The Indian Dharma

In the previous episode we had witnessed yet another important point wherein Vidura explains the significance of our mind, words and actions working at tandem to finish a mission successfully without any blemish. Vidura explains here that our mind should be completely focused on the given task, coming out with different ideas as to how to finish it in the most efficient manner. Similarly our words should match the thoughts that we have in our mind and subsequently our actions should be in sync with our efficient ideas being put into practice. Thus we can see here that these three parameters are of prime importance if we’ve to finish a task or a mission successfully.

This is what we call in modern-day management terminology as “Brainstorming“. This is usually done at the beginning stage of any important project or a task. All the people who are concerned with this project, sit together and put all possible ideas on to the table. Once all ideas come out from all of them, each idea is taken up for detailed discussion – it’s pros’ and cons’ are discussed in detail and the feasibility of each idea is worked out as a group together. Once all the ideas are worked out this way, the best amongst the lot is selected for implementation and this idea is taken forward for execution of the project. Thus here we can see that thoughts (ideas), words (brainstorming and discussions) and actions (implementing the best idea) are of prime importance for any project.

Now moving on further, Vidura explains the next point thus, called “Motivation”. How can motivation be a success parameter for a person who is a leader? Vidura explains thus:

“Anirvedaha shriyo moolam laabhasyacha shubhasyacha!

Mahaan bhavat anirvinnaha sukham cha aanantyam ashnute!!”

Here, “Anirvedaha” means motivation and self-confident person. If there is one person whom we can associate very easily as an epitome of “motivation”, it is Hanuman and nobody else. During the Ramayana project we’ve witnessed how Hanuman exhibited this characteristic at every instance of his search for Mother Sita. He started to search in each and every place, nook and corner of Lanka city, Ravana’s palace, his minsters’ homes, etc. Although he put in all his efforts in the right direction, he was not able to trace Mother Sita anywhere and because of this, Hanuman started to lose hope. However, he did not give it up. He repeatedly motivated and rejuvenated himself and thus restarted his search in Ravana’s palace. At one stage he spots a beautiful woman sleeping beside Ravana and initially he mistakes this woman to be Mother Sita. Susbequently he again reassures his mind that this woman was Mandodhari (Ravana’s wife) and Mother Sita would never be sleeping so happily with a “Raakshasa” like Ravana even in her wildest dreams and continues his search further into the “Ashoka Vana”. At one stage, Hanuman became so vexed up and sat in a corner of Ravana’s palace thinking thus, “Oh my goodness! After such a long and tiring search, I’m unable to find Mother Sita! How will I go and tell this to Rama? Won’t Rama kill himself with this grief of losing his beloved wife? So I shoudn’t go back to Kishkinta! I shall stay here itself and keep searching again and again!” Thinking thus, Hanuman gets up again and starts searching for Mother Sita. He fails again and goes and sits in a corner! Hanuman is now feeling more upset that after repeated pursuits, he had failed yet again! However, while looking around that place, he spots this place called “Ashoka Vana” wherein Hanuman hasn’t searched yet! He again motivates and rejuvenates himself and gets up from there and goes into it with full positive energy!

As Hanuman ventures his way through, he prays to Bhagawan Rama and Mother Sita that his mission should somehow succeed and rather than him searching for Mother Sita, she herself should appear in front of him, showering her grace on him! Finally, after a lot of hue and cry, Hanuman was able to trace Mother Sita in the “Ashoka Vana” and this was achieved after a lot of ordeal.

Thus, at every stage Hanuman was an epitome of motivation and self-confidence. Therefore, we chant the popular sloka thus:

“Buddhir balam yasho dhairyam nirbhayatvam arogathaa!

Ajaatyam vaakpadudhvamsa hanumadh smaranaath bhaveth!!”

Here this sloka implies that if we worship Hanuman, we would become an epitome of “Buddhi” (Knowledge), “Balam” (Strength), “Yashas” (Smartness), “Dhairyam” (Courage), “Nirbhaya” (Fearlessness). Thus all these qualities combined together in a person leads to what we call “Motivation” and “Self-confidence”. This is of course extremely important for all of us, without saying. So for today, let us start pondering over the significance of “Motivation” and we shall wait till tomorrow’s episode to expand this deeper. Stay tuned! 😊

In the previous episode we had discussed Vidura’s yet another important assertion to King Dhiridraashtra that will-power is of prime significance in whatever task that we undertake in life. It is important that we complete our mission without giving up at any point, irrespective of whatever hurdles that might surface up during the implementation. Vidura explains this to King Dhirdiraashtra that it is not enough that he sits in front of him and listens to whatever he says. Vidura urges King Dhirdiraashtra to have some guts and will power to stop the atrocities of Duryodhana and to face backlashes with grit if any. Vidura repeatedly emphasizes the point to King Dhirdiraashtra that there is no point sitting this way and letting things to happen according to the whims and fancies of Duryodhana.

