Karna’s critical choice – Word of honor or life of honor?

Sunday feast class at Radha Gopinath Temple, Mumbai

Transcript

This is an AI-generated transcript and may contain some errors.
So, one of the things which defines as a common characteristic, the life of everyone is that all our lives are shaped by two things. One is what happens to us and second is how we respond to it.
What decisions do we make in our life and what events happen to us. For example, if a person is rowing a boat. Now, when the person is rowing a boat, where that person will go will be determined by two things.
One is, of course, where the person wants to go and where the person chooses to row the boat and take it. But the other factor is in which direction the current is blowing, how the waves come, how the storms come. So, these two factors are our motivations and our compulsions.
Motivations means what we choose to and decide to do and compulsions means what is forced upon us. What events transpire beyond our control and events happen to us accordingly. So, these two are common factors that are there for everyone, whatever be the age, whatever be the place, whatever be the other material considerations.
Everybody’s life is shaped by their motivations and their compulsions. Now, one of the things that we do observe right from early life is that life is not fair. Life is not fair.
At least it does not seem to be fair. Now, we see that different people have different attributes. Some people are born wealthy, some people are born not so wealthy, some people are born with very good looks, some people are not born with so good looks and even whatever be the starting point in our life, that itself varies but along the journey of life also, different kinds of things happen and we are not always able to find a rational reason why things happen that way.
So, if we look at both the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, apart from the distinct individual characters and the very profound lessons that those characters illustrate, one common denominator of both these epics is how to face adversity with integrity. How to face reversals, problems, injustices in life with integrity, with dignity, with morality. If we look at the central characters of the Ramayana, Lord Ram, Sita, even Lakshman, they all suffered for, if we look at just from that life’s perspective, no fault of theirs.
And if we look even in the Mahabharata, central characters, the five Pandavas and their wife Draupadi, they suffered for no fault of theirs. So, the whole story is about how to respond to adversity with integrity. Now, there have been, just as in the Indian tradition, there are these epics, in the Western tradition, there were many Germanic sagas, Iliad, Odyssey and then Shakespeare, Pendant, Classics and most of these famous stories, now many of them don’t have any historical basis or have only partial historical basis, but most of them are tragedies.
So, there are a whole set of events and at the end of the events, it ends in tragedy. In contrast, the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, both depict tragedy. Tragedy after tragedy after tragedy.
But they don’t end in tragedy. The end is because characters follow Dharma, so there is a glorious end. At the scene of this world, Shakespeare says this world is a stage.
So, on the stage of the world, whatever story is, it is going to be ending. But, overall, what the Mahabharata and the Ramayana show is that, one who lives a life of virtue, of Dharma, triumphs. Now, this is a common lesson in both these books, but the Mahabharata makes things a little more complex.
In the sense that, there are characters with varying shades of grey in the Mahabharata, as compared to the Ramayana, where, relatively speaking, it’s quite clear, white and black. So, one of the characters who falls in this spectrum of grey is Karna. And, Karna is actually, if we hear his story, is a character it is easy to sympathise with.
Because we see that he faced injustice. He was born, but then he was cast away, for no fault of his. And then, although he had an illustrious birth, he did not get the credit of his birth.
And then, he rose, despite all these advantages, and attained a great fame as a warrior. But, in the end, he was unjustly killed. This is what the story may seem like.
And, if this is the story that is there, then, actually, if this itself were the complete story, then the whole purpose of Mahabharata, the Mahabharata concludes with saying that, in this way, I have told, how Dharma triumphs, how Dharma protects. And yet, why is it that people do not follow Dharma? So, if the story of the Mahabharata is to demonstrate how Dharma triumphs, then, would the Mahabharata show a person who, in his own way, was a noble character, in failing or him being victimised by injustice? No, we have to go deeper to understand what this character actually demonstrates. So, as this title of this class is, Word of Honour or Life of Honour.
So, this was actually the choice of Karna when Krishna approached him. After the Pandavas completed their exile, 12 years in the forest, 1 year incognito, then, they asked for their rightful claim. And Dhritarashtra dilly-dallied and first Drupada’s Brahmin messenger went and then Dhritarashtra did not give any answer.
He said, I will send Sanjay. He sent Sanjay and Sanjay basically told that, you have lived in the forest, just continue to live in the forest and be peaceful. So, then Krishna himself came as a messenger and Duryodhana obstinately rejected Krishna’s peace proposal.
So, the next morning, before Krishna left, he asked for a private meeting with Karna. And at that time, this was the choice that was presented to Karna. Krishna told him that you are actually the eldest of the Pandavas and you are meant to be the king of the world and if you reclaim your position as the eldest Pandava, that is what you will get.
Don’t stay on the side of the evil Kaurava and meet with destruction. So, now, what was Karna thinking about at this time? This was not the first time that Karna had come to know about his parentage. Kunti had come to him before and he had known that he was actually the son of Kunti.
So, he told Krishna, yes, I know it, but he said that I have given my word to Duryodhana. He helped me in my time of need. When I was being dishonoured, he protected my honour.
And I gave him my word of honour that I will be his friend always. How can I betray him now? It is because of his trust in me that he has ventured on this war and if I betray him now, I will be deemed a coward. I would rather die.
And I know that I am going to die. Just yesterday night, I had a dream. In that dream, I saw that Yudhishthir was dressed in white and he was being raised in a magnificent chariot which is going towards heaven, skywards.
And Duryodhana was dressed in black and he was in the back of a donkey and he was shaved and he was being dragged downwards towards the lower regions. So, I know what portents mean. And I know that I am going to die.
Bhima will kill Duryodhana and Arjuna will kill me. But still, I will not give up the side of Duryodhana. And then, Krishna Actually, Krishna had come on his own chariot with Satyaki and Karuna had come on his chariot.
So, for this private colonisation, Krishna had asked Karuna to come on his chariot and Satyaki had gone with Karuna’s chariot and they were following behind. And Krishna embraced Karuna and he said that if that is your decision, then our next meeting will be on the battlefield. So now, here, at one level, Karuna seems to have made a very heroic choice, embracing death for the sake of friendship.
However, one of the most important lessons of the Mahabharata is that morality is never categorical. It is always contextual. Morality means what is right, what is wrong, what is true, what is false.
This is never categorical. Categorical means, this is one category. These actions are right and these actions are wrong.
Reality is very multifaceted, very unpredictable, very subtle and what may seem to be right in one circumstance may be wrong in another circumstance. So, morality cannot be determined, divorced from context. So, to speak truth is a moral principle.
But, if by speaking truth, some harm is going to be done. If some criminals are about to kill an innocent person and that innocent person is hiding and we know where that person is hiding. In fact, the Puranas tell a story roughly like this.
I won’t go into the whole story. Most of you know that story also. Once a butcher was chasing a cow and the cow, a brahmin was sitting on the crossroads and he saw the cows fleeing in one direction and the butcher came running.
Tell me, where has this cow gone? So, now this brahmin was in dharma sankat. He had taken a vow that I will always speak the truth. If he speaks the truth, the cow will die.
If he doesn’t speak the truth, his vow will go. So, now what should he do? So, speaking truth is a moral principle. But when morality is divorced from the context, then what is moral, what seems moral can actually turn out to be moral.
So, he decided to stick to the truth and eventually, basically, he decided, okay, I cannot speak of false but I don’t want to be the cause of the death of a cow. So, what he did? In the rabbara, he just pointed with his hands. Cow has gone this way.
