The Indian Dharma

In the previous episode, we had witnessed Karna and Sage Kripachaarya entering into an unwanted war of words with each other during the night of the fourteenth day at the Kurukshetra battlefield. Karna starts this useless conversation by proclaiming that he’s no match with any of the Kaurava veterans and he is the only one who can defeat Arjuna in the war. Irked by Karna’s self-proclamation, Sage Kripachaarya gives a banter to Karna, reminding him of his own past wherein he had to succumb to Arjuna’s prowess on several occasions. As Sage Kripachaarya does this, Karna’s ego gets hurt very badly and he utters a statement – “If someone else would have spoken such words, I would have cut his tongue by now!” This became a verbal abuse and Sage Kripachaarya felt extremely disgusted with the language that Karna employed! 

Moving on thus, Karna continues his accord towards Sage Kripachaarya – “Oh Sage Kripachaarya! You’re talking very highly about the Paandavas every time, aren’t you? Yes! Whatever you’re saying about them is true. However, let me add a few pointers about them, which might be useful for your thought process – The Pandava brothers, especially Yudishtra, have a weakness and a flair towards playing the gambling game. They are addicted to it even though they do not know how to win. Oh Sage Kripchaarya! Have you ever seen anyone who stake themselves and play the game – Only to lose? Fine! Even after they lose, do they accept the defeat gracefully? Before the dice were rolled, Duryodhana had made the rules very clear – Whoever loses will descend to the forest for the next twelve years. Yudishtra was aware of this before he accepted to play, wasn’t he? So after losing and after going to the forest, why should he complain that he was sent to the forest due to gross “Adharma?” Where is “Adharma” here? Even after losing it, Yudishtra once again came back to Hastinapura and wanted to play the second round of gambling. Yet again he lost! Even while being in the forest, he went to the Viraata Desha and there also he was playing the gambling game! Oh Sage Kripachaarya! You will never see this side of Yudishtra! All that you will keep saying about Yudishtra is that he became the victim of “Adharma”! For this one-sided behaviour and talking of yours, if I would have been in place of Duryodhana, I would have severed your tongue then and there! Duryodhana has been kind enough and respectful towards you all these years, and I don’t see any worth behind his respect!” 

These harsh words from Karna enrages Ashwatthaama, who, till this point, was very patient in listening to this heated conversation between the two of them. However, when the conversation starts taking a drastic abusive turn, Ashwatthaama thinks that enough is enough and Karna is going overboard! Thus, Ashwatthaama immediately pulls out his sword and rushes towards Karna, in a bid to fight with him and kill him then and there! Ashwatthama says to Karna thus, “Oh Karna! Look at Arjuna on one side and you on the other! On one side, Arjuna had accomplished so much – He had single-handedly destroyed the “Kaamyaka Vanam” and helped Yudishtra establish his Indraprastha capital. He had single-handedly destroyed Jayatrada during yesterday’s war and that too with just a single arrow! He has also managed to obtain the “Paashupatha-Asthram” directly from Bhagawan Shiva! He had the audacity to fight with none other than Bhagawan Shiva Himself directly in person! He had given a tough fight to Bhagawan Shiva, who started struggling in front of Arjuna’s prowess! Finally, Bhagawan Shiva had to give up the fight and with this, didn’t He gift Arjuna the great “Paashupata-Asthram”? Oh Karna! Don’t you know all these stories of Arjuna? Isn’t he just invincible in front of all of us? Now tell me honestly – What is your stature as compared to Arjuna’s? Who are you in front of Arjuna? You are not even a speck of dust in front of him!” 

Saying thus, Ashwatthama praises Arjuna in front of Karna! Readers should note here that Ashwatthama is Guru Dhronachaarya’s son and he is fighting the war against the Paandavas. If Ashwatthama himself has to sing in praise of Arjuna, we should understand how invincible Arjuna is and what is the level of accomplishment Arjuna has achieved! So for today, let us understand up to this point and we shall wait till the next episode to continue more with this interesting accord! Stay tuned! 🙂 

In the previous episode, we had witnessed the continuation of the proceedings during the night of Day Fourteen, which marks a huge turn in the way this war is being fought. For the first time in fourteen days, the war is continuing into the night as well, and because of this, most of the warriors are tired after a long day of fighting. However, this is not going to deter Guru Dhronachaarya, whose energy levels are extremely high even into the night! Meanwhile, we’ve witnessed a huge tiff happening within the Kaurava army wherein Ashwatthama (Guru Dhronachaarya’s son) is extremely unhappy with the way Karna abused Sage Kripachaarya in front of everyone in the battlefield. At one stage, Ashwatthama decides to rush towards Karna and kill him then and there, even while the war is going on full-fledged! This is the first instance of in-fighting that is happening within the Kaurava army camp. 

