“Unable to answer her, the Kuru king Dhritarashtra squirmed in his seat. With the shawl, he wiped the water that had trickled down his visionless eyes due to rotating the eyeballs. They were not tears! Meanwhile Duryodhana remembered his insult in the Mayasabha at the time of the Rajasuya Yajna and actually ordered Dushasana, ‘Dushasanaa, strip this maid of the Kurus naked in this fully occupied gambling arena! Pull that fragrant sword out of the scabbard dangling at the hips of the weak Pandavas. Let her understand well that a blind father’s sons are not always blind. In fact, they wish to see and can see things that even her sighted husbands can’t see. Dushasanaa, strip her naked and make her sit on my lap.’ Duryodhana pulled his dhoti aside and thumped his bare thigh. Bhimsena could not bear this indignity and shouted, ‘Duryodhana, I will smash this thigh of yours that you have exposed so impudently in this arena full of people with a single strike of my mace. When time comes, I will rip off and toss skywards the dirty hand of scoundrel Dushasana that followed your commands like a puppet and touched my dear wife! I will tie my beloved wife’s dishevelled hair only with his blood!’ Bhimsena did not just roar these words but he brandished his mace and ran towards both of them. But he had to return and sit in his place, fuming with anger after hearing his elder brother’s command ‘Back off Bhima!’
“Dushasana scurried to Draupadidevi like a burning inferno moving towards verdure. He directly put his hand on the vesture that she was wearing. Draupadidevi turned around like an infuriated female serpent and bit his strong hand furiously. Dushasana withdrew both his hands in agony. Released from his hands Draupadidevi shot like a lightning bolt flashing in the sky. She scurried around in the arena. Dushasana chased her to try and get hold of her vesture. Beating her chest, her hands spread out, hair untied, the wailing lady implored all the major warriors in the gambling arena. Who wasn’t among those? Everyone including Maharaja Dhritarashtra, Maharani Gandharidevi, grandsire Bhishma, guru Drona, Kripa, Vidura, Sanjaya and all the major warriors were there. The lady was imploring with wailing cries that would break one’s heart. ‘Maharaja..., Grandsire…, Maharani… save my honour. I will sweep the gambling arena of the Kurus as a maidservant. I will wash the royal family’s vestures. I will do the royal ladies’ hair. But don’t humiliate me like this, by disrobing me.’
Devi implored Urnanabha, Chitrachapa, Dridhavarman, Nishangina, Mahabahu, Vishalaksha, Chitravarman, Somakirti, and Padmanabhan – all to save her honour. No one could respond to her. The next moment she was standing in front of the seat of Karna – the king of Anga. He also stood up at once at that time. But for some reason she did not make any request to him. Lamenting loudly, and cursing all in the arena and her husbands, Devi ran through the entire arena. She got exhausted, but got up like a rising serpent and ran again, to avoid Dushasana coming closer to her so that he could not touch her vesture. Running around with all her strength she began shouting loudly, ‘Tell me, is there a single gallant warrior in this ancient gambling arena of the Kurus, who has the courage of a lion and stands by Truth? Does anyone here today care about the lineage of Maharaja Yayati, Yadu, Puru, Hasti, Ajameedha, Samvarana, Janhu and Kuru at all? Isn’t any one of you aware that you are the descendants of Maharani Tapati, Nalini, Bhumini, Sudakshina, Viraja, Devayani, Ganga and Satyavati? An assembly without elders is no assembly, and elders without the sense of justice and injustice are no elders.
‘Do you think that a woman’s honour is merely a gambling piece that can be wrapped in the gambling board? Is it a piece of dice that can be held in one’s hand and thrown out as per one’s whimsy? Do you think that the society or the kingdom that humiliates a woman in such a horrendous way will not be destroyed? Are you even conscious of the fact that you are born from a woman’s affectionate womb? I beg you to tell me, is there at least a single son in this gambling arena today who still honours his mother’s milk?’
For a moment, dead silence prevailed. Even Dushasana’s hold on the royal lady’s vesture went loose.
“Only one valiant Kuru in the entire gambling arena stood up with resolve, and with desperate authoritativeness he told Dushasana who was his elder, ‘Dushasana, do not even touch Panchali. Members of the assembly, remember this is the assembly that has been honoured by royal ladies from Maharani Tapati to Satyavati. Abusing a royal lady in here is like trampling an idol of a goddess to be worshiped, in the temple itself.