Now moving on thus, Vidura explains the next important point. Here Vidura talks about three important aspects for a task to be completed successfully. What are those three aspects? Vidura explains thus:

“Karmanaa manasaa vaachaa yadabheekshnam nishevate!

Tadevaa baharathyenam tasmaath kalyaanamaachareth!!”

Here Vidura explains to King Dhirdiraashtra that a mission or a task would be successful only if we have an intact co-ordination between what we do on the ground, what we talk about it and what we think about it. This is like a sequence – If we’ve to taste success in whatever we do, our mind should be able to have the focus on the task completely. Once the focus is achieved, this should reflect in whatever we talk. Our words and thoughts should be coherent in nature and not different from each other. Once this coherence between the thoughts and words are achieved, this should reflect in our coherent actions concurrent to what we think and talk about. Our actions thus should be in such a way wherein we should give our 100% effort on the ground to execute the task successfully. Thus only if all these three parameters fall into place, will our tasks our missions that we undertake would become successful.

This is directly applicable to all our modern-day activities that we do – Both at home as well as at work. We should thus ensure that to attain perfection in whatever we do, we should put our mind, words and action at tandem and should also ensure that all three work with perfect sync and co-ordination. This is what we call “perfect concentration” in whatever we do. If on the contrary, our mind thinks of something else and keeps wavering here and there into unwanted issues and our hands keep monotonously doing what they should do, it is very difficult to attain that involvement and meaning in whatever we do. Only if there is a full 100% co-ordination between these three elements, we would know what we’re doing and whether we’re in the right track or not.

It might be of interest to our readers that there is a beautiful psychology behind this. Let me give an example – This might be a small test within ourselves – Try to recollect what did we eat for breakfast today morning, yesterday morning and day before yesterday morning. Many a times we would be able to recollect only what we had today morning and, in few cases, yesterday morning. But if we’ve to check our capacity to recollect what did we eat day before yesterday, most of the times we wouldn’t be able to remember! Why is this so? It is because we had taken “eating” as a monotonous activity as part of our routine life that we never focus our mind, words and action in whatever we eat. Whereas if we’re able to give 100% involvement while eating, trust me – We would be able to remember what we had for breakfast 2-3 days back too! This might sound a bit weird but it might be worth to test our memory this way.

Thus the underlying point from this small psychological test is that, the more we put in our co-ordinated involvement in any activity we do, the more we would be able to remember things easily and effectively. SO for today, let us try this test and check within ourself, our ability and art of remembrance. By slowly putting these Vidura’s words into practice let us witness a change in our way of life in the positive direction! We shall wait till the next episode to witness Vidura’s next important point. Stay tuned! 😊

In the previous episode we had witnessed the extension of the discussion of Vidura’s important point that as a “Panditha”, we should be able to foresee and anticipate future potential problems and try to find solutions in advance to mitigate them easily and comfortably. This point in the Vidura Neethi assumes tremendous significance and is one of those points that are directly applicable to our modern-day life – Both our professional and spiritual life. In the professional front, in yesterday’s episode we had discussed the importance of why we should have a “Plan-B” for whatever projects or missions that we undertake. According to the philosophy of Operations Management, any project cannot be deemed successful without having multiple approaches towards completing it successfully. This is because there might be innumerable number and types of hurdles that might surface up during the execution stage of the project. For instance, if we are undertaking a major infrastructure project in a city like a “Metro-Rail” project, there might be many types of hurdles that might surface in the middle of such a huge project like opposition from city residents over the alignment of the project, issues pertaining to land acquisition, issues with respect to the contractor to whom the work is outsourced, government policies, etc. For each and every such issue, it is extremely important for the agency implementing this project to have an alternative solution, if in case any or many of these problems surface. All these should be conceptualized during the “Planning stage” of the project itself and this is very important. Similarly in our spiritual life too, we might come across many hurdles that might prevent us from progressing forward with our spiritual growth and development. We should try and make it a point that we are able to foresee such issues well in advance and try to come up with some specific solutions to tackle these issues and move forward.

