AJAYA - RISE OF KALI (Book 2) (45 page)

“I do not understand, Krishna.”

“Partha, just as boyhood, youth and old age are in one’s body and manifest themselves at the appropriate time, so is death. But what dies is born again. That is the eternal law of
karma.
Death and birth are like day and night. Do we mourn the night when we rejoice at the birth of a new day? To the wise, just as day and night are part of nature, so are life and death.”

“Krishna, you trivialise death. I can understand death when its time comes, but not murder. You are asking me to kill. It is not
dharma.”

Krishna waved his arms at the vast Kuru and Pandava armies and said, “You think you can kill them or they can kill you? You doubt, because you do not know who you are. You are not the body; you and your body are separate. Understand that the body is just a garment that hides the real
you;
the body is just a covering for the
atman,
the soul. The soul is eternal and unchanging. There is no death for the soul. Just as you change your clothes when they are dirty, soiled or torn, the soul changes bodies. Death is nothing but the casting away of old clothes by the divine
atman.”

“What good would it do to my soul to fight this war and win a kingdom, since it would be my body that would enjoy the pleasures of kingship and feel the pain of killing my kinsmen? Should I fight for the enjoyment of my body, which is just a cloth waiting to be cast aside? If only the
atman
matters, what good would this victory do me? Am I not being foolish to tend to my body, when I should be feeding my soul?”

“Understand that the soul cannot be drowned by water, cleaved by the sword or burned by fire. You cannot destroy it when you kill someone, neither can your enemy destroy your
atman
.
Atman
is the reflection of the
paramatman
which pervades the universe and beyond. Life is just a manifestation of the
paramatman,
as transient as the reflection of the moon on the waves of a lake, and as real. Life is nothing but a flash that happens in the interval between birth and death. Imagine the vast universe and the majesty of time, and you will understand life is as permanent as the flicker of a leaf in the breeze. When you cannot kill the soul, why be obsessed with the thought of hurting others?”

Arjuna shook his head in defeat. “Krishna, despite what you say, I cannot be the cause of so much death and misery.”

Krishna replied, “Arjuna, you will bring infamy to all the warriors of Bharatavarsha by refusing to do your
dharma
as a Kshatriya. There is nothing else greater for a Kshatriya than a battle fought fairly. Heaven awaits the Kshatriya who dies in battle. By abandoning the chariot of war, you will bring infamy to the Kurus. Is infamy not equal to death? Do you wish to be called a coward by everyone? Slain, you will attain heaven in another world; victorious, you will enjoy heaven in this world. What have you got to lose by fighting, my dear friend?”

“Oh Krishna, do not make me commit this sin. Iravan’s face still haunts me. Abhimanyu is dearer to me than anything in the world. It would be the same for Duryodhana. What will I do if I lose Abhimanyu? I have wronged Duryodhana’s son once already; how will I face myself if I kill his son? How will I face my Guru if I kill Aswathama? Karna is my enemy, but now I can understand that we have wronged him as much as he has wronged us. Let this madness end. Let all the infamy be mine.”

“My dear friend, you are getting attached to this illusionary world and its meaningless bonds. You are forsaking your duty for you are afraid of the results. You are afraid of your actions, thinking you will get entangled in the bonds of your
karma.
Consider pleasure and pain, victory and defeat, gain and loss, life and death, as equal and insignificant. Fight the battle in the name of duty. Be devoted to your cause and
dharma;
do not worry about the outcome.”

“But, Krishna, it is the outcome that matters. If not, why do people strive repeatedly until they succeed? Why succeed at all if the outcome does not matter? I am afraid of the results if I succeed in this war. I fear that death and universal suffering would be the only outcome. Should I not worry about that? Am I an unthinking monster?”

“Do your duty without desiring the fruit of your actions. You will free yourself from the obligation of repeated births and deaths.”

“I love life and this is a beautiful world. Why should I kill my brethren in order to reach a place where there is neither happiness nor pain? Why should I strive to become a stone, unmoved by anything, existing just because it happens to be there? That is not life.”

