57. Drupada Holds a Swayamvara

Kings and princes thronged the stadium, eager to compete for Draupadi, King Drupada’s fire-born daughter. Drupada had put a revolving fish-shaped target high on a pole, and the archer had to shoot by looking at the target reflected in a pan of oil below.

Many princes tried and failed.

Then it was Karna’s turn. He nocked an arrow confidently, but before he could shoot, Draupadi exclaimed, “I recognize this so-called king! He’s just a charioteer. Send him away!”

“He is King of Anga,” Duryodhana protested. “Let him compete!”

“No, my friend,” Karna said to Duryodhana. “I do not want her.”

58. Krishna Recognizes the Pandavas

The Pandavas attended Draupadi’s swayamvara disguised as brahmins.

One of the princes in the audience was Krishna, who recognized the Pandavas despite their disguises. “Look, Balarama,” Krishna said to his brother, pointing at the brahmins. “Those are the Pandavas!”

“Then they did not die in the fire after all!” Balarama exclaimed.

“Now we will see something momentous,” Krishna murmured. “Arjuna will surely be able to pass Drupada’s test. And then things will get… interesting. Very interesting.”

Just as Krishna foretold, Arjuna stood up and approached the target, while the crowd murmured in surprise that a brahmin had entered the competition.

59. Arjuna Competes in the Swayamvara

When Arjuna approached the target, the kings and princes shouted, “Brahmins aren’t allowed!”

But Draupadi was intrigued and did not object, nor did King Drupada.

Arjuna nodded his thanks to Drupada and smiled at Draupadi. He then seized his bow, taking aim as he looked at the target reflected in the oil.

Arjuna shot not just one arrow, but five, hitting the target every time.

Draupadi draped the victor’s garland on the mysterious brahmin.

The kings and princes grew even more angry, but Bhima fought them off, and the five Pandavas fled with Draupadi, taking her to their humble home.

60. The Pandavas Must Share the Alms

Each day, the Pandavas would bring home the alms they had begged and give them to their mother, Kunti. So, after Arjuna won the wedding contest for Draupadi, Bhima decided to play a little joke. “Mother, come see what alms we have brought home today!” he shouted to her inside the house.

“Of course you must share the alms equally!” Kunti shouted back.

Then she came outside and saw Draupadi, who gave Kunti a shy and confused smile.

“I cannot take back my words, dear,” she said to her new daughter-in-law. “All five of my sons will be your husbands.”

61. King Drupada Receives the Pandavas

“We must go explain this to my father,” said Draupadi, and she then led the five Pandavas back to the palace.

King Drupada had already guessed who these five brahmins must be. “If you are who I think you are,” he said to Yudhishthira, smiling, “I know you cannot lie to me. Tell me truthfully: who are you?”

“I am Yudhishthira, son of Pandu, once a prince of Hastinapura, and these are my brothers: Arjuna, Bhima, Nakula, and Sahadeva. The lovely Draupadi will be our wife.”

King Drupada stared at Yudhishthira in confusion.

“We will all marry Draupadi,” Yudhishthira repeated.

62. The Story of Nalayani

“Impossible!” Drupada shouted. “A woman cannot have five husbands.”

Vyasa then appeared, as if he knew he was needed. “I can explain,” he said, smiling at his grandsons. “This is Draupadi’s fate. In a past life, she was Nalayani, married to the rishi Moudgalya. Because of her devotion, Moudgalya offered to grant her a boon. She asked him to make love to her in five different forms, and he did. Later, when Moudgalya renounced the world, Nalayani despaired. ‘I want my husband, husband, husband, husband, husband,’ she sighed, thinking of Moudgalya’s five forms. The gods are granting her wish now.”

63. Shiva Fulfills a Woman’s Prayer

Here is another story about Draupadi’s past life:

She was a woman without a husband, so she prayed to Shiva. “Give me a husband who always tells the truth,” she said. “Give me a husband who is powerful and strong. A skilled and fearless husband. A handsome husband. A wise husband.”

Shiva then appeared. “I will grant your prayer,” he said, “but you will have five husbands, not one. There is no way that one husband alone could have all the qualities that you desire. God has all those qualities, but you will not find them in one man alone.”

64. Draupadi Marries the Pandavas

Reassured by Vyasa, Drupada gave his approval. Draupadi married Yudhishthira first. Next she married Bhima, and then Arjuna, who had actually won her at the swayamvara. Finally, she also married Nakula and Sahadeva.

Draupadi agreed that she would spend a year with each of the Pandavas in turn. If any brother violated this arrangement, in thought or in deed, he would go into exile, completing a pilgrimage to redeem himself.

Meanwhile, news of these events reached King Dhritarashtra and his son Duryodhana in Hastinapura. The Pandavas were not dead after all! Even worse: they were now Drupada’s allies by marriage.

65. King Dhritarashtra Deliberates

King Dhritarashtra was concerned about this new alliance of the Pandavas with King Drupada.

“Drupada has never forgiven Drona for making him divide his kingdom,” Dhritarashtra said, “and now my nephews have become his sons-in-law.”

“This is indeed a dangerous alliance,” Drona observed. “Drupada’s own son Dhrishtadyumna is a formidable warrior.”