So in today’s episode, we shall witness in-depth as to why both Karna and Sage Kripachaarya ended up abusing each other. As I’ve mentioned in the previous episode itself, Karna has this weakness – To constantly keep talking great about himself and to underestimate whoever comes in front of him – Be it the Paandavas or anybody from the Kauravas. In this way, Karna talks to Sage Kripachaarya thus, “Oh Sage! Look at my strength! Look at the weapons that I possess! With all these, I can tear up Arjuna into pieces! I have the “Shakti-Aayudham” with me, which was gifted to me by Indra. I also have the “Brahma-Asthram” with me! Who in this world can have greater weapons than me? With all these, I’m going to kill Arjuna and with this, the rest of the Paandava brothers are going to die subsequently very easily!” As Karna boasts about himself thus, Sage Kripachaarya gets frustrated. Rather than going forward and fighting the war, Sage Kripachaarya is seeing Karna talking unwanted stuff in front of him and everybody else. Unable to bear this beyond a point, Sage Kripachaarya decides to give it back to Karna. He says thus, “Oh Karna! Yes! You have all the weapons and “Asthras” with you. However, all of us know how you fought against Arjuna in the Viraata Desha! You were not even able to stand in front of Arjuna for a few minutes put together! Where were all your so-called weapons at that time? Why did you run away like a coward? When Duryodhana tried to imprison the “Gandharvas” and when Arjuna came to fight against Duryodhana, you were also there, weren’t you? Arjuna made you run for your money and released all the “Gandharvas”, didn’t he? At that time where did all your strength and “Asthras” go? Moreover, there have been several instances apart from these two, wherein you’ve fought against Arjuna – Right from childhood days. Tell me one instance wherein you were able to outsmart Arjuna! Hence, rather than talking, take your weapons and try to prove yourself first! When you are amidst us in the tents, your speech knows no bounds! However, the moment you see Arjuna’s chariot advancing towards you, all your words come down and you succumb to him!”  

These words from Sage Kripachaarya irks Karna! His ego gets hurt! Karna gives a stern reply thus, “Oh Sage Kripachaarya! Isn’t it normal for a great warrior to proclaim his strengths in front of everyone, including the enemy? Isn’t it a way how a great warrior motivates himself to go for the kill? Oh Sage Kripachaarya! How will you understand all these? You are a “Brahmana Rishi” and you should be sitting at your home and performing penance! If a Brahmana Rishi comes to the battlefield – This is the greatest mismatch I’ve ever seen and this is why you never seem to understand even the basics of warfare! Oh Sage Kripachaarya! I’m a great Kshatrya warrior! If someone from the enemy camp would have dared to speak the way you’ve done to me, I would have cut his tongue into pieces at the very moment itself!” 

Now this last sentence is pretty unwarranted from Karna, given the critical situation at which the entire Kaurava army is in! This sentence is enough for Ashwatthama to get extremely furious! How can a charioteer’s son insult a great sage like this? Thus, Ashwatthama rushes towards Karna in a bid to fight and kill him on the spot! So for today, let us understand this discussion clearly and in the next episode, we shall move on from this infighting instance to see what happens next! Stay tuned! 🙂 

In the previous episode, we had witnessed a very important and a strange strategy adopted by Bhagawan Krishna and Guru Dhronachaarya, as the war extends into the night of the fourteenth day at Kurukshetra. As Guru Dhronachaarya strategies the war to proceed even at night without a break, Bhagawan Krishna decides to send Ghatodgaja to fight the Kaurava camp. Of course, the outward strategy would appear as if Ghatodgaja being a “Raakshasa”, has more strength during the night than the day, and hence, he is the right person to represent the Paandava camp. However, there is an in-depth strategy here – Bhagawan Krishna wants Arjuna to be saved from the “Indra-Asthram” of Karna. When Ghatodgaja is going to fight at his peak level, Karna will be the only one who can kill Ghatodgaja and for that, he too will struggle for options! Finally he will be forced to employ the “Indra-Asthram” on Ghatodgaja to kill him. Even Ghatodgaja cannot escape the wrath of the “Indra-Asthram” and is going to die of it. However, Arjuna would be saved from Karna, which is more important for Bhagawan Krishna at this point. Thus, we can see here that the ploy of sending Ghatodgaja to fight during this night is to indirectly neutralize the threat that Karna possesses. 

Moving on thus, we shall now enter into the proceedings that happened during the night of the fourteenth day. As the entire Kurukshetra battlefield is completely dark without even a single iota of light anywhere, there is an agreement between the two sides that for every chariot there should be five lamps hanging above and for warriors who are fighting from the top of animals like elephants, horses, etc. they should hang three lamps. Thus with this arrangement, the entire Kurukshetra battlefield is glittering with lights from all directions! The fierce battle continues into the night and Guru Dhronachaarya is relentless in his attack! Even though the others are getting tired of fighting (as all of them have been fighting for the whole day earlier as well), Guru Dhronchaarya is in no mood to relent! The fight continues on and on and several warriors lose their lives in this pursuit. 

