“17 Fascinating Women from The Mahabharata” by Sharath
Komarraju
Something I didn’t expect from this reading was to realize how male-centric the Mahabharata is. This makes me think my natural instinct to write from the perspective of women characters about women characters and particularly their relationship to their male counterparts subconsciously came to this conclusion before this reading made it clear. What I noticed about the women whose chapters were selected for this book (Draupadi, Kunti, Ganga, Satyavati) is that their stories are related in many ways, whether that be in their childhoods, the critical incidents where they were involved in the epic, or similarities in their relationships. So while this reading is more of a summary or annotation of the Mahabharata, it also made some claims and pointed out some characteristics that differ between alternate renditions of the epic which were new to me. For example, most important for my own project is a part in Draupadi’s section that states that in the original text, the scene in which she is forcibly disrobed and her sari magically duplicates until it wore out her abuser was actually on account of her “own inner good that protects her from all harm.” In speaking about different interpretations taken by alternative authors, he uses language like “if we accept this more realistic ending…” which highlights for me that in reading a certain text does not mean it should necessarily be taken at face value. This separating fiction or myth from (more likely) fact with such a lens is something that I think would prove useful when I go to probe for meaning in the PDE which I had access to. These decisions on which “side” to take seem imperative for how a character is subsequently perceived by the reader. In the same way Komarraju made me rethink the significance of Draupadi, Kunti, Ganga, and Satyavati- I think it’s important to notice how my own rewriting might impact their image or reputation.
Something I didn’t expect from this reading was to realize how male-centric the Mahabharata is. This makes me think my natural instinct to write from the perspective of women characters about women characters and particularly their relationship to their male counterparts subconsciously came to this conclusion before this reading made it clear. What I noticed about the women whose chapters were selected for this book (Draupadi, Kunti, Ganga, Satyavati) is that their stories are related in many ways, whether that be in their childhoods, the critical incidents where they were involved in the epic, or similarities in their relationships. So while this reading is more of a summary or annotation of the Mahabharata, it also made some claims and pointed out some characteristics that differ between alternate renditions of the epic which were new to me. For example, most important for my own project is a part in Draupadi’s section that states that in the original text, the scene in which she is forcibly disrobed and her sari magically duplicates until it wore out her abuser was actually on account of her “own inner good that protects her from all harm.” In speaking about different interpretations taken by alternative authors, he uses language like “if we accept this more realistic ending…” which highlights for me that in reading a certain text does not mean it should necessarily be taken at face value. This separating fiction or myth from (more likely) fact with such a lens is something that I think would prove useful when I go to probe for meaning in the PDE which I had access to. These decisions on which “side” to take seem imperative for how a character is subsequently perceived by the reader. In the same way Komarraju made me rethink the significance of Draupadi, Kunti, Ganga, and Satyavati- I think it’s important to notice how my own rewriting might impact their image or reputation.
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Author: Sharath Komarraju
Title: "17 Fascinating Women from The Mahabharata"
Source: Kindle
I relate to this post so much. There were several times throughout the readings that the female character development disappointed me. I had to remind myself women haven't always been acknowledged the way they probably should. I definitely like to think about the story from their perspective too. I think it's fun to write what they would think/feel and look at it like that.
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