Shrimad Bhagwad Geeta Shlok Blog -8
Shlok-8
भवान्भीष्मश्च कर्णश्च कृपश्च समितिञ्जयः । अश्वत्थामा विकर्णश्च सौमदत्तिस्तथैव च ॥ १-८ ||
English Transcription
Bhawaanbheeshamascha Karnasch Kripashch Samitinjayah | Ashwatthama Vikarnashch Saumadattisthaiva Ch || 1-8 ||
Hindi Translation
Meri sena me aap hain, Bhishma Pitamah, mere dadaji hai or iske saath saath Karna or Sangram Vijayi Kripacharya bhi hain. Iske saath hi Ashwatthama or Vikarna bhi Kauravon ke saath hai. Humare saath Somdatt ka beta Bhoorishrawa bhi hai.
English Translation
We have amazing people starting from you and my grandfather, Bhishma Pitamah. We also have Karna and Kripacharya (The battle winner). Ashwatthama and Vikarna also favor the Kauravas. The best part is we also have Bhoorishrawa, the son of Somdatt.
Meaning
We saw how in the previous Shloka only Duryodhan said to Guru Dronacharya that the army of Kauravas is also shaping very well. He was continuously praising the work of the Pandava army as to how aligned they were, how synchronized they were, and then how well they had maintained everything from falling apart. He then realized that he needs to demean the Pandavas also because otherwise, his master plan of trying to poach Guru Dronacharya to take his side will not work. So he showed the bad side of Pandavas or disguised the questionable judgments of the Pandavas as the bad decisions of the Pandavas to show the Kauravas down.
So, Duryodhan told Guru Dronacharya how Pandavas have been trying to bring in all the people who were once the enemies of Duryodhan or Guru Dronacharya of Hastinapur. He also brought in some names who had agreed to fight with the Pandavas but were good allies of the Kauravas. He also told how some names, which were the personal enemies of Guru Dronacharya had joined the Pandava army.
This was where Guru Dronacharya felt a little envious and had made up his mind to support the Kauravas because he was getting blinded by the insult towards him which Duryodhan was creating in the form of demeaning the Pandavas. He still hadn’t given his verdict but his expressions made Duryodhan affirm that his actions made complete sense and that he was nearly on the right track to get Guru Dronacharya on his side. Now he was sure that this was the time he needed to praise his own army.
So he started with praises towards his own army saying that he also had created a world-class army and there were only a few missing points that needed to connect. he started pointing out to the main forces of his army who, if guided well, could move the mountains, and defeat the Pandavas in a jiffy.
Duryodhan used the word Bhawaan, which meant that you yourself are the biggest fighters as you have trained all the Pandavas and the Kauravas and you still keep training people in your ashram. you are one of the biggest and the best fighters ever. basically, Duryodhan was doing the ego massage of Guru Dronacharya because just a few moments ago he had made him realize that everyone in the Pandava army was either a Kaurava enemy or Guru Dronacharya’s enemy. So now when Guru Dron’s ego was highly inflated and he was feeling insulted and somewhat defeated by his own students, specifically the Pandavas, Duryodhan tried to massage the ego of Guru Dron by saying that there is no one in comparison to you and there will no one be there in comparison to you. So if you become the torchbearer of our side, there is no way any Kaurava is going to be hurt, let alone lose the battle of Kurukshetra.
Next Duryodhan knew was time to throw in one more as big a name as Guru Dronacharya so he immediately threw in the name of Bheeshm Pitamah, the grandfather of the Kauravas and the Pandavas. We all know how mighty, powerful, and fierce a fighter Bheeshm Pitamah was. He was so good and so invincible that he was blessed with the power of Ichchamrityu (death at wish). He could decide when he wanted to die and only then will he lose his life. There was no one who could come to stand at the parallel level of Bheeshm Pitamah because he was like the father figure to everyone to whom he was not a father of also. There was no one who could raise a finger upon Bhishma Pitamah’s character or personality as he was that good a leader, fighter, ruler, guide, and King.
Putting his name parallel to Guru Dron’s meant that Duryodhan compared the best of all times to the best of this time. This made Guru Dron feel even more respected and his ego was inflated to another level. Duryodhan went on to keep buttering Guru Dron saying that if Guru Dron and Bheeshm Pitamah both fight the best and the most dedicated fight at their minimum capacity also, then there is nobody who can win in the Pandava army because everyone there had learned from these two people only.
