The Indian Dharma

In the previous episode, we had witnessed Sanjaya continuing his accord with King Dhritarashtra wherein Sanjaya is clarifying as to why Karna failed to employ the “Shakti-Aayudham” upon Arjuna (his main target), and instead employed it upon Ghatodgaja. This is a costly waste of a rare and a unique resource from Karna’s side and with this, he had missed a golden opportunity to bring the Paandavas under his control. As King Dhritarashtra questions Karna’s costly miss, Sanjaya explains that Karna wanted to kill Bhagawan Krishna along with Arjuna, which is the blunder that he committed. If an ordinary human being like Karna could think this much, Bhagawan Krishna, being the all-pervasive “Paramatman” knows how to play the diversionary tactics, doesn’t He? Thus, Karna fell into Bhagawan Krishna’s counter strategy and was forced to employ the “Shakti-Aayudham” upon someone else. Thus, we can understand one thing clearly here – Whatever is Bhagawan’s divine “Sankalpa”, it will happen somehow, even if normal people like us would want otherwise. Here, Karna wanted Arjuna to be killed, however, Bhagawan’s “Sankalpa” was something different. So at the end of the day, whatever is Bhagawan’s “Sankalpa” (“Deivamatra Pramaanam”) will only fructify, irrespective of whatever effort we put to achieve otherwise! 

Moving on further thus, this same question is now being asked by Saatyaki to Bhagawan Krishna. We shall now shift the scene from Sanjaya and King Dhritarashtra to the Kurukshetra battlefield. Saatyaki goes to Bhagawan Krishna towards the end of the night’s war at Day Fourteen. He asks Bhagawan Krishna thus, “Oh Bhagawan! I have a small doubt which has been lingering around for a while now!” Normally if someone comes very close to Bhagawan Krishna and is trying to ask something like this, Bhagawan Krishna doesn’t like it much. It is because, He knows that if someone comes secretly and asks something, He Himself is going to blurt out some important secrets that He maintains within Himself! Anyway, now Saatyaki has come to Him, He cannot ignore Saatyaki now. Hence, Bhagawan asks Saatyaki as to what is his “big doubt” that is troubling him all these days. Saatyaki asks Bhagawan thus, “Oh Bhagawan Krishna! I’ve seen Arjuna roaming around everywhere in the battlefield with the “Shakti-Aayudham”, however, he did not even think of employing it on anybody. Forget Arjuna here – Karna could have employed it on Bheemasena or Yudishtra or anybody, couldn’t he? This would have created a huge chaos in our camp. Going one step further, he could have searched for Arjuna’s whereabouts just like how Arjuna searched for Jayatrada and he could have employed it upon Arjuna then and there on the eleventh day itself. But four days have passed and Karna never did this. What is the reason behind Karna’s reluctance? There’s something in-depth inside this act of Karna. Normally he is someone who doesn’t miss an opportunity to attack his enemy fiercely. But if he’s not doing it upon Arjuna, there is something behind it. I would like to know what prevented Karna from employing it on the Paandavas!” 

As Saatyaki asks a lengthy question thus, Bhagawan Krishna heaves a huge sigh! Just now He had made King Dhritarashtra ask this question to Sanjaya and He had given an answer through Sanjaya’s mouth. Now Saatyaki is asking the same question in a different way and now He has to give him an answer! Bhagawan Krishna replies to Saatyaki thus, “Oh Saatyaki! You’ve asked a very important question, but the answer is very simple – It is me who made Karna “forget” that he had the “Shakti-Aayudham” with him all this while! Oh Saatyaki! Please remember – I’m the one who is within everybody’s heart and mind and I’m the one who is responsible for kindling everybody’s thought process and reasoning. If you’ve to know something, it is always through me. If you’ve to forget something, it is me who enables this as well! So in Karna’s case, I made him forget that he possesses the “Shakti-Aayudham” from the eleventh day till the end of the fourteenth day. It is only during the fourteenth night, Karna remembered that he had the “Shakti-Aayudham” with him, and only after this remembrance, he started boasting about it loudly to Duryodhana and Co.! Now, as Karna regained his remembrance about the “Shakti-Aayudham”, I had to somehow protect Arjuna and the Paandavas from it and hence, it was my idea to send Ghatodgaja. As Ghatodgaja was a Raakshasa by birth, he would be able to unleash a huge destruction on the Kaurava camp, which kindled Duryodhana and the others to put pressure on Karna for killing Ghatodgaja by employing the “Shakti-Aayudham”. Karna was cornered and finally he had to succumb to Duryodhana’s pressure and thus, he had to employ the “Shakti-Aayudham” upon Ghatodgaja. Thus, Oh Saatyaki! It was my master plan and it all began by making Karna totally unaware of his great possession!” 

From this answer from Bhagawan Krishna, we can understand how He takes care of even the smallest thing when He has to protect His ardent Bhaktas. Had Karna remembered the “Shakti Aayudham” earlier, Arjuna’s life would have been in danger. However, Bhagawan Krishna induced the “forgetting tendency” into Karna and made him completely unaware of the presence of the “Shakti Aayudham” for four long days! What a miracle Bhagawan has performed! So for today, let us understand this point and we shall wait till the next episode to continue this discussion further! Stay tuned! 🙂

In the previous episode, we had shifted our focus towards an important conversation that is continuing to happen between Sanjaya and King Dhritarashtra with regards to the war proceedings at Kurukshetra. It is to be remembered that Sanjaya is giving periodic live updates about whatever incidents are taking place at the Kurukshetra battlefield to King Dhritarashtra. Now that we’ve witnessed Ghatodgaja’s demise with Karna’s “Shakti-Aayudham”, King Dhritarashtra is not very happy with Karna’s decision to use it to kill Ghatodgaja, rather than Arjuna and the other Paandava brothers. An unsatisfied King Dhritarashtra asks Sanjaya as to why Karna made such a stupid decision to employ the powerful “Shakti-Aayudham” upon Ghatodgaja, of all the people in the Paandava camp. For this, Sanjaya replies that even though Karna had the powerful “Shakti-Aayudham” with him, which can destroy anything and everything in this world, his intentions are crooked. Had he wished that he should kill Arjuna and the Paandava brothers with it, perhaps it would have been realized by now. But Karna had other intentions – He wanted to kill both Arjuna and Bhagawan Krishna with it. Will Bhagawan Krishna keep quiet if His life is at stake with the “Shakti-Aayudham”? This is what\y Bhagawan Krishna played His divine “Leela” to make Karna employ the “Shakti-Aayudham” upon someone else and waste it, rather than using it for killing the main targets. 

