Friday, February 15, 2013

Interesting Mahabharata Dates and Times

This article is largely based on an excellent 2-hour talk on the Mahabharata, in Kannada. It is by Bannanje Govindacharya, an important contemporary scholar in the Dvaita tradition, and I learned a lot of new things.


Krishna's Birthday
Krishna's birthday is contentious - is Krishna Ashtami in the Shravana month or the Bhadrapada month? We know he was born on an ashtami night, and it was rohini nakshatra. The Mahabharata itself does not pick one of the two months. Krishna Ashtami is either of the months, depending on which happens to be the "Simha maasa (month)". Further, if the Rohini nakshtra coincides with the Ashtami, there is said to be a "Jayanthi yoga" (which may not occur every year) which makes that Krishna Ashtami a Krishna Jayanthi.

Ages of Some Important Characters in the Mahabharata
When analyzing the late dwapara yuga period (mahabharata), we tend to gloss over all evil characters and focus on Duryodhana. Before Duryodhana became prominent (and contemporary with him), there were Narakasura (eastern India), Jarasandha (Magadha/Bihar), and Kamsa (northern India).

  • Jarasandha was much older than Krishna, but had amassed 23 akshaouhinis to fight Krishna (an akshaouhini was a large unit of army). In comparison, the Mahabharata war itself involved only 18 akshaouhinis (7 on the Pandava side, 11 on the Kaurava side). Jarasandha had amassed his much larger army (from vassals across the country) to fight a Krishna who was no more than 10-11 years old at the time, enraged by Krishna's killing of Kamsa. Krishna routs Jarasandha's army 17 times, but the 18th time Krishna moves the Yadavas from Mathura to Dwaraka. This is because the commander of the Jarasandha army then is Kalayavana, who is destined to destroy Mathura. 
Jarasandha had imprisoned 80,000+ princes from across the country, and was moving closer to a count of 100,000 for beheading them in a sacrifice. They are eventually freed by Krishna when he takes Bhima and Arjuna to fight Jarasandha for Yudhishtira's rajasuya yagna.

When Krishna, Bhima, and Arjuna present themselves before Jarasandha, Krishna lets Jarasandha pick any one of them for an opponent, and any weapon of his choice. Jarasandha throws Krishna an insult saying he was afterall a cowherd Yadava. He also insults Arjuna by saying he was a young boy, and hence he would not pick him.

It is interesting to note that Bhima was a few months elder to Krishna (55 at the time), and Arjuna himself was only a year younger than Bhima. Hence, if Arjuna was too young, Bhima must be too.

The reasoning behind Jarasandha picking Bhima must have been this:
  1. Krishna would be impossible to beat, his prowess having already been known to him, whether he considered him the Lord incarnate or not. Throwing an insult was his way of escaping sure and humiliating death at the hands of someone who routed his army 17 times (although Jarasandha basked in Krishna's shift to Dwaraka the 18th time).
  2. The only reason could have been Jarasandha's comparative strengths. 
    1. Arjuna's strength was widely considered to be nearly equal to Jarasandha, and hence there would be a 50-50 chance of him winning. A loss would be humiliating.
    2. Bhima, on the other hand was widely known to be the strongest man at the time. Strong in physical power, undefeatable in any form of war (and the most faithful among Krishna's devotees). A defeat at his hands would not be humiliating, but the off chance that he wins, he would earn great glory. There of course is no chance he could win; Krishna still grants him glory by letting Bhima wait 15 days before finishing him off. Lasting 15 days against Bhima was probably much more glory than any other Kshatriya had earned at that time. 
In the Mahabharata text, there is no ambiguity from Vedavyasa in describing Bhimasena as the best man that walked the earth at that time, unparalleled in all good qualities physical and mental; note that this was a time when all devatas and rishis incarnated in Bharatavarsha. This, of course, does not include Krishna, who no other being divine or otherwise is ever compared to.
"..bhimasena samo naasti senayor ubhayor api panditye cha patutve cha.. tatvajnane..paanditye.."

