India's ‘strategic culture’ has to be based on Ramayana-Mahabharata

Pune: Lord Krishna and Hanuman were the greatest diplomats in the world. India’s strategic culture must have been based on Ramayana and Mahabharata. Because currently, the ten major strategic concepts we see at the political level today are all present in Ramayana and Mahabharata. By stating this, Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar has created a sensation in the media across the country. External Affairs Minister (EAM) Jaishankar also gave references from Ramayana and Mahabharata to prove his claims. EAM Jaishankar was speaking at the publication ceremony of the Marathi translation of his book, ‘The India Way: Strategies for an Uncertain World’.

The release ceremony of the book, ‘Bharat Marg’, was held in Pune on Saturday. While sharing his view on this occasion, Jaishankar asserted that there must be an influence of Ramayana and Mahabharata while moving at the strategic level. He said that if he was asked who the world’s biggest diplomats were. Jaishankar said they would be Lord Krishna and Hanuman. ‘If we look at Hanuman, he had gone beyond diplomacy; he went ahead of the mission, contacted Sita and set Lanka on fire too. He was a multi-purpose diplomat’, claimed the Jaishankar.

Saying that the current ten major strategic level concepts in the world are found in Ramayana and Mahabharata, Jaishankar highlighted the importance of the epics. Besides, Lord Krishna showed an excellent example of strategic patience in the case of Shishupala. Lord Krishna forgave Shishupala until he committed a hundred crimes. But on committing the 101st crime, Lord Krishna killed Shisupala. Jaishankar further said that one could learn a lesson about making the right decision at the right time from this. At the same time, Jaishankar pointed out that in the Kurukshetra of the Mahabharata, Kauravas and Pandavas faced each other for war, and some had remained neutral in that war.

Conversely, the alliance of Duryodhana and Karna was fatal, and they violated the rule-based system. Both of them broke the rules all their lives, but in their last days, they wanted others to follow the rules. But both of them had to end without doing so. Jaishankar seems to have given a very big message by suggesting that cooperation between two evil forces eventually becomes dangerous for their community and the world.

Although not mentioned directly, Jaishankar’s reference to Duryodhana and Karna has been indicated to be linked to Pakistan and China. While citing an example of Lord Krishna’s strategic patience, Jaishankar seems to have reminded India of its patience with Pakistan. At present, it is clearly seen that Pakistan has come close to its hundredth offence, and it is predicted that soon this country will be destroyed. In such times, India will not be cowed by Pakistan, and India won’t even do that. Also, Jaishankar reminded that a warrior like Arjuna was emotionally constrained while fighting against his own relatives. Jaishankar relates Arjuna’s state of confusion with that of India today by saying that we cannot choose our relatives and even neighbours. However, one cannot take decisions emotionally, and even Arjuna did not do that; Jaishankar has given another important message to the countrymen.

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