>Sunshineisles2 at 18:22, 30 September 2021

2021-09-30T18:22:47Z

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{{Infobox book
| italic title = 
| name = Ashwamedh
| image = Ashwamedh book cover.jpeg
| caption = Coverpage
| author = [[Chinu Modi]]
| cover_artist = Shailesh Modi
| country = [[India]]
| language= [[Gujarati language|Gujarati]]
| subject = Indian Mythology
| genre = [[Act (drama)#Three-act play|Three-act play]]
| set_in = [[Ahmedabad]]
| published = October 1986
| publisher = Rannade Prakashan
| publisher2 =
| pub_date =
| media_type = Print (Paperback)
| pages = 102
| awards =
| isbn =
| oclc = 655662387
| dewey =
| congress =
}}
'''''Ashwamedh''''' ([[Gujarati language|Gujarati]]: અશ્વમેધ) is a [[Gujarati language]] [[Act (drama)#Three-act play|three-act play]] written by [[Chinu Modi]]. It has endured some controversy due to its bold and taboo theme.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |title=Ashwamedh |encyclopedia=Gujarati Sahityakosh (Encyclopedia of Gujarati Literature |language= gu |year=1990 |publisher=[[Gujarati Sahitya Parishad]] |location=Ahmedabad |pages=14}}</ref> However, it is considered one of the finest works of Modi by several critics.<ref>{{cite book |last=Brahmbhatt |first=Prasad |year=2014 |title=Arvachin Gujarati Sahityano Itihas (History of Modern Gujarati Literature) |location=Ahmedabad |publisher=Parshva Publication |page=97 |isbn=978-93-5108-247-7}}</ref>

== Plot ==
Mohini, the main character of the play, is the wife of King Vichitrasen. She experienced [[Orgasm|sexual orgasm]] at the age of 16 while riding a horse. The rituals of [[Ashvamedha|''Ashvamedha yajna'']] demand that once the king becomes ''[[Chakravarti (Sanskrit term)|Chakravarti]]'' (undisputed sovereign), the chief queen must have [[sexual intercourse]] with the horse.

In accordance with this ritual, Mohini suggests that her husband organizes ''Ashvamedha yajna'' at the beginning of the play. She tells the king that her wish is to see him as a ''Chakravarti'' king, but her main desire lies in having sex with the horse. For the purpose of the ''yajna'', she chooses a horse named Bijak from the royal stable. As the ''yajna'' starts, she displays blind [[sexual attraction]] towards the horse. At the end of the ''yajna'', when she approaches the horse for the ritualistic sex, she finds that Bijak is exhausted from running for a whole year and has lost the charm it had earlier. She refuses to recognize the horse. Due to the unfulfilled sexual desire and her resulting anger, she commits suicide on the spot with a sword. Her suicide tragically concludes the play.<ref>{{cite thesis |last=Dave |first=Arjun |date=2016 |title= Reception of myth in the select plays of Girish Karnad and Chinu Modi a comparative study|type=Ph.D |publisher= Saurashtra University |url= http://shodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in/handle/10603/125878 |access-date=28 January 2017 |hdl=10603/125878}}</ref>

In the play, Chinu Modi vividly described the crisis in the life of King Vichitrasen and the soldiers who went for the ''yajna''. Modi has used chorus to signify a situation in the play.<ref>{{cite magazine |last= Raval |first=Rushikesh |title=Article about Ashwamedh play |date= May 2016 |magazine=Parab |editor1-last=Joshi |editor1-first=Yogesh |publisher=[[Gujarati Sahitya Parishad]] |location=Ahmedabad }}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
* {{Google Books|id=sPOeYgEACAAJ}}

[[Category:Gujarati-language books]]
[[Category:Indian plays]]
[[Category:1986 plays]]
[[Category:1986 books]]
[[Category:Indian books]]
[[Category:Gujarati-language plays]]
[[Category:Sexuality in plays]]
[[Category:Zoophilia in culture]]

Ashwamedh - Revision history

>Sunshineisles2 at 18:22, 30 September 2021