But Bhishma urged Dhritarashtra to make peace with his nephews. “You never should have sent them away to Varanavata. Let Vidura go congratulate them on their marriage and invite them back home to Hastinapura.”

“Yes,” King Dhritarashtra decided at last. “It is time for the Pandavas to come home.”

66. The Pandavas Go to Khandavaprastha

Cautiously, the Pandavas accepted their uncle’s invitation to leave the safety of Drupada’s kingdom and return to Hastinapura.

“I have decided to divide the kingdom between my own sons and you, who are my brother’s sons,” King Dhritarashtra told them. “Your half will be the land called Khandavaprastha. That will be your kingdom.”

Khandavaprastha, however, was a wilderness.

“Our uncle is sending us into this barren desert to die!” shouted Bhima.

“Do not worry,” said Yudhishthira confidently. “We will make it a great kingdom.”

The Pandavas cleared the land and built a beautiful capital city. They called their kingdom Indraprastha.

67. Khandava Forest Burns

A brahmin approached Arjuna and Krishna in Khandava Forest. “Feed me!” he said. Then he revealed himself as Agni, the fire-god. “Drive Indra’s rain away so I can eat the fat of the animals.”

In exchange, Agni offered weapons: the Gandiva bow for Arjuna, and the Sudarshana-Chakra discus for Krishna.

As the fire raged, Arjuna and Krishna kept Indra’s rain away, shooting their arrows into the sky. Agni thus consumed the forest’s trees and animals. Only a few birds escaped, plus the naga Ashwasena, and also Mayasura, architect of the asuras, who built a splendid palace for the Pandavas.

68. The Story of Sunda and Upasunda

The rishi Narada visited Yudhishthira’s court at Indraprastha, and he told the Pandavas this story as a warning:

The twin asura brothers, Sunda and Upasunda, tormented the world. No creature, mortal or immortal, could defeat them.

The god Brahma then created a perfectly beautiful apsara: Tilottama.

Dressed in a sari of red silk, she danced before the brothers. They were captivated.

“She’s mine!” shouted Sunda.

“No!” shouted Upasunda. “She’s mine! I saw her first!”

“No!” shouted Sunda. “I saw her first!”

Because the brothers were equally strong, they killed each other as they fought.

The Pandava brothers heeded Narada’s warning.

69. Draupadi Becomes a Mother

The five Pandava brothers had agreed to share Draupadi as their wife, and each brother was her husband for one year at a time. As the year ended and Draupadi’s time with one husband ended and another husband began, she would walk through fire and thus regain her virginity, year after year.

Over time, Draupadi had five sons, one with each of the Pandavas; they were known as the Upapandavas.

Her son with Yudhishthira was Prativindhya.

Her son with Bhima was Sutasoma.

Her son with Arjuna was Shrutakarma.

Her son with Nakula was Shatanika.

Her son with Sahadeva was Shrutasena.

70. Arjuna Violates the Agreement

Then the unthinkable happened: rushing to see Yudhishthira, Arjuna walked in on Yudhishthira with Draupadi. Because he violated their brotherly agreement, Arjuna went into self-imposed exile.

It wasn’t really Arjuna’s fault. To ensure Draupadi’s privacy when she was with each husband, the current husband would leave his shoes outside the door as a sign that he was inside. A dog, however, had stolen Yudhishthira’s shoes, which is why Arjuna walked in unsuspecting.

In her rage, Draupadi cursed all dogs. “You will copulate in public for all to see!” she decreed. “That will be the shame of dogs henceforth and forever.”

71. Arjuna Comes to a Deadly Lake

In his exile, Arjuna came to a lake infested with deadly crocodiles. Unafraid, he jumped into the water. A crocodile seized him, but Arjuna wrestled with the crocodile and finally dragged it ashore.

Then, to Arjuna’s surprise, the crocodile turned into a beautiful apsara!

She urged Arjuna to wrestle with the other crocodiles in the lake; they all turned into apsaras.

“A rishi cursed us to become crocodiles,” they said, “but we knew a kshatriya would free us.”

The apsaras returned to heaven, and the people of the land were able to safely bathe in the waters of the lake.

72. Arjuna Meets Ulupi

After a long day’s walk, Arjuna reached a river. Eager to wash the dust off his body, he jumped into the water, but something grabbed him, pulling him down. Arjuna struggled, but he could not break free.

Then, to his surprise, he saw that it was a beautiful woman who had seized him. “Marry me, Arjuna!” she said. “I am Ulupi, princess of the nagas.”

Arjuna made love to Ulupi, and she finally let him go.

Arjuna then continued his journey, forgetting all about her.

But many years later, he would meet their son, Iravan, at the battle of Kurukshetra.

73. Arjuna Elopes with Subhadra

Arjuna came to Dwaraka, the home of his good friend Krishna.

Krishna’s sister Subhadra was deeply in love with Arjuna, but her brother Balarama had arranged for her to marry Duryodhana.

Krishna didn’t hesitate: he urged Arjuna to elope with Subhadra. Arjuna entered the city disguised as a beggar. Even in this disguise, Subhadra recognized him immediately, and the two fled the city on his chariot. Subhadra drove the chariot while Arjuna shot arrows at their pursuers.

Krishna was able to soothe his brother Balarama’s anger, but not so Duryodhana: the incident only added to his hatred for the Pandavas.