Meanwhile, a rift starts brewing amidst the Kaurava camp – As the battle continues, there is a verbal spat between Sage Kripachaarya and Karna. As the argument continues, it takes a nasty turn and at one stage, Karna abuses Sage Kripachaarya very badly. Ashwatthaama is seeing this entire argument happening live in front of him and he is extremely disappointed with the way Karna is approaching Sage Kripachaarya! It should be remembered that Sage Kripachaarya’s sister Kripi is the wife of Guru Dhronachaarya (Mother of Ashwatthaama) and Sage Kripachaarya is the uncle of Ashwatthama (Ashwatthaama is the son of Kripi and Guru Dhronachaarya). Hence, as his uncle is getting publicly insulted by Karna, Ashwatthama couldn’t stand it anymore. At one stage, Ashwatthama decides to wage a battle against Karna and kill him! However, Guru Dhronachaarya stops Ashwatthama from advancing further towards Karna. This happens during the night of the fourteenth day. An angry Karna continues further with his words thus, “Oh Duryodhana! Look at how Arjuna and Ghatodgaja are destroying our army leaps and bounds! Upon seeing this chaos being created, neither Guru Dhronachaarya nor Sage Kripachaarya nor any other important warrior from our side is giving a firm retaliation. Now look at my war capability tonight. I shall single-handedly go forward and win the war for you tonight!” 

Now this is one of the greatest weaknesses that Karna had. He was a great warrior and there’s no question about that! However, he had a problem of underestimating the enemy! He always had a superiority complex within himself that he is the one who knows several aspects of warfare and the opponents (Yudishtra, Arjuna, etc.) do not know anything! It is this underestimation that brought about the downfall of Karna towards the end! Thus, it is important for us to understand here that if we’ve to be a great leader, we should first acknowledge the strengths of our opponents / competitors! This is an extremely important concept that is being talked about widely even in modern-day management / leadership as well. Thus, it can be clearly inferred from this incident between Karna and Ashwatthama that Karna’s downfall has begun from this point onwards. This is because he is losing support from within the Kaurava camp itself and is becoming infamous amongst his peers. 

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 commenced witnessing the next important event, wherein Ghatodgaja enters the Kurukshetra battlefield for the second time in fifteen days. Initially he had come once and wreaked havoc with the Kaurava army and went back. At that time, Karna was not in the battlefield and the army was being led by Bhishmachaarya. However, now the equations have changed and Guru Dhronachaarya is the leader and Karna is in the battlefield. I’m specially mentioning the name of Karna here for a specific reason, which we will understand as we move further. Thus, as per Guru Dhronachaarya’s words, the war continues post sunset for the first time in fourteen days! We’ve witnessed that Jayatrada was killed before the fourteenth day’s sunset, and post that, there was a short break wherein the mourning of Jayatrada and Duryodhana’s conversation with Guru Dhronachaarya happened. Now, Guru Dhronachaarya has an innovative plan and proposes that the war continues into the wee hours of the night as well. Guru Dhronachaarya plans this to avenge Jayatrada’s demise, and assures Duryodhana that during this night’s war, he will kill yet another “Maharati” from the Paandava camp. 

Moving on thus, as we’ve witnessed, from the Paandava side, Ghatodgaja is sent to lead the Paandava army from the front. As we know, Ghatodgaja is a “one-man army” and he doesn’t need anybody’s support! This is Bhagawan Krishna’s idea to send Ghatodgaja in the front, primarily because Ghatodgaja is basically a “Raakshasa” even though he’s fighting for the Paandava camp. As Bhagawan Krishna proposes this idea to Bheemasena, he calls out for his son Ghatodgaja, who had earlier promised that he would be of service to his father at any given point in time if his father calls him. Thus, Ghatodgaja comes to the battlefield, taking the entire Kaurava camp by surprise! A fierce war ensues and none of the Kaurava personnel are able to stand in front of Ghatodgaja’s onslaught! Several “Maharathis” are being casually killed by Ghatodgaja. This sends the entire Kaurava camp into a panic mode and with the way in which Ghatodgaja is toying around, it seems that none of the Kaurava “Maharathis” will be alive by the fifteenth morning! 

At this point, there is an important reference which is being made by Sage Vyaasa – All of us know that Karna was not on the battlefield for the first ten days. This is because of his pledge that if Bhishmachaarya is on the battlefield, he would not enter! However, after Bhishamchaarya falls on the tenth day, Karna enters the battlefield from the eleventh day onwards. He wages one-on-one wars with several people from the Paandava camp, but there is no much altercation between Karna and Arjuna till now! Even if Arjuna and Karna come face to face with each other, Bhagawan Krishna is continuously driving Arjuna away from that vicinity! Maybe there might be a few minutes of altercation between the two, but there’s nothing significant that’s happening. Why is Bhagawan Krishna driving Arjuna away from Karna’s vicinity everytime and seemingly avoiding this altercation? There is a fascinating and important reason for this – Karna has the “Indra-Asthram” with him, which he had obtained earlier directly from Indra. If Karna employs this “Indra-Asthra” on Arjuna, there is no way that Arjuna would survive! He does not have an alternative to neutralize Karna’s “Indra-Asthram”. Knowing this, Bhagawan Krishna is purposefully moving Arjuna away from Karna, because if there is a huge altercation between the duo, Karna will definitely employ the “Indra-Asthram” and even Bhagawan Krishna cannot protect Arjuna! 

Thus the ploy is this – Bhagawan Krishna sends Ghatodgaja, who is now going to get into a severe altercation with Karna. Unable to withstand the onslaught from Ghatodgaja, Karna will be forced to employ the “Indra-Asthram” on him. Of course, Ghatodgaja will also not be able to escape the wrath of the “Indra-Asthram”, but given the context of the war, Arjuna’s life is more important than Ghatodgaja’s. Hence, this is the greatest sacrifice which Ghatodgaja is going to do for the sake of his father – He is going to take the “Indra-Asthram” upon his chest and sacrifice his life, in order to protect Arjuna! It should be noted that the “Indra-Asthram” can only be employed once and Karna uses it to kill Ghatodgaja. Once this is done, Karna is going to run short of his main “Asthrams” when he is going to face Arjuna for a one-on-one battle! 

