Dr Suresh Venkita, our Group Medical Director, a senior cardiologist and an avid writer, has yet again shared this lovely story from his desk.
In the Company of Gods
She stood by the palace window, tall and still, gazing absently at the blurred distance. She had two choices: both unattractive, out of which, she would have to take a decision…
Uma Maheswari lived in the time of God. Hers was a time when Gods roamed freely through her life.
It was inevitable that the company of Gods would impact her life, in the right way and, at times the wrong way.
The latter had brought her to this predicament.
She had evolved into a gambler and a compulsive one at that.
There was an old proverb that said- “It was lost at dice, what ancient honor won.”
She had had a bad run at dice that had brought her to this crossroads.
She craved to throw up the dice again, to resolve her most recent crisis. Her eyes were red as she bit her lower lip hard; she was trying to smother the urge.
Like a withdrawal reaction from wine or weed, it was a searing physical and emotional pain that she felt in the pit of her stomach, which cried for relief.
She had never been defeated at dice before. This debacle with a contender for her throne was the first.
As she stood by the palace window, gazing absently at the horizon, her mind wondered how things had come to this pass in her life.
Perhaps the pursuit of gambling all around her had pulled her into the web.
How art thou fallen from heaven?
In her world, she was in the distinguished company of fellow- gamblers.
Shiva and his consort Parvati had made gambling on the night of Diwali a vital ritual. Parvati had invoked Lakshmi, the spouse of Vishnu before the game started, and the goddess of wealth had helped her win the game. Parvati had then declared that it is auspicious to gamble on Diwali day and that those who do would be lucky throughout the year.
To Uma, whose name was also shared by Parvati, indulging in gambling with such divine sanction was irresistible.
Gambling had taken roots in the very early days of the Aryan civilization; the Aryans were a race of gamblers.
Krita, Treta, Dwapara, and Kali, which refer to the four Yugas or periods were also the names of the dices used by the Aryans. The best throw was called Krita and the worst was Kali.
Not only was gambling well developed among the ancient Aryans but the stakes were also very high. Gambling was not just the game of the rich; it was a vice of the many. Kings staked kingdoms and even their wives at gambling.
The turning point of Mahabharat’s story was a game of dice. Duryodhan invited Yudhishthira to play the dice to win away from him everything he owned.
Yudhishthira was addicted to gambling but was not an expert player. Shakuni had loaded the dice, and Yudhishthira kept losing. Finally, he staked Draupadi, the wife of the five Pandavas, and lost her too. Draupadi had to bear the insult, and the Pandavas had to go into exile for fourteen years. One game of dice changed their entire life.
Why didn’t Krishna, cousin to both, stop the Pandavas and Kauravas from gambling? It seems he, too, was very fond of gambling!
Srimad Bhagavatam states: “Nārada then entered the palace of Lord. There he saw the Lord playing at dice with his beloved consort Lakshmi and his friend Uddhava. He was also fond of playing dice with the gopikas and winning them over from the gopis, in jest.”
Aniruddha, the son of Krishna, was equally fond of gambling,
Kālidāsa, a very ardent devotee of Krishna, would chant the holy name of Kṛishna while performing all his daily activities; when he used to throw the dice also, he would sing “Hare Kṛishna!”
Balarama was considered an avatar of Vishnu. Balarama, too was addicted to gambling. Rukmi wanted to avenge the elopement of his sister Rukmini with Krishna, so he challenged Balarama, the brother of Krishna, to a game of dice who accepted it without hesitation. However, he wasn’t very good at it. Balarama lost initially but won the final bet. An enraged Rukmi accused Balarama of cheating. In anger, Balarama killed Rukmi.
Indra, the king of all gods, had staked the divine damsel Urvashi in gambling with Pramati. Pramati won the stake. After winning her, Pramati said to Indra audaciously, “Offer something else as requital. I shall then, O Lord, play at dice with you. Indra said, “O King, I offer as stake my weapon, the thunderbolt and my chariot, both famous for having been used in various victorious campaigns.”
Such was the fascination gambling held for the gods and royalty of the times!
Manu, who wrote the Manu Samhita, the code of conduct for a virtuous life, was a critic of gambling. The Rig Veda seems to censure gambling while the Atharva Veda has hymns for success in gambling. The early Aryans in the Rigvedic period were opposed to gambling and later developed a fondness for it in the Atharvavedic period.
Even Ganesha, the remover of all obstacles, was not spared by the aficionados of the game. Narada Purana had prescribed: “An idol of Ganesha is to be made of ivory. After invoking Ganesha, and worshipping him as per the Vedic rites, the gambler should carry it on his head to the site of the game, without taking any food. Thereby he shall be victorious in gambling.”
What happens to people who gamble?
Vidura, the counselor to the Kauravas, alone had cautioned Duryodhan–
“Gambling is the root of disputes. It brings about dysunion. Its consequences are frightful. This fascination with gambling that you have will only lead to dire results.”
His prophetic words then fell on deaf ears. But battle drums drove the lesson home many years later when the spark that emerged from the clash of dice smouldered for thirteen years and eventually ignited a war that erupted at Kurukshetra. No one emerged unscathed from the war except the dice itself!
How art thou cut down to the ground?
Gambling was permissible for Kshatriyas, the warrior caste, some of who were kings and queens. Akṣhatriya could not refuse to battle or gamble when so invited by a rival to the throne.
