We all know about Draupadi, who is believed to have been the most beautiful woman of her time. Draupadi was the daughter of King Drupada and was married to all five Pandavas. Drupada was the King of Panchala, which is why she was also called Panchali. Additionally, she was known as Krishnaa due to her dark complexion and Yagyaseni because she was born from a Yagna (sacrificial fire).
1. Drupadi
Birth of Draupadi
Drupada was defeated by the Arjuna on behalf of the Drona, which led to losing his half-kingdom. To take revenge on Drona he conducted the Yagna, where he prayed for the son who could kill Drona. At the same time he was amazed by Arjuna’s skill so to appreciate him, he also prayed for the most beautiful daughter of the time to marry Arjuna. Hence born Draupadi along with her twin brother Dhrishtadyumna from the Yagna.
At the time of her birth, the divine voice said that she would be the reason for the destruction of the Kaurava clan.
Draupadi’s swayamvara
Drupada always wanted to marry her to Arjuna, but upon hearing the news of Pandavas’s death at the Varanavrat. He conducted the Swayamvara. A condition was set for anyone who wished to marry her. A legendary Shiva Dhanush, Pinakin, was placed in the specially designed mandap to test suitors. A participator had first to lift this mighty Dhanush and string it then they had to shoot an arrow to the revolving target above just by looking at its reflection in the pool below.
Drupada had confidence that only Arjuna could accomplish this task. Arjuna arrived there with his brothers disguised as Brahmin and successfully completed the task.
Why Did Draupadi Marry All Five Pandavas?
When they returned home with Draupadi, Arjuna told his mother, “Mother, look what we got today as Bhiksha.” Even without looking, Kunti said that whatever it was was shared with all your brothers. Hence, to obey his mother’s word, all five brothers married Draupadi.
According to another source, All five brothers were attracted to the Draupadi, and if Draupadi could marry only one, that would be the reason for the dispute. Yudhistara understood this situation and suggested that Draupadi would marry all five brothers. During that time Vyasa also visited them and told the story of Draupadi’s previous birth where she worshiped lord Shiva to get a husband with the five distinct qualities. Lord Shiva replied that it is difficult to find such a person with these qualities, hence you will have five husbands each with one of these qualities.
Markandeya Purana states that the five Pandava brothers were in reality Indra, the king of Devas, and Draupadi was Indra’s wife Shachi Devi. So when her husband took the form of Pandavas she appeared as the wife of Pandava brothers.
The rule between the Pandava brothers and Draupadi
When five Pandavas married Draupadi, they set a rule that every brother could be with her for a year and during that year no other brother is allowed to enter the palace where Draupadi is with one of them. If any brother breaks this rule then he has to go to the 12 years of exile as a celibate. All the brothers and Draupadi agreed upon it.
Yudhisthir was the eldest, so he got the first chance to be with Draupadi. One day a Brahmin came to Pandavas for help as his cattle were taken away by the robbers. Arjuna wanted to help but his weapons were in the palace where Yudhisthira was spending his time with Draupadi.
Putting his Kshatriya dharma all above, Arjuna entered the palace and helped Brahmin.
As he broke the rule, even though forgiven by Yudhisthira and Draupadi, he willingly accepted the 12 years of exile. During this exile, he met his other three wives.
Darkest phase of the Draupadi’s life
During the game of dice, Yudhishthira lost everything including himself. Duryodhana and Shakuni insisted him to play one more game by putting his wife Draupadi at stake. Seeing the worsening situation, Yudhishthira agreed but lost it too. Then, Duryodhana asked a servant to summon Draupadi to the dice hall. At that time, Draupadi was in her menstrual period. According to the customs of that time, she was wearing only a one piece of cloth.
When the servant informed Draupadi about what happened, she sent the servant with a question, “Did Yudhishthira lose himself first, or did he lose me first in the game?”. No one in the dice hall could answer her question. To this Duryodhana got angry and ordered his brother Dushasana to drag Draupadi to the dice hall, claiming she was now their servant. Dushasana grabbed her by her hair and forcefully brought her to the hall. This act was one of the greatest insults done to a woman in the history of Bharat.
Despite this, Draupadi did not lose hope. With courage, she questioned every elder present there, asking the same question: “Did Yudhishthira lose himself first, or me?” Bhishma, bound by his oath, replied that the question was complex, as Dharma (righteousness) is very subtle. Vidura said that only Yudhishthira himself could answer this. At this point, Vikarna, one of the Kauravas, opposed this act and urged Duryodhana to stop the insult immediately. However, Karna got angry at Draupadi’s defiance and instructed Dushasana to strip her of her clothes.
Now this was something that never happened in history and nothing can be more insulting for a woman than being in such a situation.
Was Draupadi Vastraharan really happened?
According to popular retellings, At that time Draupadi remembered Krishna and surrendered herself to him in prayer. In response, Krishna provided her with infinite clothing, thus saving her from humiliation.
However, according to the BORI (Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute) and other researchers, when Karna asked Dushasana to remove Draupadi’s clothes, the entire dice hall erupted in outrage. Many cursed Dushasana for his actions. Bhima got so angry and vowed to kill Dushasana and to break Duryodhana’s thigh. Seeing the uproar, Dhritarashtra, deeply affected, finally ordered his sons to stop the humiliation and offered Draupadi three boons. As a result, Draupadi’s vastraharan (disrobing) never actually occurred.
At that time, in Dwarka, Krishna was engaged in fighting Jarasandha’s followers and defending the city from an attack.
Sons of Draupadi
Draupadi had a son with each of Pandavas and her sons together called Uppandavas.
Prativindhya was the son of Yudhishira and the eldest Uppandava. Second was the Satanik, son of Nakula and Draupadi. He was the deputy commander-in-chief in the Mahabharat war.
Third was the Sutasoma, son of Draupadi and Bheema. Next was Srutasena, the son of Draupadi and Sahadeva. Srutakarma was the youngest of the Upapandavas and the most pampered. He was the son of Draupadi and the great warrior Arjuna. He was very young at the time of the Mahabharat War, but still, he participated and proved his prowess.
After the war, to get revenge for his friend and father, Ashwathama entered the Pandava camp. He mistook Uppandavas for Pandavas and killed them all. Hence, even though all of Draupdi’s sons survived the War, but they were all killed at once in one night.
At last…
After Krishna left the earth, all the Pandavas decided to renounce their kingdom and journey to the forest. As always, Draupadi accompanied them on their final journey. The other wives of the Pandavas either stayed in Hastinapur or returned to their parental homes.
As they ascended toward Swarga (heaven), Draupadi was the first to fall. Yudhishthira explained the reason to Bhima, stating that she loved Arjuna more than the others. Some popular retellings offer alternate reasons, suggesting that as Draupadi always followed the Pandavas with unwavering devotion, she deserved to die as a married woman rather than as a widow.
Draupadi is one of the most renowned characters of the Mahabharata. She has been a symbol of courage and unwavering devotion to Dharma (righteousness) for generations. She is also considered one of the five iconic women of the Hindu epic.