Rājadharma through birds and animals in Śānti Parva
Author(s): Jayadevi Prakash
Abstract: [All of us on the planet Earth see birds, animals and insects around us. But, most of us do not have time to notice their nature and behaviour. Specialists such as Zoologists trace and record the characteristic features of the birds and animals. But, the common man today is least bothered about them. Several ancient texts such as Viṣṇu Śarma’s Pañcatantra and Guṇāḍhya’s Bṛhadkathā have tried to explore the characteristic features of the birds and animals through numerous stories. For these fables, several early texts such as Vedas and Epics sowed the seed in advance. It is very interesting to know that in the ancient days, sages and hermits not only constructed their dwelling in the place where birds and animals lived, but also noticed their general and special behaviour. By doing so, they could naturally connect their behaviour with the basic facts of life. It is even more interesting to know that apart from the basic facts of life, the nature of these creatures had been wonderfully synched with the Rājadharma too. In this article, I shall be concentrating on how Bhīṣma while advising Yudhiṣ ṭhira on Rājadharma, teaches him the principles through analogies drawn from the behaviour of the fauna.]
