Mahabharata: Law of Fishes

By Indrajit Bandyopadhyay

"Matsyanyaya" is an ancient Indian word that connotes roughly "Law of Fishes." "Law of Fishes" means a System of Fishes in which Big-Fishes kill Small-Fishes at will for Food or for Pleasure. It is a Struggle for Existence for the Small Fish which is less in Power to the Big Fish. It has to survive with Policy. Then there is the Fisherman who is apparently 'outside' the System, but in fact, very much part of it. The Matsyanyaya Imagery is actually an Imagery of Power and is a part of our Existential Reality. In this book I will show how Mahabharata exemplifies that System through the Kuru-Pandava political war. The Pandavas are the Small Fish, and it is Krishna who take their side to suggest and implement Policy that ultimate enable the Pandavas to defeat the Big Fish Kauravas. However, there is more to the Imagery. It is also a Spiritual Imagery. Krishna shows how one needs to be "Fisherman" in both Internal-External Reality to win in the battle of Survival. That is Vyasa's central message in Mahabharata.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: May 2, 2012
• ISBN: 9781105717147

Book preview

Mahabharata: Law of Fishes

Mahabharata: Law of Fishes

Indrajit Bandyopadhyay

Copyright © 2012 Indrajit Bandyopadhyay

All rights reserved.

ISBN:  978-1-105-71714-7

Dedication

I dedicate this work to the lotus feet of my father Tarun Kumar Banerjee and mother Pampa Banerjee

Acknowledgment:

I have taken all translations of Mahabharata from translations by Kisari Mohan Ganguli [published between 1883 and 1896] available at . However, I have occasionally discarded the archaic usages.

I have taken all transcriptions from GRETIL - Göttingen Register of Electronic Texts in Indian Languages and related Indological materials from Central and Southeast Asia .

I am a member of Mahabharata Study Group at , and I am especially indebted to the group.       

I am indebted to Mahabharata Resources .

Content

Preface

1. Fish-Imagery in Mahabharata

2. Matsyanyayam at Self-level, Social and Rashtriya Level, and Cosmic Matsyanyayam

3. Fisherman-Imagery in Mahabharata

4. Matsyanyayam, Fisherman: a model

5. Krshna's death, Vrshnis-Andhakas destruction, and the Fisherman Kala-Time

6.Conclusion

7. Reference

8. About the Author

Preface

In this book, I will argue that Mahabharata – the Text as we have it today - is primarily a discourse on Power, and Matsyanyayam is the central imagery of that discourse, defining it and representing it, and also acting as a metaphor of both structure and content of the Text.    

The concept has its root and seed in RgVeda. In RV-7.18.6, Rsi Vashishtha (Vyasa’s forefather) compares Turvasho Purola’s urge to win wealth with ‘fishes urged by hunger.’

In Mahabharata, Arjuna (12.15)[i], Bhiishma (12.67), and Brhaspati (12.68) speak of Matsyanyayam to describe anarchic state and speak for the necessity of an ideal king like Indra, Danda, and the king’s role as Dandadhara. Kautilya too – obviously influenced by Mahabharata[ii] - speaks of Matsyanyayam (1.4.13, 1.13.5) in similar vein and most importantly, he sees the blending of duties of Indra and Yama in an ideal king (1.13.10-12).

Arjuna is arthashastraviSharadah (12.161.9), one lesser noticed and often ignored, if not completely overlooked side of his character, and Kautilya’s political ideas are in Arthashastra that also mentions Brhaspati – implying a connection between Matsyanyayam and Arthashastra. Thus, the ideal king’s role too has connection with Artha.

Bhiishma explicitly connects anarchy-Matsyanyayam with Adharma,[iii] and Brhaspati is dharmarthakamanam kushalah (12.104.6), that is, one with balanced pursuit of Purusharthas. Brhaspati regards King as the root of all men’s Dharma - rajamuulo maharaja dharmo lokasya lakShyate, and that people devour each other like fishes if the king does not protect - yadi raja na palayet (12.68.8-14). Subjects ‘eat’ each other - praja rajabhayad eva na khadanti parasparam (12.68.8), and Powerful kills the Weak - hareyur balavanto hi durbalanam parigrahan (12.68.14). The Ideal King is like a shepherd (12.68.13).

Thus in the ideal king’s role, Artha must be connected with Dharma.

