudhishthira
“The dog must come with me,” said Yudhishthira. “Throughout our entire journey, he has walked beside me loyally, sharing all hardships.”
“Impossible. Heaven is no place for dogs,” said Indra. “You have won the supreme reward by your virtuous life-- there is no sin in abandoning the dog.”
“I cannot do it,” said Yudhishthira. “It would be wicked to cast aside one who is so devoted from a selfish desire for the joys of heaven.”
-- Mahabharata: A Modern Retelling, by Carole Satyamurti
Yudhishthira is both my favorite and least favorite Pandava because of all the complicated feelings I have about him, especially as somebody who is also the oldest sibling. Dogs love us unconditionally, and I was really touched by the image of Yudhishthira and the other Pandavas having a dog there with them at the very end given all the war and suffering they’ve been through.
Shakuni is undoubtedly one of the most despised characters in the entire realm of Mahabharata.
A skilled kingmaker and the brother of Gandhari, Shakuni is regarded as the great-grandfather of all gamblers who have ever lived on Earth.
He is the one who poisoned the psyche of his volatile nephew Duryodhan, stoked the catastrophic battle of the Mahabharata, and was ultimately responsible for the Kauravas' demise.
@agnisuta । Havan 2022 । Day 2: Underrated character
Uttara: Princess of Virat
Princess of Virat and Queen mother of Hastinapur. The wife of Abhimanyu. These were the many titles of Uttara. Her roles have defined her for centuries. But the bards have failed to tell the tale of Uttara, the girl who was thrust into politics and war via marriage. The girl who lost her husband, father and brother to the bloodthirsty battlefield. The woman who, even after that, raised the future ruler of Hastinapur. Uttara is a character whose story deserves to be told by generations.
Karna's impenetrable armour is an object of legends. They say it was forged in the armoury of the heavens, weaved using the rays of the sun itself. It was the blessing of a lifetime, an armour of the heavens. Many considered the warrior to be someone destined for great things, for how many people can say they were favoured by the gods from birth? His golden skin made him extremely auspicious and lucky. But what the bards don't tell you, is how much Karna despised his golden skin. He considered it to be more of a blessing than a curse. He hated the fact that it gave him an automatic advantage over most enemies. He hated that every time he won a battle, people pointed at his armour as the reason. After all, not many had inbuilt impenetrable armour gifted to them by the gods. He was always destined to win. He hated that he was not given credit for his accomplishments. He hated that he knew his enemies sneered at him about it. He had heard Prince Bheem claim on multiple occasions that if it wasn't for that armour, Karna would have been slayed by Arjun long ago. He hated that he sometimes found himself wondering if that was true. The gnawing dread of doubt clawed at his skin like parasites. It kept him up at night, tossing and turning in his bed. He wished he could claw it off his skin, cut it off, but the parasite stayed. That's what it was, a parasite, that armour. Feeding on his accomplishments, leeching off his wins. He wished that he could take it off, throw it away. He prayed to the Gods to take his burden away.
And the Gods answered.
Sorry for the late submission, I am busy rn with exams. :,)
King Nisadh of Ayodhya had two sons Nala and Kuvara. Nala wanted to marry Damayanti, the beautiful daughter of king Bhima. Damayanti did not know him, so Nala sent his swan to her. The swan flew to Damayanti's palace and finding her alone in the garden, sang praises of Nala. Meanwhile, King Bhima arranged for her swayamvara, where many princes gathered from whom Damayanti could chose her husband. Damayanti chose Nala and they got married.
When King Nishadh died, Nala became king. He conquered many other kingdoms and became famous. This made his brother Kuvara jealous. He knew gambling was Nala's weakness. Kuvara challenged Nala to a game of dice in which Nala lost everything. Kuvara became the king and banished Nala from his kingdom. Nala went to the forest and Damayanti, who loved him very much followed him. As they walked in the forest, Damayanti injured her feet. Nala did not want the delicate Damayanti to go through hardships with him, so when she was sleeping he left her and went ahead.
Further into the forest, he found a snake on the top of a tree that had caught fire from below. As he tried to bring it down, the snake bit him and Nala turned dark and developed a hunchback.
Nala asked the snake, "Why did you bite me? I was trying to save your life."
The snake said, "I am your father Nisadh. The next twelve years will be full of difficulties for you. I changed your appearance to protect you from your enemies. Whenever you want to get back your original looks wear this ornament."
Nala proceeded to another kingdom. Meanwhile, when Damayanti woke up she found a note from Nala asking her to go to her parents. As she moved ahead, she met a demon that threatened to eat her. Impressed with her fearlessness he came into his real form. He was actually a god, who told her that she would unite with her husband after twelve years. Damayanti proceeded to Achalpura kingdom where she became the queen's maid. Nala went to the kingdom of Samsumara and became a servant of the king.
Many years thus passed.
One day, King Bhima's men found Damayanti in Achalpura and brought her back to her father. King Bhima tried to find Nala but failed, so he made a plan. He arranged the swayamvaar of Damayanti knowing that when Nala came to know about the second marriage of his wife, he would certainly come to her. King Bhima was right. Nala came with his master, the king of Samsumara. A day before the swayamvara Damayanti saw the dark hunch back servant. She immediately recognised him. Nala also put on the ornament given by his father and regained his original looks. But the swayamvara had been arranged to Damayanti asked him to be present there. On the day of swayamvara she put the garland around Nala's neck and they were united. The twelve-year period was also over. With the help of King Bhima's army, Nala won his kingdom back and again became the king of Ayodhya.
One day, a monk visited Nala's palace and told him the reason why he had to undergo the twelve-year exile. in their previous birth also Nala and Damayanti were king and queen and they had thrown an innocent monk in prison. Their exile was a punishment for their karma of a previous birth.
After facing so many atrocities and hardships, Nala who had mastered the art of chausar, won his kingdom back. Nala and Damyanti got their lost glory and lived happily ever after ruling over Nishadh.
Sudarshana Chakra (सुदर्शन चक्र, lit. "disc of auspicious vision")
↦ In the Mahabharata, Krishna, identified as Vishnu, wields this disc of ultime vision as a weapon.
↦ At the Rajasuya yagna of Emperor Yudhishthira, he beheads Shishupala with the Sudarshana Chakra after the latter surpasses 100 sins.
↦ When Arjun vows to kill Jayadratha, Krishna creates an artificial sunset using his Sudarshana Chakra. Seeing this, Jayadratha comes out of the protection to celebrate Arjuna's defeat as he believes the battle to have ended. Krishna then commands Arjuna to assassinate him.
