Episode # 1184 – Day Eighteen @ Kurukshetra – Bheemasena vs. Duryodhana Round One – War of Words!!!

In the previous episode, we had witnessed the continuation of the war of words between Yudishtra and Duryodhana, and in the middle, Bheemasena also chips in with his bit. As this keeps happening back and forth, Duryodhana is still not ready to come out the waters. He is simply trying to buy more time by striking conversations. Finally as this keeps continuing, Balarama suddenly comes in. He hears from Sage Naarada that a marquee battle is about to take place between Duryodhana and Bheemasena with the “Gadha” weapon. As Balarama has taught both Duryodhana and Bheemasena, the art of “Gadha-Yuddham”, he becomes more interested to watch this epic battle unfold. Initially during the commencement of the war, we’ve seen that Balarama wanted to support Duryodhana’s cause, however, Bhagawan Krishna made a timely intervention and sent him away on a “Teertha Yatra”. Had Balarama fought on behalf of Duryodhana right from Day One, there would have been no chance that Yudishtra or Arjuna would be alive till date! 

Moving on thus, as Balarama gives a grand entry, he still hasn’t changed his mindset. Bhagawan Krishna understands quickly from the way Balarama is talking, that he still wants to be on Duryodhana’s side, and this is going to be a dangerous thing to happen. Diverting the topic quickly enough thus, Bhagawan Krishna tells Bheemasena in front of everyone – “Oh Bheemasena! You’ve to be very careful while fighting with Duryodhana. When you were in the forest for thirteen years, Duryodhana had made a statue of you out of copper and practised the “Gadha Yuddham” intensely. He has hit the statue with the “Gadha” weapon atleast a million times now and has gained enormous power because of this. Moreover, you’ve to understand that Duryodhana has nothing to lose at the moment. Because of this, he will attack you more. You have not been into the “Gadha-Yuddham” much of late, because you spent a lot of time in the forest. Hence you’ve to be careful while fighting with Duryodhana!” 

Saying thus, Bhagawan Krishna issues a wield warning to Bheemasena. However, with the fury in which Bheemasena is in right now, he is not going to pay heed much into Bhagawan Krishna’s words. However, he takes the essence of it and dares Duryodhana to come out and fight. A huge war of words commences between the two of them right now. Bheemasena says thus, “Oh Duryodhana! There are a lot of good omens (signs) which are visible in favour of me at the moment, which indicates that I’m going to win this battle. Whereas, there are several bad omens that are to be seen, which indicates that you’re going to be a loser! Oh Duryodhana! Even after talking this much, you’re refusing to come out of the water, aren’t you? This itself shows how cowardly you are! You are not even ready for a war of words in front of me – How are you going to fight a battle with me with the “Gadha” in hand?” Saying thus, Bheemasena tantalises Duryodhana with his words, which irks Duryodhana even further. Duryodhana says in return thus, “Oh Bheemasena! A warrior doesn’t fight a war by looking at omens. Whether they are good or bad – How does it even matter? Only a loser like you will keep looking at these omens and satisfy himself! I’m not someone who cares about all these. Fight me down if you can!” 

As Duryodhana says thus, the war of words becomes more and more intense by the moment. Thus, the initial round of war between the duo is the “war of words”, which is progressing at a swift pace. Readers should remember that Duryodhana is still under the water, healing his wounds and talking. So for today, let us understand up to this point, and in the next episode, we shall continue further! Stay tuned! 🙂 

Episode # 1183 – Day Eighteen @ Kurukshetra – Balarama makes a surprise entry!!!

In the previous episode, we had witnessed the continuation of the conversation that is currently taking place between Yudishtra and Duryodhana at the lakefront, near the Kurukshetra battlefield. We’ve witnessed that Duryodhana is sitting under the waters of a huge lake with the help of his “Maaya-Shakti” (Illusionary power), in the pretext of healing all his bruises and wounds that he had accumulated during the eighteen-day-long war. In the meanwhile, Yudishtra and Co. who were searching for Duryodhana’s whereabouts, come to know of his presence beneath this lake, and the Paandava brothers assemble there. Yudishtra tantalises Duryodhana of being such a bad coward, unable to face them in a war. The conflict of words escalate to such an extent that Duryodhana decides that there’s no point in arguing with Yudishtra further on this, and the time has come to pick up a fight. Duryodhana agrees to come out, but with one condition – Since he is alone, he wants the five Paandava brothers to come one after the other with any weapon of their choice and fight with him. At this point, Yudishtra lets out an assurance by saying that Duryodhana can choose whom to fight with, amongst the five Paandava brothers. Bhagawan Krishna makes a timely intervention by scolding Yudishtra that he’s falling into Duryodhana’s trap. Bhagawan Krishna feels that Bheemasena is the right person to fight with Duryodhana, with the Gadha weapon. 