And the whole story goes on. Next life, you know, for no fault of his, at least from that life’s perspective, his hands were cut off. So, the hands which he pointed, they were cut off in the next life.
So, the point is morality is never categorical. Morality is always contextual. So, what is right and what is wrong has to be determined by looking at the context.
And, yes, now if we look at Karna, he was in a situation where his honour was being impunged upon. He was in a situation of being insulted. Now, there was Dronacharya’s military exhibition.
Martial exhibition was there after he had trained all the warriors, Kauravas, Pandavas and others who had come to his gurukul. So, they were all exhibiting their skills and Arjuna was the matchless warrior among all of them. And then Karna marched in over there.
And Karna said, whatever Arjuna has done, I will do better than that. And when the exhibition started, actually Karna tried everything that Arjuna did and he matched it. Although he claimed he would excel, he couldn’t excel, he matched everything.
And then he asked for a duel. And when they asked for a duel, I won’t go into the whole story here. We are looking at the broad principles.
Basically, he was told that the duels can be among equals. So, we know Arjuna’s parentage. Tell us, what is your parentage? And then he hung his head down and later on became, revealed that he was not from a Kshatriya parentage.
So, at that time, Duryodhana came to his rescue. And Duryodhana gave a very strong anti-caste speech. He said, Do you think that a lion can be born from a dog? Just look at this warrior, look at his arms, look at his body, look at his courage, look at his speech, look at his skill.
Do you think such a person can have any lineage other than that of a Kshatriya? Those who think that Kshatriyas are by birth, they are fools. And still, if you think that he has to be a king, then I will make him a king. And at that time, Karna felt so indebted.
Karna told Duryodhana, How can I ever repay you? Actually, Karna, at that time, had no idea about Duryodhana’s evil intentions. And he felt, Duryodhana is helping me. Now, actually, what had happened was, previous to this, Duryodhana had been always burning in envy, seeing Bhima’s power.
And he had been practising tirelessly to try to equal and excel Bhima in mace fighting. But he had felt that there is no match to Arjuna. And the moment he saw Karna, he thought, Karna will be the foil for Arjuna.
And actually, he simply manipulated Karna. And when he arrived, Karna said, What can I do for you? So, Duryodhana, he was a brilliant politician. So he said, All that I want is your friendship.
That’s what Duryodhana said. He said, That you will have till my dying breath. That’s what Karna told him.
So now, at this particular point, Duryodhana did help Karna. And it is good to be grateful to anyone who has helped us. But, that commitment to do certain things, it cannot be divorced from the context.
Eventually, as things transpired, Duryodhana became more and more vicious. And if we look at the Mahabharata, Karna enters in the Adi Parva, where the incidents are happening. And actually, Karna’s moral uprightness and his disapproval for Duryodhana’s evil ways, it’s very evident in the beginning.
Initially, when Duryodhana and Shakuni are conspiring to send the Kauravas to Varanavarth and let them be burnt. So, Karna says, Why are you doing all these things? Let’s call them for a fight. Let’s challenge them and defeat them in a war.
So, now, Karna has a lot of confidence in his own fighting skills. So, Kripa tells him later, just before the Virat war, he says, You are like a cloud which roars but never pours. So, but Karna, he said, Don’t try all these things.
Just call them for a fair fight. So, Duryodhana and Shakuni said, You know, actually fighting should be the last resort. That is true.
Fighting should be the last resort but before fighting should come reconciliation. So, Shakuni said, No. Fighting is the last resort.
First, we will use cheating. So, Karna opposed at that time, sending the Pandavas to Varanavarth and getting them burnt. And then later on also, when the Pandavas came out of the forest, they won Draupadi and because now they had alliance with Drupada, they could no longer be neglected.
So, when in the Kuru assembly, Dhritarashtra, Bhishma, Duryodhana, they were all discussing. What should we do now? So, the elders, Vidura, Bhishma, they were counselling that, Call Pandu’s sons back and give them half the kingdom. So, Karna said, No.
The kingdom belongs to Duryodhana and it should go to Duryodhana. He had his own twist of logic. His idea was that, Dhritarashtra had been the elder son and therefore, his son should become the next king.
But actually, although Dhritarashtra had been the elder son, he had never officially become the king. Because he was without eyes. So, the throne had passed on to Pandu and when Pandu had retired and eventually died, Dhritarashtra had only been a caretaker.
And anyway, if the kingdom had to go on, in the next generation, Yudhishthir was older than Duryodhana. So, if at all Duryodhana had any claim, at the most, it could be to half the kingdom. Not to full kingdom.
But Karna said, Let’s challenge them and let’s fight. Let’s fight with them. And we will defeat them.
So, again the Kuru elders disapproved. And then they were brought and they were given half the kingdom. That was the kingdom of Khandava, which by Krishna’s mercy became Khandavaprastha and Indraprastha.
And then, later on, Karna, now when Arjuna, when Yudhishthir Maharaj decided to perform the Rajasuya Yagya, so at that time, because the Yagya was being performed inside the family, so Duryodhana, he thought, Oh, I should perform the Rajasuya Yagya, not Yudhishthir. But because it was the Kuru dynasty which was getting the glory, he could not oppose it. So, he told Karna, you oppose it.
So, Karna was the king of Anga and at that time, the four Khandava brothers were sent in the four directions. Arjuna went in the north, Bhima went in the east, Nakula went in the south, Sahadeva went in the south and Nakula went in the west. And they conquered the four directions.
So, at that time, Karna fought with Bhima. Bhima came and he said, we have to offer tributes. He said, no, fight.
And Bhima and Karna had a fierce fight which went on for several days. And eventually, Bhima overpowered Karna. And then, Karna agreed to pay tributes and he came along with Duryodhana because he was a friend of Duryodhana.
So, at that time, he was also given an honorary post and he was also serving in the Rajasuya Yagya in the administration. But, Karna wanted to have a fair fight. But thereafter, when the gambling match was proposed, at that time, we see that slowly but surely, the bad association of Duryodhana and Shakuni starts rubbing off on Karna.
And here, when they propose the gambling match, the Mahabharata does not report any opposition by Karna. He goes along with it. Actually, when the gambling match takes place, Karna not only goes along with it passively, but he goads the Pandavas actively.
In fact, he insults when Draupadi, actually, when the Pandavas lose everything, at that time, and eventually they lose Draupadi also. So, it is Karna who suggests that Draupadi, let her be brought into the assembly. And it is he who says you know, she is a serving maid now.
And we can do whatever with her. We can disrobe her. And then, when the assembly erupts and says, she is an honourable lady, how can you do like this? So, Karna, he says, what kind of honourable lady is this? A woman who has married five husbands, she is already a prostitute.
So, whether she is brought in front of the public without clothes or whatever, she is already degraded herself. We are not degrading her any further. Now, for any, the word Kshatriya, one who protects people from hurt, and especially among the people, there are five classes of people already protected, one of them is woman.
So, for a Kshatriya, or a person who claims to be Kshatriya, to so viciously insult a virtuous woman is extremely despicable. And, actually, there is no logic to it. Now, it was not that Draupadi went out of her way to get five husbands.
There was a swayamvar in which one husband won her. But, because there was a previous life situation, and because Kunti said that whatever you have got, you should share among the five, and Vyasadeva certified it. So, therefore, she had five husbands.
But she did not go out of her way to get five husbands. And, she was in no way like a woman of the oldest profession. So, to compare her with like that was a grievous insult.
