When God Fails – The Bhakti Message in Krishna’s Peace Messenger Pastime

Transcript

This is an AI-generated transcript and may contain some errors.
Thank you very much for your kind attention for the last four days.
Hare Krishna. I welcome all of you to the Sunday program. Today we will discuss on the topic of when God fails, when God fails.
So the subtitle is the Bhakti message in Krishna’s peace messenger pastime. Now, God has several defining attributes. Three of them are his omnipotence, his omniscience and his omnipresence.
The word omni means all and it is related with other similar references to God in other religions also. There is Ameen, Amen, Om. All these come from the same root which indicate everything.
That which can subsume, subsume means includes and extends beyond. That which subsumes everything. So God is omnipotent.
He is supremely powerful. He is omniscient. He knows everything.
And he is omnipresent. He is everywhere. Now atheists argue that there is an intrinsic contradiction in the attributes of God.
They say omniscience and omnipotence are mutually contradictory. How? They say if God knows the future, then the future is set out like a railway track. It’s set.
And God can’t change it. And if he can change it, then he can’t know it. So either he is omniscient or he is omnipotent.
He cannot be both omniscient and omnipotent. So if he knows it, he can’t change it. If he can change it, then he can know it.
So the point is that God’s attributes are not like, say now this particular object, book holder. It has some height. It has width, height, breadth.
God’s attributes are not frozen like the dimensions of this world. Sometimes a person may be very tall. And now sometimes other people feel this person is so tall.
But then that person every time maybe enters some door or wherever, bumps his head against the wall, the person is stuck with the height. All the time. So Krishna is never stuck with any of his attributes.
His attributes are not frozen. Underlying his omniscience and his omnipotence is a more fundamental quality. That is his omnibenevolence.
Benevolence means to do good to others. Omnibenevolence means to do good to everyone. So Krishna is fundamentally omnibenevolent.
As he says in 5.29, Surudham Sarvabhootaanam. The well-wisher of all living beings. And as he is omnibenevolent, he may sometimes for the purpose of his omnibenevolence, manifest his omniscience and sometimes he may manifest his omnipotence.
And sometimes he may manifest neither. So Krishna, his fundamental purpose is not to stamp his authority on everyone else. Sometimes some people are very egomaniac.
As soon as they come, they should know. Everybody should know that I have come. In order that I have come, everybody should know who I am.
So Krishna is not that kind of person. Krishna is interested primarily in reciprocating love. And for the sake of reciprocating love, whenever required he may manifest his omniscience, whenever required he may manifest his omnipotence.
So we see this in the Kurukshetra war when Duryodhana incited Bhishma and made him infuse this power in five arrows in which he was going to kill the five Pandavas. Duryodhana ensured that nobody else was there when this exchange happened. So nobody else would know.
But still Bhishma knew. And then Krishna sent Arjuna and he took the five arrows. And when Duryodhana was asked for the five arrows, Arjuna didn’t worry about the five arrows.
He said, Krishna, in a pointless feast of frustration, Krishna comes to know. He thought he is really God. But Krishna wants to manifest his omniscience.
Sometimes when he wants, when Arjuna had gone on the 14th day, right near the target Jayadratha. But in the last moment, Duryodhana arranged for eight Maharathas to come and attack Arjuna. Duryodhana, Dushyasana, Shalva, Kripa, Ashvatthama, Dronacharya, along with Karna, Deva and Dhrishtha.
So all of them actually attacked. Because Dhrishtha was later killed. But the point is Krishna saw that Arjuna was not going to reach.
So what did Krishna do? He manifested his omniscience. And he covered the sun. Something which nobody can do.
So Krishna, whenever he wants, he may manifest whichever of his opulence is required, whichever of his qualities is required. And in some situations, he may not manifest anything. So the Shanti Doodh pastime is a pastime where God apparently thinks.
Krishna went to try to broker peace. And his efforts were achieved. So apparently he failed.
As God is omnipotent, how can God fail? He can’t fail. But for God, the standard of success is higher than failure and success at the material vision. So, let’s try to understand this extraordinary pastime where God apparently failed.
He actually succeeded in some great ways. The Mahabharata has 18 parvas in which the war is described in the 6th to 10th parvas. So 6th parva is the Bhishma parva.
That was 10 days he was the commander. And before that, the 5th parva is the Udyoga parva. The 1st is the Adi parva.
2nd is the Sabha parva, where this roving of Draupadi happens. The 3rd is the Vanvasa parva, Aranya parva, where the Pandavas are in exile. The 4th is the Virata parva, where the Pandavas stay incognito in the kingdom of Virata.
And then the 5th is the Udyoga parva. So this Shanti Doodh pastime happens in the Udyoga parva. Udyoga means enterprise.
So, it shows, the external understanding is that all the Pandavas and the Kauravas, they were enterprising and getting an army so that they could fight the war. But the real enterprise was they were trying their best to avoid the war. Many people find it uncomfortable that Krishna is a God who incites a peace loving person, Arjuna, to fight a war.
So why would God want to cause bloodshed? And why would God speak a philosophy in order that bloodshed will happen? Actually speaking, Krishna’s primary message is not that we should fight a war. Krishna’s primary message is that one should establish dharma. And whatever is required for that is to be done.
But if we look at the full context in which the Bhagavad Gita is spoken, then we see not only what Krishna speaks to Arjuna in the Bhagavad Gita, we also see what Krishna speaks before that. And Krishna exerts himself in the fullest, not just Krishna but all the Pandavas, to try to avoid war. So, at the end of the Virata Parva, the incognito 13th year ends, and there is a war between Arjuna and all the Kuru elders.
And Arjuna single-handedly holds them back. They are repulsed and they go back, fortified. Then, in celebration that Virata’s kingdom has been saved from this aggression, Virata offers his daughter to Arjuna, Uttara.
And Arjuna says that actually, I was treating her like my student. So, she is like a daughter to me. So, let her marry my son, Abhimanyu.
And then when Abhimanyu and Uttara’s marriage happens, in celebration of that, there are various kings from various places. So, Krishna and Dwaraka has also come over there. And at that time, they have a summit meeting and they discuss what is the plan.
So, Drupada has also come there, meeting Virata’s kingdom, and then they decide that we should give peace to Jyotsana. So, Drupada says, my minister, my Brahmin minister is very learned and very expert. So, I will send him as a messenger and ask for fair resolution.
You have lived for 13 years as per the terms of the gambling match. Now, your kingdom should be given back. So, at that time, various other kings, they say Duryodhana is evil personified.
He is not going to agree. They say, fine, but we should do our part. Then they agree and Krishna goes back to Dwaraka.
He says, whenever any further developments happen, you let me know. And then Drupada’s messenger goes and he gives a strong message. And Duryodhana is completely adamant.
He refuses to hear. So, Dhritarashtra says, I have heard your message. And I will send my message in response back to Sanjay.
And then when Sanjay goes, essentially Dhritarashtra tells him, tells the Pandavas, see, ultimately you will become this minister. If anyone, actually in the Vedic culture, if anyone becomes a Ganesha, afterwards anyone has to become Vanaprastha. You are so fortunate, you are already Vanaprastha.
Why do you want to become Ganesha? So, this is manipulating Dharma for one’s own ulterior purposes. And then he tries to take Yudhishthira on a guilt ride. He says, Yudhishthira, you are such a virtuous person.
I cannot believe that you will become the cause of the death of countless warriors of the world, including your own elders. So, please act in a way that peace will be maintained. So, Krishna is there at that time.
Krishna has come back. So, before this, although the message is going on, both the parties know that war is going to happen. So, they are both going to different sides to get forces.
And both Arjuna and Duryodhana have gone to Dwarka. And Arjuna has got Krishna and Duryodhana has got the Narayana Sena. And Krishna has come here to Virata’s kingdom again.
