Book Review - "The Pregnant King" - Devdutt Pattanaik

He wept for his family, his mothers, his brother and for his grand-mother, Shilavati and finally he wept for his father, The Pregnant King".

The book describes so well, the law of nature and as you flip through the pages, you would be able to clearly differentiate the conventional and unconventional way of life. The tale of a king, desperately wanted to be a father for the sake of the throne. Shilavati, A woman with every quality of a King should possess but is denied to be accepted as the "KING"because, she is a lady. A man who wants to sing and live his life but is not allowed to do so, he is the only heir and a King isn't supposed to do so. In short, we all want to be something but end up being something else. Who becomes a Chakravarti or who is eligible to be a real Chakravarti? The whole book turns out to be a mystery and slowly unveils itself to the readers. The queens of Yuvanashva seeking blessings from Ileshwara for kids, shows ego or status does not matter in front of the Supreme power. Somvati and Sumedha gets killed and they seek revenge and call Yuvanashva their father, showing souls do not die. Later, the king renounces everything and even his beloved mother and as she whines like a small kid showing how materialistic life bound her till that day in her royal attire and in front of he gates of the palace on the lap of her daughter-in-law. Karma has answers to everything.The patterns of nature need to be understood and it is as agile as a waterfall and as still as the Mountain. So, there is nothing wrong or right according to nature, it always tries to balance things out.

Sometimes, the content of the book becomes a little monotonous when Yuvanashva gets married and longs for children, the attempts he makes to get children and the way they take a visit to the Ileshwara temple and the rituals they follow to get children. Sometimes, the concepts explained and the linking to people in the past with the king also needs a little improvisation, it gets a little tough to understand at times. However; a great read to understand the concept of he "Law of Nature".

While the cousins fought the war of Kurukshetra, Shilavati was busy making her son a King and the King sulked if he is a mother or father of Mandatta while Jayantha silently watched the dissatisfied souls around him. While Yuvanashva drowned in his own thoughts of knowing if anybody else other than him had enjoyed the pleasure of being a man and a woman.
Everybody born has to undergo their shares of deeds,be it a king or a king-maker. It's all about the game of Yama and Kama, it's all about the deeds and misdeeds, it's all about balancing things. It's ultimately the "LAW OF NATURE"  and the path to Salvation.

So is Yuvanashva a mother or a father?

Book Review - Jaya - Devdutt Pattanaik

The tales of the great epic Mahabharata retold in a form which can be understood be every reader. Being passionate about Bhagavadgeetha and Mahabharata for a very long time now; picking this book certainly made me fall in love with the epic again. Doing justice to every book he writes is the style of this author is what I have known after reading this piece of his work. Every tale has been depicted in a way which allows the reader to draw his own perceptions about every character of Mahabharata.

The illustrations, a blend of Zentangle and Madhubani art forms is another interesting aspect to the book. An effort of introducing the reader to various other versions of Mahabharata has been done along with the drawings of the family lines to get a better understanding of the Kuru and Yadu clan respectively. Helping the reader understand the difference between the emotions and Karma has been written with great ease.

My personal favorite chapter in the whole book is the, “Draupadi admits a secret”. Despite having everything with her, the leading lady of the epic could not be satisfied by even the most powerful Bhima or the most handsome Nakula because of the truth that was hidden deep inside her heart. The concept of questioning her chastity comes into the picture and how the guilt in the sub-conscious mind comes in the form of tears and then gets wiped away. So, in simple terms, chastity and honesty are two different faces of the same coin and the one who stands by Dharma performing the Karma without any expectations at all times is the one who gets closer to the Universe.

Every human-being born will have their treasure of secrets closely hidden in their heart. So did Satyavati, Kunti and Gandhari also had a lot of secrets but why was Draupadi cleansed of that guilt? Why did Kunti lose Karna and Gandhari all her children? This still leaves me perplexed.

Though it is a little difficult to understand it right at the first read, we may have to go back and re-read a few sentences again to understand the depth of the emotion and the character.

Yada yada hi dharmasya glanirbhavati bharata, Abhythanamadharmasya tadatmanam srijamyaham!