“‘Though I am younger, I dare to ask all the elders here whether their swords that shine on the battlefield are corroded today. Why are the grandsire, Maharaja, Mahatma Vidura, Aacharya Drona, Kripa, all the ascetics, the wise and the hermits dead silent as if struck by lightning?
“‘I - Vikarna the son of Dhritarashtra tell you, the sobs and wails of a devoted wife will carry the terrifying music of doom with them. The hot tears streaming down her eyes will assume the form of a thundering, tempestuous Ganga and run wild. None of the seats which you are sitting on now, will last then. Injustice to a devoted wife is like injustice to chastity itself! Her humiliation is the end of all chivalry.’
“His words set the assembly abuzz. Even demented Dushasana who was till now hysterically trying to grab the royal lady’s vesture, hesitated for a moment.
“Exactly at that moment Karna – the king of Anga stood up and said, ‘Vikarna, you are a fool. Even the elderly Grandsire, Maharaja, and Mahatma Vidura, who are present in the assembly, have not said a word. You are straining your vocal chords in vain portraying as if the mantle of Dharma is resting only on your shoulder.
“‘A devoted wife? What kind of devoted wife is this? The woman whose trumpet you are blowing as a ‘devoted wife’ is no devoted wife at all!
“‘She is a mere seeker of carnal enjoyment with five husbands! She is impure! An adulteress! A harlot! A whore!! This kind of woman always prefers hundred and five husbands rather than just five! A maid is at least modest enough to cover her body; she has at least humility. But an adulteress never has such modesty. What does it matter whether she comes dressed or undressed in the assembly!
“‘Vikarna, don’t meddle in to the matters that you know nothing about, sit down! Dushasanaa, unsheathe this dark, fragrant sword that has been dangling so far at the hips of impotent Pandavas, from the scabbard of her vestures. Strip this maid naked who has been lost in the bet!’
“Everyone in the arena was aghast to hear the appalling words from the valiant philanthropist. Hesitant Dushasana regained his composure and came forward. Grabbing the hem of Draupadidevi’s vesture he pulled it forcibly! Covering the bodice on her chest with her arms the wife of the Pandavas gave out agonizing cries that left all benumbed, ‘Oh Milinda, Madhava…, Madhusudana… hurry! Gopala, Ghananeela, Achyuta..., Keshava…, Srikrishna…help! Become the earth and split yourself open to swallow this ill-fated Draupadi! Come to be the fire in the yajna-pit and reduce this yajna-born Draupadi to ashes! Take the sizzling ashes of her remnants and smear them on the temples of these blind, despicable scoundrels! Dunk the drunken heads of these lascivious men in the tidal waves of my defenceless tears and drown them to suffocating death! Burn these venomous serpents lurking in the thick forests of the Kuru dynasty with my scorching sighs! Blow out the giant lamp of the Sun today itself and bury this dark slave of the Kauravas in that pitch darkness. Or else, run, come from the expanse of the blue sky, from the void of the nether world, from the ten directions! Run, rush and save me…!!!’
“And… suddenly a cacophony of musical instruments and mantra incantations was heard from the roof of the gambling arena of the Kurus, like no one had ever heard before. An aura of unbearably brilliant light filled the arena. The next moment a rapidly revolving circle of a blinding light was seen there. I saw something like your shawl coming out of that light and touching the vesture that the royal lady was wearing. The next instant the unbearable brilliance made me dizzy and closing my eyes I collapsed unconscious. I don’t know anything about what happened next.” Even while narrating this, the chief minister covered his eyes as if he
was trying to protect his eyes from the brilliant light. The Lord moved forward, patted his back, removed his hands from his face and said, “Chief Minister Vipruthu, calm down. No need to share further details now. I have understood everything!”
I realized one thing though – since that episode of gambling in the Kurus’ gambling arena of Hastinapura the Lord began thinking only about Hastinapura. He started looking gloomy like never before. Quite often he would take Uddhava Maharaja with him and go to the Aindra gate in the west. Sitting on the stone seats there he would keep listening to the continuous roar of the rising waves. He appeared lost in some distant thought. If at all he spoke, it would be just a sentence or two with Uddhava Maharaja. I was the only one who accompanied both of them all the time. Now in his company I had become so close to my Lord that I clearly understood that his mind was roaring just like the western ocean. I could automatically feel the countless thought waves rising on that western ocean even without speaking anything with the Lord.