And then he says, Yudhishthira says to him, what makes you think that I want to do that? He says, actually, as a Kshatriya, it’s my dharma to rule. And he says, you are so little depriving me of my duty. What I want is what is expected from me.
I am my duty. And it is not that I want war. The decision for war and peace is not in my hands.
It is in your hands. Because it is you who have taken our kingdom. And it is you who have to decide whether you will give the kingdom or not.
So, Krishna says that, actually, it is Duryodhana who is behind this whole disaster. And unless Duryodhana is righted, there will be no peace that comes. So, I am not going to the whole discussion.
Because our focus is later. But I am just giving the background. So, he goes back and Sanjay is convincing.
Sanjay tries to convince Dhritarashtra. And as Sanjay is departing, Krishna says that I will myself go as a peace messenger. And I will try to broker peace.
So, after Sanjay departs, Krishna meets with the Pandavas. Draupadi is also there. And then the Pandavas themselves say, Krishna says, if you do good, Krishna, you can attain peace.
But I doubt it very much. So, Krishna says that, yes, I also know. Duryodhana is not likely to listen.
But I want to demonstrate to the world that my devotees, you Pandavas are virtuous. And your virtue should not be spoiled in any way. So, your good name should not be spoiled in any way.
Therefore, I will go. And then, when the Kauravas hear that Krishna is going to come. So, at that time, Dhritarashtra, he makes a move.
He says, we will give Krishna a magnificent reception. The kind of reception that is reserved only for the world emperor. And by this reception, we will win him over to us.
So, Bhishma smiles. Bhishma says, Krishna sees beyond externals to internals. He says, Krishna will not be attracted by your reception if your intention is not honest.
You want to deprive him of what belongs to his devotees. He will not be successful. So, Duryodhana says, I have got a better plan.
When Krishna comes along, I will have him arrested. And if I arrest him, then the odds will change dramatically. And the Pandavas will be so shaken at the loss of Arjuna that they may decide not to fight also.
Anyway, with Krishna as a prisoner, I can even use Krishna as a hostage. So, they hear this. Everybody in the assembly is shocked.
So, Dhritarashtra says, what are you speaking? He says, a messenger who comes should always be treated honourably. And what to speak of somebody who is as exalted as Krishna? He is a great person. He is our relative.
And he has never done us any harm. What you are thinking is dastardly. Bhishma is enraged.
He doesn’t even feel it worth speaking to Duryodhana. Dhritarashtra says, your son, what he is intending will cause his ultimate destruction. I don’t want to hear even one word of this.
So, at this point, Duryodhana is a little cautioned by the strong reaction he gets. He holds on to his plan, but he keeps his plan in suspension. And he says he will play along with the plan of his father to give a nice reception to Krishna.
And then Yudhisthira gives a message to Krishna and Krishna starts off. So, Krishna starts off from Virata’s kingdom and he comes to Hastinapur. When he reaches Hastinapur, at that time all the Puru elders are there to receive him.
And Duryodhana has planned that he will offer the best palace in the whole city to Krishna. And the best palace is the palace of Dushyasana. So, Duryodhana, he has his own ways by which he used to endear people to himself.
And then use those people. So, he admitted, I am not selfish. I am selfless.
Don’t think that I don’t love my brothers and cousins. See, I have made a better palace for my brother than for myself. But what about other brothers? He deprived them not only of the palace, but about everything.
So, when Krishna came, he welcomed him and he said, O Krishna, we are arranging a royal feast for you and prasadams in Dushyasana’s palace. Please accept this prasadam. So, Krishna agreed.
Reason is, I will not accept your prasadam. So, Duryodhana becomes slightly angry. He controls his anger and says, See, you are equal to us and the Pandavas, then why are you taking such risks? We are offering you hospitality.
Don’t snub us like this. Krishna says, one person eats at the house of another person in two situations. One is, if that person is hungry and second is, if there is affection between the two.
Krishna says, I am not hungry and because you have wronged the Pandavas, there is no affection between us. Therefore, I will not eat. And then he goes to the palace of Vidura.
He says, I will stay at Vidura’s palace. All the other Kuru elders come and also offer their palace for residence. Krishna says, no, I will go to Vidura’s place.
And then, you know, the famous pastime happens in Vidura’s house. And after that, Krishna comes back and stays over there also. And that night, when Vidura is serving Krishna, they are talking.
Vidura says, O Krishna, I am hungry. Krishna says, I fear that in the same assembly, just as Draupadi was dishonored, this famous Duryodhana will try to dishonor you. And anyway, he is so obstinate.
He is not going to listen to you. So, why should you go there and be dishonored in this way? There is no need for that. And Krishna smiles.
And he says, when we see a friend who is going off a cliff, we may have to catch him by the hair and drag him back. So, he says, Duryodhana is taking a course that is going to lead to destruction. Not just his own destruction, but a destruction to him.
And he says, actually, if we do a virtuous act, even if we don’t succeed, just doing the virtuous act brings credit. And it will maintain the dignity of Duryodhana. Therefore, I will go.
The next morning, still Duryodhana is playing the strategy of being a friend. So, he comes himself with Shakuni to Vidura’s palace. And he says, I have come to take you to the assembly.
So, Krishna says, yes, I understand. He gives charity to the Brahmins. And when he comes, Krishna deliberately refuses to ascend Duryodhana’s chariot.
He comes in the chariot of Vidura itself. And Krishna has actually come with another Vrishni prince, that is Satyaki. And Krita Varman is a Yadu prince.
But he has, along with Narayana Sena, he was the commander of Narayana Sena. So, he has also come to cover up. So, there are two Yadus here with him.
One of them has travelled with Krishna, that is Satyaki. So, Satyaki, Krita Varman and Krishna are there. And they all go to the assembly.
And as soon as they enter the assembly, Dhritarashtra offers him a royal seat. And then Krishna looks up and he says, Okay, here all the great sages have assembled. How can any of us sit before they have been offered seats? Then Parashuram, Narada, Kanwar, all these great sages come.
They are worshipped and they are offered proper seats. And then, Krishna is honored and Krishna says, He says that, Okay, let no heroes, either on the side of the Kauravas or the Pandavas, be killed. Let there be peace among both parties.
That is my desire and that is my message. I don’t have anything more to say. So, actually Krishna, we will see in Vedic culture, it is a general discussion principle also.
Sam, Tam, Ved and Nanda. These four strategies are used. Reconciliation, then temptation, then there is castigation and then there is division.
Of course, castigation is last. So, there is reconciliation. So, Krishna first decides to reconcile.
He says, I have nothing more to say. This is all I have to say. But this I will elaborate.
And then he is speaking to Dhrashtra. So, he says, Okay, you are the father of not just the Kauravas, but also the Pandavas. When the brother’s sons become one’s own sons, then the brother passes away.
And they deserve your love and protection just as Kauravas do. And even if you want to rule the world, how much better allies can you have for ruling the world than the virtues and the power of Pandavas? He says, peace depends on both of us. You control Duryodhana and I will take care of the Pandavas.
And they will serve you like your sons. And you will be able to rule the world. I would like to convey Vishnu’s message to you.
Vishnu says that, as per the terms of the gambling match, we have spent our 13 years in the forest. And now we await your future orders. Please treat us the way you treated your own sons.
And we treat you as our father. And if you see us remiss in any of our duties, please do not hesitate to come to us. Vishnu is the personification of humility even now, even after such provocation.
And at this point Yathrashtra feels embarrassed. Yathrashtra is an example of attachment. In its nadi, which is the lowest point.
Sometimes some people are so attached. Duryodhana, Yathrashtra actually has to lose everything before he loses his blindness. He has to lose everything before he loses his blindness.
Not his physical blindness. He never loses that. He never regains that.
But the spiritual blindness, Navic. Spiritual blindness doesn’t mean that we can’t see the spiritual form of Krishna. That’s one way.
