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Gita Lord Krishna advises Arjuna to get up and fight. This may
create a confusion of the principles of Ahimsaa if the background of
the war of Mahabharata is not kept in mind. In ancient times there
was a king who had two sons, Dhritaraashtra and Paandu. The former
was born blind, therefore, Paandu inherited the kingdom.
Paandu had five sons. They were called the Paandavas.
Dhritaraashtra had one hundred sons. They
were called the Kauravas. Duryodhana was the eldest of
the Kauravas. After the death of king Paandu, the Paandavas became
the lawful king. Duryodhana was a very jealous person. He
also wanted the kingdom. The kingdom was divided into two halves
between the Paandavas and the Kauravas. Duryodhana was
not satisfied with his share of the kingdom. He wanted the entire
kingdom for himself.
He unsuccessfully planned several foul
plays to kill the Paandavas and take away their kingdom. He
unlawfully took possession of the entire kingdom of the Paandavas
and refused to give back even an acre of land without a war. All
mediation by Lord Krishna and others failed. The big war of Mahabharata
was thus started.
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