Having said thus, Vidura moves on to the next important point. This is an allied point to the previous one wherein Vidura emphasizes in the same sloka that a “Panditha” is also a person who has that will-power to complete the undertaken task, irrespective of whatever hurdles he/she faces during the mission. This again is important and many a times we fail in this aspect. Lack of will-power is a big problem with many today because, we easily tend to get distracted through various sources. Now given the advent of the internet and the social media, our exposure towards information and communication around the globe has come to our finger tips. Having said that, unfortunately, there is a negative effect to this as well – We tend to get carried away by whatever is being said by people, without even verifying the facts behind it. This ultimately raises doubts within ourselves, which might pave the way of losing our will-power and ultimately we tend to give up our mission or task. Such should not be the case if we are ardent followers of our “Sanaathana Dharma”. This context might be more applicable towards following our spiritual practices and aspirations. In the modern-day, there are many anti-Hindu elements spreading venom against our “Sanaathana Dharma” and are trying to ridicule those people who are ardent followers. It is at this time, all of us should be united and careful against such elements that try to create a rift between us, Hindus, for their own personal gains. The moment we lose our will power, we should always remember that there are these anti-Hindu and anti-national elements waiting to prey on us and try to cash in on our weakness.

This is where we have to be very careful and this is exactly what Vidura explains too. We should have the will-power in whatever we do and this is extremely important. We should make sure that we complete our mission successfully by not giving in to those elements that try and derail us from what we do. So the message from today’s episode is that, will-power is very important and we should make it a point not to get distracted by external elements that try to create problems for us. There are of course innumerable examples of people who were extremely successful in whatever they do by following this point and some people who fell into the trap too! For instance, why do we speak so high of Dr. Kalam today? It is only because of his persistence to his mission right from his childhood days. Whatever challenges came through his life in various forms like poverty, lack of money, etc. he was able to overcome all of them with his will power. This is the important lesson that we can learn from the illustrious life of Dr. Kalam, who went on to become one of India’s greatest and most admirable Presidents.

Hence for today let us ponder over this important point and we shall wait till tomorrow’s episode to witness Vidura’s next important point of discussion. Stay tuned! 😊

 

In the previous episode we had begun a very important discussion on why “Prevention” is always better than “Cure”. In other words, Vidura is trying to remind King Dhirdiraashtra of this very important point that it is better not to leave it to a point wherein the problem becomes too late and too complex to handle. Vidura explains that a “Panditha” is a person who is able to forsee and anticipate problems in a mission well in advance and would seek to find out solutions for it, so as to counter them in an effective manner. This is an extremely important character not only for an effective king but also for our lives today. In fact, many of our problems that we face in today’s life is mainly because of our lack of anticipation of the issue and lack of advanced planning to mitigate them successfully. This is what we call in corporate terms as “Plan-B”. In Management terminology, for every project to become successful we cannot just stick on with one way of working and methodology and one direction of approach. It is always better to have multiple directions of looking at successful completion because, if the main methodology hits some hurdles that might lead us to a deadlock situation, we can always bank upon the “Plan-B” to move on with the project. This “Plan-B” should be devised at the initial stage itself so as to avoid confusions and hiccups during the middle of the implementation stage.

Such is with respect to projects at a corporate level and this important point is also applicable to our personal lives as well. Right from financial aspects till other important personal aspects, it is always better to have a “Plan-B” for everything. For instance, we have a culture amongst people of India to “save” our money every month by minimizing our unwanted expenses and this helps us to mitigate crisis situations in our family which might demand a big expense of money. This is one way we try to “anticipate” problems in advance and take corrective measures to try and mitigate them better. Based upon this practice in our country, banks have various saving schemes for people such as fixed deposits, relative deposits, public provident funds, etc. wherein we can save our money for a short, medium or a long term for a fixed interest rate according to the respective scheme of saving. Thus, we witness in today’s world the direct application of this point by Vidura to King Dhirdiraashtra.

Similarly, in other aspects as well, the point of “anticipation” finds lot of significance. Right from saving energy, water, electricity and other utility services, we are practically witnessing the application of this point every passing day. Of course nowadays we are running into a crisis for many things in this world including water. Many cities across the world are running through severe water problems and this is a problem in India as well. So as responsible citizens of our respective countries and the world, we should make sure that we use our natural resources such as water, etc. judiciously so that we can somewhat prevent what might be called as a “man-made deficit” of resources later.

