Reading Diary B Week 10

Part B of this week's reading picks up with Yudhishthira attempting to make one last plea for peace. He sends Vidura to Hastinapura to speak with Dhritarashtra. However, he rejects the request for peace and justice. When the news of the rejected peace offering is circulated they all realize it is now time for war. The battle is to take place on the field of Kurukshetra. Arjuna originally does not want to fight because of the idea of fighting his family members, however, after the sermon delivering the song of the lord he is ready to fight. Bhisma plays a major role in the battle as he affects how different characters decide who and when to attack. Once he becomes fatally wounded it becomes okay for Karna to fight. They then lure Arjuna away from the battle while his son Abhimanyu is charged with breaking through the enemy lines. He knows how to do this but not how to escape and he gets captured and killed by Jayadratha. Arjuna then vows to kill him by the end of the day. When krishna uses a discus to make it seem like it is night time, Jayadratha comes out of hiding but does not realize it is a trap. It was all so Arjuna could kill him, which he did. After long days of battling the warriors are brought to their death by karma Krishna insists. Duryodhana does not believe this up until his own death. After the battle the Pandavas go to Hastinapura. They perform rituals for all of the dead along with others. Although Yudhisthira refuses to be king he is finally convinced by the other that he needs to be king. All of the Pandavas die off one by one until the only one left is Yudhisthira. He departs for heaven in his human form while the Pandava line is upheld as Arjuna's son, Abhimanyu takes the throne in Hastinapura.

Cosmic form of Krishna

Source: Wikipedia

Week 10 Reading Guide A:

This week while reading the Mahabharata we pick up after the fall out of the series of dice games between both sides. The Pandavas and Arjuna are still working with their newly acquired weapons. However, Dhritarashtra is aware of the moves they are making and the weapons because of the spies he has following them. Duryodhana then decides to humiliate the Pandavas until his plan backfires enormously. The gods draw them into a battle and the Pandavas end up having to free Duryodhana from captivity. The Pandavas then are drawn in by the deer who leads them astray and drives them to thirst. They then head to a lake to find water. Nacelle is the first to drink from the lake after ignoring the voice and dies. All of Yudhisthira's brothers follow in this trend until he discovers them all dead from the lake. Luckily, he recognizes the test and listens to the voice. After he is done at the lake all his brothers regain life. They were now in their thirteenth year of exile This thirteenth year would allow for them to live in disguise with the King Virata. They all live in disguise in various roles. Draupadi ends up being part of a big scandal and has to beg to avoid being sent away during their final days of exile. This leads to the cattle raid which resulted in Virata giving his daughter to Arjuna's son after he draws blood from Yudhisthira. Shortly after the wedding the preparations for the war begin. After appeals for peace both sides seem to realize that war ultimately looms.

Krishna and the Pandavas

Source: Wikipedia