Many years back, when I visited the National Museum in Delhi, one of the images that I was most impressed by, was the Surya from Konark. I remember being rooted to the ground as I stood in front of the sculpture, admiring every detail, simply unable to walk away. There are various ideas of where the sculpture was placed in the temple, but wherever it was placed, there is no question that it would have drawn all eyes. I remember wondering back then, if this single sculpture was so impressive, how much more impressive the temple would have been! The first thing that struck me about the Konark temple during my first visit, was its size. I have seen huge ancient temples before – the Brihadeeshwara temple and the Kandariya Mahadev temple, to name just two. However, Konark was something else. It was awe-inspiring to even think of just how much larger the original temple would have been, with its main spire intact. So many years later, on my second visit, the size was still impressive, bu...
Arjuna, in the Mahabharata, is described as the Nara to Krishna’s Narayana. In the entire epic, if Krishna is the one who wields the strings, albeit behind the scenes, it is Arjuna who is in the forefront of the story. It is he who is the most loved among the Pandavas, and it is his story Anuja Chandramouli seeks to relate, in her book by the same name.
She begins her story at the same place Veda Vyasa did – with Janamejaya’s sacrifice, and his quest to know more about his ancestors. However, instead of the epic in its entirety, she chooses to focus on Arjuna alone. However, Arjuna, for all his heroism and stature, cannot be separated from the Mahabharata.
Therefore, Anuja has no choice but to relate events happening around him, which makes it into yet another rendition of one of the greatest of Indian epics.
On the positive side, the author manages to hold on to her narrative, through the book, though she frequently delves into the past, or peeks into the future, to explain events in the present. In fact, her narrative is what carries the book through, since it’s a story most of us know well. That she manages to introduce some surprises, in the form of less known events and happenings, simply adds to her credit.
The writing is good, as is the language, but on the downside, the book reads like an essay, a simple retelling of the story, especially in the beginning. It took me quite a while to get past the first few chapters, and a spelling or proofing error I found didn’t help matters either. It took the story of Uloopi and Babhruvahana to get me interested in the book, and read through to the end.
To clarify, I found only one spelling or proofing error on Pg.70, but sometimes, even one can be one too many.
The best thing I can say about the book is that Anuja Chandramouli brings us a story we know well, adding some details many might not know. It is this which makes the book worth a read.
This book was sent to me for review by Leadstart Publishing. The views expressed are my own.
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