Duryodhan was a very good strategist because he knew that at the first mention of Bheeshm Pitamah’s name to Guru Dron, comparing both of them equally will make Guru Dron suspicious that if Duryodhan was trying something fishy, which he actually was. So he knew he had to not just name it and say the praise, he had to compliment the same with logic and reasoning so that the words moulded fit in exactly as wanted.
This was exactly what had happened. At the first mention of Bheeshm Pitamah’s name, Guru Dron wasn’t very convinced of the parallel comparison but when Duryodhan spoke more, things started looking like they were normal and okay, and thus, Guru Dron felt convinced.
Now Duryodhan knew that enough of buttering was done and he needs to show more sides of his army and he pointed towards the next in line, Karna. We all know how good and how talented a fighter Krna was. karna was actually the eldest Pandava brother. Kunti, the wife of Pandu, and the mother of the Pandavas, was told she will not get pregnant. She was told to worship Lord Surya. Due to his blessings, Kunti, who was a virgin, and was unmarried at that time, became pregnant and conceived Karna. She knew she couldn’t keep the baby and couldn’t have her and her family’s name spoiled so she had to wrap Karna up in a cloth and abandon him. She had no courage to throw him anywhere so she took a basket, kept Karna wrapped in a cloth in the basket, and let the basket afloat in a river.
A fisherman caught sight of the abandoned basket and although he thought he would get something for free, he could not believe his eyes when he saw the most beautiful and shining abandoned bay, crying in the basket. He felt very bad for the baby and he knew that the baby was special because there was a shield of Gold around the baby and that shield was preventing the baby from any troubles. He didn’t understand the miracle, but the fisherman fell in love with the baby and he decided to raise the child with his own family, away from the kingdom.
This was how Karna was born and raised. karna was blessed with the power of the Sun and that is why he was born with the natural shield around him. This meant that anyone who would try to hurt Karna will not even be aware that Karna had a natural shield around him whenever the danger came any close. He never understood why and there was no one to tell him that this was because he was the son of Lord Surya.
Karna was a royal but he was raised by the fisherman and thus, he was one of the Sootputra (son of the lower tribes). He had his own vision of the world. he hated this hierarchy system based upon caste and thus, his blood as a fighter always made him revolt against anything wrong. He trained himself to fight when no one wanted to teach him due to the prevalent caste system. When he learned that he was Kunti’s son and the Pandava's elder brother, he hated how he was being treated and thus, he decided that he will never be a royal because he had developed a hate for the royals in general.
Karna was one of the biggest and bravest fighters in his generation and everyone treated him as the most self-taught, talented fighter, and equivalent to Arjun. So Guru Dron, who had rejected Karna from his academy challenged Karna to fight Arjun and if he wins, then only he can set foot again in the capital region, the dispute being a royal.
Arjun agreed to the fight but some people knew that Karna will win with Arjun so they told Guru Dron to change his decision and avoid the fight. Guru Dron then came up with the ideology that royals only fight the royals and since Karna was an abandoned Royal, raised in the untouchables place, he did not qualify to fight Arjun.
Duryodhan, who was full of hatred for Arjun and everything else felt bad for Karna and he immediately took out his crown and gave it to Karna saying that Karna was his brother and the ruler of one of his Kingdoms also. So now, he was eligible to fight.
Since then, Karna and Duryodhan were very good friends and Karna decided immediately the moment war was announced that he will support Duryodhan only, even if he did not appreciate some of the actions done by Duryodhan.
Duryodhan took the name of Karna and said that there was nothing to worry about as they had the best fighter of their generation, Karna, who was far far better than Arjun also. Duryodhan knew that the mention of Karna at any point in Guru Dron’s life would baffle him up. yet, he also knew that right now, Guru Dron was maximum angry with the Pandavas, so even though he did not Karna, he hated Arjun more for Drishtadhyumna and Yuyudhan and thus, he could tolerate Karna in his army, fighting with him, teaching him, guiding him and mentoring him.
