Duryodhana

4

Imagine a rainy day. 

No, actually. Imagine it. What comes to mind for most people is pleasantry, subjected to an opinionated thought of the sweet fragranced rain washing all the sins off the face of mother earth. In fact, even I think like that. 

Our lord, our peace, our everything, our Kanha was born in such a beautiful atmosphere: Rain.

The night was stormy, with unforgiving thunder and sleet promising a night of suffering. When the avatar of the preserver was born, there could not have been a louder world outside. Our beautiful Kanha deserves every bit of the respect and praise he gets, and I'm sure you agree. However -

...

...

...

*Sigh. Sorry y'all, stubborn Kanha over here wants to hear me praise him again. NOT UNDERSTANDING MY BIGGER PLAN! Nuanced storytelling is lost on the casual fan. And yes, this elaborate storytelling eludes you too, Yashoda Nandan. Don't look at me like that! Yes, yes, you know I love you.

Anyway, before I was so rudely interrupted - pauses to glare at Kanha, who looks back with an innocent smile, making me smile - the cruel weather outside was not a reflection of Krishna's future. 

Then why were the omens at Duryodhan's birth used to determine his fate? Why? I struggle to understand. So basically, crows howled and rakshasas acted up. Yes, these are not preferable, but how do these determine a child's birth?

And before you go ahead and say: it is not just the omens, it is the reading of the stars, his astrological chart, the signs, etc. etc., let me tell you this.

The future is uncertain. It will ALWAYS be uncertain. Sahadev, Kripacharya, no one could have known everything. Because if someone is almost positively certain something will happen, the key word is almost, and that tiny little chance could determine destiny.

Fate eludes destiny. This is a common misunderstanding that many fail to understand. 

Or even if you don't agree, humor me with this:

Lets say this was a theoretical situation: a child is born, but with a threatening astrological reading in front of him. Due to this, some of his elders wanted to abandon him, which didn't happen due to the love of his parents. So he was raised in the most horrible of ways, with no one to support him or love him, except for his cunning uncle who used him and manipulated him in the name of love, making him commit the most unrighteous acts because all he ever wanted, loves, was love. He wanted affection and he wanted people to be proud of him. He wanted to parents to beam. He wanted to feel that love he never received. This is what he kept working for, his entire life, through his mistakes and his achievements. His shame and his glory. This want is what led him throughout his life. And in the end, all this desire for love brought him was eternal punishment, scorn, hatred, real story unheard, depicted in the worst form possible, stripped of all his good deeds and turned bad, and ultimately, shattered. This person's soul shattered. It shattered at the beginning, but in the hope that he might fulfill his goals, the pieces glued together. But glue doesn't hold fragments. Fragments will always remain bitter memories, never to be changed. When it was clear there was no hope for him, he had no spirit to live for, and that thin glue dissipated, leading to his demise. And the world's eternal contempt towards him. 

What would you say? 

You would have sympathized for this boy.

And what if this was Duryodhan?

What if this was Duryodhan?

What if?

This is why I wrote this story.

TO SHOW HIS VIEWPOINT! 

Many of you may not agree with me, saying this is not what was written in the original Mahabharata. The original Mahabharata was directly written, but lacking a few details. We never knew how our Duryodhan grew up, how our poor Yuyutsu lived his life, what happened to Dushala after she became a widow, what happened to Subhadra after her husband's salvation, etc. etc. 

We don't know.

We don't know any viewpoints, we know what was directly written. This is my attempt, in the last few chapters, to piece things together and try to sympathize with readers. And if you don't, that's fine, this is just my opinion and logistics.

But, I will say, ending the story here does not seem fair. What consideration into our Duryodhan's life did I bring? This is why I am going to continue this story, but changing things drastically. I am going to make a parallel viewpoint. Where everything might be changed as a second chance to our fallen. 

Where we might be able to see our hopes and desire that did not happen in the original epic here. 

And that was probably a dramatic read, but I hope you can understand what I am trying to portray. 

Here is a question I want you all to think about while I write the next chapter: what can change a person's circumstances that determine his fate?

             - Author, out (later babes!)