


He felt great displeasure at these possibilities, instead preferred that this war transpires. A peaceful settlement meant that the Pandavas would continue being a hindrance for them. If it aroused the faculty of discrimination, they might turn away from killing their cousins and negotiate a truce. Bhagavad Gita Pdf Free Downloadĭhritarashtra feared that the holy land might influence the minds of his sons. It means “Kurukshetra is the sacrificial arena of the celestial gods.” Hence, it was regarded as the sacred land that nourished dharma. Kurukshetra is described as kurukṣhetraṁ deva yajanam in the Shatapath Brahman, the Vedic textbook detailing rituals. The words dharma kṣhetre, the land of dharma(virtuous conduct) used by Dhritarashtra depict the dilemma he was experiencing. Feeling guilty of the injustice he had done towards his nephews, his conscience worried him about the outcome of this battle. He had usurped the kingdom of Hastinapur from the rightful heirs the Pandavas, sons of his brother Pandu.

The blind King Dhritarashtra’s fondness for his own sons had clouded his spiritual wisdom and deviated him from the path of virtue. Still, in this verse, King Dhritarashtra asked Sanjay, what his sons and his brother Pandu’s sons were doing on the battlefield? It was apparent that they would fight, then why did he ask such a question? The two armies had gathered on the battlefield of Kurukshetra, well prepared to fight a war that was inevitable. Dhṛitarāśhtraḥ uvācha- Dhritarashtra said dharma-kṣhetre- the land of dharma kuru-kṣhetre- at Kurukshetra samavetāḥ- having gathered yuyutsavaḥ- desiring to fight māmakāḥ- my sons pāṇḍavāḥ- the sons of Pandu cha- and eva- certainly kim- what akurvata- did they do sañjaya- Sanjay TranslationīG 1.1: Dhritarashtra said: O Sanjay, after gathering on the holy field of Kurukshetra, and desiring to fight, what did my sons and the sons of Pandu do? Commentary
