Unsung Heroes of the Mahabharata !!!

Think of Mahabharata, and we think of Arjun, Pandavas, Krishna, Bhagawad Gita and the likes... We think of the victory Pandavas had to capture Hastinapura.... We think of the disguise Pandavas had as a dance teacher, a chef, and so on.... We think of how cruel Duryodhona and the Kauravas were.... The way they insulted Draupadi in front of the darbar..... But there were some unsung heroes of Mahabharata... People who made a lot of sacrifices due to which Mahabharata is what it is today... I will be highlighting those unsung heroes in this blog.... And the lessons we learn from them....

I am involving 2 key entities, Bheeshma and Karna...

Bheeshma:
Born of King Shantanu and Ganga, Bheesha was slated to take over from king Shantanu..... But in the meantime, something interesting happened.... King Shantanu fall in love with a fisherman's daughter.... And wanted to marry her... But her father had one condition: the son born off her daughter will become the official heir of the kingdom.... King Shantanu didn't like this condition at all... and went back to his kingdom... Bheeshma came to know of this development.. and immediately went to meet the fishermans's daughter, who laid down the condition in front of him.... Bheeshma promised that the son born off her daughter would be the official heir of the kingdom... But still her father wasn't satisfied... Thats when Bheeshma made an extremely crucial vow in front of everyone.... He vowed to remain a bachelor... !!! Thats a huge sacrifice, even in todays day and age.. !!! And in those days when you can have multiple husbands/wives !!! He sacrificed something that he totally deserves.... something that was his right...

Even before the war, Bheesma had to join forces with the Kauravas... As they were ruling the land and he had no option.... Bheeshma knew what he was doing is wrong... But he had to abide by the law of the land and the king.... And the way he was killed during the war.... Shikhandi's arrow hit him first and he was hiding behind Arjuna... And Arjuna seized the opportunity ...

Imagine Bheeshma marrying and having children... Then there would NOT have been a Mahabharata in the first place !!!... There would have been Pandavas and kauravas... but they would have had to play second fiddle to the grandchilden of Bheeshma.... You never know !!!

Karna:

A sage visited a kingdom which was ruled by Kuntis father.... Kunti was given the responsibility to serve the sage, which she did to utter perfection.... The sage was so impressed with Kunti that he gave her a unique boon.... She can call unto any god and ask him to grant her a son.... The sage left... She was so happy and surprised about such a boon.. that she decided she should try it to believe it.... The next day, she called Surya and asked him to give her a son... and so Karna was born of all the Kavach-Kundala (with all the protection one needs during a war).... Kunti was extremely happy that her boon was working !!! But thats when she realized what has happened.. !!! She was still a virgin and wasnt even married.. !!! and she having a son would have been the most henious crime ever committed !!!! She prepared a basket and kept Karna inside it and threw him in the river... the basket was picked up by a local fisherman and took the child to his home and took care of him as if he was his son !!!

Krishna himself came to request Karna to join the pandavas for the war... But he refused... His point was, no one was there when he was alone... He was ridiculed for being a fisherman's son by the pandavas... and in such a scenario, it was Duryodhana who gave him the respect he deserves... Kunti also requested him to join pandavas.. but had to return empty handed....

During the battle, Karna was always an asset for the Kauravas... and was always tough to defeat... And Pandavas had to "bend-the-rules" to kill him.... which they eventually did... A sad end to a person who also had a sad beginning... He deserved a lot in life.... and thats how it remained....

Imagine Karna accepting Krishna's offer to be with the Pandavas... Karna knew that Pandavas are much stronger as a unit.. and their chances of winning is more as long as Krishna/Arjun were together... The safest option would have been to join forces with the Pandavas... and since he is the oldest, he would also have been the King of Hastinapura.... Think about it...the battle would have been over in 5-6 days... rather than 18 days !!! And all the people and followers of Mahabharata and its stories would have known Karna as one of the best of those times.. and not Arjuna, who would have been 2nd best... A lot of positives.... yet he didnt accept the offer..... Why ??? Loyalty towards Duryodhana and insults he had to face from Pandavas.... These may be some of the reasons..... But the fact remains, he was always loyal to people whom he loved....

I will end the way I started.... Think of Mahabharata and we think of all the greats... But there are people... who made Mahabharata the way it is ....Unsung, they are.... and maybe thats what they preferred....