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The Story of Sāvitrī in the Mahābhārata : a Lineal Interpretation

2013; Cambridge University Press; Volume: 23; Issue: 4 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1017/s1356186313000424

1474-0591

Simon Brodbeck,

Ancient Near East History

Abstract This paper presents a new interpretation of the story of Sāvitrī as presented in the Mahābhārata . Sāvitrī is viewed as an intended putrikā , or lineal daughter, for her father, and the death of her husband and the misfortunes of her father-in-law are explained as corollaries of this circumstance; but at the last minute Sāvitrī switches her allegiance to her husband and his line, becoming a pativratā rather than a putrikā . Following a prompt in the Mahābhārata text, the paper concludes with an exploration, on the Sāvitrī model, of Draupadī's relationship to the Pāṇḍava line. The death of the Draupadeyas and the resuscitation of Parikṣit are viewed in terms of a symbolic switch from the putrikā to the pativratā mode of operation.