With the recent Taliban take over of Afghanistan and the violence this area has endured over the centuries, took me back to all that I have read about these geographical locations in the Puranas and the mahakavyas.
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| Taliban Recruit |
Does the past tell us the tale of the future?
In Mahabharata, the present day Afghanistan was the Gandhara kingdom.
This kingdom was established by Sri Rama's brother, Bharatha.
Gandhara plays a major role in the events leading upto the Great battle and eventually the Srimad Bhagavad Geeta.
And in the context of Mahabharata, Gandhari, queen mother of Kauravas and wife of blind king Dhritarashtra was the princess of Gandhara kingdom. And her brother Shakuni was the prince of Gandhara.
It is said in jain texts that before marrying the Kuru King, Gandhari had symbolically married a goat to avert a curse that her spouse would have a shortened life.
And later when Pitahmah Bheeshma comes to know that his nephew Dhritarashtra had married a widow. It was considered as an insult to Kuru clan on purpose by King of Gandhara, Subala, father of Gandhari.
He waged a war against Gandhara for the insult, destroying the kingdom and imprisoning the king and princes. Only one Prince survives - Shakuni.
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| Shakuni |
After reestablishing his kingdom and giving the reigns of the kingdom to his son, Uluka, he migrates to Hastinapuri, capital city of Kuru kingdom.
He becomes a confidant and advisor of his nephew, the mighty Duryodhana.
But at his core was his burning rage seeking revenge for the misery his family was subjected to by the Kuru clan.
And thus, he plotted tactical destruction of the Kuru clan by orchestrating the Mahabharata battle; where brothers of Kuru clan fought each other. The battle consumed 100 Kaurava princes and 1 Pandu prince (Karna).
Upon learning very late in the battle, of this revenge saga, which had taken the lives of her 90 sons at that time, Gandhari curses Shakuni that his kingdom of Gandhara will never be a place of harmony ever.
Shakuni is killed on the 18th (last) day of the battle by Sahadeva.
Now let's see if this curse has stood the test of time ?
For example, every invader during the medieval period eyeing India had to pass thru the region of modern day Afghanistan. And the local kingdom was invariably subdued. Which in its wake brought violence and destruction.
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| Genghis Khan |
The list of invaders over the period of centuries who have laid claim to area around Afghanistan include Alexander the great, Soviet union, America.
But one invader stands out, Genghis Khan and the Mongol empire. The brutality the Mongolian invaders inflicted on the region would come back to haunt their descendents, the Hazaras the oppressed Afghan minority who are believed to be descendents of Genghis Khan.
The whole area of modern day Afganistan, Pakistan and Kashmir have multiple historical references in puranic and vedic literature.
One other epic from Hindu scriptures mention that this region was inhabited by the Naga clan (descendants of Serpent) soon after Mahabharata war.
Led by serpent king Takshak and the place was called Takshashilla, modern day PoK.
King Parikshith, grandson of Arjuna was cursed (not going into the backstory) to be killed by snakebite. And it was Takshak who fulfilled the curse. King Parikshith's son Janamejaya vows to seek revenge. He vows to exterminate all the Nagas from the face of the Earth and begins massacring of the Nagas at Takshashila. This was called the Sarpa Satra or the serpent sacrifice.
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| Sarpa satra |
This onslaught was so violent and fierce that the powerful Takshak had to seek refuge with Lord Indra.
This blind rage of violence was brought to a halt when there was truce brokered between Takshak and Kuru King by lord Indra.
So here the point is historically this region has not known peace. As if the curse is fulfilling it's prophecy. And is continuing even in modern era like a sarpa dosha that refuses to leave that geographical location.
Sometimes it's just impossible to ignore what we assimilate from these great scriptures. Having had the great fortune to have read some of these litrature, I strongly believe that key to the future of human race is in these scriptures. Just like Ernico Fermi, we just need to unlock the right lock.
