It was day 4 of the great war. The first day after Arjuna had finally given up his inhibitions against fighting his own family for the sake of Dharma. Bhagavan Sri Krishna had achieved the dual purpose of fulfilling his devotee Bhishma's wishes of holding a weapon in the war while at the same time... Continue Reading →
Bhimasena and the Destruction of the Kalingas
On the second day of the Mahabharata war, a most extraordinary battle takes place that brings forth the great skill and force of Bhimasena and sets the tone for the direction of the war for the next 17 days (the Kauravas had a notional win on the first day). As the great warriors engage in... Continue Reading →
Bhima’s Defeat of Ashwathama
Bhimasena and Ashwathama meet several times during the 18 day war in the Mahabharata. Bhima ends up with an upper hand every time in those duels. However, the most important fight between the two of them takes place on the 16th day of the war. This was immediately after the coronation of Karna as the... Continue Reading →
Mahabharata: Draupadi Swayamvara
The episode in the Mahabharata in which the swayamvara of Draupadi takes place is one of the most debated and discussed portions of the great epic. Many versions of this incident exist, each of which narrates the happenings in the court of Drupada in a different way. The chief amongst the disputes is regarding the... Continue Reading →
Bhima’s Defeat of Karna – I
On the 14th day of the great war, Arjuna had taken a vow that he would slay Jayadratha - the main culprit in the brutal and adharmic killing of his son Abhimanyu - before sunset. If he failed, Arjuna had vowed to give up his life by entering into a pyre. Drona, the commander in... Continue Reading →
Bhima Sthairya: Steadfastness in Bhagavata Dharma
We continue the series of posts highlighting the ten guNas that bhimasena displays in the mahabharata. The ten gunas have been explained by Sri Madhwacharya in his mahabharata tatparya nirnaya as follows भक्तिर्ज्ञानं सवैराग्यं प्रज्ञा मेधा धृतिः स्थिथिः | योगः प्राणो बलं चैव वृकोदरो इति स्मृतः || २-१४१ || Vrikodara is the personification of bhakti,... Continue Reading →
Bhima Vairagya: The Death of Ghatotkacha
This is continuation of the series of posts highlighting the ten guNas that bhimasena displays in the mahabharata. The ten gunas have been explained by Sri Madhwacharya in his mahabharata tatparya nirnaya as follows भक्तिर्ज्ञानं सवैराग्यं प्रज्ञा मेधा धृतिः स्थिथिः | योगः प्राणो बलं चैव वृकोदरो इति स्मृतः || २-१४१ || Vrikodara is the personification... Continue Reading →
Bhima Gita: The Jnana of Vrikodara
This is continuation of the series of posts highlighting the ten guNas that bhimasena displays in the mahabharata. The ten gunas have been explained by Sri Madhwacharya in his mahabharata tatparya nirnaya as follows भक्तिर्ज्ञानं सवैराग्यं प्रज्ञा मेधा धृतिः स्थिथिः | योगः प्राणो बलं चैव वृकोदरो इति स्मृतः || २-१४१ || Vrikodara is the personification... Continue Reading →
Bhimasena The Parama Bhakta
We continue the series of posts highlighting the ten guNas that bhimasena displays in the mahabharata. The ten gunas have been explained by Sri Madhwacharya in his mahabharata tatparya nirnaya as follows भक्तिर्ज्ञानं सवैराग्यं प्रज्ञा मेधा धृतिः स्थिथिः | योगः प्राणो बलं चैव वृकोदरो इति स्मृतः || २-१४१ || Vrikodara is the personification of bhakti,... Continue Reading →
Display Of ‘Prana’ Guna by Bhimasena
In earlier posts, we have looked at a few of the ten gunas that bhimasena personifies throughout the mahabharata. To recall, the ten gunas have been explained by Sri Madhwa in his mahabharata tatparya nirnaya as follows भक्तिर्ज्ञानं सवैराग्यं प्रज्ञा मेधा धृतिः स्थिथिः | योगः प्राणो बलं चैव वृकोदरो इति स्मृतः || २-१४१ || Vrikodara... Continue Reading →