The Upside-Down King Read online

  PENGUIN BOOKS

  THE UPSIDE-DOWN KING

  Sudha Murty was born in 1950 in Shiggaon, north Karnataka. She did her MTech in computer science, and is now the chairperson of the Infosys Foundation. A prolific writer in English and Kannada, she has written novels, technical books, travelogues, collections of short stories and non-fictional pieces, and eight bestselling books for children. Her books have been translated into all the major Indian languages. Sudha Murty is the recipient of the R.K. Narayan Award for Literature (2006), the Padma Shri (2006), the Attimabbe Award from the Government of Karnataka for excellence in Kannada literature (2011) and, most recently, the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2018 Crossword Book Awards.

  Also in Penguin by Sudha Murty

  How I Taught My Grandmother to Read and

  Other Stories

  The Magic Drum and Other Favourite Stories

  The Bird with Golden Wings

  Grandma’s Bag of Stories

  The Magic of the Lost Temple

  The Serpent’s Revenge: Unusual Tales from

  the Mahabharata

  The Man from the Egg: Unusual Tales about

  the Trinity

  SUDHA

  MURTY

  THE

  UPSIDE-DOWN

  KING

  Unusual Tales about

  Rama and Krishna

  Illustrations by Priyankar Gupta

  PENGUIN BOOKS

  To Mattur Nandakumara,

  who has worked tirelessly for the preservation of

  Indian culture on foreign soil

  Contents

  Acknowledgements

  Introduction

  RAGHUNANDANAM RAMA

  I. The Solar Dynasty

  1. The Man in the Anthill

  2. A Measurement of Time

  3. From the Heavens to the Earth

  4. The Upside-Down King

  5. The Promise of a Promise

  6. The Tree of Gold

  7. Ravana, the Complex Asura

  8. How Not to Outsmart a God

  9. Hanuman

  10. The Ball of Sand and the Five Witnesses

  11. The Power of a Name

  12. The End of Rama

  13. Time Travel

  14. Ramayana in Different Countries

  KRISHNAM VANDE JAGATGURU

  II. The Lunar Dynasty

  15. The Diamond That Produced Gold

  16. Krishna and His Enemies

  17. Visions of a Blind Grandmother

  18. The Groom in a Dream

  19. Krishna’s Consorts

  20. Three and a Half Diamonds

  21. The Demon Who Spat

  22. The Sage Who Wanted Water

  23. The End of Krishna

  Acknowledgements

  I have known Mattur Nandakumara, or Nanda, for a long time. He is an exceptional person. His admirable detachment from money and passionate attachment to India and its culture has made a great mark in the UK, especially in London. For the past thirty years, his tremendous work has helped many people in India and abroad learn more about the culture and heritage of this beautiful country. It is due to his tireless efforts that today Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, London, is a vibrant cultural hub of India. I consider him a true gentleman, a great connoisseur of arts and, above all, a good human being.

  I am grateful to my trusted and brilliant editor, Shrutkeerti Khurana, and to Dr Praveen Murthy for his kind suggestions. I would like to thank Hemali Sodhi, Sohini Mitra and Piya Kapur from Penguin Random House India for all their effort with this book.

  Most of all, I would like to thank those young readers who are fascinated by the rich mythology of our country, which unites us all.

  Introduction

  In India, Lord Rama and Lord Krishna play an important role in the daily lives of people. Irrespective of the state one is in or the language spoken in that region, everybody knows them! It is not surprising then that milestones from their personal lives are celebrated in various ways. For example, the festival of Ramanavami marks the day of Lord Rama’s birth, and Vijayadashami or Dussehra is famously celebrated to recall the victory of Rama over the misguided Ravana. Meanwhile, Krishnashtami or Janmashtami is the day Lord Krishna was born, and Diwali is known to be the day that Krishna killed Narakasura.

  Due to their association with Rama and Krishna, places like Ayodhya, Mathura, Dwarka, Govardhan, Panchavati and Chitrakoot have become popular pilgrimage destinations.

  Both Rama and Krishna are believed to be the human incarnations of Lord Vishnu, the eternal protector; yet, there is a stark difference between their personalities and approaches.

  Rama was born in Treta yuga, the second of the four eras that define the age of the world. His stories are often depicted in paintings, literature, dance and music. The epic Ramayana exists in many versions in different languages and with different titles, such as Valmiki Ramayana, Adbhuta Ramayana, Uttara Ramayana, Tulsi Ramayana, Kamba Ramayana, Jain Ramayana, Pampa Ramayana, and so on. Despite the differences between the versions, the core of the story remains the same.

  Rama is worshipped as the ideal man, son and ruler. He was an obedient son and very devoted to his wife, Sita. His reign, Rama Rajya, is believed to have been perfect, with no crime, misery, poverty or corruption. His was a kingdom of peace and happiness, where the subjects were taken great care of by their king, and they in turn loved and worshipped him akin to God. Such were the tales of Rama’s exemplary archery that it was said that an arrow shot by him was certain to reach its destination, no matter what that might be. The word ramabana derives from this legend, indicating that the event in context is certain to occur.

  Rama was highly dharmic and made all his decisions based on right and wrong as accorded by his dharma. He believed that like an ascetic, a ruler too must lead his life completely detached from worldly thoughts and desires; only then could he be a fair and just king. However, this belief came at a grave personal cost—estrangement from his beloved wife, Sita.

  Lord Krishna, however, was very different from Lord Rama. He was born in Dvapara yuga. Though born a royal, he was taken away by his father in the middle of the night to save him from his uncle, who planned to kill him at birth. His father handed over his precious son to his friend Nanda and Nanda’s wife, Yashoda. Hence, Krishna grew up in the village of Gokul as a cowherd. Eventually, his destiny led him to Mathura, where he slayed his cruel uncle Kamsa. Despite the opportunity to become king of the land, Krishna did not accept it. Later, he moved his clan to the kingdom of Dwarka to save his people from war, misery and certain death at the hands of his enemy Jarasandha. In the great war of Mahabharata, Krishna was Arjuna’s charioteer and guide; he never participated in the actual war even though he played a critical role in the outcome.

  Krishna’s story is described in the Bhagavata, which details the lives of all the avatars of Lord Vishnu. Just like the Ramayana, it has many versions in different languages.

  Unlike Rama, Krishna is perceived to be a romantic, much loved by everyone, and exuding a certain godlike charm that enthrals young and old alike. Songs and hymns often tell tales of his Raasleela (his dance with the gopis), his love for Radha and his unique camaraderie with the Pandavas. People adore Krishna because of his compassion, the happiness associated with him, his charm and the magical melody of his flute. He frequently comes across as a ray of hope.

  We have all heard commonly told stories of the lives of Lord Rama and Lord Krishna. Many versions of these abound and can be easily found in books and on the Internet. I wanted to delve a little deeper and bring out the tales of their human side, instead of just reflecting on them as gods. And this is why you now hold this book in your hands.

  The Solar Dynasty

  Ind