Jaya : An Illustrated Retelling of the Mahabharata

Jaya : An Illustrated Retelling of the Mahabharata

by Devdutt Pattanaik


Jaya or Spiritual Victory as the essence of the Mahabharata is often lost while telling and retelling of the tale. We tend to oversimplify the complex plot, motives, consequences and the conflict between desire and destiny. Also, because of the message of Karma, we have been led to believe in destiny more than desire. Human beings are master of their own desires and their actions determine their destiny. Hence, we are not as bound by fate as we believe.

This retelling of the epic by Devdutt Pattanaik is a magnificent attempt at simplifying the philosophical underpinnings of the stories and the characters narrated without oversimplifying. Stories and anecdotes collected from different parts of India and South –East Asia provide a richness and accessibility to the often retold and interpreted tale.

Despite the explanations of symbols and their possible meanings and the knowledge of the storyline, the book retains its simple charm and remains spell binding throughout. The themes explored here e.g. the meaning of Civilization, exploitation of Earth and its appeal to Vishnu the Preserver to sustain life on Earth express contemporary concerns.Also, the wisdom contained here transcends the constraints of time, history and people. Truly, the narrative embodies the following as a fact :-

“ Whatever exists is found here
Whatever is not here does not exist”.

Book Review : The Finkler Question

The Finkler Question

by Howard Jacobson

“Howard Jacobson's laugh-out-loud exploration of Jewishness, The Finkler Question, last night became the first unashamedly comic novel to win the Man Booker prize in its 42-year history.” --- Mark Brown, The Guardian

A comic novel yes, but not a comedy. This book raises serious issues about our identities in a rapidly changing world and the conflicts that transcend boundaries with warmth, compassion and comic turns of phrases. Julian Treslove has two Jewish friends –Finkler and Libor. Both of them are more successful than Julian who impersonates people because he does not look like anyone. Finkler and Libor have been recently widowed. Julian can’t be widowed since he is not married. Finkler represents Jewishness to Julian who wants to be a Jew but Finkler though a Jew feels ashamed if not self hating. The entire conflict of Julian’s life who has always been a loser is tragic- comic rather than comic.

The male bonding is nice where each of them share their thoughts. The book portrays the whole gamut of emotions from empathy to envy. The comedy of life has some dark thoughts to impart and finds tragedy lurking at each corner, almost literally. The conflicts inherent in the lives of people from different backgrounds and histories make for a dark canvas . The insights and conflicts are very real and turn terrifying towards the end of the book.

The book is eminently readable but it is not for those who feel comedy means mindlessness or lightness. Comedy can be used to bring forward our darkest emotions in a palatable way. The Finkler Question is subtle, comic and yet hard hitting.