The Mahabharata war had been declared between Pandavas and Kauravas. The battleground had Pandava’s army on one side and a much bigger army of Kauravas on the other side. The Kauravas had the greatest and invincible warriors likes of – Bhishma, Dronacharya, Kripacharya, Shalyaraj on their side while Pandavas had only Krishna and that too as a charioteer of Arjuna.
Dharmaraj Yudhisthir, the eldest of the Pandavas arrives with his brothers all equipped to the battlefield. As they arrive in their chariots, Yudhisthir sees Bhishma-Pitamah, Guru Dronacharya, and others in the front, leading the Kaurava army. He stops and gets down from his chariot and starts walking towards them.
Bheem and Arjun panic seeing their elder brother walking alone towards the enemy. They tell Krishna to stop Yudhisthir from going before some untoward incident happens. Krishna calms both of them down saying –
“Yudhisthir is well versed with dharma and policies. Whatever he is doing would be appropriate.”
Yudhisthir goes to Bhisma to pay his respect and says –
“O Pitamaha, this is an undesired moment in our life where we have to lift weapons against you. It is very displeasing to me but I have no other option. Please grant us the permission to fight this battle.”
Seeing the humility and respect of Yudhisthir, Bhisma is overwhelmed. He tells Yudhisthir –
“Yudhisthir, you are a real Dharmraj, you have kept our glorious tradition intact. I’m very pleased with you. Your humility and piety have forced me to bless you to be victorious in this war.”
Yudhisthir knowing that it was almost impossible to defeat Bhishma, asks –
“O great Pitamaha, how can we win against you? And if we cannot, your blessings will not be fruitful, it will be meaningless“
Bhishma replies –
“Dharm-Putra Yudhisthir, you will be victorious in this war and that is my blessing for you. With regards to defeating me, I will reveal the secret to you when the time comes.”
Yudhisthir then walks to Guru Dronacharya and bows to him and says –
“O Gurudev, It is unfortunate that we have to fight our Guru but we are helpless. Please grant us your permission and blessings.”
Guru Dronacharya was compelled and blessed Yudhisthir to be victorious in the war. Yudhisthir asks Guru Drona –
“Gurudev, how can we be victorious when we are fighting against you? You are invincible. How will your blessings come true?”
Dronacharya reveals the secret of his death to Yudhisthir. Likewise, Yudhisthir goes to Kripacharya and Shalyaraj and receives their blessings and secrets to their deaths.
In this way, Yudhisthir with his humility and modesty won half the battle of the Kurukshetra. He had their blessings and the secrets of their deaths.
Wisdom Bite
This story from history is a great example of how you can win the hearts of people even your enemy with humility and respect. And the importance of the blessings of the elders and Gurus.
Our tradition of seeking blessings has become more of a formality these days and is limited to a few auspicious events and functions. Many youngsters feel ashamed or shy to bow down and seek the blessings of the elders. But what we don’t realize is the power of those blessings. These blessings help us be successful in whatever we do and achieve anything in life.
It is important that parents instill these traditions and values in their children from an early age. Ultimately it is these values and virtues that will make them better human beings.