Hence for today let us ponder over this very important point and let us try to create ways through which we can anticipate potential problems well in advance in whatever we do. Once we are able to anticipate future problems, we can devise strategies to mitigate them effectively and thus we can be better prepared to face the challenging world ahead of us. We shall wait till tomorrow’s episode to witness Vidura’s next point of discussion! Stay tuned! 😊

In the previous episode we had witnessed an extended discussion on Vidura’s one of the most important points that he talks upon – A person would be hailed by the world if he follows the tough path of “Dharma” even during difficult and testing times. Thus taking this point forward for an extensive discussion in the past couple of episodes we had witnessed examples from both Ramayana and Mahabharata, how characters like Ravana, Vaali, Duryodhana, etc. met their ghastly ends of their lives owing to taking “short-cuts” to achieve whatever they wanted to. By doing so, they forgot the path of “Dharma” and since their end goal was the only prominent thing in their minds, they were ready to do anything and everything, even if it is “Adharma”, to achieve it. This is what Bhagawan Krishna too emphasizes in the Bhagawad Gita that we should focus on the path to to reach the goal, rather than on the end result or the goal every time. The moment we get obsessed with the end result, we would start taking “short-cuts” to somehow achieve it.

In the modern day too, we are witnessing innumerable successful people and organizations fail because of this reason. There might be successful leaders, who for some reason or the other would have gone behind “short-cut” sources of making huge money, only to go and land up in the net of the Income Tax officials. This act of theirs not only affects their personal brand image but also takes their organization’s reputation for a toss! Similarly in the field of sports today, it is pathetic and painful to witness in the modern scenario that many highly talented sportspeople taking to illegal ways of earning huge sums of money in the short-term. They involve themselves into a wide variety of illegal activities like doping, alcoholism, match-fixing with few bookies, etc. This is because such people’s ultimate aim is to only make large sums of money and that has become their primary goal in life, more than playing for their respective countries. If this large sum of money is given easily by few illegal bookies, these people just wag their tail and go behind it, thus bringing about extremely bad reputation to the country they represent!

This is exactly what Vidura and Bhagawan Krishna advise us here – It is very easy and tempting at that point in time to go behind money, name and fame in an illegal way. But however if we get caught by someone somewhere, our entire life is gone for a toss! Our entire professional career would be damaged! Our organization or country or team would risk a huge reputation loss! Thus if at all we come across such “tempting offers”, rather than blindly going behind them, we should make it a point to think twice before we act. The moment we start thinking, we would start realizing the ill effects of what is coming in future. Hence the important message from the past couple of episodes and today’s first half of the episode is that, there is no short-cut for success in any domain in this world. All we’ve to do is to work our way up the ladder of success. Hard work would never fail us at any point in time. This is why Bhagawan Rama “walked the talk” at every instance of his life to prove to the world that although the path of “Dharma” might be treacherous, ultimately this is what would lead us to permanent and sustainable success, which the world would hail us for!

Having said such, we now move on further with Vidura’s next important point. He now gives a very interesting explanation to the famous modern day proverb – “Prevention is better than cure!” Vidura explains thus:

“Aayatyaam prathikaaragnyaha tataathe dhrida nischayaha!”

Here Vidura points out to King Dhirdiraashtra that a “Panditha” or a “Learned Scholar” is a person who is able to detect and foresee problems before they come by and take preventive steps to mitigate them at the right time. This is where Vidura cautions King Dhirdiraashtra and apprises him of all the problems that are going to come through for him and for the Hastinapura Kingdom. Vidura says thus, “Oh King Dhirdiraashtra! With your inaction, the following problems and threats loom large on you as well as our kingdom – Firstly, you’re running into a breach of “Raaja Dharma”, which is going to haunt you till the end of your life. Secondly, the way in which you’re giving a free-run and an undue advantage to your son Duryodhana is extremely dangerous and is going to have severe repercussions in future. Thirdly, you had given a promise to the Paandavas with regards to sharing the kingdom between the two groups. Now with your son’s opposition, you are trying to move away from your promise, which is a huge mistake that you’re committing! Fourthly, you’re infliciting illegal and undue torture on the Paandavas just for the happiness of your son Duryodhana! Fifthly, a woman had been publicly insulted in your courtroom, which is one of the most heinous crimes ever in this world! Hence for all these actions of yours, there are going to be severe repercussions in future. Hence King Dhirdiraashtra, please realize this and wake up from your slumber! Prevent all those ill-effects that are going to arise, by doing remedial corrective actions now!”

This is an extremely important point that is not only applicable for King Dhirdiraashtra, but also for all of us. For today, let us start pondering over this important point and in tomorrow’s episode we shall take this forward for a detailed discussion on what we can learn from this important point of Vidura! Stay tuned! 🙂

In the previous episode we had witnessed an important discussion on the point that even if the path is circuitous and treacherous, it is worth to follow it if it leads by the way of “Dharma”. If the path leads us to the goal by a short cut, but through “Adharma”, we should never go near it. This is where we saw a beautiful illustration wherein Bhagawan Rama during his pursuit to find Mother Sita stuck to the path of “Dharma” irrespective of how treacherous and circuitous it was. Ultimately more than the attainment of the goal, the path taken to attain the goal assumes more significance here. Vidura too stresses this important point to King Dhirdiraashtra wherein he highlights the fact that the Paandava brothers, irrespective of whatever torture and difficulties they had to undertake in their exile period, stood steadfast in their Dharma, without compromising even a small bit of it. Whereas in the case of Duryodhana, all his actions towards the Paandavas do not have even a small iota of “Dharma” in them. The only aim of Duryodhana is to capture the throne by hook or crook.