To be safe, Jarasandha (~70 at the time) crowns his son the king of Magadha before he starts the fight against Bhima.
After his death, the freed princes all, without bloodshed or further violence, assure support to Yudhishtira for the Rajasuya. If nothing else, this was great diplomacy and tact by Krishna.
  • Narakasura had imprisoned thousands of  princesses, and Krishna frees them after killing Narakasura. It is this event that we celebrate even today as Deepavali.
Since the princesses had all been humiliated by imprisonment, Krishna marries them all and grants them self-respect.

The Rajasuya Agrapooja
On the day of the Rajasuya yagna of Yudhishtira, all the important Kshatriyas and others were gathered in the palace. These included Vedavyasa, Parashurama, Krishna, Krishna's father Vasudeva, and of course the Pandavas, Bhishma, etc.

The Pandavas request Bhishma, their family's eldest, to pick their chief guest of honour for the yagna ("agrapooja"). Bhishma picks Krishna. The choice is interesting, given that Vedavyasa and Parashurama would have been controversy-less choices. Krishan afterall was younger than most others among the guests, and was not even a Kshatriya. 
  • Parashurama would have been a great choice, for He was also an incarnation of Vishnu. No Kshatriya or other would dare oppose Parashurama for obvious reasons.
  • Vedavyasa, also an incarnation of Vishnu, was the progenitor of the Pandavas and Kauravas, and another great choice.
The Rajasuya yagna is the only occasion in which there are 3 human incarnations of vishnu, all participating. Given 3 equally good choices, I'm unsure why Bhishma picks Krishna, but when Shishupala protests and insults Krishna (as a eunuch) and Bhishma (as old and senile), Bhishma challenges any kshatriya assembled to face the old man (him) in battle if they disagreed with his choice. None dared disagree. Finally, when Shishupala continues his insult of Krishna, Krishna finishes him off with his chakra.

The 'Eternal' Parashurama
Parashurama is considered an avatara of Vishnu who does not leave the earth. The puranas say that Parashurama will teach Kalki (at the end of the Kali yuga) the art of war and help Him finish off the world.       

It is, of course, fascinating how more than one avatara of Vishnu appears concurrently, the most interesting of which is during the Mahabharata. Parashurama, in fact, is the teacher of Bhishma and Karna. Parashurama being unable to defeat Bhishma (fighting for Amba) must only be an enactment, similar to other enactments of the Lord in the Mahabharata. For, why else would an omnipotent God do anything through other entities?

Into the Kali Yuga
Many consider the start of Kali Yuga to be when Krishna left the earth. However, this is incorrect, and Kali Yuga starts exactly at the end of the war (death of Duryodhana). Krishna, 70 at the time of the war, stays on for 36 years into the Kali Yuga while Yudhishtira rules. It is after this that Parikshit is crowned king. 
I was initially under the impression that Parikshit was the first king during the Kali Yuga. It  in fact was Yudhishtira. Once Krishna leaves the earth, the devatas do not find the earth inhabitable in Kali Yuga...

Monday, February 11, 2013

Try having no ego, zero Attachment, and doing good

Image courtesy:
http://swamishivapadananda.typepad.com
It is easy to advice people to have no ego, to give up attachment, and to do good all the time. The shaastras drive home these points over and over again, and we may even parrot these, but it is in the implementation that we stumble.

Ego
Ego manifests in all of us, sometimes in subtle ways, and sometimes in very ways apparent. We take credit all the time for bringing home a steady salary, for example, or for cracking an exam, but may only give up our ego and thank God when faced with a challenge - the news of a potential layoff, or a question we might have not expected in the exam. Without those sudden jolts, we may never have the opportunity to invoke or remember God.

After the Mahabharata war, both Dhritarashtra and Gandhari are so full of anger at their sons' death that Gandhari curses Krishna to see his own clan destroy itself, and Dhritarashtra wants to hug Bhima, the killer of his 100 sons (to crush him with his embrace, since he was endowed with the strength of a 10,000 elephants).  Even after the vishwaroopa darshana from Krishna in their very court before the war, their egos get the better of them. Dhritarashtra, of course, ends up hugging an iron statue believing it to be Bhima, which crumbles to pieces.

