Week 10 Storytelling: Drona and Drupada

The two boys chased each other through the field, twisting and turning and zigzagging through the grass, laughing all the while. When one boy would get too close, the one in front would put on a burst of speed, usually avoiding his friend, but this time, it wasn't enough. Drona tapped his shoulder, shouting gleefully and immediately turning to run in the other direction.

"I'm going to get you, Drona!" Drupada shouted. "You aren't going to win this time!"

Drona, without slowing or turning back, said, "I wouldn't bet on it! I win every time and you know it!"

The game went on like this, one boy catching up to the other, declaring his prowess at the simple game of tag, and getting tagged yet again, until the sun began to set and the boys' limbs were heavy with exhaustion.

They were laying in the field, watching the final rays of sunlight dance across the sky, waiting for Drona's parents to call him in, for Drupada's nanny to come pick him up.

"Drupada?" Drona asked.

"Yeah, Drona?" he responded.

"We are going to be friends forever, right? No matter what happens, we'll always be friends?" Drona asked.

Drupada turned to face his friend. He smiled widely before he said, "Of course! There is nothing that could tear us apart."

Just then, Drupada's nanny called out from the car, Drona's mother called out from the house in the middle of the field and the boys hugged before parting ways.

****

"Wait, who?" Drupada asked incredulously into his phone. "I don't have time for anyone, I have a meeting in ten minutes and I have to prepare."

Before he could hang up, though, his office doors opened, revealing a strange man. He was well-groomed, but his clothes showed evidence of multiple patches and places that had been previously mended. 

"Drupada," the man said. "My old friend!" 

He walked forward, arms outstretched as though he were going to hug Drupada. Noticing this, Drupada stepped behind his desk to create a barrier between the two.

"I think you must be mistaken, sir," Drupada said, straightening the cuffs on his obviously expensive shirt and smoothing his jacket. "I don't think we run in the, uh, same circles, you could say."

He chuckled a little at the thought of it. 

"Do you not recognize me?" the stranger asked. "It is me! Drona!"

Drupada looked up, for he did recognize the name and held fond memories of him from childhood. Fortune had not been kind to Drona, obviously, but who's fault was that?

"Ah, of course. You can see why I did not recognize you," Drupada said, gesturing towards Drona. "Anyway, why are you here?"

Drona looked down at his feet at this question. Without raising his head he said, "It's my child. We do not have-"

Drupada's eyebrows shot up and he interrupted him before he had a chance to finish. "Ah, so you NEED something do you? Life treats some people differently and I am obviously very successful," he said, gesturing to his office. "Friendship between us now will just not work. Someone like you cannot associate with someone like me. It's just not natural."

At this he pressed a button on his office phone. The secretary picked up and Drupada said, "Please send security. A strange man barged into my office and now he refuses to leave."

Photo of office buildings in Chicago found on Wikimedia Commons

Author's Note

This story in the Mahabharata was very interesting to me. I wanted to experiment with putting it into a more modern business world, but I did not want to change the story much more than that. It definitely explains why Drona wanted to have Drupada's kingdom attacked, because it was such a humiliating way to be treated and I wanted to experiment with that in this version of the story. The original was take from RK Narayan's version of the Mahabharata. 

Reading Diary B Week 10: Narayan's The Mahabharata

1. After surviving the fire trap set by Dhritarashtra, the Pandavas hid in a village. Eventually, King Drupada offered his daughter's hand in marriage in a tournament. Arjuna entered and won Draupadi's hand. In this version, it was not Kunthi who said they must share her after the misunderstanding was remedied, it was Arjuna. He did not want to sin and disobey his mother. They all agreed to share Draupadi.

2. Dhritarashtra learned about this from Duryodhana who was angry about the situation. Because Drupada was an enemy of Drona who had sided with the Kauravas, the king thought it would be wise to gain the Pandavas favor now that they were the son-in-laws of King Drupada. He invited them to his palace where he offered them half of the kingdom. They would have Khandavaprastha. 

3. When they arrived at Khandavaprastha, they realized it was a desert wasteland. They were happy with it, though, because it was a place to call their own. They worked very hard and the gods were on their side so it turned into a splendid city called Indraprastha. 

4. Sage Narada moved easily between the worlds of men and of the gods and he enjoyed involving himself in both groups affairs. He would be an interesting assistant on Surya's show.

5. Arjuna was exiled for twelve years for intruding on Draupadi and Yudhistira. During this time, he married Ulupi and Subadhra.

6. The success of their city made them want to throw a celebration. They performed a rajasuya sacrifice and many people came to celebrate, including Duryodhana. He was offered luxurious accommodations. He was very jealous and perceived that the Pandavas were mocking him.

7. During his time in exile, Arjuna received the Gandiva from the God of Fire for setting fire to the Khandava Forest.

8. Duryodhana comes up with a way to humiliate the Pandavas and to weaken them. He has his father build an even bigger palace. They invited the Pandavas to attend a party in their new palace and they invited Yudhistira to a game of dice. He said gambling was immoral, but he could not refuse his host. When he began playing, he lost all thought except the game. He could not think straight and could not tell right from wrong. He gambled away everything, including himself, his brothers, and his wife Draupadi. Vidura tried to convince them to stop, but Duryodhana and Dhritarashtra would not. 