This is where we should realize for our modern day life that there can never be any short-cut for real and sustainable success. Irrespective of any domain that we are in, we should ensure that our actions pertain to the path of “Dharma”, even if the going is tough. This is where we lose the plot many a times – If the going gets tough, we start looking out for shortcuts to come out of the problem immediately, rather than going ahead and facing the problem head on. As ardent followers of our “Sanaathana Dharma” we should never ever fall into this trap. This is where Bhagawan Krishna clearly mentions in the Bhagawad Gita thus:

“Karmanyevaadhikaaraste maa phale shukadaachana!”

This is why we see Bhagawan Krishna is categorically exhorting that we need to keep doing our actions without expecting the result of it. The moment we start focusing on the end-result, we would immediately start thinking of how to attain it by hook or crook! The more we perform our actions with detachment from worldly benefits, the more closer we would start walking towards the path of “Dharma”. With this understanding if we now witness and analyse each of Duryodhana’s actions, we can realize where did he exactly go wrong in his life. His only goal in life was to capture the throne of the Hastinapura kingdom. It becomes like a vicious cycle. The moment this goal occupied a firm place in his mind, it turned out to be an attachment to a worldly affair. This attachment over a period of time becomes excessive and he became obsessive towards it. This obsession kindled him to do whatever it takes to achieve the goal – Irrespective of whether is “Dharma” or “Adharma”. This is the greatest danger here – If we become obsessed towards something or someone, the natural psychological tendency of a living being is to go behind it blindly and ultimately would be ready to do anything and everything so as to attain it! Our eyes would become blinded to see if we’re walking the path of Dharma or not! Our ears would be shut and we would stop listening to the advice rendered by elders. All these characters in our scriptural texts like Duryodhana, King Dhirdiraashtra himself, Ravana, etc. illustrate this important point. At different points in their lives, they had worldly attachments towards someone or something and it led them to pursue a wrong path, which ultimately led them to be eliminated by Bhagawan.

Hence we need to be very careful here. There might be some instances in our daily lives too wherein we would be tempted with the end goal of any task and we might be kindled to take short cuts to achieve it. Especially when it comes to money and any sort of wealth like gold, property, power, position, etc. our mind’s “Avatar” changes completely! This is the main reason why people like few politicians, doctors, etc. try to make “quick money” by using their position and status. If we do not develop our self control in all these aspects, it becomes very difficult to pull ourself out from this trap. We should always remember that if we’re able to make enormous amounts of money today by means of short cuts and illegitimate ways, there is always going to be a huge repercussion tomorrow that is waiting to kill us! Thus we try to re-iterate the point that there can be no short-cut for success and we’ve to work our way up in life. Only if we do this, we can sustain our growth model and by this, name, fame, money, etc. would follow automatically, rather than we going behind it.

So for today let us try and ponder over this important application of Vidura’s point and let us try and put it in perspective for our day-to-day life in whatever domain or profession we might be in. We shall wait till tomorrow’s episode to witness Vidura’s next point of discussion. Stay tuned! 🙂

In the previous episode we had witnessed a very important point of discussion from Vidura to King Dhirdiraashtra wherein Vidura confronts him directly by saying that a person who shows the legitimacy in his/her approach to recover illegally lost wealth or name or fame or whatever it might be, the world would hail him/her as one of the best human beings! It can clearly be seen that the Paandavas headed by Yudhsitra stood by the “Dharma” at every stage of their life so as to recover the legitimate wealth and kingdom what they’ve lost to Duryodhana’s atrocities. In fact, if required, the Paandavas couold have easily retaliated Duryodhana’s crooked behavior by equal crookedness and regained what they had lost, however they never did it. This only shows their magnanimity and their high level of stature, and not foolishness or weakness.

This is exactly what Vidura explains to King Dhirdiraashtra. In fact, Vidura tells him that indeed Duryodhana should consider himself to be blessed because he did not receive any sort of a backlash from the Paandavas for whatever he did to them. Had Duryodhana received even one backlash, he would not be seen alive today this way! This is not because the Paandavas were a weak lot of people, but it was their respect towards King Dhirdiraashtra as their own father, and Durodyana as their own brother that kept them at bay. They were undergoing all the torture quietly because they were waiting for the right time to exercise their “Dharma”.

