Introduction
Many people live on the planet, so it becomes natural that all may not think, act similarly in a given situation. Considering this another thing which becomes natural is that all the people will not follow a particular religion or believe in one god, for instance, the people who believe in Islam worship Allah, people who believe in Christianity worship Jesus Christ and there are many more religions which the people believe in across the globe. Among those many religions, there is a beautiful religion called Hinduism. A person who practices Hinduism is called a Hindu. 13% of the people across the world practice Hinduism. The sole aim of all the religions is to make the people realize the value of life and to make the most of the same but doing holy acts and by not indulging in undesirable activities, to make sure that this happens every religion has its holy book, the Christians follow the Holy Bible, the Muslims (people who believe in Islam) follow the Quran, similarly as the other people follow their holy books, the Hindus follow the Bhagavad-Gita.
Bhagavad-Gita focuses upon the attainment of god, which can only be possible if the holy book is read and followed in all situations. The holy book focuses upon the fundamental teachings of Hinduism and is divided into 18 chapters to simplify complex concepts for a better understanding of the people. All the other holy books focus upon the same fundamental teachings but the only difference is that those books put across the same concepts in different words and situations.
The Fundamental teachings of Hinduism
Hinduism stresses upon the four most important teachings, the same will be seen one by one. The first concept is the concept of Dharma; the term means “A comprehensive ordering of life according to principles and practices appropriate for one’s age and station (“caste”) in life. This includes the basics of the Indian caste system, which segments people from birth into certain levels in society, placing each person in the caste where they will live out their life. Although the caste system was abolished by national law in 1949, it remains a significant force throughout India.” (Windmill). To simplify it can be said that Dharma is nothing but the duties which an individual has to realize and fulfill during his/her period of existence. The same is talked about in the chapter by the name “The Eternal Duties of the human beings” in Bhagavad-Gita. “Chapter three establishes the fact by various points of view that the performance of prescribed duties is obligatory for everyone. Here Lord Krishna categorically and comprehensively explains how every member of society must carry out their functions and responsibilities in their respective stage of life according to the rules and regulations of the society in which one lives. Further, the Lord explains why such duties must be performed, what benefit is gained by performing them, what harm is caused by not performing them. Plus what actions lead to bondage and what actions lead to salvation. All these points relating to duty have been described in great detail. Thus this chapter is entitled: The Eternal Duties of Human Beings.” (Bhagavad-Gita). Lord Krishna is very firmly believed in Hinduism, there are so many myths about Lord Krishna in Hinduism. In this way, Bhagavad-Gita covers and puts across the first Fundamental principle of Hinduism.
The second Fundamental teaching is known as Samsara, under this teaching it is believed that the soul is immortal; it cannot be destroyed come what may. But on the other hand, it is believed that the body is never immortal, this teaching talks about reincarnation better known as rebirth. According to this principle, the deeds of an individual decides the fate of the individual, for instance, if an individual repeats evil actions over and over again he/she is bound to be born again in the category in other words the soul of that particular person will take lower forms of worldly life and the person will suffer for his/her deeds in the previous birth. The same can be seen in Bhagavad-Gita under the chapter titled “Actions and Renunciations”. The chapter aims at the achievement of the very same principle of Samsara. The next concept is Karma. “The doctrine of karma relates to the law of cause and effect. It states that everything people do (karma) leaves impressions in their mind, which determines what kind of people they will be in the future, and hence their fate.” (Windmill). Samsara and Karma are very similar concepts the aim of both is the same which is to make an individual realize that his/her actions decide the fate of that individual.
The fourth and final teaching is Moksha. “When the cycle of rebirth comes to an end, a person is said to have attained Moksha. All schools of thought agree that Moksha implies the cessation of worldly desires and freedom from the cycle of birth and death, the exact definition depends on individual beliefs.” (Windmill). This principle is also the ultimate reality and a should individual start realizing this reality by leaving all the worldly things aside only then can he/she attain Moksha. Attaining Moksha requires the ultimate control over oneself and this applies to all the situations because only the most difficult of situations test the temperament of people and to attain Moksha it becomes inevitable to have a good temperament. “In chapter eighteen Lord Krishna sums up the conclusion of the previous chapters and describes the attainment of salvation by the paths of karma in chapters one through six and in jnana yoga section which is chapters thirteen through eighteen. The Lord explains that while doing so one must offer without reservation everything to God. The knowledge revealed gets progressively more and more confidential than in all the previous chapters. Thus this chapter is entitled: Final Revelations of the Ultimate Truth.” (Bhagavad-Gita). This chapter talks about the last teaching which is Moksha. Only good deeds and good deeds alone can bless an individual with a good life in the following birth and the choice is in the hands of the people, even after knowing the ultimate truth, people often look for materialistic wealth and other luxuries. In this way, Bhagavad-Gita reveals the fundamental teachings of Hinduism
Bhagavad-Gita in a lyrical format
The holy book is an epic and the lyrical nature of the book helps in putting across the message better. The main reason the Bhagavad-Gita being lyrical is because of the rhyming mater used in the epic, the meter is very mellifluous and harmonic. A rhyming meter often has 32 syllables in each verse, there are 18 chapters further divided into many verses and each verse has 32 syllables. This is what makes the Bhagavad-Gita lyrical and this is good because when anything is lyrical people often get attracted towards it fast and look up to the writers and the message portrayed in the book. Bhagavad-Gita is translated into many languages. “The Bhagavad-Gita is composed of 700 Sanskrit verses contained within 18 chapters, divided into three sections each consisting of six chapters. They are Karma Yoga the yoga of actions. Bhakti Yoga the yoga of devotion and Jnana Yoga the yoga of knowledge.” (Bhagavad-Gita). The holy book is also called the song of god. There are many chants in the holy book this is another factor that makes it lyrical.