Moreover, there is a very important message that Sanjaya conveys to King Dhritarashtra here. Sanjaya continues his accord thus, “Oh King Dhritarashtra! From this incident what is the lesson that we’ve to learn? Whatever we think and conceptualize, will not materialize in this world every time. Only whatever Bhagawan thinks will materialize here. Karna is a great warrior without a second thought. However, he wasn’t able to materialize what his thoughts were, and he’s not going to materalize anything moving into the future as well. If Karna thinks that he can overpower Bhagawan Krishna at any point of time, this is never going to happen, and he is not understanding this fact. Whatever Karna or any other normal human being  like you and me are thinking and wanting, is not going to take place in this world. Only whatever Bhagawan wishes, (“Deiva Sankaplam”) will happen. Hence, oh King Dhritarashtra! It is not the fault of Karna alone. If anybody has the “Karthruthva Buddhi”, thinking that for all that is happening in this world, I’m the sole reason, this person is definitely going to meet failure soon or later. We’ve come to this world to perform a certain set of duties towards the maintenance of “Dharma”. All of us have a role to play. There is nothing called success or failure in our pursuit. It is Bhagawan who has to decide whether we’ve succeeded or failed. This is because, our duties in this world are decided by Bhagawan Krishna and if we’re falling in line with whatever has been assigned to us, Bhagawan Krishna is going to be happy and with this, He is going to give us the opportunity to attain the highest “Moksha”! Oh King Dhritarashtra! Arjuna and Co. have realized this fact long ago and this is why they have caught hold of Bhagawan Krishna in whatever actions they perform. However, your son Duryodhana and the others have completely deviated from this path and are encountering failure in all their endeavours!” 

This same concept is being talked about in the Ramayana as well, as to how ultimately whatever Bhagawan thinks would materialize in this world. We’ve seen in our earlier Shrimad Ramayana project that when King Dasharata wanted Bhagawan Rama to succeed him to the throne, it did not materialize at that time. Bhagawan Rama had to descend to the forest the very next day, as arrangements were going on in full swing for His “Pattaabishekam” (Coronation) ceremony. Kaikeyi wanted her son Bharata to being the king of Ayodhya instead of Bhagawan Rama, but did this materalize? The answer is “No”! Even though King Dasharata accepted Kaikeyi’s proposal, Bharata did not want to succeed his father to the throne. Hence, this also did not materialize. Hence, both King Dasharata’s and Kaikeyi’s wishes failed to materialize. Ultimately whose “Sankalpa” materalize? Bhagawan Rama’s “Paaduka” (Footwear) succeeded the throne for the next fourteen years! Thus, if human beings take a “Sankalpa” (Wish), it may or may not materialize. However, if Bhagawan takes a “Sankalpa”, it is bound to materialize at some point in time for sure! 

So for today, let us understand this in-depth message from Sanjaya’s accord to King Dhritarashtra, and we shall continue this discussion further into the next episode as well! Stay tuned! 🙂

In the previous episode, we had witnessed Bhagawan Krishna rendering important pieces of advice to Bheemasena and Arjuna, with regards to performing their stipulated “Karma Yoga” without escaping from it. This is a clear message to all of us as well from Bhagawan that there’s no running away from our duties. We’ve to perform them come what may, because these duties, when performed meticulously, will directly take us to the ultimate “Moksha”. Bhagawan Krishna explains that even if Arjuna and the Paandava brothers would have failed to turn up for the war at Kurukshetra, He would have single-handedly destroyed all the Kauravas and the Raakshasas associated with them. This is not a big task for Bhagawan Krishna, whose sole purpose of incarnation is to destroy all the evil in this world. Readers might remember that during the Bhagawad Gita, Bhagawan Krishna Himself has declared that He is none other than “Kaala-Devata” who has incarnated in this world for this purpose. Given this fact, He Himself could have easily destroyed Duryodhana and Co. without much effort. However, He wanted Arjuna and Co. to do it because this would serve as an opportunity to perform their “Karma Yoga”, which would pave the way for them to attain “Moksha”. 

Meanwhile, moving on further from this point, we’re going to witness a very important and an interesting question which is now being asked by King Dhritarashtra to Sanjaya. Readers should remember always that whatever we’re witnessing as part of the Kurukshetra war is as per the conversation between these two people. Sanjaya is giving updates from Kurukshetra to King Dhritarashtra constantly. Now, as Sanjaya explains about Karna employing the “Shakti-Aayudham” upon Ghatodgaja and killing him, King Dhritarashtra has a doubt here. He asks Sanjaya thus, “Oh Sanjaya! Karna killing Ghatodgaja with the “Shakti-Aayudham” is fine. But this should have been employed over Arjuna to kill him, isn’t it? What was Karna doing for the past four days without employing the “Shakti-Aayudham” upon Arjuna? What was stopping him from doing so? Is Karna a fool not to use the “Shakti-Aayudham” then and there on the eleventh day, when he entered the battlefield? What made him wait so long? Finally, what was preserved for killing Arjuna has been employed upon someone else, isn’t it? Now what is Karna going to do to take on Arjuna?” 

