In the previous episode, we had witnessed Bhagawan Krishna giving His final statement on the issue of the war which is becoming more and more inevitable as time progresses. As Duryodhana is not willing to mend his ways at all, Sanjaya tries to convince Yudishtra to sacrifice, which in turn could avoid the disastrous war between both the camps. However, Yudishtra is not in a mood to give in easily this time. He asserts that it is his “Dharma” to fight a war and defend his kingdom, rather than performing Tapas everytime, which is the “Dharma” of a Brahmana Rishi and not of a Kshatrya king. As Yudishtra explains his stance this way, Bhagawan Krishna too concurs with whatever Yudishtra says. He tells Sanjaya decisively that if Duryodhana doesn’t mend his ways even now, war is inevitable and he has to face mass destruction. Even now it is not too late and if Duryodhana repents, Yudishtra and Co. are ready to broker peace and settle things amicably. Rather, if Duryodhana doesn’t want to relent, there is no other option but to go for an all-out assault.
Moreover, Bhagawan Krishna now says something to Sanjaya, which is applicable to all of us as well! Bhagawan Krishna continues His accord thus, “Oh Sanjaya! All living beings in this world are bound by their “Karma” that they bring into the world along with their birth. There is no escape from the “Karma” that they accumulate and bring. Yudishtra, Bheemasena, Arjuna, Nakula, Sahadeva, Duryodhana, Ducchaasana, etc. are not exceptional people in this regard. All of them have their own “Karma” and they’ve to perform their duties assigned to each of them. There is no escape from this. Hence, if there is a war, all of them should stand up and fight! This is their “Karma”! Thus, “Karma-Yoga” is the best way to attain “Moksha” and going through the path of “Gnyaana Yoga” as you are mentioning is extremely tough. Nobody can attain “Moksha” through “Gnyaana Yoga”, barring a very few people. All beings have no other option but to go through the “Karma Yoga” process to attain the highest “Moksha”. Oh Sanjaya! Please remember one thing clearly – I’m the only one in this world who is untouched by “Karma”! I’m the “Paramatman” and “Karma” can never come near a “Paramatman”. However, for all the others, “Karma” binds them. Hence, if fighting a war is the duty of both Duryodhana and Yudishtra, let them perform it! Let us not stop them from executing their “Karma”! Oh Sanjaya! You are saying that Yudishtra should go on a Tapas and penance and reach “Moksha”. Let me tell you one thing very clearly – Yudishtra will never be able to succeed if he takes that path! He would fail miserably if he goes into that path, because of the fact that this is not his destiny. As Yudishtra is a Kshatrya, his path is to fight and defend his country, and this is his “Karma”! Hence, I fail to see the logic behind your argument!”
As Bhagawan Krishna says thus, He continues further -”Oh Sanjaya! So please go back to Hastinapura and convey this message very clearly to King Dhritarashtra and the fickle-minded Duryodhana. Please tell them that Bhagawan Krishna and Yudishtra are firmly of the opinion that they should not “steal” the kingdom of Yudishtra by any means and this is against the “Raaja-Dharma”! Only cowards do such heinous acts! If Duryodhana really wants to annex Indraprastha, he should fight a legitimate war against Yudishtra and get it into his fold, rather than resorting to dirty tricks like this to cheat Yudishtra! Oh Sanjaya! You’ve to understand one more thing – Do you remember what Duryodhana and Karna did during that infamous episode of the gambling game? Both of them behaved so indecently with Draupati on that fateful day, didn’t they? If I would have been there in person on that day at Hastinapura courtroom, things would have been very different and Duryodhana and Co. would have been history long back! How dare they keep their wretched hands on a “Pathivratha” called Draupati? These acts of bad “Karma” and “Adharma” cannot go unanswered by all of them! Even though I wasn’t there in person, it was only because of my timely help of extending Draupati’s saree, was she saved from a major embarrassment! How can these crimes go unchecked? There should be an answer for all these, isn’t it? Hence, go and tell King Dhritarashtra that Yudishtra and Co. are getting ready to avenge all these heinous crimes that were committed against them in the past!”
As Bhagawan Krishna says thus, He becomes angry and all of them who are around Him, including Sanjaya try to gather around Him and console Him! Taking this stern message with him, Sanjaya thus commences his journey towards Hastinapura! So for today, let us understand up to this point and in the next episode, we shall continue this discussion further! Stay tuned! 🙂
The Indian Dharma 