Similarly in our lives too, it is very important that we be patient and never lose our legitimacy in whatever we do. There might be testing times, and many a times we might feel that we are suffering just because of someone’s atrocities or harsh behavior towards us. However if we’ve to explode immediately through illegitimate means, just because the other person was also illegitimate, what would be the difference between that person and us? Our stature and respect would rise higher if we exercise “Dharma” even during tough times.

In the Ramayana project, we had witnessed innumerable instances wherein Bhagawan Rama himself had to undergo innumerable trials and tribulations in his life. For instance, when Bhagawan Rama knew that he had lost Mother Sita to the wicked Ravana, he could have easily found her out and recovered her in innumerable ways, such as firing arrows directly towards Lanka and Ravana from wherever he was, or by making friendship with Vaali rather than Sugriva.

This is a very interesting point here – Why did Rama make friendship with Sugriva instead of Vaali to search for Mother Sita?  All of us know the strength of Vaali – The moment Vaali would have called up Ravana and instructed him to release Mother Sita from his clutches, Ravana would have immediately done so, owing to the fear that he had for Vaali. Bhagawan Rama knew this very well, and yet he went to Sugriva (who was at that time completely powerless). We might ask a question here as to why Rama did this. The point here is, Vaali was an epitome of “Adharma” (Unrighteousness). Bhagawan will never side up with a person who is “Adharmic” in nature to get his task done. Even thought the task might have been easier with Vaali, Bhagawan Rama never considered this option. Rama sided up with Sugriva, even though he knew that the process of obtaining Mother Sita back is going to be complex. This is because, Sugriva stood by his “Dharma” (Righteous path) and he had people like Hanuman who were completely following this path. Hence Bhagawan Rama did not mind whether his wait for Mother Sita would get longer or not. He was more interested in the legitimacy of his path and this is why we hail Bhagawan Rama to be an epitome of “Dharma”!

Thus the lesson to be learnt from this episode by all of us is that, even if the path is circuitous and treacherous, it is worth to follow it if it leads by the way of “Dharma”. If the path leads us to the goal by a short cut, but through “Adharma”, we should never go near it. Ultimately we should realize that if we’ve to follow and uphold “Dharma”, the path will obviously be treacherous and difficult. Only those who sustain all these difficulties along the path of “Dharma” will finally succeed. This is what we can learn from this particular episode of the Ramayana and also from the Vidura Neeti. Vidura is exactly explaining the same thing here too – If we’re going to follow the path of “Dharma” it is going to be tough and treacherous. However if we’re successful in doing so, the whole world is going to hail us as one of the greatest human beings!

So for today let us ponder over this important point and let us try to implement this in our everyday lives. We shall wait till the next episode to witness Vidura’s next important point! Stay tuned! 🙂

In the previous episode we had witnessed the continuation of the point of discussion wherein Vidura is asserting himself to King Dhirdiraashtra that as a wealthy king of a prosperous kingdom, it is his bound duty to take care of his near and dear ones to an extent that atleast they shouldn’t go through unwanted suffering and torture. Here Vidura names and shames Duryodhana for all the atrocities he is committing towards the Paandavas and slams him for such an inhuman approach towards his own brothers. Saying thus, Vidura reiterates his point of view to King Dhirdiraashtra that time is running out for him to mend Duryodhana’s ways. If such behavior continues, war is going to be inevitable and the entire Kaurava clan is going to be wiped out because of one person’s ego and restraint.

As Vidura advises thus, King Dhirdiraashtra feels internally that Vidura’s words make real sense, but is still scared as to how is he going to take his words to action and mend Duryodhana’s ways. He’s terribly scared of a huge backlash from his son, if he tries to talk against him and his actions. Thus, King Dhirdiraashtra is still yet to be convinced that he needs to act now and it is now or never! Sensing this, Vidura moves into his next point of advice as a continuation. Here he praises the Paandava brothers for their honesty and their straightforward approach, although they had lost their wealth and due share of their kingdom through illegal means to Duryodhana. Vidura explains thus:

“Apaneetham suneethena yortham prathyaanineeshate!

Mathi maasthaaya sudhridaam tatakaah purushah vratham!!”