This is quite a valid question that King Dhritarashtra is asking here. I’m sure even many of us might have the same doubt – Why hasn’t Karna employed the “Shakti-Aayudham” upon Arjuna till now? Even if we’re seeing on one hand that Bhagawan Krishna is not allowing Arjuna to go into the vicinity of Karna, on his side, Karna could have found the whereabouts of Arjuna in the battlefield and could have called him for a fight, isn’t it? If Karna would have called Arjuna for a fight, Arjuna couldn’t have denied it! Thus, at some point, Karna could have used the “Shakti-Aayudham” upon Arjuna! But this never happened! Karna never went in search of Arjuna till now. Why did this happen? Sanjaya gives a befitting answer here thus, “Oh King Dhritarashtra! Here is where Karna proved himself yet again that he’s one of the greatest fools on earth! Ever since the eleventh day, Duryodhana has been telling Karna to take out the “Shakti-Aayudham” and destroy the entire Paandava camp. However, Karna was repeatedly giving an answer that he is reserving this “Shakti-Aayudham” to kill both Arjuna and Bhagawan Krishna together! Had he said that he is only going to kill Arjuna with the “Shakti-Aayudham”, things might have been different! This is where Karna acted stupidly! He not only ended up disobeying Duryodhana’s words, but also lost the “Shakti-Aayudham” because he was thinking of killing Bhagawan Krishna with it! How can this even happen in the wildest of dreams? Can anyone in this world even think of killing Bhagawan Krishna? Only because Karna had this evil thought within him, Bhagawan Krishna played the smart game of making Karna waste the precious “Shakti-Aayudham” and use it upon someone else! Oh King Dhritarashtra! Isn’t this the height of stupidity? Bhagawan Krishna is the very foundation of the entire Paandu-clan and how can such a strong basement be destroyed so easily? It is only because of this stupid thought of Karna, he is going to have a great downfall very soon!” 

Now this is a perfect example of how greed can destroy even a great warrior! Karna was an extremely talented warrior in all means, however, it was his ego and his perverted thought of killing Bhagawan Krishna which sealed his fate during the Kurukshetra war! So for today, let us understand this important point of discussion and we shall continue this in the next episode as well! Stay tuned! 🙂

In the previous episode, we had witnessed a very important point wherein Bhagawan Krishna played a strategic game in bringing Ghatodgaja’s and Karna’s “Karma-Phalam” (Resultant of their actions) together in the same place. While Ghatodgaja being a Raakshasa, has insulted, abused and destroyed Maharishis and their “Yagnyams”, Karna has his “Shakti-Aayudham” to be neutralized. Hence, Bhagawan Krishna beautifully plays His “Leela” (Divine play) in bringing both of them in front of each other in the same battlefield. While Ghatodgaja gets killed for all the “Paapa Karma” that he had performed, Karna’s “Shakti Aayudham” was the instrument for killing him. Thus, Karna loses the only powerful weapon which he had with him to take on Arjuna. Now, this being destroyed, Karna is literally powerless in front of Arjuna! Thus, we can see from this event clearly that Bhagawan Krishna knows the time and place for everything in this world. He once again proves to the world that He is the supreme! Even though Arjuna and Karna wanted to have a go at each other for the past four days, Bhagawan Krishna categorically avoided the faceoff because, if Karna would have employed the “Shakti-Aayudham”, Arjuna would have been killed by now! 

Continuing further thus, Bhagawan Krishna says to Arjuna and Bheemasena – “Oh Arjuna! Oh Bheemasena! You might ask me one question here – If we’ve not destroyed all these Raakshasas, Jayatrada, Jarasandha, etc. what would have happened to this world? The answer is very simple here – The world would have become a hell for Maharishis and Saadhus, and beyond a point, I myself would have killed all these people! Oh Arjuna! You took the initiative to kill Jayatrada! Oh Bheemasena! You took the initiative to kill Jarasandha! Like this, all of you (Paandava brothers) took initiatives to kill several Raakshasas at different points in time. By doing so, you’ve performed your “Karma” meticulously, thereby contributing to the restoration of “Dharma” in this world. Because you’ve performed your actions meticulously, you will attain “Moksha” at the end of this birth! This is what I want to illustrate to the rest of the world through all of you! Oh Arjuna! Oh Bheemasena! You are my divine instruments in my divine hands! Because of the love and affection you shower upon me, I’m hereby giving you this great opportunity to fulfil all your “Karma” through this war and thereby attain the highest “Moksha”. If not you in this picture, I myself can single handedly destroy everybody standing on the opposite side. It is just a matter of a few minutes for me to do. However, I do not want to do it. I want you to do it because it would aid your spiritual progress through the process of “Karma Yoga”!” 

This is a very important point which Bhagawan is explaining to Arjuna and Bheemasena here. Of course, He had explained this earlier through the Bhagawad Gita (Karma Yoga Chapter), but Bhagawan is once again reiterating this important point through action now. During the Bhagawad Gita time, this point was only on paper as the war hadn’t begun then, and nobody had died. Now that fourteen days of the war are over and many important personalities from the Kaurava army are destroyed by the Paandava brothers, Bhagawan Krishna puts his explanation of “Karma Yoga” into action and now sets the narrative firmly. We can compare this to a similar analogy – We consume good quality and variety of food every day and for this food to digest, we perform physical exercises to maintain our body fit, don’t we? Karma Yoga is a cycle similar to this. We’ve to keep performing the “Karma” (Action) that Bhagawan has prescribed for us in this world. During the course of our actions, we’ve to seek Bhagawan’s divine “Anugraha” and thereby with a balance between our “Karma” and Bhagawan’s Anugraha, we attain the highest “Moksha”. 

