???~YUDHISTIRA'S DECISIONS~???
The Attempted Stripping
This key incident is often considered to mark a definitive moment in the story of Mahabharata. It is the one of the driving reasons that ultimately led to the Mahabharata war, though it cannot be considered the central or the most important one.
Yudhishthira and his four brothers were the rulers of Indraprastha under the sovereignty of King Dhritarashtra. Dhritarashtra's sonDuryodhana who resided in the capital of the empire Hastinapura was always jealous of his cousins and the wealth they had acquired by building Indraprastha. To take revenge on the Pandavas, his uncle Shakuni came up with a plan and together with his brothers, his friend Karna and maternal uncle Shakuni, he conspired to call the Pandavas at Hastinapura and win their kingdoms in a game of gambling. Shakuni was skilled at winning by unfair means. The idea was that Shakuni would play against Yudhishthira and win at the gambling table what was impossible to win at the battlefield.
As the game proceeded, Yudhishthira lost all his wealth and kingdom one by one. Having lost all material wealth, he went on to put his brothers at stake one by one and lost them too. Ultimately he put himself at stake, and lost again. All the Pandavas were now the servants of Kauravas. But for the Shakuni, the humiliation of Pandavas was not complete. He prods Yudhishthira that he has not lost everything yet; Yudhishthira still has Draupadi with him and if he wishes he can win everything back by putting Draupadi at stake. Yudhishthira walks into the trap and to the horror of everybody present, puts Draupadi as a bet for the next round. But Bhishma and Drona oppose this move recalling that a queen being a woman cannot be put at stake. However Yudhishthira ignores their call and puts her at stake much to the ire of Bhishma, who in his frustration breaks his chair. Shakuni wins. Duryodhana commands his younger brother Dushasana to forcefully bring her into the forum. Dushasana barges into the living quarters of Draupadi, who was "clad in one piece of attire"[2]. Dushasana grabs her by the hair and brings her into the court dragging her by the hair.
Now in an emotional appeal to the elders present in the forum, Draupadi repeatedly questions the legality of the right of Yudhishthira to place her at stake when he himself had lost his freedom and as a consequence did not possess any property in the first place. Everybody remains dumbfounded. Bhishma, the patriarch of the Kaurava family and a formidable warrior, has only this explanation to offer to Draupadi - "The course of morality is subtle and even the illustrious wise in this world fail to always understand it." Duryodhana now commands the Pandavas to strip themselves in the manner of dasa. They obey by stripping off their upper garments.
Then Kauravas demand the same from Draupadi who refuses. Then to the horror of everybody present, Dushasana tries to strip Draupadi of hersari. Seeing her husbands unable or unwilling to help her, Draupadi prays to Krishna to protect her. A miracle occurs henceforward, which is popularly attributed to Krishna but in Vyasa's Mahabharata, Draupadi's saviour is named as Dharma (who could be just morality, the god Dharma, Krishna as the Lord of Dharma, or even Vidura or Yudhishthira, or even a logical paradox of Draupadi's question - did Yudhishthira have the right to stake her when he had already lost himself). As Dushasana unwraps layers and layers of her sari, her sari keeps getting extended. Bhima is furious at Dushasana and says, "I Bhim, Pandu's son vows until I will tear open Dushasana's chest and drink his blood I will not show my face to my ancestors." Finally, a tired Dushasana backs off without being able to strip Draupadi.
Duryodhana repeatedly challenges Yudhishthira's four brothers to disassociate themselves from Yudhishthira's authority and take their wife back. No one dares to denounce their loyalty to their eldest brother. In order to provoke the Pandavas further, Duryodhana bares and pats his thigh looking into Draupadi's eyes, implying that she should sit on his thigh. In rage Bhima vows in front of the entire assembly that one day he will break that very thigh of Duryodhan in battle.
The only Kaurav who objects to the disrobing of Draupadi in the court is Vikarna. Vikarna also appeals the assembly to answer the questions raised by Daruapadi but in vain.
Finally, the blind monarch Dhritarashtra's conscience is stirred, in part fearing the wrath of Pandavas against his sons. He intervenes and asks Draupadi to wish for whatever she desires. Draupadi asks her husbands the Pandavas to be freed from bondage. Dhritarashtra grants her wish and also restores to Pandavas all they lost in the game of dice. Free from the bondage Bhima immediately proposes to his brothers to slay all Kauravas present then and there itself. Yudhishthira and Arjuna prevent him from taking any rash action. After many words of reconciliation between Pandavas and Dhritarashtra, Pandavas withdraw to their kingdom along with Draupadi and their entourage.
Shakuni, Karna and Duryodhana later convince Dhritarashtra to invite Pandavas for a new game of dice, with modified rules. It was following the defeat in this new game that Pandavas were sent into exile for 12 years.
However, not pledging her, given that the other Pandava brothers had already been pledged and lost, would also not have resolved the dilemma Yudhishthira faced. That the elders likeBhishma, Drona, and Dhritarashtra remained silent spectators of the entire episode adds valuable insight to their personalities too. Vidura was the only one who objected to the whole thing but he did not have the authority to stop it.
