A Little Duty That Saves From Great Fear
Dharma is tested least in comfort and most in the last moments of our strength.
In September 2026, on a flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv, Captain Smit Machchhar was attacked in the cockpit by his own co-pilot with a knife and an emergency axe, in what investigators describe as an attempt to crash the plane. Stabbed in the head and hands, he could no longer fight or fly. Yet he found enough strength to unlock the cockpit door. Passengers rushed in, levelled the diving aircraft and restrained the attacker, while a doctor on board stopped the captain's bleeding. The plane landed in Saudi Arabia with 174 people aboard, and all of them survived.
The Bhagavad Gita says, "svalpam apy asya dharmasya trayate mahato bhayat": even a little of this dharma protects us from great fear (2.40). The captain did not save the flight alone. He did one small, essential thing at the very edge of his strength, and that opened the way for others to do the rest. Duty need not be grand to be decisive.
We often wait until we feel strong, resourced and certain before we act. The Gita asks only that we do what is ours to do, whatever our condition, and leave the outcome to a larger order.
Today, do the one small duty that is yours, even if you are tired, and trust that it may open a door for someone else.
