Greetings!
This is a BRAND-NEW SERIES, that will decode a great epic from my native
country. The Epic is Mahabharata! The tale is about two sets of first cousins,
one of whom are 5 (The main protagonists) and 101 others (the antagonists). This
tale follows their adventures and how they fought a legendary battle. If you want
to know the story in brief (I am calling it brief because the tail is EXTREMELY
LONG) then you can read this article.
Now while reading this tale, a lot of us just read it like a story, but the
thing about Indian Myths is that they have “hidden” meanings. That is why
today, I will be explaining the HIDDEN meaning of a part of the story!
The story goes like this, The Pandavs (the five protagonists I mentioned
earlier) were in exile. Arjuna (the 3rd brother, also the
main protagonist) learns that in a nearby kingdom, the king has held a swayamvar (an event to find a groom for a woman, in our case the king's daughter Draupadi).
According to their practice, they left their mother home and set out for alms: they reached the swayamvar hall where the king was giving away things most lavishly to alms seekers. The brothers sat themselves down in the hall to watch the fun: the princess Draupadi, born of fire, was famed for her beauty and every prince from every country for miles around had come to the swayamvar, hoping to win her hand. The conditions of the swayamvar were difficult: a long pole on the ground had a circular contraption spinning at its top. On this moving disc was attached a fish. At the bottom of the pole was a shallow urn of water. A person had to look down into this water mirror, use the bow and five arrows that were provided, and pierce the fish spinning on top.
All the warriors and princes who tried failed. Finally, Arjuna tried, and he DID IT! He won Draupadi's hand. All the five brothers went back to their hut, and shouted, "Mother look what we have got!". The mother, that is, Kunti tells them to share whatever they have got home. She then turns around and finds out that they have gotten a bride. She is shocked, and the obeying brothers make Draupadi their common wife.
The hidden lesson behind this tale is that one must not be a blind follower, one must be strong enough to make decisions themselves. The brothers could have declined this, but being blind followers of their mother, they did not. One must have a sense of righteousness and wrongdoings. If one follows one blindly, without realising the order's effects, it might lead to their own downfall. This lesson teaches us to be the shepherd to our own life, and not be blinded sheep.
THANK YOU!
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