Bheeshma: Death, and Life, by Choice

One of the striking features of Bheeshma’s life was that he had the benediction to choose his time of death. One might feel that this was a blessing, which in fact it was. But the other side of it also meant that unlike others who have to wait for death irrespective of what happens in their life, Bheeshma had the ability to call death in the event of he not wanting to live anymore. Given the extreme nature of his vows and the tragic events unfolding in his life, right from his youth and even after he had lived more than the average human lifetime, it wasn’t abnormal to expect that a lesser human might have chosen death much earlier than Bheeshma, convincing himself that he had done and lived enough. It is conceivable that Bheeshma had done enough much before the war.

But the greatness of Bheeshma lies in the fact that he did not choose death based on his own frustrations. At every point, he chose life based on what others need and how he can do his duty. He chose to live not for himself, but for the responsibility he had towards others. And he chose to do it with an attitude of devotion and service, knowing fully well what was in his destiny. In a sense, it was a life by choice. The benediction of death by choice and not choosing it till the time was right and till his duty required life, also meant that his was a life of sacrifice and dharma by choice.

It turned out that after the epoch making event of the ninth day when Bheeshma’s valour forced Krishna to almost wield weapons to protect Arjuna, Arjuna himself, in his attempts to stop Krishna from doing so, promised Krishna that he will fight with all his heart and skills, and on the tenth day, cause the grandsire to fall. Promises are often made in the heat of the moment, and hence on the night of the ninth, when the time came to devise the strategy for executing this promise on day ten, the question was how. How were the Pandavas going to fell a warrior as mighty as Bheeshma, who not only was unbeatable, but due to his benediction could not be killed till he desired to die? The path was again provided by Krishna who told Yudhishthira to go and ask Bheeshma himself as he had told him before the war began.

So the Pandavas and Krishna went to Bheeshma’s camp and asked him actually how he could be slain. When Bheeshma saw his favourite grandchildren, not only was he overcome with emotion but, with Krishna in tow, he also took it as a sign of the Lord’s will. He told them without mincing words that he would not use his weapons if the warrior in front of him was a woman. He then added that for him, Shikhandi was as good as a woman as he was born a woman, and was Amba in his previous birth.

One would wonder why a commander would tell the opposing army’s generals how to fell him. Isn’t this match fixing of some kind? But these are Vedic times when war was not a win or lose proposition, but a test of skill to establish dharma. Strategies could be known but they needed to be executed. Moreover the question was raised to Bheeshma who was an epitome of both skill and dharma. Besides, he was a devotee and a warrior, and, therefore, had no qualms of surrendering in front of his Lord, if that was His will.

So with the key to Bheeshma’s felling in their hands, the Pandavas went back. While the Pandavas hesitated, Krishna suggested that Arjuna should fire arrows at Bheeshma by keeping Shikhandi in front and he would not counter attack. This was the only way Arjuna could keep his promise. On the tenth day, the strategy was devised with that single objective. It turned out to be one of the fiercest days of the war as multiple Kaurava warriors like Ashwatthaama, Dushasan, Drona, Duryodhana tried their best to counter the Pandava strategy to isolate Bheeshma so that Arjun with Shikhandi in front could get a clear shot at him. At the same time, Bheeshma knowing what was in store valiantly fell thousands of Pandava warriors, giving his best shot on what he knew would probably be his last day of battle. But like so many other instances, Bheeshma’s felling was preordained and the Lord had decided that this would happen. Shikhandi and Arjun played their roles as instruments for that, and, eventually, towards the end of the day, Bheeshma was full of arrows on his back. He did not even face Shikhandi and that resulted in his body falling from his chariot on a bed of arrows sticking out from his entire body and stuck to the ground.

Hostilities were called off early on the tenth day when Bheeshma fell. When the news spread, both the Pandavas and the Kauravas gathered around Bheeshma on his bed of arrows. The Gods from heaven showered their blessings on a warrior devotee that the world may never see again. Arjuna provided him with a pillow of arrows around his head and also used his skills to provide water from the ground when he expressed he was thirsty. It was said that his mother Ganga was responsible for this. It was a momentous and one might say, decisive, event in the war of dharma. The grandsire had fallen and the Pandava side had a definite edge in the war.

But even in that state, Bheeshma did not give up his life. He meditated on his bed of arrows despite all the bodily pain and suffering, waiting for the war to get over, and for Yudhishthira to get crowned as the emperor. He knew that he might still have a contribution to make.

One might argue that the contribution that he made after the war was equal in measure, for generations to come, if not more than his contributions on the battlefield.

After the war ended, Yudhishthira was frustrated with the unprecedented damage and loss of lives that it had caused. Moreover, on realising that Karna was the eldest Pandava, he felt even more that he was responsible for, what he felt in hindsight, a needless war. He had a strong urge to renounce the world and not take up the role of emperor. He approached Krishna whom he found meditating. He wondered when the whole world meditates on Him, who would He meditate on? Krishna advised him to take the counsel of Bheeshma, whose knowledge of the duties of a king as well as wisdom of the scriptures was unparalleled and the world may never see again soon.

It was then that Bheeshma provided him a detailed treatise on what was Raj Dharma, the duties of a king, over a long period of fifty plus days. It was his own life that was a true example of Raj Dharma and it led to Yudhishthira eventually ruling Hastinapur for many years, not for himself, but for the welfare of others who needed it. It was also a fitting end to Bheeshma’s life with his Lord Krishna right in front of him. That was when the grandsire withdrew from his body and, in that blessed vision of the Lord, chose death and left the body in that elevated state. Bheeshma had, for once, chosen death over life, demonstrating how to live and how to die.

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