Bits of life

S-8 Words-2000

The sage replied that king Drupada was performing the swayamvara of his beautiful daughter, Draupadi. She had a secret in her heart. Arjuna asked him what the secret was. Then the rishi finished his meal first and then set down to explain the matter to all the Pandavas thus:

“It is well known that Drupada and Drona were friends during their period of education. Their friendship was so thick that Drupada said he would give half his kingdom to Drona when he came to throne to rule the country. Yet when Drona asked him for a cow by virtue of their childhood friendship Drupada cold shouldered him saying that they were not equals anymore. This had made Drona sad and angry. He thought, he taught a lesson in humility to Drupada when the latter was defeated and captured by the Pandava princes. Then Drupada was brought to the house of Drona by the Pandavas as gurudakshina at which Drona was happy and contented.

Drona, however, had given Drupada’s kingdom back to him and said he would only take a cow from the half of his kingdom, the kingdom that Drupada pledged to him as a fellow pupil.

Drupada was not a man to forget the insult done to him by Drona in a hurry. He wanted to seek revenge on Drona. So to fulfill this wish he went in search of a rishi who was powerful enough to grant him a warrior son. Finally, he went to a rishi called Yaj and told him his wish. After thinking about the purity and impurity behind Drupada’s wish to have son through whom he wanted avenge the insult done to him by Drona, the rishi performed a yagna. When asked for Drupada’s queen to come to the holy place of yagna, the queen delayed on the pretext of having a shower. The rishi got angry and he threw some water in the holy fire. And lo! A young man and a young maiden emerged from the fire. They were the son and the daughter of Drupada.

the rishi Yaj introduced them to Drupada. The name of the young man was Drustadyumna and the name of the young maiden was Draupadi. The rishi told Drupada that they were his son and daughter for whom the worship and the yagna were performed. Drupada was thrilled and happy to have them.

Thus the Pandava princes were informed by the rishi the whole episode of how Drupada came to perform the marriage of Draupadi. The rishi urged them to go to Panchala kingdom so they too can get enough alms to spend many days without worry. Kunti, in her heart of hearts wished to see Draupadi. All of them prepared to journey to Kampilya, the capital city of the country of Panchala.

The day of the swayamvara of Draupadi dawned on a festive note. The city of Kampilya was decorated with leaves and flowers and people were seen bustling through busy streets. Business was brisker than usual because kings and princes from different and distant countries were arriving to take part in the activities of the swayamvara. Krishna and Balarama too were present to view the swayamvara of Draupadi who was their sister. She was not their blood sister. Story goes that when Krishna hurt his finger while engaged in killing Shishupala, it was Draupadi who showed concern for his welfare. She tore a part of her sari and tied the wound with it. She was acting like his sister they said. Ever since this happened, Krishna promised to look after whenever she needed it.

The Pandava princes disguised as Brahmin youth came to the court and stood among the courtiers. They watched the activities silently from a corner.

It was announced on the previous day that the person who wanted to marry Draupadi had to undergo a competition. It was a rare and excellent competition. The skill of archery was to be tested. They had hung a fish revolving in an orbit to the roof. Its reflection could be seen in pool beneath. The archer or the competing participant was supposed to see the reflection of the fish in the pool of water below and shoot it with a bow and arrow. The bow was also a special one. It was present from the lord of deities, Indra to Drupada.

All the aspirants for the hand of Draupadi were present in the court of Drupada. Princes like Duryodhana, Dushasana, kings like Jarasandha, Shishupala, and warriors like Karna were present. Draupadi’s twin brother Drustadyumna welcomed the assembled group of dignitaries and clarified the conduct of swayamvara. Without further delay, the king asked him to escort Draupadi into the court. The beautiful maiden Draupadi arrived in the court on the arm of her brother, Drustadyumna and took her seat by her father, king Drupada. Then the proceedings began. It was Duryodhana who wanted to go first. Arrogant as he was, he presumed that he would certainly win the competition. He walked to the bow and tried to lift it. He failed to do so even after several trials. He fumed and felt humiliated and went back to his seat. Like him, several others tried their hand at lifting the bow and failed. The hawed and humphed but failed miserably. Finally, Karna rose from his seat and went to the bow. Draupadi was interested in marrying only Arjuna and none else. She and her father presumed that all participants would fail and only Arjuna would emerge as the winner. On the contrary to her wishes, she was horrified to see Karna actually succeeded in lifting the bow and stringing it with the bow thread. Looking on, she cried out,

“I am not prepared to marry a charioteer’s son.”

It was an insult to Karna to point out his lowly position. Duryodhana got up in anger and said to prince Drustadyumna,

“If you have differences of cast and race you should have announced earlier. Making announcements like these now is too late and it is not proper on your part to do so.”

