Bhagavada Vahini - Chapter 19

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Bhagavada Vahini by Sathya Sai Baba

 

Chapter 19

Pandavas - An Example for Kali Age

 

Agnideva, the God of Fire, was gladdened at this; He granted Arjuna

the two boons: an inexhaustible arrow-sheath from which he could draw

out a continuous supply of arrows and a chariot with the Maruthi

Flag. Besides, He created the Aagneya-asthra, the Weapon of Fire, and

placing it in the Hands of Krishna, took leave of them both.

 

Son, Parikshith! Krishna, you must remember, accepted that weapon

only to satisfy the God of Fire; He has no need of such weapons.

There is no weapon more effective than His Will; it can, in the

fraction of a second, transform the earth into sky and the sky into

the earth. He acts the human role when He moves among people and so,

men frame their own guesses without understanding the inner

significance of His acts. That is but the consequence of the delusion

that veils the vision of man.

 

After taking leave of Krishna in this manner, Agnideva started

consuming the Khandava Forest. Just then, exactly as anticipated,

Indra sent His attendants on the mission of saving the Forest from

destruction. Their efforts failed to rescue it. They returned to

their Master and reported their discomfiture. So, Indra Himself with

His stalwart followers rushed to the scene, to save the Khandava-

vana, and fell upon your grandfather, Arjuna.

 

Arjuna received Him with a shower of arrows from his famous Gandiva

bow. Indra, too, fought with all His might. Within minutes, the

followers of Indra turned back, unable to withstand the rain of

arrows which pelted them from all sides. Indra realised that the

person who inflicted the defeat was His own son, Arjuna; He was

overcome with shame at this. He regretted that He could not defeat

His own progeny, and, returned sad and chastened.

 

Meanwhile, the God of Fire consumed the Forest merrily and with

hearty appetite, swallowing everything with His thousand red tongues

and raising a huge conflagration. Only ash was left behind. Seeing

this, the birds and beasts of the forest tried in vain to escape from

the holocaust, but, they could not; they were caught by the flames

and roasted alive. Krishna was going round the Forest in His chariot

to prevent any denizen from running out into the open for safety,

especially the animals and the snakes. He discovered the snake

Thakshaka, a great friend of Indra, in the act of escaping from the

fire. Krishna called Arjuna near Him to point this out to him; that

gave Thakshaka the chance to wriggle out and speed towards

Kurukshethra.

 

But, Agni pursued the snake; He sought the help of the Wind-God to

catch up with his fleeing speed. So, Thakshaka sought refuge with

Maya the architect of the Devas and the Danavas; he and Maya were

moving fast towards Kurukshethra. Krishna noticed this and He pursued

them. Just then, Maya surrendered to Arjuna and sought his protection

for himself and his protege, Thakshaka. Arjuna granted his wish and

so, Maya, out of a sense of gratefulness, fell at his feet and

said, " 0, son of Pandu, I will never forget this kindness. Whatever

is in my power, I shall gladly do for you. You have only to indicate

your desire " .

 

Your grandfather reflected for a while and replied, " Maya! If you

yearn to satisfy me, I demand but one thing: Build a Sabha (Assembly

Hall) for my brother to hold court, the like of which is not to be

found on earth. It must be so grand that no Deva or Danava or

Gandharva can ever hope to build such a one for himself. It must fill

all who see it with amazement. I have no desire, other than this " .

Krishna too added a suggestion. " In that hall of wonder, you must

establish a Throne of Wonder for Dharmaraja to be seated; then only

will the Hall be fully magnificent " .

 

Did you note, Parikshith, how much Krishna loved your grandfather? Do

you need any more convincing proof than this to know that He is ever

mindful of the welfare of His devotees? The wicked Duryodhana was

overcome with envy, at the sight of that amazing Hall. Duryodhana and

Dussasana and their companions were puzzled and discomfited into

humiliation, when they were led to believe that there was water where

there was none and that there were doors, in places where there were

no doors! They fell in so many places and knocked their heads against

so many walls that they nurtured unquenchable hatred against the

Pandavas. The Kauravas plotted incessantly to destroy the Pandavas;

but, since the Pandavas had the Grace of Krishna in a large measure,

they were able to overcome them as if they were mere child's play and

to enjoy varied manifestations of His Mercy. The Kauravas developed

violent hatred against Krishna too, for they knew that the son of

Yasoda was the bestower of Fortune on the Pandavas. But, what can any

one do to the very Lord of all Creation? To cultivate hatred against

Him is a sign of their ignorance, that is all.

