Vedic Wisdom Talks

Lamentation! Meanwhile, back in Hastinapura, Sanjaya urged aggrieved Dhritarashtra to perform the funeral ceremonies for the departed souls of his slain relatives, but he simply continued to lament, repeatedly crying out: Oh! Because I ignored the good advice given to me by Sri Krsna, Bhisma, Vidura & so many others, I have lost all of my sons, as well as my kingdom! When Dhritarashtra suddenly fell to the floor, Vidura caught hold of him & urged: Dear King, please get up & stop lamenting like this. Death is the inevitable end of all that have been born. Indeed, all living entities in this material world are traveling in the same great caravan proceeding toward the destination of death My dear brother, you cannot diminish misery by obsessively dwelling upon it. In fact, such indulgence only serves to magnify one's grief. The eternal souls are always coming & going, birth after birth, and by doing so they create transitory relationships with one another. Beca...

No one else but the Supreme Lord! Asvattāma redirected his Brahmasira weapon towards the wombs of Pandavas women. Sri Krsna said: O Asvattāma, while I was at Upaplavya with the Pāndavās, a brāhmana had assured Uttarā that her child would continue the Pāndava line at a time when it would become almost extinct. Despite your Brahmsira, the brāhmana words will remain true & child Parikshit will be born   Asvattāma angrily replied: O Krsna! What You have declared, due to Your partiality towards the Pāndavās, will never take place. My weapon will definitely destroy Uttarā’s embryo   Sri Krsna said: I agree that your weapon cannot prove futile. After the foetus within Uttarā’s womb dies, I-the all-pervading Supreme Soul, the controller of material nature, will instantly supply child Parikshit with a new body, so that he will be able to live long & illustrious life. You are a sinful coward & a killer of children. Consequently, you’ll have to wander over earth for...

Peace is not dependent on externals!   Sri Krsna told Yudhisthira how once envious Asvattāma tried to get His invincible weapon Sudarsan Chakra. While standing with folded hands he requested Sri Krsna to exchange his Brahmasira weapon with the Chakra   Sri Krsna spoke to puffed-up Asvattāma & said he could choose any one of his four weapons-Sudarsan Chakra, Saranga bow, Kaumodki club & a spear. But Asvattāma insisted for Cakra. As Sri Krsna gave His permission to take the Chakra, the foolish son of a Brahmana grabbed the Chakra but much to his surprise, couldn’t even move it. When asked by Sri Krsna, what he would have done with the Chakra in case he took it, he said he would have challenged Krsna himself with it   Sri Krsna told Yudhisthira: See how cruel Asvattāma is, but as he still possesses Brahmasira weapon, Bhima who had went after him, should be protected by all means After saying this Sri Krsna along with Yudhisthira & Arjun got onto his...

Empowerment thro’ responsibility! Queen Draupadi was informed about the death of her brothers & sons, and she came running to the massacre site from Upaplavya. When she saw the dead bodies of her sons, she fainted. Bhima quickly came & picked up Draupadi and as he tried to comfort her, she suddenly declared: If my husbands do not take revenge against Asvattāma, I will sit down here & fast until death   Yudhisthira said: Dear Draupadi, don’t lament like this for your sons have died heroes’ deaths & are enjoying life in heavenly planets. Besides, Asvattāma has already fled far away. How will you know for sure whether he has been killed or not?   Draupadi replied: There is a gem that has naturally adorned Asvattāma’s head since his birth. If I receive that jewel, I will be able to go on living. Saying this she went to Bhima & pleaded: You must kill Asvattāma & save me from my unbearable grief. Many times, in the past you had rescued me & now ...

Careless & perish! Asvattāma suggested to Krpā & Krtvarma that they take this good news (of mass killing of Pāncālas) to Duryodhana. They came to where Duryodhana lay & became horribly sad upon seeing his wretched condition. The Kaurava king’s life was rapidly ebbing. While numerous carnivorous beasts surrounded him, awaiting his death, he vomited blood at intervals while constantly writhing in pain   Asvattāma, Krpā & Krtvarma began crying & lamenting in various ways as they wiped blood from Duryodhana’s face. Asvattāma said: Dear King! I do not lament so much for you, because I know that you will soon reside in heavenly planets, but I feel very pained when I think of how your aged parents, being bereft of their children & kingdom, will have to wander over earth, begging for food and tolerating the onslaughts of nature   When you arrive at heaven, pls inform my father that I’ve killed Dhristadyumna & all other Pāncāla warriors as they sle...

Grudge-The heaviest thing to hold! Asvattāma hurriedly yoked horses to his chariot & set out, as Krpa & Krtvarma anxiously followed him. He soon arrived at Pāndava camp & saw a gigantic being with enormous head with flames emanating from his eyes, nose, ear & mouth   Asvattāma fearlessly attacked that awesome being with his celestial weapons but failed in all his attempt. He thought to himself: Krpa had warned me that persons who don’t listen to their elders must lament later. The frustration of my attempt must be due to its inherently sinful nature. I wonder who is this astonishing being that has defeated me. Obviously further exertion on my part will be useless until my destiny is favourable. Let me now take shelter of my worshipful Lord Siva & seek his guidance   Asvattāma got down from his chariot & fervently prayed to Lord Siva offering his body, mind & soul. Lord Siva personally appeared & smilingly said: Dear Asvattāma, there is...

Wrath! After making up his mind to kill Pandavas as they sleep, Asvattāma woke up his maternal uncle & Bhoja warrior to inform them about his plan. Both Krpā & Krtvarmā felt great disgust and shame after hearing Asvattāma speak, however they remained silent   Seeing their reluctance, Asvattāma reconsidered his plan momentarily & then tactfully said: Pls remember how Bhima had repeatedly kicked Duryodhana in the head. Considering this, what would you recommend as a means of gaining revenge?   Krpā said: It should be understood that everything occurs because of the combination of destiny & exertion. Without either of these factors, no good result can be achieved. For this reason, the wise have recommended that one should exert himself only after taking advice of elders & worshipping the demigods. Duryodhana had always acted to satisfy his greed, and while doing so he disregarded the advice of his superiors. Because of this, and due to his wicked nat...