Hey reader,
A quarter creates havoc in the world on the directions of the Government, inventing a nuisance, a virus and exporting to the world and suffers from its own poison and later recovers but pushes the world into a black era which would be remembered always. Remembered not only for what they did but more for the loss, the loss that a big part of the world would have faced. Losing the loved ones, healthcare warriors, doctors, medical staff, police officers.
Loss, something which is an inevitable part of life. We all lose something in our life. It can be as small as your favourite toy and as big as the eternal loss of some loved one. Some losses are financially painful like losing a job, while some can be emotionally painful like losing a long-lasting friendship, a relationship, a partner in crime, detachment from a loved one. Few can be depressing like loss of your favourite superstar, or even more if you lose two in two days. It shatters deeply. But, nothing is comparable to the loss of your own loved one, the one with whom you spent a part of your life, cried and laughed with them. Something that the whole world is facing. This blog is for condolences to those families and a small attempt to give them strength. You are not alone, please remember it’s more about us than me, we before I, United we stand, divided we fall!
This blog, along with a few upcoming ones, will be a series based on a Hindu mythological story from the Mahabharat time, mentioned in Bhagwada Gita. This is based on the conversation between Arjun and Lord Krishna before the war between the Pandavas and Kauravs. This is just my translation based on what I understood out of it and if it hurts anyone’s emotions then I am extremely sorry, I don’t mean to hurt anyone. Please feel free to correct me in comments or if you like to add something, please feel free to add and help “US”.
Those who don’t know about Mahabharat, here is a brief introduction. Characters here are Arjun, one out of 5 brothers called the Pandavas, and Lord Krishna, being the almighty and hence doesn’t require any introduction. Pandavas were sent on exile for years by their cousins, called Kauravs, by a foul play in the greed of Power, primarily Duryodhan (being the eldest brother out of Kauravs) who wanted to become the King of Hastinapur (a kingdom). Pandavas finally wages war against all the disrespect, injustice and to punish Kauravs for the crimes they have made. Though all belong to the same family, and to win the war, Pandavas would have to fight and kill their own cousins, father figures, Gurus, hence Arjun feels anxious before the war, and had a conversation with Lord Krishna if all that war, all the loss in the battle, be it the lives of millions of soldiers or the wealth, for Power is correct and justified. This conversation between Lord Krishna and Arjun is famous and full of knowledge that can help anyone in any phase of life, and I believe that this is the best time to revisit that conversation and learn about life.
Lord Krishna: Arjun, What is this Universe? The humans, trees, animals, all creatures, how they act, live and then die, how all of this happens?
Arjun: A human body comprises of 5 elements: Earth, Water, Fire, Air and Sky. Body made of Earth, water running in form of blood, the air we breathe, fire in the form of temperature and sky in the empty parts of the body.
Lord Krishna: All the good, as well as the bad people, have these 5 elements only, then what are you attached to? Neither they do exist already?
Arjun: But isn’t the attachments, our identity and all the relations made out with our body only?
Lord Krishna: No, neither identity nor relations are made with our body. Everything, be it our identity, attachment and relations, are made out of our nature, behaviour and actions. Now understand how are these three formed. Every living being in the Universe are identical, yet everyone is different. This is because of 3 qualities: tamas, rajas and sattva.
Tamas is the darkness. One who lives without giving a thought about what is good, what is bad, what is right, what is wrong. They just live to fulfil the desires of their body, like animals, trees, birds, etc.
Sattva is the quality of balance, harmony, goodness, purity, peaceful, virtuous. When someone in any given situation, thinks about what is right and what is wrong, what will serve for better and what will affect as worse, when he thinks about his duty, truth and traditions and then acts accordingly, then it’s called a Satvik life.
Rajas are somewhere in between Tamas and Satva when someone who has knowledge but yet chooses to live a desireful life with all his physical and emotional desires. Hence, get bounded and spends the entire life with a mind full of arrogance and ego.
Combination of these 3 qualities makes out human nature and makes every single being unique.
Arjun: So isn’t this predefined. Lion will eat the deer and the deer will live fearful, then why anything is called a crime? Why is anyone punished? Why is the righteousness glorified?
Lord Krishna: First know who is a living being (or in general a human)?
Human is not only 5 elements, 5 matters, 5 senses, 5 organs and these 3 qualities. No, it’s not just these 23 things. Humans need energy which is called consciousness. But human is also not just consciousness. Consciousness in addition to those 23 things, these 24 makes Character. And with this Character comes the soul. When these 24 and the soul come together then life takes a birth.
Arjun:: What is the soul?
Lord Krishna: Like humans wear clothes or use vehicles, Soul uses the body. The soul uses the body to experience all the good and the bad. Just like humans wear clothes to attend any event. But the soul is not the body. The body is mortal, but the soul is immortal. It can not be murdered.
Arjun: But everything in the world, we experience with our body only. How to identify our soul? How to believe or understand ourselves as a soul and not a body.
Lord Krishna: People living with disabilities. People live with injuries. One who explores inside himself disregarding the senses, thoughts, feelings and knowledge, identifies itself as a soul.
Arjun: What is the purpose of the soul?
Lord Krishna: When this universe was created. The almighty came in as the soul in each object of the Universe to bring the Universe alive. However, got surrounded by greed, arrogance and desires. To become independent and free itself from these desires and hence unite back with the almighty is the only purpose of the soul.
Arjun: But if the soul is almighty, ain’t the progress or failure all in hands of almighty itself?
Lord Krishna: When a gem is dipped in mud, the gem doesn’t shine. Similarly, the soul, combined with the 24 elements, doesn’t really identify itself as a part of the almighty and hence gets trapped in the game of desires and regards everything that the body experiences, be it pleasures or pain as its own experience, and hence never tries to change.
To bring them back on the right path, out of the superficial desires, they are punished.
Arjun: What is duty or righteousness (dharma)?
Lord Krishna: One who has the purpose and follows the path to identify and understand its soul as part of the almighty is the dharma. The universe is the almighty and almighty is the Universe. One who understands this, he becomes compassionate and has sympathy for others. His heart will be full of care and will consider other’s pain as his own pain. This is called dharma.
Arjun: Then why is adharma (the opposite of dharma) punished? Shouldn’t they be forgiven?
Lord Krishna: No, when an adharmi (one who lacks knowledge, full of arrogance, ego, pride, greed and does injustice with others) doesn’t improve and is not ready to learn, then he needs to be punished and for him, the punishment is the only forgiveness and pity.
The conversation will follow in upcoming blogs. But what we can learn here is, that the loss we are talking about, is just elemental or a collection of elements. The soul is immortal and hence will always be alive. They will always be alive for the actions they have performed all their life. They will be always remembered for their good deeds and will stay alive in their work and achievements, and in the hearts of their loved ones. All we have lost is their body, which for a time being helped us to spend time, and interact with their souls. We can just pray that they have gone closer to the almighty.
Also, not only the losses, but also for the adharmi or the criminals, or the murderers because of whom the world is in pain, they will be punished, sooner or later, but will be punished for sure, and that punishment will be self-justified for their actions.
Hope that you and your loved ones stay safe and sound. If you have any suggestions for me or if you want to say something to the world, please feel free. I would request you, to at least say “Take Care World”, so that next time someone reads it, they feel that someone cared for them, and hence they say to others too. Again, “United we stand, divided we fall.”
– Navneet
VARTAMANAH 
What’s your thought about it?