But spiritual blindness simply means we are not able to see the consequences of our actions. That is what Jnana Suksha helps us to do. Even common morality helps us to do.
So Yathrashtra had to lose everything before he lost his blindness. There are parallels. Just as there was in the Mahabharata and the Ramayana that there is the side of the virtuous and the side of the vicious.
But in both, there are on the side of the vicious also somebody who is virtuous. In the Ramayana, it’s Vibhishan. In the Mahabharata, it’s Vidura.
Of course, Bhishma and Drona are also there. But specifically, Vibhishan, what he does is he sort of defects over and comes to the side of the virtuous. Lord Rama’s side.
And he fights against the Rakshasas, against Rama. Now, there is one person who does that sort of defection. And that is, Ulluka is the 101st son of Dhritarashtra, through a maidservant.
And he says that just before the war, he comes over to the side of the Pandavas. And it is he who performs the last rites of the Kauravas after the war gets over. But Vidura, he doesn’t defect over to the side of the Pandavas.
The reason for that is, if we see in the Ramayana, the major villain is totally evil. That is Ravana. Whereas, in the Mahabharata, there are actually both of them, Dhritarashtra and Duryodhana.
Duryodhana is the main villain. Dhritarashtra is the king in power. Duryodhana is in many ways irredeemable.
He is incorrigible. He cannot be reformed. But Dhritarashtra is reformable.
And Dhritarashtra was so attached to his sons, that till the attachment was hopelessly frustrated, his eyes would not open. But even after the attachment was hopelessly frustrated, if Vidura had been a part of the killing of the Kauravas, then that attachment would have blinded him to hear from Vidura. So Vidura doesn’t fight against the Kauravas.
And later on when Vidura comes back, and at that time, he is able to hear. So actually there is the 15th parva in the Mahabharata, Ashramavasa. It is Ashramavasika parva.
Ashramavasika parva is when Vidura comes and instructs Dhritarashtra, and he renounces the world. So anyway, the point which I was making over here is, Dhritarashtra is attached, and only after he loses everything, then he loses his mind. Now all of us, our attachments cause a lot of suffering, whatever the different attachments might be.
But we don’t lose everything, we lose our needs. That’s what Dhritarashtra had to do. So Dhritarashtra feels embarrassed, but he is torn between his attachment and his conscience.
His conscience tells him, this is wrong. But the attachment tells him, that’s not right. That’s not love.
When we are attached to someone, the difference between attachment and affection, is that affection helps us to raise the other person up. Whereas attachment pulls us down. So when we are affectionate to someone, that affection helps that person to come up.
But when we are attached, then that attachment becomes a tool, by which that person manipulates us. So that’s what Dhritarashtra was expert at, making people attached to him, and then manipulating them. So here, Dhritarashtra feels really bad.
So he talks about Sanam, and he sees that he is not hearing it. Then he offers dharma. He says, even if you want to be the king of the world, and even if you don’t want to give up, the Pandavas half of the kingdom, at least, give five villages.
Give five villages to the Pandavas. They will be satisfied with that. I will make sure that you will still exert this.
So when Krishna’s speech is speaking to this, at that time, all the Kauravas, in the assembly, they couldn’t do this. Duryodhana is not paying any attention. He is just waiting for everything to get over.
He is realizing that this first strategy is not going to work. I am just waiting for the second strategy. So, at that time, Dhritarashtra says, he says, oh Krishna, I fully agree with what you are saying, but I am not the master of this.
Please speak to Duryodhana. See if you can convince him. India has, for eight years, this example of one person in the chair, and another person in power.
So, then Krishna turns toward Duryodhana, and he starts speaking. He says, oh Duryodhana, I speak only to your girl. You, want to rule the kingdom? You can be the ruler of half of the kingdom that belongs to you.
Can the Pandavas have their own rule? He says, Duryodhana, I say, you know what Duryodhana says? Do you think you can possibly conquer all the Pandavas? Now, Krishna starts using, he says, Duryodhana is not going to listen. So, then he decides, at least, let me create factions, so that when Duryodhana sees that people on his side are becoming weak, maybe we can use it. Arjuna, a noble, he defeated all the gods at Khandava.
The long story, at Khandava, when Akhila wanted the fire, he won the war. He said, all alone, he defeated all the gods. And later on, when Indra gave him the weapons, he defeated all alone the Danavas.
The whole Nivat Kavachas, he single-handedly defeated. And even if you arrogantly think, that your army is stronger than the army of the Danavas, or the army of the Devatas, still Arjuna single-handedly defeated your entire army also. At Virat.
So, what hope do you have, for victory, when one member of the opposition can defeat your entire army? So, at this point, at Khandava, the Kauravas start becoming uncomfortable. And in seeing this, Vishnu says, actually, if we go against the Pandavas, there is going to be only one result. We are all going to die.
Dronacharya gets up and says, No, even if Duryodhana, you think, that, you can defeat the Pandavas, still, stronger than is Keshava. Nobody can defeat Keshava. In the Mahabharata, the word used to refer to Krishna is more Keshava.
Krishna is more of affectionate name. Mahabharata is about Keshava. Nobody can defeat Keshava.
At this point, when he speaks, Vidura says, Oh Duryodhana, I will not speak to you. He says, I only feel pity for your parents. Because, in just a short while, they will have to wander on the earth, homeless, childless, all because of your absence.
Duryodhana by this time is seething in rage. He says, I have to keep a peace of my mind. Why does everyone blame me? Even after great introspection, I don’t see even the slightest fault in whatever I have done.
Nobody forced the Pandavas to gamble. In a gambling match, Yudhisthira chose to gamble and he lost everything. And, they were supposed to live for one year incognito and they were detected before the one year got over.
And that’s why they have to stay in the forest. And actually, what had happened was, there are these different calendars, so like Gita Jayanti was day before yesterday, according to one calendar, one day before that. So, this diversity in calendars were because there were Smartha calendars and Vishnu calendars.
So, there was a calendar dispute between Bhishma and Duryodhana. When Arjuna came out, and that battle was happening in Virat, Arjuna told them it was Brihananda. And then he came out, so at that time, Bhishma said, Arjuna has come now that the period is over.
But Duryodhana said, the period is not over. So then, while they were preparing for battle, Duryodhana and Bhishma had a heated discussion. And Bhishma thoroughly proved by logic, actually, the one year incognito period is over.
But Duryodhana still didn’t accept that. So, Madhavacharya in Mahabharata analyzes, what was the reasoning that Duryodhana gave, and how that reasoning was wrong. And then he saw that nobody is ready to listen to this.
He says, actually, Dhritharashtra, Dhritharashtra was the actual inheritor. And it was by mistake that the kingdom was given to the Pandavas. So, he says, that mistake has been corrected, and now there is no need to commit another mistake.
Anyway, everyone acts according to their nature. And one’s nature is given to one by God. So, if I act according to my nature, why should you blame me? The idea that everybody acts according to their nature, that cannot be misused to act according to one’s lower nature.
There is a lower nature and a higher nature. So, we have been given whatever we have been given, but along with that we have been given choice. And scriptures tell us how to develop our higher nature and how to control our lower nature.
So, when Duryodhana starts becoming self-righteous, he says, I have not done any wrong. Krishna answers him. Oh, why no one? It was you who arranged that rigged gambling match in which against the codes of gambling, one person was throwing the dice and another was putting the stakes.
If that was not cheating, what was it? And who other than you could have dishonored your brother’s wife the way you did to Draupadi? Draupadi is chaste, she is religious, she is well behaved, she is faithful. After doing all this, the clear innocence is simply arrogance. For the deeds that you have done, you deserve to die.
But it is the graciousness of the Pandavas that they are giving you an alternative. But you obviously do not deserve that alternative. You desire the endless sleep of a hero and you will get it soon.