Here again, Vidura continues to slam King Dhirdiraashtra. It seems that for the past few slokas in this “Adhyaaya” Vidura is in full slamming mode! He gives King Dhirdiraashtra left, right and centre for his indifferent approach and foolish behavior. This is no exception too. Vidura says thus, “Oh King Dhirdiraashtra! Look at how the Paandavas are conducting themselves! Although they had been cheated by Duryodhana, harassed by him illegally against the Raaja Dharma, insulted by him, etc. in the public forum in front of everybody in the courtroom, look how they conduct themselves! Youdhsitra and Co. have that dignity and ethical morale, which your crooked son Duryodhana completely lacks! Your son is only interested in somehow grabbing power from them and is completely turning deaf ears to the Raaja Dharma. How can a king be successful if he acts with such a restraint? Look at the Paandava brothers – Even at a crucial stage wherein they’re facing huge problems, they’re acting with so much of ethics and good values. This shows their upbringing towards the path of Dharma. This shows their straightforward approach towards things. If they would really have wanted to fight for the kingdom and grab it back from Duryodhana, they could have also got into all sorts of illegal means and ways and got it from him. However they didn’t do anything of that sort. It only shows their magnanimity and not cowardice!”

Vidura continues to paise the Paandavas’ behavior and attitude and at the same time slam King Dhirdiraashtra thus, “Oh King Dhirdiraashtra! You’re saying that the Paandavas could have asked or adopted any sort of means to get their due share of the Hastinaapura kingdom either from you or from Duryodhana. But you’re failing to understand that such a methodology to obtain the kingdom would be against the Raaja Dharma! Your son Duryodhana might be crooked in nature, but don’t expect the Paandavas to be as crooked as your son! They’re following the right procedure for this. Hence don’t underestimate them for their kindness that they’re showing towards you, despite of all the sufferings that they’re forced to experience. If a person is trying to retrieve whatever he has lost, in a straight and a legitimate manner, he is considered to be the greatest hero in this earth! Sadly as a king, you and your son do not realize this fact! You’re only interested in provoking others and grabbing all their wealth illegally!”

Slamming thus, Vidura conveys an extremely important point for all of us here – He says that if we’re showing the legitimacy in our approach to recover our illegally lost wealth or name or fame or whatever it might be, the world would hail us as one of the best human beings! This is a highly relevant message for all of us to ponder about and put into practice in our daily lives as well. We shall expand this important point further with more examples in the next episode and then move forward to the next point of discussion! Stay tuned! 🙂

In the previous episode we had witnessed yet another extremely important and a crucial point of discussion that if a person is able to regard his friend or a close person high and place him/her in a high stature in a legitimate way (of course), he too would be able to enjoy a long and a peaceful life. We witnessed a detailed explanation of this point of Vidura in two different angles, wherein firstly if we take care of our near and dear ones and place them at a high reputation like ourselves, we can always bank upon them if we run into any sorts of problems. We would always have their support and help during tough times. At the same time if we’re respecting our close people properly in the right way, we can lead a peaceful life devoid of jealousy from others. If we’re not doing this, probability is high that our near and dear ones are going to fume upon our success and are going to feel jealous of our growth. This might also lead them to wait for a chance to pull us down when their time comes by! So to avoid such a risk, it is always better to take care of our near and dear close ones in the legitimate way with respect and dignity so that they’re also on the same page as us.

This is exactly where King Dhirdiraashtra is lacking too. However he’s unable to accept the fact that he’s acting against the sons of his brother Paandu, just because of the compulsion from Duryodhana. He asks Vidura back thus, “Oh Vidura! Why is the need here that I take care of the Paandavas specially? What is the requirement for such a VIP treatment for them? If they really deserve the kingdom, they should not be defensive as they are today and instead, should fight for their rights and get it from Duryodhana. Why should I take care of them over my son Duryodhana? In what ways are they superior to him? Why do they need special attention?”

Listening to this, Vidura replies back – At this point, he doesn’t know whether to laugh or cry! He slams this indifferent attitude of King Dhirdiraashtra and replies him back thus, “Oh King Dhirdiraashtra! Please remember that you have made an agreement earlier before the death of your brother Paandu that a portion of the Hasthinapura kingdom would be shared with his sons as well. Why do you always keep forgetting your promise? I know you haven’t forgotten it, but you’re trying to play smart here! Please realize that this is not a smart move of yours, but a foolish move! You’re only ending up supporting a foolish and a crooked person called Duryodhana to the throne, rather than taking an inclusive decision to accommodate your brother’s sons. Just because your son’s ego shouldn’t be hurt, you’re playing with the lives of other people. Just because your son’s desires should be satisfied, you’re trying to play down the might of the Paandava brothers. Although Yudishtra and Co. respect you to a great extent (like their own father), you’re trying to ditch them for the benefit of your son! If you’re not standing by the Paandavas during all their tough times that they’re undergoing, then who else would be near them to support their cause? You’re like a father to them also and you’re only running away from your duty by favouring your beleaguered son. Sadly enough, you’re going against the Raaja Dharma that it’s your duty to take care of your near and dear ones at critical times and for this, you’re breeding your own enemies from within your family and within your kingdom itself. You don’t require any enemy from outside to destroy you and your Kaurava clan. Your own family members are more than enough to pull you down for all the atrocities that you and your sons are committing. So King Dhirdiraashtra, please realize that you’re committing a big mistake by unduly favouring your son Duryodhana for all his wrongdoings. You’ll realize it sooner or later for all your misdeeds. Before it becomes too late, please get up from your slumber and act accordingly to stop the damage that is going to happen in the future for your entire clan of Kauravas.”

