An Aspect of Sri Krishna, the General

The glory of Sri Krishna as Lord is being sung in every corner of this land of ours; but his glory as man has yet to attract sufficient attention. A number of almost pointless details cover and shroud the delicate and yet distinct lines that depict Sri Krishna, the man. Generations of men have seen in him the Personification of the Absolute, the Mighty Lord, the Demon-Killer, the Player on the divine flute, the Paramour of the Gopis, the Charmer of Radha, and not the least, the Charioteer of Arjuna and the Teacher of the great Bhagavadgita. These surely are outstanding in the Krishna-story; no one need minimise their importance or significance. The aspects mentioned above are noteworthy. Yet, to get a full perspective of Krishna as a live human character, a few more aspects are to be examined and understood; among them, chiefly, those which made him the leader of men.

To get a glimpse of Krishna the man, one has got to go to the Mahabharata and the Harivamsa more than to the Bhagavata and Vishnupurana. Many attempts at such an interpretation of Sri Krishna have been made in recent times, and, among them, the "Sri Krishnacharita" of Bankim Babu is by far the most noteworthy.

An episode in the life of Sri Krishna as narrated in the Harivamsa is chosen to illustrate a comparatively little known feature in Sri Krishna’s personality, and given below:

After killing the wicked Kamsa, Krishna and Balarama installed Ugrasena on the throne of Mathura. Asti and Prapti, wives of Kamsa, went to their father, Jarasandha, vowing vengeance on the brothers. There, in Magadha, they incited the wrath of Jarasandha against them and made him undertake an expedition against Mathura. With a huge army numbering twenty akshauhinis, Jarasandha marched on Mathura–it is said, as many as seventeen times,–each time being thrown by the mighty brothers. The eighteenth time, Jarasandha marched on Mathura, with an army four times in number–marched as though he would make an end of Mathura. During these expeditions the city had been much weakened. Fear had set in among the people, fear of Jarasandha. In the army, the chiefs were not all of one mind; for there had arisen dissensions of various sorts. But, under the generalship of Sri Krishna, they knew no defeat; that faith and knowledge was firm in every one. With Krishna as leader, the Yadavas were confident of gaining victory over anyone, however strong. A war-council was held where Ugrasena had to take decisions. The army, with its youths, would, of course, advocate fighting and inflicting a crushing defeat on Jarasandha once again. Krishna was powerful and confident of success. The clash of arms and, eventually, the victory of the Yadava race and the defeat of the ocean-like army of the powerful Jarasandha should begin at daybreak. It appeared as though war was practically decided upon–only formal declaration was to follow. At that moment, there arose from among the councilors a venerable old man named Vikadru, well-read in the moral laws, and spoke to the Assembly and to Krishna, in particular, as follows:

"We are confident of victory under the leadership of Krishna; for we have won victory, seventeen times, over this very Jarasandha who has come now. We know that Krishna here is all-powerful. We know, too, that it is well-nigh impossible for Jarasandha to inflict defeat on us. We can, with Krishna as general, fight against the three worlds. The army, too, is most valiant and brave. But, I have got up to speak as I felt that the proper time for me to speak has arrived."

He detailed at length the origin and growth of the Yadava race, and continued:

"We have now to take stock of the situation. Jarasandha has a large force, very much larger than on former times. He is himself incomparable in prowess. Our resources are limited. Supply of food and fuel in the city is scanty. There is no considerable fort around Mathura. The ditches and moats are ill-kept and the gateways are not furnished with weapons. The ramparts and the walls badly need repair and reconstruction. The arsenal requires to be rebuilt, and reimbursed. The Yadavas too are showing signs of internal dissension. All this has happened owing to the earlier marches of Jarasandha against our city. Before repairs and replenishment, full supply and complete accord are achieved, would it be wise and right to plunge into the war? Krishna, you know best what conduces to our well-being

"Besides, Krishna, it is you against whom Jarasandha wishes to fight; it is you who have angered him; it is you alone whom he wants to destroy so that he may avenge the killing of Kamsa. Thus it is you who provide the cause for all the past expeditions and this, his eighteenth, against us. Jarasandha has no enmity or cause for fight in regard to Ugrasena or any other person in Mathura. His one aim is to destroy you and Balarama. Consider this. May it not be said that you, for your sake, plunged the whole race of the Yadavas into all-destroying war? Consider, too, whether everything is propitious now for waging a war at all. I would, for my part, suggest that you should withdraw from here and go elsewhere for some time. Thus do you save us as well as yourself."

Krishna heard this and looked at Vasudeva, his father. Vasudeva approved of what Vikadru had spoken. Then, Krishna spoke in the Assembly thus:

"It is as Vikadru has spoken. I do not, on my account, intend to lead the Yadava race into this war. Even as the venerable Vikadru has pointed out, our departure–mine and Balarama’s–from here will conduce to the well-being of the Yadava race. By this, the province, the city and the citizens will fare well and will come to no harm. Hence, though capable of vanquishing Jarasandha, I, with Balarama, will this day go out of Mathura like one incapable."

