Episode 57

Ajagaropākhyānaṃ (Story of a Python)

Who is a Brahmin and Who is a Sudra? [i]

In the last episode we saw Pandavas reaching Gandhamādhana mountains in the last leg of their tīrtha yātra (pilgrimage). They were desperately waiting for Arjuna who had left them a few years back to propitiate Lord Siva and for obtaining Pāśupatāstra and other divine weapons from other gods. Lomasa, who was guiding the itinerary of Pandavas assured Yudhishtira that they could meet Arjuna in Gandhamādhana mountains.

At last their long wait fructified and, one day, they saw the divine chariot of Devendra driven by Mātali reaching the hermitage of Pandavas. They were delighted to see Arjuna and were interested in knowing his escapades at Swarga loka (heaven).

Arjuna narrated as to how he had fought with Lord Shiva and how Shiva was pleased to bestow the Pāśupatāstra. He also narrated as to how other gods vied with one another to bless Arjuna with divine weapons. Arjuna also disclosed as to how he stood for dharma and rejected the advances of ūrvaśi who in turn cursed him to become a eunuch. Arjuna was happy to note that Devendra had modified the curse so that it could be useful during ajñātavāsa (one-year period of incognito). The divine weapons were so powerful that Arjuna could defeat a huge battalion of Nivāta kavacās so easily that Lord Indra blessed him all success in future battles.

Yudhishtira was highly delighted and felt as if all Kauravas were conquered. He was inquisitive to see personally the power of the mighty astrās and Arjuna was also inclined to demonstrate to enthuse his brothers.

On the following day, Arjuna got up early, took bath, and with all devotion prayed to Lord Siva and Indra and started delighting his brothers with aiming the arrows from his powerful Gānḍīva (the name of the bow). The powerful astrās driven from the Gānḍīva were so dreadful that the worlds began to tremble, the mountains began to shake, the wind began to petrify, and the very Sun began to lost its lustre.

न वेदा: प्रतिभान्ति स्म द्विजातीनां कथञ्चन |

अन्तर्भूमिगता ये च प्राणिनो जनमेजय! [ii]  

(Dvijas could not recollect the mantras. The animals beneath the earth began to rise up crying to stop the aiming of astrās). The gods assembled on the firmament with anxiety. On the advice of gods, the celestial sage, Narada came down to Pandavas. He cried, ‘Oh Arjuna! Do not aim these powerful weapons aimlessly without a cause. Even if there is a target, these weapons should not be used without reason or without getting provoked’. Narada continued:

एतानि रक्ष्यमाणानि धनञाजय यथागमम् |

बलवनाति सुखार्हाणि  भविष्यन्ति न संशयः || [iii] 

(Oh Arjuna! If they are used as per śāstra, they remain powerful and provide happiness and there is no doubt about it)

If they are not protected properly, they destroy all worlds. Pandavas respected the wise words of the sage.

Bhima in the clutches of a mighty Python

Pandavas were enchanted by the bewitching beauty of the Gandhamādhana mountains and lived there for almost four years. Then they decided to wind up the tīrtha yātra and started descending the mountain so as to reach the Himalayan range of mountains. For a few days they stayed in Badarikāśrama and then passed through China, Tuṣāra, and Darada and crossed Himalayan mountains (चीनांस्तुषारान् दरदांश्च सर्वान् - cīnāṃ stuṣārān daradāṃśca sarvān) [iv] and ultimately reached the dvaita vanaṃ (dvaita forest).

One day Bhima went into the forest for hunting. Bhima, as we know, was blessed with the strength of thousand elephants. While he was moving around, the lions and tigers were running away, and the trees were falling down from the punches of his fury fist. After a few minutes it appeared as if the very forest was shaking and trembling. But the fortunes swing to the tunes of ‘divine will’ and no one can escape the vagaries of the Time.

While Bhima was passing through a cave a mighty python (ajagara) caught hold of Bhima and encircled him with its coils. Bhima had earlier killed many snakes but now he proved powerless. He fought back but in vain. Slowly his strength began to wane, and his hefty shoulders began to fumble, foil and ultimately failed.

He was surprised and asked, ‘Oh! Python! Who are you? No ordinary snake can coil me down. I am Bhima, the son of Pandu. I had never tasted defeat in my life. Pray, tell me if you are a god or do you have any special power?’ The Python started telling: ‘Oh, Dear Bhima! My name is Nahusha and you are of my lineage. I had performed a number of Yagnas that I got the power of Indra. While I was ruling the heaven, out of ego, I ordered the rishis to carry my palanquin and I was sitting inside.

