Krishna and Wheel of Time

 Part 1: The Sworn Enemy

Kamsa was the cruel king of Mathura and the maternal uncle of Lord Krishna. A divine voice had once warned him that he would be killed by the eighth son of his sister Devaki. Filled with fear, Kamsa tried to stop this from happening, but destiny cannot be escaped. When Krishna was born and grew up, he returned to Mathura and defeated Kamsa, ending his tyranny.

Jarasandha was the mighty king of Magadha, a kingdom known for its strength and wealth. He admired Kamsa’s courage and gave his two daughters, Asti and Prapti, in marriage to him. This made Kamsa Jarasandha’s son-in-law. When Krishna killed Kamsa, Jarasandha was filled with rage and grief. His daughters were now widows, and his pride was deeply wounded. He swore to destroy Krishna and avenge his son-in-law’s death.

From that day, Jarasandha became Krishna’s most relentless enemy. He gathered huge armies and marched again and again toward Mathura. Sometimes he came alone; other times he brought other angry kings with him. Each time, the battlefield shook with the sound of horses, chariots, and war cries. And each time, Krishna and his brother Balarama stood firm, protecting their people.

The dust would rise. The conch shells would blow. Arrows would fill the sky like dark clouds. But no matter how large Jarasandha’s army was, Krishna’s skill and wisdom turned the battle in his favor. Soldiers fell. Generals fled. And Jarasandha, though powerful, was forced to retreat.

Yet, after every victory, Krishna did something that puzzled everyone. He did not kill Jarasandha. He let him escape.

Balarama could not understand it. After the first few battles, he asked Krishna, “Brother, why do you spare him? He will only return again, stronger and angrier. Why not end this now?”

Krishna smiled gently. “If I kill him today,” he said, “the other hostile kings will scatter in fear. Then I will have to chase them one by one, across many lands. But as long as Jarasandha lives, he gathers them together. He brings my enemies to one place, as if he is helping me without knowing it. Why should I stop a man who is doing my work for me?”

Balarama was silent. He began to see that Krishna’s mercy was not weakness. It was part of a larger plan.

**When Alexander Marched Through the Desert of Gadrosia** **What happened at the beginning? **

 **When Alexander Marched Through the Desert of Gadrosia**

**What happened at the beginning? **

Alexander (you might know him as Alexander the Great) took **half of his personal guards** (his bodyguards), the **Agrianians** (fierce warriors from a region called Thrace), his **cavalry** (soldiers on horses), and **mounted archers** (horseback bowmen). He headed toward a narrow mountain pass where two tribes, the **Gadrosians** and the **Oritians**—were waiting for him. Most of them ran away when they saw him coming, and their leaders surrendered. Alexander showed them mercy – he let them go home and promised not to harm them.

**What did he do next? **

He appointed a new governor (someone to rule in his name) named **Apollophanes**. Then, in the city of **Ora**, he left a commander named **Leonnatus** along with soldiers (Agrianians, archers, Greek mercenaries, and cavalry). Leonnatus was supposed to build a new city there and wait for the fleet (the ships) that were sailing along the coast. 

After that, Alexander reunited with his best friend and top general, **Hephaestion**, and together they marched deep into the **Gadrosian desert**. It was mostly empty and barren land.

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**What did they see in the desert? – the report from Aristobulus**

One of Alexander's companions, **Aristobulus**, described that even though the desert looked dead, it actually had some amazing plants:

- **Myrrh trees** – they were huge, much bigger than anywhere else.

**Phoenician traders** (famous sailors and merchants) were following the army to make money. They collected the sticky sap (gum) from these trees and loaded it onto their pack animals. There was so much of it that no one had ever collected that much before.

 - **Nard roots** (a plant with a strong, pleasant smell) – the soldiers trampled them as they marched, and then a sweet perfume spread through the air across the barren land.

 - **Trees that looked like bay trees (laurel)** – they grew right by the sea. When the tide went out, they stood on dry ground. When the tide came in, they looked like they were growing right out of the saltwater. Some roots never even touched dry land, but the salty water didn't kill them. They were **30 cubits tall** (about 45 feet – as high as a four- or five-story building). They were in bloom at that time, with flowers like white violets – but their perfume was much, much stronger and more beautiful.

 **A thorny plant** – it had such sharp spines that if a horseman rode past, a thorn would rip his clothes and pull him right off the saddle. It was better to just fall off than to try to tear yourself free, because you'd rip your clothes. Hares (rabbits) running through these bushes would get their fur caught on the thorns and get stuck – just like birds caught with birdlime or fish caught on hooks. But a steel sword could easily cut through them. And the strangest thing? When you cut this plant, it bled a sharp-smelling juice – and there was even more of it than the sap from fig trees in springtime.

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**What's the main point? – the key to understanding this story**

This story shows that **even in the harshest conditions, nature can surprise you**. Alexander was marching through a desert that was supposed to be nothing but suffering and hardship, but it turned out to be full of amazing scents, unusual plants, and hidden dangers. So, his march wasn't just a boring military trek – it was a journey through a world that was tough, but also alive, fragrant, and full of unexpected wonders.