So, at that time, seeing Krishna’s anger, everybody becomes pissed. So, Harshuram, another angry person, he is there among the sages, he gets up. He says, listen, as I tell you an ancient story.
So, in Padrika Ashram, Nar and Narayan, they were performing austerities. And there was at that time a ruler of the world, a king, who was very proud. His name was Dambhodbhava.
And this Dambhodbhava, he was going all around searching for a worthy king to fight with. And finally, he went to Padrika Ashram and he challenged Narayan. And Narayan told him, this is the place for performing austerities and doing Dharma.
Come here, forget your fighting. Perform austerities. I have not come here to perform austerities.
Fight. If you are not interested, then I will attack you anyway. I want to fight.
So, very excited, he says, bring your army, bring your weapons, let us fight. And then he brought his army and Narayan just took some kusha grass which was there nearby. He picked it up and he infused it with the power of mantra and sangita.
As he threw it, that kusha grass expanded into an endless array of arrows. And right in front of the eyes of Dambhodbhava, his whole army was cut down. And Dambhodbhava using all his military skills and all his weapons, he was fully countered.
Jesus, forgive me, I surrender, I surrender. And then Narayan and Narayan were smiling and then they said, this is so foolish one, do not become proud of this. Then Vaishnava looked at Duryodhana in the eyes and he said, that Narayan is much more powerful.
Narayan is even more powerful than Nara. And that is Vaishnava. If you do not hear his words, he will go to hell.
So at that time, Narada turns around. Narada gets up and he says, he tells another story. About how obstinacy and arrogance can lead to destruction.
And then Narada, he said, Kanva comes. Kanva, he says, actually one who tries to fight against the Pandavas is like a person who is trying to cross a ocean by taking shelter of a stone. It is like that.
So at that time, Duryodhana gets so angry, he just strides out of the assembly. So after this, Duryodhana starts to call Gandhari. He says, maybe Gandhari will be able to persuade Duryodhana.
So then Gandhari comes along. Gandhari, when she, Prabhupada arrives in the Bhagavatam, she is a big fan of Duryodhana. And she does not mince words.
Before she speaks to Duryodhana, she speaks to Dhritarashtra. She says, when Duryodhana is given to greed and envy, and that he has done such terrible deeds, okay, you are also responsible for it. Because you allowed it.
Dhritarashtra feels all the more motivated. He thought he will be on my side and he will support me. You are chastising me in public.
But he just maintains his control himself. And he says, please speak to Duryodhana. And he says, summon Duryodhana back.
Duryodhana comes back enraged. And Duryodhana comes in. He says, Gandhari speaks to Duryodhana.
He says, oh sir, I care for you very dearly. No one cares for me anymore. He says, I love you and I want to be with you.
And Gandhari, she is an extraordinary lady because she is in her own way virtuous but she is caught on one side between the vicious and the other side between the impotent, the weak. So, when she has heard about how grievously Draupadi had been dishonored in the royal assembly, she is horrified at the evil wickedness of Duryodhana. But still, he is her son.
So, she tried to make him see sense and make him sense. For the 14 years that the Gandharas were in forest, Gandhari was performing austerities. And as a way of trying to atone for the grievous sins of her son.
She knew that the sons were going to have to bear the consequences. But still, she was doing austerities to atone. And she said, you want to rule the world, but know that your desire to rule the world will not lead to satisfaction.
Because, one can never be satisfied unless one learns to rule oneself. If your desires are uncontrolled, no matter how much control you get, that control will never lead to satisfaction. First, learn to control yourself.
Now, when Krishna, Narada, all the great sages are urging you to desist from war, please exert some self-control and listen to them. Do not give in to your lower nature and learn and make your loved one take She makes a heartfelt appeal of her mother to her child. When she finishes speaking, Duryodhana is so insolent, he just walks away.
So, at that time, Nandhari turns to Dhritarashtra. Now, the only thing that is left is, only Dhritarashtra can decide. So, Krishna turns to Dhritarashtra and says, okay, you see how this evil Duryodhana, even while people are speaking to him for his benefit, he is so insolent that he is just walking away.
Sometimes, if somebody is speaking and another person is inattentive, that itself is disrespectful. But imagine you are speaking to someone and that person just walks away. So disrespectful.
And what to speak of? Somebody is speaking to someone in a public assembly and while the person is speaking, you turn and walk away. That means, what he is saying is that you, your words are not even worth my time. There are a few things which are as disrespectful as publicly neglecting a respectable person.
You have seen how insolent he is. Now, the choice of war and peace is only in your hands. Just call my son back.
So, at this point, Duryodhana has gone out of his senses. Actually, before this, what happens is, when Krishna speaks, then he uses the tamadam abhed. And that abhed he uses, he says, how can you hope to win against the Pandavas? And he speaks about the promise of the Pandavas.
So, at that time, Dushyasana is also very shaken by this. Because Dushyasana remembers, Bhima has said that he will kill me, he will drink my blood and he will cut my hand. See, all the Pandavas have taken very fierce promises, but this promise of Bhima against Dushyasana was especially brutal.
So, they also speak, they also not only speak about Arjuna’s power, but he says about how Bhima who has single-handedly killed so many big Rakshasas, he has killed Baka, he has killed Kilmira, he has killed Idumba, he has killed Kichaka, and he is sweating. So, at that time, Dushyasana in the public assembly only says, Oh, Duryodhana, if you don’t give the kingdom, then we will tie your hands and legs and we will give you only to the Pandavas. So, when Dushyasana speaks this, at that time, you know, there is a shock.
Duryodhana is enraged. How can Dushyasana speak like this? And then he just walks out. He walks out.
Then the remaining ninety-eight brothers are caught between two brothers. What to do? They look at Dushyasana, they look at Duryodhana and they start walking away. And then Dushyasana says, everybody has gone, I am alone.
He also goes. So, now when Duryodhana goes out, he says, Dushyasana, since now, he doesn’t just try Dushyasana, he is even cleverer. He seems to be warning Duryodhana.
Krishna is very sly. He can, with his words, turn anyone’s mind around. Isn’t that what he did to you, Dushyasana? Dushyasana sees a way out of his mortification.
I thought that Duryodhana just tries to speak against me. But what Duryodhana does is, very cunningly, he says, Krishna is so sly. Yes, Krishna is very sly.
So, Dushyasana gets a way out. And therefore, Duryodhana says, what we should do is, we should arrest Krishna. And then, he is called in again.
And he is called in. At that time, Duryodhana is also angry by this time. He says, O you of evil conduct, listen to your elders.
Everybody is telling you to have peace. Listen. Duryodhana is still suffering.
The elders are waiting for him. Duryodhana says, if you do not listen to what Krishna is telling you, you will be destroyed. Our whole dynasty will be destroyed.
So, at that time, Duryodhana glares at Krishna. He is responsible for, you know, he is always thinking that I can manipulate my father all the time. He is taking it.
Why is everybody taking the words of this Yadava so highly? Krishna is just relaxed, smiling. And he signals to one of his commanders. And Krishna is sitting with Sakthika.
Actually, Krishna and Karna, sorry, Duryodhana and Karna are sitting on the same throne. And Krishna and Sakthika are sitting on the same throne. Sakthika sees Duryodhana’s signal.
And Sakthika turns to Duryodhana. Sorry, he turns to Krishna and he says, I think Duryodhana is going to try something. So, actually, now when Duryodhana had spoken that I will arrest Krishna, this means he had already come to Krishna.
Krishna said that, I am not afraid. At that time, they just laughed it off. So, now Krishna says, Sakthika says this, tell Dhritarashtra, let us see what he does.
So, Sakthika says, Okay, your son seems to be about to do a most unspeakably vile act. He seems to be planning to arrest Krishna. So, at that time, Dhritarashtra says, You fool, you can never arrest Krishna.