Now someone might ask a counter question here – We’re saying that we’ve to consume food, do physical exercises and thereby keep our body fit, aren’t we? We’ve to do so many physical exercises and activities, only because we’re consuming a lot of food varieties, aren’t we? So why can’t we cut down on our food and start fasting every day? We do not need to do any physical activity if we’re not consuming anything, isn’t it? Now this might be quite an absurd question to ask! 🙂 Will we be able to survive in this world if we’re not having food on time? We will become weak and would be put to drips in the hospital bed if we’re skipping our diet everyday, won’t we? Hence, it is important that we consume food, do physical activities and maintain our body fit. Similarly, there is no point in running away from our “Karma”. We cannot escape the “Karma Yoga” at any cost. Bhagawan has formulated and prescribed “Karma” for each one of us (Just like food) and we’ve to perform them. It is only through performing our “Karma”, Bhagawan will even look at us! Hence, just like how we cannot skip food, we cannot skip our “Karma”. It is our duty to perform our actions with utmost sincerity and dedication, which would automatically please Bhagawan’s heart. So for today, let us understand this point clearly and we shall wait till the next episode to continue this discussion further! Stay tuned! 🙂

In the previous episode, we had witnessed Bhagawan Krishna’s extraordinary strategy to protect Arjuna from Karna’s “Shakti-Aayudham”. Ever since the eleventh day when Karna entered the battlefield after Bhishmachaarya’s unavailability, Bhagawan Krishna has been driving Arjuna away from Karna everytime. On one hand, Karna was determined to employ the “Shakti Aayudham” upon Arjuna to kill him and on the other hand, Arjuna was also raring to have a go at Karna, not knowing the fact that Karna’s “Shakti-Aayudham” can cost his life. However, “Anugraha” for Arjuna comes in the form of Bhagawan Krishna Himself directly, who somehow avoids this marquee battle from taking place between the duo. Now that Ghatodgaja has taken the “Shakti-Aayudham” upon himself and sacrificed his life for his fathers, Bhagawan Krishna heaves a sigh of relief that Arjuna’s life is safe and secure. All the threats that Arjuna had till now are almost neutralized and now Arjuna’s victory is in sight! We’ve also witnessed an in-depth explanation in the previous episode as to why Bhagawan Krishna strategized it this way. 

Moving on further, Bhagawan Krishna continues His accord to Arjuna thus, “Oh Arjuna! You should also realize one thing – There were two purposes that had to be served in this Ghatodgaja demise event – One is to neutralize the “Shakti-Aayudham” of Karna, and now the other one is very important for you to know – Ghatodgaja by nature was a Raakshasa. As you know, Raakshasas are habitual offenders and Ghatodgaja was not an exception to this. Just like other Raakshasas, Ghatodgaja has also killed several Brahmana Rishis in the forest and prevented several “Yagnyas” from taking place. For this offence, I’ve to destroy Ghatodgaja anyway. However, since Ghatodgaja was Bheemasena’s son, I wanted him to contribute to our cause of “Dharma” in some way before he meets his end. This is the reason I combined both these things here on the battlefield. So please do not worry about Ghatodgaja’s demise much. The two purposes have been fulfilled and Ghatodgaja has contributed his bit to restoring “Dharma” in this world! Now it is time for us to move on from this!”

Bhagawan Krishna continues further thus, “Oh Arjuna! Oh Bheemasena! There is a definitive reason as to why I destroy all the Raakshasas then and there. You are mourning Ghatodgaja’s demise today because he was your son. But always remember – Ghatodgaja was a Raakshasa and he was bound to be destroyed. Now I shall reveal a secret to both of you – If I do not kill the Raakshasas then and there, what do you think will happen? The entire world will come to a standstill and all the good activities that are taking place in this world will come to an end! These Raakshasas will ensure that they rule the roost with all their “Paapa Karma”. I cannot allow this to happen at any cost. My sole purpose behind this incarnation is to protect the “Saadhus” and the “Maharishis” and allow them to continue their “Dharma” in this world. If someone creates a stumbling block for their “Dharma”, I ensure that I destroy them. Ghatodgaja was no exception to this. Of course, he has also performed many “Punya Karma” alongside his other “Paapa Karma” and this is why he obtained an opportunity to contribute to the cause of our “Dharma” here at Kurukshetra. Moreover when I destroy Raakshasas, it doesn’t mean that I’m totally against their well-being. In fact, I care for them more than the “Saadhus” and “Maharishis”. This is because, in the case of “Saadhus”, they are already on the path of “Dharma” and they do not need much of my intervention all the time. However, Raakshasas perform “Paapa Karma” everytime, and the only way to transform them is by killing this “Deham” (Physical body) of theirs and providing them with a fresh birth, with a hope that atleast in the new birth, these people will follow the course of “Dharma”! Even now if they don’t, I again have to kill them and give them yet another fresh birth! This cycle keeps continuing till they also walk the path of “Dharma”. Hence, Oh Arjuna! Oh Bheemasena! Ghatodgaja’s case is similar too – In this birth, knowingly or unknowingly he had committed a lot of “Paapa Karma”, for which he had to meet this ghastly end. However, Ghatodgaja is a “Punya-Atman” by nature. He will definitely get his due share of care from me at some point in time and you do not need to worry about him anymore! What is important now here is that, Karna’s “Shakti-Aayudham” is neutralized and he cannot use this anymore. Now he is slowly getting devoid of all his powers one by one and it will be a cake-walk for you to kill him in the coming days!” 