9. When they went to retrieve Draupadi, she asked who was gambled first, her or Yudhistira because if it was him, he would have no right to gamble her away. She said she was in the woman's month and she could not go with them. They did not listen and dragged her into the assembly. They tried to disrobe her but the gods gave her unlimited cloth  to cover herself. 

Draupadi in the assembly photo found on Wikimedia Commons

Reading Diary A Week 10: Narayan's The Mahabharata

For this week I decided to read another version of The Mahabharata because I was fascinated by the story, but I had a hard time keeping track of everyone with just one read through. I chose RK Narayan's The Mahabharata.

1. Santanu married a beautiful woman whose only condition was that he could not question anything she did. She was pregnant eight times and each time she tossed her baby in the river and drowned it. On the eighth child, Santanu finally tried to put a stop to it. She explained that she was Ganga and the children were the eight vasus who stole a cow and so they were being punished. I didn't realize that the reason the last one was spared was because he was the one who organized the crime. He had to live longer on earth than the others and his name was Devavratha. Santanu named him as his heir.

2. Kunti marries Santanu after Devavratha promises that their son will inherit the throne and that he will be celibate. He changes his name to Bhishma.

3. Vichitravirya inherits the throne after his brother Chitrangada dies and he marries Ambika and Ambalika. Amba, their sister, says she is already in love with Salwa. She leaves to go be with him, but he rejects her. Bhishma refuses to marry her because he is celibate and she swears she will kill him. Vichitravirya died and so Satyavathi begged Bhishma to have children with his wives. He refused due to his vow of celibacy.

4. Satyavathi admits that she has another child and tells the story of her birth. She was born form a fish and so she always smelled of fish. A sage got rid of her fishy odor and gave her a fresh fragrance so she had a child with him. She stayed on an island to give birth and so her virginity was not lost. The child was named Vyasa.

5. Vyasa agreed to have children with Ambalika and Ambika, but he asked for a year to prepare. He had been in penance and so he was not in a state to be seen. Satyavathi would not allow this and sent the wives to him. Ambika was disgusted by his appearance and kept her eyes shut. Their child, Dhritarashtra, was born blind. Ambalika grew pale when she saw him and so their child, Pandu, was born very pale. Ambalika was asked to have another child with him, but she sent her servant in instead. Their child was born normal and his name was Vidura.

6. Dhritarashtra married Gandhari. She wore a blindfold to live like her husband. Pandu married married Kunthi and Dhritarashtra allowed him to rule due to his handicap. 

7. Pandu was cursed to die the next time he 'attempted to unite' with his wife. 

8. Kunthi had a mantra which she had already used to have a child with Surya. His name was Karna. In able to continue their line, she offered to use it again. First, she had a child with Yama, the god of death and justice. This child was a leader named Yudhistira. Next, she had a child with Vayu, the god of wind. This child was strong and his name was Bhima. Finally, she had a child with Indra. This child was wise and knowledgeable and could use every weapon with ease. His name was Arjuna. Madri wanted children as well, so Kunthi gave her her mantra. She used it to call upon the Aswins and had the twins Nakula and Sahadeva. These five children were the Pandavas.

9. Gandhari had one hundred sons with Dhritarashtra. The oldest one was Duryodhana. 

10. Pandu died with his wife Madri. 

11. Drona trained the Pandavas and the Kauravas together. Duryodhana resented the Pandavas and the special attention they received because of their great skills. Drona was caught in the jaws of a crocodile and Arjuna shot him into pieces. For his reward, Drona gave him a weapon that was too powerful to use against a normal opponent. The only way he could use it, was against a supernatural foe or the world would burn up.

12. Karna enters in a competition and matches Arjuna's talents. He is contested by the Pandavas. The Kauravas and Pandavas begin forming their sides, with Karna on one side and Arjuna on the other. Duryodhana makes Karna King of Anga, but he is humiliated anyway by his lack of a prestigious family. 

13. Drona asked his students to attack Panchala and capture King Drupada, who used to be his friend but rejected him due to his own status. They captured the kingdom and Drona took half so they would be equals. 

14. Dhritarashtra said Yudhistira was his heir because he loved him so much, but he regretted it. The Pandavas were all being talked about but his own sons were ignored. Dhritarashtra began plotting ways to get the Pandavas out of the way for a while. He told Yudhistira to go to Varanavata for the festival of Shiva and to take his mother and the rest of the Pandavas with him. 

15. Their home in Varanavata was a trap. Yudhistira noticed the smell of oil and resin in the home when they arrived and knew it was meant to kill them. They dug a hole underground as a means of escape. The Pandavas escaped during a big feast and the house was set on fire. The Pandavas were thought to have died in the blaze, but they escaped and left. Dhritarashtra had not expected the plan to be taken so far and his conscience was troubled.

Photo of a house fire found on Wikimedia Commons