In the previous episode, we had witnessed Bhagawan Krishna continuing with His befitting reply to Duryodhana upon all the allegations that the latter made against Him. However, Duryodhana still doesn’t seem to relent from his stance, and at this point, he even goes on to abuse Yudishtra once again saying that he is a beggar and it is Duryodhana who has given the “Raajya” (kingdom) to Yudishtra voluntarily. Unmindful of whatever Duryodhana says, Bhagawan Krishna pulls away Yudishtra and Co. from that place and escorts them back to their tents. Bhagawan Krishna rides Arjuna’s chariot once again, perhaps for one last time, and once the caravan reaches the tent area, something unique is going to happen. Normally, as we’ve seen earlier, Bhagawan Krishna would be the first to get out from the chariot, and Arjuna would “step on to” Bhagawan Krishna’s shoulder to get down next. As ardent Bhaktas of Bhagawan Krishna, we might term this as an “insult” to Bhagawan Krishna, as Arjuna literally stamps upon His divine physical body to get down from the chariot. However, if we see this from the angle of Bhagawan’s compassion towards His ardent Bhaktas, this is a great example of how Bhagawan goes to any extent to serve His devotees!
Moving on further thus, as the Paandavas reach the tents, for a change, Bhagawan Krishna asks Arjuna to get down from the chariot first. Surprised by this move, Arjuna quickly asks Bhagawan Krishna back thus, “Oh Bhagawan Krishna! Why is the routine changing today? Usually you will be the first to get down and I would get down with your help, isn’t it? Now why is this sudden change? Why aren’t you getting down first? Normally the “Sarathi” (Charioteer) should be the one to get down first, isn’t it?” As Arjuna asks thus, Bhagawan Krishna thinks within Himself with a little bit of disappointment – “Oh wow! It is to this Arjuna I had given the Bhagawad Gita, wherein I had repeatedly mentioned about me and my significance. Inspite of all this, Arjuna is still not understanding facts and is wanting to command me! If such is the case, how is Arjuna going to exhibit “Sharanagati” and attain the highest “Moksha”?”
Thinking thus, Bhagawan Krishna once again requests Arjuna – “Oh my dear Arjuna! I’m your direct cousin! If I tell you something, you’ll listen, won’t you? Hence, just for today, please get down from the chariot first, and I will get down later!” As Bhagawan repeatedly requests thus, Arjuna couldn’t understand the inner meaning of what He’s saying, and hence, Arjuna did not want to argue any further. He obeys Bhagawan Krishna’s words and gets down from the chariot! While standing on the ground, Arjuna looks up at his chariot and observes a very unique thing – The flag on top of his chariot flies away! We’ve already seen earlier that Hanuman is sitting on top of Arjuna’s chariot in the form of the flag! All of us know that Hanuman is a “Chiranjeevi” (Living permanently without death) will always mark His presence wherever Bhagawan is! Thus, during this entire battle at Kurukshetra, Hanuman has been present on top of Arjuna’s chariot and now, after the war is over, Hanuman flees away swiftly from it within the wink of an eye!
As Hanuman flees off, Bhagawan Krishna jumps out of the chariot immediately, pulls Arjuna from there and runs away to a distance. As this happens, the entire chariot is up in flames! It is burning down like a pack of cards! Upon seeing this, Arjuna could not believe his eyes! He is literally scared of what is going on and also couldn’t understand where this fire came from! As the fire rages along, the chariot bursts into pieces! So why has this happened? What did Bhagawan Krishna think off when He asked Arjuna to get down first? Did He protect Arjuna yet again from a great disaster? Let us wait till the next episode to find out! Stay tuned! 🙂
The Indian Dharma 