Moving on further into the next “Adhyaaya” – This is where Bheemasena is going to remind everyone of the pledge that he had taken on the day of the gambling game episode. As the war of words is still going on, and Bhagawan Krishna advising Yudishtra to depute Bheemasena for the final assault, Bheemasena himself comes forward and picks up an argument with Duryodhana in front of everyone. Bheemasena says thus, “Oh Duryodhana! Why are you still sitting under the water and talking? Yudishtra has called you for a fight, and Bhagawan Krishna is also signalling the same. If you have the guts, come out and fight with me with the “Gadha” weapon!” As this happens, Bhagawan Krishna and Yudishtra finish their conversation by the side. Bhagawan Krishna, upon looking at Bheemasena’s interest to fight, signals to Yudishtra that he is the right person to fight down Duryodhana. Bhagawan Krishna says further thus, “Oh Yudishtra! Please understand one thing – If Duryodhana takes the “Gadha” weapon in his hand and starts fighting, none of you will be alive. Even if Indra descends down and tries to fight on behalf of you, Duryodhana will still win the contest! He is extremely powerful, thanks to the enormous “Maaya-Shakti” that he has obtained of late. You will not be able to face Duryodhana at this moment. Hence, Bheemasena is the right person to go in the front, and with Bhagawan’s divine “Anugraha”, things should be fine for all of you!” 

As Bhagawan says thus, Yudishtra signals Bheemasena with his eyes, to come forward and take the lead. Bheemasena comes out accordingly, obeying Bhagawan Krishna’s and Yudishtra’s words and challenges Duryodhana for the marquee battle. Bheemasena once again roars with anger thus, “Oh Duryodhana! Let this be the final battle of this eighteen-day war! I do not want to stretch this war beyond this. I shall ensure that you are biting the dust today! Oh Duryodhana! Enough of hiding! When Draupati was being molested on that inauspicious day, you weren’t hiding, were you? When you defeated Yudishtra illegally in the gambling game and insulted him in front of everyone, you weren’t hiding, were you? But now, when you’re at the verge of tasting defeat, why are you hiding? Do not give excuses that you’re trying to heal your wounds! This is unacceptable! Come out and fight with me, if you have the guts!” 

Meanwhile as Bheemasena is challenging Duryodhana for a fight, Balarama comes from nowhere into the scene! Readers should remember here that Balarama is Bhagawan Krishna’s brother, and he is also the Guru of Duryodhana, when it comes to the “Gadha-Yuddham”. In other words, Balarama was the one who had taught Duryodhana how to use the “Gadha” weapon in warfare. Now, as the war clouds between Bheemasena and Duryodhana are looming large, Balarama comes in and enquires what is going on! Till now, he had been on a “Teertha-Yatra”, and after finishing it, Balarama is back! As Bhagawan Krishna welcomes Balarama into the scene, He enquires about the “Teertha-Yatra”, for which, Balarama says thus, “Oh Krishna! Everything went well. However, while I was returning back, I happened to meet Sage Naarada. It was he who had spoken to me about the entire detail of the war, and also the fact that Bheemasena and Duryodhana are about to face each other any time from now!” Hence, I rushed to see what is going on here and how I can render support to my student, Duryodhana!” 

As Balarama says thus, Bhagawan Krishna is stunned! At a crucial juncture when He is trying to ensure that Duryodhana is getting isolated, Balarama comes and presents himself, and offers support to Duryodhana as well! So, how is Bhagawan Krishna going to handle Balarama now? An interesting accord awaits us in the next episode! Stay tuned! 🙂 

Episode # 1182 – Day Eighteen @ Kurukshetra – “Let Bheemasena fight Duryodhana!” – Bhagawan Krishna’s subtle advice to Yudishtra!!!

In the previous episode, we had witnessed Yudishtra and Co. reaching the lakefront where Duryodhana is currently hiding under its waters. Upon reaching the spot, Yudishtra, knowing very well that Duryodhana is inside it, strikes a conversation with him, which was quite irritating in nature for Duryodhana. Yudishtra mocks Duryodhana for his cowardliness to go and hide inside the water with his “Maaya-Shakti” in between the war, and not facing them in person. Before this conversation, we’ve also seen Bhagawan Krishna giving the orders to Yudishtra & Co. to “go for the kill” against Duryodhana with the same “Maaya Shakti” (Illusionary warfare), primarily because Duryodhana is someone who will go to any extent to anything atrocious. While handling such enemies for whom “Dharma” is not even on paper, there is no point in following the principle of “Dharma” to wage a battle against them. We’ve to go down to their level and fight, and only then we would be able to win over them. This is a very important leadership lesson that Bhagawan Krishna is communicating here. 

Thus, as Yudishtra teases Duryodhana with his words, Duryodhana retaliates that he is not a coward to go and hide. He is doing so, only to heal his body from all the bruises and injuries that he had received during the war for all these days. He says that he would be ready for the war once again the next day, however, Arjuna quickly intervenes by saying that there’s no nineteenth day of the war at Kurukshetra. If at all there’s a war, it should happen today and right now! Now, Duryodhana replies back to Yudishtra directly, ignoring Arjuna’s words. Duryodhana says thus, “Oh Yudishtra! Please understand one thing very clearly – I’m not fighting this war for gaining the kingdom. I’m not interested in ruling the Hastinapura kingdom anymore. However, I’m fighting this war with the sole intention of defeating you. You may keep the kingdom with yourself only. You may rule the kingdom as per your whims and fancies. However, I want to ensure that you are defeated and you cut a sorry figure in front of everyone!” 

As Duryodhana talks thus, Yudishtra becomes angry! Till this point, Yudishtra was trying to frustrate Duryodhana with his words, but now it is Duryodhana’s turn to frustrate Yudishtra. The war of words are clearly escalating between the duo here. Yudishtra now says to Duryodhana in return thus, “Oh Duryodhana! I do not want to be a king out of your mercy! Please understand that I’m not a beggar in front of you to beg for a kingdom to rule. I’m fighting for my rights, and I shall continue to do so. If you have the guts to fight, come out of the water and start doing so, rather than sitting inside like a coward and talking anything and everything that comes to your mouth. Oh Duryodhana! Do not forget that you had abducted my kingdom in the most unethical way possible, and I’m here only to retrieve the kingdom which is due for me! Hence, do not even entertain a thought in your mind that I’ve come begging for a kingdom from you! Firstly come out of the water!” 