With Karna, ego made him build loyalty towards Duryodhana since he helped him in time of humiliation, by making him king of Anga. Ego pushes him to the extent of humiliating Draupadi during the gambling, just because it will make his benefactor happy.

Zero Attachment
Zero attachment to that which is material and transient is the key message of Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita. Assembled on the battlefield, Arjuna is unable see his kshatriya dharma; he forgets resolutions that he had made previously, including seconding Bhima's vow on his behalf in Duryodhana's court (after Draupadi vastraapaharana) that he will kill Karna. He forgets those innocents that want the good to fight and win against the evil. Krishna admonishes him to uphold his dharma, to fight evil, whether the opponents be his own cousins or unrelated. Worldly relations come and go, with souls migrating from one living form to another through the course of their lifecycle. Hence, attachment to someone's present form (cousin, uncle, etc.) causes one to break dharma.

Arjuna is finally convinced, and fights the war, although he relapses midway. When news of Abhimanyu's death in the chakravyuha reaches him, he breaks down. Evidently, letting go of attachment is very difficult even for the avatara of Indra.

Doing Good
The is no doubt Yudhishtira was a great upholder of dharma. However, there are occasions where he did not follow dharma. On the battlefield, when Krishna instructs him to lie to Drona about Ashwatthama's death, he hesitates. There is no greater dharma than following what Krishna says, but Yudhishtira holds another moral compass, likely ego-driven that tells him to follow his own instinct rather than Krishna's words.

In another episode described in the Varaha Purana (after the war), Vishnu himself visits Yudhishtira's palace at night as a poor brahmin asking for resources to conduct a yagna. Yudhishtira tells the poor brahmin to come the next morning since it was late. The poor brahmin then goes to Bhima, and Bhima immediately removes a gold ornament and hands it over to the brahmin. Bhima then goes to Yudhishtira and tells him (perhaps mockingly) that he is very happy that Yudhishtira has knowledge of his life in the future, which allows him to postpone a good task until the next morning. Yudhishtira is ashamed.

There are occasions in which our ego, or our own crooked sense of good interfere with our upholding of dharma (or what little of it we subscribe to). The only way to correct this to the extent possible is to attribute all our acts and abilities to God, rather than take credit for anything. 

Friday, February 8, 2013

If you only have time to read one text, pick the Mahabharata

The Mahabharata is many things to many people.

Madhvacharya's Mahabharata Taatparya Nirnaya, states that the Mahabharata was called "Jaya", for it outweighed the Vedas and other Shastras, as determined in a congregation of rishis post-Mahabharata. On a more simplistic level, "Jaya" is usually said to refer to the Pandavas' (dharma's) victory over evil.

The primary message of the Mahabharata is that of Vishnu's supremacy and independence. This may not be readily apparent to the casual reader, who might treat it more as a war among cousins and their cronies for control of land. To this end, here are summaries of a few episodes...

Krishna comes to the rescue many a time.

The episode that most comes to mind is that of the Draupadi Vastraapaharana. When even the mighty Bhima is unable to do anything, Krishna is there to help at a mere prayer from Draupadi to save her modesty. Here, rather than infer that Bhima is powerless (which he is not really, there are other factors in that episode like his own brother's commitment), one must infer that Bhima and Draupadi, both, pray to Krishna for help - for they are dependent on Him, the supreme being.

The Durvasa-Draupadi Episode
In another episode during the 12 year banishment to the forest, the Pandavas eat good food (and are able to feed the rishis who accompany them) using an akshaya paatra from Surya. The akshaya paatra would only produce food until Draupadi, the lady of the house, had eaten. Meanwhile, Rishi Durvasa visits Duryodhana's palace in Hastinapura, and pleased with his service, grants him a wish. Duryodhana uses the opportunity to request that Durvasa and his group of rishis visit the Pandavas in the forest, knowing well that Durvasa would curse the Pandavas when they are unable to feed him and his group as befits a king. (Durvasa was know to have a short temper. He appears earlier in the Mahabharata when Kunti as a young princess serves him well and receives the boon of invoking any God for having sons).