The Siege of Tyre (332 B.C.)

 The Siege of Tyre (332 B.C.)

Tyre was a wealthy, powerful city built on a small island. The siege lasted from January to August 332 B.C.—over half of one of Alexander's ten allotted years for Asian conquest. The island city is 2,500 feet from shore. Without ships, Alexander began building a mole (dam) across the channel. The story goes that he himself carried and threw in the first basketful of earth.

**The Fire-Ship Attack: ** The Tyrians destroyed weeks of work with a monster fire-ship, a horse transport filled with dry twigs, pitch, and caldrons of oil. Driven before the west wind, it ran up onto the mole, emptying molten pitch upon the towers. "In an hour, the whole work of weeks and months was undone."

**The Fleet Arrives: ** Spring brought fortune. Phoenician ships deserted the Persian fleet. Best of all, 120 ships from Cyprus arrived. Alexander suddenly possessed a superb fleet of 200-250 ships. Now he could outmatch Tyre at sea.

**The Only Sea-Fight: ** One noonday, while Alexander had retired to his tent and sailors went ashore, thirteen Tyrian ships slipped out. They sank several Cyprian ships before alarm spread. But Alexander—contrary to his wont—had returned to the ships. He pushed out, sailing around the city to cut off retreat. Within an hour, in full view of both armies, he caught the Tyrians at the harbour mouth, capturing ships outright. "It was Alexander's only sea-fight. He made land on his conquest of the sea."

**The Final Assault: ** A breach was opened in the southern wall. Alexander led the attack himself. Admetus was first to reach the wall,” transfixed with a spear, the first to die." Step by step, the besiegers won their way. The Tyrians rallied for their last stand before the shrine of Agenor, where the battle "resolved itself into massacre." About 8,000 Tyrians were slain; the Macedonians lost about 400.

**The Calendar Story: ** Plutarch tells that Aristander the soothsayer predicted the city would be taken "within this month"—on the last day of the month, to much merriment. Alexander, "always anxious to maintain the credit of predictions," ordered the calendar set back one day, attacked, and took the city that day.

**Aftermath: ** Some 30,000 were sold into slavery. Those who took refuge in the temple of Hercules were freed. When Darius sent a second embassy offering all territory west of the Euphrates, 10,000 talents, and his daughter in marriage, Parmenion said: "If I were Alexander, I should accept." Alexander replied: "So should I, if I were Parmenion; but as I am Alexander, my answer is what it is."

**Gaza: ** Advancing into Palestine, only Gaza resisted. Alexander was severely wounded by an arrow through shield and cuirass. After two months, the city fell. An entire year since Issus had been spent in Phoenicia and Palestine, but the task of isolating Persia from the Mediterranean was nearing completion.

The story of the legend of Jarasandha and Krishna.

 The story of the legend of Jarasandha and Krishna.

In the Mahabharata tradition, Jarasandha, the powerful king of Magadha, repeatedly attacked Krishna and Balarama, and Krishna defeated him many times while sparing his life until the final battle, when Jarasandha was ultimately killed.^[1]

After the death of Kamsa, his father-in-law Jarasandha became Krishna’s relentless and ruthless enemy. Driven by anger and a desire for revenge, Jarasandha attacked Mathura again and again with large armies, joining forces with other kings each time. On every occasion, Krishna and Balarama defeated the invading forces, but Krishna spared Jarasandha’s life and let him escape.

When Balarama questioned why Krishna did not finish Jarasandha at once, Krishna explained that leaving him alive served a greater purpose. Each time Jarasandha returned, he gathered more enemies into one place, making it easier to confront and defeat together. Krishna understood that by allowing Jarasandha to continue, he could identify and destroy a larger network of hostile kings without having to pursue them one by one.

This cycle continued for many battles. Tradition says Jarasandha attacked Krishna seventeen times, and each time he was defeated but spared. At the seventeenth encounter, however, the story reaches its end: Jarasandha is finally slain, and Krishna’s long strategy comes to completion. The episode is remembered as a lesson in wisdom, patience, and the larger vision behind Krishna’s actions.^[2]

Meaning of the story

The deeper message of the tale is that Krishna’s mercy was not weakness, and his delay was not hesitation. He acted with foresight, choosing the timing that best served justice and dharma. The story presents Krishna as both compassionate and strategic, showing that divine action is guided by purpose rather than impulse.^[3]

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“East is East and West is West,”

(Twin shall never meet)

The old saying, “East is East and West is West,” speaks of the many ways in which different lands see the world through different eyes. It reminds us that the same creature, the same object, or even the same idea may carry a very different meaning from one culture to another.

Consider the owl. In the subcontinent, it is often spoken of with suspicion. Many people associate it with foolishness or bad omens, and its lonely cry in the night has long stirred fear in the hearts of some. Yet across the ocean, in the United States, the owl is admired as a symbol of wisdom and quiet observation. There, it is not feared but respected, not mocked but honoured.