As Yudishtra angrily replies thus, the war of words escalates further. Now Duryodhana replies thus, “Oh Yudishtra! After so many heated exchanges, it is not fair that I sit here inside the water. I’m coming out immediately, however, with one condition – You are five in number and I’m currently all alone. Hence, I would want each one of you to come and wage a one-on-one battle with me. You may choose the weapons that you would want to attack me with. I shall also get ready accordingly. Hence, we shall have a one-on-one battle!” As Duryodhana says thus, Yudishtra agrees to the terms and conditions and asks Duryodhana to choose the weapon he wants to fight with. As Duryodhana chooses the “Gadha”, Yudishtra lets out an assurance thus, “Oh Duryodhana! Now that you’ve chosen your weapon, you may choose any one amongst the five of us, with whom you want to fight with!” 

Now this is a very crucial statement that Yudishtra is making. The moment he says so, Bhagawan Krishna rushes towards Yudishtra, holds his hands and moves him away from that spot for a moment. Doing so, Bhagawan Krishna says thus, “Oh Yudishtra! Do you even know what you’re talking? If Duryodhana is given that option of choosing anyone from the five of you, please understand that he will choose anybody except Bheemasena. If that happens, Duryodhana has the capability to destroy all of you within minutes. Oh Yudishtra! Please understand that Bheemasena is the right person to counter Duryodhana, and even if he has to do so successfully, he requires the divine “Anugraha” of Bhagawan. Without that, even Bheemasena cannot defeat Duryodhana. Hence, please understand the situation and do not give such foolish options to Duryodhana at this point. Let it be as if you are deputing Bheemasena for the final assault. Leave the rest to Bhagawan’s will and wish! Things will unfold!” 

Saying thus, Bhagawan Krishna makes a timely intervention here and alerts Yudishtra of the impending danger! So for today, let us understand up to this point and we shall continue this discussion in the next episode as well! Stay tuned! 🙂

Episode # 1181 – Day Eighteen @ Kurukshetra – A huge war of words erupts between Yudishtra & Duryodhana!!!

In the previous episode, we had witnessed Yudishtra and Co. coming to know Duryodhana’s whereabouts through their cook, who acted as a spy in finding this out. The moment Yudishtra and Co. come to know of Duryodhana’s exact location, all of them quickly put on their protective shields and commence their journey from their tents to the lakefront, with Bhagawan Krishna’s approval. As the Paandavas trudge along quite fast, the sound of their chariots are being heard by Ashwatthama, Sage Kripachaarya and Krita Varma, who try to flee away from that place. Till that point, the trio is talking with Duryodhana who is sitting below the waters of the lake. However, upon seeing the Paandava chariots, all of them escape off from that place, to hide amidst a few tall trees in the vicinity! They did not want to be near the lake and thereby disclose the whereabouts of Duryodhana. Meanwhile, Yudishtra and Co. make their way to the lakefront and as Yudishtra knows already that Duryodhana is hiding there, he directly strikes a conversation with him. 

Moving on further from here, before Yudishtra could talk to Duryodhana, Bhagawan Krishna quickly intervenes with a very important one-liner. Bhagawan Krishna talks loud enough to Yudishtra, so that Duryodhana can also hear this dialogue! He says thus, “Oh Yudishtra! It looks like there’s someone who is high on “Maaya Shakti” (Illusionary power), hiding beneath the waters of this lake! If you’ve to defeat a person who possesses great “Maaya Shakti”, you also need to fight and defeat him through the same “Maaya Shakti” only! Oh Yudishtra! I know you’re an epitome of “Dharma” and you would like to wage a war only according to the “Raaja-Neeti” and “Yuddha-Neeti”. However, if the other person is not following the “Yuddha-Neeti”, what is the use of you alone following it? You’ve to know how to adapt yourself to change!” As Yudishtra hears this from Bhagawan Krishna, he quickly understands the message that Bhagawan is trying to convey here. Keeping Bhagawan Krishna’s words in mind, Yudishtra strikes a conversation with Duryodhana, in a way that would irritate him and make him come up from the waters of the lake. 

Yudishtra talks to Duryodhana thus, “Oh! From whatever Bhagawan Krishna has told till now, I understand who is beneath the waters. Oh Duryodhana! I’ve known you for several years now and till date, you’ve never shown any characteristics pertaining to “Dharma”. However, I was happy that you had the valour and intention to fight it out with all of us. But today I’m proved wrong on that front too! I never anticipated that a person like Duryodhana would go inside the water and hide like a coward, unwilling to fight any further! Oh Duryodhana! I can very clearly see you getting scared now! At a time when you’re going to taste a humiliating defeat, you are trying to run away from the battlefield! If you really have the guts to fight and prove a point, come out of your hiding spot and wage a battle against us immediately! Do not hide like a coward! Take your weapons and continue fighting. Oh Duryodhana! Till now you had several people to defend you and you were hiding behind all of them. Bhishmachaarya protected you for the first twelve days. Guru Dhronachaarya protected you for the next three days. Karna protected you for the next two days and until today morning, King Shalya protected you. Now that all of them have died, you are left alone to fend yourself. Atleast now, do not hide behind anybody or beneath the waters. Be courageous and face the war by yourself if you really have the guts!” 