Yet again, this is an excellent strategy that is being employed by Bhagawan Krishna here, and for today, let us understand up to this point. I’ve given a prelude to the “Ghatodgaja-Vadha-Parva” today, and we shall continue with the in-depth details of it in the next episode! Stay tuned! 🙂

In the previous episode, we had witnessed a very important message from the discussion between Duryodhana and Guru Dhronachaarya – Every action that we do has a consequence. This is completely validated by today’s scientists, especially Newton! Readers who are proficient in Physics might understand this as Newton’s third law of motion, which says that every action has an equivalent and opposite reaction, and this is exactly what Guru Dhronachaarya explains here. For every roll of the dice by Sahuni on that fateful day, Arjuna’s sharp arrows killing everyone around are equivalent and opposite reactions! With Bhagawan Krishna at the helm of affairs, all that He’s doing is to bring the “Karma” of all people together in the Kurukshetra battlefield and let the “Karma Theory” work on its own without interfering in it! More than just committing the heinous crime towards Yudishtra and Draupati on that sinful day, Duryodhana has gone on to commit several other crimes like Bhagawad-Apachaaram and Bhaagawatha-Apachaaram, for which, the consequences are severe! Thus, it is evident that Duryodhana is not losing this war because he doesn’t have enough resources to fight it out. He’s losing because of his evil character and his “Paapa Karma” that he had accumulated within himself! 

Thus, if we look deeper into this context, we will also understand that the enemy doesn’t exist outside in the form of Arjuna or someone else. The enemy for Duryodhana lies within himself! In fact, during the earlier contexts, we’ve witnessed that both Yudishtra and Arjuna did not want to fight this war. Even though they did not like Duryodhana’s approach towards them, they never had the heart to kill him in a war. However, it was Duryodhana who was constantly pushing the Paandavas towards the brink of fighting this ghastly war. Saying all this, Guru Dhronachaarya continues thus, “Oh Duryodhana! Even though I know that I’m on the losing side, I’ll ensure that I work for you till my last breath. During today’s war also, I’ll ensure that I finish one of their most important “Maharathis”, just like how I conspired against Abhimanyu the other day! Watch my fight today and then you decide whether I’m fighting for you or for Arjuna! Oh Duryodhana! Please note this – Unlike the previous days, today’s war will continue into tonight as well!”

We should note this important point here – In all these fourteen days of war that we’ve witnessed till now in detail, the proceedings will commence in the morning hours and end by the time the sun sets. Hence, the entire war happens only during the broad daylight. This is the rule that Bhishmachaarya had set right at the beginning of the war, and till date this has been followed. However, on the fourteenth evening, Guru Dhronachaarya decides to take this war into the night as well. Accordingly, the message is being sent to the Paandava camp to get ready for a night war now! As this happens, Bhagawan Krishna thinks thus, “Oh wow! If this war has to continue into the night, who should go to the battlefield as the lead fighter and take it forward? Usually the nighttime is famous for the strength of Raakshasas. In other words, Raakshasas are more powerful during the night than the day. This is why they are referred to as “Rajanicharas”. Hence, who is the Raakshasa in our camp who can go and fight the war tonight?” Thinking thus, Bhagawan looks around and finds Ghatodgaja. He thinks thus, “Oh perfect! Ghatodgaja is there for us tonight and he is a Raakshasa by birth. His strength will be manifold during the night, as compared to the daytime! Hence, let us send Ghatodgaja for the time being and let’s see what happens! 

Thus, the war continues on the fourteenth night in an unusual manner. Guru Dhronachaarya is at his mighty best during the night time as well, even as Arjuna and the others are getting ready for a continued assault on the Kaurava army. As mentioned, Bhagawan Krishna explains to Yudishtra about the strategy of sending Ghatodgaja for the night’s battle and with Yudishtra’s approval, Ghatodgaja storms into the battlefield! Now this is an unexpected move from the Paandava side, which surprises Guru Dhronachaarya himself! However, Guru Dhronachaarya, as we know, is prepared for any kind of strategy that the Paandavas come up with. He’s up and ready to face Ghatodgaja, who is in no mood to relent tonight! Ghatodgaja launches a scathing assault on the Kaurava army, destroying swathes of soldiers and animals even as he walks through the army! No strategy from the Kaurava camp is able to contain Ghatodgaja with any of their “Asthras” and arrows! Guru Dhronachaarya tries his best, but is defeated straightaway by Ghatodgaja. However, he doesn’t kill Guru Dhronachaarya as he moves on. Next comes King Shalya, who meets the same fate within minutes! Ducchaasana is up next, and the result is the same! Thus, at one point, Ghatodgaja is on a savage assault on the Kaurava army and nobody is able to stop him at all! He’s advancing freely as if no enemy is there on the battlefield! 

