In the Mahabharata there are two beautiful characters Arjuna and Abhimanyu, they were father and son. When Abhimanyu was in the mother's womb, Subhadra, who was Abhimanyu's mother and the wife of Arjuna, asked her husband a question about the strategies in warfare. Arjuna started explaining about a special impregnable arrangement of soldiers on the battlefield, which one has to penetrate and come out successfully or one could get trapped and killed. The particular arrangement he was describing was known as chakra vyuha. Subhadra listened only up to the point when one can enter the arrangement and fell asleep. Abhimanyu was also listening from the womb up to the point where the mother slept.

The baby was born and grew up to become a brave warrior. In the battle of Mahabharata Kauravas formed the chakra vyuha and Arjuna, the only one who had the skill of going in and coming out successfully was away at another place. In his absence Abhimanyu volunteered to go in as he remembered what he had heard from the mother's womb. He went in but could not come out successfully as he had heard only up until the time the mother slept. The other warriors who wanted to help could not follow as the vyuha closed before they could enter.

The world is a chakra vyuha. Most people know how to get in but cannot come out. Arjuna knew how to go in and come out. This world is a river full of alligators, which we have to cross. It is infested with many wild animals like the ego, anger, jealousy and judgmental attitude. At every footstep there is temptation.

The shield of discipline: There is a belief that if you smear the body with turmeric paste and then enter the waters the alligators do not come to you. Yellow color indicates satttva, red rajas and black tamas. The rajasic mind is restless and entertains anger and pride. The tamasic mind is clouded with pramada and alasya

Excerpt from Mahabharata - Chakra Vyuha