Ulysses
Ulysses or odyssey is an English word of Greek origin that means an adventurous journey. The story mainly focuses on a Greek hero who is consistently in pursuit of achieving something big which has never been achieved before. He sets himself to be a part of a bloody battle called the Trojan War. He shows extraordinary dedication by living without his wife Penelope whose contribution will also be discussed in the paper and his Telemachus. It is an epic that narrates the story of a hero and how things turn out when he returns to his kingdom after a gap of twenty years. The epic shows the struggles faced by Penelope the unsung heroine of the play; she keeps her suitors at bay and also protects her son Telemachus from getting killed. The people wanted to kill Telemachus to gain control over the kingdom of Ithaca. Ulysses is a great epic that shows more struggles than one and it is truly a great epic that has all the makings of a great epic. This paper will throw light upon this great epic and comprehensive analysis of the character of Penelope will also be provided in this paper.
The character of Ulysses is very famous and it is mainly associated with two epics namely the Iliad and the Odyssey both these great epics were written by homer. Ulysses was a Greek king who went on an expedition in the later parts of his life leaving his kingdom, his wife Penelope, and his son Telemachus all alone. His son was born just when he was about to leave for the Trojan War which was supposed to be a bloody battle.
“I cannot rest from travel: I will drink Life to the lees: all times I have enjoyed Greatly, have suffered greatly, both with those That loved me, and alone; onshore, and when Through scudding drifts the rainy Hyades Vexed the dim sea: “(Ulysses). These lines were said by the great king Ulysses. These lines clearly show the intent of the great king. He says that he will refrain from resting and wasting his life. He says that he has enjoyed his life and he does not want to waste it by a remaining idol. He wants to conquer and to make a mark for himself and the same motivates Ulysses to participate in the Trojan War.
The will of Ulysses becomes the highlight of this Epic. He is extremely motivated even after being the king of Ithaca. He wants to prove to the world that he can achieve and conquer even in his old age. He is so motivated in the Epic that he does not even think about his son Telemachus and his wife Penelope. Telemachus is a very important character in Ulysses. He gets really worried about his kingdom after the departure of his father. He gets tensed about the suitors who come and try their luck to please Penelope to take over the kingdom. Telemachus also goes on a journey to find his father Ulysses so that the happiness and the prosperity of the kingdom of Ithaca get restored. Odyssey is all about the struggle of various characters. It all starts with the voyage of Ulysses. He is in pursuit of happiness and struggles hard to find the same in the Epic. Telemachus is in pursuit of his father to ensure that his kingdom remains prosperous and Penelope is in pursuit of ideas to ensure that she does not succumb to pressure in the absence of her husband Ulysses. So Ulysses is about the struggle and the hardship faced by the different characters of the Epic. Ulysses reflects on his past and feels good that he has achieved something but when he realizes that he is not satisfied living a domestic life with Penelope, he decides to live his life to the fullest and to explore and relive his past. Age takes a toll on Ulysses and his fellow sailors but his will and his motivation keep him going strong. He advises all his sailors to be brave and to fight till their last breath. His fighting spirit and his never say die attitude speaks volumes about his character in this great Epic. He openly declares that he wants to sail and explore beyond sunset and even beyond death. Such enthusiasm is truly unprecedented and shows a lot of courage in the character of Ulysses. Ulysses returns home after a long gap of twenty years and derives a lot of satisfaction from the fact that his wife remained very faithful to him and his kingdom. Her contribution to this Epic will be discussed in the following part of the paper.
This part will throw light upon the character of Penelope and the way she reacted in the absence of Ulysses to safeguard the kingdom against the suitors. A comprehensive analysis of her reactions will be presented in this part.
