AJAYA I -- Roll of the Dice

by Unknown

  "Andha, Andha..." the Priests took up the chorus amidst catcalls and whistles. Only Arjuna stood grim-faced, his head bowed and arms crossed. Draupadi made no attempt to hide her amusement. Her eyes met those of Karna, fuming with rage at what was happening to his friend. At the sight of the man she secretly loved, the shame of sharing her bed with five men came rushing back to fill her aching heart. With a viciousness that only a woman trying to hide her own yearning can show, she said to Karna, "Suta, drive your friend away in your chariot before he loses his loincloth too."

  Karna's sword was out in a flash, but Aswathama held him back.

  "The Suta thinks he can fight Arjuna? What a joke!" Dhaumya cried as the hall reverberated with more laughter and whistles.

  Shakuni looked at the fools laughing around him and thanked his stars. They were laughing at the Crown Prince of the most powerful empire in India because a potbellied Priest did not like him. They were insulting the best archer in India because he was born in a low caste. The Gandhara Prince wanted to fall on his knees, face West towards Gandhara, and thank God for the windfall. But as he stood watching his nephew being ridiculed, all traces of the elation he felt were hidden behind the grim expression on his face.

  Suyodhana raised his head and brushed back the dark wavy hair that had fallen into his eyes. He shook his head to free it of water. Then he glared at Yudhishtra. The King of Indraprastha took a quick breath. Suyodhana turned to gaze at Draupadi, and her laughter trailed into silence. She looked down at her toes, not wanting to face the Crown Prince. Suyodhana took a step out of the pool. Dhaumya backed away and vanished behind the group of Priests. Aswathama handed him the dhoti, but Suyodhana refused to take it, flicking it away with one hand. The hall grew silent again. Without saying a word, without attempting to cover his nakedness, the Crown Prince of Hastinapura walked out of the hall with his friends in tow. As he walked amidst them in a loincloth, his head held high, the Kings and Princes bowed in fear and respect. They were ashamed of their conduct, but the urge to laugh at the fall of an important man had taken possession of them for a moment. He acknowledged their bows with curt nods and walked out into the darkness, his eyes looking straight ahead. The silence of the tomb descended on Yudhishtra's palace.

  ***

  Aswathama, Karna, and Sushasana, were urging Suyodhana to declare war on Indraprastha. It was mid-afternoon, three days after the incident and they were in the Prince's chambers. No man ought to swallow an insult like that. Indraprastha ought to be called upon to pay the price of her indiscretion. They were sure they could convince the Grand Regent about the justice of their cause. How long could a puny little kingdom like Indraprastha last before the might of Hastinapura? Besides, Krishna was away, fighting the Nishada, if the Yadava had managed to reach Dwaraka at all. The Southern Confederate was in shambles without the leadership of Parashurama, who still lay in a coma. This was the right time to finish off the Pandavas and impose more humane laws that were not based on any scriptures, respected all faiths, had no caste-based privileges, and treated everyone the same. This was the moment to save the country from the anarchy Takshaka envisaged or the theocracy of Dhaumya and Parashurama.

  Suyodhana hesitated. He too wanted to do what his friends suggested. He found it difficult to swallow the insult or forgive and forget. 'I am a Kshatriya, not a saint,' he kept telling himself. Yet, every time he thought of war, the image of the slums he had visited came to mind. The face of Jara and his blind dog danced before his eyes. The thought of Mayasura and the women and children who had toiled to build that beautiful city, pulled him back from the brink. In the greater order of things, it did not matter that he had been insulted. How many lives were to be lost for the sake of his honour? The poor would pay the price. That thought made him weak. However, Draupadi's laughter still rang in his ears. 'How could they insult me like that?' He burned with shame whenever he remembered standing naked in the middle of Yudhishtra's sabha. Was there a way to make the Pandavas pay, yet avoid war?

