730716 - Lecture BG 01.16-19 - London

Lectures by Date, 1973

His Divine Grace
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

730716BG-LONDON - July 16, 1973 - 22:48 Minutes

Pradyumna: Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. (Prabhupāda and devotees repeat) (leads chanting of verse)

anantavijayaṁ rājā

kuntī-putro yudhiṣṭhiraḥ

nakulaḥ sahadevaś ca

sughoṣa-maṇipuṣpakau

kāśyaś ca parameṣvāsaḥ

śikhaṇḍi ca mahā-rathaḥ

dhṛṣṭadyumno virāṭaś ca

sātyakiś cāparājitaḥ

drupado draupadeyāś ca

sarvaśaḥ pṛthivī-pate

saubhadraś ca mahā-bāhuḥ

śaṅkhān dadhmuḥ pṛthak pṛthak

(BG 1.16-18)

(break)

Prabhupāda: Word meaning.

Pradyumna:

ananta-vijayam—the conch named Ananta-vijaya; rājā—the king; kuntī-putraḥ—the son of Kuntī; yudhiṣṭhiraḥ—Yudhiṣṭhira; nakulaḥ—Nakula; sahadevaḥ—Sahadeva; ca—and; sughoṣa-maṇipuṣpakau—the conches named Sughoṣa and Maṇipuṣpaka; kāśyaḥ—the King of Kāśī (Vārāṇasī); ca—and; parama-iṣu-āsaḥ—the great archer; śikhaṇḍī—Śikhaṇḍī; ca—also; mahā-rathaḥ—one who can fight alone against thousands; dhṛṣṭadyumnaḥ—Dhṛṣṭadyumna (the son of King Drupada); virāṭaḥ—Virāṭa (the prince who gave shelter to the Pāṇḍavas while they were in disguise); ca—also; sātyakiḥ—Sātyaki (the same as Yuyudhāna, the charioteer of Lord Kṛṣṇa); ca—and; aparājitaḥ—who had never been vanquished before; drupadaḥ—Drupada, the King of Pāñcāla; draupadeyāḥ—the sons of Draupadī; ca—also; sarvaśaḥ—all; pṛthivī-pate—O King; saubhadraḥ—the son of Subhadrā (Abhimanyu); ca—also; mahā-bāhuḥ—greatly-armed; śaṅkhān—conchshells; dadhmuḥ—blew; pṛthak pṛthak—each separately.

Translation: "King Yudhiṣṭhira, the son of Kuntī, blew his conchshell, the Anantavijaya, and Nakula and Sahadeva blew the Sughoṣa and Maṇipuṣpaka. That great archer the King of Kāśī, the great fighter Śikhaṇḍi, Dhṛṣṭadyumna, Virāṭa and the unconquerable Sātyaki, Drupada, the sons of Draupadī, and the others, O King, such as the son of Subhadrā, greatly armed, all blew their respective conchshells."

Prabhupāda: So here Dhṛtarāṣṭra is addressed as pṛthivī-pate, the lord of the world. Pṛthivī. Pṛthivī means this planet. So five thousand years ago, from the statement it appears that the king of Hastināpura was the emperor of the whole world, pṛthivī-pate. One king. The whole planet was being governed by one emperor or king, and different parts of the world, other kings, subordinate kings, as they are named here, Drupada, then Virāṭa, Kāśya, in different parts of the world they came and joined. And each and every one of them possessed a different kind of bugle, śaṅkha. So they declared that, "Now we are ready to fight."

And another significance of this verse is, Yudhiṣṭhira is also described here as rājā. In the beginning Sañjaya informed Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Duryodhana rājā. So actually the fight is between the two kings: one side Duryodhana, another side Yudhiṣṭhira. One may not misunderstand, therefore particularly mentioned kuntī-putra: this rājā is Kuntī's son, kuntī-putra. So Drupada, Mahārāja Drupada, the father of Draupadī. Draupadī was gained by Arjuna in competition. Draupadī, the daughter of Mahārāja Drupada, is Draupadī. She is Draupadī. And her sons, they are draupadeya.

So the grandfather, the grandsons, all of them were present, because they were allies. Mahārāja Drupada happened to be the father-in-law of the Pāṇḍavas. Draupadī accepted five husbands. When Draupadī was gained in the competition, they were incognito. The Pāṇḍavas were incognito. They were banished for twelve years, and after twelve years, one year they had to live incognito. Nobody would understand where they are living. So they took shelter at the house of Mahārāja Virāṭa.

So Virāṭa, at that time this Mahārāja Virāṭa's daughter, Uttarā, was trained by Arjuna for dancing. Arjuna was appointed as a dancing teacher for the daughter of Mahārāja Virāṭa, Uttarā. So when it was discovered that Arjuna was not a dancing teacher—he was the great hero—Mahārāja Virāṭa wanted to offer his daughter that, "You marry my daughter," because he was disclosed. So Arjuna said: "How can I marry this girl? I am her teacher. Therefore a teacher is to be considered as father, so it is not possible. So if you like, I can get this girl married with my son Saubhadra, Subhadrā's son."

