The all knowing sages decided to visit Drupada and attend the wedding of Draupadi with the Pandavas.
The guards at the gate informed Drupada that great sages like Durvasa and Jamini had come with their disciples. Drupada went to welcome them. He welcomed them, gave them seats to sit and then washed their feet. He asked them how come they had graced him with their presence.
They said they had come to tell Drupada that his daughter was destined to marry and have husbands. Dhristadyumna said he had not heard of anything like this before. He had heard of men having five wives, bit not of any woman ever having more than one husband.
Yudhistira said As their mother had said, they would marry agree to the marriage only if Drupada agreed to marry his daughter to all five of them. He said the word of the mother was equal to that of the Vedas.
Kunti hearing the discussion came there. She bowed down to all the sages and wondered what was to be done.
Vyasa, who was also there, said he would tell them why Draupadi was to have five husbands.
In the Treta Yuga, Draupadi was the daughter of a brahman. She was a devotee of Shiva and worshipped him to get a suitable husband. She would pray with great devotion and would ask Shiva to bless her with a great husband. Whenever she asked for a husband, she would say it five times.
Shiva appeared before her and said she would be blessed with five husbands.
The maiden was stunned and said why was the great God playing tricks on her? Shiva said that she had asked for a husband five times, which is why she was getting five husbands. Shiva said you will have five husbands and will also be counted as a pious woman.
The maiden killed herself in the waters of Ganga. She was reborn as the daughter of the king of Kashi. Not having married, her friends used to ridicule her. She went and meditated. Dharma, Vayu, Indra and Ashwini Kumars appeared before her and asked her the reason for her meditation.
She said she wanted a husband. The Gods asked her to choose among them. For the maiden, they all looked the same and she could not decide. She kept quiet. The Gods gave her a boon of having five husbands. They told her to give up her body, saying in the next birth, she would get five husbands.
Vyasa said this was the maiden now born as Draupadi. Of the Gods, who had blessed her, they are all born as the Pandavas. So she is destined to marry the five Pandavas.
Agastya, who was there, said he would tell what he was aware of.
Once, Yama was busy doing a sacrifice. As a result, no human on earth died. The Gods were terrified. They went to Brahma and asked him to do something. Brahma went to the Naimisha forest where Yama was performing the sacrifice. He told Yama that he needs to do justice to people faced on the work they are performing, and not sit and perform sacrifices. Yama said when other Gods performed sacrifices that was fine, but when he performed the same, that was bad. Brahma was wondering what to say when from his body, a being emerged. He had a quill for writing in his right hand and a palm leaf in his left hand. His name was Chitragupta. Brahma handed Chitragupta to Yama saying, his work will be keep track of all the deeds of people on the earth.
Happy Yama went and completed his sacrifice. When Brahma and the other Gods were returning back, they saw a river with golden lotuses blooming in it. The lotuses were flowing with the current of the water. They wondered where the lotuses had come from, their scent was wonderful. Indra asked to Pawan to find out. Pawan left but did not return for long. Indra then asked Yama to go. He went and he too did not return. He then asked the Ashwini Kumar to go. They went and did not return either. Indra then decided to go himself.
He saw a maiden sitting and crying. Her tears were falling in the water and forming the lotuses. Indra asked her who she was and why she was crying.
She said she was a daughter of Daksha. She told Indra that before him, four other Gods had come to her and wanted to marry her. Indra also expressed his desire to have her.
She took Indra high up in the mountain, where where a handsome man was meditating. This was Shiva. The maiden told Shiva that these Gods wanted to marry her. Shiva asked Indra to lift a mountain. When Indra did that, he saw Pawan, Yama and Ashwini Kumar trapped below the mountain. Shiva said he would take Indra and the other Gods to Vishnu. Vishnu would decide what to do.
Vishnu said the four Gods would be born on the earth. Indra would also be born on earth. The maiden would also be born there and she would have all five of them as her husbands then.
Agastya said, this maiden is none other than Draupadi who is destined to have five husbands.
Listening to all this, Drupada agreed to have his daughter wed the five Pandavas.
The guards at the gate informed Drupada that great sages like Durvasa and Jamini had come with their disciples. Drupada went to welcome them. He welcomed them, gave them seats to sit and then washed their feet. He asked them how come they had graced him with their presence.
They said they had come to tell Drupada that his daughter was destined to marry and have husbands. Dhristadyumna said he had not heard of anything like this before. He had heard of men having five wives, bit not of any woman ever having more than one husband.
Yudhistira said As their mother had said, they would marry agree to the marriage only if Drupada agreed to marry his daughter to all five of them. He said the word of the mother was equal to that of the Vedas.
Kunti hearing the discussion came there. She bowed down to all the sages and wondered what was to be done.
Vyasa, who was also there, said he would tell them why Draupadi was to have five husbands.
