Krishna's Peace Mission to Duryodhana

The court of Hastinapura was packed. Every king, every elder, every warrior had come to hear Krishna's peace proposal. This was the last chance to avoid war.

Krishna: "Duryodhana, I come not as a Yadava king, but as a cousin, as a well-wisher. Give the Pandavas their share. Avoid this war that will destroy everything."

Duryodhana: "Their share? They lost it in a fair game. What's done is done."

Krishna: "Games can be played again. Lives cannot be returned. Think of your father, blind and aging, who will lose all hundred sons. Think of your mother, who has never seen her children and will now lose them all. Is your pride worth their grief?"

Duryodhana: "Don't lecture me about family, Vasudeva. Where were you when you killed your own uncle Kamsa?"

Krishna: "Kamsa was a tyrant who killed innocents. I would do it again. But you — you are not Kamsa. You are a prince led astray by bad counsel. There is still time. Give the Pandavas just five villages — one for each brother. Indraprastha, Varanavata, Vrikasthala, Makandi, and Avisthala. Five villages from an empire of thousands. Is that too much?"

Duryodhana: "One village is too much. One house is too much. I will not give them enough land to fit a needle."

Dhritarashtra, the blind king, spoke hesitantly: "Son, perhaps we should consider—"

Duryodhana: "Father, stay out of this. You already gave them half the kingdom once. Look what happened — they built Indraprastha, performed the Rajasuya, made you look small. Never again."

Krishna: "Then let me speak to you about what will happen if you refuse. Bhishma will fall on the tenth day. Drona will die by deception on the fifteenth. Karna, your greatest friend, will be killed by Arjuna. All your brothers will perish. And you — you will die alone, your thighs broken, cursing the day you refused peace."

Duryodhana: "Is that supposed to scare me? I have eleven akshauhinis. I have Bhishma, Drona, Karna, Ashwatthama. Let them come."

Krishna: "You have armies. They have dharma. One protects the body, the other protects the soul. When bodies fall, dharma still stands."

Duryodhana: "Enough philosophy. Let me tell you what I think. You, Keshava, are no neutral messenger. You are the Pandavas' ally, their cousin, their strategist. You come here pretending peace while plotting war. I should have you arrested."

Bhishma rose in alarm: "Duryodhana! He is a guest! An envoy!"

Duryodhana: "An envoy who will return and guide arrows toward my heart? Guards! Seize him!"

The guards moved forward. Krishna stood still, smiling.

Then he revealed his cosmic form — Vishwaroop. The entire universe appeared in his body. Gods, demons, all creation and destruction, past and future, birth and death — all at once. The court screamed. Duryodhana fell to his knees.

In an instant, it was over. Krishna stood there, normal again.

Krishna: "You cannot seize what contains everything, Duryodhana. I came in peace. You chose war. Remember this moment when the sky rains arrows and the earth drinks blood. You were offered peace, and you spat on it."

He turned and walked out.

Krishna: "Mark this day. A god begged a man for peace, and the man refused. What follows is not war — it is consequence."