It was a chilly night - a chilly night where the wolves howled -
howled with misery at the fate which had wrought a cruel blow on the
house of Kuru ; a race of Kings , Warriors and Statesmen , a race of men
destined for fame and glory ; a race of men who were dead - slain by
deceit , at the altar of death by the hands of Dharma , the very hands
which reeked of injustice, the very hands which were seeking out to
snuff the flame - the very flame that was burning bright within his
emaciated body , burning bright despite the calm of the surrounding
waters.
He was the eldest son - eldest son of a figurehead king ; a king who'd been overlooked for a younger brother , a king whose sole duty was to hold the throne and the province for his so called nephews, sired upon others , a king who was so helpless that he had to bow down to what was not the norm , a king who was a doormat without ambition
.
He was the eldest son , but not the heir- and the fact had bothered him - bothered him until he had burned , burned like that house of lac at varanavrata , burned with jealousy , jealousy for the sons of Kunti , for the vagabonds who had usurped what had been his rightful place.
He was named Duryodhana ;the unconquerable , a warrior of the finest pedigree who had managed to become the king of kings , obtaining suzerainty over everything - everything but for his envy and thirst ; thirst to claim what was his by law and lineage ; envy - envy that his so called cousins were treated with respect and adulation that were meant for Gods - respect and adulation that had evaded him and his siblings - despite them trying very hard.
As he lay suspended within the confines of the river mother , his mind went back to the day when it all had started - the day when his cousins were brought to Hastinapura , dressed in finery befitting princes , finery which had belonged to his glorious ancestors , finery which had been denied to him . He saw his distant , reticent grandfather lift Nakula in his arms , Nakula who was wearing the yellow gold crown decked with Rubies , the crown which his youngest brother had wanted for his birthday but was denied - denied so that an usurper can lay claim to them.
The usurpers had not stopped with conquering his material possessions - his toys , rooms and attire . They had been greedy , greedy for love , power and position , greedy like their clinging mother who was a vile snake beneath the veil of a frail woman who needed the support of her brother-in-law ; a woman whose ambition extended beyond making her parakshetra sons recognized as royalty ; a woman who had tilted the balance in her favor singlehandedly ; a woman who had cheated his blind sire ; a woman who had taught him deceit - deceit which he had used to his advantage.
As his cousins stood triumphant at Indraprastha , on a royal platform built on years of deceit and trickery - he had made plans ; plans to regain what was lost with interest - plans to put the usurpers in place - plans to banish the Kaunteyas where the belonged - plans to banish them to the harsh life of Vanaprastha - plans which had been executed to perfection.
He had thought his life's purpose complete then - the pretenders had been thrown out and the throne was restored to the rightful successors. He had then made plans ; plans for the throne and plans for the populace ; plans which had been successful - plans which had earned him the name of a good king , an able administrator and a worthy son of the house of Kuru - plans which seemed to have reached their fruition as he completed the Rajasuya Sacrifice - plans which had been shattered as yet another war had been declared.
He had been hopeful then - hopeful that his eleven akshauhinis would be sufficient to win him the war - hopeful that Dharma would triumph; hopeful that peace would continue ; hopeful of a bright future for his sons and brothers ; hopeful for a long line of Kurus to rule after him - the line of glorious Kaurava kings , tracing their lineage to Duryodhana - the unconquerable.
His hopes had been dashed ; dashed by his so called illustrious cousins who had practiced deceit , trickery and Adharma to win. The first to fall was his esteemed grandfather - the man who was a role model - a man he had shamelessly worshiped , offering him the highest honor of commanding the Kaurava army - a man who was unjustly killed by his favorite grandson - a grandson who had snubbed his grandfather at his brother's Rajasuya sacrifice , a grandson who had broken the sacred dharma of war to kill his grandsire.
Next to fall had been his guru Drona , the teacher he revered , a teacher who had favored his cousins , a teacher lied to by his most trusted student and beheaded by his most valiant . The pandavas had taken great pleasure in flaunting their blatant disregard for the rules of engagement. Every crucial loss had been due to deceit and cunning - yet he had moved on ; moved on as he was meant to ; moved on with Karna - the prati surya as his only companion on the path of Kshatriya Dharma - Karna who had been the only Kaunteya who mattered to him - Karna , murdered in cold blood by his brother and cousin; Karna who had deserted his only friend in an untimely manner.
He was one of the last warriors from his side - the others being Kripa ,Kritavarma and Aswattama - Friends who had fought for him - Friends who did not deserve to die an inglorious death at the hands of deceit to support a flawed cause ; Friends who deserved to live what remained of a troubled life in peace , Friends who would be the only ones to remember an unconquerable warrior , a good king and an able administrator , Friends who would probably be saved by this one action of his.
He had been told that the wolves had howled the day he was born - a chilly night , similar to this one , where he had been unearthed from a pot that had carried him for an year. Life had come a full circle from then.
As the wolves howled that chilly night at Kurukshetra , he made a decision , a decision to fight until death - fight against death - his cousin Bhima , who he knew would kill him by hitting his thigh to fulfill that terrible vow he had made thirteen years ago - a terrible vow which would end his life in an act of deceit.
He was Duryodhana - the unconquerable and he would die ,as he lived - a warrior who followed Kshatriya Dharma , a warrior done in by his cousin's deceit - a warrior of the Kuru race who lived and died fighting for his right.
As the wolves howled by the riverside on a chilly night - he laughed - gusty , loud , hysterical laugh of a man who had designed his own end. He was Duryodhana and he was unconquerable
*************************************************************************
PS : This has been quite a day. I finally did a post of Duryodhana that I was meaning to do over the weekend. I was waylaid by the gripping Yuganta - a collection of essays on Mahabharata which is a must read.