Saying thus, Vidura slams and advises King Dhirdiraashtra of what is to be done as a corrective measure to fix the problems that are brewing between the Paandava brothers and his Kaurava sons. But is King Dhirdiraashtra going to get convinced with Vidura’s words? Is there going to be a positive change with Vidura’s hard-hitting words on King Dhirdiraashtra? We’ve to wait and witness as we move forward. So for today, let us ponder over this important point once more and see how we can implement this advice in our daily lives as we progress forward. We shall wait till tomorrow’s episode to witness the next point of discussion. Stay tuned! J

In the previous episode we had witnessed yet another important discussion wherein Vidura has clearly highlighted four important “pillars” that are extremely essential to have a long and a peaceful lifespan. All of us should strictly adhere these four pillars in our daily lives. Vidura listed them out as “Maardhavam” (Having a “Saathvic” or a calm temperament all through one’s life, irrespective of any sorts of challenges coming through), “Sarva bhoothaanaam anasuya” (Leading a life completely devoid of jealousy on others), “Kshamaa” (Having excemplary amount of patience at all situations) and finally “Druthihi” (Having the courage and the constant motivation to succeed in life). All these four pillars coupled with each other would make a person successful both in terms of leading a blemishness professional and a spiritual life. Thus it becomes a mandate for all of us to strictly adhere to this path that is charted out to us by Vidura.

Now moving on further, Vidura adds to the above point that if a person is able to regard his friend high and place him/her in a high stature, he too would be able to enjoy a long and a peaceful life. Vidura explains thus:

“Aayushyaanu budhaah praahuhu mithraanaam cha avimaananaa!!”

It might be of interest to understand as to why is Vidura repeatedly emphasising that our near and dear ones should also be happy along with us. We’ve seen a series of episodes before wherein, Vidura clearly explained how to take care of our near and dear ones in our life – Our family members, close friends, etc. Here too, Vidura is revoking the same near and dear ones to drive home the point that if we’ve to have a long and a peaceful life, we should ensure that our near and dear ones are highly regarded and and are highly placed in stature by us. But why is Vidura stressing on this point a lot?

There are two ways of looking at this – The first way is that, if we’re able to place our close people in a highly respected stature, we can be devoid of unwanted tantrums that they might play on us due to their jealousy. If only we’re at a high stature and if we’re starting to disregard and underestimate our other people, this is going to surely result in an ego clash and because of this ego clash, fights would happen, and because of this rivalry, the other people might keep waiting for a chance to pull us down. The moment they find an apt situation to pull us down, they would do so meticulously, thus ending our “successful” life. Meanwhile, knowing that there’s a bitter rivalry going on between us and others around us, we would also start to be “extra careful” in whatever we do and say. This is where we would lose our peace of mind. We would have this tension everytime brewing within us and we would not know when we would come under attack from whom! Hence we would start having that constant fear within us and this is where we start loosing our lifespan slowly. The moment we’re gripped in fear, we start loosing our physical healthy state, which directly results in reduction of lifespan.

The other way of looking at this point of Vidura is that, if we look after our near and dear ones in a highly dignified and a respected way, if at all we would face some issues in our life in future, we would always have people to bank upon, and this would give us more courage to face any tough situation in life. The moment we realize that we are having the support and the back-up of people around us, the more courageous we would become to face challenging situations in life with ease! This is where we can use our friends and people around us to our strength – If we’re able to maintain good relations with people around us, by honouring them and respecting them with a good stature, we can always bank upon them for help at crucial times.

This is where King Dhirdiraashtra is again loosing it out – He’s not able to take care of his brother’s family and this is going to backfire at him very badly. Thus Vidura indirectly warns King Dhirdiraashtra about the imminent danger that is brewing up very quickly. So for today let us ponder over this very important point and try to see where and how we can implement this in our regular lives. We shall extend this discussion further in tomorrow’s episode and would move on from there subsequently. Stay tuned! 🙂