Mahabharat: Vyasa Narrates a New Tale

Somewhere in Kailasa (where there is no concept of time)

It was family time for Shiva and Parvathi with their sons Ganesha and Murugan. Vyasa walked in bristling with energy and looked as if he had a new tale to narrate. Ganesha expectantly got ready with his laptop. Vyasa bowed to Shiva and Parvathi and Shiva gave him a 'knowingly smile' as if he knew the tale that Vyasa was about to narrate.

To lay readers one must inform that Vyasa was the one who dictated Maha Bharata and Ganesha was the one who wrote it. There were conditionalities and which was that Vyasa cannot stop his narration and likewise Ganesha cannot stop writing and write with understanding. If you have noticed that one tusk of Ganesha was broken; it was because, in those times, the writing tool broke while writing and Ganesha broke one of his tusks to continue the writing. Such was the dedication seen only in the rendering of the judgement and charge sheets filed these days with a copious number of pages. But it was a different matter if one where to ask if anybody understood the charge sheet or the judgement.

Vyasa began recalling that original conditionalities remain and Ganesha nodded. Vyasa said as you know Ganesha Mahabharata is timeless. No one can ask did Mahabharat ever happened. It is happening even today in 2020. It happens in the family, in the corporate sector, in the polity and I am sure you understand that the story itself is a timeless metaphor for things. I am here to narrate a side tale that happened in the great land that we call Bharat or Hindustan. Or these days one prefers to call it the Ram Rajya.

No one could have started a tale of this kind better than Charles Dickens. He began a tale with the words “It was the best of times and it was the worst of times.” To paraphrase him I would say 2020 was at best a most confusing time. Like the 2020 game of cricket, there were heroes and zeroes, some caught it big and some caught it with butterfingers. Some hit sixes and some got hit for a six. Some bowled and some got bowled over. Despite COVID that IPL happened goes on to prove that this was just not about cricket but something bigger. The national pride was involved. That Bharat can do it. So, what if the economy was in the doldrums. So, what if the pandemic refuses to go away. One should recall here that the great PM had announced that COVID would be defeated in three weeks like the Mahabharat war. It was a different point that the same PM now talks about adjusting lifestyle to suit COVID. The recession has struck but yet some people see green shoots. One has to go green with envy admiring their vision.

When the pandemic began elsewhere the Bharat ignored it. And when it struck, the PM struck too what with such awesome force he declared a lockdown of a 1 plus billion populated country with just four-hour notice. Not all could get away with the sudden tsunami in their life. Migrants paid a heavy price. They were there on the roads, on the railway track, on their bicycles. Yet the government told the supreme court that migrants are not there on the road and the court believed it. Such was the situation that justices hid behind their benches.

As the PM was fond of saying minimum governance with maximum impact. People took the time to understand that impact was on the negative side. But yet people still think that PM was an honourable man. Nobody but he can rule the country. It was a situation of total scarcity of leadership.

Yet all was not lost. There arose a colossus by the name of Banar Amigos. As his surname suggests he was friendly with a certain kind of leanings. He had a unique vision in that he was the correct vision. He identified with India totally although only some in the country identified with him. he was always fond of saying that India wants to know whenever he had a question. Not that if he were to ask a question, he would let you answer. He was born with an AK-47 in his tongue and he could fire like one. He was the much-needed respite that the country needed.

A little over a month before 2020 got initiated a comical drama got enacted out in a state with a coastal capital. Elections got held but the coalition got divided about the ‘CM-ship’ power-sharing between the coalition. In unearthly hours President signed an ordinance and the governor held a swearing ceremony in the wee hours of the morning that the citizens got flummoxed totally and said Chanakya has truly well arrived. But before they could complete the sentence the new CM who was a few days old put in his papers and another coalition came to power riding on a chieftain with a synonymous surname to power. This time the CM was a Marathi Manu and as the saying goes in Marathi you cannot mess with a Marathi Manu. That was precisely what Banar did to his detriment. Marathi Manu thought that the moves of Banar were definitely ‘un-amigos.’

The situation was getting complex day by day as 2020 ushered in. This coastal state and the centre did not see eye to eye and Banar’s vision was aligned with that of the centre. So, the Marathi Manu and Banar like two snipers saw each other in their cross-vision and sniping at each other. Now Banar was a self-styled media hero and it was better to be on his right side. But Marathi Manu thought otherwise and a situation arose when Marathi Manu decided to flex his muscles and displayed his police power.

The justices who were hiding behind the benches in the coastal capital refused to bail out Banar. But Banar was not the one to be cowed down for he had the same vision of that of the power centre. His friend’s circle of the saffron colour cried foul. They said liberty was at stake. You cannot threaten media this way. It was a moot point that those who sit in the glasshouse cannot throw stones at someone else. But to people heady with power this does not make sense.

Banar then appealed to the Supreme Court as Article 32 of the constitution has made proviso for individuals to appeal to the Supreme court should their liberty be threatened. Then a miracle unfolded and that too within a week. Normally any court matter takes a yug (era) in the state of Bharat. But for Banar it was like the sea retreating in Biblical times for Moses. The case was listed for hearing in the Supreme Court and the judges decided to come out of hiding and sat on their benches and pronounced their judgement. Never mind that there are thousands of more important cases were pending in the SC or that Banar’s case was not the first one to impinge on individual liberty.

Vyasa said that this judgement was so unique that it came about rediscovering the individual rights of liberty that I am quoting the judgement verbatim for the sake of record.

“liberty across human eras is as tenuous as tenuous can be. Liberty survives by the vigilance of her citizens (Banar, italics mine), on the cacophony of the media (yet again Banar) and in the dusty corridors of courts alive to the rule of (and not by) law. The bench expressed anguish that the Coastal city High Court abdicated its constitutional duty by declining relief to Banar.”

Thus, liberty got rescued by Banar Amigows much to the delight of the citizens of Bharat when a million others (common man, activists, liberals, anti-nationals, Khan Market gang, lawyers) could not do so.

May the almighty give you the strength to protect liberty. May the Centre build another statue of liberty in your honour, Banner Amigos. Let the fund required to be sourced from crowdfunding from the bhakts or PM CARES. After all, PM does care especially for those who share his vision.

Thus, Vyasa ended his tale and asked Ganesha “got it?”

Murugan who was no less a God as Ganesha asked his mother and father “what a tale. I did not get head or tail out of this tale. Do you think Ganesha cracked it?”

Shiva smiled and said “minimum governance with maximum impact. PM hai toh munkim hai.” The family together with Vyasa had a laughing time.