The king who jumped into a ravine

In the original epic, Vichitravirya dies of what is today known as tuberculosis. But our folk bard makes an interesting departure.

Readers of the Mahabharata epic are sure to be familiar with the incidents that lead to Bhishma’s vow of celibacy, his kidnapping of the daughters of the King of Kashi and marrying two of them to his step-brother Vichitravirya, after Chitravirya’s death in a battle with a Gandharva. After seven years of sexual indulgence with his two wives, Vichitravirya dies of what is today known as tuberculosis. But our folk bard makes an interesting departure at this point and makes a martyr of the fellow.

The two brothers had married the two sisters, Ambika and Ambalika. When Chitraveera died fighting a Gandharva, the palace was immersed in sorrow. His wife Ambika was inconsolable. The sight of the grieving widow made her mother-in-law, Sugandhini, also extremely sad. Bhishma begged her to control her sorrow and attend to Vichitraveera’s coronation. After this had been accomplished, Bhishma started taking his mother and sister-in-law to the temple of Lord Narayana on top of Bettukote hill, to help them overcome their sorrow. Worshipping the lord and reading holy books did bring them some solace.

But this led to some kind of suspicion in Vichitraveera’s mind. “Why do the three of them keep going to the far away hill-temple? What do they do there?” he wondered. In an evil moment, he decided to spy on them. So, one day, he went up the hill before they did, and remained hidden in the temple, behind the Lord’s statue. Coming to the temple as usual, Bhishma, Sugandhini and Ambika worshipped the Lord and recited the holy scriptures. Bhishma then fell at his mother’s feet and took her blessings. Ambika touched Bhishma’s feet and received his blessings, after which all three of them returned to the palace.

After they had left, Vichitraveera too hurried back to the palace and summoned his minister. Having performed acts of charity and received blessings from the Brahmins, he turned to his minister and said: ‘Honoured sir, I have a doubt. Please clear it. If there is a son, who entertains evil thoughts about his mother, what would be the just punishment for him?’

“Shantam paapam! May we be forgiven the sin of listening to such an account! If such a sinful son does exist, he should go to the top of the hill and jump blindfolded into the ravine below. Even this may not be enough of a punishment.”

Getting up early on a certain day, after he had bathed and finished his morning worship, the king headed towards his ‘Tajmahal’. He fell at the feet of his brother Bhishma and mother Sugandhini and took their blessings. He gave his wife a few words of advice. Unknown to his family and subjects, he climbed the hill and jumped blindfolded into the ravine below.

The author, a retired professor of English, is a well-known theatre and television artiste and an award-winning translator.

Folktales from the Mahabharata is a monthly column that features lesser-known episodes from ‘Janapada Mahabharata’ sung by eminent folk-artiste Bettada Beedu Siddhashetty and published by Dr P K Rajashekara.