Vedavyasa Mahabharatam – the story, the ethics, morals & the traditions

Story 5- Pramadvara weds Ruru (the first love story of Mahabharata)[i]

(Background to the present story: Ugrasravasa was narrating the story of Bhrigu Vamsa to Saunaka and his ten thousand disciples. In that we have read the story of Maharshi Chyavana’s birth. Chyavana’s son was Pramathi who was married to an apsarasa by name Ghṛtāci. They had a son by name Ruru.)

One day Ruru was wandering in a forest and reached an āśrama of Sthulakesa maharshi. There he saw a beautiful lady, Pramadvara. Spontaneously he fell in love with her, but he hesitated to approach the lady. He came back home, but the thoughts of Pramadvara continue to haunt him. He could not get sleep and slowly he began to forget routine activities. The parents were observing his strange behaviour and asked him as to what happened. Ruru poured out his agony before his parents and friends. Pramathi set out to see Sthulakesa’s āśrama and seek his permission for the marriage of Ruru with Pramadvara.

Sthulakesa said, ‘Hi, Pramathi! This girl Pramadvara is not my daughter. Visvavasu, a Gandharva has begotten this girl when he met Menaka. After giving birth to the child, Menaka left the girl in the vicinity of my āśrama. I found the child on the banks of a river and brought the girl to my āśrama and fostered her with all paternal affection. As a child itself, she was more beautiful than any other child, and hence I christened her as Pramadvara. I am happy that your son has fallen in love with her. I promise to give my daughter for marriage with Ruru. Everybody felt happy and the day of marriage was fixed by the elders on the spot.

Ruru and Pramadvara were reckoning for the day to usher very eagerly. One day Pramadvara went into the forest to fetch flowers, but all her thoughts were on Ruru. Accidentally she put her leg over a sleeping serpent, and alas, it had bitten her bitterly. It was so deadly that Pramadvara collapsed and died.

The news of the death of Pramadvara reached the āśrama of Pramathi. He rushed to the place of Sthulakasa Maharshi. All people were weeping, and it looked as though the entire forest was weeping. Unable to control the agony, Ruru left the place and went to a secluded place, and he was crying bitterly. He was seen crying, ‘If I am a tapasvi and if I had respected elders all the while, and I had done lot of charities, let the Gods infuse life into the body of my lover, Pramadvathi’.

A messenger of Gods descended there, and he started consoling Ruru. When Ruru could not be consoled, the messenger spelt out an idea. He said, ‘I can revive the life of Pramadvara if you can forgo half of your longevity and donate it to her’. Ruru was very happy and without any hesitation he said, ‘I hereby pledge half of my longevity, and let my lover gain back her life’. The sacrifice was the testimony of his love towards his beloved. Pramadvara woke up as if she was waking up from her sleep.

On the appointed day, their marriage was consummated, and they spent their marriage life very happily. The love towards Pramadvara made Ruru to develop grudge against snakes. He started roaming in the forests with a big stick for killing all the snakes that come across to his sight.

Ruru & Dundubham

One day Ruru saw an old snake in the forest. Immediately he lifted his big stick to kill it. The snake started talking, ‘Hi Rishi! I have not done any harm to you. I belong to the race of Dundubham; and Dundubham snake doesn’t possess venom and therefore, I can’t bite. There are snakes who bite and there are snakes who do not bite. Can you punish the entire race for the fault of a few?’ Ruru heard and he could not kill Dundubham. By that time, leaving the body of the snake, there emerged a rishi out of Dundubham.

Ruru was perplexed on these sudden developments. The rishi said, ‘Hi, Ruru! Listen! I am a rishi by name Sahasrapāda. Khagama was my boyfriend. One day, while we were playing together, I frightened him with a grass snake. He got irritated and out of anger he cursed me that I should become a poison- free snake. It was a child play, but it turned out to be a bitter lesson for me. He also repented for his sudden outburst of anger. He said that I could regain my natural state when I see a rishi by name Ruru. Now I presume that you are Ruru’.

Ruru was astonished and fell on the feet of Sahasrapāda. Out of love and concern, Sahasrapāda blessed Ruru and said, ‘Hi rishi! I tell you the great Truth – ‘अहिंसा परमो धर्मः ahiṃsā paramo dharmaḥ’ Further you are a Brahmin. A Brahmin should always remain in satva guna. Never ever he should inflict violence on any living creature. This is ordained by Veda. The dharma of a Brahmin is Ahimsa, Satya vachanam, Kshama and Veda Dharanam[ii]. Please don’t follow the dharma of a Kshatriya as you are a Brahmin. A Kshatriya wields a stick, and he regulates the society and protects the people. Please do not transgress and step into the dharma of a kshatriya. Do not kill the snakes as Janamejaya did earlier in his Sarpayāga.’

Ruru heard Sahasrapāda and asked, ‘Hi Rishi! You have enlightened me and put me on the right path, and I am very grateful to you. But I want to listen from you the story of Janamejaya who indulged in the mass killing of serpents.

Sahasrapāda smiled and said, ‘You shall hear the story from someone else’. Saying thus, he disappeared.

Ugrasravasa said, ‘Oh sage, Saunaka! I have told you the story Pramadvara & Ruru. Their son was Sunaka and you are his son’. Saunaka was pleased to listen the story of his own lineage from the time of his ancestors, and now he was confident that Ugrasravasa was the right person to narrate the story of Mahabharata.

Points to ponder:

1. The story of Ruru & Pramadvara is the first love story in Mahabharata. Mahabharata says that love involves a sense of sacrifice (त्यागं tyāgaṃ) without any expectation from the other party.
2. Mahabharata is an Itihāsa conceived by Veda Vyasa to make common people understand Vedic truths. The text of Mahabharata is a pretext, and Veda Vyasa chooses to illustrate Vedic dictums through stories. The first Vedic dictum pronounced by Mahabharata is ‘अहिंसा परमो धर्मः ahiṃsā paramo dharmaḥ’. Maha Bharata is not a book that encourages himsa or violence. The Kurukshetra war is a war for establishing Dharma.
3. In many places Mahabharata brings out varṇāśrama dharma theory and encourages people not to transgress it. But at the same time, it allows people to go up in the ladder of social hierarchy by cultivating higher virtues. It also allows to push a person at the higher ladder to lower grade if he is not up to the expectations delineated for that particular varna.

Foot notes

[i] The story is taken from Chapter 8 to 11 of Adi Parva of Mahabharata written by sage Veda Vyasa.

[ii] In Mahabhara times, the society was divided into four varnas – Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaisyas & Shudras. The division was based on their guna (satva, rajas & tamas and their proportional mix) and karma (activity). In Gita Krishna says, चातुर्वर्ण्यं मया सृष्टं गुणकर्मविभागश: | (Gita 4.13). The duties of each varna were defined as per varṇāśrama dharma theory. A Brahmin was not supposed to rule the country or earn money by indulging in business. His duties were reading of Vedas (अध्ययनं adhyayanam), teaching of Vedas (अध्यापनं, adhyāpanaṃ), performing yagnas (यजनं ,yajanam) and getting the yagnas performed by others (याजनं yājanaṃ). He was expected to speak only Truth (satya vachanam), follow nonviolence (ahimsa), forgiving others’ mistakes (kshama) and always abide by Vedic dictums (वेद धारणं, Veda dhāraṇaṃ). The duty of a Kshatriya is to maintain law & order, protect the people and rule the country. The duties were earmarked for each varna.

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