Week 12 Story: Bedlam

Duryodhana took another drink from his mug. "I don't care what happened last season, we are going to win this year!" Duryodhana was once again arguing with his cousin, Arjuna, before the big game. This was a yearly occurrence that dated back to 1904.

"Duryodhana," Arjuna started, "what on earth makes you think you will win this season? Have you learned nothing over the last decade....better yet, have you learned nothing over the last century?!"

Arjuna did have a point. Duryodhana's Cowboys had only won two out of the last ten meetings between the two teams and boasted only eighteen total wins in the history of the series. Arjuna's Sooners had won eighty-six. There were also seven ties.

"I'll tell you why we will win; our quarterback, Karna, is going to lead us to victory. He's just as good as your quarterback, probably better. Drona, our running back, is going to run all over your defense behind our amazing offensive line. We have the best receivers in football and there's no way the Sooners will be able to slow them down. This is our year!"

While Duryodhana's Cowboys did have a good quarterback, and good running back, and arguably the best receivers in football, and Arjuna's Sooners had been mediocre at best defensively, the Sooners' offense was the best in the nation.

"I don't disagree that your Cowboys will score a lot of points, Duryodhana, it's just that the Sooners will score more." Arjuna calmly replied.

"That's absurd! There's no way Coach Bheeshma will allow that to happen. Your team will be lucky to even cross the goal line. I wouldn't be surprised if Krishna forfeits at the half."

Although Coach Krishna hadn't been with the Sooners long, he was one of the most respected and best coaches in football. He was a household name and was well respected by all of his peers.

"I think you may have had a bit too much to drink, Duryodhana. It is pointless to argue with you. Every year you tell me how great your team is and how badly your team is going to win, and every year your team is humiliated. This year will be no different. I guess we will just have to wait until Saturday."

62-52

Image Creator: Jeremy Harris

Bibliography.The Bhagavad Gita translated by Ramanand Prasad.
In the original story, Sanjaya is relaying to King Dhritarashtra what he overheard Duryodhana telling Drona before the battle. Duryodhana tells Drona that there are many warriors on his side that are equal to Arjuna and that Bheeshma (I spelled the names that same as in the original story), his army commander, was invincible. He believes that the Pandavas' army would be easily defeated. In my story, I replaced the war with a yearly football game where one team always talks their side up, assuming they will win before coming back to reality after the game.

Reading Notes: The Bhagavad Gita Part B

Title: The Bhagavad Gita Part B
Translator: Ramanand Prasad
Year: 1988

- Krishna is telling Arjuna that he is the reincarnation of Vishnu, stating that he is the origin of all. I feel like this would be similar to one of the disciples talking with Jesus, although in this case, Krishna is trying to convince Arjuna to go to war with his family. I feel like this story could be retold where it is some other religious figure, perhaps Jesus, speaking to someone about who they are. 

- Krishna tells Arjuna to fight and enjoy the kingdom he is about to inherit as all the warriors on the other side have already been destroyed by Krishna. Arjuna is merely an instrument. 

- Krishna tells Arjuna that he is the only one to see him in his four-armed form. I could write a story about Arjuna, years later, explaining to his grandchildren what it was that he saw and how he was able to see it.

- Krishna refers to his body as "the mini universe."

- I believe that in the version of the Mahabharata that I read, this conversation between Arjuna and Krishna was taking place during the middle of the war. I could retell this story with these two talking on the middle of the battle field as warriors fight all around them, but in slow motion, and even coming to a standstill when Krishna changes form.

- Krishna names off hypocrisy, arrogance, pride, anger, harshness, and ignorance as someone born with demonic qualities. These qualities describe Duryodhana completely. I could retell this story where instead of Krishna telling Arjuna how great he (Arjuna) is, he could be talking to Duryodhana, telling him how awful he is with Duryodhana vowing to change his ways in the end.

- The entire conversation between Krishna and Arjuna is being told by Sanjaya to King Dhritarashtra. I could retell this story where it's being told to all of the Kauravas, changing their minds about wanting to go to war with the Pandavas.

Four-Armed Krishna

Image Author: Ramanarayanadatta astri

Image Source: Wikimedia Commons

Reading Notes: The Bhagavad Gita Part A

Title: The Bhagavad Gita Part A
Translator: Ramanand Prasad
Year: 1988

- Arjuna's Decision - This story starts with Sanjaya telling King Dhritarashtra how all of his warrior stacks up against the Pandava's warriors. They are basically game planning for the upcoming battle. It reminds me of game planning for a football game, trying to decide each team's strengths and weaknesses and where to attack a defense or offense. If I were to retell this story, I could retell it a couple different ways. I could tell it as an announcer setting the stage for the big game between two rival football teams, the Pandavas and the Kauravas. 

I could also tell this story from the perspective of fans of the two opposing teams, arguing about why their team is going to win the big game. The setting would probably be in a bar on a Friday night before the game on Saturday.

- Arjuna tells Krishna that he does not want to fight against his cousins and the people that have raised him and Krishna talks him into it, telling him why he should. I think this story would be interesting if the Pandavas decided not to fight the Kauravas and go back to living in the forest. Durodhana would celebrate at first, but no one else would and no one would talk to him anymore afterwards. He would become lonely and seek out the Pandavas where he would find acceptance and friendship.

- I find it interesting that Krishna tells Arjuna that if you nourish the Devas by Yajna and learn to give up all personal desires, the Devas will fulfill all of your desires.

- I do like that Krishna says that even though there is nothing in the world (he says worlds) that he should do or obtain, he still does work because if he doesn't do work, people will follow his lead and the would would perish. He also talks about not having attachment to the results of the work that you do and trusting that everything happens the way that it should. I feel that if people lived this way, they would be a lot less stressed, and possibly happier. But it is a very hard to control your mind in that way.

Krishna and Arjuna

Image Author: Arnab Dutta

Image Source: Wikimedia Commons