Tactical withdrawal!

 

As Bhurisravā encountered Sātyaki, Duryodhana, his brothers as well as many Pāndava warriors entered the fray. Bhima turned to face Dhārtarāshtrās & they in turn showered arrows upon him. At that time a chariot arrived for him & so Bhima mounted it and rushed at Dhārtarāshtrās. When he saw Duryodhana afflicting his driver, Bhima became furious & broke Kaurava King’s bow in half

 

Duryodhana angrily picked up another bow & pierced Bhima in the chest with a powerful arrow, making him faint onto floor of his chariot. Bhima quickly recovered & after piercing Duryodhana, he attacked Salya so severely that he had to be carried away from battlefield

 

14 Dhārtarāshtrās ganged up on Bhima. Although he was certainly pained by their onslaught of arrows, Bhima pounced upon sons of Dhritrāshtra, just as Garuda attacks many snakes. In the matter of minutes Bhima killed 8 of Dhritrāshtrā’s sons while rest quickly fled in fear

 

Bhisma ordered Kaurava warriors to seize Bhima & so Bhagdatta, the King of Prāgjyotisas, led the attack while riding his gigantic elephant. Bhagadatta struck Bhima in the chest with a mighty arrow, causing him to collapse onto his seat while supporting himself by holding a flagpole. At this Ghatotkaca, became highly agitated with rage. After making himself invisible, he created magical illusions that were very fearful to all warriors

 

Ghatotkaca suddenly reappeared in a fierce form, riding upon Airāvata, one of the dig-gajās that he had created with his mystic power of illusion. Behind Ghatotkaca were more Rāksasās, riding upon other 3 dig-gajās. These 4 elephants attacked Bhagadatta’s carrier, piercing it on all sides with their sharp tusks

 

Bhisma ordered great heroes of the Kaurava army to go & rescue Bhagadatta. When Drona & others responded, many Pāndava warriors followed them. As the Kaurava army advanced toward him, Ghatotkaca roared ferociously. Upon seeing his great eagerness for battle, Bhisma turned to Drona & said: It’ll not be fruitful for us to fight with Bhima’s son now, for now he is unconquerable. The day is ending & our army is fatigued. Let us retire our forces & resume the next morning when we are fresh

 

Thus, being afraid of Ghatotkaca, Bhisma ordered withdrawal of the Kaurava army under pretext of impending nightfall. The Kaurava warriors were terrified at the thought of approaching Ghatotkaca & so they happily obeyed Bhisma’s command. When the Pāndavā warriors saw that the Kaurava army was giving up the fight, they shouted with joy & triumphantly blew their conch shells. Kauravas felt ashamed for their defeat as they returned to their camp

 

Tactical withdrawal is also a part of a winning strategy. Sometimes the only way to win is to withdraw at the right moment. When we retreat from a position or area or a thought process to gain a strategic advantage, it allows us to regroup, resupply or reposition our energies to launch a new attack

 

Do we. Thoughts? #gameoflife


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