Four Legged Temptation

What's common between Mahabharata, Ramayana, and Bollywood?
An apparently harmless creature crossing the paths of the so-called positive characters and turning their lives topsy-turvy.

***
There she stood all by her herself. Her heart was beating fast. She was guilty. Something had happened or will happen sooner.....If only she could resist herself. But it was too pretty, too lucrative and too unique. Fate has not been kind to her since her marriage...No sooner than she was thinking all this than she heard a loud scream of her husband, "Sitaaaaaaaaa...........".

Yes, its time to take the cat out of the box, rather in this case the Indian Deer. Before I begin with the explanations answer my questions. How many of you will even look at a deer when your partner asks for a Golden Deer? Was it feasible for a husband to chase an animal into its wilderness just because his spouse wished to get it?

The older wiser and better people say that it was bad Time continuing due to which the all-knowing all mighty prince Rama chased the shapeshifter Maricha. I would have agreed with that description if only similar circumstances were not caused by the same animal in Mahabharata.

Once, King of Hastinapura, Pandu went for Vanvihar or Trip to Forest with two of his wife Kunti and Madri. While they were enjoying the scenic beauty of the forest Madri spots restless Deer.The naturally shy animal hops into the wilderness as it feels Madri's attention on itself. Madri wishes if only Pandu could bring that deer's skin for her.

Pandu steps into the dark forest and aims his arrow at the deer while it was with another deer. He heard a scream mixed with a male and female voice. He was shivering to find out that the arrow struck the celebrated Sage Kindama and his wife while they were mating. The sage's wife died. Furious sage Kindama cursed Pandu of lifelong impotency and threatened that Pandu will die if he tried to unite physically with any women.

***
Except these two Epics, deers, especially Kasturi Mriga have always inspired Hindi poets. These animals have a special kind of oil secreted from their naval called Kasturi. This oil has a scent that tempts the deer all throughout its life. It is believed that a deer is always restless, running halter-shelter in quest of the source of the smell.However; it is tragic that a deer can never understand that the smell is within itself not from an external source.

Broadly deer symbolize Temptation, which is actually born within ourselves but we always tend to find an external object to satisfy it. Sita's desire to have the deer was born in her heart but she thought it will be pacified only when she gets the golden deer. It is the same for Madri. Moreover, it is only women who are shown to ask for the deer. It is because in our mythology women are the reason for action, and man is the execution of it. Also feminist may disagree but out of both the sexes, women can be more associated with temptations.

Now women's unfulfilled wishes become the loving man's temptation and thus he chases them. Though it is the man who gets cursed but in no way women are spared as they equally suffer. While Sita lost all for her love for deer, Kunti & Madri had to seek children from other men.

In Ramayana, Golden deer comes as a distraction for Rama while Ravana abducts Sita. Deer are shown as sexual temptation in Mahabharata, as in this case not demonic Maricha but divine Kindama enjoys his union in animal form with his wife. If only he would have confined himself to human limitation he would not have died.

****
Let it be golden or black, Vedic age or modern era, mythological heroes or silver screen heroes, deer had always successfully brought unintended and irreparable twists to their life. I believe my readers are smart enough to understand what I mean!

From my blog: https://deysagnik.wordpress.com