Disorienting Dharma: Ethics and the Aesthetics of Suffering in the Mahabharata (AAR Religions in Translation)

277 Pages·2012·1.99 MB·English

by  Emily T. Hudson

Disorienting Dharma
RELIGIONS IN TRANSLATION
SERIES EDITOR
Anne Monius, Harvard Divinity School
A Publication Series of
The American Academy of Religion
and
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Edited by Heina Kimmerle DISORIENTING DHARMA
Translated by James Duke and Jack Forstman Ethics and the Aesthetics of Suff ering in the
THE STUDY OF STOLEN LOVE Mah ā bh ā rata
Translated by David C. Buck and K. Emily T. Hudson
Paramasivam
Disorienting
Dharma
E thics and the A esthetics of S uffering
in the M ahā bh ā rata
z

EMILY T. HUDSON

1
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Hudson, Emily T.
Disorienting dharma : ethics and the aesthetics of suff ering in the mahabharata / Emily T. Hudson.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-19-986076-0 (alk. paper) — ISBN 978-0-19-986078-4 (pbk. : alk. paper)
1. Mahabharata—Criticism, interpretation, etc. 2. Dharma. 3. Suff ering—Religious
aspects—Hinduism. I. Title.
BL1138.26.H83 2013
294.5′923046—dc23 2012019813
1 3 5 7 9 8 6 4 2
Printed in the United States of America
on acid-free paper
Special thanks to Laurie Patton and Anne Monius whose guid-
ance and support made this project possible. This book is dedi-
cated to my husband, Parimal Patil, and to Wendy Doniger’s
Mah ā bh ā rata class that brought us together.
So, then, hear from me in full the news of the slaughter of
the horses, elephants, and kings of immeasurable splendor
in the battle. And while you are listening to what hap-
pened in the great war that gave rise to the destruction of
all the world, remain calm and do not despair, O king.
—sam·jaya to dhr·tarā·s·tra, 5.156.12–13
Contents
Introduction: The Aesthetics of Suff ering in the Mah ā bh ā rata 3
What Is the M ah ā bh ā rata ? 8
The Aesthetics of Suff ering 27
Two Central Concepts: D harma and D uḥkha 35
Chapter Overview 47
1 . Meaning-Without-Saying: The Implicit Literary Theory
of the Mah ā bh ā rata 50
Sanskrit Literary Theory: Ānandavardhana’s Concept
of Dhvani and His Reading of the M ah ā bh ā rata 51
Reader-Response Theory 61
Narrative Ethics 65
The Implicit Literary Theory of the M ah ā bh ā rata 69
2 . Dharma and Rupture in the Game of Dice 74
Summary of the Episode of the Dice Game 75
Proximity and Estrangement in the Episode of the Dice
Game 77
The Depiction of Draupadī in the Dice Game 97
Dharma and Rupture in the Game of Dice 100
Conclusion 104
3 . The Eyesight of Insight: Dhṛ tar ā ṣ ṭ ra and Moral Blindness 106
Dh ṛ tar ā ṣ ṭ ra’s “When I heard . . . ” Dirge: The Lament
as Summary 109
Dh ṛ tar ā ṣ ṭ ra’s Role in the Failed Peace Negotiations 116
Sa ṃ jaya Narrates the Battle Events to the Blind King 122
viii Contents
The End of the War and the Moment of Advice:
Three Arguments Against Grief 131
Conclusion 141
Postscript 143
4 . Time That Ripens and Rots All Creatures 146
Two Theories of Time: Y ugas and K ā lav ā da 148
Narrative Strategies of Temporal Manipulation: Consuming,
Dismissing, Collapsing, and Stretching Time 164
Conclusion 176
5 . Heaven’s Riddles or the Hell Trick: Theodicy
and Narrative Strategies 178
Fate and Human Exertion in the Game of Dice 180
Karma and Suff ering 189
K ṛ ṣ ṇ a the Enigmatic Deity 198
Heaven’s Riddles or the Hell Trick:
The Two Conclusions of the M ah ā bh ā rata 205
Conclusion 216
Conclusion: Dharma and Suff ering 218
Appendix : Glossary of Characters 225
Bibliography 2 27
Index 249
Disorienting Dharma