And, actually, it is in the gambling match that Karna comes out at his worst. Not only does he call Draupadi evil names, but along with that, he also opposes and silences Vikarna. Vikarna is the least vicious among the hundred Kaurava brothers.
And, when Draupadi is dragged into the assembly, at that time, Vikarna opposes it strongly. And he says this whole gambling match should be declared null and void. Because Yudhishthira was forced to fight against his will, because Shakuni cheated, and because Yudhishthira was under the influence of a gambler’s mania, all that has happened should be rejected.
And, the Pandavas, all their kingdoms should be returned back. So, at that time, the whole assembly approves of that. But, then Karna jumps up, and he with his huge shoulders, he silences everyone.
He says, this Vikarna, he is forgetting his position in this assembly. Now, Karna is forgetting his position also. If it is a matter of position, there are elders to both Karna and Vikarna.
They are in the same generation. But, he says, he is forgetting his position. He doesn’t know what is right and what is wrong.
He says, Yudhishthira, he voluntarily chose. Nobody forced him to gamble. And, there is no who says that it was a cheating.
There was no cheating over here. And, basically, he refutes everything. And, where the injustice could have been stopped, he not only did not stop it, he stopped the efforts to stop it.
So, he, as you know, different incidents bring out different facets of a person. It is that adversity introduces us to ourselves. You know, who we are, we can put on a very nice facade.
But, when troubles come, our true colours come out. So, here, actually, Karna, although he is in many ways honourable, here he comes out to his worst. So, now, at this particular situation, we are going back to the life of honour or the word of honour.
So, Karna had to make a choice. And, his choice was whether to go on the side of the Pandavas or the Kavaravas. Yes, he had decided, he had given the word that I will help Duryodhana.
But, under what circumstance and to what limit should one go? Yes, we should be grateful, but we cannot divorce gratitude from the other values of life. We know that, especially, this is a provocative example to illustrate this point. You know, it’s well known that in certain poor parts of Pakistan and Afghanistan, these are the Arabic Muslim countries which are relatively poverty stricken.
So, there, often, young children, especially males, who are poor, they are recruited by terrorists. And, faced with a life of starvation and death, they willingly agree to become machines of destruction and death. Now, when these children are starving and at that time, they are helped, they may feel grateful.
And, it’s right to feel grateful. Somebody saved me from starvation. But, just because somebody has saved me from starvation, does not mean that I joined that person in killing hundreds and thousands of innocent people.
So, actually, what Duryodhana did was despicable. And, what not only dishonouring and dispossessing the Pandavas and their wives, but the whole insidious plan to go about it. And, having no remorse at all, and just increasing one’s maliciousness more and more.
And, Karna went along with it. So, Krishna told him that you will be ruined by your sense of mistaken loyalty. Mistaken loyalty.
One should be loyal, but to whom should be one loyal? So, now, some people argue that actually Krishna was afraid that if Karna is on the side of the Kauravas, then the Pandavas will not win. And, that’s why Krishna tried to cause a defection. Defection means to try to split the opposite party and get somebody from the opposite party on your side.
Was there the case that was Karna superior to Arjuna because of which Karna was approached by Krishna? Now, if you look back at the history, we can look at various times whenever there was an encounter between Karna and Arjuna. So, we will keep a scorecard and we’ll see who gets how much. So, the first encounter between Karna and Arjuna is in Drona’s martial exhibition.
So, Arjuna exhibits his skills and then Karna comes and exhibits similar skills, more or less the same level of proficiency. And when there is about to be a duel between them, the sun sets. So, it’s a draw.
The score is Karna 0, Arjuna 0. After that, both the Kauravas and the Pandavas approach Dronacharya. What Gurudakshina can you do? So, at that time, Drona says that arrest Drupada and bring him to me as a prisoner. Drona and Drupada have an old rivalry and both the Pandavas and Kauravas are ready to charge ahead.
Now, Dronacharya, he wants to go first. Because he thinks, you know, the Pandavas bested us in the martial exhibition, at least now we will best them. So, as they are charging ahead, Arjuna tells his brothers wait, let them go first, we will go afterwards.
So, now, as the Kauravas start going along, Karna also goes with them. Because now he has become a friend. Although, he is not a disciple of Dronacharya, but he feels, I should help them in whatever way I can.
And then, the Kauravas, 100 Kauravas along with Karna, charge on to Drupada’s kingdom. And they challenge Drupada and there is a fierce war and after a fierce war, Drupada defeats them. Drupada defeats them and the Kauravas along with Karna, humiliated, they flee from there.
And then the Pandavas charge in. And Arjuna and Bhima lead the charge and Arjuna overcomes Drupada and Bhima was the commander of Drupada. And in a short while, Drupada is imprisoned and brought before Drona.
So, here what happens? Drupada defeats Karna and Arjuna defeats Drupada. So, by inference, what has happened? Karna is superior to Arjuna. So, Arjuna won, Karna zero.
So, now, after this, there are no direct encounters for a long time. The Pandavas are exiled and various things happen. But then, during the exile, the nature of greed is that one is never satisfied by getting what one wants to get.
So, now, Duryodhana has become the world emperor. But still he is not satisfied. He thinks, you know, my joy will not come by my joy.
My joy will come by the Pandavas’ misery. It’s a very peculiar definition of happiness. Envy, you know, greed leads to envy along with it.
See, in envy, what happened to him? He said that we have to go to the Pandavas, they are in the forest near Kamney one and there we will go with my queens and my maidservants and my animals and I will exhibit my wealth. And then when the Pandavas see how much poverty they are living and how much prosperity I am living, then, when they see this contrast with their own eyes, then they will realise how fallen they are. And when they feel miserable because of that, then I will feel joyful.
So, with this plan, Duryodhana went to the forest. And now, Indra saw this and Indra sent some Gandharvas to interrupt. And the Gandharvas said, so there was a Kamney, one was a river, it’s a pond, big pond.
And they were on one side, the Pandavas, they were doing the sacrifice. And the Kauravas started flaunting their wealth on the other side. So, the Gandharvas came there and said that this area belongs to the gods.
You cannot come over here. So, Duryodhana said, I am the king of the world. This belongs to me.
He said, you get out of here. The Gandharvas said, you fool, who do you think you are? You are a human and you are ordering us celestial. He said, get out or you will die.
So, Duryodhana said, for your insolence, you will die right now. I will not give you a chance to get out also. So, he and his army charged on the Gandharvas.
And now, initially the Gandharva commander did not fight. He just got his Gandharva soldiers to fight and they were slowly overpowered. And then the Gandharva commander, he got up and he, Chitrangada, he started fighting fiercely and then he started overpowering all the warriors.
So, he wounded Dushyasana, he wounded Shakuni and they both fled. And after that, Karna came forward and the Gandharva attacked Karna and Karna got severely wounded. And finally, realising that he was no match, Karna turned and fled.
Now, Duryodhana, he felt so angry. He charged upon. One of Duryodhana’s characteristics is that, you know, when he feels he is being dishonoured, he becomes foolish.
So, you know, he knew that his skills was nowhere near Karna’s. But, even after Karna had fled, he didn’t flee, he charged forward. And soon, he was overpowered, he was arrested.
And then, so, the soldiers, some of the soldiers, they ran over to Yudhishtira and said, please, save us, please save us, please save Duryodhana, release him. So, when Bhima heard this, he started laughing. He says, it is fortunate that someone even up there still wants to help us.
What we would have had to do after many years, and after great effort, the gods have done for us. So, Duryodhana has got what he wants. Yudhishtira said, no.
