Bits of life

s-14 Words-2000

lift the tail off his path. But, no, it hadn’t moved a single inch. Then Bhima realized it was none other than Hanuman the son the son of the god of wind.

He joined his hands in obeisance to the great devotee of Lord Rama, Hanuman and said,
“O Lord Hanuman, forgive me my ignorance. Please let me see you in your real form,”

Hanuman assumed his normal appearance and blessed Bhima who was also born with the grace of the god of wind.
After this very effective meeting with Hanuman, Bhima continued to walk in the forest.

A few feet away, a Brahmin family of five was returning from Hastinapur where they attended yaga. They were impressed by the way they were served with meals and charitable offerings.

As they walked on, a giant stood in their way and demanded one of them to come with him. He explained that his mother was performing Shakti puja and so needed a human being to offer as sacrifice to the goddess. First, the father wanted to go with him. But the wife objected to it. Then the eldest son wanted to go. But the father wouldn’t let him go. The youngest son was not allowed to go by the mother. So the middle son stepped forward and said that he was not wanted by either of his parents. So he said he would go with him.

Bhima was observing the family and the giant and heard the conversation exchanged between the two and among the members of the family. He came forward and said,

“O son of the Brahmin, don’t ever doubt your parents’ love for you. They will always love you well and they have difference of it between one child and the other. I myself am the middle son of the family. I never felt less love for me shown by my mother.”

And then he turned to the giant and said,
“Take me to your mother for her sacrifice. I don’t mind going with you.”

Then the giant took him to his mother who was engaged in the formalities of the Shakti puja. When she turned and saw Bhima she was shocked and pleasantly surprised. She was none other than Hidimba, Bhima’s asura wife he married during his sojourn in the forest. Husband and wife were happy to see each other.

Then Hidimba introduced the giant as the son that she had with Bhima. The son of Hidimba was Ghatothkacha. He made an obeisance to his father by touching his feet and Bhima embraced him. Ghatothkacha was desirous to go with his father and meet his uncles and aunt Draupadi and get their blessings. Even Hidimba wanted to meet the family. But Bhima said there was a lot of water that passed under the bridge since their last meeting. He told them about the cunning Shakuni’s strategy cleverly planned and executed. He narrated the way Yudhishtar was defeated and the bets he placed on the heads of his family including Draupadi and their beautiful city Indraprastha.

After telling his wife Hidimba and son Ghatothkacha about the state of affairs with him and his brothers Bhima returned to the forest home of the Pandavas.

Days were passing somehow. The Pandavas were spending time in preparations because they now definite about the war that was going to follow their completion of exile.

On a certain day, Draupadi was on her way to the river to fetch water for her domestic needs. She carried her pot resting it on the curve of her slim waist. The forest path was narrow and long. She had to walk a long distance to get water.

From the other direction came a rider in a chariot with his guardsmen following closely. When he saw Draupadi, he recognized her as Pandavas’ wife and stopped his chariot and approached her. Draupadi recognized him as well. He was the husband of Dushala, Duryodhana’s only sister. His name was Syndhava, Jayadradh as he was otherwise known as, and he was the king of Sindhu. He was not a gentleman but a man of low morals and crude behavior. Yet manners made Draupadi inquire after her sister-in-law Dushala.

“Dushala is fine. But you look better.” So saying syndhava cast lustful glances at Draupadi and laid a hand on her shoulder. Draupadi slapped it off and stood away. Syndhava chased her and caught her. Then he had put her on his chariot and started driving off. Draupadi shouted for help. But who would listen to a frail woman’s lonely cry in a forest?

Yudhishtar started suspecting that something dangerous might have happened to Draupadi who went out to fetch water. Immediately, he asked his brothers Bhima and Arjuna to go in search of Draupadi. It did not take them long to spot the speeding chariot of Syndhava. They held chariot and dragged the villainous man out and beat the wits out of him. Bhima thrashed him tied him up with strong ropes.
Then they took him to Yudhishtar to pronounce the punishment for heinous crime of his immoral behavior against the Pandava wife Draupadi.

Bhima and Arjuna would prefer to kill him but Dharmaraja said death would be too harsh a punishment for his crime. So he asked Draupadi how she would like to punish him. Draupadi asked Bhima to shave his hair off just leaving five braids to remind him of his misdeed and punishment. Bhima did it and left him to go back. Jayadradh did not go to Hastinapur as he previously planned. He could not face his relatives with his shaved head. Instead he went to lonely place to do penance in order to avenge the insult done to him by the Pandavas. Duryodhana and his other brothers were worried about the non appearance of Jayadradh in Hastinapur. So he went in search of his who was also his brother-in-law, husband of his sister, Dushala. He found him and Jayadradh told him of the insult done to him by the Pandavas. His story only made Duryodhana more angry and resentful of the Pandavas.