Stop this plan at once. So, at that time, Duryodhana still remained unsolved. So, Krishna started laughing.
Let him try. Maybe this is the way I can settle. We don’t want a war.
Let there be no war. I will destroy all the Kauravas right now. So, then, Dhritarashtra becomes alarmed.
Oh, calm down. So, then Krishna says, do not worry. I will not do anything that will cause censure.
So, I have already said that I am not going to pick up weapons. I will not pick up weapons. Actually, why does Krishna not pick up weapons? What has happened is that Krishna comes from Vrindavan, then he goes to Mathura, kills Kamsa and then he goes around killing demons.
The last demon he kills is Dantavakra. Actually, that fight with Dantavakra happens in Mathura area. And after killing Dantavakra, Krishna goes back to Vrindavan.
And while going to Vrindavan, Krishna puts his weapons and he goes to Vrindavan, he reunites with the Vrajavasis for two months and then he takes all the Vrajavasis back to his country. And then after that, this war is happening. So, at this war, he says, now, I have put aside my weapons.
I will not use any more weapons. That’s why Krishna has said, I will not use any weapons. He says, I will not do anything that will invite censure.
Let this Duryodhana try what he wants. Duryodhana has arrested him. He has sent him to all the sites.
Hundreds of soldiers with all their weapons covered. So, actually, when Duryodhana had made his plan to arrest Krishna, so, Karna told him, I don’t think you will be able to arrest Krishna. And Krishna is very powerful.
Since even as a small child, big, big demons had come to attack him and he defeated all of them. So, what had happened with Karna was, in one sense, Karna and Dhritarashtra both suffered from the same malice. From the same weakness, that is attachment.
So, the attachment of Dhritarashtra and Duryodhana was from birth. But Karna was slightly more on the wrong side because Karna’s attachment to Duryodhana was for his students. And Karna is a classic or tragic example of how a virtuous person can become vicious because of attachment to a vicious person.
So, a virtuous person can become vicious because of attachment to a vicious person. In fact, that is what happens many times when students go to colleges or people start working in terms of because of peer pressure. They have some social circle which is bad and then there is Karna.
So, there are many instances in the Mahabharata where Karna is about to mortify and Duryodhana is the coming message of Karna for the mortification from the younger Asuras. And that’s why, although Karna doesn’t want to do evil things, but still he is obliged to go along with them. So, because Duryodhana will not succeed in winning against the in arresting Krishna.
So, Karna is there and Duryodhana doesn’t use his own weapons. He has all his soldiers to charge along. And as the soldiers come charging in, suddenly Krishna laughs.
And as he laughs, thunder sounds in the heavens. It’s as if thunder is falling on the earth. And then lightning strikes Krishna.
Krishna expands in his size. His form becomes giant and the pores of his body become smoke, spark and fire. And Krishna’s eyes become large and blazing.
From his forehead emerges Krishna. From his chest emerges Shiva. On his shoulders appear the four Lokapalas.
Indra, Kubera, Vayu and Yamaraja. From his mouth appears Agni. From his right eye appears Balaram.
From his left eye appears Arjuna. Both of them come and stand next to him. Suddenly, all around him, all the Devtas appear.
The Andharvas, the Kings, the Rishis, all of them appear. Then just behind, Yudhishthira and the twins appear. Behind them, the Andhakas, the Vrishnis headed by Pradyumna.
Then right next to Krishna, all his weapons appear in personified form. And the twins tumult us. And as the whole assembly is in uproar, the size of this gigantic form stuns the invading soldiers.
All that paralyzed. And at that time, Guru Dhana is completely astonished and uses this giant form. Yudhishthira asks, What happened? When Gopi had been gambled, or about to be gambled, he was asking, Is the prince’s one? Is the prince’s one? Now he asks, What happened? He is told that Krishna is Shiva’s universal form.
He says, O Krishna, you are forever doing the good of all living beings. Please, allow me to have darshan of this form. Krishna says, Krishna, he says, at least if he sees this form, then he will change his mind and he will come to all the world.
So, he is now in Krishna’s form. So, it’s a mystical vision. The Vishvarupa which Krishna shows is one of the most mystical visions that is revealed in any of the literature.
Now it is described how Moses saw God but he saw him as a burning bush and that burning bush which is going to be a forest, he saw that bush is burning, he thought it’s a forest fire. And as the bush kept burning and burning and burning, when the fire went off, God exhausted him. That was the vision he got.
When Mohammed is supposed to have ascended to heaven, there he saw previous prophets and then he saw dazzling light which is supposed to be anything. So, in the various English traditions of the world, there are many mystical visions that people have had. But in no religious literature anywhere in the world there is any description like this.
Universal form. There is an entire universe which is presently in this form. The universal form is a vision.
The Virata Purusha, the Virata Rupa, it’s not eternal. In the spiritual world, there is no Vishvarupa Loka. There is no Vishvarupa Loka in the spiritual world.
This is a vision that Krishna gives at times, whenever it’s required. Krishna gave this vision to many people. And different Vishvarupas that he has shown are having different features.
He showed the Vishvarupa twice to Yashodaman once when she asked him, have you eaten mud? Another time, when she was just opening Krishna’s mouth, Krishna had saffron milk. You see, Krishna has got some teeth. So, twice he showed it to Yashodaman.
Then he showed it to Arjuna also after this. And then after that, he also, after the Kurukshetra war, Bhangarishi, he will show him once to Arjuna. This particular Vishvarupa that he showed, she said, I need that.
And as a stranger, as they just saw this Vishvarupa, in the distance, Krishna’s eyes went wide just to look at her. And then it became obvious that Duryodhana’s attempt to arrest Krishna has failed completely. To arrest Krishna has failed completely.
Krishna laughed. As Vishvarupa’s face was being displayed, stormy winds outside, thunderbolts in the sky. Krishna said, everything will be fine.
Suddenly, everything became calm. And Krishna put his shoulders up and nonchalantly, as if nothing has happened, walked away. And Duryodhana, seeing that his plan has backfired, he also went away.
All the Kauravas went away. And Dhritarashtra’s blindness came back again. Not just the physical blindness, but also the social blindness.
Radhe was there for this. Vishvarupa was there for this. God is there for this.
God always there for this. But then, the nature of attachment is such that attachment will always make one think, what is Krishna? Duryodhana also thinks, Dhritarashtra also thinks the same way. Is Krishna really gone? I don’t know.
But if Krishna were gone, then how could I have succeeded in sending the Pandavas to the forest? That has succeeded means Krishna is not gone. And Krishna is not gone means I have succeeded. Krishna has succeeded.
Krishna is not gone. Then which means, he decided to depart. And all the Kuruvayurdas came to meet him.
Dhritarashtra came. Dhritarashtra always, throughout the Mahabharata, Dhritarashtra is the character with a guilty conscience but without the willpower to correct the guilty conscience. And what does he say? Oh Krishna, you should not be mean.
You have seen the extent of my power over my son. He doesn’t say. He is too mortified to say that I have no power over my son.
You can see the extent of my power over my son. I have tried my best. This is his audacity.
Dhritarashtra has done nothing. I have tried my best to mimic Dhritarashtra’s Kuruvayurdasi sense. But he is not ready to listen.
So Krishna turns to the Kuru elders and he says, Oh elders, you have seen what I have tried to do. And you have seen the monarch of the world declare that he is helpless. I will now depart.
And we will meet again in Kurukshetra. So, he has to depart. And as Dhritarashtra sees Krishna going away, he knows that the hopes of his son is still surviving.
But still, he is caught, torn between the hope of resisting the unavoidable and hope of longing for the impossible. Resisting the unavoidable, that is the destruction of his sons and longing for the impossible, that is the victory of his sons. And that is Dhritarashtra.
