[world-vedic] SEARCH FOR HISTORICAL KRSNA PT 2

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SEARCH FOR HISTORICAL KRSNA PT 2

By N S Rajaram

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The sum total of our investigation so far is that there is now

ample evidence to conclude that Krishna was a historical figure who

lived in the late Vedic Age that saw the rise of the great urban

civilization we call the Harappan. Krishna and the Mahabharata War can

now be placed in the early Harappan period of c. 3100 BC. This

corresponds also to the society described in the Mahabharata with its

numerous urban centers. This society is strikingly different from the

one described in the Ramayana, which is less urbanized. This is also

what tradition tells us: from Kashmir in the north to Kanyakumari in

the south knows no tradition for the Kali Date but the 3102 BC. With

this historical picture firmly in place, we can begin to look at

Krishna, the historical figure, and his achievements.

Reading beyond the legends that accumulated over millennia, Krishna is

seen to be a many sided man who lived a rich and varied life. He is of

course best known as friend and counselor to the Pandavas, especially

close to his cousin Arjuna who was also his relative by marriage. While

he chose to remain a non-combatant, he was nevertheless the architect

of the Pandavas' victory over the Kauravas in the great Kurukshetra

battle. In fact, but for Krishna's leadership and strategy, Pandavas

may not have prevailed.

Then there is Krishna, the Vrishni prince of Dwaraka, the uncrowned

king of the turbulent Yadu clan. In his capacity as their leader, he

freed them from the tyranny of Kamsa and protected them against the

attacks of Jarasandha, the mighty ruler of Magadha. Later, finding his

people heavily outnumbered by Jarasandha's hordes he led them in a

migration west to the easily defensible Dwaraka.

Krishna also left for posterity a message that has never lost its

relevance - the message embodied in his philosophy of karma yoga, the

principle of action. This is his transcendent legacy, the Bhagavadgita,

the greatest poem ever written. Its central message imparted to

Dhanajaya (Arjuna) at the climactic moment before the battle, is well

known but still worth repeating:

Your right is to your duty, never ever to its fruits;

Avoid distraction by seeking fruits of action, but seek also not

avoidance of duty.

Abandon self-interest, O Dhananjaya! Act with detached singleness of

purpose;

Treating success and failure the same - this is balance, called yoga of

action.

When we study the life of Krishna, it is impossible to separate his

career from his main worldly achievement - his guidance of the Pandavas

in the Mahabharata War leading to their final victory. The story is too

well known to be repeated in detail, so I will highlight some aspects

of his life that are not as widely known as they should be.

Early life and personality

Krishna was the son of Vasudeva and Devaki. Krishna's parents had been

imprisoned by Devaki's elder brother Kamsa who had allied himself with

Jarasandha, the powerful ruler of Magadha and an enemy of the Yadavas

of Mathura. Kamsa had usurped leadership of the Yadavas of Mathura by

overthrowing the legitimate chief Ugrasena. There was said to be a

prophecy about Kamsa being killed by the son of Devaki and Vasudeva,

which supposedly was the reason for their imprisonment. Probably the

real reason was that the marriage of Vasudeva and Devaki had united two

powerful Yadava tribes, and their son Krishna would have posed a threat

to Kamsa's hegemonic ambitions.

Krishna was born in prison but his father somehow managed to have the

newborn child smuggled out to be placed under the care of his close

friend Nanda who was the chief of a pastoral tribe of cowherds.

Krishna's childhood and early youth were spent in exile, out of reach

of Kamsa. He was brought up in the household of the cowherd chief Nanda

whose wife Yashoda became his foster mother. He was a great favorite

with the people of Gokula, especially the young girls of the pastoral

tribe. In the later literature this was wildly exaggerated to turn

Krishna into some sort of a romantic hero. Krishna was introspective and

philosophic, profoundly concerned about

his role in history. Many years later he volunteered to go on a mission

to prevent a calamitous war between his cousins the Kauravas and the

Pandavas. Its failure was a foregone conclusion and Krishna knew it.

When Vidura, a wise old man, asked Krishna why he bothered at all

considering that war was inevitable, Krishna told him: "I am thinking

not of my place and my time, but of the future - centuries and

millennia hence. Future generations will think that I allowed a great

calamity to befall the world without my lifting a finger to prevent it.

Failure is not an excuse for lack of effort."

Krishna firmly believed that one always had to live in action. He told

his friend and disciple Arjuna: "You should always act in a manner that

is as an example to others. For as do the leaders act, so will all

others. See Arjuna! There is nothing in the three worlds that I want

for myself. There is nothing for which I need to work. But if I let

myself follow a course of inaction, so will others follow me. If I give

up acting so will all others. I shall myself be the cause of degeneracy

in the world."

In the meantime, his uncle Kamsa had released Krishna's parents Devaki

and Vasudeva as harmless. But he kept sending his agents to look for

Krishna who represented the real threat in efforts to eliminate him.