“Arjuna, be the man who is unmoved by circumstances and just does his duty. Be like the lotus which, though it blooms in the water, is never wet. Similarly, bloom in your
karma
but never get drenched by it, or overwhelmed by its results. Be a
stithapranja,
devoted to your
dharma
and duty.”

“Even if it involves misery for others?”

“Do not get attached to the results of your work. Be devoted to the work alone. Misery is an illusion.”

“If work creates misery, why work at all, Krishna? Why not abstain from all duties and take refuge in the forest like the rishis?”

“A man deludes himself if he thinks that by renouncing his duties he can escape the snare of
karma.
No one can live without working. The intelligent man knows not to get attached to the results of one’s work and to do it as one’s duty,
nishkama karma.”

“But it seems so unnatural to live without passion, Krishna.”

“My friend, such thoughts belong to evil souls like your cousin, Duryodhana, who are attached to the world and indulge their passions and senses. That is the mark of
tamo guna,
the quality of darkness, their imperfect knowledge which will cause their ruin.”

“But Duryodhana can say the same thing, that he is doing his duty, to protect what he believes is his birthright. Is it not his Kshatriya
dharma
to fight? Why should it be an evil quality in him and noble in me?”

“Duryodhana fights for desire; he is consumed by wrath and jealousy.”

“So are we. This war is the result of our desire for vengeance for what he did to Draupadi. We too are filled with passion, wrath and human emotion.”

“I advise you to discard all anger and wrath towards Duryodhana, and fight because it is your duty to restore
dharma.
Once you overcome your anger, you will also overcome your false sense of attachment towards your kin.”

“If I outgrow the anger I feel about Duryodhana’s treatement of Draupadi, then there is no reason left to fight. What would become of me? I would be but a killing machine.”

“You would be a yogi who has conquered the senses. The senses are superior to an inert body, the mind is superior to the senses and the intellect is superior to the mind. You must be the man who walks the path of intellect. That is the path of devotion to one’s cause. This is a secret I told Vivaswat aeons ago, he declared it to Manu, the first man, and Manu told Ishvaku of
Suryavamsha,
and through many thousand generations it has passed to the sages. Now I am declaring it to my friend, Arjuna.”

“You are my friend, we are the same age. Vivaswat was born at the beginning of creation. Manu was the first man. How could you tell them what you have just told me?”

“Many births of mine have passed, as have yours. But my essence knows no deterioration. I take birth in every age, whenever there is a loss of piety and
adharma
arises, to protect the weak and oppressed. I arrive in this world to finish evil men like Duryodhana.”

“I am confused, Krishna. If you are omniscient, you should know what
adharma
is. If you are omnipresent, why take birth at all or come to the world, when you yourself are the world? If you are omnipotent, why create evil at all? Why create
adharma
if you have the power of creation and destruction? If
adharma
is a mistake, then you are not omnipotent or omniscient. But if you created
adharma
by design, then you are not the compassionate Supreme Soul, having known the suffering that would ensue.

It reeks of sadism. If
adharma
arose on its own and you have to fight to vanquish it, you are not omnipotent but just like any of us lesser mortals. Krishna, if you are the Supreme Essence of the world, and
adharma
exists in it, it merely shows that the world that is you, is imperfect. If the world is imperfect, then so are you.”

Krishna laughed in genuine amusement. “You talk like a wise philosopher, my friend. But suffering also is an illusion. Pain and pleasure are part of the natural rhythm of the world. A lion kills a deer; the lion’s
dharma
is to kill to eat, the
dharma
of the deer is to run and escape. One does not exist without the other. I come to the world as the protector of
dharma
when the balance changes towards
adharma.
I am Duryodhana and I am Arjuna. I am Yudhishtra and I am Shakuni.
Dharma
and
adharma
are but different manifestations of the same energy. What is
dharma
today will be
adharma
tomorrow. That is why a yogi does not bother about the results of any action.”