So for today, let us understand up to this point as part of the “Ghatodgaja-Vada-Parva” and in the next episode, we shall continue this discussion forward to see what is going to happen to Ghatodgaja by the end of the night! Stay tuned for an interesting accord! 🙂

In the previous episode, we had witnessed Guru Dhronachaarya replying to the lamenting done by Duryodhana. Guru Dhronachaarya is clear in his reminder to Duryodhana that this Arjuna-Bhagawan Krishna duo is impossible to be defeated in any battlefield in this world. Inspite of making Duryodhana aware of this fact several times, Duryodhana is not ready to listen and grasp this into him. Moreover, for all the “Adharma” that happened on that fateful day when the gambling game was held, the dice that Sahuni rolled illegally, are now coming back towards Duryodhana and the Kaurava army in the form of sharp arrows from Arjuna! Every roll of dice on that fateful day is now transforming into arrows and “Asthras” and are wreaking havoc day after day! Hence, for all the “Adharma” that has been done to Yudishtra and Co. on that day, it is time now that the Kaurava army faces it and experiences the consequences of that heinous crime! Establishing all these points thus, Guru Dhronachaarya asserts that neither he nor Bhishmachaarya will be able to achieve victory against the Paandavas in this war. This is not an ordinary battle wherein it would be a test of strength between the two camps. This is a war that is being fought between “Dharma” and “Adharma”, and when this question arises, no matter how much powerful the Kaurava army might be in comparison with the Paandava’s, defeat looms large as the Kauravas stand for “Adharma” knowingly or unknowingly! 

This is the same way in which Mandodhari also laments when Ravana got killed by Bhagawan Rama. We’ve seen this during our earlier Shrimad Ramayana project that when Bhagawan Rama kills Ravana during the Rama-Ravana war, Mandodhari comes running to see her husband dead! Upon seeing Ravana’s corpse, she laments thus, “Oh Ravana! Today you’ve been overpowered, not by this Rama who is standing in front of you! Rama is an ordinary person. He can never match you with the level of strength and resources. However, if he has killed you today, this war wasn’t about the test of strengths between the two of you. The reason behind your killing is your lack of control of your senses (“Indriyas”)! If you had not gone behind this woman called “Sita”, you would have been a great king even today and Rama couldn’t have touched you at all! However, the moment you decided to go after Sita just because she is beautiful, your end game commenced!” Upon comparing this with what Guru Dhronachaarya is saying here to Duryodhana, it is evident that Duryodhana is not falling short of strength or resources. The real problem with Duryodhana is lack of control of his senses and his emotions, which led him to unwanted jealousy. The moment he publicly insulted and abused Draupati and Yudishtra at the Hastinapura courtroom on that fateful gambling day, Duryodhana’s downfall began! It was just a matter of time from there on before Bhagawan Krishna showed Duryodhana the mirror! 

Hence, the important lesson that all of us should learn from these kinds of events in the Ramayana and Mahabharata is this – If we’re able to control our senses and our mind-powered instincts, victory is assured in whatever task we perform. However, if we’re running behind the desires created by our senses (Both “Karma-Indriyas” and “Gnyaana-Indriyas”) and if we fail to keep them under our control, disaster is assured sooner or later! This is exactly what is happening with Duryodhana as well. Just because of one person’s ego and jealousy, the entire Kaurava clan including veterans like Bhishmachaarya and Guru Dhronachaarya are facing doomsday! This is the state which we would also encounter if we fail to control our senses in the right way and at the right time. As we discuss this point here, there’s one more aspect which is evident – If we’ve to face downfall, it is not because of an external enemy all the time. The enemy is within us most of the time! Who are those enemies? Our “Paapa-Karma” account which runs to several pages, “Bhagawad-Apachaaram” (Abusing Bhagawan because something hasn’t happened as per our liking), “Bhaagawatha Apachaaram” (Abusing a “Guru” unwantedly), etc. These are exactly the ones that are haunting Duryodhana here as well. In Duryodhana’s case, he has performed several tasks that are totally against “Dharma” and all of us know of it. Moreover, Duryodhana has indulged in Bhagawad-Apachaaram as well, wherein he tried insulting Bhagawan Krishna when He came as the “Paandava-Thooda” (Peace messenger on behalf of the Paandavas). Readers might remember this, as we’ve discussed earlier how Duryodhana planned to trap Bhagawan Krishna in King Dhritarashtra’s courtroom and insult Him and how Bhagawan Krishna got extremely angry at Duryodhana for this. Hence, such demeaning acts are now leading Duryodhana to extreme misery! 

So for today, let us understand from this Duryodhana’s episode, the fact that each and every action of ours will have a consequence sooner or later. We shall continue this discussion further in the next episode as well! Stay tuned! 🙂

In the previous episode, we had witnessed the continuation of what is happening post the demise of Jayatrada. Now, we’re entering into the next “Upa-Parva” called “Ghatodgaja-Vada Parva” which starts with a sad note of Sanjaya explaining to King Dhritarashtra that his son Duryodhana is going to meet Guru Dhronachaarya with grief. Duryodhana laments to Guru Dhronachaarya that all his friends, relatives, near and dear ones are dying one after the other in this war and it is turning completely disastrous. If this continues, Duryodhana wonders what is the use of becoming a king after everyone is dead! For whom is he going to rule the kingdom? Who will guide him? Who will advise him on the right path for taking decisions? Bhishmachaarya is no more now! Similarly, other key people who were trusted aides of Duryodhana are no more! Saying all this, Duryodhana feels that there is no point in fighting this war any further and he almost comes to a conclusion that he doesn’t want to become a king henceforth! 

