LORDBALARAMA- PART 4 Continuedfrom Part 3
Dear friends, This is a posting about Lord Balarama, half-brother of LordSrikrishna. All information is compiled from websites and Google QA. This is FOURTH part of theposting. As I intimated earlier to the groups, I ignore all negative commentsabout my postings by any member. Positive comments and suggestions will be replied andacknowledged by me. Hope an interesting reading. Gopalakrishnan, 15-06-2026 How Balarama Saved thePandavas (From Poverty & Humiliation) While Krishna was the primary saviour of the Pandavas, Balarama played a criticaldiplomatic role early on that helped secure their survival and royal status. Validating the Pandavas'Survival: After the Pandavas escaped the burning House of Lacquer(Lakshagriha), everyone thought they were dead. When theyre-emerged at Draupadi's Swayamvara, Balarama and Krishna wereamong the first to recognize them. Balarama’s immediatepublic embrace and validation of the Pandavas prevented the Kauravas from trying to dismiss themas impostors. Demanding the Kingdom: When the Pandavas returned to Hastinapur to claim their birthright, the Kauravas wanted to give them nothing. Balarama used his immense political authority to demand that King Dhritarashtra treat the Pandavas fairly. This diplomatic pressureforced the Kauravas to give the Pandavas half the kingdom (which became Indraprastha), savingthem from poverty and wandering in exile. Why Balarama Favouredthe Kauravas Despite being related to both sides, Balarama openlyfavoured Duryodhana. The Guru-Shishya Bond: Balarama taught both Bhima and Duryodhana mace warfare. While Bhima relied on raw,aggressive power, Duryodhana was a master of technical skill, agility, andelegance. As a teacher, Balarama respected Duryodhana's dedicationto the craft. Balarama’s desire of marryinghis sister Subhadra to Duryodhana The FailedAlliance: Balarama originally wanted to marry his sister, Subhadra, to Duryodhanato cement a permanent bond with the Kauravas. Krishnasecretly thwarted this by helping Arjuna elope with Subhadra. ThoughBalarama eventually accepted the marriage, he maintained a soft spot for Duryodhana to compensate forthe broken alliance. When did Duryodhanamarried Bhanumathi- Earlier or after the failure of proposal of marryingSubhadra Duryodhana married Bhanumati earlier than the failedproposal to marry Subhadra. Marriage to Bhanumati (TheKalinga Princess): Duryodhana abducted and married the Princess of Kalinga (popularly knownas Bhanumati in later folklore) during her Swayamvara. This event took placeearly in the epic, well before the Pandavas were sent to the house of lac(Lakshagriha). By the time the primary conflicts of the epic began, Bhanumati was already established ashis chief consort, and they subsequently had twin children,Lakshman Kumara and Lakshmana. The Subhadra Proposal: The proposal for Duryodhana tomarry Krishna's sister, Subhadra, happened much later. This occurred while thePandavas were living in Indraprastha and Arjuna was serving his 12-year exile. Balarama, who favoured Duryodhana as his star pupil inmace-fighting, desired to fix Subhadra's marriage to him. However, because Subhadra loved Arjuna, Krishna intervened and advisedArjuna to abduct her, which resulted in the complete failure of theKaurava proposal. Is it correct that Duryodhanahad only one Princess as wife unlike Pandavas? Carification was sought byme in Google search. No, that is not entirely correct. While popular modern televisionadaptations and folklore portray Duryodhana as a strictlymonogamous husband to a single queen (Bhanumati), textual traditions of the Mahabharata reveal that Duryodhana hadmultiple wives,consistent with the polygamous practices of royalty at that time. In the Sanskrit textual traditions, Duryodhana's marital lifeinvolves more than one princess: The Princess of Kalinga: This is the princess he abductedfrom a Swayamvara with the assistance of Karna. While unnamed inVyasa's original Sanskrit text, later traditions popularized her name asBhanumati. The Princess of Kashi: In the Southern Recension and thewidely read Gita Presstranslations of the Mahabharata, it is explicitly mentioned that Duryodhana’s chief queenwas the daughter of the King of Kashi. This Princess of Kashi is noted for being among the royalwomen who warmly welcomed and honoured Draupadi when she first arrived at thepalace in Hastinapur. Duryodhana's other marriages areonly briefly mentioned or omitted in the primary narrative path. Hewas not strictly