Overcoming fear!

 

While storming through enemy ranks on foot, Bhima displayed great variety of movements. Jumping high, he brought many heroic warriors down from their chariots. As everyone watched Bhima in amazement, the Kalinga king & Srutāyu attacked him. A chariot was then sent to Bhima, who after mounting it made short work of King of Kalinga, as well as Ketumat & many others

 

All the Kalinga chariot warriors then surrounded Bhima, hoping to gain revenge. At this, Bhima jumped from his chariot with mace in hand. After killing 2700 chariot warriors in few minutes, he let out a loud roar & blew his mighty conch-shell. Remaining Kalinga warriors panicked & fled

 

Meanwhile, after hearing cries of Kalinga warriors that were being exterminated, Bhisma rushed to encounter Bhima. Sātyaki & Dhrishtadyumna came to Bhima’s aid so that soon the 3 surrounded Bhisma. The Grandsire then killed Bhima’s horses. Remaining on his chariot, Bhima retaliated by hurling a fierce dart. Bhisma cut that dart to pieces. Picking up a mace, Bhima jumped down & got onto Dhrishtadyumna’s chariot

 

Sātyaki managed to kill Bhisma’s chariot driver so that when unguided horses carried Grandsire far away from battlefield, Bhima continued to kill Kalingas without impediment. Later in the day, Dhrishtadyumna encountered Asvattāma & managed to kill his horses. Asvattāma got onto Salya’s chariot while Abhimanyu came to assist Dhrishta. Upon seeing Subhadra’s son, Duryodhana’s son, Lakshmana came to encounter him

 

When Lakshmana broke his bow, Abhimanyu picked up another & began to afflict him very severely with arrows. At last Duryodhana had to personally come to his son’s rescue. The many warriors who accompanied Duryodhana surrounded Abhimanyu & yet he faced them all fearlessly

 

Arjun then appeared on the scene to rescue his son. Drona & others came to oppose him. Still Arjun blocked advance of all these Kuru heroes with shower of arrows. Then, after assuming a very ferocious feature, he began to slay innumerable Kaurav warriors. Indeed, Arjuna’s arrows blackened the entire sky & at that time no one dared to approach him

 

Soon the entire battlefield became strewn with arms, legs & heads as well as heaps of weapons & bodies of dead animals. At last Kaurava warriors fearfully retreated and so Sri Krsna & Arjun triumphantly blew their conch shells

 

Bhisma smilingly told Drona: Arjun is incapable of being defeated & our army is too fear stricken to be rallied. Since the Sun is about to set, we should withdraw our forces for the day

 

Fear is the state of our inner consciousness & is in the mode of ignorance. If we don’t confront the very source of fear by spiritual insights, it becomes self-destructive pushing us down

 

yayā svapnaṁ bhayaṁ śokaṁ viṣādaṁ madam eva ca
na vimuñcati durmedhā dhṛtiḥ sā pārtha tāmasī

 

And that determination which cannot go beyond dreaming, fearfulness, lamentation, moroseness and illusion – such unintelligent determination, O son of Pṛthā, is in the mode of darkness

 

Thoughts? #gameoflife


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