Thursday, October 13, 2011

10/13/2011 10:02:00 PM - , 1 comment

Magic of Words - Malini

SUMMARY
Malini is two-act play by Rabindranath Tagore and it is all about love and hatred; religion and dogma of the contemporary Asian society. Malini is the central figure of the play and she is the princess of the palace and lovely daughter of King and Queen. Malini is very different from her early age, who thinks differently. She is different in her thinking as well as attitude than the rest of the members of the royal palace. She opines differently and everyone including King and Queen are surprised due to her feelings. The kingdom is basically rooted on Hindu ideology and doctrine but the princess Malini promotes Buddhism and its ideology. There is the clash between Hinduism and Buddhism in the play. The Brahmins are the Hindu extremist and the Princess Malini is the promoter of Buddhism and its ideology.

Malini is isolated from Royal pleasure and happiness and wants to share the pity, sorrows, pain and sufferings of ordinary people as her own. These ideas principally promotes Buddhism doctrine and because of that Hindu extremists such as Brahmins, Kemankar, Supriya are irritated from Malini. The Brahmins strongly suggests the King to banish Malini from the Royal Palace so that the stain in Hindu Religion can be erased, she is labeled and compared as the poisonous snake in the palace. The King and the Queen worry much as they find that their daughter wants to walk in the perilous path in her life. Despite the great request and pleas; Malini decides to banish from the Palace. The Brahmins are always giving the pressure to the King to banish Malini to save the religion and Hindu ideology, so they protest and march against the King in the street. Eventually Malini is banished from the Palace.

The circumstances is reversed when Malini has returned from the banishment. King and Queen are happy from the arrival of Malini who are much anxious before and they follows the footstep of Malini who has brought outer world into the palace. The Brahmins who has raised their hand against Malini are now enchanted and attracted by her mercy, pity and tenderness. They have thought that Malini has understood the essence of Hindu doctrine and gained the divine spirit. They blindly suppose her as the form of Goddess who has descended from the heaven. According to the Brahmins, the divine spirit is existed in the heart of Malini. People are gathering in front of Palace to take the blessing of Malini who understand the real virtue, pity and love of human being. Love, virtue, mercy, pity are the pure source of divine spirit and knowledge and it makes one enlightened.

On the other hand, Supriya and Kemankar are much critical to the King who finally accepts the norms and notions as well as doctrine of Buddhism. They try to revolt against the King, so they secretly plan to make the plot against the King. They blame that the King rejects the Hindu doctrine and turns to Buddhism. On the course of time, all are become the follower of Malini, but Supriya and Kemankar has stayed aloof. Kemankar has fled to another country so that he can assemble armies to fight against the King to protect the religion as the King has deviated from his original religion. Kemankar and Supriya are the true friends from their childhood. Supriya has remained in the country and informed Kemakar about happening in the Kingdom and acted the role of spy. Kemankar tries to control the kingdom by doing armful revolution.

The fame and charm of Malini has been spreading rapidly. Supriya who was very critical to Malini, now influenced and enchanted by the divine spirit of Malini. Supriya then reveals the plan and shows the letter of Kemankar to the King and won the mercy of King. Supriya makes treachery to his friend. Thought, Supriaya urges to the King to forgive Kemankar who has been arrested by the King’s army in the frontier of the Kingdom. Finally Kemankar has been presented in front of King. The King has asked him for his last wish before he faces the death penalty.

In the last scene of the play, Kemankar and Supriya are talking and condemning each other. Kemankar does not tolerate the betray of Supriay, so he gives the big strike (blow) to Supriya who falls down on the ground and dies immediately. The King is enraged by this and stands out to look for his sword to attack Kemankar but Malini urges her father to forgive Kemanakar. This is the ideology of Buddhism. In every sin and mislead, forgive is the best solution to make our lives peaceful.


Q.N.1 What was the revolt against? Against Malini? Against the king? Against Buddhism?
Ans: Kashi is one of the centers, where Hinduism originated and prospered. It is also the place highly dominated by Brahmins. Remarkable things are that the Brahmins enjoy the great privilege in Hindu society. In such condition any blow to the dominant religious dogma may result in disadvantage of all Brahmins. Therefore when Malini comes out with a new concept influenced by Buddhism all the Brahmins get united against her and shouted for her banishment.

Q. N. 2 Why does Malini ask for her own banishment from the place?
Ans: Malini thinks that she is inspired by some divine force in heaven. She thinks she should go out of the place among the common people. It will help her to teach them what is right and what is wrong. The instructions of Malini will help them to attain nirvana. Therefore when the king informs her about Brahmins’ dissentient she takes it positively. She tells her father that they are not asking for her banishment but want her to live with them. So she requests her father to listen to Brahmins demand and banish her from the place.

Q.N.3. Draw a characteristics of Malini.
Ans: Malini is the protagonist of Rabindranath Tagore’s play “Malini”. She is the princess of Kasi, a land where Hinduism originated and prospered and where her new thoughts stirred the conservative Hindus. Although she is a princess, she doesn’t wear dresses of ornaments like a princess. This annoys her mother but Malini thinks her destiny is “to find riches in the property”.

Malini is inspired by a divine force of heaven. She thinks she should leave the place and go among people. It is important because she thinks only by bridging the gap between palace and people, she can preach and rescue them from the troubled life of earth. According to her the whole world is like a ship left by its captain on a stormy see. The ship might destroy if she will not reach. Iin other words she thinks she can help people to achieve nirvana.

However once she goes out, she finds the reality quite different from what she has supposed. She asks help from Supriya in her mission as she lacks words when she is amidst human crowd. This might make the readers think that all her visions are in fact illusions.

Nevertheless, it doesn’t mean she posses any power at all. In fact she looks so bright than agitating Brahmins takes her as an incarnation of a goddess who has descended on the pious land of Kasi to rescue it from the possible bloodshed.

Malini is taught by Buddhist monks. Accordingly she is very much influenced by its philosophy non- violence and peace. When Supriya tells about how he has informed the king about Kemanker’s plan. Who makes him a captive, she doesn’t like it. She thinks her heart is big enough to greet even the opponent. Not only that when Kemankar kills Supriya, she pleads the king to forgive him. Remarkable thing is that Supriya is very dear to her and king wants her to marry him.

1 comments:

u can also read about the summary of malini here summary of malini magic of words