AN ATTEMPTED STRIP-TEASE IN THE DICE HALL - DRAUPADI (DIS)HONOURED

 

                                  

AN ATTEMPTED STRIP-TEASE IN THE DICE HALL  -  DRAUPADI  (DIS)HONOURED

Yudhishtira the eldest of the Pandavas loses everything including wife Draupadi in the game of Dice to the Kauravas.   A Jubilant Dushasana, the Kaurava prince pounced on Draupadi in the Dice Hall and started disrobing her by pulling her saree (Indian dress).  Nobody came to  save her modesty and all assembled there were mere spectators. A grief stricken Draupadi started wailing and prayed to Lord Krishna to come to her rescue.  Krishna promptly helps her by bundling up clothing to Draupadi.  A tired Dushasana  collapses after unsuccesfully pulling and pulling Draupadi's never ending saree for doing a strip-tease.

 

 

                           

       

  

Draupadi the daughter of King Drupada was won in the contest of Archery for swayamvar by Arjuna, the Pandava prince.  He takes her to Kunti his mother and announces that he won a prize in the tournament of Archery.   Kunti says share it equally with your brothers.  Then Arjuna says it is a woman that I won as a prize.  Kunti glances and saw the strikingly beautiful Draupadi and also notices that all the brothers are interested in her.  By fearing feud between the brothers, she says again that share it amongst all the brothers provided dharma permits.  Of course dharma allowed it.  Yudhishtira narrated the story of Vidula who according to the ancient chronicles had married the ten Prachetas brothers.  With this reference, there was nothing to stop Draupadi becoming the wife of five Pandava brothers.

 

Mahabharata and Ramayana are the two Hindu epics. 

 

Draupadi is a main female protagonist  in the Hindu epic Mahabharata written by Ved Vyasa. 

  

Draupadi's birth :

She is the daughter of King Drupada.  There is a story behind how she became Drupada's daughter.  Drupada had a humiliating defeat at the hands of the students of Drona, he invoked Shiva, the destructive form of God, and sought a way to destroy not just Drona but also his patrons, the Kuru clan.  'A son to kill Drona, A son to kill Bhishma.  A daughter who will marry into the Kuru household and divide it,' he cried.  

'So be it,' said Shiva.

In due course, Drupada's wife gave birth to a daughter.  The oracles said she would acquire a male body in due course.  'It will be a gender transformation like that of Manu's son, Sudyumna, who became the woman, Ila.  Thus will she be the cause of Bhishma's death,' said the oracles, who also divined that Drupada's daughter was Amba reborn.

Drupada was not satisfied with this child.  So  he sought the help of the Rishis Yaja and Upayaja, who knew the secret of creating a magic potion which when consumed could give women children.  The two sages performed a great yagna.  But when it was time to give the magic potion to Drupada's queen, she was busy bathing. The Rishis refused to wait for her and threw the magic potion into the fire-pit.

From the flames emerged two children: a man called Dhristadyumna who would kill Drona, and a woman called Draupadi who would marry into the Kuru household and cause a rift in the family.

Draupadi's marriage :

King Drupada arranged a Swayamvar for his beautiful daughter Draupadi.  There were Kshatriyas, Brahmans, Tapasvins and  Sages Or Rishis gathered in the pavilion from Bharat-varsha to witness the Swayamvar and some even wanted to take part in the tournament.

All participants were asked to string a bow and shoot the eye of a fish rotating on a wheel suspended from the roof of the hall while looking at its reflection in a vat of oil.  A difficult feat one that everyone agreed could have been done by only the master archer Arjuna.  It was believed that Arjuna and his Pandava brothers were devastated and gutted in a fire which consumed their palace.

All Kshtriyas tried their best but failed to hit the eye of the fish which was the target. There was a vat of oil in which the reflection of fish was seen.   Many could not even string the great bow and some fell on the vat of oil.

Then it was the turn of Karna.  He tried to lift the bow and then Draupadi stood up and shouted that he can not participate as he was the son of a mere charioteer.  A disheartened and humiliated Karna withdrew from the competition unable to prove that he was born to the Sun god Surya from princess Kunti, and thus a demigod of royal birth.

After the failure of Kshatriyas, King Drupada invited the Brahmans to participate in the Swayamvar contest.

The Pandavas were present at the venue disguised as priests.  Arjuna immediately rose from his seat and took the bow and hit the target effortlessly.   It was like the doctor prescribed and the patient wanted.  King Drupada  desired  the great archer Arjuna to win his daughter's hand and so it happened.

Draupadi's last birth :

There is another version of Draupadi from her earlier avatar or past life.  Draupadi was Nalayani, the wife of a Rishi called Maudgalya.  He had a terrible disease that made him cough and spit all day and covered his skin with scales and rashes.  Still Nalayani served him as a devoted wife.   Pleased with her unstinting service, the sage offered her a boon.  Nalayani requested that he uses his ascetic powers to indulge all her sexual desires.  Accordingly, Maudgalya took the form of many different men, some human, some divine, all handsome, and made love to her in many different ways.  After indulging in sexual pleasures for many years, Maudgalya decided it was time to renounce the world.   But Nalayani was not satisfied.  She asked Maudgalya "who will make love to me after you are gone?".   Disgusted by her insatiable lust, the Rishi cursed her that in her next life she would be the wife of many men.

 

 

A victorious Arjuna obeyed his mother and shared the princess Draupadi aka Panchali with his brothers.  And thus Draupadi became the wife of five Pandava brothers.  They took turns as husbands and satisfied their wife Draupadi.

 

All the five Pandavas equally loved Draupadi.  This was disastrous that each brother experienced jealousy and possessiveness.

 

As per the advise of Krishna the Pandava brothers decided to take turns to visit Draupadi's chamber for a year and she did wife's duties to each one of them during that period.  It took four years for the other brother to avail his turn.  It was told that Draupadi walked through fire before going to the next brother to regain her virginity. 

 

Draupadi enjoyed Yudhishtira's honesty, Bhima's strength, Arjuna's skill, Nakula's beauty and Sahadeva's knowledge.  She bore each one of her husband a son. 

 

 

Polyandry and polygamy, both were absolutely common and prevalent in the previous three Yug, Satya Yug, Treta Yug and Dwaapar Yug, which were the Vedic era. Hence, it is completely ethical and legal to have more than one husband for Draupati.

 

 

Draupadi was abducted thrice and was publicly humiliated in Vyasa's Mahabharath.   She was dishonoured once in Dyuta Sabha and once many Kshatriyas tried to burn her. She was also harassed by Kichak.  She survived all these occasions with her virtue and also with the divine intervention by Lord Krishna.

 

 

There are few tribes in India such as the Todas in the south and the Hill tribes of Uttaranchal where polyandry is followed  to prevent the division of property.  The household always has one kitchen and one daughter-in-law.  The sons have the freedom to either share the wife or become ascetics or find pleasure elsewhere with mistresses and prostitutes, who have no legal right over the family property.