Readers might remember that this is the same conclusion to which Yudishtra came to, before the war began. He had said the same words to Bhagawan Krishna and asked Him if this war should really be fought, which would consume all his near and dear ones! This is the similar note upon which Arjuna stumbled too, which led to the birth of the auspicious Bhagawad Gita! Now, fourteen days into the war, Duryodhana is having the same thought! Moving on further, Duryodhana continues his accord to Guru Dhronachaarya thus, “Oh Guru Dhronachaarya! My mind has completely lost interest in ruling the Hastinapura kingdom any further. Without any of my near and dear ones, who is going to guide me to perform the “Raajasuya Yaaga”? Who is going to guide me on performing the “Ashwamedha Yaaga”? Who is going to be my trusted aides? Thus, my mind is very clear now – I do not want this kingdom anymore and I do not wish to be the king! However, my mind also says this – Given the fact that the Paandava brothers have wreaked havoc in this manner, I should give it back to them in the way that they will understand! I’m not going to run away from this battlefield, even though I wish to. I shall definitely give a befitting reply to the Paandava brothers for all that they’ve done to me over these fourteen days! I’ll definitely kill all the five Paandava brothers mercilessly. However, after I do so, I do not feel the urge to rule the kingdom!” 

Duryodhana continues further thus, “Oh Guru Dhronachaarya! There is one person called Arjuna, who is killing virtually everyone who is trying to protect me on the battlefield. However, you, as the Senapati, are unwilling to make a move against Arjuna. You are letting him kill all my folks! Neither you are taking a step forward to neutralize him, nor are you attacking him in a way that is equivalent to him! If this continues, I’m sure that you are not going to protect me on the battlefield! Hence, what is the purpose of me living in this world anymore? I do not have the security for my life! Also, I’ve lost all my near and dear ones! So for whom am I alive still? What am I going to establish and accomplish?”

As Duryodhana asks fiery questions thus, Guru Dhronachaarya replies back slowly – “Oh Duryodhana! Each and every word that you’re saying is piercing my heart! I’ve told you several times in the past – It is impossible for anybody to defeat the Arjuna-Bhagawan Krishna combo on any battlefield and on any given day! You are trying to do something that is highly impossible! You are not realizing this right from the beginning. Oh Duryodhana! Let me tell you one more thing – You’re thinking that all of our people are getting killed with Arjuna’s arrows. It is not true. On that fateful day when your uncle Sahuni rolled the dice illegally against Yudishtra’s favour, you humiliated him so badly, didn’t you? It is the same dice that is coming as sharp arrows today to kill all of you who abused Draupati and Yudishtra! We’ve walked the path of “Adharma” grossly and it is time that we pay a heavy price for it! Hence, the dice is what is coming as sharp arrows to kill all of us, and we do not have any other option but to sit under it and take it!” 

Saying thus, Guru Dhronachaarya once again tries to make Duryodhana understand the practicality of things, and with this, we shall wait till the next episode to witness what Duryodhana had to answer to Guru Dhronachaarya’s words. Is he going to accept Guru Dhronachaarya’s words atleast now? Stay tuned! 🙂

In the previous episode, we had witnessed the culmination of one of the greatest accomplishments of the Arjuna-Bhagawan Krishna duo, which is nothing but the successful killing of Jayatrada. As the mission is successfully accomplished, Arjuna’s “Shapadam” (Pledge) gets fulfilled. This also means that Arjuna is still alive at the end of the fourteenth day of the war. The pledge was so severe as we know – Either Arjuna or Jayatrada will be alive at the end of this day, however, thanks to Bhagawan Krishna’s timely divine interventions, Arjuna was able to neutralize Jayatrada successfully. Thus, as the duo make their way victoriously towards the resting areas after the day’s war, Yudishtra expresses his deep and profound gratitude to Bhagawan Krishna for saving Arjuna’s life. Yudishtra expresses himself by saying to Bhagawan Krishna that if Arjuna is alive at this moment, it is only due to Bhagawan Krishna’s divine “Anugraha” and nothing else. Yudishtra expresses his shock when he heard Arjuna’s pledge the previous evening and was scared if Arjuna would die! However, this did not happen! With this, Yudishtra expresses his gratitude to Bhagawan Krishna by falling on His feet as a token of respect for Him. 

Moving on further thus, we now move towards the next important “Upa-Parva”, which is called “Dhrona-Vadha Parva”. Here is where Guru Dhronachaarya is going to be killed. So we shall witness all the details pertaining to how Guru Dhronachaarya was targeted and how he had to sacrifice his life on the battlefield at Kurukshetra. But before we go into this, there is another “Upa-Parva” which is important – The “Ghatodgaja-Vada Parva”. Here, we’re going to see how Bheemasena’s son Ghatodgaja is going to get killed, but before that, how Ghatodgaja is going to fight a valiant battle with the Kaurava camp. Moving into this Upa-Parva thus, at the end of the fourteenth day, Bhagawan Krishna Himself suggests to Yudishtra and Co. that on the fifteenth morning, Ghatodgaja should be sent into the battlefield as a surprise move, to catch the Kaurava army unprepared! 