He said, you know, whenever Yudhishtira wants to drive home a point, where he sees somebody else is wrong, you know, he takes a sort of parental patronising tone. He says, O Bhima, O child, you know, Bhima is a huge bodied person, he is nothing like a child, but when he behaves in an inappropriate way, that is what Yudhishtira calls him. He said, in front of the, in between us, there may be some rivalry between the hundred and the five.
But for the rest of the world, we are hundred and five. So, the Kuru, so, they have arrested, they have disgraced the Kuru dynasty. They have arrested our Kuru ladies.
So, you must go and take revenge. Bhima is not ready to hear. So, then, now, Yudhishtira, you know, he is also a diplomat.
So, he says, O Bhima, what can give you more pleasure than a situation in which the enemy who has hurt you the most is now dependent on your mercy for his release? Then, Bhima marches out to fight. But then Bhima and Arjuna attack. And, actually, Arjuna leads the charge and Bhima tackles all the other Gandharva soldiers and Arjuna tackles the Gandharva.
And Arjuna in a short while defeats the Gandharva. So, again, what happened? The Gandharva defeated Karna and Arjuna defeated Gandharva. So, what happened? Arjuna 2, Karna 0. So, now, at this point, the Kauravas return back humiliated, mortified, dejected.
And then after that, there is no confrontation just till the Virat war. And in the Virat war, actually, Arjuna fights not just against Karna. At that time, all the Kuru elders are there.
So, Bhishma, Drona, Kripa, Ashwatthama, Duryodhana, Karna, Dushyasana, all of them are there. And Arjuna fights with all of them, one by one by one. And they all attack combined also.
Karna attacks first and he fights very fiercely. And he wounds Arjuna. And seeing Arjuna getting wounded, the Kauravas start cheering.
But then Arjuna recovers and he wounds Karna brutally and Karna just falls unconscious and goes off. But after some time, again Karna comes. So, in the meantime, Arjuna defeats the other warriors.
Second time, Karna comes back. And second time he fights, second time again he is defeated. So, here, there is no indirect inferences required.
It is not that this person defeated this person and then this person defeated this person. It is a fair and square match and Arjuna defeated Karna. So, here the score is Arjuna 3, Karna 0. So, now, if it was relatively speaking quite clear that Arjuna was superior to Karna, then why did Krishna even bother to try to get Karna on the side of the Pandavas? So, actually, that brings us to the bigger question.
Why did Krishna even go as a Shantidutta to the Kauravas? Because even before they went, the Pandavas and Krishna were discussing and Yudhishthira said, Duryodhana is not going to agree. So, Krishna said, I also know Duryodhana is not going to agree. But, we, you Pandavas should not be blamed for this war.
We should show the world that we did everything possible to avoid the war. So, now, when Duryodhana rejected the peace proposal, then Krishna chose the next best option. What is the next or the least worst option after that? Among the various Kaurava commanders on the Kaurava side, Duryodhana, Dushasana and his brothers, they had antipathy.
They had hatred towards the Pandavas. The other Maharathas, none of them, whether it is Burishrava, Bahalika, Somadatta, Shalya, Kripa, Drona, Ashwathama or Bhishma, none of them had any hatred towards the Pandavas. They all fought because they were, because of some circumstantial obligation.
So, apart from the Kauravas, the only person who had some animosity towards the Pandavas was Karna. So, if Karna’s opposition could be avoided, then it would break the back of Duryodhana’s stubbornness. So, Duryodhana might even reconsider his decision to go ahead with the war.
And even if that did not happen, Duryodhana, the war would not be filled with such malevolence. The war would not go on for so long. So, it was not because of fear of Karna’s prowess, that Karna would defeat Arjuna, it was because of the desire for peace or the desire for minimisation of violence that Arjuna, that Krishna approached Karna.
So, what happened? Karna mistook that morality is categorical. I have given my word to Duryodhana, so I have to keep my word. Now, we are not even till now considered the point that Krishna is God.
Now, put the point aside. If Krishna is God, his word becomes the absolute truth and everybody has to follow it. But even if Karna does not accept Krishna to be God, but still from the point of view of even mundane morality, in mundane morality also there is higher morality and there is lower morality.
So, one word of honour given at one time should not become the cause of a world-wide destruction, a war which is like a world war. And to commit to that kind of violence is, it shows a lack of intelligence. So, now even if he did not accept Krishna as God, still for Karna, his worshipable Devata was Suryadev.
And now Suryadev also came to Karna. And he told him, it did not come directly, but when he was worshipping Suryadev, he heard a voice and he could infer that it is the voice of Suryadev and he told him that Kunti will approach you and when Kunti approaches you, do whatever she says. That will be in your best interest.
So, even if he did not want to follow the supreme God, he could at least have followed his own worshipable God. But his idea was, he was rooted to his own conception of rightness and he was not flexible about that. And later on the war happened.
And in the war also if we see, often it is said that Karna was killed unfairly. His chariot was stuck in the ground and then he was on the ground, immobile and that time Arjuna shot and killed him. So, was that unfair? Actually, at the start of the Kurukshetra war, the two commanders, Dhrishtadyumna from the Pandavas side and Bhishma from the Kauravas side met.
And then Bhishma and the Kauravas were also there, Bhishma said, you know, remember the codes of morality. The war codes and do not violate those codes. So, Dhrishtadyumna agreed and then he became thoughtful.
He started thinking, the Pandavas, the Kauravas have done so many immoral things. Why are they talking about the codes of morality now? So, he said that we will not be the first to violate the codes of war. But if the Kauravas violate those codes, then we will not hold ourselves back just because of war codes.
So, now, regarding one war code is that if one warrior is on a chariot, another warrior is on the ground, they should not fight. Both of them should be equal. So, okay, we can say that Arjuna violated that code.
But who violated it first? It was the Kauravas. How was that? On the 13th day, when Abhimanyu penetrated into Chakravyuha, at that time, Abhimanyu bested, defeated all the Kaurava warriors one by one. Just as Arjuna had done at Virat, the same Abhimanyu did in Kurukshetra.
The only difference was here, Bhishma was not there. That’s all. But Abhimanyu did the same thing.
Nobody could face him. Karna attacked him once and he was severely wounded and went back. And again he came.
And again he was failed. And then Drona couldn’t check him. Kripa couldn’t check him.
Ashwathama tried. Ashwathama couldn’t check him. And finally, Duryodhana went to Karna and he said, before the war, you said that you will kill Arjuna.
But you are not able to kill even the son of Arjuna. So, Karna was humiliated and he says, you know, there are no weaknesses in this boy. He said, let us go to the preceptor and he alone can tell us what we should do.
And then he went to Drona and Drona, he had himself been wounded by Abhimanyu and Drona’s eyes were filled with admiration, seeing Abhimanyu’s prowess. And he says, can you see the son of Partha? There are no weaknesses in him. So, Duryodhana became angry.
Oh preceptor, war is not the time to admire the skills of our enemy. Laughter So, at that time, at Karna’s suggestion, Drona eventually came up with the plan that six of us should attack. And eventually, Karna was one of the warriors who attacked Abhimanyu even when his chariot was destroyed.
So, Abhimanyu was on the ground and Karna, Drona, Kripa, Ashwathama, Duryodhana, Dushasan, they were all attacking. So, what Karna was calling that Arjuna, you are being unfair, that’s what Karna had done on the 13th day. So, Karna had attacked Abhimanyu when he was chariot-less.