PPS : For readers who are wondering if Duryodhana did know Karna's secret - I would think so. They were the best of friends and I suppose that they knew each other's secrets very well
PPPS : Do share your thoughts on this piece :)
He was the eldest son - eldest son of a figurehead king ; a king who'd been overlooked for a younger brother , a king whose sole duty was to hold the throne and the province for his so called nephews, sired upon others , a king who was so helpless that he had to bow down to what was not the norm , a king who was a doormat without ambition
.
He was the eldest son , but not the heir- and the fact had bothered him - bothered him until he had burned , burned like that house of lac at varanavrata , burned with jealousy , jealousy for the sons of Kunti , for the vagabonds who had usurped what had been his rightful place.
He was named Duryodhana ;the unconquerable , a warrior of the finest pedigree who had managed to become the king of kings , obtaining suzerainty over everything - everything but for his envy and thirst ; thirst to claim what was his by law and lineage ; envy - envy that his so called cousins were treated with respect and adulation that were meant for Gods - respect and adulation that had evaded him and his siblings - despite them trying very hard.
As he lay suspended within the confines of the river mother , his mind went back to the day when it all had started - the day when his cousins were brought to Hastinapura , dressed in finery befitting princes , finery which had belonged to his glorious ancestors , finery which had been denied to him . He saw his distant , reticent grandfather lift Nakula in his arms , Nakula who was wearing the yellow gold crown decked with Rubies , the crown which his youngest brother had wanted for his birthday but was denied - denied so that an usurper can lay claim to them.
The usurpers had not stopped with conquering his material possessions - his toys , rooms and attire . They had been greedy , greedy for love , power and position , greedy like their clinging mother who was a vile snake beneath the veil of a frail woman who needed the support of her brother-in-law ; a woman whose ambition extended beyond making her parakshetra sons recognized as royalty ; a woman who had tilted the balance in her favor singlehandedly ; a woman who had cheated his blind sire ; a woman who had taught him deceit - deceit which he had used to his advantage.
As his cousins stood triumphant at Indraprastha , on a royal platform built on years of deceit and trickery - he had made plans ; plans to regain what was lost with interest - plans to put the usurpers in place - plans to banish the Kaunteyas where the belonged - plans to banish them to the harsh life of Vanaprastha - plans which had been executed to perfection.
He had thought his life's purpose complete then - the pretenders had been thrown out and the throne was restored to the rightful successors. He had then made plans ; plans for the throne and plans for the populace ; plans which had been successful - plans which had earned him the name of a good king , an able administrator and a worthy son of the house of Kuru - plans which seemed to have reached their fruition as he completed the Rajasuya Sacrifice - plans which had been shattered as yet another war had been declared.
He had been hopeful then - hopeful that his eleven akshauhinis would be sufficient to win him the war - hopeful that Dharma would triumph; hopeful that peace would continue ; hopeful of a bright future for his sons and brothers ; hopeful for a long line of Kurus to rule after him - the line of glorious Kaurava kings , tracing their lineage to Duryodhana - the unconquerable.
His hopes had been dashed ; dashed by his so called illustrious cousins who had practiced deceit , trickery and Adharma to win. The first to fall was his esteemed grandfather - the man who was a role model - a man he had shamelessly worshiped , offering him the highest honor of commanding the Kaurava army - a man who was unjustly killed by his favorite grandson - a grandson who had snubbed his grandfather at his brother's Rajasuya sacrifice , a grandson who had broken the sacred dharma of war to kill his grandsire.
Next to fall had been his guru Drona , the teacher he revered , a teacher who had favored his cousins , a teacher lied to by his most trusted student and beheaded by his most valiant . The pandavas had taken great pleasure in flaunting their blatant disregard for the rules of engagement. Every crucial loss had been due to deceit and cunning - yet he had moved on ; moved on as he was meant to ; moved on with Karna - the prati surya as his only companion on the path of Kshatriya Dharma - Karna who had been the only Kaunteya who mattered to him - Karna , murdered in cold blood by his brother and cousin; Karna who had deserted his only friend in an untimely manner.
He was one of the last warriors from his side - the others being Kripa ,Kritavarma and Aswattama - Friends who had fought for him - Friends who did not deserve to die an inglorious death at the hands of deceit to support a flawed cause ; Friends who deserved to live what remained of a troubled life in peace , Friends who would be the only ones to remember an unconquerable warrior , a good king and an able administrator , Friends who would probably be saved by this one action of his.
He had been told that the wolves had howled the day he was born - a chilly night , similar to this one , where he had been unearthed from a pot that had carried him for an year. Life had come a full circle from then.
As the wolves howled that chilly night at Kurukshetra , he made a decision , a decision to fight until death - fight against death - his cousin Bhima , who he knew would kill him by hitting his thigh to fulfill that terrible vow he had made thirteen years ago - a terrible vow which would end his life in an act of deceit.
He was Duryodhana - the unconquerable and he would die ,as he lived - a warrior who followed Kshatriya Dharma , a warrior done in by his cousin's deceit - a warrior of the Kuru race who lived and died fighting for his right.
As the wolves howled by the riverside on a chilly night - he laughed - gusty , loud , hysterical laugh of a man who had designed his own end. He was Duryodhana and he was unconquerable
*************************************************************************
PS : This has been quite a day. I finally did a post of Duryodhana that I was meaning to do over the weekend. I was waylaid by the gripping Yuganta - a collection of essays on Mahabharata which is a must read.
PPS : For readers who are wondering if Duryodhana did know Karna's secret - I would think so. They were the best of friends and I suppose that they knew each other's secrets very well
PPPS : Do share your thoughts on this piece :)
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