At the start of this “Upa-Parva”, Duryodhana goes to see Guru Dhronachaarya with tears in his eyes. This scene is being explained by Sanjaya to King Dhritarashtra. Sanjaya explains thus, “Oh King! Look at your son Duryodhana! His eyes are filled with tears! He is unable to digest the fact that Jayatrada is no more! He is now going to meet Guru Dhronachaarya! When Jayatrada wanted to escape from the battlefield, it was Duryodhana who had given confidence and trust to Jayatrada to stay on and fight. Duryodhana had assured Jayatrada of protection, but at the end, Arjuna and Bhagawan Krishna stole the show! Duryodhana is now telling Guru Dhronachaarya thus, “Oh Guru Dhronachaarya! During the first ten days of the war I trusted Bhishmachaarya to win it for me. However, I ended up losing him. Now I entrusted the responsibility on you, however, you are letting all our people be killed one after the other! Also, I’m not seeing you fighting the war with your full capacity. Moreover, there were so many friends of mine who came with the desire of seeing me as a great king! These people were so eager that they will also rule their respective territories in coalition with me. Now all these people are on the ground, dead! Henceforth, what is the purpose of me fighting the war? If nobody is there with me after I win this war, what is the use of ruling the kingdom all by myself? Hence, moving on further, I’ve lost the interest of fighting this war any further! I would like to withdraw!” 

In fact, this is precisely the same thought that Ajruna also had during the beginning of the war! If we recall our Bhagawad Gita episodes, Arjuna commences by saying that if all my friends and relatives are going to be killed, what is the use of ruling the kingdom thereafter? Who will be there to be ruled, if everybody are going to die in this war? These are exactly the words that Duryodhana is using now, after fifteen days of the war! 

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

In the previous episode, we had witnessed the modus operandi behind Jayatrada’s killing. It was quite a complex task that Arjuna had to accomplish as Jayatrada had obtained enormous boons in the past from several “Devatas”. Moreover, his father, Vriddhakshatra had obtained a boon that if his son gets killed by another warrior on a battlefield, the head of the person who is killing him will break into a thousand pieces! This is where the complexity comes in and as per the boon, Arjuna’s head should have broken into a thousand pieces! However, thanks to Bhagawan Krishna’s astute calculations and smartness, Jayatrada’s head was perfectly placed on the lap of none other than Vriddhakshatra himself, and till that time wherein Jayatrada’s head travelled to Vriddhakshatra’s lap, Jayatrada was alive. However, unaware of what was happening, when Vriddhakshatra quickly gets up from his place, Jayatrada’s head falls on the ground and with this, Jayatrada breathes his last. Subsequently, since Jayatrada’s life came to an end from Vriddhakshatra’s lap, Vriddhakshatra’s head broke into a thousand pieces with a huge explosion! Thus, the father and son duo succumbed to their own boons and misdeeds and Arjuna’s head was saved by Bhagawan Krishna! 

If we look deeper into these events in this way, we will be able to understand how Bhagawan Krishna’s small but subtle works like this have protected Arjuna big-time! Bhagawan Krishna may not have taken a weapon in His hand to fight this war, but from such events, it is evident that Bhagawan was fighting a “proxy” war on behalf of the Paandava brothers. Else, with the amount of resources that the Kaurava army had with them, especially veterans like Bhishmachaarya, Guru Dhronachaarya, Sage Kripachaarya, Karna, Jayatrada, etc. Duryodhana should have won the war within the first 4-5 days itself! However, since the war was beyond just the “test of strength” on both sides, and since the war was fought on the basis of “Dharma” vs. “Adharma”, the Paandavas always had the upper hand. Also, with Bhagawan Krishna always favouring the side wherein “Dharma” is present, the Kauravas were unable to withstand the tricks and counter-tricks that Bhagawan Krishna came up with! 

Moving on further thus, with the demise of Jayatrada and his father during the evening sunset time, the war on the fourteenth day comes to a close. At the end of the fourteenth day, it is the Paandava army which has the upper edge, as the Kauravas have lost a great warrior called Jayatrada! As the Kaurava army learns about Jayatrada’s and his father’s deaths, shock and despair prevails everywhere. On the other hand, as the Paandava brothers and Bhagawan Krishna are back to their tents, Yudishtra comes forward immediately to Bhagawan Krishna with tears in his eyes and falls on His divine lotus feet! Yudishtra says to Bhagawan thus, “Oh Bhagawan Krishna! If you were not there today at a critical point, we would have lost Arjuna and with this, we would have lost this war by the end of today! All of us would have been destroyed easily by them! During the beginning of the day and during the course of the proceedings, I was on the constant lookout for Arjuna and you, because I was internally under a lot of fear as to how Arjuna is going to execute his pledge today. Jayatrada was not an easy opponent to counter and even though Arjuna had the capability to attack him fiercely, your divine presence made the difference! If you hadn’t guided Arjuna the way you did today, Arjuna would have been history! Oh Bhagawan Krishna! We salute you! You’ve been with us right from childhood! You’ve been with us through all the suffering that we had undergone and it is only because of you, we are here in this state today! Hence, Oh Bhagawan Krishna! I do not have adequate words to thank you enough! You’ve been such a rock-solid support to all of us at all times!” 