‘Agastya was one of the sages carrying the palanquin. With ego reaching heights of ignorance, I touched Agastya with my leg and ordered- ‘sarpa..sarpa’. The sage got angry and cursed instantaneously – ‘sarpobhava’ (Sarpa has two meanings in Sanskrit – Snake and move fast. When Nahusha commanded to move fast, the sage cursed him to become a snake). I just fell down into the forest and roaming here as a Python. When I prayed, Agastya’s anger came down and he blessed that no one could escape from my coils. He also told that when I find a person who can able to answer my questions, on the same day I shall assume my original form’.

Nahusha continued, ‘Oh Bhima! You are from the same clan to which I belong. Still you are my food today and I am hungry. Elders say- priyā: prāṇā hi dehinām(for living beings the lives are lovable). I have to sustain life, and this is important for me now’.

Bhima heard the story of Nahusha. But he did not regret though he was about to die in the python’s grip. ‘Oh! Snake. I was a mighty warrior but now a weak creature about to be gulped by you. I grieve not for my life but for all those of my brothers who relied on my strength for waging a war with my cousins. I also grieve for my mother who could not bear the death of her son’. Bhima was crying in desperation.

There, near the hermitage, Yudhishtira saw bad omens all around and asked Draupadi as to where Bhima was. She told he had left for hunting long back. Dharmaraja had some premonition that Bhima was under threat. He ordered Arjuna to take of the safety of Draupadi and went out in search of Bhima. Beneath certain tree he located Bhima bound by a big python. Initially, there was surprise – how any snake can snarl and coil Bhima. ‘It must be a divine person’. He prostrated before the python and begged him to relieve Bhima so that he could provide sufficient food to the python. The python narrated his story and asked Yudhishtira to answer his questions and get Bhima relieved. Dharmaraja agreed with all humility and stood there to answer the questions.

The questions and answers

The python told. ‘Oh, king initially I ask two questions – ‘Who is a Brahmana?’ and ‘what is to be known?’ (ब्राह्मणो को भवेद् राजन् वेद्यं किं च युधिष्ठिर-  brāhmaṇo ko bhaved rājan  vedyaṃ kiṃ ca yudhiṣṭhira)[v].

Yudhishtira told:

सत्यं दानं क्षमा शीलं अनृशंस्यं तपो घृणाः |

दृस्यन्ते यत्र नागेन्द्र स ब्राह्मण इति स्मृतः || [vi]

(The man in whom there is Truth, Charity, Patience, Unblemished character, Mercifulness, Tapas, and Kindness – such person is Brahmana).

Yudhishtira continued, ‘the thing that is to be known in this world is Brahman (the Supreme Self) which is beyond happiness and unhappiness; and one can surmount the misery by knowing it’.

The python again asked, ‘Oh, Yudhishtir! Well, these qualities are present in some sudras also. Again, these qualities may not be there in some Brahmins. Then how do you call them?’

Yudhishtir replied, ‘Oh, Python! Listen:

शूद्रे तु यद् भवेल्लक्ष्म द्विजे तच्च न विद्यते |

न वै शूद्रो भवेछूद्र: ब्राह्मणो न च ब्राह्मणः || [vii]

(If the above said qualities are present in sudra and absent in a Brahmin, that sudra is not a sudra (he is a Brahmin) and that Brahmin is not a Brahmin (he is a sudra).

The python was not relenting in asking further questions. It asked, ‘Well! You are emphasising that the qualities of a person alone decide if one is a Brahmin or sudra. In that case will not the jāti (loosely translated as caste) become futile?

Yudhishtira replied, ‘Oh, Wise man! Due to prevalence of varṇa sāṃkaryaṃ (mingling of varnas), it is difficult to decide the jāti of a person. Men are producing children from the women of all jāti. Hence, philosophers feel that qualities are important and relevant for deciding a person’s varna.

Yudhishtira continued, ‘Oh wise man! Svāyaṃbhuva Manu has clarified that whenever a doubt arises about the jāti of a person, he should be treated ‘sudra’ as long as the consecration and Veda reading are not accomplished. Even after Vedādhyayana (Veda reading), if a person does not possess good behaviour, it is assumed that there has been an evident varṇa sāṃkaryaṃ in his lineage [viii] .

Yudhishitira concluded the answer by saying:

यात्रेदानीं महा सर्प संस्कृतं वृत्तमिष्यते |

तं ब्राह्मणमहं पूर्वमुक्तवान् भुजगोत्तम || [ix]

(I had already told you that one who has both knowledge of Vedas and cultured behaviour, he alone is Brahmin).

The snake was pleased with the wise words of Yudhishtira and released Bhima from its clutches. Then the snake disappeared and Nahusha appeared before Yudhishtira. He blessed both Yudhishtira and Bhima and cleared all the philosophical doubts of Yudhishtira. All Pandavas and Draupadi felt happy and cautioned Bhima not to exhibit valour all the times.