As Yudishtra says thus with a loud tone, this irritated Duryodhana as expected! His ego has been deeply hurt by Yudishtra. Now Duryodhana fumes with anger from beneath the waters and replies back to Yudishtra thus, “Oh Yudishtra! Do not talk whatever comes to your mouth! I’m beneath the waters at the moment, not because of fear or cowardliness. I’m here just to take rest and also to heal my body of all the bruises and injuries. Once that is done, I will definitely come out and face you on the battlefield. Meanwhile, I’m sure you will also be bruised badly. You too go and rest for a while and then come back. We shall commence the fight thereafter, maybe by tomorrow morning when all of us are fresh. 

As Duryodhana says thus, Arjuna quickly intervenes and says, “Oh Duryodhana! We’ve taken ample rest and we are already fresh. You’ve also taken ample rest under the waters. Please remember – There is no nineteenth day of this war! We only have eighteen days in total and we’re on the last day. I do not want to extend this any further! Come out immediately and commence the fight. Do not keep dilly-dallying like this and run away!” This interlude from Arjuna irks Duryodhana even further, and for today, let us understand up to this point! We shall continue with this important discussion in the next episode! Stay tuned!

Episode # 1180 – Day Eighteen @ Kurukshetra – Yudishtra & Co. trace Duryodhana’s whereabouts!!!

In the previous episode, we had witnessed Duryodhana sitting inside a huge lake (“Hrada-Pravesham”) and initially the trio of Ashwatthama, Sage Kripachaarya and Krita Varma finding out Duryodhana’s whereabouts and talking with him. Duryodhana clarifies that he is not hiding inside the lake just like that by feeling afraid to face the wrath of Yudishtra and Co. Instead, Duryodhana explains that he is sitting inside the water to let his body heal of all the war-related injuries that he has sustained on Day Eighteen. Just like any other warrior on the Kurukshetra battlefield, Duryodhana has also been bruised heavily during the deadly fight that is still going on. As this conversation continues, Bheemasena’s cook incidentally passes by that lake and he finds out the fact that Duryodhana is inside the waters of this lake. At a time when the Paandava brothers are actively looking out for Duryodhana’s whereabouts, this information comes as a boon to the entire camp. 

Moving on thus, as Bheemasena gets to know that Duryodhana is still alive, he heaves a sigh of relief. We’ve to remember here that during that gambling game episode, Bheemasena had pledged in front of the entire courtroom that he would be the one who would kill Duryodhana in the battle. On Day Eighteen, Bheemasena tried his best to locate Duryodhana, but couldn’t do so. But now as Bheemasena knows Duryodhana’s whereabouts, he literally jumps up with a mixture of joy and anger. Bheemasena roars in front of everyone thus, “Oh Yudishtra! Oh Arjuna! Oh Bhagawan Krishna! We should start off from here immediately! Once we know that Duryodhana is still alive, we should not leave him. Even if we spare one enemy, it is dangerous for us! Hence, let us not waste even a single minute and let us ensure that Duryodhana is killed! There should be no compromise on this!” 

As Bheemasena roars with anger thus, Bhagawan Krishna immediately says a big “Yes” to whatever he said, even as Yudishtra and Arjuna are looking at both of them with a lot of eagerness. The moment Bhagawan Krishna gives the final approval, the Paandava brothers, along with Saatyaki, Drishtadhyumna, Shikandi, etc. start getting ready for the final assault. Till that time, they were also resting for a while because they’ve also sustained equal amounts of damage as the Kaurava side. Yudishtra and Arjuna are also dressing up their bruises and wounds as the cook comes and conveys the message. However, keeping everything else apart, all of them get ready and are now on their chariots. As the entire caravan trudges along, there is a huge noise heard near the lakefront where the trio of Ashwatthama, Sage Kripachaarya and Krita Varma are standing and talking with Duryodhana. The moment the noise is heard, all the three of them run away from that place and hide themselves amidst the bushes. They know that if they’ve to stand in front of Arjuna or Bheemasena now, they will be finished! Moreover, they had a clear plan – Not to disclose Duryodhana’s whereabouts at any cost. They were clear that the Paandava brothers should find it out by themselves, rather than them disclosing the fact. 

Meanwhile, Duryodhana also hears the loud sound of several chariots marching towards the lakefront. As the chariots inch closer, the trio rushes and stands behind tall trees. We should remember here that all the three of them are great “Maharathis” themselves, but still, they did not have the courage to face Yudishtra and Co. at the moment. As the Paandava brothers come closer to the lakefront, they understand that Duryodhana is hiding somewhere inside the waters only, and is refusing to come out. Yudishtra stops the chariot and gets down from it. He walks towards the lakefront and is about to strike a conversation with Duryodhana. So for today, let us understand up to this point and we shall continue with what Yudishtra spoke to Duryodhana in the next episode! Stay tuned!

Episode # 1179 – Day Eighteen @ Kurukshetra – Bheemasena finds out Duryodhana’s whereabouts!!!

