Two Sides of a Coin - 'The Bad' and 'The Greater Bad'

We all know that the battle of Kurukshetra was fought between Kauravas and Pandavas for 18 days. The first nine days of this battle were indecisive. For the Pandavas it was very critical that Bhishma, the commander of Kaurvas, be killed.

On the 10^th day of the battle, Pandavas killed Bhishma by using Shikhandi (a eunuch) as a human shield for Arjuna. Bhishma saw Shikhandi was a female and he has vowed not to raise his weapon for a female, whereas Pandavas saw him as a male. Bhishma’s own interpretation of the situation got him killed. Had he interpreted Shikhandi as a male, he would never be killed.

Now, the new commander of Kauravas, Dhrona broke Pandava morale by killing Arjun’s son Abhimanyu and even making his soldiers fight at night, against the rule of war.

To kill Dhrona, Pandavas lied that his son was killed. Drona was extremely attached with his son. This broke his morale and he lowered his weapons. Taking advantage of this, the leader of the Pandava army raised his sword and beheaded Drona.

Barbareek is a little known character whose tale is told in many folk Mahabharatas. He was stronger than all five Pandavas put together. Not wanting him to join the Kauravas, Krishna asked him for a boon and said, “Give me your head.” Barbareek immediately severed his neck and offered his head to Krishna with one request that he be allowed to see this great battle from a vantage point. At the end of the war, the Pandavas asked him who the greatest warrior in the battlefield was. Barbareek replied, “I saw no great warrior on the battlefield. All I saw was Krishna’s discuss whirring around cutting the heads of warriors and their blood washing the hair of Draupadi, who had long ago been publicly disrobed by the very same warriors.”

It is a good idea, in the middle of corporate political wrangling, to step back and see who is provoking the fight and stoking the flames. Often the two parties involved fail to realize that out there is another man making them fight for his very own agenda. So ask yourself – are you fighting your own battle in Kurukshetra or are you a pawn in someone else’s much bigger game?