If you know this whole past story, Duryodhana, actually if you know the whole Mahabharata, Duryodhana has no kinds of conscience. Even after what he has done, everything that he has done. The greatest fault, the biggest unconsciousness is unconsciousness of our own faults.
If we are unconscious of our own faults, we have no possibility of correcting it. The person who is sick is not aware of the sickness because he is not aware of the sickness. So, what is cast in the central emphasis of this is that Krishna is forever willing to go out of his way to help the community.
Krishna is the supreme lord and what does he do? He comes to besiege the community represented by Duryodhana to use his free will to help the community. To use his free will to help the community. Because sometimes people say scriptures, they tell us do this, don’t do this.
Scriptures take away our freedom. Scriptures don’t deprive us of freedom. Scriptures save us from depriving ourselves in the name of freedom.
What does it mean? Suppose somebody is drunk and that person has got one crore rupees in his pocket. When a person is drunk, he doesn’t know what he is going to do. And that person takes the one crore rupees and he may just throw it away on a few drinks or throw it away on some gambling stake.
Somebody comes along and says, why are you telling me? I will do what I want to do. Yes, you may be able to do what you want to do but when you are sober, you will do something which will be great for you. So the free will that all of us have, that is when you come out of this.
And all of us have free will and that free will, if it is used properly, it can grant us eternal happiness. Eternal happiness is available if we just can use our free will properly. Although human life is temporary, it can get activated very quickly.
So scripture is all guiding us how to use our free will properly. So Krishna himself comes to the monastery, please do this to yourself. And that is the mission of comparison of Krishna and his devotees.
Nityanand Prabhu, as we know, he will go and fall at the feet of people and say, what is Krishna doing? Actually, Prabhupada went to America and he said, if I go there, you see, America itself is considered degraded from the Vedic culture point of view. Hindus were considered degraded even according to American standards. So, Prabhupada went to them.
Prabhupada went from Vrindavan, which was the capital of devotion, to the Head Ashbury, which was the capital of degradation. And what did he do? He said, again do this to yourself. Please do this to yourself.
Please do that which you are doing good. That is the mission that Krishna has given. And then we have the Vrindavan.
We are appealing to souls. Please, use your freedom. Now, we cannot do all the samdham bhed that is Krishna’s doing.
But when we give Prabhupada’s books, Prabhupada’s books will do all that for us. See, Prabhupada, how did we become messengers? What is the condition of tradition? And when God fails, Krishna fails according to the higher successes. The higher success is threefold.
One is, Krishna demonstrates His love for the Pandavas. That for the sake of my Pandavas, for my devotee, I am ready to take up the menial position of a messenger. Actually, it is bad enough to be a messenger.
Sometimes, if somebody is a very senior devotee, 100% does a very menial service, you can be a messenger. Suppose, somebody is given a very menial service, somebody is a very big person, and somebody tries to clean the pots, and then somebody comes and says, I didn’t clean the plate. It is so mortifying.
You take up some service, which is very menial, that itself is, in one sense, putting it out, and then you are not able to do that service also. It is so mortifying. So, Krishna takes up the role of a pious messenger, which is just an envoy, very low down, not a very respectable thing, and not only an envoy, but an envoy who fails.
It is so demeaning for a person. But Krishna demonstrates that I am ready to do anything for your well-being. Anything.
I have become an envoy just to maintain your good name. That you pride everything to your Lord. The second is, Krishna demonstrates his love even to Duryodhana.
Even to Duryodhana, he demonstrates that he loves Krishna very much. Ultimately, Krishna never interferes with anyone’s freedom. He always respects the free will, but he tries to keep the freedom of his own to use the freedom of others.
And the extent to which he gives it away to Duryodhana, that, in the end, is now not just for his devotees, but even for those who are demoniac, he tries to help them also. And thirdly, Krishna demonstrates the beauty of his own position. Krishna is a God who does not delight in his Godhood.
He sets aside his Godhood so that love can reign supreme. So, in the spiritual world, a glimpse of which Krishna offers when he comes to the material world, where he puts his Godhood aside, so that love can reign supreme. There is a famous pastime which is going to be told in a moment, about how Krishna fell at the feet of Vishnu and Radharani touched her feet.
Krishna demonstrates the same principle in the spiritual world. Krishna is not interested in being God or doing anything. He wants love to reign supreme.
And he puts aside his Godhood so that love can reign supreme. This is the vision of God, who, for the sake of Bhakti, is giving his love to Radharani. And at an external level, Mahabharata is all Dharma, Artha, Kama, Moksha.
On the internal level, Mahabharata is permeated with Bhakti. And, as I said, the Bhakti message in Krishna’s piece is in the pastime. What is that message? That Krishna loves Radharani and is ready to do everything for the sake of love.
For the sake of love, he is ready to do anything and everything. And that’s why, as sadhakas, when we are trying to practice spiritual life, sometimes we may lose heart. Oh, I have so many problems in my life.
I cannot practice Bhakti with Radharani. How will I be able to do it? So, we should remember that our greatest strength is in such a loving relationship with God. And we should focus not on how far we are from Krishna, but on how close we are to Krishna.
There are millions and billions and trillions of souls. Among all those souls, there are different revelations that are given, different conceptions of God that are there. We have come to a condition where the highest, God’s highest and sweetest revelation is there.
And we have come in association with devotees. And what millions and billions of souls have no idea about, we have got that. And it is Krishna.
If we look back at our own lives, it’s very, very few rare souls that can be read in the journey of Radharani Maharaj. He went out in search of God. At least, I didn’t go out in search of God.
Devotees came out in search of me. So, we have been misusing our free will. So, against all odds, despite all obstacles which we ourselves have created, Krishna has got us this far.
So, if we choose Krishna, Krishna will take us along and He will help us cross the condition. To get on the way to Krishna, all that we have to do is get out of the way of Krishna. Get out of the way of Krishna means, Krishna is right inside of us.
He will give intelligence by which how we can practice the universe. He will guide us. He will protect us.
He will uplift us and take us back to Him. Whatever we can do, we just keep doing. Krishna will increase our capacity.
He will heal us, increase the soul. The most important thing is on the path of the heart, we should never lose heart. Bhakti is the path of the heart.
It’s heart to heart connection between Krishna and us. And Krishna has got us so far, we don’t lose heart. No matter what conditions are there, Krishna has got us so far, we don’t lose heart.
And He will take us back across the condition to His nature. Thank you very much. We have a few minutes for questions.
Krishna came to this world in order to finish all the evil established by his parents. Then whatever happened, the battle of Kurukshetra, isn’t Krishna equally responsible as much as the evil Duryodhana for the destruction? See, this is like saying that in a hospital, a doctor comes to cure. So, isn’t the doctor as much responsible as the patient? Or worse still, isn’t the doctor as much responsible as the germ that caused the infection? There is a difference.
Now, when we say Krishna comes, we say dharma samsthapanartha. As a part of that, there is vinashaya dushkrta. But Krishna doesn’t make anyone a dushkrta.
If somebody chooses to be a wrongdoer, to be a miscreant, then Krishna as a last alternative is too easy. So, the destruction is not something that Krishna wants. Krishna’s primary purpose is dharma samsthapanartha.
And for that, there are people who are dushkrta, they have to be destroyed. But Krishna doesn’t make them dushkrta. It is they who choose to become dushkrta.
They don’t change their mind, then that’s why they have to be destroyed. So, Krishna is not responsible because he doesn’t make people do evil things. He wants to create a system by which people in general can act virtuously and those who are disrupting that system, he tries to inspire them also to act virtuously.
But if they don’t, then he destroys them. For their good and for society’s good. What are the good qualities of Duryodhana? I think if we search this much for good qualities in devotees, we’ll make a lot of spiritual advancement.
He had faith in Kshatriya dharma to some extent. Not in terms of dharma artha kama, not in terms of righteousness but still, he could give charity. He would do yajna.