In the previous episode, we had witnessed a very important conversation between Sanjaya and King Dhritarashtra, at the backdrop of Duryodhana going and hiding himself inside a huge lake. The moment King Dhritarashtra understands that his son is left all alone to defend himself and everybody around him has died, he asks Sanjaya as to how Duryodhana is still surviving. He asks about his whereabouts and safety. At this point, Sanjaya explains that Ashwatthama, Sage Kripachaarya and Krita Varma are there to safeguard Duryodhana for the moment, and also slams King Dhritarashtra that he is still worried only about his son, who is an extraordinary coward when it comes to waging a war and undertaking leadership roles on the battlefield. Sanjaya slams King Dhritarashtra that Duryodhana’s ego and cowardly acts have taken away the lives of several people like Bhishmachaarya, Guru Dhronachaarya, Karna, King Shalya, along with his ninety-nine Kaurava brothers. Never in these eighteen days of the war at Kurukshetra did Duryodhana come forward to take up the role of “Senapati” and Sanjaya says that he did not want to do it, because of his selfish attitude. He wanted to put everybody’s lives at stake in front of the Paandava camp and he conveniently hid behind all of them till now! If such is the case, how will Duryodhana rule a kingdom by taking the onus of responsibility as a leader? 

Meanwhile, in the Kurukshetra battlefield, Ashwatthama and Sage Kripachaarya along with Krita Varma launch a search operation to find out where Duryodhana is. They know for a fact that he is alive, but is hiding somewhere. Upon an important message from Sanjaya who was on his way back to Hastinapura at that time, the trio reach the lake where Duryodhana is hiding under. At a time when none of the Paandava brothers are around, they decide to have a conversation with Duryodhana. Sensing Duryodhana’s presence within the lake, Ashwatthama talks to Duryodhana thus, “Oh Duryodhana! You are a great “Kshatrya” warrior! Why are you going and hiding yourself like this without fighting the war further? Of course, there has been enormous destruction on our side and only the four of us are alive at the moment. But please understand one thing clearly – All is not well in the Paandava camp too. They have also faced mass destruction like we’ve had. It is only that they are a few more in number at the moment as compared to us. But that doesn’t matter much! If you come out now, we can join hands and attack them together. Oh Duryodhana! Please come out! This is not good for you as a leader and also for the Hastinapura kingdom! Also, let me tell you one thing clearly – I will not take out my “Kavacham” (Protective equipment) from my body unless and until I kill all of them! This is an oath that I’m hereby taking in front of you today!” 

As Ashwatthama says thus, Duryodhana replies from beneath the waters – “Oh Ashwatthama! Please do not worry! I’m not hiding here. I came here to take a break. I’m badly injured and my body is full of blood stains. I want to heal myself fully before I come out and start fighting once again! I know that you are with me and you are extremely capable of doing anything in this world! I’m very confident! However, please give me some time and I will definitely come out!” As Duryodhana says thus, Ashwatthama becomes happy. Meanwhile, there are two people who are cooks for the Paandava camp, crossing somewhere close to the lake where Duryodhana and Ashwatthama are talking with each other. These cooks are puzzled upon seeing this trio trying to talk with someone inside the lake! These two people are Bheemasena’s trusted aides who cook excellent food for him. They know very well that Bheemasena is on the constant lookout for Duryodhana and now when they get to hear Duryodhana’s voice coming out from beneath the waters of the lake, they immediately understand that Duryodhana is still alive and is very much hiding inside this lake only! Meanwhile, Yudishtra had also announced a reward for anyone who finds out Duryodhana’s whereabouts and informs them. 

Thus, as  the cooks identify Duryodhana, they immediately run back to the Paandava camp and meet Bheemasena. They tell Bheemasena thus, “Oh Bheemasena! We have found out where Duryodhana is. He is hiding inside a lake like a coward and doesn’t want to come out of it, fearing you! You can go to that lakefront and find this out for yourself!” Upon hearing this, Bheemasena, who is sitting with Yudishtra, Arjuna and Bhagawan Krishna is extremely happy! He gives a lot of rewards to both the cooks and all of them immediately rush to the lakefront where Duryodhana is hiding! So for now, let us understand up to this point and we shall witness what happened next, in the next episode! Stay tuned! 🙂

Episode # 1178 – “I’ve never seen a coward like Duryodhana in my entire life!” – Sanjaya fumes at King Dhritarashtra!!!

We’re amidst a crucial juncture now as part of Day Eighteen, wherein all the mainstream warriors on the Kaurava camp, except Ashwatthama, Krita Varma and Sage Kripachaarya are dead! Duryodhana is completely left alone wherein all his ninety-nine brothers including Karna are no more with him! He is completely isolated and not knowing what to do, Duryodhana strides slowly off the battlefield sans any weapons in hand. Meanwhile, there is utter chaos at Kurukshetra wherein Arjuna and Bheemasena spearhead a decisive onslaught on the remaining part of the Kaurava army which is completely leaderless at the moment! After searching for Duryodhana in the battlefield, Yudishtra and Co. leave back to their tents for the day, unable to spot him anywhere. Meanwhile, Sanjaya meets Duryodhana while he’s on the way to Hastinapura to convey the news to King Dhritarashtra. After meeting Sanjaya, Duryodhana jumps into a huge lake nearby and goes into the deep waters to sit down there with his “Maaya-Shakti”. He hides himself from the rest of the world, without being in sight to anyone, including Ashwatthama, Sage Kripachaarya and Krita Varma. 

