THE MAHABHARATAM : (in 18 Episodes) - PRELUDE to the Bhagavad Geeta : Episode 8 :

AT PRESENT WE LIVE IN KALIYUGAM

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Friday, March 24, 2023. 07:30.

How the Writing Began :

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Episode 8:

The “Wax Palace”

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The Mahabharata characters, as we have seen, are intensely complex. Good is

interwoven with the bad, in every character. What is the difference then between the 

Kauravas and the Pandavas? It was not Weakness; they both had that. It was Wickedness.

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The Kauravas, apart from their human weaknesses were at core very wicked. There 

was undeniable vulgarity about their ways; they had no respect for righteousness, fair play, 

justice, common decency, and so on. They could be as vile as demons are. The Pandavas on 

the other hand always had an undercurrent of truthfulness and nobility at their core, which 

they never gave up. They never bartered this spiritual wealth for anything mundane and 

cheap. Yudhisthira was a personification of justice, never wanting to harm another.

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Weaknesses are excusable; Wickedness is punishable.

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Dhritarashtra should never have ascended the throne, since he was blind. As soon as 

Yudhishthira had come of age, the King should have handed over the kingdom to him, the 

rightful heir. But perversity prevented him from acting in that spirit. Vidhura was one person 

who held to the very end that there should never be any compromise with the Kauravas. He 

had seen enough to come to that conclusion. And, in retrospect, how right would he have 

been! 

The day came when Duryodhana came to Dhritarashtra with a plot firmly hatched in 

his mind. It was a day when the Kauravas were completely overtaken by wickedness.

Duryodhana had planned to stage a huge Shiva Utsava (festival) in Varnavrata, a 

place deep in the jungles. He confided to his father that he planned to build a palace there 

for the Pandavas’ comfortable stay. He would build it out of combustible materials and then 

burn the Pandavas alive. Alas! attachment to his son made Dhritarashtra agree. Shakuni, 

Duryodhana’s maternal uncle was the master-mind of the plot, none being so cunning and 

crafty as him in this art.

Yudhishthira was a simpleton in comparison to these seasoned thugs. He knew not 

the ‘ways of the world’. He even listened to Dhritarashtra who said, “Take your mother, too. 

I hear Duryodhana has made a beautiful palace for all of you to stay in comfort. The palace 

is to be named ‘Shivam’, after the festival.” 

Vidhura was alert to what was being planned. He secretly referred to this plot when 

he said to Yudhishthira, “When the forest burns, everything burns with it, but the rat which 

burrows and the porcupine escape unharmed.”

Yudhishthira understood. He planned accordingly. He could trust Vidhura implicitly. 

When they moved into the palace, it was not for leisure – they worked without 

sleep. During the day they placated the Kaurava spies who were plentiful around the palace. 

At night they got busy with the tunnel through which they would escape the inferno and get 

to the safety of the nearby forest. Think of how much Mother Kunti had to endure for the 

sake of her sons! Think of what mind Dhritarashtra had to have knowingly sent her also to 

her doom! It staggers one’s imagination to see the ingenuity of treachery!

The password among the Pandavas was “When the forest is burning, the rat escapes 

by burrowing.” Vidhura sent experts to assist the Pandavas. They gave the password. Work 

began on the construction.

The Pandavas were always accompanied by Purochana, the main spy stationed to 

take ‘care’ of the Pandavas’ needs. They knew that he was only waiting for the opportune 

moment. On the day before the planned date, the Pandavas fed the Kauravas sumptuously, 

and themselves set the whole palace alight through Bhima. Bhima carried Mother Kunti on 

his shoulder. All of them escaped through the tunnel. The Kauravas were taken by surprise, 

and those who were stationed their as ‘hosts’ to the Pandavas, were burnt to death.

The whole country was plunged into sadness. Dhritarashtra wept bitterly in ‘sorrow’! 

His mind was like a deep lake, warm with concern for the Pandavas at the surface, and cold 

with cunning delight at the depth to see that his sons would now be unopposed to run the 

kingdom.

The event was a bit too much for Kunti to bear. She went to Veda Vyasa for solace. 

What words of comfort could he offer? “Accept and bear everything. Joy and sorrow are 

part of life. You do not know the destiny of your sons. Be brave, Kunti, don’t lose heart.”

*****
Next
Episode 9:
The Pandavas Enjoy Some Peace!

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