  Shakuni was watching Suyodhana closely. His initial reaction to the incident in Indraprastha had been glee. He looked forward to the impending war and destruction of his enemies, but the intervening three days had caused him to look at the situation with more logic. He feared that after the initial scuffle, Bhishma would intervene and arrange a patch up between the cousins, and his dreams of an apocalyptic war would fade away. Besides, Krishna was away. If there was anyone who wanted a war as much as he did, it was Krishna. The participation of the Southern Confederate was doubtful, and Dwaraka was fighting its own battles. 'No, a war at this time would not suit my purposes,' he thought. What he needed was a conflict involving all the kingdoms - from Pragjyothisha, Anga, Vanga, etc. in the East, to Dwaraka, Sind, Gandhara, etc. in the West - a grand war that included the mountain kingdoms of the Himalayas to the Asura kingdoms of the South, like Chera and Pandya. The armageddon could not spare a single kingdom of India. He yearned for the total destruction of this cursed land and its misery.

  "Prince, there is another way to exact revenge and conquer, without firing a single arrow or spilling a drop of blood," Shakuni said, as if reading Suyodhana's mind. They all turned to look at the foreigner with interest. "It is sanctioned by all your... I mean our... holy scriptures. A King can conquer another kingdom by marriage, war, payment, or dice. Why don't we invite Yudhishtra to a game of dice?" Shakuni said with a smile.

  They looked at each other. Then Aswathama said, "A game of dice is a game of chance. What is the guarantee that Yudhishtra will not win?"

  Shakuni took out the dice from the folds of his dhoti and said a silent prayer. With his eyes closed, he cried, "Twelve".

  Suyodhana and his friends watched anxiously as the dice spun on the floor, hit each other in fury, reversed the direction of spin for a moment, and finally came to rest. Both showed six - a perfect twelve!

  "Eight," the Gandhara Prince cried and threw the dice again. They rolled to form eight. "Six," called Shakuni, and the dice obeyed. He threw the dice a hundred times. Each time the dice came up correctly.

  Taking up the challenge, Karna, Suyodhana, Sushasana, and Aswathama, each took turns to cry out numbers. With the practised ease of three decades, the foreigner rolled the dice.

  When the show was over and the showman had bowed to his admiring fans, Suyodhana stood up. "Yes, we can roll the dice. We will send the Son of Dharma an invitation he cannot refuse. We will tie him in the knots of his own dharma. We too can play games."

  A cheer rose from his friends as they hugged each other. Shakuni watched the scene with amusement. He rolled the dice for the hundred and first time and cried twelve. That roll was a challenge, a dare to the fools that ruled India, from a tiny mountain kingdom on the outskirts of her ancient civilization. The Indians, who kept fighting each other for language, caste, religion, race, and petty egos, did not see, hear or feel the dice rolling over their holy land. The dice obeyed the foreign hand as usual.

  *

  *

  *

  27 ROLL OF THE DICE

  "I HEAR YOU HAVE INVITED YUDHISHTRA to a game of dice." Bhanumati gently broached the subject to a moody Suyodhana. He merely grunted. When she asked him again, he left the room in silence. She knew he was hurt, but did not want the hurt to fester into a wound. There was enough hatred around them. She rarely got to see him as he spent most of his time with Uncle Shakuni. Her heart ached seeing her husband filled with anger and bitterness. She yearned to have her generous-hearted husband back.

  A few days before the game of dice with his cousin, Bhanumati waited to confront him in the privacy of their chamber. By the time he came in, the twins were sound asleep. He hesitated a moment at the entrance and she could see him checking to see whether the children were asleep. She too, feigned sleep. She heard him blow out the lamp, and felt the mattress sink under his weight. Then she turned and gently touched his shoulder. Immediately, she felt him stiffen. She was afraid but determined. She could no longer hold herself back.
"Do we need to make it such a big issue?"

  There was no reaction. Softly she said, "It was just an accident..."

  "Stay out of this, Bhanu!" Suyodhana jumped from the bed, toppling over a stool. "This is not just about me and my cousin. It is about this country and the future of its people. You have not seen Indraprastha. You have not seen how the poor live in the model city of the Pandavas. You have not seen..."

  "Keep your lectures for your friends. Those things may have contributed to your anger, but this game of dice has more to do with your ego than..."

  "It is not only me they insulted. They insulted Karna too. Draupadi asked him to drive me in his chariot..."

  "So if this is not about you, it is about your friend Karna."