By the time Durvasa arrives at the Pandava camp, Draupadi has already eaten and the akshaya paatra has stopped producing food for the day. Yudhishtira welcomes the rishi, directs them to the river for a bath, and asks Draupadi to prepare to serve the rishi and his group. Draupadi, who is cornered, prays to Krishna to save her and her family from Durvasa's curse. Krishna appears at a moment's notice, asks to be shown to the akshaya paatra, and eats a morsel that remained. With this, he tells Draupadi to wait and watch. When Durvasa and his group return from the river, they tell Yudhishtira that they are full, and that they would have to continue on their way. Krishna uses the single morsel of food as a token offering from his devotee, and saves her from doom yet again.

The Caveat to 'Yada Yada hi Dharmasya Glaanihi bhavati... Tadaatmaanam Srujamyaham'
There is an important caveat to this statement from Krishna. Dharma being in peril is intrisically tied to the goodness of people.

  • In the Krita Yuga, He appears as Matsya (to save the world from complete extinction), as Koorma (to help the devas win against the asuras), as Varaha (to retrieve the earth hijacked by Hiranyaksha), as Vaamana (again to help the devas win against Bali, an asura by pushing him down to a Paatala loka).
    • It is only the Nrsimha avatara that is dedicated to one single person's devotion - Prahlada. Prahlada's father Hiranyaksha had declared himself God, and was obstructing all real worship. However, it is Prahlada's unwavering devotion and stance that makes the Nrsimha avatara happen.
  • In the Treta Yuga, Parashurama and Rama avataras happen; the Parashurama avatara to generally rid the earth of several tyrannical rules right up to the Dvapara Yuga.
  • In the Dvapara Yuga, Krishna takes avatara to rid the world of several rakshasas and helps the Pandavas rid the world of the Kauravas.
While the conditions in the Kali Yuga are easily much worse than in the previous yugas, why does He not incarnate? He does not because there is none that upholds the Dharma truly and completely as do his devotees who he immediately comes to help (in person) in the previous yugas. We are all complicit to varying degrees in the adharma that fills the world today, and the next avatara according to the Puranas is the Kalki avatara which will end the world and usher in the next mahayuga. That is not to say that there are no good people in Kali Yuga; there are. Just not good enough to merit His avatara. He still guides and shadows the deserving and undeserving alike, unseen, to provide them the best paths to their destiny.

Kunti's Parting Request to Krishna
When the war is over, and Krishna seeks to return to Dwaraka, Kunti requests him to give her sorrow. For, it is only in sorrow that we remember Him. This, after all the sorrow that she and her sons had faced. Kunti's first major blow was that of the birth of Karna via Surya. She then loses her husband, and has to raise 5 children. The 5 sons, powerful and divine though they might be, go through a series of attacks - hidden and direct - by the Kauravas, including the gambling, banishment, and ultimately the war. Kunti thanks Krishna for his hand in saving her family from all the pitfalls and dangers, instead of asking for a life of happiness going forward. She truly recognizes that happiness on earth is not eternal, and that the opportunity to know Him more through contemplation is worth more than happiness, to help in her path to eternal bliss, Moksha.

Krishna in the War
Before, during, and after the war, the Pandavas will not have been able to accomplish anything without Krishna. Before the war, it is with Krishna's guidance that Bhima is able to destroy Jarasandha. It is with Krishna's guidance that the Pandavas win and marry Draupadi. It is with His guidance that they are able to overcome Bhishma, Drona, and Ashwattama. While Bhima may have been able to win the war single-handedly, the other brothers needed His help to even survive. Krishna saves Arjuna in more than one occasion (helps win against Karna by provoking him to waste his Shakti astra against Ghatotkacha, for example). If there is one truly revealing spot in the Mahabharata where even Bhima's dependence on the supreme being, it is when Ashwattama uses the Narayanaastra against the Pandavas. Krishna instructs the Pandavas, including Bhima, to lay down their arms and surrender to the astra completely to be left untouched.