monogamous, but his secondary wives simply received minimalattention in the core text. When did Balaramareturn after the war started. Balarama went on a pilgrimage without participating in thewar but Balarama did indeedreturn on the 18th day of the Kurukshetra War, having spent theduration of the conflict on a pilgrimage to sacred sites. His return and the events that unfolded provide context forhis notable absence and involvement: The Reason for Absence: Balarama chose to remain strictly neutral in the war, asboth the Pandavas and the Kauravas were his close relatives. Because he couldnot choose a side, he left on a pilgrimage for the banks of the Sarasvati River. Witnessing the Final Duel: He arrived back at Kurukshetra onthe 18th day of the battle just in time to watch the final, gruelling mace duel (Gada Yudh) betweenhis two star disciples, Bhimaand Duryodhana. Threatening Bhima: During the duel, Bhima struck Duryodhana on the thigh—a move that violated therules of combat. Balarama was furious atthis unfair play and threatened to kill Bhima with his plough, butLord Krishna intervened and calmed him down. How Lord Krishnapacified Balarama Lord Krishna pacified Balarama by physically intercepting himand presenting a series of multi-layered arguments that balanced cosmicjustice, past vows, and familial ties over the rigid, technical rules of macewarfare. When Bhima struck Duryodhana below the waist, Balarama grewfurious at the violation of combat rules and raised his plough to kill Bhima. Krishna stepped in, caught his brother's hands, andcalmed him down using the following diplomatic and philosophical arguments: Reminding Him of Bhima'sSacred Vow Krishna reminded Balarama that Bhima was bound by a solemnvow. During the infamousgame of dice years prior, Duryodhana had obscenely exposed his thigh topublicly humiliate Draupadi. At that very moment, Bhima swore anoath to break those exact thighs in battle. Krishna argued that a Kshatriya (warrior) breakinga technical combat rule to fulfil a sacred vow of justice is a higher form of duty than letting asinner escape unpunished. Invoking the Law ofRetribution (Karma) Krishna pointed out Duryodhana's lifelongdisregard for dharma (righteousness). He asked Balarama why he was suddenlydefending the rules of combat for a man who had repeatedly broken every rule ofhumanity: Duryodhana had triedto poison Bhima as a boy. He attempted to burnthe Pandavas alivein the house of lacquer. He orchestrated the illegal cheating at the dice game and thepublic disrobing of Draupadi. Krishna famously noted that those who live by the law of thejungle must naturally expect to meet their end by that same law. Appealing to Natural Affection andFamily Ties Krishna urged Balarama to look at the broader picture oftheir family dynamics. The Pandavas were their cousins (sons of their aunt,Kunti), and their prosperity was directly linked to the safety andfuture of the Yadava clan. Krishna asked his brother not to let his fondness for hisstudent Duryodhana override his natural affection and responsibility towardtheir own suffering relatives. Highlighting Sage Maitreya'sCurse Krishna brought up a past event involving Sage Maitreya, who had once visitedHastinapur to counsel Duryodhana toward peace. When Duryodhana arrogantly slapped his own thigh and ignored the advice, the sage cursed him, declaring that his thighs would oneday be smashed by Bhima's mace. Krishna argued that Bhima was merely acting as the instrumentof a sage's unavoidable curse. The Outcome Though Balarama's anger subsided enough to prevent him fromkilling Bhima, Krishna's arguments did not fully convince his senseof absolute martial honor.Balarama declared that Bhima would forever be remembered as anunfair warrior, whileDuryodhana would be celebrated as a righteous combatant who died by the book.He then mounted his chariot and left the battlefield in silent protest. Why Duryodhana’sthighs were weak? In the original Sanskrit Vyasa Mahabharata, the text states that Duryodhana’supper body was forged out of cosmic diamonds (Vajra) by Lord Shiva to make hima terrifying opponent. However, Goddess Parvati intentionally made hislower body out of flowers so he would retain a mortal weak spot. Therefore, his lower torso andthighs were explicitly designed to be vulnerable from birth I will continue innext posting -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Thatha_Patty" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/thatha_patty/687082769.81706.1781591108204%40mail.yahoo.com.