When he was the king for 12 years, at that time, he did he wanted to do Ashwamedha yajna Rajasuya yajna like Duryodhana had. He couldn’t do it. So, he decided to do another yajna called Vaishnava yajna.
And Karuna went around the world for him and conquered over the world also. So, at that time, Vidura and Bisho were happy. At least he was doing some dharmic activities.
He’ll not do more trouble. So, the point is that he was a part of the Vedic culture. That’s why we see that when Arjuna went to ask him for five arrows, he gave the arrows.
So, there are certain external forms of the Vedic culture that he did observe. But then the inner, internal malicious intention that was there, that made the observation of the external forms just a manipulative tool to appear virtues among others. To maintain a facade of respect and love.
So, actually what is important is that dharma should be observed. But along with that, the intention or the motivation for observing dharma is also important. So, why did Krishna not stop Yudhishthira from gambling? Why did Yudhishthira gamble if he was the embodiment of dharma? First of all, actually, Krishna was not there in the gambling match.
That was the time when there was another demon named Shalva who attacked Dwaraka. And he was wreaking havoc in Dwaraka. And Krishna had to go there to restore order in Dwaraka and to kill Shalva.
And actually Krishna comes in Kambyaman after the Pandavas are in exile and he says, if I had been there, I would have ensured the gambling match wouldn’t have taken place. So, when we sometimes see in Mahabharata serial, like Draupadi calling out and Krishna appearing. So, they may show something like Krishna appearing and from Krishna’s palm, saree coming or something like that.
But saree just was just endless. Nobody could see from where the saree was coming. Nobody saw Krishna.
Of course, Draupadi called out to Krishna, but it was not that Krishna was present directly over. That was the first thing. Second thing is why did Yudhishthira gamble? That is a difficult question to answer.
But we have to look at the context. After Yudhishthira Maharaj performed the Rajasuri yajna, Vyasadeva was the chief priest and he said that this yajna that you have performed is a very virtuous thing. However, he said after 13 years, there is going to be a disastrous, deadly war in which all the Kshatriyas of the world will be killed.
And after that, you will have stable rule on the world. So, to maintain your stable kingship, there will be a war in which everyone will be killed. All the Kshatriyas will be killed.
Yudhishthira becomes very alarmed by Yudhishthira. And he takes a plunge at Yudhishthira. He says that generally wars happen, big wars happen because of small conflicts.
And conflicts happen because of the prince’s rule. So, he said, from now onwards, he said, I will never speak softly to anyone and I will never disobey my parents. In this way, I will do all that I can to avoid this issue.
So, he took a pledge that I will never go against my elders. Now, that is a normal part of Vedic culture itself, to obey one’s elders. But specifically, he took a further pledge.
And then, when Shakuni came up with this idea of a gambling match and they talked Dhritarashtra into it. So, Dhritarashtra sent a message. And Yudhishthira, he gambled because he saw it as an instruction coming from Dhritarashtra.
Dhritarashtra was like a father. And as a father, he felt that I cannot disobey my parents. And that’s why he did that.
Now, somebody can say, but he did not have to gamble. Dhritarashtra only told him to gamble. But he could have stopped the gambling at any time.
Why did he have to gamble everything, even himself and his wife also? So, actually, the Mahabharat, what it displays is, we have to understand two levels. One level is the external level that Yudhishthira, in one sense, he becomes, he is Dharmaraj. But here, he sort of takes that one principle that I have to obey my elders.
And he gets into gambling. And when he gets into gambling, he goes into the fever of the gambling. And he is thinking, what happens when a gambler is, gambler has lost? That’s how the psychology of gambling works.
When we have lost something, the mind focuses on all that one has lost. And mind only thinks how I can regain it. And the mind at that time doesn’t think that I may lose something more also.
So, Yudhishthira, actually, it was not just the gambling fever which ordinary people have. Before the gambling match starts also, what does Yudhishthira say? He says, you know, this is my money. This is my wealth.
This is the wealth which I will sell to the Brahmins and I will take care of the citizens. Why do you want to take that wealth? Why do you want to take that wealth which I want to sell to the world? So, that was his view. So, he is thinking that I had the wealth which is related to dharma and that is all I have lost.
I must gain this wealth back. This is my purpose. They serve me so much.
It is my duty to protect them. And I have caused them, because of me, they will have nothing now. I must try my best to give them.
So, he is, in that sense, not so insensitive that you think of your brothers as your property or your wife as your property in gambling. That’s not the focus of his thought. He says, I have lost so much.
And all that I could have done dharma, I must gain it back so that I can do dharma. He says, I have lost so much. I must gain it back.
So, that is his mood. That is his mood in which he gambles. So, that is at the external level, he gets caught in the frenzy, but internally we see his mood was he wanted to avoid hurting and harming others.
And at a deeper level we understand, this whole pastime is done to demonstrate the truth of how, in this world, we have no physical existence. So, Draupadi had five powerful disciples, but still nobody could protect them. So, what happens in these pastimes is, we have to understand it carefully.
Otherwise, they say, how could he have gambled? He gambled away his own family wealth. The mood was religious, religious, religious. The first selflessness was that he wanted to follow his elder.
He did not want to deprive the brahmanas of whatever service he was going to do. And another selflessness was, he did not want his brothers and his wife to be bereaved of all wealth. So, all that thing, he was trying to retain it now.
And to retain it, he gambled more and more. Great question. Thank you very much.
I want to ask that, in Bhagavad Gita, when Lord glorifies himself, so, when Maharaja, it is not out of ego, it is his expression of love and compassion towards us. But many Buddhist philosophers, those who follow Buddhist philosophy, they say, that Krishna says, but Buddha has never said that, surrender to him. He has said that, I am a marga darshak.
I will show you a path by which you can liberate yourself. And their argument is, therefore, Buddhist philosophy is higher. So, the question is, that Krishna says, surrender unto me.
So, which seems to be egoistic, surrender to me. And Buddha is saying, I will just show you the path. I am simply a path show.
So, that is humble. See, humility is not a substitute for honesty. You know, yes, Krishna, when he is speaking, that surrender unto me, that is the eternal truth.
So, when a doctor is telling a patient, that you have to take this medicine, you will get cured. And the patient is doubting. Maybe this is something else, maybe some other medicine is required.
Maybe I will go to some other doctor. All the doctors in the city are trained by me only. So, I know it.
This is what you have to take to get cured. And if that is true, it is true, simply. If it is true that the doctor is trained everywhere, the doctor knows what is best, the doctor has to emphasize the credentials so that the patient will do the right thing.
So, when we have to talk about what, which path is superior, we can’t just decide that based on just taking one particular thing out of context. And say, okay, this is what happened. Krishna, Buddha says, I am just a path giver.
And Krishna says, I am the goal. Therefore, this path is higher. If you look at the complete philosophy, what does the philosophy say? Does it answer the questions of life? Buddha, he basically was an agnostic, in the sense that he did not talk about God.
Because without Veda, Shastra Yonitva, the third sutra of Vedanta Sutra says, that ultimately we cannot know about the absolute truth without Shastra. Because of the situation, Buddha had to reject Vedas. So, he did not speak about God only.
And if we look at Buddhist worldview, it is more practical, it emphasizes more on practical conduct than on philosophical insights. At one time, one person came and asked Buddha, he said, is the body different from the soul? Buddha remained silent. Is the body same as the soul? Buddha remained silent.
What is the truth? Buddha remained silent. The person walked away. Then Buddha’s disciple Ananda asked him, why didn’t you answer the question? He said, this person was at such a level of ignorance, that whatever answer I could have done, it would have just kept him at the level of ignorance.
Because he was not ready to answer. Another person came and asked Buddha, are you a God? Are you a spirit? Are you an angel? What are you? I am awake. I am awake.