And it was not just a one-off incident that the Kauravas did. The next day, when Abhimanyu took a vow, Arjuna took a vow to kill Jaidrath. At that time, he went right into the Kaurava formation and such a fierce fight it was that although Arjuna’s horses were celestial, they got exhausted.
And Krishna told that your horses need water and rest. So, Arjuna said, OK, I’ll get off my chariot. As soon as Arjuna got off his chariot, he was right inside the Kaurava formation with no ally anywhere nearby.
They all surrounded him. mam shantavaham arayo rathino bhuvistham So, Arjuna remembers, mam shantavaham arayo So, I had no chariot. My horses were exhausted.
And still he says that my enemies could not even wound me. So, Arjuna was on the ground. All around him were enemies.
They were on chariots, elephants and other ways equipped. And Arjuna fought. And he fought so fiercely that to run to him, to charge into him, was to collide with a wall of arrows.
Nobody could penetrate. Arjuna not only held back all his opponents, but he also used mystic weapons to create on that same field, by his mystic weapons he created a lake. And he created trees for shade.
And Krishna said, very good Arjuna, expert. And he took the horses, rested them, fed them and then he got back on the chariot and he fought on. So, again what did the Kauravas do? They attacked a warrior who was chariotless.
And not only that, Karna did the same thing again against Arjuna only. On the 17th day, when the war between Karna and Arjuna took place, the final conflict. So, at that time, into Karna’s quiver, a snake warrior, Ashwasena, he came in the form of arrow.
And as Karna thought of a Nagastra to check Arjuna, so he got the Nagastra and he shot it. And Ashwasena entered into that. And now Shalya, who was his charioteer, Shalya told Karna, play it safe.
He says, shoot the arrow at the chest. Because even if you miss a little bit, below there is a stomach. There also it will be mortal.
Above there is a neck. There also it will be a mortal blow. But Karna had his pride.
He said, you know, if you shoot and you cut off the head and the head flies off, everybody will sleep by glory. Now how I killed Karna? How I killed Arjuna? So he said, I will shoot at the head. And he took the Nagastra, empowered further by Ashwasena, and he shot it right in the neck of Arjuna.
Now in the war, Arjuna himself had impenetrable armour. So when arrows would come to him, some of the arrows he would counter and some of the arrows he would neglect. He would expect that when those arrows just hit his armour, they will fall off harmlessly.
So this was one of the arrows which Arjuna neglected. But Arjuna did not know how powerful this arrow was. And as it just charged through the air, seemed to split the sky apart as a dart of flame came forwards.
And the Pandava warriors who were there on the side, they screamed in agony. And as the arrow charged for the death of Arjuna, suddenly Krishna banged his feet on the side of the chariot. And the chariot sank into the ground.
As the chariot sank into the ground, the arrow which was meant to go to Arjuna’s head, it went to his crown and knocked off his crown. And as Arjuna survived, but now his chariot had sunk into the ground. And Ashwasen immediately went back to Karna and he said that I am Ashwasen.
I am also Arjuna’s enemy. Shoot me again and I will kill Arjuna this time. So Karna looked at him and said I have taken a vow that I will never shoot the same arrow again.
And nor will I take anyone else’s help to kill Arjuna. So you go your way, I will shoot arrows and kill him by my own strength. And he started shooting arrows again and again.
Now here what has happened? Arjuna’s chariot has become immobilised. Why? Because it has sunk into the ground. And again Karna did not stop fighting.
Nor did Arjuna tell Karna, Oh Karna, remember the codes of war. No. When a fight to death is going on, no quarters are given and no quarters are to be expected.
Already, the fairness had been abandoned by the Kauravas. So now when the final war takes place, when the final confrontation is there and what happens? Karna’s chariot goes into the ground. He uses the Bharga Vastra and he devastates the Pandava forces.
Bhima is trying his best to defend. But Bharga Vastra breaks havoc and then Arjuna comes forward. And then there is a long fight and slowly but surely Arjuna starts getting the upper hand.
And then again Karna calls the Bharga Vastra and he just cannot remember the mantras. Then he calls the Brahma Vastra and he can’t remember those mantras also. And he starts cursing destiny.
He says, I have lived a life of Dharma. I have always given charity. I have never failed in my duty to give charity.
Why is Dharma treating me unfairly now? So, he feels that he has been unfairly victimised by those curses. Actually, because he lied to Parashuram, saying that I am a Brahmana and that’s how he got knowledge. When Parashuram came to know that he is not a Brahmana, he said you got these skills by deceit.
They will be there with you, but in your moment of greatest need, you will forget those mantras. And because he had accidentally killed a Brahmana’s cow, so the Brahmana had cursed him that you, your chariot will go under the ground. It will sink in your greatest danger.
So now, both these curses can seem unfair. But actually, as I said, life is not fair. And it was not only Karna who got unfair curses.
Arjuna was also cursed. And Arjuna’s curses were also unfair. One of the most unfair curses that Arjuna got was when he had gone to the heavens.
He stayed in the heavens for five years, learning various weapons from Indra. At that time, Urvashi approached him. And Urvashi offered herself to him.
And Arjuna told, you know, you are the wife of my ancestor, Pururava. So you are like a mother to me. I cannot see you in any other way.
So Urvashi, she was already smitten by lust. And he said, oh, we don’t have any of these. In heaven, these codes of morality are not there.
There is no sin. He says, okay, you are from heaven, but I am from earth. He said that.
No, no, no. He says, you know, he said that, you know, your father Indra has sent me to you. And I am myself filled with desire.
And how can you refuse me? So Arjuna said firmly, he said, Urvashi, please hear. And let all the four directions hear. Just as Shachi or Kunti or Madri are to me, you are the same to me.
And he said, I cannot see you in any other way. I see you as a father. And just as a mother should protect a son, you please protect me.
Now that was the last thing Urvashi wanted. So, there is a saying, hell hath no fury like a maiden’s scorned. So, here what happened, Urvashi got so angry.
And she said, you are refusing me. You are acting like an impotent person. So you will become impotent.
Now, at least if you look at Karna, there was some fault. He had lied to Parashuram. He had killed a cow.
Arjuna said, there is no fault. Actually, to resist a temptation like that, far from being faulty, it was glorious. But still he got a curse for that.
So what did Arjuna do? Arjuna turned that curse into an opportunity. He used that period of impotency to act as Brihannala and hide during the Agyatvas. So, getting curses is something that happens to everyone.
The Pandu was cursed. In the Ramayana, Dashrath was cursed. In the Bhagavatam, Parikshit is cursed.
So that the fact that curses come, it happens. But how we respond is important. So, yes, because of Parashuram’s curse, Karna lost the memory of those weapons.
But Karna knew in advance that I am going to lose that memory. He could have prepared for that. Parashuram’s curse was only for the weapons that Karna had got from Parashuram.
Karna could have performed some other tapasya, got other weapons. He would not have forgotten those. Arjuna worked painstakingly.
Mahabharata describes that when he went to the Himalayas, Arjuna did such severe austerity. For four months, in the first month, he was just taking fruits once in three days. Second month, he was taking fruits once in six days.
Third month, he was taking fruits once in 15 days. Fourth month, he was living only on air. And then after that, Lord Mahadev came.
And he gave him his Pashupath. And then the four Lokpalas came and they gave them their respective weapons. So, Arjuna did not get his weapons easily.
So, yes, again the point is, Karna, there was unfairness that happened to him. But he also made wrong choices. So, at that time, when Karna told Arjuna, Arjuna, do not entertain the thoughts entertained by cowards.