Saying thus, Yudishtra falls on Bhagawan’s feet and pays his heart-felt respects to Him with tears in his eyes! Thus, with today’s episode, we’ve witnessed the culmination of one of Bhagawan Krishna’s very important “Leelas”! The way in which Bhagawan Krishna employed His “Chakra’Aayudha” to block the sun’s rays is “Stage One” of His “Leela”. Subsequently when Jayatrada exposed himself, the way in which Arjuna was guided in a manner that Jayatrada and his father bore the brunt of their own boons was the ultimate “Stage two” of this divine “Leela” and this goes down into the record books as one of the greatest miracles that Bhagawan Krishna has performed in this world! So for today, let us understand up to this point and in the next episode, we shall take this discussion forward! Stay tuned! 🙂

In the previous episode, we had witnessed a marquee event at the end of Day Fourteen of the Mahabharata war, wherein Jayatrada had breathed his last. This was not easy to accomplish, as Jayatrada was firstly hiding amidst a star-studded Kaurava army and it wasn’t easy for Arjuna to find his whereabouts. Once he managed to do so, courtesy Bhagawan Krishna’s trick of bringing Jayatrada in front of Arjuna, secondly it wasn’t a straightaway task for Arjuna to kill him with one arrow! He was an embodiment of several boons. Upon Bhagawan Krishna’s advice, Arjuna had to first chop off Jayatrada’s head, take it carefully in the direction of where his father is sitting, without a drop of blood spilling on the ground, and without the head slipping off on to the ground and finally drop the head on his father’s lap! As Arjuna did this with his craft and skill, Jayatrada has no other option but to die! A huge explosion happens and both Jayatrada and his father are burnt down to death! 

There is a small background to this whole incident and why Bhagawan Krishna tactically wanted Arjuna to place Jayatrada’s head on his father’s lap. Jayatrada’s father is Vriddhakshatra. He was a great warrior himself and as he obtained Jayatrada as his son many years ago, there was a “divine voice” from the sky which thundered thus, “Oh Virddhakshatra! Your son will be a great warrior, however, he will be killed by another great warrior in the battlefield at an appropriate time!” These words of the divine voice irks Vriddhakshatra and immediately he commenced a huge penance towards Bhagawan Brahma. As Bhagawan Brahma appears in front of him, Vriddhakshatra asks for a boon thus, “Oh Bhagawan! I just heard that my son’s death is going to be from another warrior on a battlefield. I want a boon that my son shouldn’t meet such a death in his life. If at all such a situation were to occur, the warrior who is trying to kill Jayatrada should have his head burst into a thousand pieces! He should not survive for even a minute as my son’s head falls on the ground!” 

Saying thus, Vriddhakshatra obtains a boon from Bhagawan Brahma, who immediately grants it to him. This is the puzzle that Arjuna had to solve and he was clueless about all these things. However, Bhagawan Krishna knew of all this and thus, the modus operandi of Jayatrada’s death was formulated. Had Jayatrada’s head fallen off from Arjuna’s arrow on the ground, Arjuna’s head would have burst into a thousand pieces! Now this is where Bhagawan Krishna’s smartness is out in display – He ensures that Arjuna takes Jayatrada’s head and places it on his father’s lap, so that, if the head falls off on the ground from here, Vriddhakshatra’s head will burst into a thousand pieces and not Arjuna’s! Thus, we can see yet again as to how Bhagawan Krishna is a master-strategist when it comes to guiding Arjuna with such expertise! Hence, Bhagawan Krishna formulates the idea of making Vriddhakshatra’s lap the place from where Jayatrada’s head has to fall on the ground! 

However, Vriddhakshatra did not anticipate this at all! As we’ve seen earlier, Vriddhakshatra was performing his evening oblations to Soorya Bhagawan (Sandhyavandanam), grossly unaware of what is happening with his son on the Kurukshetra battlefield. Thus, within a fraction of a second when Jayatrada’s head came and fell on his head, Vriddhakshatra had very little time to react. As he stood up, Jayatrada’s head falls on the ground from Vriddhakshatra’s lap and with this, the boon of Bhagawan Brahma comes true – From whomever Jayatrada’s head falls on the ground, that person’s head will burst! This is exactly what happened to Vriddhakshatra’s head! 

Thus, we can see here that Arjuna’s life was in great danger because of Jayatrada and killing him wasn’t an easy task at all. It required such deft planning and an even more accurate execution, which only the duo of Arjuna and Bhagawan Krishna could accomplish! Bhagawan Krishna was the planner and strategist, while Arjuna was the executor! Thus with this, Jayatrada’s life comes to an end and this sends shockwaves amidst the entire Kaurava camp. Duryodhana is shell-shocked upon understanding that Jayatrada is no more! He was the one who wanted Jayatrada to be at Kurukshetra, even though Jayatrada was preparing himself to leave the place the previous night, knowing that he has a life threat from Arjuna! Now Duryodhana starts feeling guilty, and let us understand up to this point for today. We shall continue this discussion forward in the next episode as well! Stay tuned! 🙂