03-09-2005, 03:34 AM
Parsuram wrote
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->This is an unusual thread to be having this discussion, but I'll bite .
First, it is indeed very proper that the Mahabharat (and Ramayan) form a backdrop to discussions of war in an Indian context. Next, because matters of justifications, compulsions etc. have come up (in regard to a march to war), it is very important to draw certain distinctions. The most important of these relate to Karma (governing personal morality and actions) and Dharma (relating to broader conduct & actions of the State and society). The two are distinct (in an ideal world of hindu myth, as envisioned at its inception, ie 'satya yug', the two were congruent, but diverged as the universe ran down thru dvapar, treta and now, kali yuga). It is under Dharma, that nitis such as those of Chanakya and others have been propounded for the conduct of State policy (including war). All those nitis or rules speak of lying, deceit, other subterfuge etc. as instruments of State policy. Thus, there is debate over whether Yudhishtra's walk through hell (consequent to his lying during the war), is a later addition to the epic so as to confirm to karmic principles, because that "lying" in the conduct of war was eminantly according to dharma (since it was not motivated by any personal desire, but by his responsibilies as King & commander of his armies). The war was not a Karmic, but a Dharmic struggle- "Kurukshetra, Dharmakshetra"... begining of the Gita).
There is another uniquely Indian context to the Mahabharat war. From before and since that war, Indian polity has been possessed of divergent impulses, causing India to oscillate between a strong unified State and a collection of Balkanized States. Yudhishtra and the Pandavs represented the forces of unification, while Duryodhan and the Kauravas were driven by a desire to establish a multiplicy of States (shades of Nehru & Jinnah here). however, my main point is that hindu traditions in India are not just compatible with, but actively prescribe war as a part of Dharma, or societal law.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->This is an unusual thread to be having this discussion, but I'll bite .
First, it is indeed very proper that the Mahabharat (and Ramayan) form a backdrop to discussions of war in an Indian context. Next, because matters of justifications, compulsions etc. have come up (in regard to a march to war), it is very important to draw certain distinctions. The most important of these relate to Karma (governing personal morality and actions) and Dharma (relating to broader conduct & actions of the State and society). The two are distinct (in an ideal world of hindu myth, as envisioned at its inception, ie 'satya yug', the two were congruent, but diverged as the universe ran down thru dvapar, treta and now, kali yuga). It is under Dharma, that nitis such as those of Chanakya and others have been propounded for the conduct of State policy (including war). All those nitis or rules speak of lying, deceit, other subterfuge etc. as instruments of State policy. Thus, there is debate over whether Yudhishtra's walk through hell (consequent to his lying during the war), is a later addition to the epic so as to confirm to karmic principles, because that "lying" in the conduct of war was eminantly according to dharma (since it was not motivated by any personal desire, but by his responsibilies as King & commander of his armies). The war was not a Karmic, but a Dharmic struggle- "Kurukshetra, Dharmakshetra"... begining of the Gita).
There is another uniquely Indian context to the Mahabharat war. From before and since that war, Indian polity has been possessed of divergent impulses, causing India to oscillate between a strong unified State and a collection of Balkanized States. Yudhishtra and the Pandavs represented the forces of unification, while Duryodhan and the Kauravas were driven by a desire to establish a multiplicy of States (shades of Nehru & Jinnah here). however, my main point is that hindu traditions in India are not just compatible with, but actively prescribe war as a part of Dharma, or societal law.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->