Gambling was a means to settle a question, to resolve a conflict or avoid a devastating confrontation that would undoubtedly lead to deaths and destruction.
When you lose at gambling, as Indra did to Pramati, you do not get two choices, even if it may appear to be so.
Either you pay up with what you wagered, or you had to, in Pramati’s words to Indra, “offer something else as requital.”
When Uma Maheswari lost calamitously at the play of dice to the Aryan invader of her kingdom, she not only lost her wager, which was her throne and crown but also the honor of her family and her self- esteem. She had nothing to place on the table as requital.
The second choice was banishment to earth to make her riches and return to toss the dice with the victor.
She felt heckled by the victor who dismissed her almost like Rama did to Ravana at the end of the first day of the battle- “Go today and come back tomorrow!”
“Go” meant banishment to earth, and “tomorrow” meant a lifetime. Life on earth was different from being in heaven. Brahma’s one day in paradise was like a thousand days on earth.
Both were unattractive propositions.
She chose to fall to earth.
To Uma, the earth was a giddy whirl of an experience.
Unknown to her, the dice had fallen to earth too and had probably preceded her by a whisker.
The dice were made of the brown fruit of the vibhidaka tree. So it was no wonder that the habit had grown swiftly from a seed to a pervasive tree with a canopy that hung darkly over the human race.
Uma had to rapidly modernize herself to confront the fact that gambling on earth had quickly grown from a game of dice to an earnest pursuit of money at gambling houses called casinos and to online betting.
Women were at the forefront of the gambling scene, both overtly and covertly.
Uma almost immediately noted that many women on earth were already on their way to becoming problematic gamblers.
Women were also researching female gambling. She encountered scholars on the subject.
They told her that women’s gambling habits were much different from that of men. In general, women preferred to visit a gambling house in groups, while men preferred individual play. Over the decades, men tended to prefer games such as poker and blackjack, games they thought they could beat, or at least have an optimal chance of winning.
She was amused to observe that men often gained their identity from displays of competence. Women were not at the gaming table to display their proficiency to the crowd.
She was not surprised to see that men and women exhibited different reactions to losses at the casino. Men showed aggression and anger, while women showed sadness or anxiety.
The researchers she met cited Gambling Commission UK’s research that showed that 44% of women had gambled within a given four weeks; 53% of men had gambled in the same period.
It was a revelation to her that the baby boomer generation of women preferred slot machines whereas the millennials preferred electronic roulette studios, which allowed for group interaction and had DJs playing live music. If at all they played slots, they went in for skill-based slots as they were more like the smartphone games or social games they had grown up playing.
Uma wondered – which type of woman was at heightened risk for problematic gambling?
Two of the critical factors were loneliness and boredom. Women bettors who showed high levels of loneliness were at higher risk of exhibiting problematic gambling. In general, women were more susceptible to it than men.
Research showed her that men were most likely to embezzle money to pay for gambling debts, while women were more likely to take out an additional credit card and max out the credit line.
She became concerned when she came to know that the number of women who report a gambling problem was rising at double the rate of men. When used as an escape from stress and pain they were getting trapped in debt that could become catastrophic.
She saw that many female gambling addicts had become secret gamblers, and often no one suspected a thing. They could be gambling online for hours every day, and no one in the family would ever come to know.
Some would never have even begun betting if they hadn’t been able to do it secretly, on the phone. Many were in this bubble and couldn’t escape. All they thought about was gambling and how to pay back the debts.
Unlike in the world she left behind, on earth there was a stigma for women gamblers. Society had apparent gender roles for women and expectations that they would be caregivers. Problematic gamblers among women expected judgment, exposure, shame, and guilt.
Uma met women who gambled because they lacked supportive relationships, or they feared intimacy and commitment in relationships. No longer trusting in close relationships, these women turned to the escapism of gambling.
Typically, women began gambling later in life than men, but their problems developed more quickly. Many had their lives crumbling around them. Somedays feelings of hopelessness escalated, and they did not want to be alive anymore.
They could not see how things could be turned around.
She thought that, with help, many could “snap back to normal.” Fortunately, on earth, support was available – and it did work.
Women in treatment told Uma that the greatest risk in gambling was not just a loss of money, but also a loss of time and one’s sense of self.
I will ascend into heaven; I will exalt my throne above the stars of God Meeting women on earth whose lives were destroyed by gambling broke Uma’s heart.
She did not want to go back to her world above to cast the dice to redeem her kingdom.
She wished to rise higher than that and become the lucky star to those women whose luck ran out and debt climbed.
She ascended to heaven to shine brightly as Jupiter, the lucky star.
Jupiter is the light when all others go out, showing the way to prosperity and growth. If Jupiter rules one’s chart as the ascendant, one is born under the lucky star, prospering from risks others wouldn’t dare take.
According to the ancient Greeks, Jupiter was the Greater Benefic, guiding humans to high ideals, a sense of purpose, and, ultimately, happiness.
If you are a woman reading this story on a quiet and dark night, in a village with no lights burning at that late hour, you could look up at the sky and find Uma Maheswari shimmering as Jupiter.
Follow her, she is your lucky star!
Dr. Venkita S Suresh,
Group Medical Director and Dean of Studies,
DNB and other post-graduate training programs.