In spite of being such a thinker the venerable Pandava Yudhishthira had not learned any lesson from the first gambling episode in Hastinapura. He had accepted even the second invitation from Duryodhana for gambling. Within eight days of the first gambling game he played the second gambling game with Duryodhana and Shakuni in Hastinapura itself.
He lost even this second game of gambling and according to the bet he lost the Indraprastha kingdom that the Pandavas and Yadavas had erected. The last bet in this gambling game was that either Duryodhana with all his brothers would have to spend twelve years in a forest and one year incognito or the Pandavas would have to do the same. Yudhishthira lost even this last bet in the second game of gambling.
The news arrived in Dwaraka that Yudhishthira had left for Kamyakavana along with other Pandavas and Draupadidevi – to live in the forest! I felt very dejected after hearing the news.
The Pandavas who were the rulers of Indraprastha were leaving for the forest from Kauravas’ Hastinapura itself. As many men and women of Hastinapura still respected Pandavas’ father – world conqueror Pandu – they had gathered at the borders of Hastinapura to bid farewell to the Pandavas. All the five Pandavas had changed from the royal attire to plain white vestures. Draupadidevi was also dressed in plain simple attire. Her brother Dhrishtadyumna had also come to bid farewell to them. He was going to take all sons of Pandavas, to the Panchala kingdom for inculcating sanskaras and education. Our Subhadradevi’s son Abhimanyu was to stay behind, because the Lord’s aatya Kuntidevi was going to stay at Mahamantri Vidura’s residence in Hastinapura as the Pandavas had lost the Indraprastha kingdom. She was not going to the forest.
The Lord felt hurt that Yudhishthira had gambled again even after all that had happened. But he was even more hurt due to the fact that Yudhishthira left directly for the Kamyaka vana, with all Pandavas and his dear sister Draupadidevi, without even meeting him. Yet he never deterred from his duty. He came to Indraprastha taking me and Uddhava Maharaja with him. He explained to Subhadradevi in a very loving and affectionate way how to face the current situation. He returned to Dwaraka along with sister Subhadradevi and his infant bhacha Abhimanyu. During our visit to Indraprastha this time I felt a drastic change. Earlier I had seen Pandavas’ armed and uniformed soldiers patrolling the streets of Indraprastha. Now they were replaced by armed Kaurava soldiers in Kuru uniforms. It was obvious that Shakuni and Duryodhana had taken back the area of Khandavavana that Maharaja Dhritarashtra had so kindly offered to the Pandavas in the presence of my Lord. That too, in the form of a well-planned royal city of Indraprastha in place of the forest.
The puissant royal capital Indraprastha had completely lost its charm. The cultured royal family of the Pandavas had scattered in all directions. All Pandavas along with their wife Draupadidevi were in the Kamyakavana, Pandavas’ mother Kuntidevi was in Hastinapura, Subhadradevi-Abhimanyu in Dwaraka, Arjuna’s wife Chitrangadadevi in Manipura along with son Babhruvahana, Uloopidevi on the banks of river Ganga at her parental home along with son Iravana, and Bhima’s wife Hidimbadevi in the forest with son Ghatotkacha.
Many of the dreams that my Lord had seen about the Pandavas were wiped out. Now the foremost urgency was to visit the Kamyakavana; to rekindle the lost courage of the Pandavas; to console Draupadidevi. As per the Lord’s instructions I took him to the Kamyakavana in the Garudadhwaja chariot. Balaramadada and commander Satyaki accompanied us. As I was occupied in tending to the horses and the chariots I didn’t come to know what discussions took place with the Pandavas during this visit. The Lord returned after spending two days in the forest.
Nowadays the Lord of Dwaraka had almost stopped going to the Sudharma royal assembly and the island of Queens’ mansions. He would spend hours on end on the shores of the western ocean along with Uddhava Maharaja. Or he would visit the Shiva temple of Somanath, crossing the creek and then going in my chariot along with Uddhava Maharaja. It was only in the morning and evening that the Lord would meet Maharaja Vasudeva, Devakimata and Rohinimata, Balaramadada and Revatidevi to pay obeisance. If at all commander Satyaki, Anadhrishti and various troop leaders came to seek his guidance in regards to the growing Yadava army, he would only listen to them. Without saying anything he would point me to take them to Balaramadada.