Remember the codes of morality and wait till I am in a situation to fight. So, Arjuna lowered his bow. But Krishna told Karna, Oh, Karna, it is fortunate indeed that today you remember the codes of morality.
He says, where was your remembrance of morality when six of you attacked Abhimanyu and killed him together? Was it morality because of which you suggested that Draupadi be dragged into the assembly and disrobed? Was it morality that made you call Draupadi a prostitute? Was it morality because of which you arranged for the Pandavas to be burned alive? Was it morality because of which you cooperated with Chakuni and the Pandavas and the Kauravas and cheated? If it was morality at that time, Arjuna will use that same morality to kill you today. I told Arjuna, shoot. He shot and right in front of Duryodhana, in front of Chakuni, in front of all the Kaurava warriors, Arjuna took his Anjali Kastra, imbued it with the power of the Brahmastra and shot the arrow and it pierced the head of Karna.
And as Karna fell on the ground, the Kauravas wailed in sorrow. And then at the end of the war, after the 18 days, when the last rites are to be performed, even then, Kunti, in one sense we could say that it was her shame that she had a child before marriage because of no fault of hers practically speaking. But she did not reject that child.
Somebody could say that the whole thing was the fault of Kunti, because of which this happened. But Kunti did her best. She was in a circumstance where she could not keep that child.
But she arranged for a very comfortable wooden pot and she put jewels and all comfortable things. And when she sent that wooden cradle on the river, now she sent her prayers. She looked at the sun and she prayed, this is your son, please protect him.
She saw the wind blowing and she prayed to the wind god, please protect this son. As she saw the waves going along the river, she said, oh Varuna, please protect this boy. So her prayers went with the child.
And later on, again, just before the war, for her to expose herself, she came and told Karna, I am your mother, don’t fight again. And then, Karna did not listen. It was not that Kunti told Karna, don’t kill my five Pandavas.
That was not Kunti’s intention. Kunti’s intention was that none of her sons should die. Her sons should not fight at all.
But Karna had a reputation to preserve. And if somebody has come to ask something from me, that person should not go on empty handed. So he did not want to give Kunti what she had asked for.
He said, I will not kill any of your sons. So that was good that he did that. But then Kunti, her love was still there and that’s why at the end, she told, actually Karna’s sons had already died.
So she told Yudhishthir, now offer water and do the last rites for Karna also. And Yudhishthir was shocked to know that Karna was his elder brother. But then he did these rites.
So we see in Karna’s life, one common denominator, that there were people who were his well wishers. But he consistently neglected them. And there were people who wanted to manipulate him.
And he let himself be manipulated. All because he chose the word of honour over a life of honour. So the Mahabharata has one theme that comes again and again.
It says that the ways of dharma are very subtle. And one has to carefully understand them. By committing to one course of action throughout his life, without thinking of the consequences, Karna actually put the nail in his own coffin.
And if this is not enough to explain why things went wrong with Karna, the Mahabharata describes also about his previous life. I’ll conclude with that. In his previous life, Karna was a demon named Sahasrakavacha.
Actually, his name was Dambhodbhava. A very powerful demon. And he did tapasya to please Surya.
And by that tapasya, he got a thousand kavachas, thousand armours on his body. And along with that, he wanted immortality. All demons want immortality.
But they can’t get that. So they tried to get some other condition. Somehow, you know, you can’t have unconditional immortality.
You have conditional immortality. So, he said that my kavacha, even one of my kavacha should be, can be destroyed only by a person who has performed one thousand years of tapasya. That is the first condition.
Second condition is that whoever destroys my kavacha should immediately die. So now, it’s a deadly combination. So he started terrorising all the universe.
And nobody could fight him. If anybody tried to destroy his kavacha, that person would die. So what to do? The devatas went to Surya and said what have you done? Why have you given a benediction like this? Surya said, he pleased me.
I have to give the benediction. Then they all went to Narnara and Rishi. Narnara and Rishi are actually one achintabhedaved.
They are one and two. So at that time, they had been performing austerities for one thousand years. So, Narnara got up and he fought with Sahasrakavacha and he destroyed his one kavacha.
And actually, as they were fighting, fighting, fighting, this fighting went for one thousand years. And as one kavacha was destroyed, what happened? Narnara fell down dead. But as Narnara fell down dead, Narayan got up.
Narayan had performed austerities for one thousand years. And he fought and what he did was, he was doing austerities and by austerities he had also got, he had acquired a mantra which could bring mantra which could bring the dead back to life. So Narnara would fall down dead, Narayan would revive him and Narayan by his thousand years of tapasya will fight for another thousand years and break another kavacha of Sahasrakavacha.
And then Narayan will fall dead and Narayan who has been in an austerity for thousand years, he will revive him and he will use his austerity for thousand years, fight and break one more kavacha. And initially Sahasrakavacha was laughing whenever he saw one of them fall dead. But then all that he saw at the end was just one and one and one and one, his kavachas were only falling.
And then when 999 kavachas fell, he became panic struck. And he ran back to Surya. He said, save me, save me, save me.
Now one of the principles of Kshatriya is that, if somebody comes and seeks shelter, you cannot refuse. So then Naranara and Rishi came behind him and he said, Surya said, I have given shelter. He said, no, he is a terror for the universe.
You cannot give him shelter. He said, no. I cannot hand him over to you.
So then Naranara and Rishi said that, ok. He will take birth on the earth in future and when he takes birth on the earth, then we will also take birth on earth. So Naranara and Rishi came as Arjuna and Krishna.
And then when Kunti, she out of curiosity, as Indravasamuni had given her some benedictions, you could call any of the gods and get a son through them. So, this is actually called a Vedic ritual, Niyoga. Niyoga means that, because of some circumstances, the whole idea of Niyoga is that continuation of the dynasty is extremely important.
And if because of certain circumstances, if the husband is not alive or the husband is not for some reason able to conceive a child, then in the lady of the dynasty, some other respectable person can impregnate and that is the only contact they will have. They have no further relationship and the whole purpose of the contact is just the continuation of the dynasty. So, she had been given the mantra for the purpose of Niyoga, Kunti, but she was just a young girl and out of curiosity she called Surya.
And now Surya already had the Sahasra Kavacha with only one Kavacha now. Sahasra Kavacha had become Ek Kavacha now. So, he was there and he did not want him with him.
That’s why when Kunti called him, Surya gave that Ek Kavacha to Kunti and that’s how Karna was born and Karna had a Kavacha right from his childhood, right from his birth actually. And now from his previous life as a demon, he had evil tendencies, but because he had stayed with Surya, he had also got some good tendencies. And that’s why Karna was a combination of virtue and wise.
He was virtuous, but he succumbed to vice because of attachment to the vicious. And yes, he as a Suta Putra, he was deprived from his birth. He did not get honour.
But actually, he got a big advantage from birth, which even the Pandavas did not have. He had an impenetrable armour. Now, although the Pandavas were also born from the God, none of them had that kind of armour.
So, if you look at the end, he had some disadvantage, he had advantage. It was a level playing field in total. But unfortunately, in that level playing field, Karna messed up by making the wrong choices.
By choosing his word of honour over a life of honour, he actually died a dishonourable death. Thank you very much. Are there any questions? Why did Indra ask for that Kavacha from him? I mean, why did Narayana Rishu, who had taken birth as Krishna Arjuna, didn’t kill at that time in the Mahabharata war? Okay, why did Indra have to ask for that Kavacha? See, there are three things over here with respect to the Kavacha.