  "Enough!" Suyodhana's voice had an edge Bhanumati had never heard before. "Yes, it is my ego. I was insulted. And you expect me to take such insults lying down? I am a Kshatriya. I am the grandnephew of Bhishma. You expect me to grin and bear it? You expect me to keep quiet when they treat men like Mayasura worse than a worm?"

  "Then fight but do not trick them." Bhanumati was trembling.

  "And be responsible for thousands of deaths? Be the reason for a devastating war after which nothing will be left? This way, I avoid bloodshed."

  "That is not the Suyodhana I know. That is not my husband speaking, but the Prince of Gandhara."

  "You think I am a puppet in his hands? That I cannot think for myself?"

  In the dim light that filtered through the silk curtains, Bhanumati saw Suyodhana's eyes glittering with insanity and hatred. She felt afraid. Bhanumati quickly moved towards her daughter who stirred and gently patted her back to sleep. She tried to control her tears. Without facing her husband, she said, "The path you are choosing will lead us all to disaster. Forgive Draupadi her thoughtless remarks, and her foolish husbands. You have the generosity to forgive the mistakes of lesser men."

  When she turned, she saw only the curtains swaying in the wind. Suyodhana had walked into the darkness. She hugged her children, trying to shut out the ominous hooting of an owl in the garden. At that moment, she hated Draupadi with all her heart.

  ***

  "There she is!" Subhadra rushed in from the balcony. She had come to Hastinapura to visit Bhishma as the Grand Regent wished to see her son. He had written to invite her to Hastinapura. The conch sounded, announcing the arrival of Yudhishtra, King of Indraprastha, and his brothers. "I will go get her," Subhadra said as she went out with her young son, Abhimanyu, who ran ahead to greet his father.

  Bhanumati sat glued to her seat. She heard the chariot carrying the Pandavas come to a halt on the gravelled driveway. She could hear Abhimanyu giggling as Arjuna threw him up into the air and caught him again. She heard her husband's voice welcoming his cousins. She heard little Abhimanyu jump from his father to his uncle, and the laughter that followed. She heard her husband joking with Abhimanyu, whom he regarded as another son. Subhadra joined in the laughter. Bhanumati heard Arjuna commenting that his son was fonder of Suyodhana than of him. She felt choked. Yudhishtra asked for her. Bhanumati kept watching the door, fear filling her heart. Any moment now, she would be face to face with the woman she hated.

  "Bhanu, see who has come to see you." Subhadra's excited voice floated to her as the colour drained from her face. Subhadra stood at the door, her lovely smile lighting up the whole room. Behind her, Draupadi stood, gazing at her with a smile.

  Bhanumati folded her hands stiffly in greeting and managed to utter, "Why do you stand at the door? Come in."

  Draupadi hurried in and grasped Bhanumati's hands, pressing them, almost as if she would lose her courage if she let go. "I owe you and your husband an apology. What I did was wrong. But I never meant any harm. Bhanumati, forgive me. Suyodhana is like my brothers Dhristadyumna and Shikandi. I would often tease them but they always took it in their stride. What happened was like that."

  Bhanumati's heart sank. It was not what she had expected. She had practiced harsh words and angry retorts to slight Draupadi, expecting her to behave in her characteristic haughty manner. But Draupadi had disarmed her with her apology.

  Draupadi had not finished. "I know Suyodhana is a good man. If he had taken the incident to heart, he would not have invited us to this dice game. It shows he has forgiven us. He knows Yudhishtra likes nothing better than a game of dice. It is good of your husband to forgive his sister's mistake."

  "I know who you were really laughing at, Draupadi," Subhadra said naughtily. Bhanumati saw a smile tug at Draupadi's beautiful mouth. "Does he still have a place in your heart? Do you really need to hurt him so much?" Subhadra asked, with a crooked smile.

  Draupadi turned away. Her voice was flat when she answered. "I do not know which Suta you are talking about, Subhadra."

  "I never spoke of a Suta at all," Subhadra said laughing.