Arjuna had another wife, Subhadrā. That Subhadrā, you know, sister of Kṛṣṇa. Sister of Kṛṣṇa. So Subhadrā; Balarāma, elder brother; Kṛṣṇa, younger brother. Kṛṣṇa wanted to hand over Subhadrā to Arjuna, and Balarāma wanted to hand over Subhadrā to Duryodhana. So Kṛṣṇa could not say anything. The elder brother has decided. Therefore Kṛṣṇa advised Arjuna to kidnap Subhadrā. Just see how much Kṛṣṇa was affectionate to Arjuna that Arjuna liked also to marry Subhadrā, and Subhadrā also liked, but the elder brother did not agree. So they made a plan that Arjuna kidnap Subhadrā.

This kidnapping was allowed among the kṣatriyas, and fight. That is kṣatriya marriage. Unless there is fight, that marriage is not complete. The red vermilion which we apply, that is kṣatriya principle. After killing the opposite party, the blood will be smeared over the hair of the bridegroom . . . er, bride. That is conquer, victory. So in every marriage . . . Kṛṣṇa had 16,108 wives, and each wife was married by fighting, beginning from Rukmiṇī. Rukmiṇī also, the first wife of Kṛṣṇa, the first queen, when Kṛṣṇa became king of Dvārakā, she was the first queen. So she was kidnapped by Arjuna (Kṛṣṇa). Rukmiṇī was settled up to be married with Śiśupāla. Śiśupāla also happened to be Kṛṣṇa's cousin-brother, and Rukmiṇī did not like that she would be handed over to Śiśupāla. She wanted to marry Kṛṣṇa. So she sent one letter to Kṛṣṇa that, "This is the position. My brother, Rukma, he has decided to hand over to me to Śiśupāla, but I don't like. So please arrange for kidnapping me." A brāhmaṇa was sent to Kṛṣṇa.

That is also another responsibility of kṣatriya. If a girl proposes, "I want to marry you," a kṣatriya cannot refuse. He cannot refuse. He must marry that girl, even at the risk of life. This is kṣatriya spirit. One rākṣasī, she wanted to marry Bhīma. So Bhīma refused; she was a rākṣasī. So she complained to Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira that, "I wanted to marry Bhīma, but he has refused." And Yudhiṣṭhira Mahārāja compelled Bhīma, "You must marry. Even though she is rākṣasī, you are kṣatriya; you cannot refuse." This was the system, very nice system, brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya, śūdra.

(aside) Don't work now. You should hear. You cannot divert your attention.

So all these kings on the side of the Pāṇḍavas, they were relatives, so they joined. So when they blew their different types of conchshell, then the other side were trembled, "Oh, they have gathered so much strength?" Because Duryodhana thought that for . . . continually for thirteen years Pāṇḍavas were banished, so they could not gather any good amount of soldiers. But when they saw that the so many kings from different parts of the world have joined them, so they became frightened. That is described in the next verse, sa ghoṣo dhārtarāṣṭrāṇāṁ hṛdayāni vyadārayat (BG 1.19). They are just like heartbroken: "What is this? They have gathered so much great, great fighters?" Nabhaś ca pṛthivīṁ caiva tumulo abhyanunādayan.

(aside) You read this verse.

Pradyumna:

sa ghoṣo dhārtarāṣṭrāṇāṁ

hṛdayāni vyadārayat

nabhaś ca pṛthivīṁ caiva

tumulo 'bhyanunādayan

(BG 1.19)

(break)

saḥ—that; ghoṣaḥ—vibration; dhārtarāṣṭrāṇām—of the sons of Dhṛtarāṣṭra; hṛdayāni—hearts; vyadārayat—shattered; nabhaḥ—the sky; ca—also; pṛthivīm—the surface of the earth; ca—also; eva—certainly; tumulaḥ—uproarious; abhyanunādayan—by resounding.

Translation: "The blowing of these different conchshells became uproarious, and thus, vibrating both in the sky and on the earth, it shattered the hearts of the sons of Dhṛtarāṣṭra."

Prabhupāda: So enemy. Enemy, when one enemy fights, the other party, well-equipped, strong, so it breaks the heart of the enemy. That happened. So there is nothing to especially . . . the breaking of the heart by vibrating different types of conchshell from the side of the Pāṇḍavas, it broke the heart of the dhārtarāṣṭrāṇām, Dhṛtarāṣṭra, his sons, one hundred sons. So from Dhṛtarāṣṭra, Dhārtarāṣṭra, dhārtarāṣṭrāṇāṁ hṛdayāni vyadārayat. And it resounded both in the sky or on the surface. Hmm.

So I think I shall end. That's all.

Devotees: All glories to Prabhupāda. (end)