Krishnaa, Krishna, and Krishna

Check the theme here: Pandava Mahaprasthana

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“Pranam, Rishi Vaisampayana! We welcome you to our humble abode.” Nakula said.

“Son of Madri, I hope you, your brothers, and Rani Krishnaa are well.” A new voice spoke.

Hearing the conversation, Draupadi stepped outside the hut and saw a sun-burned ascetic in his forties with brown eyes and a large beard. After offering water to the rishi to wash his feet, hands, and face, they gave him more to ease his thirst.

“May Mahadeva’s blessings always be with you.” The rishi said with a tired smile.

When Vaisampayana settled down, Nakula inquired. “We hope your travels are keeping you safe. How is our dear great-grandfather, Vyasa Muni?”

“I’m on my way to Pundra, and with Rudra and my guru’s grace, my trip has been free of fear or pain. Krishna Dvaipayana Guruji is at our ashram in the Samanthapanchaka forest. He has sent a message for you.”

Draupadi smiled at the words. “Please accept our offer for lunch. The others should be back in some time.”

As Nakula kept the rishi company, she went inside to add more grains and milk to the porridge. She then placed two thick root vegetables in the fire to roast them. Preparing the food, Draupadi thought about the role of Krishnas in her life. Both had no special reason to guide them, but they did for as long as possible.

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The first time Draupadi met Krishna Dvaipayana Vyasa was a day after her swayamwara. She heard about him, of course. He was a revered ascetic and the birth father of Dhritarashtra, Pandu, and Vidura, born through niyoga.

By then, Draupadi accepted polyandry and marriage to the five Pandava brothers. However, the final decision would be her father’s. As expected, Drupada wasn’t happy with the developments. Though Yudhistira shared a few examples of polyandry, none were recent. Then Vyasa arrived, seeking a private conversation.

Later, Draupadi found out how the rishi convinced her father to agree to her wedding with the five princes. Vyasa shared the story of her previous life, where Draupadi was the daughter of a rishi. Despite her beauty and grace, no one had come forward to marry her. Saddened by this, the young woman did tapasya to please Shiva.

When he appeared, she was so excited that she blurted, “I want a capable and handsome husband,” not once, but five times.

Shiva granted her the boon with a clause. “Since you asked five times, you will have five husbands.”

“I don’t want five husbands!” Came her shocked reply.

“I can’t change the boon now. However, this will occur in your next birth. You will marry five brothers and guide them to fulfill their destiny.” Shiva explained and disappeared.

Given how rebirth wasn’t new in her family, Draupadi’s father accepted Vyasa’s words. After all, it was Shiva who gave boons to those young women who ended up as the king’s son, Shikandin, and his daughter Draupadi. Saying no would mean insulting Mahadeva, and her father would never do it.

Vyasa oversaw the five-day wedding celebrations, blessing Draupadi and her husbands to have happy and long lives. Sahadeva later confessed that Vyasa was the one who sent them to Panchala. After escaping Lakshagriha, the house of lac in Varnavata, the Pandava brothers and their mother Kunti lived in the forest with Hidimbi and then moved to a village called Ekachakra. First, a few traveling rishis had told them about Draupadi’s swayamwara and her beauty. Next, Vyasa advised them to go to Panchala and attend the event.

“I think we were all in love with you even before we saw you! The rishis and Vyasa Muni had so much to say about your fierce attitude and how you had an active role in the administration.”

Draupadi wondered how her life would have turned out if Vyasa hadn’t sent the Pandavas to her swayamwara or if her father had refused and asked her to find another groom. However, she knew she wouldn’t have made a different decision. While it took her some time to understand each brother, she loved them in different ways. Their unique personalities made them who they were, so why should she love them in the same way?

This was indeed similar to Vyasa’s advice for her when they got an invitation to return to Hastinapura.

“Princess of Panchala, granddaughter Krishnaa, you will soon find out that many in Hastinapura wear masks to hide their truth. As life gets harder, it’s how you love your husbands and keep them united that will make all the difference. Your mother-in-law might have told you to love them equally.”

Draupadi bowed and nodded.

“I tell you to love them the way they need it, and sometimes the way they deserve it. Think of your hand when you see the Pandavas. Every finger is different, yet together they make the hand strong. Know them first. Let them show their love for you, and you will learn to love them in return. They haven’t received genuine affection from their cousins or uncles. I’m hopeful you can give them that one day.”

Krishna Dvaipayana’s words stayed with her forever. Whenever Draupadi worried about balancing her relationship with her five husbands, she thought back to what he had said. She didn’t have to force herself to feel anything extra. Each year she spent with her husbands made her fall in love with them for who they were.