In the Treta Yuga, Draupadi was the daughter of a brahman. She was a devotee of Shiva and worshipped him to get a suitable husband. She would pray with great devotion and would ask Shiva to bless her with a great husband. Whenever she asked for a husband, she would say it five times.
Shiva appeared before her and said she would be blessed with five husbands.
The maiden was stunned and said why was the great God playing tricks on her? Shiva said that she had asked for a husband five times, which is why she was getting five husbands. Shiva said you will have five husbands and will also be counted as a pious woman.
The maiden killed herself in the waters of Ganga. She was reborn as the daughter of the king of Kashi. Not having married, her friends used to ridicule her. She went and meditated. Dharma, Vayu, Indra and Ashwini Kumars appeared before her and asked her the reason for her meditation.
She said she wanted a husband. The Gods asked her to choose among them. For the maiden, they all looked the same and she could not decide. She kept quiet. The Gods gave her a boon of having five husbands. They told her to give up her body, saying in the next birth, she would get five husbands.
Vyasa said this was the maiden now born as Draupadi. Of the Gods, who had blessed her, they are all born as the Pandavas. So she is destined to marry the five Pandavas.
Agastya, who was there, said he would tell what he was aware of.
Once, Yama was busy doing a sacrifice. As a result, no human on earth died. The Gods were terrified. They went to Brahma and asked him to do something. Brahma went to the Naimisha forest where Yama was performing the sacrifice. He told Yama that he needs to do justice to people faced on the work they are performing, and not sit and perform sacrifices. Yama said when other Gods performed sacrifices that was fine, but when he performed the same, that was bad. Brahma was wondering what to say when from his body, a being emerged. He had a quill for writing in his right hand and a palm leaf in his left hand. His name was Chitragupta. Brahma handed Chitragupta to Yama saying, his work will be keep track of all the deeds of people on the earth.
Happy Yama went and completed his sacrifice. When Brahma and the other Gods were returning back, they saw a river with golden lotuses blooming in it. The lotuses were flowing with the current of the water. They wondered where the lotuses had come from, their scent was wonderful. Indra asked to Pawan to find out. Pawan left but did not return for long. Indra then asked Yama to go. He went and he too did not return. He then asked the Ashwini Kumar to go. They went and did not return either. Indra then decided to go himself.
He saw a maiden sitting and crying. Her tears were falling in the water and forming the lotuses. Indra asked her who she was and why she was crying.
She said she was a daughter of Daksha. She told Indra that before him, four other Gods had come to her and wanted to marry her. Indra also expressed his desire to have her.
She took Indra high up in the mountain, where where a handsome man was meditating. This was Shiva. The maiden told Shiva that these Gods wanted to marry her. Shiva asked Indra to lift a mountain. When Indra did that, he saw Pawan, Yama and Ashwini Kumar trapped below the mountain. Shiva said he would take Indra and the other Gods to Vishnu. Vishnu would decide what to do.
Vishnu said the four Gods would be born on the earth. Indra would also be born on earth. The maiden would also be born there and she would have all five of them as her husbands then.
Agastya said, this maiden is none other than Draupadi who is destined to have five husbands.
Listening to all this, Drupada agreed to have his daughter wed the five Pandavas.
Two different story by Vyasa and Agastya.
ReplyDeleteYes. Some more details - which I had missed out.
ReplyDeleteIn the second story, by Agastya, when Indra saw the maiden crying he was amazed by her beauty and he immediately wanted her. The maiden said she was a daughter of Daksha, who had given up the wordly pleasures and wanted to spend her life in meditation. As she had given up everything, Indra and the other Gods should not have spoken to her about marriage, which the first set of Gods had done.
For that the Gods had been punished. Then, Indra wanted to know where the other Gods were and she took them to Shiva. She went and told Shiva that she was being disturbed by the Gods who wanted to marry her, and that was why she was said. When Shiva told Indra to lift the mountains, there was a dungeon there, below the mountain where the other four Gods were captured and held prisoners.
Indra saw the Gods chained there. He started praying to Shiva to release them. Pleased, Shiva said he would release them from there, but all of them needed to go to Vishnu, who would decided what was to be done. Shiva then told Vishnu about the Ketaki (the crying maiden) and how the Gods had proposed to her.
Vishnu said As Gods they needed to be respectful to others, which they had not shown. Which is why they would be born on the earth as mortals. Ketaki was also told that she would also be born on earth. And on earth, Ketaki would be born as the daughter of Drupada, and would have all the five Gods as her husbands. To help them out, Vishnu said, he would also be born and there he would guide them. In their births, Shiva said, there would be Rama, who would be Vishnu and the Gods would be born as Vanaras. There they would not get Ketaki. Later when Vishnu would be born as Krishna, the Gods would have Ketaki as their wife.
OMG long wait ...Ramayan to Mahabharata
ReplyDeleteSorry. I stand corrected. Not that long - actually. The Rama being mentioned is BalaRama, so the Gods actually did not have to wait that long to get Draupadi :)
ReplyDeleteOkay got it..
ReplyDelete