Category Archives: shooraha

Bhagavad Gita Verse 9, Chapter 1

22 Monday Aug 2011

Posted by in anye, arthe, bahavaha, cha, chapter 1 verse 9, jeevitaaha, mad, naanaa, prahaaranaaha, sarve, shastra, shooraha, tyakta, vishaaradaaha, yuddha

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anye cha bahavaha shoora madarthe tyaktkajeevitaaha |
naanaashastrapraharanaaha sarve yuddhavishaaradaaha || 9 ||

In addition to our commanders, we also have several other brave warriors who have vowed to give up their life for me. These warriors are well versed in deploying weapons, and are proficient in the art of battle.

anye: besides these
bahavaha: several
shooraha: brave warriors (who have)
mad-arthe: for me
tyakta-jeevitaaha: giving up their desire to live
cha: and
naanaa-shastra-prahaaranaaha: versed in the deployment of many weapons
sarve: (also) all of them
yuddha-vishaaradaaha: proficient in the art of war

Duryodhana naively tried to impress Drona by glorifying his army. In doing so, his ego resurfaced again, which is evidenced by his self-aggrandizing statements like “they will give up their life for me”. He probably was trying to convince (or delude) himself that his army is poised to win the battle.

The tendency of the ego to consider something “mine” is called mamataa in Sanskrit. Mamataa literally means “mine-making” or “mine-ness”. This is yet another means for the ego to strengthen itself through possessions.

Here’s an interesting exercise. Take something that you know for sure is “yours”. Now deeply examine it. Is it really yours? For example, say you own a house. On what basis do you consider it yours? Most probably, it’s a legal document that the government issues to you. Well, what happens if that government no longer exists? Or, more likely, what happens if the government grabs that land from you because it possesses some precious natural resources? Is the relationship between you and the house “real”?

Footnotes
1. Astra denotes weapons that are thrown, and shastra denotes weapons that are hand-held

Bhagavad Gita Verse 4-6, Chapter 1

20 Saturday Aug 2011

Posted by in chapter 1 verse 4-6, eva, family, friends, http://schemas.google.com/blogger/2008/kind#post, mahaarathaha, maheshvaasaa, relationships, sarva, shooraha, veeryavan, yudhi

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atra shoora maheshvaasaa bheemarjunasamaa yudhi |
yuyudhaano viraatashcha drupadashcha mahaarathaha || 4 ||

dhrishtaketushchekitaanah kaashirajascha veeryavan |
purujitkuntibhojashcha shaibyascha narapungvaha || 5 ||

yudhamanyushcha vikraanta uttamaujaashcha veeryavan |
saubhadro draupadeyashcha sarva eva mahaarathaaha || 6 ||

This army has mighty archers such as Yuyudhaana, King Viraata and Drupada who are equal to Bheema and Arjuna in battle. Other powerful warriors include Dhrishtaketu, Chekitaana, the gallant king of Kashi, Purujit, Kuntibhoja, Yuyudhaana, Uttamauja, Abhimanyu and all the sons of Draupadi.

atra: here
shooraha: brave
maheshavaasaa: (mah + ishvaasaa) with giant bows
cha: and
yudhi: in battle
bheemarjunasamaaha: equal to Bheem and Arjuna
yuyudhaanaha: Yuyudhaana
viraataha: King Viraata
mahaarathaha: mighty warriors
drupadaha: Drupad (also)

dhrishtaketu: Dhrishtaketu
chekitaanaha: Chekitaana
purujitaha: Purujit
kuntibhoja: Kuntibhoja
shaibya: Shaibya
kaashiraajaha: King of Kashi

veeryavaan: gallant
yudhmanya: Yudhamanyu
uttamaujaaha: Uttamaujaaha
saubhadraha: son of Subhadra – Abhimanyu
draupadeyaaha: sons of Draupadi
sarva, eva: everyone
maharaathaaha: mighty warriors

Duryodhana continued his attempt to incite Drona to fight aggresively against the opposing army by calling out the mighty warriors on the other side. He chose each name carefully to elicit a reaction from Drona, since each of these warriors had a history with Drona.

Yuyudhaana was Arjuna’s top student, and Duryodhana wanted to point out that although Arjuna’s top student was fighting on his teacher’s side, Drona’s top student Arjuna was fighting against his teacher. Drupada also was someone that Drona disliked, as was pointed out earlier. Dhristaketu’s father had been killed by Krishna, yet he was on the side of the Pandavas. Chekitaana was the only Yadava warrior not taking the side of the Kauravas.

The king of Kashi was an exceptionally gallant warrior, and took the side of the Pandavas. Yudhamanyu and Uttamauja were exceptional warriors from the Paanchaala kingdom. Purujit and Kuntibhoja were Kunti’s maternal brothers who were also related to the Kauravas, but chose the side of the Pandavas. Shaibya was Yudhishtira’s father-in-law, similarly related to the Kauravas. Abhimanyu, Arjuna’s son, was well versed in the art of breaking military formations. Duryodhana disliked Draupadi immensely, so her sons were pointed out as well.

We begin to see how interrelated the warring parties were. Some were friends who turned into enemies, some were relatives who chose sides, and some like Drona were equally loving to both sides, but had to choose one based on their duty to the throne and the kingdom.

It is a reminder that nothing in our lives stays the same. A relationship that gives you lot of joy today, could in a matter of seconds turn into a sorrowful relationship at some point.