Mahabharata Quiz - 36

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Question - 36

The decipherment of the last and the first day of the 13-year period of exile was done on the basis of a single factor, namely 'Krishna Saptami' when the Trigarta-s had stolen the cattle of the Matsya country. How reliable is this factor?

Answer:

First of all, we established in the initial questions that Vyasa had stated only the truth and there was no interpolation of any kind, more so in the case of date features. So, the mention of Krishna Saptami in the text is a highly reliable date feature.

Secondly, people of those times (even of current times) conducted their activities as per time or date features. Tithi is particularly important for performing specific actions. Each tithi has a sub-division called 'karana' which determines the kind of action that can be successfully fulfilled - giving rise to a famous dictum "Karaṇāt kārya siddhi".

For instance, the Vishṭi Karaṇa coming in Krishna Saptami is particularly meant for stealing! In those days, even thieves have known the relevant parts of astrology for choosing the right time for robbery so that they won't be caught. Robbery is one of the 64 arts which a person was supposed to learn but not use - the rationale is to know how and when a robber can strike.

The Trigarta-s, when they planned to steal the cattle of the Matsya country could have chosen a relevant tithi to do that act. Amazingly, the Mahabharata mentions that it was done on Krishṇa Saptami which has Vishṭi Karaṇa as its sub-part, suitable for stealing, murder and attacks.