  • Bhima, who as his previous incarnation Hanuman, is unaffected by even the Brahmaastra (he only surrenders to it out of respect) can only be defeated using the Narayanaastra. Bhima, unknowingly fights the astra (likely urged by Krishna to do so, for Bhima would not fight the only astra superior to him on purpose) and successfully holds against it, but is worn down over time. Finally, when he is told by his brothers that it was the Narayanaastra and to surrender, he does so. I believe the only purpose of this episode was to highlight Bhima as the foremost among the jeevas and devas.   
Krishna keeps the Kuru Dynasty Alive
Krishna saves Parikshit (in the womb of Uttara, the dead Abhimanyu's wife) from the Brahmaastra of Ashwattama. Krishna stops it using his chakra, to retain the Pandavas' last remaining prince to keep the Kuru dynasty alive. 


There is no doubt, from these examples that Vishnu's (Krishna) supremacy, and his complete support of his true devotees, is the primary message of the Mahabharata. In addition, since it encompasses the messages of all other shaastra texts combined as well as all possible topics under the sun, worldly and spiritual, it is one that we can safely hold on to for our intellectual upliftment.

Sunday, February 3, 2013

Interpreting Vedic and Puranic Texts in a Vacuum and Out of Context

Image Courtesy: www.anjalika.in
I intended this post as an "unlearning-relearning" lesson for people (including me) to remove any prejudices that might exist in our interpretation of Vedic, Puranic, and other ancient Hindu scriptural texts. Prejudices may include - "all this is made up by brahmins", "anybody arguing 'for' any of this is an apologist", etc. Hopefully, any judgement will be made at the end of the entire post.

Please comment if you see me making any factually inaccurate statements or have anything to share.

The Vedas (encompassing Upanishads, Braahmanas, etc.) Puranas, Ramayana, Mahabharata (including the Bhagavad Gita), Aagamas, Manusmruti, Brahmasutras, and some other texts form the core scriptural texts of the Hindu system.

Of these, the Vedas are the only texts considered "shruti" ("apaurasheya" or authorless). In the Hindu system, the Vedas exist eternally without at any point in time or space being created or destroyed - like the laws of physics (although portions of the Vedas may be unavailable at times or incorrectly understood). The eternal existence of the Vedas is identical to that of the supreme being and the infinite number of souls. The unwritten nature of the Vedas are the reason why they form the final point of reference when considered alongside all other texts. And the Vedas are a neutral final point of reference even over say, the Bhagavad Gita rendered by the supreme being (Krishna avatara).

Timelines of these Texts
We know that the Bhagavad Gita was rendered by the supreme being (Krishna) to Arjuna on the Mahabharata battlefield. At the end of the Gita, when Arjuna is ready to fight, the war begins. This makes it easy to date the Bhagavad Gita (based on other accounts, e.g., that of Sanjaya).

The Mahabharata was first recorded by Vedavyasa. The war itself, of course was described by Sanjaya in real-time. The entire Mahabharata was retold by sage Vaishampayana to Janamejaya (son of Parikshit and descendant of the Pandavas).

Even with these timelines, there are some things to note. The events of the Mahabharata play out at the end of the Dwapara Yuga (around 5000 years ago). Janamejaya is the second Kuru king in the Kali Yuga which is believed to have begun during the reign of Parikshit.

With most other texts, most notably the Vedas, there have been attempts (mostly by Europeans) to date each part of the Vedas. Contrary to the traditional India belief of the Vedas being not time-bound, the Europeans used the Vedas very literally. Descriptions of regions, peoples, and rivers (for example) were used as descriptions of these at a certain time in history. For good reason or bad, these attempts were also driven by a linguistic analysis of the Vedas. There is wide variance in the Sanskrit style used, which suggested to the analysts different authors who contributed to the Vedic whole at different points in time. "Vedic period" is a common term we hear.