The Kavacha did not guarantee victory to Karna. We see, even while having the Kavacha, Karna was repeatedly defeated and wounded and he fled because of the wounds. So, the Kavacha was not like a winning advantage.
It was just something that protected him. But, now, Indra, he is the father of Arjuna and he felt that the Pandavas have been subjected to so much injustice and I would like to help them. So, he came and approached Karna for that Kavacha.
Now, Surya warned him that he is going to come as a Brahmana and don’t give him the Kavacha. So, now, again, what was Karna’s idea? You may say, Karna was so charitable that he gave even his Kavacha to Indra. That is true.
But, again, what was his motivation? His idea was that normally, the Gods give charity to human beings. If I, being a human being, give a charity to God, how great will be my fame? So, his whole idea was, he was very fame centred. He was very status conscious and that status anxiety was what motivated all his decisions and actions.
And then, so, he gave that charity. But then, what did he ask? See, charity means you give and you don’t ask for anything. So, actually, he said, first he gave a charity and he said, oh, you are a Devata, you should give me charity.
But you are asking for charity, I will give it. But you should give me something in return. And then he asked for the Shakti Astra.
So, actually, it was not exactly a charity. It was almost like a swap. You know, he gave his Kavacha and he got a Shakti Astra.
The Kavacha had not guaranteed him protection from defeat. He had been defeated repeatedly. The Astra which he got, that guaranteed him victory over one opponent.
Death of one opponent. So, it was not such a big loss for him. So, it was an opportunity in which Indra wanted to help him.
Now, as I said, Arjuna had defeated him fair and square, earlier also, and Naranara and Rishi, they could have destroyed that last Kavacha also. But this was something which Indra did and that also revealed another dimension of Karna’s character. It’s clear? Any other questions? So, that time, actually, the entire thing was resolved.
Pandavas got their rightful share and they became the rulers of Indraprastha. So, what happens when, I heard that when Duryodhana and Karna, they all go through the palace, there is a water like mirage at many places in the palace. So, once, what happened, Duryodhana was just walking and he just slipped and fell down.
So, at that point in time, everything was resolved and, you know, Kunti says, the son of a blind man is also blind. So, that is what provokes Karna and after that only, he calls, he wants to take revenge on Draupadi. That’s why he calls Draupadi in the assembly later on.
So, is that true, Prabhu? Yes. So, Andhe ka beta andha. That is the dialogue which is there.
So, actually, there are many popular renditions of the Mahabharata, where in the original Mahabharata, a lot of masala is put on it. So, now, if you look at the original Mahabharata, there is no such dialogue. See, that was a mirage and that was just a trick.
It depends on person to person, you know, when such events happen, whether one takes it as a matter of insult to one’s ego or one just laughs it off. And, first of all, it was not entirely resolved at that time. Duryodhana’s envy was still there.
In fact, if you see at that time, after the Rajasuya yajna happened, all the kings left. When all the kings left, why did Duryodhana choose to stay on? He chose to stay on because his heart was burning with envy. And he just couldn’t believe that there is so much opulence that the Pandavas have got.
And on one side, he couldn’t tolerate it, but other side, he couldn’t believe it also. He has got so much opulence. He said, I want to stay and see this opulence.
So, in one sense, that was his mistake. Now, all of us know that we have certain weak points, we have certain temptations, and if we deliberately expose ourselves to temptations, there is going to be a further explosion that will happen. So, Duryodhana was envious.
It was not that things were resolved. Actually, the resolution, if it had to come, it had to come from Duryodhana’s side. And for him, his envy never went away.
He never gracefully accepted the Pandavas right to the kingdom. That’s why he did not want to give the Pandavas even half the kingdom. But then Bhishma said, do you know what the citizens are saying? They are saying, we have conspired to kill the Pandavas.
At least now gain back the respect of the citizens and give them half the kingdom. So, it was only because of Bhishma and Drona’s pressure, and Bhishma and Vidura’s pressure, that Dhritarashtra agreed to give half the kingdom. And that too with Duryodhana’s opposition.
And then also when they gave the kingdom, they gave a half which was more like a forest. So, the issue was not resolved. The envy was still there and Duryodhana put himself in a situation where he got further provoked.
So, yes, the Pandavas, the queens at that time laughed at him. But that is actually, it’s a family gathering. If one family member laughs at another family member, it doesn’t have to be taken so seriously.
But when there is already a background of envy and animosity, then a small, small incident, small spark can trigger a big fire. So, we can’t pin the blame for Duryodhana’s envy on anybody else’s actions. First of all, Draupadi did not speak anything like that.
And moreover, the issues were not resolved. Duryodhana’s envy was there and it inflamed further. This happened, it provoked Karna.
Karna basically did not have any, you know, he was not going to get anything from this war. So, he did not want anything for himself. So, it was only for Duryodhana.
So, from a Karna’s perspective, of course, Duryodhana had this envy all along. But from a Karna’s perspective, you know, since he supported Duryodhana only because of the gratitude. So, I am trying to understand, you know, where, you know, Karna did not, in fact, so much, had so much of choice to make.
So, there are two issues. First thing, you are talking about Karna being not allowed to participate in Draupadi’s Swayamvar. Okay.
Now, there are, if you look at the Mahabharata, it’s a huge book. There are 110,000 verses. And, there are some things which may be in popular editions of the Mahabharata, which are not there in the original Mahabharata.
So, there is a critical edition of Mahabharata, which is prepared to show what the original Mahabharata was exactly like. So, in the critical edition of the Mahabharata, there is no mention of this incident of Draupadi rebuffing Karna when he came as a potential suitor. It’s described that Karna came, contested, and missed the target by a very narrow breath.
And Madhvacharya has also written a book resolving many of the controversies in the Mahabharata. It’s called the Mahabharata Akbar Nirnay. And even in that, it is said that Karna missed the target.
So, that’s what, as far as we look at the authentic Mahabharata, that’s what this narrative seems to say. But, even if we, for argument’s sake, say that Draupadi did disallow Karna from contesting. But we have to look back at the basic principle.
It is a swayamvar. Swayamvar means it is her choice to choose a var. And she can fix up a criteria for how the var will be chosen.
But it’s her choice. And normally, in such a swayamvar, kshatriyas were expected to contest. Karna, by presuming that he could contest, although he knew that many people questioned his kshatriya credentials.
By presuming that he could contest, he put himself in a situation of embarrassment. So, it was Draupadi’s choice. And if she did not want to marry a kshatriya, swayamvar gives her that privilege of choice.
So, Draupadi really cannot be blamed for that. It was his own presumptuousness. Another point to recognise here is, now if you look at varying recensions around Mahabharata, another common recension in Mahabharata also says that even when Arjuna wanted to contest, at that time Arjuna was in the garb of a brahmana.
And, when Arjuna came forward, he asked Draupadi, he said, are brahmanas allowed to participate in this? So now, if you see kshatriyas, sutas are below them, charioteer’s sons are below them and brahmanas are above them. Karna never asked for any such permission. Although brahmanas are higher, but Arjuna asked for that permission.
So, it was Karna’s presumptuousness which got him into trouble. Now, regarding whether he had a choice or not, see, we always have a choice. First of all, Karna, he was an intelligent person.
He knew about dharma. And, even when Duryodhana wanted to arrest Krishna, when he came as Shantidoot, Karna told him that you won’t succeed. Krishna is too powerful.
Don’t try it. So, he did have knowledge. But the problem was attachment.
So, basically, when one becomes attached to somebody who is vicious, just because of that attachment, one is forced to act in vicious ways. So, he let himself become almost like a slave to his friend, friendship. And that was wrong.
