Asvathama’s Laughter

Asvathama as imagined by Copilot Designer

When Krishna cursed Asvathama with immortality, it was evil that was perpetuated on earth.

Krishna and Asvathama belong to the Mahabharata, India’s immortal epic. When the epic war was over, Asvathama was left with a seething rage. He was among the defeated. Most of his people were killed. His own father, Drona, was killed by Krishna’s fraud. Though Krishna was an incarnation of God, he never hesitated to employ fraudulent strategies in order to win the war. [The leaders of today’s India seem to follow Krishna, though they build temples and statues for Rama.]

The very thought of Krishna’s fraudulence maddened Asvathama. He entered the Pandava camp at night and killed everyone there. But the Pandavas themselves were not killed; they were sleeping elsewhere – with Krishna. Was that another ploy of that divine avatar?

The innocent children of the Pandavas were killed by the fury of Asvathama. And Asvathama had his last laugh, standing in the flickering light of dying lamps in the Pandava tent. His laugh echoed over the dead bodies of Draupadi’s adolescent children.

Asvathama thought that he had annihilated the Pandavas, his clan’s bitter enemies. He thought that he had brought justice upon his people’s enemies. The Pandavas thought that they had brought justice, dharma, back to their world. Justice is relative.

Even the American President may think that he brought justice to his people by sending his forces to another country and taking their president prisoner.

People like Donald Trump and Asvathama think they bring justice to some people. But they destroy meaning. War does that inevitably: destroy meaning, whether justice is attained or not.

Asvathama had to face the consequences of his diabolic deed. He was defeated by Arjuna and Krishna sooner than he could ever imagine. And Krishna condemned him to immortality. Asvathama walks the earth to this day, like the biblical Cain, carrying the burden of his sin.

Asvathama walks the earth spreading his sins to many people, especially political leaders. I can still hear Asvathama’s last laugh. Can you? Listen.