But he and his equally formidable elder brother Balarama managed to

dispatch them in short order. Before long, when they felt strong enough

to challenge him, Krishna and Balarama stormed Kamsa's citadel and

killed him, releasing the people from his oppressive rule. Krishna was

still short of twenty, but showed his great sagacity by restoring the

legitimate ruler Ugrasena to his former position. And ever after, the

Yadavas of Mathura looked to Krishna for leadership and guidance.

This angered the powerful Magadhan ruler and Kamsa's father-in-law

Jarasandha, who conducted several campaigns against Krishna. He was

each time repulsed by Krishna's superior strategy and tactics.

Nonetheless Krishna realized that he and his Yadava tribes could not

prevail in a battle of attrition against Jarasandha's hordes. Out of

concern for his kith and kin, Krishna finally led an exodus of his

people from Mathura in the Gangetic plain to Dwaraka on the west coast

of India - the seat of the Yadu country since time immemorial.

Krishna and the Pandavas

After his move to Dwaraka, Krishna's life was inextricably tied to the

fate of the five Pandava brothers and their rivalry with their cousins

of the House of Kurus. In Krishna's time, the Kurus with their seat in

Hastinapura had been ruled by two brothers Dhritarashtra and Pandu.

Pandu's wife Kunti was the sister of Krishna's father Vasudeva. She had

three sons - Yudhisthira (or Dharma Raja), Bhima and Arjuna; Madri had

twin sons Nakula and Sahadeva. All of them were born during Pandu's

exile. He died in exile and his junior wife Madri voluntarily immolated

herself on his funeral pyre. The care of all the five sons now devolved

upon the young widow Kunti.

Following this calamity, Kunti decided to head back to her husband's

clan and seek protection. Although the blind Dhritarashtra was

nominally the king of the Kurus, the real ruler was his uncle Bhisma.

And Bhisma, a noble soul, welcomed Kunti and her sons into the palace

and arranged for the care and education of the princes.

Dhritarashtra himself had numerous sons ('a hundred' is not to be taken

literally). The eldest of his sons was Duryodhana, a proud and

headstrong prince. The return of Pandu's sons - known as the Pandavas -

introduced complications in the royal succession since the eldest

Pandava Yudhisthira was senior to Duryodhana, and his own father Pandu

had been ruling before his exile. All the five brothers were considered

outstanding warriors especially Bhima and Arjuna. Yudhisthira was known

for his sense of justice and compassion, and was recognized as heir

apparent, which aroused the jealousy of Duryodhana. (In ancient India,

heirs were chosen based on fitness to rule; succession did not

automatically go to the seniormost member.)

Kunti had also a premarital son by name Karna (though he was unaware of

the fact), who received the patronage of Duryodhana. He was considered

an exceptional warrior - the peer of Arjuna. This was the beginning of

the rivalry between Arjuna and Karna on the one hand, and the great

friendship that was to blossom between Duryodhana and Karna on the

other. There were several attempts to eliminate the Pandavas, and

finally, fearing for their life, Kunti with her five sons again went

into exile. The Pandavas were entirely isolated and led a precarious

existence concerned mainly with survival against heavy odds. This helps

explain the willingness of Yudhisthira to swallow humiliations when the

odds were heavily against him and his brothers.

The Pandavas were forced to lead an itinerant life disguised as poor

Brahmins. Their greatest need of the moment was a powerful ally who

could protect them against Duryodhana and his father Dhritarashtra. In

the course of their wanderings they learnt that the powerful Pancala

king Drupada was to hold a contest for the hand of his daughter, the

beautiful and strong willed Draupadi. The Pandavas decided to attend

the contest, the svayamvara of princess Draupadi. Much to everyone's

surprise, Arjuna, disguised as a Brahmin won the contest and the hand

of Draupadi. Princess Draupadi did not object and freely chose Arjuna,

disguised as a poor Brahmin, as her husband.

Krishna also attended the event, but neither he nor any of the Yadavas

contested for her hand. The astute and observant Krishna had seen

through their disguise and recognized the five Brahmins as none other

than his own cousins, the famous Pandava princes. This is the first

recorded meeting between Krishna and the Pandavas. This is also the

first scene in which Krishna appears in the Mahabharata.

For whatever reason, at Kunti's insistence, the five Pandava brothers

married Draupadi as their common wife. Polyandry was not unknown but

looked down upon, but Kunti's own experience probably made her feel

that there was greater security in it for Draupadi. During their years

of exile, Kunti and her husband had lived in the Himalayan regions

where the practice of polyandry - brothers marrying a common wife - was

quite common. King Drupada also was persuaded to go along with this

strange marriage of his daughter. Polygamy was then common, and all the

Pandavas married other women. Later Arjuna was to marry Krishna's half

sister Subhadra. Their son Abhimanyu was to attain fame as Arjuna's

peer as a warrior. But Draupadi was always recognized as the queen.

