Reimagining Krishna’s Humanism in Gajendrakumar Mitra’s Panchajanya: A Psychological Reading of the Mahâbhârata Persona

Abstract

This paper presents a comprehensive critical study of Gajendrakumar Mitra’s Panchajanya, examining how the novel reimagines Krishna as an ethically burdened human agent rather than a divine absolutist. It argues that Mitra reconstructs Krishna’s authority on the foundations of disciplined judgment, strategic statecraft, and institutional rationality, thereby humanising the metaphysical figure into a theorist of moral and political responsibility. Through a tripartite analytical framework encompassing psychological interiority, political dharma, and civilizational architecture, the study interprets Kurukshetra not merely as a battlefield but as a bounded moral design intended to terminate cycles of grievance and restore equilibrium within the social order. While retaining the narrative and cultural integrity of the Mahâbhârata, Mitra’s version redefines sacred authority as an ethical performance grounded in human deliberation and foresight.

Methodologically, the paper employs qualitative textual analysis, combined with contextual reception theory, to trace recurring motifs of fatigue, hesitation, desire, restraint, foresight, alliance formation, and ritual governance. These narrative elements collectively demonstrate how Mitra translates divine command into civic accountability and transforms epic heroism into a form of institutional ethics. The findings suggest that Mitra’s Krishna operates as a theorist of crisis governance whose legitimacy arises from his ability to bear moral burden and to convert divine victory into institutional settlement.

The paper concludes that Panchajanya represents a landmark in Bengali modernism and the broader South Asian reception of the epic tradition. By harmonising epic continuity with psychological realism, Mitra articulates a sustainable model of political dharma that speaks powerfully to the ethical and administrative complexities of modern life.