Jayadradh continued to meditate on Shiva and lord Shiva decided to grant him a boon. What was the boon that Syndhava or Jayadradh needed and asked? We are yet to know of the result of his penance.
The twelve year exile of the Pandavas had come to an end. Now began the most difficult part of their exile, namely, living in disguise.

They started walking away from their formal abode in the forest. They made their way through the thick forest to an unknown destination. After traveling for a long time they were all tired and wanted to have some water. They broke their journey in some remote area and Arjuna climbed a tree and saw a stream flowing nearby. Nakula was asked by Yudhishtar to go and fetch water for all. Nakula went there and was about to drink some water from the stream. An unknown voice warned him not to touch the water. It said that unless he answered the questions he would ask he could not drink water from the stream. Nakula asked the voice to come forward and talk to him in person. But, Nakula defied the order to answer the questions and tried to drink the water. The very the next moment he was lying in a heap by the side clutching his throat in pain. His older brothers Bhima, Arjuna and his younger brother, Sahadeva followed suit. All of them came in search of the other and failed to answer the questions of the supernatural entity.

Unable to understand the absence and delay in his brothers’ arrival, Yudhishtar himself went in search of them. he was shocked to see them all lying on the bank of the stream motionless. He examined their bodies and found nothing extraordinary like the signs of having drunk poisoned water and so on. He went near the lake and tried to take some water into his palms. That very moment he heard a mysterious voice talking to him.

“O King, if you try to drink or take water from this spring, you will find yourself in the same condition as your great brothers are.”

“who are you sir? Are you one of the supernatural beings like a yaksha, a deity or a gandharva?”
( all the three kinds belong to swarga where they reside forever.)
The voice said,

“I am a yaksha. I am in charge of this spring. I want to you answer the questions I ask you. If you succeed in answering them, I will let you have the water you want.”

Dharmaraja was not perturbed by the challenge. He said,
“ I will answer your questions. But sir, before that, I want you to appear before me.”
A shining yaksha in the form of a noble person appeared before Yudhishtar. He started posing questions to the Pandava king thus.

Questions and answers were as reported below.
“ O king! What is heavier than the earth?”
Yudhishtar answered,
“One’s mother.”
“What is higher than the sky?”
“One’s father.”
“What is faster than the wind?”
“One’s own mind.”
“Who is man’s friend when he is near his death?”
“Charity, and his quality of giving to others.”
“what are the manifestations of the following virtues?
Dharma, (righteousness), yasha (fame), Swarga (salvation), sukha (happiness).
Answer:
“The manifestation of dharma is efficiency. The expression of yasha is in charity, salvation is expressed in truth and happiness is by maintaining good character.”
“What is soul?”
“One’s own child.”
“What stops development?”
“Ignorance.”
“What is laziness?”
“Not attending to duty.”
“Who is the happy man?”
“The selfless person.”
“What is darker than the black eyeliner? (The Indian version of the eyeliner is called Kajal which is made with oil or ghee.)
“A blot on the character.”
“Which is the best kind of righteousness?”
“Mercy.”
“What should be controlled to avoid sorrow?”
“Sorrow could be avoided by controlling the mind.”
“What is mercy?”
“Mercy is to desire for the welfare of all.”
“What makes a state fall out and decay?”
“Defeat.”

“What is the scale to judge a Brahmin? Is it his birth, education, knowledge or character?”
“A quality Brahmin is he who has character. Character is the most important element in judging a person. A man born in a low caste is more valuable and much greater than a Brahmin if he has strong character.”
The supernatural being Yaksha was very much pleased with Yudhishtar’s answers.
He said,
“Hey King! I am quite satisfied with your answers. I can make one of your brothers come alive. Which of your brothers do you want me give life to?”

Without hesitation, Yudhishtar said,
“I would like my brother Nakula come back to life.”
The Yaksha asked,
“Why Nakula and not your own brothers Bhima or Arjuna?”
“Sir, I am as mother Kunti’s son alive. I want one of mother Madri’s sons alive. That way mother Madri will not be hurt.”
“Who is the next brother you want alive?”
“If you give the choice then I would like my dear brother Sahadeva come alive.”
“Why? Why not Bhima or Arjuna?”
“that is because Sahadeva is younger than Bhima and Arjuna.”

The yaksha said,
“I am extremely pleased with your words and thinking. O best of the Bharats, you are indeed the best person to have born in the dynasty. The dynasty of the Bharats will shine with your character and thinking methods. So along with Nakula and Sahadeva your other brothers Bhima and Arjuna will also be given life.”
“Sir, you cannot be a Yaksha, because a Yaksha cannot give life.”

Then the yaksha changed. He became a deity called Yama, the Lord of Death.
He blessed Yudhishtar saying that he came here only to see him and bless him. Then Yama disappeared.
All the brothers of Yudhishtar came alive. It was as though they woke up from deep slumber. They did not even remember what happened a few minutes ago