Understanding the Story

This story is highly important and relevant from sociological perspective. The much-debated issue of caste system in Hindu society, the way Maha Bharata (one of the Itihasas) has looked at it, the varna vis-à-vis caste nuisances are well discussed in this story. The very fact that the python asked the question - who is a Brahmana, signifies that the debate of varna vis-à-vis caste was prevalent in Ma Bharata times itself.

Veda Vyasa emphatically tells from the mouth of Yudhishtira that Truth, Charity, Patience, Unblemished character, Mercifulness, Tapas, and Kindness distinguishes a Brahmin from a Sudra. If the qualities are absent in a Brahmin by birth, he is no more a Brahmin. If the qualities are present in Sudra by birth, he is no more a Sudra but a Brahmin. The caste system as we know today was in nascent stage in those days, and again it was not stratified. The intellectual community distinguished sudra (born sudra) and sudratva (gunas or qualities of sudra) prominently.

Varṇa sāṃkaryaṃ (mingling of varnas) resulted in the birth of new genre of children different entirely from the parents. It resulted in either a brahmin exhibiting sudratva or a sudra exhibiting brahmanatva and ultimately led to proliferation of castes.

While this is the stand of Maha Bharata, a few smritis of post Maha Bharata times, gave importance to birth rather than qualities. For example, see the following smriti pramana:

दुश्शीलोsपि द्विजः पूज्यो नतु शूद्रो जितेन्द्रियः | (a dvija is adorable even if his character is bad; and a sudra is not adorable even if his character is good). These types of statements have brought discredit to Hindu society and became fodder for critics. But what is important is that in order to understand Sanatana Dharma, we need to rely on Sruti (revealed literature- Vedas) and also Itihasas; and if a statement of smriti literature (remembered literature) is in deviance from that of sruti, we need to discord and take sruti as authentic. This is emphatically told by Sankara in Brahadaranyaka Upanishad - श्रुत्यनुसारिण्य: स्मृतयः प्रमाणम् (Smruti that follows sruti is authentic).

The second important part of the story is the usage of arms of destruction. These are divine astrās designed to destroy the hardcore opponents. These types of weapons are not to be used in normal times. These weapons are akin to atom bombs of present day. Let us see the parallels by reading the following poem written by some author in the aftermath of Hiroshima bombing in 1945.

“when the swirling yellow smoke thinned

buildings split, bridges collapsed

packed trains rested singed

and a shoreless accumulation of rubble and embers - Hiroshima

before long, a line of naked bodies walking in groups, crying

with skin hanging down like rags

hands on chests

stamping on crumbled brain matter

burnt clothing covering hips

corpses lie on the parade ground like stone images of Jizo, dispersed in all

directions

on the banks of the river, lying one on top of another, a group that had crawled to

a tethered raft” - Karen Thornber (Poems of the Atomic Bomb)

When Arjuna began demonstrating the divine weapons, the worlds trembled and Narada advised Arjuna not to use them aimlessly. We are emphasizing the usage of nuclear energy for peaceful purpose and designing diplomatic relations on ‘nuclear deterrence’. This was what Narada emphasized to Arjuna a few thousand years back.  

The third important point from the story is about the wide geographical knowledge of our ancient seers. Veda Vyasa discusses vividly the Gandhamādhana, and Kailasa mountains and also talked about China, Darada desa and the like. This also evidently proves that Maha Bharata was more than a legend that has historical roots with mythological wrappings.

The last important point of the story is about a mighty Bhima caught hold of a python and not so-mighty Yudhishtira getting him relieved from the claws of a python. It demonstrates that physical strength is always inferior to intellectual strength.

Points to ponder

1.  How is Varna system of classification of society different from caste system prevailing today?

2.  How is a Brahmin distinguished from that of Sudra in Maha Bharata times by intellectuals? Is the rational justified?

3.  What are the probable reasons for the origin of castes in India?

4.  How does the story emphasize the superiority of intellectual power over physical power?

Footnotes

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[i] This story is taken from Vana Parva of Maha Bharata written by Ved Vyasa.

[ii] na vedā: pratibhānti sma dvijātīnāṃ kathañcana |

antarbhūmigatā ye ca prāṇino janamejaya || - Vana Parva 175.10

[iii] etāni rakṣyamāṇāni dhanañājaya yathāgamam |

balavanāti sukhārhāṇi bhaviṣyanti na saṃśayaḥ || – Vana Parva 175. 21

[iv] Vana Parva 177.12

[v] Vana Parva 180.20

[vi] Vana Parva 180.21

[vii] Vana Parva 180.25

[viii] Vana Parva 180. 35, 36

[ix] Vana Parva 180.37

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