Ever since I learnt to read at the age of four, I was fascinated by our Indian Mythology. I used to read abridged versions of the great epics, Ramayana and Mahabharata, as well as some other short stories related to our Gods.
At that time, all was clear to me- Ravana was the villain, and so were Duryodhana and Shakuni. The Pandavas were really good people who helped everyone.
However, as I delved once again into the depths of our mythology recently, while studying for a quiz, I read some more stories that really intrigued me, and made me look at these epics from an entirely new perspective.
Here are some little-known stories about the supposed "villains" of the Ramayana and Mahabharata.
SHAKUNI
Ever wondered why Shakuni, the notorious and manipulative maternal uncle of the Kauravas walks with a limp?
It is mentioned in the Odishi version of Mahabharata, that before Gandhari's marriage, it was prophesied that her second husband would be a great man, and she would have a hundred valiant sons with him. Therefore, Gandhari's father first married her to an animal, which was later killed. Hence, when Gandhari married Dhritrashtra, he became her second husband. Some time after Gandhari's sons were born, Bhishma Pitamaha came to know about this. Fearing a scandal if this information ever leaked to the public, he decided to finish off all the people who knew this secret.
Now starts a very gruesome episode: the only people except Bhishma who knew this secret were Gandhari's father (the King of Gandhar), and her hundred brothers, including Shakuni. Bhishma hatched a plot to kill them, and invited all of them to Hastinapura, unbeknownst to others. When they arrived, he locked all of them up in the dungeons. According to the laws of Dharma, it is necessary to feed your guests. So as to not sin, Bhishma sent each of the sons and the father one grain of rice each per day, and hereby fulfilled his "Dharma". The king of Gandhar was enraged. He vowed to take revenge and destroy the Kuru dynasty. He, and ninety-nine of his sons gave their share of the single grain of rice to the youngest and cleverest prince, Shakuni. So that Shakuni would never forget the way his father and brother were starved to death, the king took a dagger and gave Shakuni a limp. He then told Shakuni to take his bones after his last rites, for his and his other sons' deaths were inevitable, and make a dice out of them. That dice would always obey Shakuni, and this is the very dice that was used to make the Kauravas win the game of dice against the Pandavas many years later.
It is said that Shakuni knew that the Pandavas would eventually win, and destroy the rest of the Kuru clan in the process. He poisoned the minds of the young Kaurava princes, and made them believe that they were the rightful heir to the throne, and that the Pandavas were their enemies. He was the one who suggested the burning of the wax palace, and made sure that Vidura somehow got to know about the plot and warn the Pandavas in time. Shakuni believed, and rightly so, that this would further deepen the hate between the Pandavas and Kauravas, and lead to a war. When the Pandavas got Indraprastha and were contented with it, he persuaded Duryodhana to invite the Pandavas for a game of dice, as he knew that he would win with the help of his dice. This game led to vows taken by Draupadi and Bheema to destroy the Kauravas. Just as Shakuni had planned, a war broke out after the Pandava's exile and the entire Kuru dynasty was destroyed. Shakuni's father and brothers' death had been avenged.
Shakuni is, according to me, more of a grey character. What he did perhaps seemed justified to him. If we look at the story, Bhishma Pitamaha seems more of the antagonist to me. But one thing is clear: the entire Mahabharata was carefully planned out by Shakuni.
So, when you re-watch or read the Mahabharata, do spare a moment to think of Shakuni, the mastermind behind everything.
DURYODHANA
There is absolutely no doubt that Duryodhana was a corrupted person with almost no morals. What he made Dushasana do to Draupadi was a truly unforgivable act, and he shall always be known as a wrong person.
However, there are some sides of this villain which are not explored, and give some depth to Duryodhana's character.
His friendship and kindness towards Karna
Karna, Kunti's first child, known as Lord Surya's son and "Daanveer" is a celebrated member of the Mahabharata. We first saw him at a ceremony of the Kuru princes, challenging Arjuna and demanding a chance to show his skills. He was mocked by most of the people in the assembly, including the Pandavas for his supposed low-caste and was not allowed to participate.
But it was Duryodhana, and only Duryodhana, who supported Karna. He declared Karna the King of Anga, or "Angaraja", so that he could be allowed to participate. It should be noted that he possibly had an ulterior motive in doing so, as he had probably guessed that Karna was the only one who could be brave enough to challenge Arjuna, and also win.
But whatever his motive was, he made Karna a great friend of his. He always trusted his judgement and was confident about his skills.
Beside his friendship with Karna, there is one more notable quality of Duryodhana's: the short time that Duryodhana managed the affairs of the kingdom of Hastinapura, none of the subjects had any complaints. He ruled the kingdom efficiently, and the kingdom prospered under him.
Perhaps there was another side of Duryodhana, hidden under his arrogance and false beliefs. We can only speculate.
RAVANA
What can be said about the mighty king of Lanka, Ravana, the chief antagonist of the Ramayana? He was decidedly a cruel and arrogant ruler.
Yet, there are some small things about Ravana that everyone should know.
The Danavas and Asuras had always been enemies. Ravana's sister, Shoorapankha, had fallen for the Danava king. Ravana, being an Asura, was very angry, and quite sure that nothing good could come from such a marriage, but Shoorapankha persisted, and after being coaxed by Mandodari, Ravana finally agreed to meet the Danava king.
It so happened, that the Danava king had only hatched this plot to kill Ravana. When Ravana's back was turned, he drew up his sword to behead him, but the powerful Ravana quickly killed him. Shoorapankha, not knowing the entire story, vowed to take revenge.
As she wandered around the forests, she spotted Rama with his brother Lakshmana and wife Sita. She immediately realized that he was no ordinary person and could easily kill Ravana.
Therefore, she deliberately enraged him and Lakshmana, and then when they retaliated and cut off her nose, she ran off to Ravana's palace, begging him to kill Rama and kidnap his beautiful wife Sita.
Many people believe that Ravana had promised Mandodari that he would not marry Sita, and only keep her as a prisoner so that he could kill Rama and avenge Shoorapankha's humiliation.
Other legends, particularly those of South India, say that before the war between Rama and Ravana started, it was important for Rama to conduct a yajna, with the help of a great learned Brahmin. Who was a better Brahmin in Lanka than Ravana?
Hence, Ravana was invited to perform the yajna, and as a Brahmin, he couldn't refuse. After successfully performing the yajna, he blessed Rama to emerge victorious in the battle. Strange, isn't it?
The strangest thing, however is the fact that there are thousands of more such little-known stories from our mythology. Indian mythology is an extensive subject, and one can never obtain complete knowledge of it. There are different perspectives to every story, including morally grey characters, and alternate endings.
Nothing is right or wrong, it is the perspective that matters.
I truly hope that these stories have intrigued you as much as they have intrigued me.
Till next time, dear reader. Stay home, stay safe, be happy :)
#great epics