In the Vedas, portions (mantras, suktas) are ascribed a "rishi moola" or a sage who discovered ('was revealed to') that portion of the Vedas and made it available to the common man. This attribution is not one of authorship, but one of discovery. In the Hindu system (as the Vedas themselves state), the Yugas (in Manvantara after Manvatara, Kalpa after Kalpa of Brahma) play out infinitely. Just as the souls and the supreme being exist without beginning or end, the Vedas (that arguably are the 'documentation') exist indefinitely too. In each Mahayuga, the Vedas that "exist in the ether" are merely rediscovered for the benefit of humans.

What changes in each iteration is either the 'Manu' (each Manu's reign runs for about 71 Mahayugas the current Manu is Vaivasvatha), or the Kalpa (one day-time equivalent of Brahma; we are currently in the Shveta Varaha Kalpa). I don't know if any such details are known to man beyond the current Kalpa. The main rishis may change from Mahayuga to Mahayuga, and hence perhaps Puranic details that relate to the specifics of that Yuga.

A Pause
Let's take a pause here. There may already be several questions in our heads regarding the authenticity or validity of what the Vedas or Puranas say. Why must one believe the stories that a Purana might say? Why must a Kalpa be as long as it is claimed to be? How can something be authorless (i.e., the Vedas)?  If there is a Manu reigning now, where is he? I don't believe there can be any conclusive proofs that that answer these questions. Below are some things to consider.

The Metaphorical vs The Literal
The Vedas and Puranas use a lot of linguistic instruments and styles to convey things. It is fair to say, based on centuries and millennia of analysis and schools of thought that exist and thrive even today, that these texts have layered meanings, sometimes apparently conflicting one another. For example, the Rudraprasna (Rudram) may convey at a superficial level (to someone with rudimentary Sanskrit knowledge) the supremacy of Rudra/Shiva. The Narayana Upanishad may convey at a superficial level the supremacy of Narayana. What do Rudra and Narayana denote? Are they just 2 among the many million Hindu gods? Who is supreme, Rudra or Narayana? What does supreme mean, by the way? What are the qualities of God? These are questions that require deep analysis. The Hindu system has been predominantly rooted in the analysis of theVedas, for they are believed to be authorless. The other texts (whether God-given or human-written) are additional texts for reference, but cannot override anything the Vedas say.

It is this metaphorical nature of our texts that confuses many. The Purusha Sukta says "padbhyaam shoodro ajaayata". So, the shudra (in the Varna system) must have originated from God's legs? I don't think it is to be interpreted as literally as that.

Unfortunately, many translations that float around, especially on the internet, are poor translations. Either they do not provide the right context, or are outright incorrect. A lot of things are lost in translation, from Sanskrit to English. For example, I read some translations of passages from the Manusmriti as it relates to women. One translation read something like this: "women always look to seduce men, so be careful around them." I highly doubt that that was what the Manusmriti said. Bottles and bottles of ink have been wasted by people coming up with or using such translations to brand the Manusmriti as being anti-women. The correct import (corroborated by many other texts) is for men to control all their senses for a laser-like focus on their intellectual pursuits, and be careful around things that are likely to cause distractions. And, remember that "lose control" itself is an approximate translation. Controlling of senses includes the eating of Satvic-only foods (the avoidance of meat, some root vegetables, etc.), the performance of strict penances and yagnas ("sacrifice" is another of those poor translations), avoidance of wealth and material comforts, etc. The implication is not (and cannot be) that women are all seductresses. Any Indian can tell you that.

The Decline of Dharma and Morality through the Yugas
Most in the Hindu system believe that dharma and morality have gradually declined over the ages. This is not merely through what the Puranas or other texts say, but through general experience as well. Just in the last century, there is a general decline in personal and family values and an individualistic push towards material wealth and comforts. This goes against the simple lifestyles that were the norm even a century ago. No doubt there was bloodshed in the middle ages and before between kings and their armies. The general peace that we experience in much of the world today is, by no means, an indicator of dharma being somehow in any upward trajectory.

