Self in different Roles in the Character of LordKrishna

Abstract

Self-concept differentiation (SCD) is defined as an individual’s varying selfrepresentation across contexts or social roles (e.g., self as a spouse, self as a parent, self as
a student). In Bagwad Gita one can see how Arjuna is moved to action by the great
motivator and his sakha, Lord Krishna himself. In the context of Bhagwad Gita, during
the Mahabharat we see Lord Krishna and Arjuna in totally different roles; Arjuna as a
warrior in perplexity, whether to fight and no to fight with his own kith and kin; and Lord
Krishna as Arjuna’s Sarathi or charioteer. We can see both of them switching from their
roles as cousin brothers and mitra to that of shishya and the guide. In the battlefield, Lord
Krishna, is also in the role of Hrishikesha, the philosopher and guide to Arjuna, and is
also the one who is ready to take orders and to serve his sakha in a new role. In his other
roles . Lord Krishna is seen as a friend, consort, lover, cow protector, etc. The paper
discusses this mix of different roles in Lord Krishna, who is at the centre of Bhagwad
Gita. The paper also tries to theorise about what if some other characters in the
Mahabharat had failed to realize their different roles and what was required of them in
those roles, that they failed to make the right decisions based on values and rights of
others, that we had to see the Mahabharat, which brought down the Kauravas and left
even the Pandavas defeated in more ways than one. The Mahabharat has a lot to tell about
our own roles and the choices that we make in these roles, that may make or mar us.