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Reading Notes: PDE Mahabharata, Part B

I like wisdom and smart strategy of Prince Vidura. To avoid evil Prince Duryodhana, he came up with a clever solution of digging the floor of the lac palace and making an underground passage for escaping to the forest.


Prince Vidura also hired a competent staff to facilitate his clever escape:

"Prince Vidura sent to Varanavata a skillful miner. He eluded the guards outside and made his way safely into the lac palace."


And the operation of this clever escape was also well-operated without getting caught:

"By night he worked, and by day he hid his work by covering the mouth of the passage with wooden planks, so that Purochana, the wicked captain, should not guess that the Pandavas were planning flight."


This kind of clever escape strategy and operation reminded me of an action movie escape scene. Prince Vidura obviously was a clever person.


Not only their clever strategy worked, they were also lucky to fool the villains: evil Prince Duryodhana and King Dhritarashtra thought Prince Vidura and the Pandavas were burned to death (although the event itself was unfortunate and tragic that the innocent low-caste woman and her five sons were burned to death).


I like this very vivid, intense description of struggle in the forest: "At length the mighty Bhima lifted up all the others and hastened on through the darkness: he took his mother on his back, and Madri's sons on his shoulders, and Yudhishthira and Arjuna under his arms. He went swifter than the wind, breaking down trees by his breast and furrowing the ground that he stamped upon."

Bhima was a leader and hero who led the flee.


I really like this falling in love plot: "When she beheld Bhima, the long-armed one, clad in royal garments and wearing his jewels, she immediately fell in love with him, and she said to herself, "This man with the shoulders of a lion and eyes like to lotus blooms is worthy to be my husband. I will not slay him for my evil brother."


This proud and courageous bragging of Bhima was interesting: "Look on my arms, which are strong as the trunks of elephants; my legs are like iron maces, and my chest is indeed powerful and broad. I will slay this man-eater, thy brother." He obviously was a fascinating, interesting character.


The fight between Bhima and rakshasa chieftain is very interesting and exciting. Bhima was able to beat the monster easily.








Pandavas escape from Fire. Source: Escape of Pandavas from Fire accident




Bibliography:

The Indian Heroes by C. A. Kincaid (1921).

Comments

  1. Hi Peter, I am glad you were able to read Part B. To finish up the Mahabharata, you can use the extra credit reading option for Week 7, and then again extra credit reading in Week 8 (there's no new reading in Week 8, but you can use the extra credit option for Weeks 7 and 8 to read Parts C and D, plus those extra points will help in getting caught up).

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