The Krita (Satya) Yuga, the Puranas describe, was a time when there was nothing but goodness, with no hint of evil. No jealousy, no greed, no hunger, no physical duties other than austerities and hardship (tapasya) that men and women put themselves to for intellectual and spiritual needs. There was no need to cook or indulge in any physical hardship for survival, for, the absolute lack of any evil (or evil intent) enabled the conjuring up of any food man desired. Of course, man would not 'desire' food, for the only real desire would be intellectual upliftment. It is difficult for us today to imagine what a time like that might have been, where, for e.g., no laws were required (for no crimes were intended or committed). Everybody lived their lives as prescribed in the Vedas not out of compliance but out of their own volition.

Note that this blissful state of the Krita Yuga is not to do with individual human being alone, but with the entire human race at that time. Equally good men and women have existed in other yugas (in Treta and Dwapara, at least) but the human race at that time did not collectively have the virtue of the Krita Yuga.

The Manusmriti is believed by some (mostly those that don't know exactly what is in it) to be one of the main reasons for Indian society's ills today. Note that much of what the Manusmriti says are corroborated in many of our other texts such as the Puranas. The roles of people in the different Varnas,  for example. Modern interpretations tend to assume that the Brahmins had it good and luxurious according to the rules they themselves established. Quite the contrary. Note that with their role being intellectual inquiry and dissemination to others, the lifestyle prescribed for them is one of begging for food. Do you believe that Brahmins of the Manusmriti might be better off than what the Shudras are prescribed? Think again. The Brahmins are to beg, the Shudras could buy food from the Vaishyas. Again, "beg" is a poorly translated word. Bhiksha or daana (charity) are not the same as "begging" in today's world.

In the Treta Yuga (during which Rama incarnated), there was already a decline in dharma. Examples of evil (normal human behavior according to today's yardstick) include Kaikeyi scheming against Rama, of Vali kidnapping his own brother Sugriva's wife, of Sugriva forgetting his promise to Rama of helping search Sita, etc. With the beginning of a decline in dharma in the Treta Yuga came the varna system (this I believe is when Manusmriti was really composed and kicked in). Rules and regulations for the conduct of people, the duties of kings, of brahmins, of vaishyas who run the economy, etc came into effect.

It is my understanding that the varna system as it existed in its earliest form allowed for people to move from one varna to another after they had proved themselves worthy of it. The varna system was not strictly based on one's birth. Why would not everybody want to move to the "highest level" of Brahmins? Because it meant an austere life with little material pleasure outside of marital life. It is not just a 1st class ticket that the varna system accorded to Brahmins. You could not simply sign up to become a Vaishya unless you were capable of managing wealth and contributing to the agrarian society and economy in the right way, or a Kshatriya unless you had that talent. All this said, I need to investigate further to learn more about the evolution and degradation of the varna system through the yugas. I have a lot of unanswered questions myself.

Clearly, the varna system has become more rigid through the Yugas, especially in Dwapara and of course even more rigid in Kali Yuga. Even in the Dwapara Yuga, Krishna incarnates to rid the earth of tyrant Kshatriya kings. Subcastes based on intermarriage seem to have come into vogue even in the Dwapara Yuga (for e.g., Soota - Karna's perceived caste - was the caste of those born of a Kshatriya father and Brahmin mother). At some point in the Kali Yuga, there appear to have emerged outcastes (Dalits) for reasons that I don't understand. This is clearly a major problem with the way the varna system evolved. Brahmins today do not necessarily have only intellectual pursuits or lead austere lives, the Vaishyas fleece society, the Kshatriyas do not protect their people well, etc., leading to general discontentment and disbelief in the system.

Note that the Varna system flourished for the benefit of all with pervasive mutual trust and the fulfilment of roles and responsibilities, not when abuse had begun corrupting it.

Conclusion
Our opinions (usually extreme) on the Varna system, on our scriptural texts - their stories and other content, are for the most part based on what we believe to be in them, not based on our own study. We lack the context to properly interpret them, and whether our own extreme point of view is one of complete trust or hate, it will do us well to apply the proper context and learn from what they have to offer.