Yudhisthir
Two great flaws of a truly great man !

Even the greatest of us have our own human flaws.  That is what makes us human. 

Yudhisthir’s two greatest flaws were sentimentality and gambling.  He could never resist making a bet.  Even if the odds were not in his favour, he would bet.  While they were under the tutelage of their mother, Yudhisthir’s gambling instincts were kept in check.  Once he was an emperor though, there was no one to control his desire to gamble.  He could now feed his desire with most extravagant bets, and he did ! 

During the 12 years of exile, Krushna advised him to learn the science behind gambling so that he would not loose at dice again.  While they were living in hiding, Yudhisthir entertained the king of Matsya by gambling with him.  You would have thought all this would have allowed him to satisfy his desire to gamble and hence take no more risks with his patrimony.  Sadly not !  Yudhisthir gambled once again at the end of the battle by allowing Duryodhan to choose one – any one – of the bothers – to fight with him and he who won, would be declared the winner of the entire War !!  Krushna berated him for throwing away the kingdom and life’s entire work on a single combat ! 

But what else could Ydhisthir do ? 
He was an addicted gambler ! 
An addict has no control over his addication !!

Yudhisthir was also overly sentimental.  He did not want to “hurt the family” and so decided to keep quiet about the various plots to harm and kill them while they were young.  His silence was misunderstood as a sign for weakness or for not having enough supporters at court.  Yudhisthir’s silence emboldened Duryodhan further and the matter only escalated.  If only Yudhisthir had complained at the right time moment, maybe the could have been avoided ?

Sentimentality stayed his hand several times.  This harmed the greater interest of the kingdom.  It harmed the peace and prosperity of his family too.  If only had let Duryodhan be destroyed by the Gandharvas in the forest, they would not have had to fight the terrible war or suffer the loss of several generations of royal families all over India.  Just think of the carnage his sentimentality wrecked in families up and down the sub-continent.  Was it worth it ?  How many widows, orphans, childless old parents did he create with his several acts of kindness to Duryodhan ?  Is this the act of dharma or adharma ?  Duryodhan had offended and attacked the Gandharvas, his capture or misfortune had nothing to do with Pandavas.  Why did Yudhisthir interfere and send his brothers to rescue a troublesome "cousin" ?

Yudhisthir spared Jayadrath despite the insult and injury he gave to Draupadi.  Though the wretch hoped to kidnap and rape Draupadi, Yudhisthir spared him simply because he was married to his cousin sister.  Why was the hand of dharma stayed ?  Why wasn't the culprit punished ?  Why did the emperor not deliver justice ?  Simply because he was married to his cousin sister ?  Sentimentality should not have denied Draupadi justice.  But it did.  Greater harm was done by such sentimentality than any other weapon of Karna or Dushashan.

In this respect, Shri Krushna is very straight forward and does not brook sentimental sloppiness.  Time and again he reminds all and sundry to think beyond their family / clan / kingdom and think for the greater good of mankind. 
* When his own brother-in-law was killed by Balarama, Krushna does not berate him. 
* When his own sons misbehave, Krushna does not spare them or protect them from punishment. 
* Shri Krushna choses to tactically "flee the battlefield" to save the lives of millions of innocents.  By using this ruse in his battle with Kalyavan, he manages to purchase enough time for the ordinary citizens to set up a new, stronger, better defended capital at Dwarika. 
* When time comes, Shri Krushna breaks his own oath for the greater good of mankind.  There is nothing more sacrosanct than human life.  If breaking an oath can protect one – or more lives – that oath is worth breaking.  This is in direct contrast to the likes of Bhishma, who were so unbending, they were willing to let the entire kingdom perish for the want of keeping an oath. 

“Keeping your word” is a good thing and should be applauded, but, if and when the circumstance demands, you should be willing to change.  That is what Krushna taught time and again.

 Ydhisthir, sadly, could not do that.  One time he did do it, he was so vexed by it, he lost his peace of mind for it.  If you feel guilty about doing anything – even things you have no reason to feel guilty about – than you are going to loose your peace.  Yudhisthir lost his peace.  Krushna, because he was sure about what he was doing, broke a hundred rules, but never lost his peace. 

It’s a fine line and one most people do not know how to tread. 
This is why its important to understand the finer points of life so we can make the right decisions.  If we care to learn, Mahabharat teaches us such subtle lessons.

Return to Index

Return to Mahabharta Index

Return to ShriNathji's Haveli 

© Bhagwat Shah    [email protected]