The Calm before the Storm
The Calm before the Storm
Once upon a time there was a divided family consisting of
the Pandavas and the Kauravas. They had a long existing relationship fueled
with nothing but competition. There fueling relationship brought much war and
remorse between the two families – and only one family could win. We see
throughout the Mahabharata a sense of karma that is portrayed in the characters
of the story. Kauravas did not leave any stone unturned until the day they got
their revenge from the Pandavas. They felt that everyone worshiped the Pandavas
more, which was maybe true, because the Kauravas sought nothing but negativity for
others but themselves.
One day the Kauravas decided to kill their own brothers through
a evil scheme. To carry out their plan they first invited their five brothers
to a celebration that would take place in their village. The brothers knew
something was up but decided to go anyways and give them the benefit of the doubt.
While the Pandavas travel to the village, the Kauravas made housing arrangements
for them – and this was one special arrangement. They decide to corner every side
of the palace with combustible material, so that when the Pandavas enter they would
die in a “fire accident”. In order to make this successful they asked Vidhur to
execute the evil plan. Unknown to the Kauravas, Vidhur was a good friend of the
Pandavas and warned them of an upcoming threat to their lives.
The Pandavas reached the “wax palace” and within the first few
minutes noticed some tampering to the corners of the palace. Immediately they
asked Vidhur to send a miner to create a “exit” underground to escape. The
Pandavas had come for a celebration and attended it without giving any indication
they knew what their evil brothers were doing. Once the celebration ended, they
headed back to the “wax palace”. The Kauravas place close attention to their moves.
Upon return, Vidhur informed them that the exit was ready
and that they should make their move. The Pandavas and their mother Kunti made
their way out and as they looked back the palace was set to fire. The Kauravas
were gleaming in excitement!
“Yes, we did it!” they exclaimed.
Little did they know, the calm before the storm.
Author’s Note: We see throughout the Mahabharata a sense of
karma that is portrayed in the characters of the story. We see it greatly play
out between the brothers. The Pandavas have
done much good, that a messenger -Vidhur- guided them to safety. I retold the
story in a way that would educate the audience of what happened much like the one
told in the video I watched. I did not want to sway away from it, because the
story is traditional. And sometimes traditional stories shouldn’t be altered to
much otherwise it loses the real meaning.
Hi Aarushi! Thanks for your story! I really enjoyed your retelling of this particular tale from the Mahabharata. I like that you pointed out the role that karma played in the Pandavas’ and Kauravas’ stories. I also liked where you chose to end the story because it hints that the Kauravas’ excitement over having won their feud is going to be short lived. You did a great job, and I could definitely see the underlying meaning of the story in your version.
ReplyDeleteHey Aarushi! I really loved reading your version of this story from the Mahabharata. I respect that you didn't try to change the story up to much, but rather retell it in your own words. I completely agree with what you said about how some stories shouldn't be changed too much. Overall, I think you did a really good job at maintaining the overall theme, but retelling it in your own way. Great job!
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