Saying thus, Bhagawan Krishna calms Arjuna and Bheemasena and assures them of all protection! So for today, let us understand this point very clearly and we shall continue this discussion further in the next episode as well! Stay tuned! 🙂

In the previous episode, we had witnessed the Paandava brothers mourning over Ghatodgaja’s unfortunate demise. We had seen that Karna had employed the “Shakti-Aayudham” on Ghatodgaja, who bore it on his chest and sacrificed his life for the welfare of his fathers, especially Arjuna. Initially, Karna’s plan was to employ this “Shakti Aayudham” upon Arjuna and this was the only key weapon that he was having with him. As Karna was boasting about the same to Duryodhana and Co. amidst the battlefield, Bhagawan Krishna spinned a ploy to send Ghatodgaja and wreak havoc amidst the Kaurava camp, which in turn forced Karna to employ the “Shakti Aayudham” upon Ghatodgaja instead of Arjuna! With this, Bhagawan Krishna is extremely happy and relieved that Arjuna’s life is protected, even though the sadness of losing Ghatodgaja for this is underlying in His heart! However, Ghatodgaja has done his job to perfection! He has achieved what he had to achieve! Thus, as Arjuna asks Bhagawan Krishna the reason for his smile and happiness even as everyone else is mourning Ghatodgaja’s demise, Bhagawan Krishna explains His thought process beautifully! 

Now we’ve to understand a deeper meaning to the laughter that Bhagawan Krishna is having here. We’ve seen yesterday that Bhagawan Krishna had put Ghatodgaja in the front, in order to protect Arjuna from Karna. Even during the earlier days when Karna was in the battlefield right from day eleven, Bhagawan Krishna never took Arjuna to Karna’s vicinity even for a few minutes. Of course there were a few altercations here and there but even before the intensity picked up, Bhagawan Krishna smartly drove Arjuna away from that scene, ruling out the possibility of Karna employing the “Shakti-Aayudham” upon Arjuna. All this was happening without Arjuna’s knowledge and in fact, ever since Karna entered the battlefield on the eleventh day, Bhagawan Krishna had His heart in His mouth! It was a tense 4-5 day-period for Bhagawan Krishna to ensure that Karna does not come near Arjuna at any cost! 

So we might wonder here – Why didn’t Bhagawan Krishna reveal His strategy to Arjuna earlier? Why did He keep it as a secret within Himself? In other words, Bhagawan Krishna could have told Arjuna that He is trying to pull Arjuna away from Karna for the time being because of this reason, isn’t it? Why did Bhagawan refrain from doing so? If He had done so, Arjuna would have been the first person to gang up against Karna on the very same day! As Arjuna is a great “Kshatrya” warrior, he would not be scared about anything that comes upon him. He will want to face it head-on, however, he would end up being killed! If Bhagawan Krishna would have revealed His strategy to Arjuna, his ego would have been hurt. It would seem as if Arjuna is getting scared of Karna and is moving away from him every time. Hence, to avoid this situation, Bhagawan Krishna maintained it within Himself by not revealing it to Arjuna. 

This is where we’ve to understand one thing clearly – Whenever Bhagawan is trying to protect us, it is not necessary that He would reveal His strategy to us. There are certain things that might happen in our life, which we might not be able to “connect the dots” very easily. However, if we look back at our life events after a while, we would slowly get to understand how certain incidents had to take place, which served as a protection from a great danger! Many times, we go to a “Mahatma” or a “Guru” or even to Bhagawan Himself and pray that all our wishes should be fulfilled immediately then and there! Of course, I’m not saying that we should not ask Bhagawan to fulfil our wishes and prayers. We have every right to do so. However, we should be clear that it is not a guarantee that Bhagawan will fulfil everything in that moment itself! There might be certain things that would take time. Perhaps, if our wish is fulfilled at that moment itself, we might enter into a greater danger and hence, Bhagawan might slightly postpone it to a later time. We might not know it at that moment, but we will start criticising Bhagawan for not listening to us at all! Bhagawan knows what to give us at what time, doesn’t He? 

Hence, the point here is that, as ardent Bhaktas, we should develop patience and perseverance, when we go to Bhagawan for something. We should have firm faith in Bhagawan that He is definitely listening to us and will respond to us at the appropriate time. This is exactly what Bhagawan did in the case of Arjuna as well. While Arjuna was urging to meet Karna in the battlefield and take him head-on, Bhagawan Krishna decided to play the waiting game. For Bhagawan, Arjuna’s life is more precious than his ego and urge. Had Bhagawan satisfied Arjuna’s ego at that point of time, Arjuna would have been killed, wouldn’t he? Such is the case with all of us as well. So for today, let us understand this important point and let us try to develop patience and maturity while we approach Bhagawan for something. We shall continue this discussion in the next episode as well! Stay tuned! 🙂

In the previous episode, we had witnessed a tragic incident wherein Ghatodgaja had to breathe his last while he was fighting in support of the Paandava brothers. Thanks to Karna’s “Shakti-Aayudham”, Ghatodgaja fell to the ground dead and while falling, he had grown his body to such a mammoth size, he destroyed almost one “Akshauhini” of the Kaurava army! Thus, Ghatodgaja’s contribution to the Paandava camp is humongous – Firstly, he saved Arjuna from Karna’s “Shakti-Aayudham”. We’ve seen that Karna was preserving this weapon especially for killing Arjuna, however, circumstances led him to employ it on Ghatodgaja, instead of Arjuna! Thus, by taking the “Shakti-Aayudham” upon himself, Ghatodgaja did a great service to his fathers by saving their lives at a critical time of the war. Secondly, the extent of destruction that Ghatodgaja brought about at the Kaurava camp was humongous! Even after the Kauravas managed to kill Ghatodgaja, they were not even in a state to celebrate this victory, unlike they did when Abhimanyu died. This is because of the extent of havoc that Ghatodgaja wreaked amidst the Kaurava camp. Thousands of armymen and other forms of artillery were completely destroyed by Ghatodgaja! Several “Maharathis” died and all their infrastructure came crashing down to Ghatodgaja’s unending fury! At one point it was seeming as if Ghatodgaja was running away with victory for the Paandava camp single handedly! Such was the impact that Ghatodgaja created, and even though his demise was a great loss for the Paandava camp, they had every reason to be grateful to him! 

