Iliad, Antigone and Bhagavad Gita - Essay Example

Is the ical Hero a Dharma Warrior? How does the Warrior Provide a Metaphor for every Soul’s Experience of Life? How do these Warriors Provide Help to the Modern Reader? Iliad, Antigone and Bhagavad Gita Classical literature presents many significant experiences that display wisdom and other life lessons still relevant to modern readers. Homer’s Iliad, Sophocles’ Antigone and The Bhagavad Gita constitute ancients works that reflect the cultural realities of their periods and the values of their people. Indeed, Iliad mainly foregrounds the actions about the Trojan War; Antigone portrays Creon’s abuse of power while The Bhagavad Gita exposes philosophical models in the Hindu society. Considering his commitment to defend his nation and the sacrifices he is willing to undergo, the classical hero may be seen as a dharma warrior. However, the karma may be different because the actions and reactions usually get the influence of fate and gods that may alter the results. The cultural differences between the Hindu and the Greek societies and the political agendas of the kingdoms may explain the different actions. Besides, divine voices like Krishna or Apollo either provide moral wisdom or intervene directly in the processes. The Bhagavad Gita foregrounds the concept of dharma that represents the duty a person has to accomplish. In Hinduism, dharma is very significant because it will have an impact on the karma, the cumulative effect of our action. Though aware of his duty to fight injustice in order to restore the kingdom to his brother, who is the rightful heir, Arjuna goes through a conflict because he does not want to kill his family members for power. Thus, Lord Krishna has to remind him that his dharma as a warrior is to fight evil in order to restore order. The narrator reports Arjuna’s change of mind: “ O King, thereafter, while about to engage in the releasing of weapons, Arjuna on whose banner Hanuuman is pictured, having observed the sons of Dhrtarastra ready for battle, at that time taking up his bow and spoke these words unto Lord Krsna” (Gita 1.20). In this conversation, Lord Krishna makes it clear to Arjuna that life and death do not matter because the body is just flesh, so killing his relatives should not bother him. Lord Krishna emphasizes that his dharma as a warrior is to fight to ensure that the throne goes to the rightful heir, and his failure to do that will have consequences. Besides, the warriors in Homer’s Iliad have a true understanding of their duty that allows them to take their work seriously, confront their enemies, their hardworking conditions and, sometimes, even their gods in order to defend their territories and restore the honor and pride of their people. For them, war represents a natural course of action to take in order to preserve the sovereignty of their country and secure the survival of their people. This statement exposes Achilles’ talent as a soldier and the fate he reserves his enemies: “Sing, O goddess, the anger of Achilles son of Peleus, that brought countless ills upon the Achaeans. Many a brave soul did it send hurrying down to Hades, and many a hero did it yield a prey to dogs and vultures, for so were the counsels of Jove fulfilled from the day on which the son of Atreus, king of men, and great Achilles, first fell out with one another” (Homer 1). This recognition of his skills as a warrior reflects a deep understanding of his duty or dharma. Even though Antigone is not a warrior in the literal sense of the word, she is still a soldier whose dharma consists in defending the honor of her brother and family. In fact, she strongly challenges Creon’s decision to prohibit the burial of her deceased brother for attempting to fight for his rightful throne. Conscious of the lack of foundation and injustice of this decision, Antigone confronts her uncle and buries her brother, thereby, defying his authority. This brave stance makes her a warrior aware of her dharma even though this action will have terrible consequences. She courageously claims: “But I will bury him; and if I must die, / I say that this crime is holy: I shall lie down / With him in death, and I shall be as dear / To him as he to me” (Sophocles 1.55-58). This strong determination to accomplish a purpose at the risk of her life demonstrates her true understanding of her dharma— to offer a proper burial to her brother and claim his humanity. Moreover, Lord Krishna insists on the significance of karma and exposes the effects people’s actions have on others. Actions have reactions, and the effects of these reactions determine our life. For this reason, he strongly advises Arjuna to engage in the battle because the lack of action will have severe effects on the kingdom and in other citizens’ lives. This divine voice expresses a moral value that goes beyond mundane issues and reaches the eternal. As the charioteer and guide of Arjuna, Lord Krishna has a direct impact on him and provides him with philosophical teachings that urge him to get rid of his emotions and focus on the reality of eternity. Talking about Lord Krishna, the narrator informs: “You are the Supreme Ultimate Truth Knowable by the Vedic Scriptures. You are the only support for this universe. You