He just emphasized on right conduct. But as far as philosophical answers are concerned, what does it mean? What is the state of awakefulness? How exactly does one become awake? What does it mean philosophically to be awake? If you look at Buddhist philosophy, there is, with all due respect, not much philosophy. It is more of ethics.
And ethics are good. There is ignorance, passion, goodness, and then there is transcendence. So Buddhist philosophy is good for people who are in ignorance and passion to come to goodness.
But it doesn’t offer any positive vision of reality. What happens after one becomes liberated? That is not talked about at all in Buddhism. When Buddha was talking about ultimate, asked about ultimate, what he said? First, in practice, don’t worry about that.
Because he couldn’t talk about it without the Vedas. So when we want to understand which philosophy is highest, it’s not just taking one thing out of context. Krishna is speaking the truth when he is saying he is highest, absolutely.
And he is explaining the whole philosophy of Gita to Sri Adi Shankar. And Buddha, he focused primarily on showing the way. But that way was from the lower modes to goodness and touching to transcendence.
But Buddha did not give a positive vision of spiritual reality. And that’s why that philosophy, in and of itself, is not true. It is good to bring people from the lower modes to goodness.
But it doesn’t offer a positive vision of spiritual reality. So if Krishna guides all devotees and presents a person in the heart, then does Krishna’s absence in the Akula assembly during the gambling match, does it make a difference? Generally, when Krishna is performing his leela, he doesn’t emphasize his godhood at that time. Now, you say, when Krishna leaves Vrindavan and goes away, then the gopis think, Krishna is present here only, why bother about the whole thing? Why are you crying so much? Krishna is there only.
No, but with respect to leela, they feel the separation from Krishna. So, Krishna, when he is performing a leela, nara leela kaiva, Actually, the absolute truth, when he comes in Vrindavan, he doesn’t always manifest his godhood. So, Krishna guides his devotees, but at the same time, different devotees may be guided differently and different devotees may take guidance to different planets.
Yudhisthira, at that particular point, he got too much caught up in the principle of obeying his elders and he neglected seeing the broad picture. So now, was it that Krishna did not guide? You have to understand that, in the past times, things are orchestrated and the devotees are made to do certain things by which certain truths can be demonstrated. So, at one level, we can say, Yudhisthira, yes, he committed an error, not in the principle of gambling, because that was the thing to do, which he had to do, what the elders told him.
But the extent of the gambling he did, he could have stopped. But then, if you look at his thoughts, the thoughts were not like a typical gambler, who had no scruples about what he was doing. So, Krishna can guide you in different ways in different times.
And that’s why the most important thing is Guru Sadhu Shastra. Krishna may not be present, but he can guide you through Guru Sadhu Shastra. Yes.
So, Krishna gave a special vision to Arjuna to see the universal form. How is that? Krishna says, Arjuna says, This has never been seen before. That word comes thrice in the 11th chapter of the Nithyananda.
Now, what it refers to is the specifics of the form, Nidhi. As I said, the universal form is not like a static form, which is summoned from the spiritual world, or anywhere, just for display. But universal form basically indicates the point that the whole universe is contained within Krishna, and it is in his power and his grip.
If you look at the specific details, what Yashodamayi saw, and what Duryodhana saw, very few. And if you look at the specific details of what Duryodhana saw, and what Arjuna saw, they are also different. So, in each case, it is Krishna who chose to give that vision.
But then, he may have specifically said, Divyam dadamite chakshu, to Arjuna. He did not say that directly to Yashodamayi. He just gave as a leela to that.
And to Duryodhana, in order to make him see the power and hopefully change his obstinacy, he revealed that form to him. So, Krishna may or may not say that I am getting specialized, but for special purposes, he may reveal that form. And the uniqueness of the form that was shown to Arjuna was, that he also showed the Kaalarupa.
Kaalarupa means, to show the power of… See, in this universe, there is space and there is time. So, the Viratrupa which was shown to Duryodhana, that showed how the Viratrupa, the Vishvarupa, how it subsumes space. But, what was shown to Arjuna was, how it subsumes time also.
So, the purpose of that was to reassure Arjuna, that you will win. Vishnum chidronam cha jaya dhritham cha. To describe it, all the Kauravas, Sahas, Madhiyai, Rathiyai, Udhamukhai, all of them are entering into the mouth of the Vishvarupa.
So, that form was shown to Arjuna to reassure him. Therefore, ma te gatham Arjuna. Arjuna was shown something which was unique.
And of course, a special vision is required. And in each case, when Krishna showed the universal form, he gave that special vision. Does it answer your question? Definitely.
Last question. You spoke about the virtuous ways that Hariharan had done in his life. At the same time, you said that the intentions with which he did was not good.
So, he just wanted to show to the world that he is virtuous. So, similarly, many times I am saying devotees, so, many times they do something good. One of my Kausi wife, he wants to show himself to be a devotee.
So, they are very interested in that. So, it can be different. Sometimes, we feel that devotees are also doing some things, so that they are just doing it for a show.
We may feel like that. Yes, it’s possible. Now, Krishna talks about Amanikram Adam Vritti.
Dambha, Vishwanathji could have explained to you, is a show of energy. Now, there are, there is a difference between Bhakti and other forms of Dharma. Dharma, other forms of Dharma, they are primarily meant for doing material things.
Bhakti, is actually for a spiritual purpose, to purify ourselves. So, if I chant Hare Krishna, even if it’s with the wrong motive, still, a person will become purified. So, even if it is possible that some devotee is doing Bhakti just for a show, still, we know that the practice of Bhakti will lead to purification.
That’s first thing. Second, more important thing is that psychologists call this attribution error. Attribution error means that generally speaking, there is a behavior and there is a cause for it.
So, whenever we see a behavior, we try to attribute a cause for it. And generally, we do an attribution error so that it favors us. If I overeat, that was me.
Somebody else overeats, that person does not eat. If I oversleep, it is me. Somebody else oversleeps, lazy bum.
So, what happens is, when we see behavior, we attribute cause to it. So, we do not know for sure when a particular person is behaving a particular way, what is the cause for it. It’s always safe to give others the benefit of the doubt.
We don’t know. Okay, it’s possible that it can be assured. It’s possible that it can not be assured.
It’s better always to give others the benefit of the doubt. Otherwise, we may end up being in a very embarrassed situation. If we find out that we were judging someone as wrong, that person is not wrong.
It’s possible that somebody might be doing it also. Then we have to understand that okay, not everybody comes with a pure motive to do things like this. And we can associate those devotees to inspire us.
So, our focus in spiritual life should be on doing the same kind of thing. So, if some devotees are such that we just feel that we have to do it for a show, then better we don’t associate so much with them. Not that we are saying that they are doing it for a show, but just that I am not able to shake off that perception.
Then I may try to avoid that, keep a little bit distance, avoid other devotees with whom I don’t have such a critical mentality. And also, if there are some other senior devotees who know them well, then we can talk with them and get it clarified. And often we can get an alternative perspective.
Generally, if we have a critical mentality towards someone, the best way to change that mentality is to pray for that person. If you pray for someone, and not just pray in a superficial way, but just pray sensitively. And what happens is our attitude changes.
Generally, our psychology is that we divide into parts. I and he or she. We and they.
And then, that way takes a distance between us. But once we start praying for someone, then we understand that we are born in the same year. And we all have analogies.
And we all have rational beliefs. We are at war. We are at war.
But we are all on the same side. We are all on the same side. Definitely, all those who are trying to practice Zoroastrianism are on the same side.
So, we are all battling with our own. And that praying for others reminds us very forcefully that we are all on the same side. And that way, we can avoid the critical mentality.
Thank you very much. I’ll stop here. It’s quite late.
I answer questions on my website also, Zoroastrianscientist.com. If you have questions there, you can ask over there. And I’ll answer there. Thank you very much.