Moving on further thus, as Ghatodgaja falls on the ground, the war for the night comes to an end. Bheemasena and Arjuna are shocked and sad. Initially Arjuna lost his son Abhimanyu in the previous day of the war and now Bheemasena has lost his son Ghatodgaja in today’s war. The entire Paandava camp is in grief over the loss of two great warriors back-to-back! As Arjuna and Bheemasena are weeping bitterly on one hand, they are thankful to the selfless service that Ghatodgaja has done to them. Arjuna says to Bheemasena thus, “Oh Bheemasena! You are extremely fortunate to obtain a son like Ghatodgaja who had volunteered to save my life by sacrificing his! If he had not taken the “Shakti Aayudham” upon himself, it would have been aimed at me and I would have been history by now! However, Ghatodgaja was extremely selfless to the extent that even as the “Shakti Aayudham” came towards him, he stood tall to receive it upon himself! Who will do such a service ever in this world? If I’m alive at this moment, it is only because of Ghatodgaja!” Arjuna hugs Bheemasena and weeps bitterly. Bheemasena too could not hold his tears back upon seeing his brother crying! Of course, the loss of his son breaks Bheemasena’s heart! 

As this is happening on one side, Bhagawan Krishna is silently sitting on the other side and laughing! This is quite perplexing isn’t it? On one hand, the entire Paandava camp is sunk in sorrow over Ghatodgaja’s demise, but on the other hand, Bhagawan Krishna is laughing and is seemingly in a different world altogether! Upon seeing this, Arjuna slowly goes up to Bhagawan Krishna and asks the reason for His laughter at a time when the entire camp is grieving! Now Bhagawan Krishna gives an important reply to Arjuna thus, “Oh Arjuna! I’m happy because a huge task has been accomplished tonight! I was just waiting for this moment to unfold and until this, you do not know what kind of tension I was in for the past 4-5 days! Until the moment Karna was holding the “Shakti-Aayudham” in his hand, your life was in great danger and I had to meticulously protect you from him. Now that the “Shakti-Aayudham” is not there with Karna anymore, it is only now that I got my breath back! Now it will be easy for you to defeat Karna. Till now, your life was in a huge threat and you do not know how much I had to be in the forefront to somehow avoid Karna from picking up a fight with you!” 

Saying thus, Bhagawan Krishna laughingly reveals a huge underground strategy that He had crafted, in a bid to save Arjuna’s life! So for today, let us understand up to this point and in the next episode, we shall continue this discussion further! Stay tuned! 🙂

We’re at a very important phase of the entire Kurukshetra war, wherein the battle is continuing into the night of Day Fourteen. Guru Dhronachaarya is the orchestrator of this unique move, in a bid to induce fear and confusion into the Paandava camp. However, Bhagawan Krishna comes to the rescue once again and He counters Guru Dhronachaarya’s plan by sending Ghatodgaja to the battlefield. Meanwhile, we’ve witnessed a brief spat between Karna and Ashwatthama, wherein the former is boasting about the possession of the “Shakti Aayudham” with him, which he’s going to employ to destroy the Paandavas. As this conversation goes by, Bhagawan Krishna overhears it and accordingly decides to send Ghatodgaja to potentially neutralize this “Shakti Aayudham”, so that it doesn’t come hauntingly towards Arjuna and Co. Also, this is one reason why Bhagawan Krishna is somehow not letting Arjuna face Karna directly for a one-on-one fight. If Karna employs the “Shakti Aayudham”, Arjuna will not be able to counter it and he has to die. Bhagawan Krishna thus protects Arjuna till this moment, ever since Karna came into the battlefield on the eleventh day. 

Moving forward thus, it is now Ghatodgaja’s time to exhibit his heroics! He unleashes havoc amidst the Kaurava camp wherein every important warrior suffers a humiliating defeat under Ghatodgaja’s wretched hands! Some are getting killed in a very horrific manner too. The entire Kaurava camp is trembling with fear and shock, as they did not expect such a counter from the Paandava camp. Guru Dhronachaarya thought that while the battle enters the night, the Paandavas might struggle to fight, as the Kauravas have several Raakshasas in their camp. However, little did Guru Dhronachaarya anticipate that Ghatodgaja would be present in the battlefield during this time! Unable to bear the drubbing, the Kaurava camp warriors rush to Karna and say thus, “Oh Karna! By the way Ghatodgaja is destroying our army, it seems that this war would come to an end tonight itself! We will soon run short of army men and other artillery to be employed to fight the war further. You were saying that you possess the “Shakti Aayudham” with you. Now this is the time to employ it and contain Ghatodgaja! If you do not employ it now, all of us are going to die within the next few minutes!” 

Now this is a very important request made by the Kaurava camp to Karna. However, initially Karna denies their request. He says thus, “Oh Duryodhana & Co.! I’ve reserved this Shakti Aayudham” to kill Arjuna. I cannot use this for any other purpose. We shall try and devise another strategy to counter Ghatodgaja. I know he’s wrecking havoc. But the “Shakti Aayudham” is meant for something different!” Even though Karna justifies thus, the Kauravas are not ready to buy this argument of Karna. Duryodhana says thus, “Oh Karna! Please understand – If we’re not killing Ghatodgaja now, we are not even going to exist! Now we are in an existential crisis! Only if we’re present tomorrow, will you be able to fight with Arjuna, won’t you? Hence, we shall counter Arjuna through some other means. Now we are in a do-or-die situation. So take out your “Shakti Aayudham” and save all of us from getting destroyed!” 