With this, we now come to the end of this “Upa-Parva” called “Hrada-Pravesha Parva”. We’ve seen this in brief wherein Duryodhana is concealing his identity completely from the rest of the world, and this is a small “Upa-Parva”. Moving on further, we now enter into the main “Upa-Parva” under the “Shalya Parva”, which is the “Gadha-Yuddha Parva”. Here is where Bheemasena is going to engage in a marquee finale with Duryodhana as both of them are going to showcase their prowess in the “Gadhaa-Yuddham”. This is going to be a very interesting one-to-one confrontation between Duryodhana and Bheemasena, but before that, Balarama is going to come back from his “Teertha Yatra”. This “Gadha-Yuddha Parva” is a very long one, but the major part of this “Upa-Parva” is not going to talk about the marquee finale. Rather, the main content here is going to be about Balarama’s “Teertha-Yaatra”! As we might know, Balarama is the brother of Bhagawan Krishna and during the commencement of the war, Balarama did not want to be part of it, because he was the one who has coached Duryodhana in the “Gadha-Yuddham”! In other words, Duryodhana is Balarama’s student, and Balarama did not like his student being on the losing side of the war! When Bhagawan Krishna tried convincing Balarama to fight on the Paandavas’ side, Balarama flatly refused for this reason, and instead, went on a “Teertha-Yatra” to avoid this “conflict of interest”! We’ve seen this in our earlier episodes as well. 

Now commencing the proceedings of this main “Upa-Parva” thus, the trio of Krita Varma, Sage Kripachaarya and Ashwatthama come to the banks of the lake inside which Duryodhana is currently hiding. Meanwhile as this happens on the battlefield, King Dhritarashtra is asking an important question to Sanjaya thus, “Oh Sanjaya! What happened to Duryodhana after all of them died on the battlefield? These three people are still alive, aren’t they? Did they protect my son? Did they ensure that my son Duryodhana is safe and secure? What happened next?” Sanjaya replies thus, “Oh King Dhritarashtra! Your son is one of the biggest cowards in this whole world! All these eighteen days, he was being shouldered by several people including Bhishmachaarya, Guru Dhronachaarya, Karna, King Shalya, etc. Did Duryodhana come out even on a single day of the battle to shoulder the leadership responsibility? Duryodhana doesn’t want to take any sort of responsibility at all, but he wants everybody to fight for him and support him! Is this fair on his part? Of course, everyone supported him and this is why all of them ended up dying! Now, when nobody is there for support, Duryodhana does not have the guts to single-handedly fight with Yudishtra and the Paandava brothers! Do you know where your son Duryodhana is at the moment? He is hiding under the waters of a huge pond. Ashwatthama, Krita Varma and Sage Kripachaarya are searching their way through to find out the whereabouts of your son Duryodhana. Oh King Dhritarashtra! Is this all that Duryodhana could muster up? If he doesn’t have the guts to face Bheemasena or Arjuna in the war, why at all did he want this entire battle to unfold at Kurukshetra? Oh King Dhritarashtra! I’ve never seen such a selfish lad in my entire life! Now look at his cowardly nature – He’s hiding inside a pond, and is this the nature of a fierce “Kshatrya” warrior? Why doesn’t he stand boldly and fight down Bheemasena or Arjuna single-handedly without anybody’s interference?” 

Saying thus, Sanjaya is fuming with anger! He slams King Dhritarashtra left, right and centre for his indifferent attitude towards his son Duryodhana! So for now, let us understand up to this point and in the next episode, we shall continue this discussion further! Stay tuned! 🙂

Episode # 1177 – Day Eighteen @ Kurukshetra – Duryodhana hides beneath a huge lake!!!

In the previous episode, we had witnessed the continuation of the proceedings of Day Eighteen, wherein all of Duryodhana’s trusted aides are no longer with him. This includes his uncle Sahuni, Krita Varma and his “Senapati”, King Shalya himself. Dejected and heart-broken thus, Duryodhana doesn’t know what to do at the moment, even as the Paandavas headed by Arjuna and Bheemasena are wreaking havoc amidst the clueless and chaotic Kaurava army. All the remaining warriors in the Kaurava camp are being killed mercilessly by the duo and upon seeing this ghastly sight, Duryodhana could not stand anymore in the Kurukshetra battlefield. He slowly shrugs off, unable to understand what to do next. It is at this point, Sanjaya meets Duryodhana. We’ve seen that when Sanjaya was earlier on the battlefield, Saatyaki had imprisoned him, but later on with Sage Vyaasa’s advice, Saatyaki released Sanjaya. Soon after he is freed, Sanjaya rushes back to Hastinapura and on the way he meets a completely dejected Duryodhana. 

At this moment, Sanjaya asks Duryodhana thus, “Oh Duryodhana! It’s pretty sad to see you in such a state of affairs! Had you listened to my words of advice, such things could have been easily avoided. However, you never wanted to change your attitude even an inch and you stuck to your stand of “Adharma”! It is so painful to see you in such a state! Oh Duryodhana! I’m on my way to Hastinapura to meet your father now. Till this moment, I was imprisoned by Saatyaki and with Sage Vyaasa’s timely intervention, I’ve got myself freed. So what should I convey to your father?” As Sanjaya asks thus, a dejected Duryodhana replies back with a trembling voice – “Oh great Sanjaya! I realize that I’ve done several blunders in my life. However, it is too late to repent now. Nobody is with me and I’m completely orphaned today! So what am I going to tell my father specially? I do not have anything left in this world! I do not have anything to tell my father! Oh Sanjaya! Please tell King Dhritarashtra that I’m no more, and his son Duryodhana has also died in this war along with all the others!” 