During the exile, when they were spiraling into depression and blame games, Draupadi sent a silent prayer to Vyasa. He had visited them out of nowhere, accepting her request for help.

“Yudhistira, you could spend the next twelve years deciding who is right, and nothing will change. Duryodhana will be a hundred times stronger, leaving you no chance to reclaim your kingdom.”

“Tell us what to do, grandfather!” Yudhistira asked, anguished.

“Send Arjuna to his father. Let him train under Indra and the devas. In the meantime, the rest of you start your training routine here. Keep moving instead of settling down in one place.” Vyasa advised.

Though the thought of parting from Arjuna made Draupadi sad, she knew it was necessary for their future. A few months later, Narada Muni and Rishi Lomasa visited them, recommending a pilgrimage around Bharatavarsha.

Again, after the war, when a guilt-ridden Yudhistira declared he would renounce the throne, it was Vyasa and Krishna who convinced him. They tried gentle words at first, but when Yudhistira was too adamant to see beyond his version of dharma, they didn’t hesitate to speak the harsh truth.

In a way, Krishna had helped them a lot more with his words and actions. Draupadi had been distraught and heartbroken when they left Hastinapura after Yudhistira lost the game of dice. She hoped at least one of her husbands would try to console her, but they were too afraid to. She yearned for someone to hold her as she cried.

Soon, Krishna arrived with Satyaki to meet them in the Kamyaka forest, where they were to spend the first few years of exile.

“Krishna!” Draupadi cried as he came straight to her. She clung to him as he wrapped his arms around her, saying nothing. Draupadi didn’t know how long she cried.

“Panchali… enough now. There’s only so much devastation the earth can take. The more you cry, the greater the destruction.” He said, wiping her tears. “I would have come to Hastinapura if I knew of the game and Yudhistira’s decision to play it not once, but twice!”

“Where were you?”

“Shalva Raja attacked Dwarka when I wasn’t there, so I had to find him and settle the score. He wanted revenge for Sishupala’s death.”

Draupadi sniffled. “I hope he learned his lesson.”

Krishna gave a short laugh. “He did, Panchali. Soon, the Kauravas will too.”

“Will they?”

“Isn’t that what you want?”

Draupadi nodded. “I want their women to know what I’m going through. None of their wives stood up for me in the sabha. Even Gandhari Maa came to save her son from his future death and not to support me.”

Krishna held her hand as he made his promise. “You have my word, Krishnaa. This Krishna, your best friend, promises that the Kauravas and their women will see the power of your tears. They will cry over their dead men, the ones who dared to insult and molest you and others who watched and did nothing to stop it.”

His words brought her peace, something her husbands couldn’t give, despite Bhima, Arjuna, and Sahadeva vowing to kill the evil men.

When Krishna was about to leave, Draupadi asked him to take care of her sons. “My brothers took my sons to Panchala, but I want them to be in Dwarka. I know they will have everything in my homeland… except a mother… they need the most. Thirteen years is a long time for them to be separated from their brother. Subhadra has always been their other mother. They need their family around them.”

“Subhadra and I will send a missive to your father in a few days, Panchali,” Krishna assured her. “Rukmini is busy with the planning and arrangements. Your kids will be in safe hands and grow up to be some of the best warriors. Don’t worry about them. For the next thirteen years, you have only one goal — don’t let the Pandavas give up.”

“Yes,” Draupadi replied, taking a deep breath and squaring her shoulders with determination. She would do whatever it took for her husbands to keep their priorities to get back what they lost.

Krishna boosted the brothers’ morale before he left. He must have said something since, one by one, they had approached her—to apologize, reiterate their vow, or declare that they wouldn’t ever let her feel lonely. It had brought her much comfort and strength to face the various hardships.

Was it any surprise that the news of Krishna’s death broke all of them? It was Krishna Dvaipayana who consoled Arjuna and suggested it was time to do what Yudhistira had wanted — to renounce the kingdom and lead the life of an ascetic. His words were like a ray of light.

***

“Draupadi…” Arjuna’s low voice startled her.

She looked at him, her lips curving into a quick smile.

“Lost in thoughts again?” He teased, helping her remove the roasted roots from the fire.

“As if you don’t!”

He chuckled. “At our age, thoughts keep us company, I suppose. Let’s serve Rishi Vaisampayana his lunch. He is waiting to share Vyasa Muni’s message with all of us at once.”

Draupadi wondered if she should be worried. Luckily, she didn’t have to wait long. Vaisampayana said that Vyasa had advised them to choose Mansarovar as their final destination since it was close to Mount Kailasa. They would find liberation in Mahadeva’s favorite place, he said.

Draupadi was relieved and hopeful. She would be ready when the day came.

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