So, rather than going, now if you say he had no choice, certainly, even if you say because of his friendship, he did not want, he could not oppose Duryodhana, fine. But he did not have to instigate Duryodhana further to suggest to him that Draupadi be brought into the assembly, that Draupadi be disrobed, that he be called evil means. That was something, certainly, he had a choice not to do.
So, he did make wrong choices. There are two questions in this thing. What is the relevance of blessings and curses in Kali Yuga? Because what I understand is the brahmanas, the pure brahmanas have the potential to curse or bless and we hear that Urvashi cursed Arjuna.
So, this is a question that was she having that potential and in this Kali Yuga, what is the potency or relevance of blessings and curses? So, did Urvashi have the capacity to curse? Yes, she is a resident of the heavens and you know, anybody in heaven they have, just by being in heavens, they have certain powers and if you look further, there is also the story in the 11th canto that Urvashi appears from the body of Narayana when Indra sends some Apsaras to tempt Narayana and Rishi. At that time, Narayana and Rishi manifest from their body even more attractive Apsaras. They say to demonstrate to Indra that you cannot allure us with these things.
So, Urvashi is in that sense. Just being a heavenly resident, she is special. But along with that, she is actually like Narayana and Rishi’s gift to Indra.
So, that is also, she has the potency. Many heavenly residents have different kinds of potencies. She also has one.
In Kali Yuga, as far as curses and blessings are concerned, the power of the curses is mostly lost in Kali Yuga. Because the human life is largely diverged from the subtle aspects of living. The power to curse or the power to bless.
These are subtle powers. So, when people live at gross material levels of consciousness, then they lose connection with subtle powers. That’s why, today, most people don’t have the power to curse.
Of course, that does not mean that we should invite curses. Definitely not. We don’t want bad wishes from anyone.
But, in general, Prabhupada, if somebody would curse, Prabhupada would quote that saying of a vulture going in the sky and the vulture wants to eat a cow. But the cow is strong and healthy. So, the vulture curses the cow.
Die, so that I can eat you. So, it’s just because of the curse of a vulture, the cow is not going to die. So, like that, people may curse, but if we are trying to do the right thing, then we don’t have to worry much about the curses.
But different from curses are offences. So, curses means somebody is angry with us and that person curses. Offences means that we do something which is displeasing.
And then, that can become offensive. So, we have to be cautious about that. We don’t have to be paranoid about offences also.
It’s not that Krishna is waiting to catch us, commit an offence and punish us. Krishna is a loving God. But still, we show our sensitivity and our devotion by being attentive and respectful to those whom Krishna loves.
So, we try to avoid offences, but we don’t have to be paranoid about curses. Blessings, definitely. Blessings may not lead to gross material result, like Rishi may bless and suddenly a palace may manifest or something like that.
That may not happen. But as far as spiritual powers are concerned, blessings can help us in our spiritual path tremendously. It can help us increase our attraction to Krishna.
Guruji, Krishna says in Bhagavad Gita that these four varnas, they are as per qualities. But here, even though Karna had that Kshatriya quality, So, the question is, I understood if you don’t mind, you can correct me if needed. So, Karna had the qualities, then why was he not considered to be a Kshatriya? Yes.
So, in the fourth chapter in the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna says that, that by the power of time, the original spiritual knowledge gets lost. And, now Krishna is saying, this has happened at his time. That means, what Krishna is saying is, at the time of the Mahabharata, the original spiritual culture that was meant to be there, is not there.
So, even the Mahabharata times are not the times of the ideal spiritual culture. Things have deviated at that time also. So, every age has its blind spots.
It has its problems. And often it is through the blind spots and the problems of the at age that our karmic reactions come to us. And living with integrity even amongst those circumstances is the essential test of life.
Yes. So, it was that, by that time itself, the caste system had become stratified to some extent. And it is by no means that the Mahabharata situation is the ideal situation.
So, from the Vedic standard of caste by qualities, in the time of the Mahabharata, the social situation had declined. And largely it was caste by birth. So, that was an error which was there and Krishna had come to correct that.
Krishna speaks the Bhagavad Gita and Krishna works to correct that. And especially in the bhakti culture, that caste by birth is definitely opposed. In fact, if you look at history, many exalted bhaktas are persecuted because of that.
So, when we are, say, clarifying misconceptions about Karna, we are not saying that what happened in the Mahabharata was all right. There was a particular age, every age if you see throughout history, no age is perfect. In the material world, nothing is perfect.
No time is perfect. So, that time, that problem was there. But even in that problem, everyone has to continue living.
So, the Bhagavata, the Gita doesn’t say that that was the ideal age. It says that things, when Krishna is saying, I come at a time when dharma siglani has happened. Dharma siglani has happened in various ways.
One of the overt ways is that evil kings are ruling. But one of the covert, covert means subtle ways, is that there is a mass misconception about Varna. So, that is what had happened at that time.
That’s something which is a reflection of the declining standards of society, even at the times of Mahabharata. Any other questions? Why Pandavas set off in their journey for heavenly planets instead of Vaikuntha? See, every book has a particular context and a particular focus. See, the Bhagavatam is spoken to a person who is about to die.
At that time, the person is told. So, everything in the Bhagavatam is centred on that. But what is the duty of a person about to die? If you look at the Ramayana, the start, Nijiv Goswami describes this in his Sandarbhas, that if you want to understand the essence of a book, we have to look at its bija shlokas, at its seminal verses, which will tell us what is the essential mood of that book.
In the Ramayana, if we see directly, there are no verses glorifying Ram as the Supreme Lord. There are no prayers to Ram directly in the Ramayana. In the subsequent retellings of Ramayana, they are there.
But in Valmiki Ramayana, they are not there. Why? Because Valmiki Ramayana begins with a bija prashna. That is, Valmiki is asking his Guru Narad Muni, is there an ideal person? And he lists many qualities.
Is there any person who exhibits these qualities? And then, Narad Muni replies that, yes, there is. He is Ram. Similarly, if we look at the Mahabharata, the Mahabharata has a particular context.
And in that context, the Mahabharata demonstrates Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha. It primarily demonstrates how by living according to Dharma, even in this world, materially one will attain prosperity. So, for that purpose, what the Mahabharata demonstrates, that the Pandavas, after they do their dharmic duties, then they ascend to heavens.
So, we cannot divorce what is told in a particular book from the purpose of that book. So, then now we may question like, Amma, what happened to the Pandavas actually? So, did they actually go to Vaikuntha or did they go to Swarga? So, the Mahabharata describes, there is a whole parva called Swarga Rohan Parva, that is the last parva of the Mahabharata. So, they ascend to Swarga.
But, we understand that the pastimes of the Lord don’t happen only once. So, whenever there is a Bheda, Vishwanath Chakravarthy explains that this Bheda happens because the Lord’s pastimes unfold in different ways. So, in one particular Kalpa, the Pandavas exemplify Dharmarthakama and they go to heavens.
And in the Bhagavatam is describing another Pandava, another history of the Pandavas at another time, when they set off and they go back to the spiritual world. So, both happen and both happen at different times. And both demonstrate different principles of Dharma.
So, for those who are primarily interested in material religiosity, Dharmarthakama, Moksha, then the Mahabharata demonstrates that. For those who want to demonstrate Dharmaprojita kaitavotra paramo nirmatsaranaam satnaam There is no need for material religiosity. We want to focus only on love for God.
Then the Bhagavatam demonstrates that also. Thank you very much. Thank you very much.