are the imperishable preserver of eternal righteousness. You are the everlasting, Supreme Ultimate Personality. This is my conviction” (Gita11.18). This assertion not only foregrounds the importance of Lord Krishna but also the everlasting compared to the superficial and ephemeral. This divine voice and his philosophical lessons provide Arjuna with sound moral values likely to have a positive impact on both his dharma and karma. Even though Arjuna’s actions may be similar to those of Achilles in the sense that both refused to fight at one point, their motivations are totally different. Indeed, if Arjuna refuses to fight in order to preserve the lives of his relatives, Achilles’ reasons are mainly personal. His frustration solely stems from losing her woman and the argument he had with Agamemnon. Therefore, his actions, the reactions towards them and the effects they have on his fellow soldiers will have an impact on others. He claims: “Never when the Achaeans sack any rich city of the Trojans do I receive so good a prize as you do, though it is my hands that do the better part of the fighting. When the sharing comes, your share is far the largest, and I, forsooth, must go back to my ships, take what I can get and be thankful, when my labour of fighting is done” (Homer 1). This complaint indicates that Achilles does not have a good understanding of karma because his actions are not fortuitous as he expects to be redeemed for his participation in the war. In contrast, Krishna advocates the reliance on the essence, not the superficial or ordinary matters. Even though Achilles believes in the gods, and he is himself the son of a goddess, he does not have a solid moral foundation allowing him to reject trivial things. However, the gods do support him: “The gods, then, were thus ranged against one another. But the heart of Achilles was set on meeting Hector son of Priam for it was with his blood that he longed above all things else to glut the stubborn lord of battle. Meanwhile Apollo set Aeneas on to attack the son of Peleus, and put courage into his heart” (Homer 22). Apollo’s intervention through Aeneas reveals the role the gods play in humans’ affairs as they take sides according to their interests. On the other hand, Antigone has a real sense of karma because she is aware that her actions have consequences, and she is ready to face them. She carefully plans her actions in order to fight evil and restore order in the chaos Creon set up in the kingdom. For her, her life does not matter as long as basic burial rules are violated and elementary family ties broken. Besides, her deep understanding of fate makes her accept her punishment without protesting because she is ready to sacrifice herself for the well-being of the kingdom. She observes: “The immortal unrecorded laws of God. / They are not merely now: they were, and shall be, / Operative forever, beyond man utterly” (Sophocles 2. 361-363). This trust in God and His absolute truth allows her not to worry about Creon’s authority. This belief in the everlasting laws of God, superior to any earthly decisions, demonstrates her deep rootedness in moral values. Her God is similar to Krishna who detains the supreme power. This strong foundation on morals explains the acceptance of her fate since she believes that death is only the destruction of the flesh and that her death will allow the restoration of order. Furthermore, the warriors in Iliad, Antigone and the Gita make sense to the modern reader through their similarity with our present day soldiers who also have the duty to defend their nations. These warriors have missions to accomplish that constitute their dharma, and the karma is also significant because their actions have many consequences. Despite the different time periods that change the content of these missions, warriors still have the same role to defend their territories and secure the well-being of their people. Moreover, the philosophical teachings and life lessons these texts convey may also be helpful to modern readers who may draw sound conclusions. Iliad, Antigone and The Bhagavad Gita are classical texts that convey different realities of the time. Each of them portrays warriors with different principles and missions. Even though the cultures differ, the classical hero in Homer’s text can be seen as a dharma warrior because he has a duty to accomplish. Despite the differences between Hindu and Greek cultures, these warriors engaged in battle have the same duties to defend their nations even though the causes for war may diverge. Furthermore, as the cumulative effects of our actions, karma is also very significant in each of these texts because actions lead to reactions that also have consequences. This chain of actions and reactions that determine people’s lives may reflect their fate or faith. Indeed, the gods contribute, in a sense, through their moral advice or direct intervention in the handling of human matters. Works Cited The Bhagavad Gita: A New Translation. Trans. Stephen Mitchell. New York: Crown Publishing, 2002. Print. Homer. The Iliad. Trans. Robert Fagles and Bernard Knox. New York: Penguin, 1991. Print. Sophocles. Antigone. Trans. Paul Woodruff. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing, 2001. Print. Read More