|
Divine
Discourse on 8th October 2005 - Dasara
With Courage and Purity
Realise Divinity
Text of the Divine Discourse
delivered by Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba on 8th October 2005,
Dasara, in Sai Kulwanth Hall, Prashanti Nilayam
Everyone has to face the
consequences of his Karma (actions). Who has made the
bats to hang from the branches of a tree with their heads
downwards? Has anyone tied them upside down out of hatred?
No, it is their fate. Likewise, nobody can escape from the
consequences of Karma.
(Telugu poem)
Embodiments of Love!
Yesterday, I was telling you about the coronation of Parikshit.
At that time, there were many who had offered advice to him and
assisted him. Many were supportive for his advancement.
Parikshit was very young, almost a boy. It was not easy to raise
a little boy to be an efficient emperor. There were no elders
left in the lineage of the Pandavas. Bhima, Arjuna, Dharmaja,
Nakula and Sahadeva had all started on their way to the
Himalayan slopes. The lone representative of the Pandava clan
was this little boy Parikshit. He was just put to schooling in
the traditional way. But, there was none who could ascend to the
throne, except him. The young lad was thus caught in a complex
situation. He, however, proceeded on the path shown by three
preceptors who were available. The young Parikshit was in tears
and was pleading with his granduncle and grandmother (Dharmaja
and Draupadi) asking them whether it was fair on their part to
abandon him leaving such a heavy responsibility on his
shoulders. Dharmaja told the boy that the consequences of the
passage of time were inescapable. Even Krishna who was their
constant support had also left them to fend for themselves. They
also had no choice but to follow the foot steps of Krishna.
After all, they had been strict adherents to the advice and
guidance of Krishna. Krishna treated the Pandavas as bosom
friends. He had reared them as His own children. He had been
their closest relative. In fact he had sustained them in every
manner of relationship. He alone was their refuge. So, they
advised Parikshit to face his responsibilities with courage and
confidence. Thereafter, they tarried awhile to see how Parikshit
would tackle the situation. Parikshit replied bravely that he
would not shirk his responsibilities nor let down the glory of
his lineage. "I shall rule this kingdom", he averred. He was
full of confidence and courage. Dharmaja and Draupadi were happy
and relieved. They were astonished at the courageous demeanour
of the young lad.
One has to note some events that transpired at that time.
Dharmaja was in his human form and was preparing to proceed to
the spiritual and divine realms. To go from the earthly realm to
the divine realm one needed a lot of courage. Dharmaja traversed
the entire plane of the spiritual and the mundane, and made a
proper mix to achieve ability to advance to the divine realms.
In fact he got this capacity by seeing the self confidence of
young Parikshit. Parikshit was then reminded of the happenings
prior to this. He had gone to each of the Pandavas and asked
them to take up the responsibility of ruling the kingdom. But
all of them had declined and insisted that Dharmaja alone was
qualified for ruling the kingdom, which was also the wish of the
people. Finally they settled on the young Parikshit as the only
suitable person. Hearing this, young Parikshit was frightened
and fell at the feet of his grandfather with tears and pleaded
whether it was possible for such a young person to rule such a
large kingdom. It was Draupadi who gave the necessary
reassurance to Parikshit. Thus, the crowning of Parikshit as
emperor took place.
On the second day after his
coronation, Parikshit assembled all his vassal kings. People
thought that the young king was frightened and that was why he
was assembling all of them. All the kings were collected and
seated in the chamber of the court. Parikshit spoke to them.
"You see a young boy as your lord before you. But be sure I
shall not flinch from my duties nor should you from yours. We
are together committed to see to the welfare of this empire; so,
I want now to know your intention. Some of you, I know; others I
cannot even recognise. So, you make your decision to go along
with me for the sake of the empire or follow your own
ambitions." After he spoke thus, the assembly split into two
factions, one supporting Parikshit and the other pursuing their
private ambitions thinking that the youthful king lacked
determination and could be flouted easily. After this, a war
broke out between the factions. Parikshit fought the battle with
the names of his grandfather Arjuna on his lips (Arjuna had 12
names) ? Arjuna- the pure, Phalguna- the one born under the star
Phalguna, Partha- scion of the Prithu lineage, Kiriti - one born
with a crown, Swaetavahana- one mounted on a pure white charger,
Bheebathsu - one who is above the emotion of revolution, Vijaya-
ever victorious, Krishna- the dark one, Savyasachi -
ambidextrous, Dhananjaya- the victor of all wealth. Thus, as he
battled, all the Pandavas were present around him (in their
spiritual form). Even Draupadi was there. Few know this fact
that Draupadi was a great leader in her own right.