  Draupadi bit her lip as colour flooded her face. Then both women laughed. Looking at them, Bhanumati thought perhaps there was some hope after all. If Draupadi told Suyodhana even half of what she had said to her, everything would be fine. She prayed Suyodhana would come into the room.

  Draupadi told the women she had not been feeling well due to a painful menstrual flow, but that Yudhishtra had insisted she accompany them to Hastinapura. It was an important day for him and she could not stay behind. Draupadi had agreed, thinking she could use the opportunity to make amends with Bhanumati and Suyodhana, for her indiscretion.

  ***

  Yudhishtra looked around at the gathering of noblemen in the Hastinapura sabha. Arjuna had advised him to decline Suyodhana's invitation. His mother Kunti had warned him about the possibility of being ambushed on the way. Finally, he had gone to Dhaumya for advice. The Priest had deliberated with his disciples and other scholars and said it was a Kshatriya's dharma to play dice. That had made Yudhishtra smile, for he was an inveterate gambler. The dice game excited him as nothing else could. Furthermore, Suyodhana had promised to stake his position as Crown Prince, against Indraprastha, even though he would be represented in the game by his uncle, Shakuni, Prince of Gandhara.

  A win would enable Yudhishtra to grab the mighty Hastinapura Empire. Given the support he already enjoyed with the Priestly class, the Southern Confederate could be persuaded to pay him homage, making him Emperor of India - from the Himalayas to the southern seas. Dhaumya predicted Yudhishtra would win easily, as he always followed dharma. As an additional guarantee, they met with an astrologer, who threw cowry shells on the ground, did some obscure calculations, moved a few shells from one box to another, and then predicted Yudhishtra's win as a foregone conclusion since all the planets favoured him. Finally, the Priests had given Yudhishtra an amulet to wear as a success charm. When he entered the Hastinapura palace, accompanied by his brothers, there was some gossip and comment about the amulet, prominent among the pearl and diamond jewellery he wore.

  ***

  After the trial throws, with Yudhishtra winning most of the plays and Shakuni getting only a few points, the game began in earnest, based on throws and the movement of coins - calling for a mixture of skill and luck, rather like life itself.

  "Your Highness, the game now begins. Let us set the wager," Shakuni said, looking blandly at Suyodhana.

  "I place my pearl necklace," Yudhishtra said. Karna smirked, irritating the other Pandavas.

  "I do the same," Suyodhana said calmly, unclasping his pearl necklace and placing it near the board.

  The dice started rolling.

  ***

  Dhritarashtra sat listening to the commentary from his scribe and secretary, Sanjaya. He wanted his son to win. He was relieved Gandhari had not appeared yet. She had always been set against the game. It was he who had encouraged his son to play, saying it was an accomplishment required of a Kshatriya. She had gone to the temple to feed the poor. Not to be outdone, Kunti had followed her. Let them remain there, the King thought chuckling. The women had no business in the sabha after all. It was the realm of men. Bhishma and his new
ideas!

  "Aha, I win!" cried Shakuni with unconcealed glee as the crowd craned to see the result of the first throw.

  Dhritarashtra smiled to himself. 'Gandhari, you were dead against dicing. Now see how easily our son is pulling the rug out from under Yudhishtra's feet.' Shakuni was a resourceful man, thought Dhritarashtra when more applause rippled through the sabha as the dice obeyed the foreigner again. He wondered for the thousandth time why his wife disliked her brother so much. He was handing the kingdom to Suyodhana on a platter. Men played to win while the women went to the temple to pray. Dhritarashtra sat in silence, willing the dice to roll in Shakuni's favour.

  ***

  As a reluctant sun lazily rose over the mist-covered trees, a man galloped towards the capital of Sindh. He had ridden for two days almost without a break. His back was sore and his joints ached, but he knew he had to get his message to the King. When he reached the city gates, he slowed to a trot to appear inconspicuous. Then he dismounted and began weaving his way through the busy streets, leading his horse as he pushed forward to the palace. He wiped the perspiration from his face with the tail of his turban and looked longingly at the wayside inns where men were resting on charpoys, sipping cold milk or wine, under the shade of the trees. He was tired unto death and longed to sleep for a hundred years. But the information he carried was explosive enough to destroy the sleep of many important men across India.