Therefore it is always dangerous. To enjoy in this material life is dangerous because you are creating next life very, very abominable. That... The only escape is... That will be explained by Kuntīdevī in the next verse, that they were in danger, but they were simply thinking of Kṛṣṇa, "Kṛṣṇa, we have no other shelter." This position should be taken. We are always in danger, and we should always think of the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa. Then we are safe. Otherwise it is very dangerous. Even Kuntī and others, Pāṇḍavas.
Then mṛdhe mṛdhe aneka-mahāratha astrataḥ (SB 1.8.24). Then at last, after all these tribulation, at last it was decided... Kṛṣṇa wanted to settle up, that "You have given these Pāṇḍavas so much trouble. Never mind. But they are kṣatriyas. They cannot become vaiśya or śūdra or brāhmaṇa. So they must have some place to rule over. So you give these five brothers five villages so they can rule and live." "No, that is not possible. We are not going to leave a spot of land which can contain the upper portion of the needle without fight." So then there was fight. The Battle of Kurukṣetra was forced upon the Pāṇḍavas by the Kurus. Still, Arjuna was not willing to kill them. Just see. He's Vaiṣṇava. He never thought of, that "My, these cousin-brothers, they have given us so much trouble. Why I shall be sympathetic upon them?" No. Still, he was sympathetic. Why? Now, because he was a Vaiṣṇava. That is Vaiṣṇava. Para-duḥkha-duhkhī. Kṛpāmbudhir yas tam ahaṁ prapadye (CC Madhya 6.254). Vaiṣṇava is so tolerant. They suffer; still, they do not want others' suffering. So this is Vaiṣṇava.
So in that battlefield, mṛdhe mṛdhe, there were Bhīṣmadeva, Droṇācārya, Karṇa, Kṛpācārya. They were so big fighters, mahā-ratha. Mahā-ratha means... Mahā-ratha, ati-ratha, eka-ratha. A fighter who can fight with one man, he is called eka-ratha. And one who can fight with thousands of men, he is called mahā-ratha. And more than that, he is called ati-ratha. So these generals, Bhīṣmadeva, Karṇadeva, Karṇa and others, they were very, very powerful than Arjuna. Therefore Arjuna took the opportunity of killing Karṇa in a precarious position. Similarly, Bhīṣma was... Karṇa was almost dead when Bhīṣma was fighting. So Bhīṣma promised that "Today, either Arjuna will die or his dear friend, Kṛṣṇa, will have to break His promise. Then I'll give up this fight." So Arjuna was almost shattered, his chariot broken, and he was exasperated. So at that time Kṛṣṇa took one wheel and went to kill Bhīṣmadeva. So Bhīṣmadeva saw that "Kṛṣṇa has broken His promise. Therefore I give up this fight." Kṛṣṇa came to threaten him. That means He has broken His promise. "So I wanted to see that Kṛṣṇa breaks." This is also affection, love, between devotee. Just like in sporting, just like you want to see your friend defeated, but that does not mean you are enemy. In sporting, there is fight, that one party is defeated. That does (not) mean they are enemies. Next moment, they shake hands, sit together, dine together. It is like that.
So in this way Kṛṣṇa saved. Therefore mahāratha astrataḥ. And at last, Drauṇi, the son of Droṇācārya, Aśvatthāmā; he was so crooked that he killed the five sons of the five Pāṇḍavas, and at last, Mahārāja Parīkṣit was in the womb of his mother. He wanted to kill him also. Brahmāstra. Brahmāstra, atomic bomb nowadays. It is almost similar, but it is still dangerous, because atom bomb, you release—it has no aim. It will kill with..., aimlessly. But the brahmāstra is so accurate that if you want to kill somebody, it will go there, wherever he is, and it will kill. So Parīkṣit Mahārāja was in the womb of the mother. The brahmāstra entered the womb of the mother and was trying to kill this Parīkṣit Mahārāja in the womb, and Kṛṣṇa saved. He entered also within the womb and saved the child. Therefore it is said that drauṇy-astrataś hare 'bhirakṣitāḥ (SB 1.8.24). Kṛṣṇa saved them in so many ways, so many ways. So that is being admitted. That is the behavior of Kṛṣṇa and His devotees.
So we should not be afraid. Because this place is dangerous, we should expect always danger. But if we are faithful to Kṛṣṇa, if we simply, I mean to say, expect help from Kṛṣṇa, then Kṛṣṇa will save you. These are the examples by the fight of Mahābhārata.
Thank you very much.
Devotees: Jaya... (end)