Penelope the Unsung Heroine of the Epic
“In Homer‘s Odyssey, Penelope is the faithful wife of Odysseus, who keeps her suitors at bay in his long absence and so is eventually rejoined with him. Before recent readings, her name had been associated with faithfulness.” (Cambridge University Press). Penelope is believed to be the faithful wife of Ulysses and she stood strong in his absence. Women were known for the deeds of their sons and by their deeds early on, Ulysses wanted his wife to be faithful to him without looking at his track record and Penelope certainly fulfilled this desire of Ulysses in his absence. Even though Ulysses goes on an expedition for many years, Penelope always spoke about him with respect and gratitude and the relationship between Ulysses and Penelope forms the base of the story, the whole story revolves around these two most important characters. Women have always taken a back seat in most of the early stories but Ulysses is a bit different from the other stories, Penelope stands all alone protecting the kingdom of Ulysses changes the whole image of women taking a back seat.
Penelope could have easily married some suitor and the kingdom would have gone to the suitor but she did not do this to ensure that she protects the kingdom of her husband even in his absence and she stood by his wishes, he wanted her not to get married and she did the same. “She waits twenty years for the final return of her husband during which she has a hard time snubbing marriage proposals.” (The Odyssey, P 628). She waited for twenty long years for her husband to come back, this clearly goes to show that she was a woman of character and self-control, had it been any other woman, she would have surely failed to resist the temptation of getting married again. She had a lot of persistence and composure, her image had been overshadowed because of Ulysses, and this is because he is the protagonist in the play and the contribution of his wife Penelope has never come to the limelight. It is very fair to say that she never gets the appreciation that she deserves because of the overshadowing nature of the character of Ulysses.
“To avoid choosing a husband, Penelope came up with a plan. She announced that she was weaving a shroud for Laertes, her father-in-law. She said that, once she had finished, she would choose from among the many suitors.” (Penelope). This goes to show her faithfulness and her thoughtful attitude, she decides to protect the kingdom against all odds and she succeeds in doing so, the Poem is also about the struggle of Ulysses and Penelope to get back together after twenty years of long gap.
Penelope wove during the day to keep her suitors at bay and removed it at night to buy herself some time. She certainly succeeded in keeping all her suitors at bay and in protecting the kingdom in the absence of the king for twenty long years. Penelope’s loyalty has been discovered by the people of late and she features in many paintings, poems, prose, etc.
“Men in The Odyssey only value women who they can use for physical needs and wealth, such as the women in the underworld that Odysseys encounters, and Penelope. Homer shows us how men in The Odyssey consider women less important than men. We rarely hear of women throughout the book. When we do, we are shown that men did not consider women important and are careless with their relationships with women, as we see in Odysseus’ relationship with Penelope. While Odysseus expected Penelope to stay faithful even after he was gone for twenty years and was unfaithful to her many times, through his relationship with Calypso. But today women can have accomplishments other than those of Penelope and the other woman Odysseus encountered in the underworld; they have the same opportunities and are treated as equals by men.” (Treatment of Women)
Compare and Contrast
The Epic of Gilgamesh is one of the oldest epics and so is Gita and Odyssey, these epics have supernatural elements involved in them. This is one striking similarity in all three epics. Gilgamesh is the hero in the epic and it is all about his greatness in the Epic of Gilgamesh, similarly, Odyssey is all about the expedition of Ulysses. Bhagavad- Gita is slightly different because it admonishes the readers and it is all about how to live your life. Gita is a very reliable source especially for the Hindus; the other two epics are quite different from this great Epic.
Enkidu’s death is the highlight of the Epic of Gilgamesh, it affects the thought process of Gilgamesh and brings in many changes in the Epic. The aspect of Immortality has also been discussed in the epic of Gilgamesh, immortality has also been discussed in Gita, and it admonishes the readers about how one can become immortal by living a holy life and by doing great deeds. Gilgamesh quickly became a household name after this Epic, he is the protagonist in the epic, the whole epic is centered around him and this is why he became so popular after this epic. To conclude it is very fair to say that all the tree epics are different in their way, there are some similarities and these similarities have been mentioned in the paper.
Works Cited
Bhagavad-Gita. In Bhagavadgita.com. Web.
Bhagavad-Gita. In members.aol. Web.
The Bhagavad-Gita. In Eawc. Web.
For everyone in all the worlds, In Bhagavad-gita.org. Web.
Homer. The Odyssey, Book XVI, in The Iliad & The Odyssey. Trans. Samuel Butler. p. 628.
The Odyssey. Translated by Robert Fagles. New York: Penguin Books, 1996.
The other Faiths. In Windmill Ministries. Web.
Penelope. In Trojan War. Web.
Treatment of Women in Homer’s Odyssey.” Web.
Ulysses. In The Victorian Web. Web.
W. Mackail, with Penelope in the Odyssey (Cambridge University Press, 1916), epitomizes the traditional view of the dutiful Penelope.