Duryodhan next jumped to another amazing fighter name, Kripacharya. he knew he should have mentioned the name of Kricharya before Karna because Kripacharya is a Chiranjeevi (The one who can never die and will live forever, someone who is immortal for eternity). This meant that however good Karna was, Kripacharya was more powerful, and thus, Kripacharya being on the side of the Kauravas was a better chance of victory for the Kauravas because the presence of a Chiranjeevi meant that the fear of death is removed and thus, the chances of victory are at its peak at every cost.
Now, Duryodhan wanted to mention the name of Kripacharya first but he trusted Karna more, like his brother so due to this biasness, even if he didn’t want to do it, he uttered Karna’s name before. he knew that now when he takes Kripacharya’s name, Guru Dron will not like it because it will be like an insult of the more deserving. Also, Guru Dron had no specific affiliation for Karna, but he did have immense respect for the most brave Kripachaya. So Duryodhan covered up by mentioning Sangramvijayi, meaning the one who can win any battle. Duryodhan also pledged to himself in his mind that he will try to be more careful now because every small aspect of ignorance can create a great deal of discomfort for a lot of people.
Now, since he had mentioned one Chiranjeevi, the mention of another Chiranjeevi was very important and thus, Duryodhan immediately also took the name of Ashwatthama, the son of Guru Drom himself. Duryodhan knew how to structure words to look thoroughly interconnected and there was no reason to doubt his intentions. So he told Guru Dron that his own son, who was trained by him and was as fierce and good and talented as him and also a Chiranjeevi cannot be left unattended by his own father. here Duryodhan tried to bring in an emotional angle to making words feel like he was trying to ask a father will he be happy to not support the army his own son was supporting. Basically, Duryodhan raised a question on the parenthood of Guru Dron as well with the mention of the name of Ashwatthama, which seemed like praise, but was a deep routed emotional quest for hiding the desperation towards gaining victory.
Now, Duryodhan thought that he was only talking about the fighters. So he also needed one more element as war and emotion was done. Now some good side portrayal of the army was needed so that there is no doubt that Pandavas are good. He knew Pandavas are doung this prevent their Dharma (duty and responsibility). So he wanted to establish that he also had kind-hearted, spiritual people in his army who were doing this war for their Dharma and not for any personal gain or profit or benefit.
So, Duryodhan took the name of Bhoorishrava, the person who was famous for more spiritual acts than Yudhishthir himself because Yudhishthira was one of the most giving persons and anyone who could be compared with Yudhishthir could be Bhoorishrava. This was an intentional act to establish that this war was not just a battle of powers, it was also a battle of morals, ethics, and rules.
Although the battle was none of the above-mentioned words, the way Duryodhan tried to describe his own army by knowing small basic details about them made Guru Droncharya know that Duryodhan was desperate to win but he was also dedicated to win. Also, his own personal revenge angle with King Viraat, Drishtadhyumna, and King Drupad stood as is and his emotional angle of his son Ashwatthama and his teacher Guru Dron also took cover, he knew he was most likely to join the Kauravas. This was exactly what Duryodhan wanted and he knew he was on the right track and just a little more convincing will make him do wonders.
Conclusion
We learned that Duryodhan was an expert at the modulation of words and situations. He knew what to say and when to say it. He knew how to cover up for anything wrong said or said in the wrong chronology. he knew how to butter up how to demean someone, how to inflate an ego, how to massage it, and how to balance every word said within the thin spot of limited time and maximum need. All this proves that even if Duryodhan was fighting from the wrong side, he was the best strategist someone can find to be in an army. If Duryodhan had been fighting for the right thing, there was no chance that any kind of malice would have made him touch the wrong angle and he would definitely be invincible and one of the most loved characters of the Mahabharata.
We all are like Duryodhan. We all have our Duryodhan in us. We all have the intention to make things our way, even if they are not always right and then, we need to make our egos satisfied and take the help of the people who can help us get things done our way. Sometimes, they don’t happen exactly like that but the real test is when we know that even if things might go wrong, how to keep trust in our people and also how to know everything about everyone so that there is no arrow shot in the dark, even if it appears to be like one.
This was all in Shlok-8, Chapter-1 of Shrimad Bhagwat Geeta. We will see you tomorrow with Shlok-9, Chapter-1. In case you have missed the Shlok-7, Chapter-1, see it here. Keep smiling, keep learning, and stay tuned with Rudra Vaani.
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