Drustadyumna replied,

“You know of our traditions in functions like swayamvara. You are fully aware of our customs and you are blaming us. It is not fair on your part.”
One of the kings got up and said,
“No one can be strong enough to lift this bow. Draupadi will have none left to choose from if this test continues.”

Yudhishtar, watching the whole drama, urged Arjuna to go forward and take up the competition. Arjuna stepped forward and went to the king and saluted him first. The king nodded his approval and Arjuna walked to the place where the bow was placed. He did obeisance to the bow and then lifted it with ease and strung it with the thread. People were delighted and cheered the Brahmin youth. Arjuna walked steadily to the fish machine and observed the fish that revolved on top and its reflection revolving in the water below. He took his aim and pointing it to the fish above. He looked down at its reflection in the water and concentrated his attention on the eye of the fish and shot an arrow with perfect aim. He had thumping success.

All the other competitors were angry and objected to being proved less worthy than a Brahmin youth. Soon there was a voice that said that if Draupadi could not choose her husband from among the royal people then she could not marry at all. She should die the way she was born. She should be consumed by fire. The crowd of princes and kings rushed to the podium to kill Draupadi. Then Arjuna came to her rescue and said she was in his protection and anyone who dared to harm her would die. There was a scuffle and Bhima came forward threatening to kill them with a pillar he uprooted from the palace. Then Krishna interfered and quieted the enraged crowd. He said there was nothing wrong if a Brahmin won the competition and married the princess Draupadi. He was lucky and more skillful than other competitors. With his words the royal people settled down to the present.

Drupada said,
“O son of a Brahmin, Draupadi is yours. You can take her to your home.” He blessed them and the couple left with the rest of the Pandavas disguised as Brahmins.

Draupadi garlanded Arjuna and went with him to the humble quarters where Kunti and her sons were living at that time.
After reaching home, Arjuna saw his mother was busy cooking. He called out to her,

“Mother I got a wonderful charity today.”
Kunti promptly replied without even glancing at them,
“Share it among yourselves.”
Arjuna and his brothers were taken aback by her order. Then he called out to her again and asked her to come to the door.
Then Kunti turned around and to her surprise, she saw her sons and a lovely lady.
She asked,
“Who is this beautiful lady?”
“she is princess Draupadi, daughter of Drupada, king of Panchala,” replied Bhima. He added,
“Arjuna won her by succeeding in the competition held by Drupada for her swayamvara. mother, you said something unusual today. You asked Arjuna to share her with all of us. How is that possible mother?”
Kunti was aghast and did not know how to solve this problem. She told them it was not possible to share Draupadi. She was not the alms she thought and asked them to share.

Then she chided Arjuna for calling Draupadi as charity.
She said,
“A woman is much more than mere charity. She is crucial for the welfare of man and this world too. how could you call her bhiksha?( alms)”

Yudhishtar said,
“Well our mother had said something which didn’t mean. Yet coming from her the order cannot be disobeyed.”

While they were still discussing the pros and cons of Kunti’s words, Krishna arrived at their house and he was told of the matter that had caused concern among the members of the family.

He said,
“Things happen with intent. Nothing happens without reason especially if it is something that comes from respected people like Kunti, my aunt.” He continued to address them in the following way.

“Half the reason why Draupadi is placed in such a predicament is her own doing.”

The Pandavas and Kunti were surprised at this revelation. Krishna proceeded to explain that which he knew but not the rest.

“In her previous life Draupadi did a difficult penance and won the grace of Shiva. He appeared to her and asked her to request a boon from him. Draupadi wanted a man she would marry with the qualities of truth and honesty, speed and strength, sharpness and vigilance, handsomeness and finally patience. During that particular life it was possible. But Draupadi did not live through that eon and took life as a princess now. It was possible during the previous age to find a man with a combination of the qualities she mentioned. But now, in our present era, it is not possible to find a man with all these qualities. So here the Pandavas are with the five different virtues. We have Yudhishtar, who is the very incarnation of truth, Bhima, strong and speedy as the wind, Arjuna the archer with a sharp and exact aim, Nakula the most handsome of men and Sahadeva, the man of patience. So, dear sister Draupadi, either you will have to marry them all with the qualities you wanted or return the boon to Shiva, who may not appreciate if you do so. Think about it.
You Arjuna! I don’t support the way in which you have introduced Draupadi to your mother. You said she was a bhiksha, which was a wrong interpretation of a woman. A woman serves humanity in many diverse roles. As a mother, as a wife, as a sister and as a daughter, she is of utmost importance. It was you own ignorance that