Stories for when you feel Struggling with Greed

Ghatotkacha forced Karna to use his divine weapon meant for Arjuna. His death paradoxically benefited the Pandavas.

Barbarik could end the war in one minute but his vow to support the weaker side would cause endless oscillation. Krishna asked for his head as sacrifice.

Karna gave away his divine armor and earrings to Indra despite knowing it would lead to his death, because his vow of generosity was his dharma.

When gods needed a weapon to defeat Vritra, sage Dadhichi gave up his body so his bones could be fashioned into Indra vajra thunderbolt. Supreme sacrifice for cosmic good.

King Janashruti learns from passing swans about a humble sage named Raikva with greater knowledge. Despite offering wealth, Raikva initially dismisses him. Only when the king approaches with humility does Raikva teach the Samvarga Vidya - that Air and Prana are the ultimate absorbers.

When the younger Sahibzade were martyred at Sirhind, their bodies were denied cremation. Diwan Todar Mal, a wealthy Hindu merchant, offered to buy land for their cremation by covering it with gold coins stood on edge - a massive fortune. He sacrificed his wealth for righteous honor. His act united Hindu-Sikh communities against tyranny.

Aged vulture king Jatayu fought Ravana to protect Sita despite impossible odds. Mortally wounded, he lived to inform Rama and attained moksha.

Vishnu appears as a dwarf brahmin during Balis great sacrifice. Despite guru Shukracharyas warnings, Balis generosity compels him to grant Vamanas request for three steps of land. The dwarf assumes cosmic form covering earth and heaven in two strides, placing his third step on Balis head - rewarding his surrender by making him lord of the netherworld.

Ritualist Mandana Mishra challenged young Shankaracharya to a debate - the loser would adopt the winners path. Mandanas wife Ubhaya Bharati served as judge using flower garlands - the one whose flowers wilted first from anger would lose. After months of discourse, Mandanas garland withered. He became Shankaras disciple, later heading Sringeri Math.

The primeval cosmic being Purusha is sacrificed by the gods to create the universe. From his various body parts emerged the animals, the Vedas, celestial bodies, the earth, sky, directions, and the four varnas of humanity.

When Kashmiri Pandits faced forced conversion by Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb, they sought refuge with Guru Tegh Bahadur. The Guru offered to sacrifice himself, earning the title Hind-di-Chadar (Shield of India) for protecting religious freedom of another faith.

Agni, the fire god, is the sacred messenger between humans and gods, carrying sacrificial offerings to heaven. The first hymn of the Rig Veda is dedicated to him as the priest of the sacrifice, invoker, and bestower of blessings.

When Lord Vamana asked for three steps of land, Bali agreed despite his guru's warning. Vamana covered heaven and earth in two steps. Bali offered his head for the third, and Vishnu granted him rulership of Sutala and promised to be his doorkeeper.

A bodyguard sacrifices himself and family for the king. The devastated king wants to sacrifice himself in return. Betal asks whose sacrifice was greater. Vikram: the Kings, because he had no obligation - his willingness came from pure love.

When Indra comes disguised to take Karna's invincible armor—knowing it will make Karna vulnerable to death—Karna gives it anyway, cutting it from his own body. His vow to never refuse a supplicant matters more than his life. Dharma is not transactional; honor transcends survival.

Poor Sudama brings only beaten rice to his divine friend Krishna. Ashamed of his gift, he tries to hide it, but Krishna eats it joyfully. Sudama returns home to find his poverty transformed to wealth. Seva is not about the value of what is offered but the love with which it is given.

To save his eighty thousand monkeys from human hunters, the monkey king stretches his body across a river as a bridge, letting them run across his back to safety. His broken body is his gift. True kingship means being used up in service—a bridge, not a destination.

When Krishna and Arjuna needed dry wood during rain, Karna cut the legs of his own bed to provide it, saying things can be remade but sending someone empty-handed is the greatest grief.

Prince Jimutavahana takes the place of a snake about to be sacrificed to Garuda. Moved by this selfless act, Garuda vows to end snake sacrifices forever. True heroism means breaking cycles of violence.

King Harishchandra promised his son Rohita to Varuna as a sacrifice, but Rohita fled. A substitute, Shunahshepa, was bought from his impoverished father. Bound to the sacrificial post, Shunahshepa prayed to the Vedic gods and was miraculously freed when Ushas loosened his bonds.