If at all he spoke, it would be a lot with his own sons whom he would call in his chambers. There would be different groups of similar age, such as Pradyumna, Samba and Praghosha would be in one group. The visiting times also would be different for different age groups and they discussed a variety of subjects. Some of his sons were extremely brilliant. They would pose their questions to the Lord of Dwaraka to get their doubts cleared. Some were simply warriors. They would gather more information about warfare. A few were born humble and shy. They would only listen. The Lord would often be cheerful and laugh freely amongst his sons. Sometimes he would take his dearest daughter Charumati – Charu – in the Garudadhwaja chariot and go to the Bhallata gate in the north. Even I wouldn’t be there at that time. He would steer the chariot himself. At times Charumati also steered the chariot. The Lord himself had taught her.
It has been six months since the Pandavas had gone to live in the forest. Many people of Dwaraka had almost forgotten them. But my Lord, Balaramadada, Uddhava Maharaja, Maharaja Vasudeva and I could never forget them. Nowadays the Lord would meet Aacharya Sandipani more frequently and have discussions with him. I could strongly sense the change in the Lord’s demeanour day by day. He was reluctant to perform any of his duties as the Lord of Dwaraka. The Lord who otherwise participated in any activity enthusiastically with pure love strongly preferred silence and seclusion of late. Nowadays words such as the holy place Prayaga, Ghor Angirasa, aashrama were frequently heard in his discussions with Aacharya Sandipani.
And finally, that day dawned. On that day, we went to the ocean shore from the western gate Aindra. All of us offered the evening oblations. But while coming back the Lord told me to take a seat in the back of the chariot with Uddhava Maharaja and took the reins of the chariot in his own hands. As it was evening a line of orange and pink clouds had spread across the skyline of the western ocean. The gentle ocean breeze would not let the Lord’s shawl rest in its place. Gathering the fluttering shawl together, he called the horses by their names – Meghapushpa, Balahaka and such and spoke solemnly, “Brother Daruka and Uddhava, I want to talk to you urgently once we reach the palace. Remember, I want to talk only to you. Please don’t bring anyone else along.”
As soon as we reached the palace he let us know his firm decision. In a very calm but firm voice he said, “Dear brother Udho and Daruka, after much deliberation I have taken a firm decision. I had left Mathura before, now I am going to leave Dwaraka too, for good. I am going to an aashrama far away in the north to peacefully spend time in contemplation of the almighty God. It is up to you to decide whether you want to join me. Balaramadada and I have stayed together since Gokul. But this time I am not taking him with me. He left me once – in anger. Now I am goin
g to leave him – but with respect and love for his seniority in my heart. I have no choice. As he is the formally installed prince, the kingdom of Dwaraka holds more authority over him than me. He will remain here, to serve and to protect Dwaraka. If you also decide to stay back, my love for you as my ‘confidants’ won’t reduce even a bit.
Both of us simply kept staring at him. For a moment, it wasn’t clear to us what he was talking about. We were stunned, perplexed and didn’t know what to do. He realized that we were just mutely staring at him. Laughing innocently like a child he said, “Dear friends, can’t you take such a simple decision? How must have I taken so many decisions in my life? I assure you that whatever decision you take, I will readily accept.”
“Dada, I can’t even imagine living without you. Can there be breath without the body? Is this what you judged me to be? Of course, I am coming with you, whether you consider me your friend or not.” Uddhava Maharaja responded promptly leaving no doubt at all.
“Oh Lord, I am your shadow after all. How can one separate it from the body? Wherever the Lord of Dwaraka will be, Daruka will be there.” I also conveyed my firm decision in clear words. Now it was going to be his choice, whether to take me with him or not.
He got a firm, clear response from both of us. Then he looked deep into our eyes once and coming closer he put his knee-length arms on our shoulders. Patting us gently he said, “Remember, that nobody should know where we are going. Uddhava will be fine as he is unmarried. But Daruka, your wife also should not know a single word of this! If that happens
I will leave both of you here and go someplace else all alone. Uddhava, maybe I will go towards the Himalaya which
bears with a smile many holy places like Amaranath that we visited!”
“Oh Lord, you have shown your faith in Uddhava Maharaja. I take a vow in the name of my wife, more than that I take a vow in your name that she will not know anything about this.”
Srikrishna- the Lord of the Universe Page 51