As Duryodhana says thus, Karna couldn’t argue much! With a lot of reluctance, Karna takes out his “Shakti Aayudham”, chants the relevant “Mantras” for it and employs it towards a fast-advancing Ghatodgaja! As Karna does thus, Arjuna and the others who are onlooking this grand exhibition of fight, are shocked to bits! They know that if this “Shakti-Aayudham” hits Ghatodgaja, he is not going to survive! Hence, Arjuna warns Ghatodgaja thus, “Oh Ghatodgaja! Please grow your body to a massive level in order to make the incoming “Shakti-Aayudham” ineffective upon you! Please act fast!” Upon hearing this from Arjuna, Ghatodgaja immediately grows his body to a mammoth size! He stands in front of Karna like a huge mountain, even as the “Shakti Aayudham” hits Ghatodgaja on his chest! While coming towards Ghatodgaja, the “Shakti Aayudham” emits a huge fire with plumes of smoke emanating from it. Thus, the powerful “Shakti Aayudham” hits Ghatodgaja’s chest with the same intensity and power! Unable to withstand the “Shakti Aayudham” and its extremely high intensity, Ghatodgaja falls on the ground, dead! 

However, as Ghatodgaja falls on the ground, his body is so huge that almost a whole “Akshauhini” of the Kaurava army is trapped under him! Perhaps, this is the reason why Arjuna and Bhagawan Krishna wanted Ghatodgaja to grow to such a mammoth size while the “Shakti Aayudham” approached him! Thus with this, a very important warrior from the Paandava’s camp – Ghatodgaja breathed his last, but not before he had wreaked havoc amidst the Kaurava camp. As Ghatodgaja dies, he leaves a huge trail of destruction in the Kaurava camp, which is extremely significant, given the crucial context of the war right now! So for today, let us understand up to this point and we shall continue this discussion in the next episode as well! Stay tuned! 

In the previous episode, we had witnessed Duryodhana intervening between Sage Kripachaarya, Ashwatthama and Karna and dosing down the tension that was brewing in between them. Duryodhana makes a timely intervention at a stage wherein there was a huge fight that was about to break out between Ashwatthama and Karna. All this is happening during the night of the fourteenth day at Kurukshetra battlefield, wherein on one hand, a fierce fight is going on between Guru Dhronachaarya and the Paandava camp. This Ashwatthama-Karna encounter is happening on the sidelines of the ongoing unique battle. Duryodhana doses down the fight by explaining that this is not the time for internal issues to be taken forward. Especially at a time when the Kaurava camp is running out of options after the demise of Jayatrada and as Bhishmachaarya is unavailable, this is not the time for the feud between the duo. As Duryodhana explains his stance very clearly thus, Ashwatthama and Karna stopped their feud and decided to obey Duryodhana’s words, as both of them are fighting for Duryodhana’s cause. 

Moving on further thus, the war continues into the night of the fourteenth day. The moment Karna proclaims that he has the “Shakti-Aayudham” with him, Bhagawan Krishna hears it very clearly from a long distance itself. Now, since Karna has started talking about it openly, it means that he is going to use it very soon. If he uses the “Shakti-Aayudham”, neither Arjuna nor any of the Paandava brothers would be able to survive, as it is extremely powerful. Hence, now the daunting task for Bhagawan Krishna is to somehow make Karna “waste” the “Shakti-Aayudham” that he’s boasting about. It should be remembered that this weapon can only be employed once and not for a second time. This “Shakti-Aayudham” was gifted by Indra to Karna many years ago. Thus, thinking about all these, Bhagawan Krishna comes to a conclusion – To send Ghatodgaja to the battlefield as the leader of the Paandava army. Bhagawan Krishna calls Ghatodgaja and says thus, “Oh Ghatodgaja! Tonight you have an important task to accomplish – You should be the saviour of all your fathers. You’ve to go forward and defend all of us by unleashing your full strength on the Kaurava army. For doing this during the night time, you are the right person, as your fathers do not have the full capacity to fight at night!”

Bhagawan Krishna continues further thus, “Oh Ghatodgaja! There are two main Raakshasas on Duryodhana’s side too – One is Alambusha and the other is Alaayudha. Duryodhana is motivating both of them to come forward and fight against us. In order to encounter both of them, there’s nobody else in our camp who is better-suited than you. Hence, you go forward and try to neutralize both of them! Moreover, Karna is in a threatening mode tonight and he is determined to employ the “Shakti-Aayudham” on all of us. You should show your talent today and somehow try and neutralize that “Shakti-Aayudham” that Karna has in his possession. Hence, your responsibility for tonight is to somehow destroy Karna along with his “Shakti-Aayudham” and thereby earn a great name and fame to your father Bheemasena!” 

As Bhagawan Krishna says thus, Ghatodgaja is more than happy to oblige! Ghatodgaja replies thus, “Oh Bhagawan! Thank you for giving me this opportunity to fight and protect all of you! If you think for a moment, you yourself can save all of us, however, you want me to perform this task. I shall oblige and take this as a great “Anugraha” from you!” 

Saying thus, Ghatodgaja bows down to Bhagawan Krishna, obtains His divine “Anugraha” and sets off into the battlefield! As we’ve seen earlier, Ghatodgaja unleashes his potential straightaway and starts doing a huge battle as if he’s doing it for fun! Whoever comes in front of Ghatodgaja meets a ghastly fatal end to their lives! The fury in which Ghatodgaja is in is completely unmatchable! As we’ve seen, Duryodhana sends the two Raakshasas from his side to counter Ghatodgaja. Alambusha puts up a good fight against Ghatodgaja, however, Alambusha is no match to Ghatodgaja’s strength. After a few minutes of fighting with Alambusha, Ghatodgaja thinks that he’s wasting his time by fighting with him and hence captures him in his hands, squeezes him to death and throws him away quite effortlessly! Similarly on the other hand, Bheemasena, his father is fighting with Alaayudha. A huge fight breaks out between the two and Bheemasena at one stage is on the verge of losing, primarily because he’s unable to fight to his full potential as it is night! However, Ghatodgaja intervenes from nowhere, captures Alaayudha and kills him too with bare minimal effort! 

