Brihannada (Arjuna) drives Uttar’s chariot towards the front. After traveling a short distance, the two behold a gigantic Kuru army, full of elephants, horses, and chariots, and counting among its ranks warriors like Karna, Duryodhana, Bhishma, Kripacharya, and Drona.
On seeing this large Kuru army, the prince of Matsya loses his confidence and fears for his life. One could say that built upon the songs of bards and palace hyperbole, his courage proves soft and withers away when confronted by reality. But isn’t it courageous enough, to be a child of thirteen or fourteen years and to approach the battlefield? Noting that the belligerence demanded of the prince at an early age is tantamount to what we might today consider as coming from a culture of toxic masculinity, our judgment of him ought to be more nuanced than Arjuna’s, who, while withholding the prince from abandoning the battlefield, summons his manliness.
What must have been humorous for those following this story in earlier times is the scenario of a eunuch giving a reminder of masculinity, or the later erumpent masculinity of this very eunuch. We the moderns cannot, and should not, find any humour here.
Seeing the argumentation between the prince and the eunuch—which involves the prince running away from his chariot and the eunuch forcibly bringing him back—senior members of the Kuru army begin to suspect that the eunuch is none other than Arjuna. This prospect delights Duryodhana, for if Arjuna is conclusively recognized, the Pandavas shall have to repeat their twelve-year exile.
Arjuna becomes the warrior and Uttar becomes the charioteer. Not confident of the strength of Uttar’s weapons, Arjuna directs him towards the tree on top of which the Pandavas’ weapons are hidden. After he obtains the weapons, Uttar’s curiosity mounts and he assails Arjuna with a slew of questions regarding the weapons. Arjuna then reveals his identity to him.
Armed to the hilt, Arjuna approaches the battlefield and blows a conch shell. The Kuru army is a bit confused by this, for what they face now is the sole chariot that earlier seemed to have abandoned the battlefield. Most of them fear that Arjuna is the one inside it. Duryodhana then reminds everyone that irrespective of who is inside the chariot, the Kuru army has to fight. Karna agrees, relishing the prospect of a possible fight with Arjuna. He announces that he will kill his rival.
Kripa then admonishes Karna for overconfidence, reminding him of Arjuna’s achievements in previous battles. The sage also gives another take on ‘manliness’, something that seems to be a focus in this section of the Mahabharata: ‘What manliness is there in tying a giant rock around one’s neck, binding oneself, and then trying to swim across the ocean?’ Then Asvatthama chips in, telling Karna that there is no manliness is boasting, and goes on to add that the Kurus came here to fight Matsya, nor Arjuna. The decision, though, taken by Bhishma and Drona, is to fight.
Tanuj Solanki
Twitter @tanujsolanki
The writer is reading the unabridged Mahabharata