In the company of men

A sense has born in me to know and understand what is closer to me first; as the farther things look attractive but where I am right now is more relevant. So decided to read and understand one of the epics of India- Mahabharata. It is an interpretation by the eminent C. Rajagopalachari.

The title of the blog was my first feeling after reading the first 50 pages. Mahabharata is the story of men. There is valor, there is courage, there is righteousness, there is deceit, there is love, there is lust, there is power, there is friendship, there are relationships, there is hatred, there is plotting, there is intelligence, there is wisdom, there is pretense, there is ego, there is renouncement, there is kindness, there is cruelty, there is honor, there is respect, of course there is politics... there is every emotion known to man. Hence this epic continues to throb even after thousands of years after it happened and continues to inspire the readers.

I really loved the pure and dearly relationship between Draupadi and Krishna (she is related to Krishna only as his close friend Arjuna's wife). The way she confides in Krishna the agony she experienced in the court of Hastinapura after the fateful gamble- when even her husbands didn't come to her rescue- is heart wrenching. The friendship between Krishna-Arjuna, Duryodhana-Karna is sublime. The gentlemen involved were of highest stature, they were an institution in themselves- Bhishma, Dronacharya, Kripacharya, Karna, Vidura, Drupada, Dharmaraja, Ashwathhama and even Duryodhana and Shakuni. The ladies too were of finest demeanor- Draupadi (my favorite woman character of Mahabharata- she is femininity embodied), Kunti, Amba and Gandhari. When I imagine how that time and age would have been, it brings such joy and ecstasy. Never ever I think at least India witnessed an assembly of such towering men and women. I think the human potential had reached its zenith during Mahabharata.

I had read somewhere that India is poor and weak not because of plenty of incursions and loot that plagued her, but because she couldn't see another Mahabharata happen. I had not understood its meaning then, but now it is becoming clear the prosperity of those words.

I have read only around 150 pages, and believe me it is happening to be the best book I have read- only because of its depth. Ramayana and Srimad Bhagwata are the books that I would like to read in the future. Let's see what they have to talk with me…

A fortnight with Krishna

I had bought a book on VI chapter of Bhadvad Gita last month. The book dealt in depth with meditation. What caught my attention the most was Krishna- the man. I had always thought him to be a flirter with girls, cheater for his and his friends' gain, time-passer playing flute and an extraordinary manipulator. But what shook me was the clarity and casualness with which he talks about absolute truth of life. I badly needed to understand this man. Not his life story but his attitude, his thoughts and way of life.

I got one such book- 700+ pages big. Though I am still to read another 200 pages, it is bewitching to say the least. Krishna engulfs you without you even knowing it. You slowly start losing to him. He is the most complicated and contradictory person, I have ever known. At the same time he is incredibly simple. He supports non-violence and violence in a single sentence. He talks of love and non-attachment as one and the same. For the first 200 pages, I went crazy. I did not understand anything. The philosophy of Krishna is not to have a philosophy. The way of life of Krishna is not have a way of life. His attitude is not to have an attitude. He calls losing and gaining self as same. He, in first line says that we should do all that to support non-violence and in the second line he says killing is actually not killing and saving is actually not saving. He calls empty is actually complete. He finds no other way to live life other than celebrating it. There is nothing good or bad for him. Everything is one and the same.

I was as confused as you are now, but after 500 pages I am feeling all this is not that non-sense. Krishna actually knows what life is. He lives fully and completely. We have always known sadhus, sants and sanyasis with torn robes, unkempt hair, eating stale... that's why a sanyasi like Krishna becomes indigestible.

I do not understand where I should begin and where to stop this blog. Actually I don't know why I am even writing this. I will finish this. Krishna is a rock-star.