The Bhagavatha describes Bali’s fury and his army’s prowess during his invasion over Indra as:
pibanniva mukhēnēdaṁ lihanniva diśō dāśa |
dahanniva diśō dr̥gbhiḥ samvartāgnirivōt’thitaḥ |
The fury with which Bali entered the war was as if he was going to swallow all. His eyes were like lumps of burning flame, eager to set everything ablaze. In this fury, Bali Chakravarti set out to war along with his mighty troop of soldiers determined to grab Indra’s lofty throne. Disturbed by this, Indra began to question Br̥haspatyācārya about Bali Chakravarti.
Indra asked his Guru, “Ācārya! It seems that if Bali opens his eyes completely, he might burn me. I do not know what to do to counter him. Bali has natural Kṣatriya traits like ōjas, sahas, strength and tējas.with this strength, Bali is now invading heaven. How did he acquire these qualities which have made him so brave? Tell me.”
Indra’s first question was how Bali Chakravarti obtained the first quality of Ōjas. Ōjas means ambition. This means a power which enables a person to endure. Determination filled with virtuous persistence (sātvika) to achieve a goal. For example, refusing to give up learning midway despite difficulty, or putting forward efforts to understand and reach the goal, would be illustrations of Ōjas. Similarly, Bali Chakravarti had the perseverance to reach Indra’s position in his lifetime.
Indra’s second question was how Bali Chakravarti obtained the second quality of sahas, which brought him the endurance to overcome all obstacles despite ridicule. Sahatē anena iti sahaḥ The tolerance which one has, even after hearing sardonic words from others, is called sahas as per Śāstra. When Bali set his eyes on the throne of Indra and went out to war, everyone mocked him. He ignored such comments and continued. He continued, acknowledging that people will always have problems, and will comment on each and every action of ours. That must not stop our endurance, or perseverance.
Indra’s third question was how Bali Chakravarti obtained the third quality of strength. As his name is ‘Bali’, one can imagine him as a character with Bala (strength). Indra asked, “How did he obtain such an ability? If it is by the grace and blessings of Guru Shukracharya, then you are elder than Shukracharya. As per the hierarchy (taratamya), he is in the 19th orbit. Whereas, Br̥haspatyācārya! you are in 10th position. If Bali can scale such heights by Guru’s grace who is lower in hierarchy, why am I, your disciple deprived of such strength?”
The reason why Indra did not have the required strength is that the one blessing him was positioned lower than him as per hierarchy. As per hierarchy, Indra is positioned higher than Br̥haspatyācārya. In the orbit, Indra’s position is 8th, which means he is placed on an orbit which is two places higher than his Guru. Br̥haspatyācārya’s blessings would therefore, not have been effective as Indra was a person above him by virtue. For this reason, Br̥haspatyācārya did not attempt to bless Indra. However, although he was smaller in stature, Indra respected Br̥haspatyācārya because, that is the command of the Lord. This respect sent a message to society, that if a person of higher stature sends a representative, he should be respected even if the representative’s stature is lower. This continues to be a practice, and this tradition is an indication that the blood of the sages continues to flow through generations.
The fourth quality of Bali Chakravatri is tējas. Tējas means light, and a radiance in one’s face. The one who performs any assigned work with dedication will have this Tējas radiating through their face.
After the war, Krishna and Arjuna departed from the battlefield. On their way back, Arjuna looked at the corpses lying there and asked Krishna, “Krishna! Why aren’t they dead despite being hit by my arrows?
Understanding Arjuna’s mindset, Krishna said, “No! These are corpses. Get down and see for yourself. These are the people who have sacrificed their lives in pursuit of performing their assigned duties. Therefore, even though they are dead, their faces seem to be alive as they are filled with radiance, or tejas.”
Indra noticed such a radiance in the face of the Bali. Therefore, Indra requested his Guru, “These four qualities have given Bali the courage to challenge me on the battlefield. Let me know how to inculcate these qualities. I will earn them, and fight against him.” Upon requesting Br̥haspatyācārya, Indra proceeded to prepare for the battle.
A seeker of Madhva philosophy. Hails from Rupyapeeta (Udupi).
|| विष्णो: सर्वोत्तमत्वं च सर्वदा प्रतिपादय ||
(Hari sarvothama Vayu jeevothama tatva)
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