By Sunil Kumar
My review:
मया ततमिदं सर्वं जगदव्यक्तमूर्तिना |
मत्स्थानि सर्वभूतानि न चाहं तेष्ववस्थित: – Bhagavad Gita (9.4)
This entire cosmic manifestation is pervaded by Me in My unmanifest form. All living beings dwell in Me, but I do not dwell in them. One of the many nuggets of wisdom of the divine flute player.
The book ‘Rukmini-Krishna’s wife’ by Smt. Saiswaroopa Iyer was a fascinating read. Lyrical, assertive, contemporary are some of the adjectives I am inclined to use for the narrative.
When the subject of the book is supposed to be the transcendent ‘Shakti’ element or Goddess Laxmi’s incarnation herself as described in many Puranas, words definitely fall short in doing justice to her persona. And when the consort of Rukmini is the Poorna Avatara, one of the most enchanting and enigmatic Gods of the Sanatana Pantheon, the mind of man is rather limited and falls short. It is like using a kite to reach the moon.
Televised depictions of Rukmini apart from cursory readings in many books paint a rather limited picture of her in the mind. The author’s version is not a ‘damsel-in-distress’ or an ever smiling benevolent goddess but a proud, independent woman. We know that Radha and the Vrindavan gopikas play a rather outsized role in the popular imagination but Rukmini deserved a more holistic and complete treatment. She gets that in part in this book.
Indic culture and its aesthetics are open to multiple interpretations. The beauty of the epics and its influence is endless. From writers like Anand Neelkantan and his finely crafted but sometimes vicious take to Amish Tripathi’s uber-cool interpretation or Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni’s lyrical descriptions, this multi-layered ancient world permeated by the purusharthas/dharma can baffle, amaze, beguile or guide.
From Rukmini’s opening salvo at rampant misogyny and male privilege in her father’s court to boldly taking on Dantavakra by herself, her life is a brave odyssey. The author has obviously taken creative license in her depiction as some accounts do not match widespread Puranic narratives. I liked the fact that Rukmini was a brave and cerebral woman in this account and the book does not degenerate into the misandry and hateful diatribes of radical feminism these days. Shishupala and Jarasandha are obviously monsters but there is a certain human element in depicting them despite the temptation of an evil caricature.
When tackling this subject, there has to be a judicious mix of the sacred and the mundane, and characters need to come alive to create a vivid impact in the mind of the reader. From the physical layer of descriptions to the psychological element of love and romance, the social contract of the wedding, the author has done a commendable job. It is the spiritual or transcendent layer that was somewhat lacking in my opinion.
Sri Krishna is not the Supreme Personality of the Gaudiya Vaishnavas or the incarnation of Narayana in contemporary Hinduism, but was a very human, almost frail figure. Satyabhama has also been depicted somewhat differently than the stories of her hauteur and the fact that her father Satrajit gave her hand only after the Syamantaka jewel episode. Pradyumna’s abduction in childhood is also glossed over. The city of Dwarka was described in somewhat sparse detail. The best I have read was Vanamali’s ‘In the Lost City of Sri Krishna’. According to the Mahabharata, Rukmini ascended the funeral pyre after Krishna’s demise along with some queens, while Satyabhama and some others went to the forest for penance.
Her arguments in the Sudharma taking on the ‘boy’s club’ of wizened Yadava elders show that Rukmini is a lady with grit and determination. Any work based on the Epics/Puranas if it is well-crafted leaves me yearning for more. This work on ‘Rukmini’ is most probably a one-off endeavour. Lord Krishna shedding his mortal coil towards the end made me somewhat melancholy. But Sri Krishna was enigmatic and enchanting as usual with the usual dollops of Sringara Rasa that has contributed to his charm in the Indian imagination/aesthetic representation. To conclude, despite some minor flaws, Rukmini was a fast-paced and engaging read.
