Jarasandha - The King Who Attacked Seventeen Times

Dadi: "Guddu, what do you do when someone keeps bothering you, again and again?"

Guddu: "Tell a teacher? Avoid them?"

Dadi: "What if avoiding them means leaving your home and building a new city?"

Guddu: "That's extreme!"

Dadi: "That's exactly what Krishna did when faced with Jarasandha - a king so stubborn that he attacked Krishna's city SEVENTEEN times!"

Guddu: "Seventeen times?!"

Dadi: "Jarasandha was the king of Magadha and father-in-law to Kansa - the evil king Krishna killed. When Kansa died, Jarasandha was furious. "This cowherd boy killed my son-in-law! I'll destroy him and everyone he loves!""

Guddu: "That's a lot of anger!"

Dadi: "The first attack came with millions of soldiers. Krishna and his brother Balarama, just the two of them, defeated the entire army! Jarasandha barely escaped alive."

Guddu: "But he came back?"

Dadi: "Within a year! Another huge army. Another defeat. Again and again, seventeen times. Each loss only made Jarasandha angrier."

Guddu: "Why didn't Krishna just... finish him?"

Dadi: "Because of a boon Jarasandha had - he could only be killed in a specific way. So he kept coming back, each time destroying crops, disrupting life, making the people of Mathura suffer even though the battles were won."

Guddu: "What did Krishna decide to do?"

Dadi: "After the seventeenth attack, Krishna called a meeting. "We're winning every battle but losing our way of life. Children here know only war. Merchants can't trade. Farmers can't farm. We need a different approach.""

Guddu: "What approach?"

Dadi: ""Strategic retreat. We'll build a new city far away, on the ocean coast where Jarasandha's land armies can't reach us.""

Guddu: "Some people probably called that cowardice."

Dadi: "They did! But Krishna saw it differently. "Let Jarasandha conquer empty buildings if he wishes. We'll build something he cannot touch.""

Guddu: "What happened next?"

Dadi: "The Yadavas traveled west. On the Arabian Sea shore, Krishna called upon Vishwakarma, the divine architect. In a SINGLE NIGHT, the most magnificent city ever was built - Dwaraka!"

Guddu: "A whole city in one night?!"

Dadi: "Walls of gold! Palaces for every family! Gardens that bloomed forever! Streets paved with crystal! And the ocean around it - a moat no army could cross!"

Guddu: "That's amazing!"

Dadi: "When Jarasandha arrived for his eighteenth attack on Mathura, he found... nothing. Empty streets. Silent buildings. His enemy had vanished."

Guddu: "*(laughing)* He must have been so frustrated!"

Dadi: ""Coward!" he raged. But he couldn't follow. No navy, no ships. While he conquered empty buildings, Krishna built a paradise beyond his reach."

Guddu: "Did Jarasandha ever stop?"

Dadi: "Years later, during the Pandavas' great ceremony, he had to be dealt with. But this time, Krishna was clever. Instead of armies, he sent just three people - Bhima, Arjuna, and himself - disguised as brahmins."

Guddu: "Three against a whole kingdom?"

Dadi: "They challenged Jarasandha to single combat. He had to accept - his pride wouldn't let him refuse. Bhima fought him for thirteen days straight, and finally, following Krishna's guidance, tore him in half."

Guddu: "That's how he could be killed?"

Dadi: "Jarasandha had been born in two pieces (joined by a demoness, hence "jara-sandha" - joined together) and could only die by being split apart again."

Guddu: "What's the lesson here, Dadi?"

Dadi: "Many lessons! Sometimes the best response to a bully isn't fighting back every time, but stepping away and building something they can't destroy. Krishna could have kept winning battles - but he chose to win a different way."

Guddu: "Strategic retreat isn't cowardice?"

Dadi: "Not when it's done wisely. Dwaraka became one of the greatest cities ever. The people there flourished while Jarasandha kept raging at empty victories. True strength includes knowing when to fight and when to walk away."

Guddu: "And patience - waiting for the right moment?"

Dadi: "Jarasandha was finally defeated not by an army but by three clever people who knew his weakness. Sometimes the biggest problems need the smartest solutions, not the strongest."

Guddu: "I like this story. Krishna outsmarted everyone!"

Dadi: "That's his way, beta. Strength when needed. Cleverness always. And the wisdom to know that winning doesn't always mean fighting."