Thus, both the Raakshasas that Duryodhana had by his side met a fatal end in the hands of Ghatodgaja. Upon seeing this, the Kaurava army starts trembling with fear! All the important warriors in the Kaurava camp rally behind Karna, who leads the pack in attacking Ghatodgaja. A huge war breaks out between Karna and Ghatodgaja and at one point, Karna is at the verge of losing, thus exposing the other warriors to Ghatodgaja’s fury! So for today, let us understand up to this point and we shall continue this important discussion further in the next episode! Stay tuned! 🙂 

In the previous episode, we had witnessed the continuation of a huge altercation that is happening between Sage Kripachaarya and Karna. While Karna boasts about his “infinite” capabilities, Sage Kripachaarya “fact checks” him with his previous failures against one person called Arjuna. As this happens, Karna gets extremely angry and utters a few unwarranted words against Sage Kripachaarya, which are quite abusive in nature. Upon seeing this, Ashwatthama (Guru Dhronachaarya’s son) gets angry at Karna and ends up lavishing praise upon Arjuna, in a bid to show Karna his place! This irks Karna even more and now moving forward from here, a huge fight breaks out between these two people! While Ashwatthama takes his weapon in hand and rushes forward, Karna is in no mood to relent. He also gets ready to take Ashwatthama down! Thus, a huge in-fighting breaks out within the Kaurava camp, and readers should remember that all these “war of words” and “war of action” is happening right in the middle of the battlefield at Kurukshetra, even while the battle between the Kauravas and Paandavas is going on during the night of the fourteenth day. 

As both Karna and Ashwatthama are about to attack each other in a deadly manner, Duryodhana makes a timely intervention. As Ashwatthama is about to launch his attack on Karna, Duryodhana comes in the middle of both of them and says thus, “Oh Ashwatthama! Oh Karna! Please stop this! Please remember that both of you are on my side. Our common enemy is the Paandava camp. The enemy is not within ourselves. Please realize that if we are ending up fighting within each other, we are in no position to defeat Yudishtra. Oh Ashwatthama! Oh Karna! Please remember – Our target is Yudishtra. If we have internal issues, we shall sort them out later. But now let us focus on the war! Oh Ashwatthama! My friend Karna is firmly on my side and is eager to fight the battle right from day one. However, due to Bhishmachaarya’s pledge, Karna was not able to enter the battlefield till the end of the tenth day. It is only after that, he has got an opportunity to showcase his talent. Oh Ashwatthama! Please understand – I’m fighting this war with great support from you, Karna, Guru Dhronachaarya, Sage Kripachaarya, Sahuni and King Shalya. If there is an infighting within all of you,  how am I going to win this war against Yudishtra?” 

We should note one important point here from what Duryodhana says – He is telling Ashwatthama and Karna that only because of the support lended by all the above-mentioned people, he is fighting this war. He’s not fighting this war alone. Rather, he does not believe in “Dharma” or Bhagawan Krishna’s words. Every time, Duryodhana thinks that it is only because of his effort and intellect, things are happening. He thinks that he can win this war with just the human resources that he has. However, little does he realize that “Dharma” is not by his side! Whereas, on the other hand, Yudishtra being an epitome of “Dharma” seeks advice from Bhagawan Krishna every now and then. Even if Bhagawan Krishna says tomorrow that this war should be stopped, Yudishtra will not fire a single arrow extra! This is because Yudishtra knows that whatever Bhagawan Krishna tells him will be as per the rules and regulations of  “Dharma”! Moreover, Yudishtra also knows that fighting this war is part of his “Dharma” and it is only because of this, he is on the Kurukshetra battlefield. Whereas, Duryodhana is fighting this same war for “his victory” and to see Yudishtra suffer! 

So, given the two contrasting cases, who will feel happy at the end of the war? If Duryodhana wins this war by any chance, can we be assured that he would be happy with this result? When Duryodhana won the gambling game and sent Yudishtra to the forest for thirteen years, he had the entire kingdom of Hastinapura and Indraprastha to rule. But was he happy? The answer is a big “No”! Why? He internally knows that this victory that he had obtained, is against the “Dharma” and this may backfire at him at any point in time! This is the reason why Duryodhana was constantly spying on Yudishtra for the entire duration of the thirteen years! Whereas on the other hand, even after Yudishtra facing an embarrassing defeat in the gambling game, was Yudishtra sad for the next twelve years? The answer is “No”! This is because Yudishtra stood by his “Dharma” and did not have any worries behind him whatsoever. Rather than brooding over what had happened, Yudishtra spent his time in the forest productively by talking to various Maharishis and by learning a lot more aspects of “Dharma” from them. Moreover, he was also confident that Bhagawan Krishna is with him at all times and had the unending faith that Bhagawan Krishna would protect him and his brothers at all times! Thus, if we have “Dharma” by our side, automatically we will have happiness by our side at all times. Whereas, if we are going by the path of “Adharma” and are tasting success in the illegal way, we might be temporarily happy for sometime, but in the longer run, this happiness will not sustain! We will be engrossed into some or the other worries and fear because we internally know that we’ve cheated someone and risen up! 

So for today, the message is clear – If we’ve to win through the path of “Dharma”, happiness becomes permanent. Whereas, if the victory is through the path of “Adharma”, just like how Duryodhana was in constant pressure, we will also be sinking into worries and fear, even though we might have won! So let us understand and ponder over this point for today, and in the next episode, we shall continue this discussion forward! Stay tuned! 🙂