Gita Satsang - Resumption

[Guest guest]

Namaste,

 

Today is another auspicious day! The month of maargashiirshha

begins today; a month that has been described in the Gita [X:35] as

one of the glories of Reality (vibhuuti) -

maasaanaaM maargashiirshho.aham.h .

 

The following introduction will be posted today, and the summaries of

the first four chapters, one daily, over the coming week.

 

A Brief Introduction to the Context of Gita

 

Long long ago King Pandu was the ruler of Hastinapur, a kingdom which

flourished near Delhi, the present-day capital of India. He died an

untimely death, leaving behind five minor sons. Before he died he

entrusted the throne to his brother Dhritarashtra. He told him to

give the kingdom back to his sons when they grew up.

 

Dhritarashtra was blind. He had one hundred sons of whom Duryodhana

was the eldest. Kind-hearted, he kept the five sons of his brother in

the palace in the company of his own sons. He appointed Drona to

teach them the art of warfare. The Pandu brothers - Yudhishtra,

Bhima, Arjuna, Nakul and Sahadev, grew up to be great warriors. They

were far superior to Dhritarashtra's sons who were called Kauravas.

Dhritarashtra named Yudhishtra, the eldest of the Pandu brothers, as

heir apparent to the throne.

 

Duryodhana, the eldest of the hundred Kaurava brothers, did not like

this decision of his father favouring his cousin Yudhishtra. He

became jealous and began to plot against the Pandavas. His maternal

uncle Shakuni helped him in his wicked designs. He advised him to

invite Yudhishtra to a game of dice which he would play on his

behalf. He would ensure Duryodhana winning it, by hook or by crook.

 

Yudhishtra agreed to play and, as was to be expected, he lost

everything at stake: his jewels, his brothers, his kingdom and even

his wife Draupadi. Duryodhana, the winner, sent the Pandavas into

exile for twelve years, after which they were to spend another year

incognito. They lived in a forest for thirteen years braving the

hardships of a rough life. Back in Hastinapur they sent a message to

Dhritarashtra asking for the return of the kingdom to them.

Dhritarashtra wanted to do so but his eldest son Duryodhana stood in

his way, saying "No, I will not give them even one inch of the

kingdom." Dhritarashtra, being blind, was helpless. Even his wife

Gandhari failed to persuade her son to honour the wishes of his

father. This paved the way for the great battle of Mahabharata that

was to be fought in the plains of Kurukshetra, about 120 kms from

Delhi, for eighteen days.

Yudhishtra told his brothers to get ready for battle. Krishna, the

head of the Yadava clan, offered to mediate between the cousins. When

all efforts for a peaceful solution failed, a war between the

Kauravas and the Pandavas became inevitable.

 

Yudhishtra's army comprised seven divisions, each under the charge of

one of the kings who were his friends. Krishna joined battle on the

Pandava side. Arrayed against them was Duryodhana at the head of the

Kaurava army of eleven divisions. He had with him great warriors like

Drona, Bhishma, Karna and Ashvathama They deployed their forces in a

semi-circle. Both the armies faced each other, the commanders of the

divisions riding their chariots. All preparations for war were now

complete

[Ch. 1 summary to be posted on Nov. 27.]