Saying thus, an emotional Duryodhana walks away in uncontrollable grief! Not knowing what to do, Duryodhana spots a huge lake by the side of the Kurukshetra battlefield and with the power of his “Maya-Shakti”, jumps into the lake and settles down at the bottom of the water table! Now this is what is the main crux of the next “Upa-Parva”, called “Hrada-Pravesha Parva”, wherein Duryodhana hides himself beneath the waters of the huge lake. Unable to trace the whereabouts of Duryodhana, Sage Kripachaarya, Krita Varma and Ashwatthama (The only three remaining warriors on the Kaurava camp) launch a huge search operation to find him out! They are scared whether Duryodhana has also died in the onslaught that is currently happening on the battlefield. However, the three of them, while searching their way through to find Duryodhana’s whereabouts, come across Sanjaya on their way. Upon expressing their concern that Duryodhana is not to be seen anywhere for sometime now, Sanjaya tells the truth – Duryodhana is hiding inside the waters of the lake! As the trio hears this, they immediately rush towards that pond in search of Duryodhana. 

Now the situation is three-fold. Firstly, Duryodhana is inside the lake, which we’ve seen now. Secondly, the trio from the Kaurava camp is in search of Duryodhana and meanwhile, Yuyutsu from the Kaurava army rushes to the Hastinapura kingdom to calm things down. The entire kingdom is chaotic at the moment. Thirdly, Yudishtra and the Paandava brothers search the entire battlefield for Duryodhana and, unable to find him anywhere, they return back to their respective tents! So we should remember these three situations firmly in mind as they are important for the future events to unfold! We shall understand up to this point for today and in the next episode we shall continue further! Stay tuned!

Episode # 1176 – Day Eighteen @ Kurukshetra – A heart-broken Duryodhana walks off the battlefield!!!

We’re in the midst of Day Eighteen, wherein we’ve witnessed three important people from the Kaurava camp, breathing their last – First to go was Sudarshana (Duryodhana’s lone surviving brother), second was Sahuni and the third was King Shalya himself! We’ve seen that for the Eighteenth Day, King Shalya had taken over as the “Senapati” and simultaneously all of them are getting killed one after the other. This leaves Duryodhana all alone to defend himself! Of course, a few people like Ashwatthama and Sage Kripachaarya are with him, but this is not enough to stop the mighty Paandavas, under the able guidance of Bhagawan Krishna. Narrating all this to King Dhritarashtra, Sanjaya explains that for all which Duryodhana and Co. did to the Paandavas on that gambling game episode, they are reaping the fruits of all their actions of “Adharma”. With this, we come to the end of the first “Upa-Parva” under the “Shalya Parva”. 

Now moving on further, as we move on, Sanjaya explains to King Dhritarashtra further – “Oh King Dhritarashtra! Let me tell you further as to what happened at Kurukshetra after the demise of these three frontline warriors. Bheemasena and Arjuna teamed up together and wreaked havoc amidst an already depleted Kaurava army. When we began on Day One, we had eleven “Akshauhinis” of the army with us. But on Day Eighteen, we are hardly left with half an “Akshauhini”! Even within that, several foot soldiers, warriors seated over several animals like horses and elephants fled away from the battlefield, fearing Bheemasena’s Arjuna’s aggression. Both of them entered into the Kaurava army, which is currently leaderless, and destroyed all the horses, elephants, foot soldiers, second-rung warriors, etc. from several territories! The entire Kurukshetra battlefield currently is absolutely chaotic in nature, with nobody knowing whom they are attacking! As I mention about the mass destruction on the Kaurava side, it is not very good on the Paandava camp either. Only half “Akshauhini” of the army remained on their side too! This is the scale of destruction that we’re talking about at the moment! Oh King Dhritarashtra! Do you even realize atleast now, as to who is responsible for all these to happen? The sole responsibility is on you! As a king, you thwarted the responsibility of taming your son and bringing him on the path of “Dharma”. You encouraged Sahuni to play his games within the kingdom to his whims and fancies. You failed to ask a single question against him till date. Now see what has conspired! Afterall, who is Sahuni? He was just another “Praja” (person) in your kingdom, and the  importance that you and Duryodhana gave to him was completely unwarranted! Several Maharishis including Sage Vyaasa himself came and rendered advice to you. However, you never paid heed to any of his words! Now what is the use of crying and fainting here? Accept the bad news and move on!” 

Saying thus, Sanjaya slams King Dhritarashtra left, right and centre for his complete irresponsible behavior all these years, which has now cost his entire kingdom and his entire family! Not only this – Hastinapura has lost its successors and their subsequent generations as well! We’ve seen that Duryodhana’s sons, Karna’s sons, etc. were also killed in this war, isn’t it? Nobody was spared in this onslaught! Even on the other side, at the moment the Paandavas and their sons (“Upa-Paandavas”) are alive, but in some time, we’re going to see even the “Upa-Paandavas” being killed! Hence, this Kurukshetra war is nothing less than a huge “Pralaya-Kaala” created by Bhagawan Krishna to destroy the entire “Adharma” that was wreaking havoc in this world all this while! With this, we move into the next “Upa-Parva” called “Hrada-Pravesha Parva”, wherein Duryodhana is now going to hide himself inside a huge lake. 