Brhaspati’s discourse clarifies that Matsyanyayam and Food are imagery of Power, and ‘eating’ signifies the Powerful’s exercise of Power over Powerless.

Food and ‘eating’ as metaphor for Power is prominently evident in the Indra-Vrtra myth of Satapatha Brahmana that gives a very mystic description of Indra-Vrtra combat in terms of ‘food’. Vrtra, once an ‘eater’, becomes victorious Indra’s ‘food’. As Smith comments nicely on the relation of ‘food’ and Power: ‘you are more than the one you eat and less than the one by whom you are eaten.’[iv]

On Vrtra’s plea, Indra does not kill Vrtra, but divides him in two. From that part of Vrtra which belonged to Soma Indra makes the moon, and that which is demonic, Indra puts into these creatures as their stomach. ‘And whenever these creatures get hungry they pay tribute to this Vrtra, the stomach (SB 1.6.3.17).’

Yajnavalka, the Rsi of Shatapatha Brahmana, sees Vrtra in the waxing moon, which, – also connected with Kala-Time, because the moon’s phases occur in time and with time - thus symbolizes growth of power. The waxing moon seems to be in oblivion of any possibility of waning, evoking the imagery of a power-drunk person oblivious of Kala-Time.

All above taken together suggests – 

Matsyanyayam = (a) Existential Reality of Power involving dominance, hegemony, elimination etc. (b) Survival (c) Relation of Self and Other

Food = Power =Artha

Ideal King = (a) Restrainer of unbridled exercise of animalistic Power, and protector of Durbala against Balavana by means of Danda (b) Preserver of the Power System i.e. Matsyanyayam

Vrtra = (a) Hunger for Food, Artha, Power. (b) Power-drunk Ahamkara oblivious of waning Power in Kala-Time (c) Power that decays with Kala-Time, transforms, but is never completely annihilated (d) Vrtra is not absolute evil; he is a duality – one part is Soma and another part demonic

Indra = (a) Shepherd (b) Superior Power or New Power that brings an end to Old Power; since Indra listens to Vrtra’s prayer, the New Power is compassionate, reminding one the philosophy of Anrshamsyam - the highest Dharma in Mahabharata[v] (c) Ideal King to rein free run of Matsyanyayam

Kala-Time = Ultimate super-power even above Gods, that renders every exercisable and exercised power powerless

Mahabharata is primarily a narrative of Soma dynasty. Vashishtha-Vyasa, Pandava-Indras, Dharma-Yama-Yudhishthira, Danda-Vishnu, Kala-Vishnu-Shiva, the Bhuubharaharana background of Deva-Asura[vi] war, Anrshamsyam as the highest Dharma – in short, the characters, narratives and philosophy of Mahabharata, are then somehow connected and related with Existential Matsyanyayam

In Brhadaranyaka Upanishad, the Rsi states that everything created is destined to be eaten (1.2.5)’[vii] – i.e. everything is subject to Power. Draupadii first points out the Existential Reality of Operation of Power. In her vision Bala, and not God, is Supreme (3.31.41-42).[viii]  She presages Heidegger’s ‘facticity’[ix] and Foucault’s insistence on the superiority of Bala – Power.[x]

Bhiishma points out why power will always be exercised. He narrates a story to Yudhishthira, in which Indra tells KaShyapa how man having attained affluence wants sovereignty, having attained sovereignty wants godhood, and having attaind so wants to be the chief of God (12.173.23-24).

Bhiishma points out a discontent in human nature that propels ambition to seek more and more Power. Translated in terms of Matsyanyayam, it is an Existential Reality that a Small-Fish wants to become Big-Fish and a Big-Fish to become Bigger-Fish.

In RgVeda and Mahabharata, the relation of hunger, power and survival are often brought out and conveyed through more frequent use of other animal imagery and metaphors, which, to keep rhythm with Matsyanyayam, I would specifically and contextually call Pashunyayam[xi], that includes imagery of wolf - Vrkanyayam[xii].

I would, however, extend the concept of Matsyanyayam to include Pashunyayam or Vrkanyayam, and henceforth use Matsyanyayam as a generic and doctrinal term connoting Power System or Relation of Power in extension of its general connotation as anarchy.

An associative and indispensable imagery to the system of fishes is Fisherman – a transcultural imagery[xiii]. Fisherman is an Outsider to Matsyanyayam, and also an Insider in the sense that he subsists on the system and must have