“There are many men who have abandoned action and sit in contemplation in the forests.”

“They follow the difficult path of knowledge, of
sankhya.
Yoga is the easier path; devotion to one’s duty without worrying about results. You will not be bound by the fruits of those actions.”

“Then the responsibility will be yours, Krishna? For any sin I commit, for any atrocities?”

“It is your nature that engages in action. I receive no one’s sin nor their merit. But I do reside in you and everything animate or inanimate. Listen to yourself and you will know what your duty is. The four
varnas
I have created are not based on birth but the nature of human beings. Those who walk the path of knowledge are Brahmins, those who take the path of action are Kshatriyas, those who travel the path of devotion are Vaishyas, and those who indulge in sensory pleasures are Shudras, destined to serve all others. As long as the world exists, there will be divisions. The strong will try to dominate the weak. I appear when the balance is disturbed, but there is no perfect balance in the world. Perfection is stillness, perfection is death. A wheel that does not move is useless. I am the axle of the wheel of
dharma.
Knowledge is the pin. What is at the top today will be at the bottom tomorrow. The
dharmachakra
moves with time, forward and cyclically.”

“Krishna, I am a warrior. Your words are all too difficult for me to understand. I am confused. Is there no meaning to life then? What is the purpose of life? Are we just cogs in the
wheel of dharma,
travelling cyclically without any purpose?”

“Move to the center with knowledge, devotion and contemplation, and be one with me. Though the axle is the main part of wheel, it does not move. Similarly, a devotee who has escaped the cycle of birth and rebirth, from the wheel where
dharma
and
adharma
keep changing places, finds refuge in me as the axle of the
dharmachakra.
When such a person becomes one with me, he can see that the rotation of the wheel is just a rhythm and that
dharma
and
adharma
are parts of the same wheel.”

“Most of what you say eludes my understanding. Every time I ponder over what you have said, I find a different meaning. It sounds logical when I hear it, but I am an ordinary man and when confronted with the realities of life, I forget your lessons. I find that instead of striving to become a
stitapranja,
it is easier to cry when I feel sad, to laugh when I feel happy, to shout when I am angry and to embrace when I feel love. I find it far more exhilarating to be part of the wheel, even a tiny dot on it, but always in motion. In my deluded mind, I feel it would be dull being part of the axle. It is more wonderful to keep moving with the wheel than be still with the axle.”

Krishna laughed again. He saw that the armed ranks standing on either side were getting restive, but he had one more important lesson to teach his friend who was so passionate about life.

“Arjuna, fight and win the world. Do your duty.”

“No, Krishna. My doubts remain uncleared.”

Krishna sighed. “I will give you a simple formula – easier than the path of
sankya,
or the path of devotion to duty. Yoga is the path of bhakti – be devoted to me. Perform every act as a prayer to me.”

“How can I act when I fear the outcome of my action?”

“Think
Idam na mama,
this action does not belong to me. Do it as an offering to me, as a prayer to Krishna.”

“Who are you, Krishna?”

“Arjuna, think of me at all times. Fix your mind and understanding on me and fight the battle. Attain me and be freed from the cycle of birth and death. I pervade space; all entities are in me. Behold my divine power. Worship me, always glorify me, and strive with firm vows. Worship me through your
nishkama karma,
worship me through your
bhakti,
and attain me through your knowledge. I am the Vedic sacrifice, I am the
smrithis,
I am
swadha,
I am the medicament of herbs, I am the
mantra,
I am the fire. I am the offering in sacrifice, I am the father of the universe, I am the mother. I am OM. Through your renuniciation and devotion be released from the cycle of
karma
and come to me. None devoted to me is ever lost.”

Arjuna looked at his friend in bewilderment. “Krishna, I have never really known you. Show me the real you.”

“Behold me, son of Kunti. Behold the suns of different universes, behold Rudra, the Aswins and Maruts and other demigods. See the entire universe. Behold my sovereign mystic nature. Behold Time.”