It would be a mistake to think that Parikshit plunged into
warfare in his first act as emperor. In fact, Draupadi was his
mentor, physically as a child and spiritually in the later part
of his life. She had warned him that it would not be proper on
his part to drag himself into strife as soon as he became the
king. First he had to infuse confidence in his own people and,
thanks to the training given by Draupadi he was able to succeed
in good measure. All his subjects young and old stood by him
addressing and adoring him as Maharaja- the king of kings with
affection and awe. They became confident and fearless. With such
a king presiding over their welfare, where was the room for any
fear? And Parikshit reassured them that in spite of his being so
young, he was fully favoured by God's grace and, as such, there
was no power on earth that could oppose him. God alone was his
refuge. He undertook the administration of the empire with full
faith under the guidance of God.
Do not be under the impression that all this training was only
after the decision of the Pandavas to proceed to the Himalayas.
Right from the end of the Great War, it was known that the sole
heir to the empire was the infant son of Abhimanyu. Draupadi
decided to take up the task of grooming of the child for his
future role. So she told Dharmaja that though he was the
repository of all virtues, he was at times prone to indecision.
Thus, right from the beginning Parikshit, was under the care of
Draupadi. Even before the formal coronation of Parikshit,
Draupadi along with Dharmaja used to address the people of
Hastinapura, saying that, this young child was their future
ruler. "Do not be misled by his youthful looks. He is blessed
with the grace of god and is replete with all kingly virtues.
The duty of a ruler of a large population is to look after their
needs like a mother. At present, he is a small child and needs
your support and protection. Take this up as a duty conferred on
you by God. In due course he will be the king and he will look
after your welfare like a dutiful son. We are not concerned with
enjoyment and pleasure. Do everything as a matter of duty. And
when the time is ripe you shall be protected and provided with
your needs by him as he is verily a gift of God to us and to
all. Everything happens according to the will of God. The will
of God cannot be tampered with by any other force."
Thus Draupadi and Dharmaja already paved the way for the
crowning of Parikshit. That was the manner of political
administration in those days. Every single person in the kingdom
shall be well looked after, like the children of a close knit
family. When such a family of elders and children are in control
where is the room for fear or worry? Thus Parikshit became a
great emperor. Are there any parents who can bring up their
children in this way? Even if you are prepared to train the
young boys in the right way, the children will not be ready to
listen. But Parikshit was a good learner as well as a leader
with courage. Courage is the means of all successful results.
This is also a true spiritual practice. That is the true
strength. Armed with such divine and spiritual strength
Parikshit achieved greatness. And the whole empire prospered
thereby. Such a motherly preceptor is very rare.
Parikshit summoned all his ministers as also representatives
from the subcontinent and spoke to them on the importance of
unity. In fact purity is dependant on unity and purity is the
way to divinity. With divinity, all tasks will become fruitful.
It is enough to sustain and maintain this purity both in the
individual and community. This concept of individual and
collective behaviour was taught to his subjects and thereby an
ideal community was created in his empire. The young king
Parikshit smilingly approached his people and even apologised to
them for any mistakes that he might have unwittingly committed.
The type of communication that should exist between the ruler
and the ruled was exemplified by Parikshit par excellence. Young
Parikshit had full faith in God whose benevolence and love
ensured his welfare and that of his subjects. All of you have
the same firm faith in God and maintain purity and you can be
certain of the success of your sadhana.
Source:
http://www.sssbpt.org/Pages/Prasanthi_Nilayam/Dasara_Discourse_8_10_05.htm |