Bheema - A keeper of promises, a great ally and a terrible foe
Updated: Feb 27, 2022
Blog # 7
Do you wish to say what you will do and then do as you say?
Being a reliable ally is a tremendous virtue. But is being a vengeful foe?
Do you have a short temper? Are you quick to the draw?
Do you have to win every argument irrespective of the costs?
Mahabharata context:
Bheema, the second Pandava brother comes through as an strong and upfront person. He was jovial and a great food lover. He was also a mace-wielding warrior with immense strength; and thought as the strongest man in the Mahabharata. When Draupadi is staked and lost by Yudishtira in the ancient dice game of chausar, she is insulted by Duryodhana who asks her to sit on his lap, and then by Dushasana who attempts to disrobe her. Seeing this, Bheema makes a terrifying vow to break Duryodhana's legs and drink Dushasana's blood after killing him in battle. True to his word, he does so in gruesome fashion in the great battle and is the warrior that ends this great battle by slaying the key antagonist Duryodhana. He was thus a great ally and a terrible foe.
Our Null hypothesis of the Bheema persona:
We must seek to be loyal, fun loving and transparent like Bheema. But he was a strong and proud man who saw his loved ones wronged. He said he would right that wrong and then did so in a terrifying manner in battle. We have all seen and interacted with modern day Bheemas. These are the fun-loving guys who will hang with you. But mess with them or their loved ones and you will have to deal with their wrath.
Lessons Learned:
We can be loyal to people we care about and receive loyalty from others. We have a Bheema-like food-loving, jovial and transparent child within us where we see things and say something about it, as we see it. Life eventually teaches us to develop veneers as we age. However, isn't it simpler to have no veneers at all? A Hindu scripture advises us to follow Manasa Vacha Karmana, which means congruency of thought, words and action. If we can clean up our act inside, then congruence takes care of everything else. It all begins from the inside.
However, is it really that simple? Life will put us in situations where we will be wronged. How should we act then? Forgive and keep our thoughts clean? Or exact terrible vengeance like the great Bheema? What % Bheema are you?