Following their marriage to Draupadi, the Pandavas felt strong enough

to return to Hastinapura and demand a share of the ancestral kingdom.

Duryodhana refused, but the grandfather Bhisma, who still had some

influence at the court, advised partitioning the kingdom. They were

granted some largely undeveloped territory that included a wilderness

called Khandavaprastha. Arjuna and Krishna cleared the forest and a new

city called Indraprastha (modern Delhi) was built as their capital.

Following spectacular conquests, especially by Arjuna, their

territories also expanded. Yudhisthira now had ambitions to be

recognized as the greatest monarch of the age. But this was impossible

as long as the great Jarasandha of Magadha - Krishna's old rival - was

still ruling. He would never acknowledge anyone. Yudhisthira therefore

turned to Krishna for help.

Krishna, accompanied by Arjuna and his elder brother Bhima went to his

old rival, Jarasandha of Magadha, and challenged him to a duel. The

proud Jarasandha chose to fight with Bhima, a giant of a man generally

regarded as the strongest man of the age and the most formidable in

individual combat. Jarasandha was also renowned for his physical

powers, but proved no match for Bhima. Bhima killed him in the duel.

Jarasandha had imprisoned many princes and was thought to be an

oppressive ruler. Krishna freed all the prisoners and placed

Jarasandha's son Sahadeva on the throne of Magadha. The Pandava ruler

Yudhisthira could now claim to be the greatest, but Krishna wanted

nothing for himself. Krishna's greatest strength as a statesman was

freedom from personal ambition.

Pandavas' loss and exile

Following Jarasandha's death, Yudhisthira felt bold enough to perform

the Rajasuya - a ceremony to have himself anointed the first monarch of

the age. This was an occasion to which all the leading princes in the

land were invited, including his cousins the Kauravas of Hastinapura.

The Rajasuya aroused the envy of Duryodhana who also felt slighted by

the extraordinary honors bestowed on his cousin Yudhisthira whom he

regarded as an upstart. With his uncle Shakuni - the brother of his

mother Gandhari - he began to scheme of ways to deprive the Pandavas of

their kingdom.

Despite the honor conferred by the Rajasuya, the Pandavas' position was

far from secure. The Pandavas' rapid rise from relative obscurity

threatened the old order headed by the elder Kuru branch. Duryodhana,

who seems to have been chronically suspicious by nature, sensed a

threat to his own position as the king of Hastinapura. He felt that he

himself would some day have to face his formidable Pandava cousins in

battle and possibly even lose his kingdom. After consulting with his

father, he invited Yudhisthira to Hastinapura and challenged him to a

game of dice. It is not clear why Yudhisthira accepted the challenge.

It is possible that Yudhisthira found it politically expedient. In the

contest itself Duryodhana was represented by his crafty uncle Shakuni.

Yudhisthira staked and lost everything including the freedom of all the

Pandavas and their wife Draupadi.

It is unnecessary to into the details of the humiliation of Draupadi

and the Pandavas; I will only note that the story of the endless sari

supplied by Krishna's blessing that saved Draupadi's honor is a much

later interpolation found only in some southern versions of the

Mahabharata. From the oldest version, I conclude that her invoking

Krishna as a threat, though the Pandavas had lost their freedom, was

enough to persuade Dhritarashtra to release them. The upshot was that

the Pandavas had to give up their kingdom and spend twelve years in the

forest followed by a year in hiding; if discovered in the thirteenth

year, it was to be more of the same.

Once again the Pandavas were exiled and left for the forest with their

queen Draupadi. Their mother Kunti remained in Hastinapura staying with

their uncle Vidura. Krishna took Arjuna's son Abhimanyu with him to

Dwaraka, and Draupadi's brother Dhristhadymna took her five sons with

him to her father's house in Pancala. For the next thirteen years

Abhimanyu was to live with his uncle Krishna to be brought up under his

tutelage as a warrior to almost equal Arjuna.

After twelve years spent wandering in the forests, the Pandavas and

Draupadi went to the Matsya country ruled by Virata. Disguised as

servants, they found employment in various capacities in the royal

household. At the end of their year spent incognito Virata was

delighted to learn that these were the great Pandava brothers. A

marriage alliance was also concluded with Arjuna's son Abhimanyu - now

a dashing young prince of eighteen years - and princess Uttara, the

daughter of Virata and queen Sudeshna.

Now with some firm alliances - with Virata, Drupada and of course

Krishna - Yudhisthira asked for his share of the kingdom. But

Duryodhana refused to honor his commitment. Even though he offered some

lame excuses, it was a brutal breaking of a solemn agreement. Krishna

again enters the scene, first to prevent the war, and then to guide the

Pandavas to victory. This is what I will discuss in my next article.