questions from Mahabharata

[Guest guest]

I am currently drawing an unabridged Mahabharata comic

book, so I am reading the unabridged Mahabharata. I

think I may be able to help explain the dice game more

clearly. Draupadi herself was the first person to ask

whether Maharaja Yudhisthir had the right to wager

her. She opined that he did not, since he had already

wagered and lost himself and his brothers, her other

husbands. She refused to consider herself won,

because no one would answer this point for her, except

Sakuni and Duryodhana, whose words she did not trust.

Yudhisthir had been challenged to the game of dice by

Duryodhana, and ordered to play by Dhritarastra, and

since as a ksatriya he could not refuse a

challenge,and since it was his personal vow to always

obey his elders, he was compelled to play, even

against his personal desires. Once he began to play,

his judgement became clouded, and he became

intoxicated with the gambling. Also, he was goaded on

by the desire to win back everything that had been

lost. Bear in mind that this game was set up by

Duryodhana and Sakuni, with the consent of Maharaja

Dhritarastra, with the aim of using Sakuni's skill at

cheating at dice to steal Yuhisthir's wealth and

kingdom from him. When all of Yudhisthir's wealth had

been won, Sakuni proposed that he wager each of his

brothers in turn, and if he won the brother, he would

get back everything he had lost. After he had bet his

brothers, he bet himself, and then he was advised to

bet Draupadi to win back everything. When he, of

course, lost Draupadi, she asked how he could bet her

when he no longer owned himself. As king and head of

household, Yudhisthir had the right to wager any

person in his household, including his brothers and

wife. But, since he had lost himself, he could not be

said to own anything. When Draupadi was forcibly

dragged to the assembly, she put this question to

Bhishma,who was unable to answer her. Yudhisthir was

so overcome with shame that he could not speak. Bhima

and the other Pandavas hands were tied(figuratively),

as they had already been wagered, so all he could do

was promise Draupadi that he would avenge her

treatment. Vidura left the court, and the Kuru elders

were silent. Only Vikarna, Duryoudhana's brother,

spoke on her behalf, but he was ignored. Then Dusashan

attempted to strip Draupadi naked in front of the

assembly, and seeing that no one else would protect

her, she took shelter of Krsna, who, as you know,

protected her. Dhritarastra then felt ashamed, and

also fearful of Draupadi's anger, and released her and

then gave her back her husbands and kingdom.

You should also know that all of this happened as

Krsna's arrangement. Draupadi was prophesied to be

the destruction of all kshatriyas at the time of her

birth. As a result of her humiliation, the battle of

Kurukshetra was fought. The Kuru elders were killed

by the Pandavas for their failure to speak out to

defend the honor of a daughter of their house.

If there had been no battle, the Bhagavad Gita would

not have been spoken, and we would all be lost and

unhappy for the lack of it. So all of these

apparently bad things actually were happening under

the direction of Lord Krsna, out of his infinite

kindness and love for us, the conditioned souls.

I hope this helps.

YS

Maharani devi dasi

 

 

 

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