Subramaniam: The story of Bhishma and Amba

[rachelmanija]

I have now been convinced to pony up for the unanimously recommended Ramesh Menon version. When I obtain it, I will re-start from the beginning with it, so I can get in some comparative analysis. For now, I am continuing my re-read of the Subramaniam version.

Last night I flipped ahead and read the chapters about Karna before the battle of Kurukshetra, his meetings with Surya, Indra, Krishna, and Kunti. No matter how many times I read it, in whatever version (though I do think Subramaniam does a particularly good job with that section) the conversation with Krishna always makes me cry.

By the way, I probably won't do any heavy analysis until other people have read a bit more, or the people who already have gain the ability to comment. (Sorry, rparvaaz! I don't know why you can't comment, but we will figure this out yet!)

Chapter Five: The Swayamvara at Kasi

In which there is revenge by means of gender-switching.



A swayamvara is a way for princesses to get a husband, in which princes gather for some kind of tournament or assembly, and she takes the winner or picks her favorite. At least, that's what's supposed to happen.

Bhishma, as you will recall, is now the guardian and regent of his step-brother, the crown prince, his father's son by the perfumed fisherwoman. When he hears that a swayamvara is being held for the three princess sisters, Amba, Ambika, and Ambalika, he attends it to win them for his brother. Bhishma beats another contestant, the king of Salva, and takes the princesses back to Hastinapur.

But when he gets there, the oldest princess, Amba, tells him that she had already chosen the king of Salva, but didn't have a chance to say so before she was grabbed and carried away. Bhishma and the prince tell Amba she is free to go to Salva. But alas! When she gets there, the king refuses her because he's a jerk he would be humiliated by accepting a bride another man rightfully won. He tells her to go back and marry Bhishma.

Poor Amba goes back to Hastinapur and tells Bhishma that he has to marry her, because no one else will have her and the life of a spinster princess clearly sucks-- no children, no status, no nothing. The life that Bhishma chose for himself as a bachelor won't work for a woman, because the only way she can do the equivalent of what he does, as the power behind the throne, is by being the mother or wife of someone powerful. Bhishma feels sorry for her, but not enough to break his oath. He suggests that she return to Salva and have another go at talking him into marrying her. Ouch.

Subramaniam here just says that Amba becomes consumed with hatred of Bhishma, but in other versions, she can't decide who is more at fault, Salya or Bhishma, and asks Bhishma's guru for advice on the matter. The guru (here called Bhargava, but more commonly known as Parasurama) thinks the root cause of her dilemma was Bhishma, and agrees to ask Bhishma to marry her. Bhishma refuses. I think this is the point where Amba forgets about Salya and starts hating Bhishma, and I can't blame her.

Parasurama fights a duel with Bhishma over this, and they fight for days and days, until finally Bhishma tries to use an astra (magical weapon) which would destroy the world (!) and the Gods stop the duel. Parasurama says to Amba, "Sorry, I did my best."

Incidentally, there is another swayamvara of significance in the book, which is Draupadi's; I find it interesting that in neither case does the subsequent marriage go ahead as the outcome of the swayamvara indicated: Draupadi was intended to marry Arjuna alone, not all five brothers; Amba didn't get to take the man she chose, but was kidnapped by Bhishma after she had already chosen another. It is only when the woman is unhappy with the outcome that it has terrible consequences.

Chapter Six: Amba's Thirst for Revenge

Amba begins performing austerities to gain a boon from the Gods. This is the one area where men and women have equal power: not only Amba, but Kunti gains divine boons through austerities, and, as we will see later, Gandhari also gains power that way although she didn't tie on her blindfold with that aim in mind.

Amba gets a magical garland which will enable the wearer to kill Bhishma. I am not sure why she doesn't wear it herself, other than that human women fighting men physically was Just Not Done in those times. (Demon women could do so.) Or maybe becuase Bhishma had vowed not to fight a woman. Anyway, no will agree to wear it, so she finally throws it around a pillar in the palace of King Drupada, who will become important later.

Amba goes back to doing penances, and finally Shiva appears and tells her that she will kill Bhishma in her next life. She tells him that won't be satisfying, because she won't know why she's doing it. Shiva promises her that she will remember her life as Amba, and that she will be born female but will later become a man. Eager to commence her revenge, Amba immolates herself.

She is reborn as the daughter of King Drupada, and puts on the garland herself, which had been left hanging on the pillar because everyone was scared to touch it. There's a whole story which maybe Subramaniam will tell later in which the princess (now called Sikhandi) is raised as a man, but gets engaged to a princess which causes an uproar, and that's when Sikhandi switches genders with a Yaksha (a supernatural being) and becomes a man.

I have to say, Bhishma and Amba/Sikhandi have a lot in common with the crazy/noble determination.