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Facing Fear - A Story from the Mahabharata

1/12/2015

10 Comments

 
Below is a narration of a story from the Mahabharata, an ancient Indian epic. I had read this story as a child and came across it once again fairly recently. I felt that the story was very pertinent to my previous blog, therefore I am sharing it with all of you in my own words.

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On their evening walk, Lord Krishna and his elder brother Balrama ventured deep into a thick forest, and soon after, darkness fell. The brothers decided to stay in the forest for the night, and took turns to sleep. Krishna went to sleep first while Balrama stood guard. In the quiet of the night, suddenly, a giant, forest-dwelling monster materialized in front of Balrama and screamed with a booming voice, “HOW DARE YOU TRESPASS INTO MY LAND?” Balrama, frightened and scared, trembled in fear. The monster disappeared, only to re-appear within a few minutes. The monster shouted at Balrama again. The hapless Balrama started sweating, and immediately turned pale. The monster appeared a third time, and screamed at the top of his lungs. Balrama, out of unimaginable fear, yelled “Krishna!” and thereafter became unconscious, and fell to the ground.

Upon hearing his name, Lord Krishna woke up. He thought that the unconscious Balrama was sleeping and that it was now his turn to stand guard. Seeing a new candidate, the monster appeared again and similarly screamed at Krishna as he did with Balrama. Lord Krishna, however, unperturbed, asked the monster what he wanted. Hearing Lord Krishna’s unshaken, calm voice, the monster literally shrank in size, and disappeared. Not long after, the monster re-appeared and yelled at Krishna again, but Krishna, consistent with his initial response, was tranquil and unruffled. The monster once again shrank in size and disappeared. The third time the persistent monster re-appeared and screamed at the coolheaded Krishna. Upon hearing Krishna’s response, the monster reduced in size further, thus becoming a miniature of himself, and fell unconscious. Lord Krishna picked up the small monster and placed him in his pocket.

The next morning, while walking home, Balrama narrated the episode of the previous night to Krishna. Krishna took the little monster out of his pocket and upon seeing Balrama’s bewilderment, Krishna explained to Balrama his own response to the situation: Krishna faced a scary stimulus with composure and mindfulness, and even though the feared situation was persistent, he overcame it with patience and self-control.

***

In my opinion, the forest is a representation of the human psyche where all kinds of fears/worries (monsters) dwell. The monster paints very grim prospects about our future. If we do not encounter the monster with composure and mindfulness, then the fears and worries consume us. It is said that the mind is an orchestra constantly playing instruments of all kinds of thoughts, but without a conductor. The instruments playing ‘worries’ make their own music, resulting in a cacophony. In Dhammapada (a 400 B.C. Buddhist text), it is said, “The worst enemy cannot harm you as much as your own thoughts.” Through this story, Lord Krishna teaches us how to deal with this enemy. 

10 Comments
kiran
1/12/2015 12:49:56 pm

Takes a special person to face their fear.

Reply
tilak
1/12/2015 10:49:52 pm

True. If the human mind can control anxiety and there is no denying we live in a world full of anxieties, then we can achieve the unthunkable. There is nothing to fear but fear itself....

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Janet Kimball
1/13/2015 02:52:28 am

Dear Paul,

Lord Krishna allowed himself to confront the monster by conversing with him in a calm manner. He used his mind to deal with a potentially fearful situation.

Several years ago,I was a passenger in a minivan along with several other mothers and their children. The road was slick and the minivan started hydroplaning acorss 3 lanes of a Ft. Lauderdale highway. The car was filled with the screams of some, while others were frozen in fear. I knew I had to do something. I distinctly recall gripping the back of the driver's seat and assuring everyone in a calm but firm voice that the driver was in control of the situation and that we all must have faith in her to handle the situation. The screaming stopped. The minivan was righted. We survived.

Just last week, a former NFL player, Rob Konrad, was alone and lost at sea, having fallen out of his boat. He swam nine miles in jellyfish and shark- infested water, and he should not, in reality, have survived. Konrad stated, "When the rescue boat didn't see me, I had to get my mind right." He followed the sun west during the day and focused on the lights at the shoreline at night. To keep from giving up, he focused on his two daughters. He survived.

I am currently reading the book, Unbroken, by Laura Hillenbrand. It is the true story of Olympic athlete, Louis Zamperini, who in WWII crash-landed into the S. Pacific, endured 47 days on a raft, was picked up by a Japanese warship and survived through 2 years of sadistic beating and torture in several Japanese POW camps. While I have not finished the book, I have heard that the end of the book addresses Louis's survival (through faith and forgiveness and mindful confrontation of his fears) back home once the war was over (this is not addressed in the movie, Unbroken) Paul, I would recommend that you read this book or Louis Zamperini's autobiography, Devil At My Heels. Both books are manuals on fear and resilience.

I look forward to your next post. Thank you for allowing us to join your journey into our collective souls.

Peace,
Janet Kimball

Reply
Janet Kimball
1/14/2015 02:21:17 pm

Dear Janet
I cannot thank you enough for sharing inspiring stories as well as thoughts on the subject. I will definitely pick up the book, Unbroken.
In the end it is the faith in the higher power which gives us strength to move through lives trials and tribulations.
I loved the story of Ron Konrad. The symbolism behind him following the sun during the day and night lights in the evening is very powerful.
Thanks for sharing and I look forward to your insight and comments on my future writings

Reply
Janet Kimball
1/15/2015 10:03:19 am

Dear Paul,
I have always been intrigued by the power of words and I thoroughly enjoy expressing myself in writing so this will be a fun and fulfilling experience for both of us! I can't wait for your next post.

pinar
1/13/2015 03:30:04 am

Everyhuman being have good and bad thoughts about life ,health,money,work etc.it is impossible always being positive but as much as we manage our thoughts in a good way,maybe this makes us feel better.
Thank you for sharing this nice story paul.

Reply
pinar
1/14/2015 02:21:02 pm

Hi Pinar
Thanks for reading and posting your thoughts. I do agree that one cannot stay positive all the time. Our struggle is not to get to attach to either positive or negative thiughts. This brings a Sufi story to my mind
Once upon a time a Sultan called his most trusted wise man from his court and asked him to come up with something which during the times of extreme sadness will bring to his mind a certain calmness and similarly during times of extreme happiness it will do the same. The wise man after few days came with a ring for the Sultan with an inscription " This shall pass" . This reminded him that non attachment is the key to live life of equanimity.

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Janet Kimball
1/14/2015 11:17:45 pm

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neera raj
1/16/2015 01:04:10 am

Thank you Paul for sharing these wonderful stories with a teaching. We have probably heard some of these when we were young but never paid attention.

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NIta
1/28/2015 01:59:07 am

Dear paul-You are already on your way to good health and true happiness. Your words couldn't be truer and you have found the right path to deal with situations that are unexpected and cause fear. Your honesty and compassion are incredibly visible to us and I thank you for sharing these thoughts, as I know, this is the wisdom that will get us through anything. Compassion, patience, self-control, goodwill.....it should be embodied in every single day that we are lucky to experience. Thank you once again.

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    About Radiant Return

    I will be using this blog to share my thoughts on human nature, philosophy, and religion. 

    I hope you share your thoughts as well.

    Thanks,
    Paul
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