The donkey too bears a changed fate in these different worlds. In the subcontinent, it is often laughed at and called stubborn or worthless, as though its only gift were patience without grace. But in the United States, the donkey is seen more kindly. It is praised for its patience, its hard work, and its steady usefulness. What one place dismisses, another learns to respect.

And so, the saying comes alive in these simple examples. It teaches us that judgment is shaped by habit, and meaning is shaped by culture. A thing that seems ordinary in one place may be noble in another. A creature despised in one land may be cherished in another. The world, then, becomes a tapestry of different beliefs, each thread colored by history, tradition, and imagination.

To understand this is to become wiser. It is to look beyond our own customs and recognise that difference is not a defect. The owl and the donkey remind us that before we judge, we must first learn to see.

The Lord of Patience: A Statue with a Strange Secret

 The Lord of Patience: A Statue with a Strange Secret

Some statues hold prayers. Some hold history. And a few, it seems, hold surprises no one expects.

Back in 2014, restoration workers in Mexico were carefully working on an 18th-century statue known as the Lord of Patience. The figure, a solemn representation of Jesus Christ, was already a little eerie up close. But as the team began their work, they discovered something far stranger than they had imagined.

As part of the refurbishment, the restorers took an X-ray of the statue. The image that appeared on the screen left them stunned. Inside the head of the statue, they could clearly see eight small, white shapes.

They were teeth.

Not just any teeth—human teeth. Each one was complete and intact, all the way to the root. Some were faintly visible through the statue’s slightly open lips, but the X-ray showed the full truth.

The discovery sent a chill through the workshop. Why would anyone place human teeth inside a statue of Jesus?

According to the restorers, the teeth were likely donated as a token of gratitude. In Mexico, it is not uncommon for parishioners to offer gifts to religious statues—hair, clothes, money, and even small personal items. Sometimes, animal bones or teeth are used in rituals. But human teeth? That was something new.

As one researcher joked, “To be told, that’s one disturbing discovery—and a beautiful find.”

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A Beautiful Find in Spain

The Lord of Patience is not the only statue of Jesus with a secret inside.

In the small town of Sofia de la Ribera, Spain, restorers were working on another 18th-century statue, the Cristo del Miserere. As they carefully turned the figure over, they noticed something unusual beneath an old piece of cloth.

Hidden under the fabric was a small opening—in the back of the statue. When they opened it, they found something unexpected: a secret compartment.

Inside were two handwritten letters, yellowed with age. They were dated 1777 and signed by Joaquin Mínguez, a chaplain from the Burgo de Osma Cathedral.

In his letters, Chaplain Mínguez painted a picture of life in the region at that time. He described a successful harvest, but also the diseases that plagued the village—especially a fever that swept through the town. He even noted the political climate, mentioning that King Carlos III was on the throne.

What inspired him to place the letters in the back of the statue? No one knows for sure. Perhaps he wanted to preserve a record of his times. Perhaps he believed the statue would protect the words. Or perhaps, in a quiet moment of faith, he simply wanted to leave a message for the future.

Researchers were delighted by the discovery. The letters offered a rare, personal glimpse into everyday life in 18th-century Spain.

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Statues That Speak

From human teeth in Mexico to hidden letters in Spain, these statues remind us that art can hold more than beauty. It can hold secrets, stories, and sometimes, the quiet voices of the past.

The next time you see a statue, take a closer look. You never know what might be hidden inside.

Freaky Face

 

Freaky Face (Strange Face)

In Berlin’s Neues Museum stands the world-renowned bust of Nefertiti. It is believed to have been created around 1340 BCE by the sculptor Thutmose. The bust shows the face of Nefertiti, the Great Royal Wife of the Egyptian pharaoh Akhenaten. Every year, around 500,000 visitors come to see it, yet few of them know what lies beneath its beautiful surface.

In 2009, researchers conducted a CT scan of the bust and discovered that the outer face covers an inner core. The scan revealed subtle changes around the mouth and cheeks, less prominent cheekbones, and a small bump on the nose. It appears that the sculptor may have modeled the queen in an idealized way, covering the limestone core with layers of stucco before shaping the final, graceful face we admire today. The result is a masterpiece that seems almost two-faced, hiding one form beneath another.

Some people believe the bust’s unusually long head points to even more mysterious secrets. Online conspiracy theorists have suggested that Nefertiti had an elongated skull, linking it to ancient aliens. Although the shape may look strange, the more likely explanation is artificial cranial deformation, a practice in which the skull of an infant was gradually shaped by applying pressure while it was still soft.

This kind of skull shaping was not unusual in ancient societies. In fact, it was practiced among some members of the ancient Egyptian nobility as a sign of status and distinction. It helped set the upper classes apart from the rest of society and may have been seen as a mark of beauty or prestige.

To me the Nefertiti bust points to an ancient custom of skull shaping, or does it invite stranger theories?