[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SyQn5aVipBQ&feature=player_detailpage[/YOUTUBE]
[edit]The Abduction of Draupadi by Jayadratha
While the Pandavas were in the Kamyaka forest, they often went hunting, leaving Draupadi in the care of Dhaumya, their priest. At this time Jayadratha, the son of Vriddhakshatra, the husband of Duryodhana's sister Dussala, passed through Kamyaka forest on the way to Salwa Desa. There he saw the stunningly beautiful Draupadi. Jayadratha then started beseeching her to go away with him and desert her husbands who had fallen upon bad times. Draupadi pointed out that it was wrong to desert one's spouses when they were in difficulty and then gave him a rather long and deliberately delaying speech on exactly the sort of bad time her husbands would give him on their return.Jayadratha then said "thou canst not frighten us(he was with several other Kings when he saw and abducted Draupadi) now with these threats. We, too, O Krishna, belong by birth to the seventeen high clans, and are endowed with the six royal qualities." and was sure that he could beat the Pandavas in battle. Draupadi said "Even Indra himself cannot abduct her for whose protection Krishna and Arjuna would together follow, riding in the same chariot." And she spoke of the way in which Jishnu (Arjuna) would rout Jayadratha and his armies. She also said, "The warring princes of the Andhaka and the Vrishni races, with Janardana at their head, and the mighty bowmen of the Kaikeya tribe, will all follow in my wake with great ardour". Failing with words Jayadratha tried violence and she called for Dhaumya's help. Though she pushed him to the ground, he overpowered her and forced her onto his chariot. Meanwhile the Pandavas had finished their hunt and Yudhisthira observed that all the animals were disturbed in one direction and was suddenly overcome by premonitions. So he and his brother climbed their chariots pulled by horses of Saindhava breed and gave chase in the direction of the disturbance.And on learning of their wife's abduction by Jayadratha they rushed towards that host with great fury( like hawks swooping down on their prey. And possessed of the prowess of Indra, they had been filled with fury at the insult offered to Draupadi. But at sight of Jayadratha and of their beloved wife seated on his car, their fury knew no bounds).Then follows the exciting description of a battle in which the 5 pandavas routed the Sauviras, Ikshwakus, Sivis, and Saindhavas and their armies.Jayadratha in fera ran away leaving Draupadi behind in all this confusion. Dharmaja urged Bhima to spare Jayadratha's life for the sake of Dussala and Gandhari, much to the indignation of Draupadi.And that highly intelligent lady in her excitement said to her two husbands, Bhima and Arjuna with indignation mixed with modesty, 'If you care to do what is agreeable to me, you must slay that mean and despicable wretch, that sinful, foolish, infamous and contemptible chief of the Saindhava clan! That foe who forcibly carries away a wife, and he that wrests a kingdom, should never be forgiven on the battle-field, even though he should supplicate for mercy!' Thus admonished, those two valiant warriors went in search of the Saindhava chief. Bhima and Arjuna caught up with Jayadratha and Arjuna asked him how an unmanly fellow like himself had the guts to take a woman away by force. Thereafter there was more running away than actual fighting and Bhima caught Jayadratha and wanted to kill him. Arjuna reminded him of Dharmaraj(Yudhisthira)'s words, so the annoyed Bhima shaved Jayadratha's head in 5 places and made him swear to declare himself the slave of the Pandavas in public.They brought the chained Jayadratha back to the hermitage where Yudhisthita later forgived him telling him not to repeat such an evil deed again and freed him.(Book 3: Vana Parva-Draupadi-harana Parva)
[edit]Kichaka's Attempted Molestation
While the pandavas were leading their normal life in their own disguised form, one day Kichaka, the brother of sudeshana, and the commander of virata's forces, happened to see the draupadi. He was pleased by the beauty of her. Also Kichaka struck hard with the shafts of cupid in the desire to obtain her.Kichaka praises Draupadi with the words of beauty. He asks her to serve him with her beauty. When Draupadi rejects he tries to attract her by telling that he will marry her. Then she can enjoy the pleasure of richness and the service of maids. But Draupadi refuses him by telling that she is already married to 'Gandharvas'. She warns Kichaka that her husbands are very strong and you cannot escape the Death from their hands.Later he played a trick to get her with help of queen Sudeshna. Sudeshna ordered to Draupadi to serve food and wine for Kichaka. Draupadi tried to oppose but failed. Draupadi entered alone to Kichaka's room, Kichaka tried to rape her. Draupadi escapes from his hands and runs into the court of Virata. Kichaka kicked her in front of all the courtiers. Yudhisthira who was also present in the court did not try to interrupt the wickedness of Kichaka. Bhimasena began to crush his teeth in anger. He was commaded by Yudhisthira to suppress his anger. Draupadi curses Kichaka in the court that his husbands 'Gandharvas' will surely kill him. King Virata says that he did not know of the quarrel between them and he will go through the true version of the case. The courtiers praised Draupadi's attitude (a lady of such kind is very rare). She, later at night, comblind to her husband Bhima and so he planned to kill Kichaka through a plan which involve Draupadi's assistance. Khichaka comes near her after the night passed. He tells her that she have no other chance except to accept him. Draupadi, as per the plan, agrees with him but on some conditions. None of his fiends or brothers should know their relationship. This is so because the Gandharvas will know. Kichaka accepts her condition and promises her that he will not let anyone that they are united. Draupadi asks Kichaka to come to the dancing hall at night. Bhima fought with Kichaka and finally Kichaka was killed. (Book 4: Virata Parva, Kichaka-badha Parva)
[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P0ruYD8WA6c&feature=player_detailpage[/YOUTUBE]
How far were his actions justified as Dharmaraja?
Did dharma not allow him to stand for his own wife?
Did dharma allow him to gamble on his wife?
Did dharma allow him to continue being helpless when his wife was in grave trouble?
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