 

When Vyasa was thus relating the story of Thakshaka, Parikshith was

listening with rapt attention; when he finished, Parikshith queried

in wonder, " What was the reason which provoked the wicked Kaurava to

ill-treat and insult my grandmother, Droupadi? How did grandfathers

bear the insults they heaped on their spouse, how did it happen that

they were mere onlookers, unable to retaliate or punish, in spite of

their prowess and un- doubted manliness, when their spouse was

dishonoured publicly, in the royal court? I find it beyond me to

understand how these incidents came about. Tell me the real facts,

and enlighten me. You can clear my doubts, I am sure " .

 

Draupadi's Imprecation

 

Parikshith prayed with tearful eyes and with such humility that Vyasa

said, " Son! The Pandavas are staunch adherents of the moral law; they

never deviated from the given word. They observed the rule that the

defeated party has no right to challenge the victors; your

grandfather and his younger brother recognised the moral superiority

of Dharmaraja, their elder brother and suppressed themselves. Or

else, they would have felled the foul Kauravas to wallow in their own

blood and cast their corpses to be mangled by dogs and vultures.

 

In spite of this, however, your granduncle, Bhima, was straining to

fall upon those vicious men like a lion chained to a tree; he was

laughing cynically at the weak attachment that Dharmaraja had towards

Dharma. But, what could he do? He was rendered harmless, by the will

of his eldest brother. So, he had to behave like an ineffective

person.

 

When Vyasa said thus, Parikshith asked him the reason why the

grandfathers were so enslaved; Vyasa smiled and replied, " Son! I

shall tell you that also. Your granduncle, Dharmaraja celebrated in

unprecedented grandeur the Rajasuya-yajna in the Assembly hall that

Maya built for him. The Kauravas were invited for the Yajna and as I

said, they were struck with amazement at the magnificence and wonder;

they were also filled with envy and a spirit of vengeance, as if they

were insulted by the affluence and power of the Pandavas. They held

counsel with wicked elements and sought some means by which they

could undermine their fortune. At last they struck on a plan.

 

That was the Gambling Contest through the royal game of dice. They

behaved as if they were filled with filial love and as if they were

motivated by the utmost affection. Their words were poisoned drops of

honey, stabs steeped in butter. They persuaded their blind old father

to send Dharmaraja a communication which ran thus: " Son! you are all

brothers. Come and be together in one place and make merry over a

game of dice " . On receipt of this invitation, your granduncle who had

no inkling of the wiles that the Kauravas are capable of, who had a

guileless mind himself, accepted it and played the games they

proposed, unaware of the stratagems they had planned. He was then

tempted to stake his brothers and finally, even his queen, Droupadi.

He did not realise that the game was fun of foul movements and

conspiratorial tricks. He never imagined that his cousins will land

him in abject misery. So, under the rules of the gambling game,

Droupadi became the property of the victors. They too, in order to

wreak vengeance and cool their overwhelming passion of hatred,

designed to dishonour the Queen of the Pandavas in fun sight of the

entire Assembly of Courtiers. Foul brains can hatch only foul plans.

 

At these words, Parikshith began shedding tears; he asked Vyasa in a

voice interrupted by sighs, " How did that blind Dhritharashtra,

himself an Emperor, suffer this degrading behaviour towards another

woman and a queen to happen? Of course, he had no eyes to see; but,

he had certainly ears to hear. Had he plugged his ears so that her

wailings could not reach his understanding? Or, had they too become

blind? The Sastras teach that no woman can be injured or insulted;

she has to be given help and succour; and, these rulers who ought to

be exemplars to their subjects in morality and justice have the

audacity to break the Sastras with impunity. How can such vicious

persons be Emperors? Are they not the meanest of mortals? Only the

worst sinners will contrive to insult and dishonour another's wife, a

helpless woman. I feel that this land has been torn into bits, only

because such abominable persons were raised to power; at last these

disasters brought about total destruction. God is not blind, is it

not? "