From the lectureChaitanya_Charan_Pr_Various_-_Focus_not_on_the_cause_focus_on_the_cureThe topic is,Dont focus on the cause, focus on the cure.I'll be talking about this as an approach to counseling ourselves and counseling others based on, primarily an incident from Mahabharata and also we will talk about an incident from the Bhagavatam.Usually when we are going through our life journey we often face problems unexpectedly and sometimes for no reason at all.. We will be going through the normal routine of life and sometimes someone gets diseased, somebody has job problem, for somebody relationship issues flare up. At such times normally the question comes up,Why did such thing happen?And that question often leads to a lot of frustration. Sometimes some people behave in very irrational, unreasonable ways and then we get eaten up by resentment,Why is he doing like this?Why is she doing like this?Why are they acting in this way?And trying to understand the cause of that may actually consume us.So in the Mahabharata after the Kurukshetra War gets over and all the 100 sons of Dhritarashtra were killed, Dhritarashtra was devastated. He has been hearing all this from Sanjaya and on the 18th afternoon Duryodhana is killed and Dhritarashtra is shattered. He woons in agony and Sanjaya has been there throughout for a long time and Sanjaya departs after helping him in coming back to consciousness. And after that the next morning, Sanjaya returns.At that time he sees Dhritarashtra who looked like a giant tree shone out of all the leaves as the trees look poverty stricken without leaves. Dhritarashtra has lost all his spirit, all his life and he says,Alas!! Now without my sons what is the purpose of living?I will lay down my life now.Let the Pandavas come and see that by killing my sons to what plight they have reduced their uncle to.Oh destiny has dealt me an unbearably cruel blow. I cannot tolerate it. I will lay down my life now.Speaking like this he starts shedding tears.At that time Sanjaya takes the role of an adviser. Although Sanjaya was just his assistant who helped him to understand what has happened in the Kurukshetra Warfield, now he takes the role of an adviser and he says,Oh King, what is the use of lamenting thus? Your grief by indulging in it will simply grow and worsen. After all it was you who neglected all good advice given to you by so many people. And thus no one has to be blamed for what you have got except you.If a person takes a burning coal and puts it close to his chest and then gives fire to it and then complains that his chest has got burnt. Like that the Pandavas, you burnt them by angering them through the atrocities that you committed. By angering them, by especially dishonoring their wife Draupadi you put fuel in that fire and now that fire has charred you. And you are saying that destiny has dealt you with a severe blow?Oh king, it's not destiny that has dealt you with a severe blow it's you yourself who has brought it upon you .Your crooked intelligence is like a sword that has cut you. Just like the wood cutter who cuts the branch on which he sits, like that you have caused the destruction of your own dynasty.Now that you have fallen down, who can you blame?Like this Sanjaya is critically unrelentingly pointing out his mistakes .Dhritarashtra feels chastised by Sanjaya's words. At the same time he feels solaced. He realizes the wrong that he has done. Sanjaya, your words have hurt me but are illuminating me too. Keep speaking.Sanjaya after that says that, For what has already happened grief does nothing except expand that misery.Oh King, do not indulge in fear. Your sons are dead now. Now you have to perform your duty and thereby performing your last rites and for your nephews whom you neglected so much and whom you grieviously hurt by your partiality.And as Sanjaya is speaking like this, at that time, Vyasadeva appears over there. When Sanjaya informs that Vyasadeva has come Dhritarashtra gets up and falls down. He again expresses his heart. All my sons have been killed. What is the use of my living now?At that time Vyasadeva takes a totally different track. He says okay, you should not blame yourself for what has happened. What has happened is actually the will of destiny.Many years ago, I had gone to the heavens. While I was in the heavens I saw that all the gods had assembled there and they had gone to Lord Vishnu to ask for help. And the help that they were asking was that the earth has to be ridden over by demons. Many demoniac people had occupied the positions of kings in various dynasties. They had become so powerful that destroying them has become very difficult. They were asking Lord Vishnu to help them.Vishnu said, Rest assured. Oh gods, your purpose will be fulfilled by the eldest son of Dhritarashtra. The eldest son of Dhritarashtra, Duryodhana will actually be the incarnation of Kali. He will descend to the earth and he will by his political scheming unite all the demoniac kings on his side and he will aggravate, he will infuriate the virtuous Pandavas. When his offenses will become unbearable the consequences will follow. There will be a catastrophic battle in which all the demoniac kings of the earth will be destroyed. Vyasadeva says that, Actually when I knew this I told this to the Pandavas. And the Pandavas knowing that this battle will take place tried their best to avoid it. Krsna Himself tried to avoid it but it was the will of destiny. And that is why this battle happened. So Dhritarashtra do not grieve. Now remember your duty and perform that duty. In this way you will move onwards. And the burden of guilt that was crushing Dhritarashtra lifts. And then he starts thinking about how to commit his duties thereafter.
You need to be a member of ISKCON Desire Tree | IDT to add comments!
Replies