1 1. Arjuna Vishad Yog

1. The two armies had gathered on the battlefield of Kurukshetra, well prepared to fight a war that was inevitable. Still, in this verse, King Dhritarashtra asked Sanjay, what his sons and his brother Pandu's sons were doing on the battlefield? It was apparent that they would fight, then why did he ask such a question?

The blind King Dhritarashtra's fondness for his own sons had clouded his spiritual wisdom and deviated him from the path of virtue. He had usurped the kingdom of Hastinapur from the rightful heirs; the Pandavas, sons of his brother Pandu. Feeling guilty of the injustice he had done towards his nephews, his conscience worried him about the outcome of this battle.

The words dharma Kshetra, the land of dharma (virtuous conduct) used by Dhritarashtra depict the dilemma he was experiencing. Kurukshetra is described as kurukshetram deva yajanam in the Shatapath Brahman, the Vedic textbook detailing rituals. It means "Kurukshetra is the sacrificial arena of the celestial gods." Hence, it was regarded as the sacred land that nourished dharma.

Dhritarashtra feared that the holy land might influence the minds of his sons. If it aroused the faculty of discrimination, they might turn away from killing their cousins and negotiate a truce. A peaceful settlement meant that the Pandavas would continue being a hindrance for them. He felt great displeasure at these possibilities, instead preferred that this war transpires. He was uncertain of the consequences of the war, yet desired to determine the fate of his sons. Therefore, he asked Sanjay about the activities of the two armies on the battleground.

2. Sanjay understood Dhritarashtra's concern, who wanted an assurance that the battle would eventuate. Sanjay tried to allay his worry by informing that the Pandava army was standing in a military formation, ready for battle. Then he moved on to tell him what his son Duryodhana was doing on the battlefield.

As King Dhritarashtra was blind, his eldest son Duryodhana virtually ruled the kingdom of Hastinapur. In the Mahabharata, he is described as very rude, egoistic, evil and cruel by nature. Since his childhood, he had a strong dislike for the Pandavas and left no opportunity to demean them. He was aware that to rule over the entire kingdom of Hastinapur unchallenged he needed to eliminate them. However, standing on the battlefield, when he saw the large Pandava army, he was baffled. He had underestimated the Pandavas, the extent of military might they had gathered was way beyond his expectation.

Duryodhana approached his guru Dronacharya with the pretense of offering respect, but his actual purpose was to palliate his own nervousness. His move towards his guru also reveals that the mammoth military formation of the Pandava army unnerved him and he was now fearful of the outcome of this war.

The next nine verses are spoken by Duryodhan.

3. Duryodhana asked Dronacharya to look at the skillfully arranged military phalanx of the Pandava army led by their commander-in-chief Dhristadyumna, King Dhrupad's son. He was also one of Dronacharya's pupils. Duryodhana was subtly reminding his teacher of a mistake he had committed in the past.

Many years back, Dronacharya along with the Pandavas had defeated King Drupad in a battle and took away half his kingdom. To avenge his defeat, Drupad performed a sacrifice to beget a son. Dhristadyumna was born out of that sacrificial fire, with a boon that he would kill Dronacharya in the future. Even though Dronacharya was aware, when he was approached for Dhristadyumna's military training, he very humbly accepted and imparted all his knowledge impartially to his pupil.

Duryodhana was reminding Dronacharya that even though Dhristadyumna was his pupil, he was also Drupad's son, with a boon to kill him. He wanted to ensure that as in the past, Dhronacharya should not become lenient towards his pupils, now that, they were on the battlefield.

4.5.6. Due to his anxiety, the Pandava army seemed much larger to Duryodhan than it actually was. He had never expected his opponents would mobilize an army of warriors with such military prowess, who would be formidable in battle. Out of fear of the looming catastrophe, he started enumerating the names of all the mahārathīs (warriors who were singly equivalent in strength to ten thousand ordinary warriors) gathered on the Pandava side. They were all exceptional heroes, and great military commanders, equivalent in valor to his cousins Arjun and Bheem.

7. Dronacharya was a teacher of military science and not really a warrior. However, he was on the battlefield as one of the commanders of the Kaurava army. An impudent Duryodhana even doubted the loyalty of his own preceptor. Cunning Duryodhana purposefully addressed his teacher as dwijottama (best amongst the twice-born, or Brahmins). His denigrating and vailed reminder for Dronacharya was that, if he did not display his valor in this battle, he would be considered a lowly Brahmin, who was only interested in the fine food and lavish lifestyle at the king's palace.

Then to cover up his vicious words and boost his teacher's and his own morale; Duryodhana started naming all the great generals present on the Kaurava side, describing their valor and military expertise.

8-10. The commander-in-chief of the Kaurava army was Grandsire Bheeshma. Apart from being an exceptional warrior, he had an extraordinary boon. He could choose the time of his death, this meant he was practically invincible. Duryodhana felt that under Bheeshma's command their army was undefeatable. Whereas, the Pandava army was secured by Duryodhana's sworn enemy, Bheema. Hence, he started comparing his Grandfather Bheeshma's strength with his cousin Bheema.

Vinaash kale vipreet buddhi as the proverb goes, which means that when the end draws near, egoistic people indulge in vainglory instead of being humble in evaluating their situation. This tragic irony of fate is reflected here in Duryodhana's self-aggrandizing statement that; their army's strength secured by Bheeshma was unlimited.

However, both Kauravas and Pandavas were Bheeshma's grandchildren and as the oldest living member of the Kuru family, he was concerned about their welfare. He was compassionate towards the Pandavas, but was bound by his ethical commitment towards the throne of Hastinapur and its subjects. Therefore, halfheartedly, he led the Kaurava army against them.

Bheeshma was also aware that in this holy war, along with all the great warriors of the world the Supreme Lord Krishna Himself was present. Lord Krishna was with the Pandavas, which meant dharma was on their side, and no power in the entire universe could make the side of Adharma win.

He had vowed to protect the kingdom of Hastinapur and its subjects and to fulfill his responsibility towards them Bheeshma led the Kaurava army, even though he was aware of their wrongdoings. This decision of Bheeshma accentuates his strength of character and enigmatic personality.

to be continue.....