So saying, Krishna ‘with no anxiety in mind and no perturbation at heart’, joyfully set out from Mathura with Balarama and reached the mountain Sahya.

The foregoing does credit to Krishna’s high-mindedness of spirit as nothing else does. A general, whose prowess alone has all along enabled a people to succeed and withstand aggression and attack; but for whom the king, the people, the city and the province would no more have existed than in a dream; on whom alone the peace and prosperity of the people depended; who, more than everything else, delivered them from the wicked tyranny of Kamsa and gave them a good and just king and government; who did not occupy the throne which was his by right of arms, even as he was asked to do–he has been asked now, at a time when his glory was at its highest, to withdraw and hide himself like a coward. In the face of all that spelt war, the wise words of Vikadru persuaded Krishna, the sole cause of Jarasandha’s anger, to leave Mathura instead of joining battle with Jarasandha. ‘To plunge a whole race of the Yadavas into the battle, for your sake–is it just?’ Vikadru had asked. Vikadru knew, as well as anyone else of the Yadava race, that it was Krishna who was solely responsible for everything the Yadavas had and enjoyed. They had none else but Krishna to thank for all that. Still, the good of the greater number had to be considered. Krishna could without any great difficulty lead the Yadavas to victory against any enemy, however powerful. He was their leader, general, deliverer and protector. Still, considering the specific circumstances of the time, he is asked to step down and flee the city. Vasudeva, his father, conscious of all that his son has done to him and his, approves of Vikadru’s words.

One can easily imagine the scene in the Council. The youths of the Yadava army must be looking daggers at Vikadru. "Is it right?" Vikadru asked. "Is this fair?" we feel like asking Vikadru. Any other general might have taken it as an insult and as a sign of ingratitude. Who can allow himself to be thrown overboard after having done so much for the well being and glory of a people? To run away from war, whatever the reason, would it not amount to cowardice? As a Kshatriya, whose duty it was to fight wrong, it was imperative to fight Jarasandha. May it not be that Vikadru speaks in his senility? , Why does Vasudeva approve of the words of Vikadru? Do all the Yadavas feel so too? Is it all as Vikadru says? Does Krishna’s duty lie in acting even as Vikadru advises?

In a minute Krishna takes in the situation and grasps it. He bowed his head to the decision of the council. For he strove for the well-being of all the Yadavas without any thought for his own fair name or prestige. If, owing to him, an individual, the whole Yadava race should have to go through the horrors of war, it would be unjust and unfair. If, by his withdrawal from Mathura, he could save a whole people, what could be more desirable than that? Vikadru truly said, "Do you save us as well as yourself." Yes, that alone was the right thing to do.

In times of war, it is usual to forget its end and aim. To most war leaders, it consists of fighting for its own sake, it is killing or capturing more enemies than themselves or getting killed or captured. But no general who has the ultimate purpose of a war at heart can afford to ignore the larger objective. War, like all other means, must contribute to human happiness and well being. If it does not serve that end, wars need not be fought–worse, it would be criminal folly to fight them. Only a great general will have this end in view in all his actions. If the sacrifice be too great for a paltry end, it is not worth the making. The one end–the only end–is human happiness, safety and well-being. With a lesser general considerations of prestige, vantage and such other matters of minor value might assume weight and influence. A general of the order of Sri Krishna alone can put by the secondary in pursuing the main purpose. A large humanity and tthe great purpose had greater claims for consideration on him than winning a victory over Jarasandha. Sri Krishna was a great general; he had by now routed Jarasandha the mighty, not once, but seventeen times. Now, he became a greater general for he was greater as a man when for the happiness of the Yadavas he could withdraw himself entirely into the ground.

This incidentally elucidates the extreme self-restraint with which Krishna could act on occasions even later in life and in politics. For with him general good came before particular, personal or selfish good. Another point also merits attention: for herein is involved the whole ethic of Krishna’s duty. It is the dharma of a Kshatriya to fight and, if he cannot win, to die. To die would be glorious. It would be risk, would be perhaps unwisdom, yet, withal, glory that strikes human imagination, and gets enshrined in song and in legends and romances of valour. Krishna’s behaviour might therefore look to some pitifully weak and disappointing. It does not normally inspire. For it is not loud or glamorous enough. Yet, who can say his was not the larger decision, the braver attitude? With a priority to take all, he took nothing; with a power to subject all to his will he yielded to wiser counsel; for with him self-abnegation was better than exposing human lives and fortunes to the risks and hazard of a profitless war. In conquering himself he established a memory and precedent of undying greatness.

The Harivamsa records that when Krishna took the course of action suggested by Vikadru and approved by Vasudeva, he felt ‘no anxiety in mind and no perturbation at heart’. In doing what was only right, and just and humane, why should there be any anxiety or perturbation? Who else could rise to such heights of self-effacement but Sri Krishna and those as great as he?