flout:

openly disregard (a rule, law or convention)

flout:

openly disregard (a rule, law or convention)

Example Sentences: Ramayana: Although Sita had no intention to flout Lakshmana’s reminder to stay within the protective circle, she couldn’t put off serving a sage, especially one who seemed on the verge of cursing her family if he wasn’t served promptly. Mahabharata: When six Kaurava leaders ganged together to attack the sixteen-year-old Abhimanyu, they knew

chicanery:

use of deception to achieve one’s purpose

Example Sentences: Ramayana: When Rama and Lakshmana came running to their cottage and found it empty, they both realized that the demons had used chicanery to abduct Sita. Mahabharata: Knowing that the Kauravas were not beyond using chicanery to win the war, Drishtadyumna declared that the Pandava forces would follow the codes of war as

egregious:

outstandingly bad, shocking

Example Sentences: Ramayana: Ravana’s abducting Sita by impersonating a sage and subjecting a follower (Maricha) to certain death at the hands of Rama in the process was egregious. Mahabharata: Karna’s calling Draupadi a whore and suggesting she be publicly disrobed was so egregious as to permanently blacken his name in the epic’s traditional retellings. Bhagavad-gita:

flounder:

be in great difficulty

Example Sentences: Ramayana: When the monkeys were floundering in their search for Sita, that frustration caused tension among them to rise, which in turn brought forth Angada’s suspicions about Sugriva. Mahabharata: When faced with the combined attack by Bhima and Arjuna on the Kurukshetra war’s fourteenth day, the Kaurava soldiers floundered and fled. Bhagavad-gita: Even

malarkey:

foolish or insincere talk

Example Sentences: Ramayana: After having seen the power of one servant of Rama: Hanuman, the demons could no longer dismiss the stories describing Rama’s phenomenal power as malarkey. Mahabharata: Dhritarashtra’s speech about treating the Pandavas and Kauravas equally was exposed as malarkey when he gave the Pandavas the barren half of the kingdom. Bhagavad-gita: Once

purported:

appearing or stating to be true, although not necessarily so

Example Sentences: Ramayana: When Lakshmana heard about the reason for Rama’s exile, he angrily asked, “Why have we never heard about these purported promises that the king gave to Kaikeyi?” Mahabharata: When Dhritarashtra told the Pandavas to go to Varnavrata for enjoying the festival there, Yudhishthira immediately sensed that the purported reason was not the

circumspect:

careful about taking risks

Example Sentences: Ramayana: Hearing Maricha describe Rama’s power made Ravana circumspect about abducting Sita. Mahabharata: Despite seeing Krishna’s massive and mighty universal form, Duryodhana didn’t become circumspect about fighting with Krishna’s devotees, the Pandavas. Bhagavad-gita: Once we understand that the illusory energy, Maya, is also divine and is almost as powerful as the Divine, that

ham-fisted:

lacking skill in physical movement, especially with the hands; clumsy

Example Sentences: Ramayana:  Though Kumbhakarna had a huge body with massive arms, he was by no means ham-fisted while fighting. Mahabharata:  As Bhima pounded Kichaka tirelessly and ruthlessly, the Virata commander’s attempts to defend himself became increasingly weak and ham-fisted. Bhagavad-gita:  We may be ham-fisted or graceful physically, but that makes no difference in our

handwave:

a smart-sounding statement or explanation that overlooks important details

Example Sentences: Ramayana:  When Shurpanakha explained to Ravana how her nose was cut, she handwaved her role in triggering the conflict. Mahabharata:  Though Duryodhana tried to handwave his misdeeds that had brought the Kuru kingdom on the verge of a war among cousins, Krishna firmly and logically exposed the holes in Duryodhana’s arguments. Bhagavad-gita:  The