Bhagwad Gita - Post 8

Dear All,

In the next couple of posts, we will deal with the most striking verses from chapter 1

Verse 7

Asmaakam tu vishishtaa you taan nibodha dwijottama;
Naayakaah mama sainyasya samjnaartham taan braveemi te.

(Know also, best among the twice-born, the names of those who are the most distinguished among ourselves, the leaders of my army! These I name to you for your information.)

Commentary 

Addressing his master as "the best among the twice-born,"Duryodhana now repeats the names of the distinguished heroes in his own army. 

A weak man, to escape from his own mental fears, will whistle to himself in the dark. The guilty conscience of the tyrant king had undermined all his mental strength. The more he realized the combined strength of the great personalities arrayed in the opposite enemy camp, the more abjectly nervous he felt, in spite of the fact that his own army was also manned by highly competent heroes. 

After all, Drona is a Brahmana by birth and as such he must have a greater share of softness of heart. Moreover, the enemy lines are fully manned by his own dear students. As a shrewd dictator, Duryodhana entertained shameless doubts about the loyalty of his own teacher. This is but an instinctive fear which is natural with all men of foul motives and crooked dealings. 

All of us who have been leaders in any organization and have witnessed many leaders in Social/cultural/political/ commercial/any other  organization would have surely observed what is to be said here. 

" In tamil, there is a saying, " Nirai Kudam Talumbadu" ( The pot which is filled, will be steady, water will not spill out from that easily, which means that the danger of spilling of water is only in case where the pot is half filled and has room to jump in the next half and fall.

We would have observed in our own case, where one has absolute faith in one's self and especially where one's conscience is clear, he does not speak much and his actions speak for his purity, his noble thoughts. 

Only where a leader is not confident of himself, his intentions are not 100% right and noble, fear grips in him about the outcome of his proposed action and to overcome that fear, he talks too much, he projects his strength too much and tries to deceive the listeners as much as he tries to deceive himself, thinking that he will gain victory in and through his actions. This is the plight of Duryodhana!!

A Brahmana is considered as "twice-born" because of his inner spiritual development. When born from his mother's womb man comes into the world only as the animal called man. Thereafter, through study and contemplation he gains more and more discipline, and a cultured Hindu is called a Brahmana (Brahmin).

(This is applicable to every human being. By birth one may be a Brahman but as per the above understanding, one becomes a Brahmin in real sense upon sincere  study and  understanding and  contemplation  of/on  Brahman)

Love