Destiny!
Parasuram said:
O forefathers, it will not be me who stops fighting first, for never have I retreated
from a battlefield! You better approach Bhisma & make him stop fighting
The sages who had
come with Narada, headed by Rcika, next went to Bhisma & requested him to put
down his weapons. However, Bhisma replied: O venerable brahmanas, due to the nature
of kshatriya morality, I’ll never agree to turn back from a battle if my adversary
is still eager to fight
Indeed, even though
Ganga-devi, Narada Muni & other sages repeatedly tried to dissuade him, Bhisma
remained poised with an upraised bow & arrow, ready to continue fighting. The
forefathers once again went to Parasuram & pleaded: O descendent in our line,
because you are a brahmana; you are supposed to exhibit the quality of forgiveness.
Bhisma is incapable of being killed by you and so you should honor our command by
putting aside your weapons
Finally, Parasuram
relented. At that time the eight brahmanas once again appeared to Bhisma and said:
Go to your preceptor and worship him with great respect. When Bhisma saw that Parasuram
had desisted from fighting on the advice of his forefathers, he put aside his bow
and approached him. Bhisma worshiped Parasuram. In turn the son of Jamadagni smilingly
said: O son of Santanu, there is no kshatriya on earth who is your equal. I became
highly satisfied to see you exhibit your exceptional prowess in battle
Parasurama called
for Amba. In Bhisma's presence, he said: My dear princess, even though I fought
to the best of my ability, I could not defeat Bhisma. There is nothing more I can
do on your behalf & so you are free to go wherever you choose. However, in my
opinion, Bhisma is your only shelter. I suggest you appeal to him for mercy
Amba replied: I’ll
only approach Bhisma after I’ve obtained the means for killing him myself in battle
After saying this,
Amba angrily departed, being determined to perform severe austerities for the purpose
of encompassing the destruction of Bhisma. Parasuram & his associates then set
out for Mount Mahendra, while Bhisma returned to Hastinapura. But, from the moment
of Amba's departure, Bhisma lost all cheerfulness of heart so that he soon became
depressed
Bhisma employed
some spies to monitor Amba's activities so that every day he would receive a report
of exactly what she had done & said. Thereafter, when Bhisma described his fears
to Narada & Vyasa Deva, they tried to cheer him up by saying: You can be rest
assured that no amount of individual exertion can change the course of Destiny
iti te jñānam
ākhyātaṁ guhyād guhya-taraṁ mayā
vimṛśyaitad aśeṣeṇa yathecchasi tathā kuru
Thus, I have
explained to you knowledge still more confidential. Deliberate on this fully,
and then do what you wish to do
Here Krsna
urges Arjun to choose wisely after contemplating the consequences of different
courses of action. This call implies that Arjun indeed has the power to choose &
that this choice will shape his future. In determining our life’s trajectory,
destiny’s role is substantial but not final. Due to our past karma, certain
things that happen to us from the moment we are born are determined. But
destiny doesn’t take away our power to choose how we respond to what happens
We have the
power to change destiny & the best path is Bhakti Yoga
Happy Janmashtami!
#gameoflife
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