In the previous episode, we had witnessed Bhishmachaarya lying down on the “arrow bed” as he fell for enabling the cause of “Dharma” to win. As Bhishmachaarya falls down thus, the entire Kurukshetra battlefield, including King Dhritarashtra is under a huge shock and disbelief! Duryodhana rushes to see Bhishmachaarya, who in turn advises him once again to refrain from fighting this futile battle any further. Bhishmachaarya once again reminds Duryodhana about the real nature of Arjuna and Bhagawan Krishna by saying that none in this world can defeat this duo as they stand for “Dharma”. Even as Bhishmachaarya says thus, all his words once again goes into Duryodhana’s deaf ears! He is literally not ready to accept his words! Rather, he is more interested in seeking revenge against the Paandavas for bringing Bhishmachaarya to this state of affairs!
Meanwhile, Bhishmachaarya requests Arjuna to make a “pillow out of arrows” for him to rest his head which is hanging. Arjuna obeys and does the needful for Bhishmachaarya. As Arjuna is a great warrior, he shows his expertise in aiming three arrows at Bhishmachaarya’s head, but not hitting them straight. The arrows were aimed downwards towards the ground, to automatically lift Bhishmachaarya’s head and balance it between them! This is a unique skill that Arjuna possesses and as he does so with astute expertise, the entire set of people standing there are in awe of Arjuna! As this happens, Bhishmachaarya is now able to see everyone around him. Till that point he was unable to see anybody because his head was hanging in an awkward position, but now as he sees everyone, he says thus, “Oh Duryodhana! Please understand one thing clearly – If you’ve to succeed as a leader you should learn to respect others. You should be able to understand the needs, wants and feelings of others! Unfortunately you’re not able to do it. When I had asked for a pillow to rest my face, look at what you did and what Arjuna did – You went to bring some cushioned pillows for me, which I never asked for! However, look at the way how Arjuna understands me – He is a true “Kshatrya” prince and look at the way he has arranged an apt pillow for my head – This shows the significance of a true warrior! Oh Duryodhana! If someone has a better talent and capability than you, you should always learn to respect that person. Rather, if you’re going to keep nurturing jealousy and ego, you are going to meet a ghastly end to your life very soon!”
Meanwhile, people around Bhishmachaarya bring a lot of medicinal herbs to heal his wounds. Now that he is going to stay alive all the way till the Uttharaayanam season, people are of the opinion that Bhishmachaarya should not feel any pain until he is alive. However, Bhishmachaarya replies to all those people thus, “Oh doctors! A true “Kshatrya” warrior is a person who is able to experience any sort of pain that the body encounters. I’m somebody who can withstand any kind of pain in my body and I’m physically and mentally trained for it. Moreover, I’m amidst a battle in which I’m on the wrong side of “Adharma”. If I’ve to compensate for this blunder, I’ll have to let my body absorb all this pain. Also, I’ve been under the food and shelter of “Adharma” all these years. My body has to reap the consequences for it as well. Hence, I do not require any kind of medicine to cure my body. Let it take all the pain and I shall withstand it till I pass away!”
Saying thus, Bhishmachaarya refuses to accept any cure for the wounds that his body has. From this, we can see what kind of a resolve that Bhishmachaarya has! We’ve seen this since our earlier episodes as well and the term “Bhishma-Pratignya” has enormous significance! So for today, let us understand up to this point and let us wait till the next episode to witness further! Stay tuned!
The Indian Dharma 