As the entire fiasco unfolds in Kurukshetra and when Duryodhana understands that there’s nobody to defend him any further, he is completely dejected beyond words! He is a man of broken heart at the moment! Unable to bear the loss of his dear uncle, brother and King Shalya, Duryodhana thinks that he has had enough of this fight! With this heavy feeling, he starts to walk slowly away from the battlefield, not knowing what to do! It is in the meantime Saatyaki captures Sanjaya and imprisons him for a while, until Sage Vyaasa himself comes down and requests Saatyaki to release Sanjaya. Sage Vyaasa has been observing that King Dhritarashtra has not been receiving updates from Kurukshetra for a while now. Only upon investigating through his “Tapas” (Power of penance), Sage Vyaasa realizes that Sanjaya is absent at the Hastinapura palace and he had been captured! Immediately thus, Sage Vyaasa makes his way to the battlefield at Kurukshetra and has a talk with Saatyaki. With Sage Vyaasa’s request, Saatyaki frees Sanjaya and he returns back to the Hastinapura palace. 

So for today, let us understand up to this point and in the next episode, we shall continue this further! Stay tuned! 🙂

Episode # 1175 – Day Eighteen @ Kurukshetra – Yudishtra kills King Shalya!!!

In the previous episode, we had witnessed the continuation of the proceedings on Day Eighteen at Kurukshetra, wherein Sahadeva and Sahuni engage themselves in a huge verbal banter with each other. Initially, there was a round of sword-fight between the two, wherein Sahadeva’s attention suddenly turned towards Sahuni’s son, Ulooka and killed him. As this happens right in front of Sahuni’s eyes, Sahuni lets out a huge cry of frustration and grief and at this moment, Sahadeva taunts Sahuni with all the past events, right from his coming into Hastinapura after Gaandhaari (Sahuni’s sister) got married to King Dhritarashtra. With all this frustration, an intense war ensues between the duo and at the end, Sahadeva manages to get the better of Sahuni on the battlefield. With this, the kingpin of the entire Hastinapura conspiracy was killed during the Eighteenth Day of the war! 

Now moving on further, even as Duryodhana could know the news that Sahuni (his uncle) is no more, on the other side of the battlefield, something important unfolds! This Day Eighteen of the war makes a move rather extremely quick, as compared to the other seventeen previous days. King Shalya is busy fighting the Paandava army and at one point, Yudishtra intercepts him. Both of them are veterans in fighting with the “Spear” (Somewhat equivalent to today’s Javelin). In the whole war episodes, readers can observe that each one of them are proficient in several aspects of warfare. For instance, Bheemasena is a veteran in using the “Gadha” weapon. Arjuna, as we know, is an expert in the archery (bow and arrow) technique with his famed “Gaandeepa” bow. Similarly here, Yudishtra is a veteran in fighting with the spear in hand. Similar is the case with King Shalya too on the other side. Thus, as Yudishtra and King Shalya come face to face with each other, the fight initially begins with archery, as both of them exchange arrows from their respective bows. However, that does not yield any result. Thus, both of them look to their strengths to back themselves up, which gives the thought that the spear should be employed. Yudishtra and King Shalya – Both have several spears in their arsenal and they start attacking each other with them, one after the other! Several spears are being thrown at each other from both the sides. Initially, Yudishtra gets hit very badly by one of King Shalya’s sharp spears. This makes Yudishtra to collapse in his chariot itself for a few moments. 

It should be remembered that Yudishtra was already in an injured state. During the previous day of war, we’ve seen that Yudishtra had got hurt very badly and he had to leave the battlefield abruptly in the middle of the battle. Now, he has got better on the next day and as he is up on his feet to fight, King Shalya hits him! However, with the situation and intensity on the ground, Yudishtra manages to compose himself once again. Now it is Yudishtra’s turn to show his prowess with his set of spears. He thus takes one spear in his hand, aims exactly at King Shalya’s chest portion and makes a decisive throw. It is a “now or never” situation for Yudishtra, as King Shalya is emerging powerful by the moment! However, with Bhagawan Krishna’s divine “Anugraha”, the spear goes and hits King Shalya’s chest, which blows him up into several pieces instantly! Thus, unable to bear the intensity of Yudishtra’s spear, King Shalya falls on the ground, dead! 

Thus with this, yet another “Senapati” of the Kaurava army breathes his last! Initially we’ve seen the same fate happening to Bhishmachaarya, Guru Dhronachaarya and Karna. Now it is the turn of King Shalya to bite the dust in a disastrous manner! Even though King Shalya was a man of “Dharma”, we’ve seen earlier that he was forced to team-up with Duryodhana at the last moment. Because of this, King Shalya has to sacrifice his life on the battlefield. Thus, when the “Senapati” is killed yet again, the Kaurava army runs on all directions without any command. A majority of the foot soldiers and warriors who are on top of elephants and horses run away from the battlefield, fearing their lives! This is quite normal as there is nobody to motivate and bring the army together to continue the fight further. 

Meanwhile, as King Shalya and Sahuni are dead, the news reaches Duryodhana! Upon hearing this, Duryodhana faints on his chariot itself, yet again, unable to bear the pain. At this time, Bheemasena also kills Sudarshana, who was Duryodhana’s lone surviving brother. Thus, all these three simultaneous deaths rock Duryodhana to such an extent that he doesn’t know what to do next on the battlefield! With this, we come to the end of the “Shalya-Vadha-Parva”, which is the first “Upa-Parva” of the main “Shalya Parva”. So for today, let us understand up to this point, and we shall continue this discussion in the next episode as well to get into the next “Upa-Parva”. Stay tuned!