Yajnaseni

These days I'm reading a book called "Yajnaseni" (read: Yagnaseni)- which, as the name suggests- is about Draupadi. She speaks about her childhood, marriage to the five warriors, love for Arjun, insult, dharma, Life...

What I like about the book is that it has thrown her in a completely different light. She talks about her dilemma, pain and anguish at having to unite with 5 different men on each different night. How she loves only Arjun, but has to be true to her other husbands from heart, mind and body. She cannot commit the adharm of thinking of another man while in one husband's arms.

One part was worth thinking- she says that most kings in Aryavart have more than 1 wife, and each night they all dress up and look their best so that the King would desire her and come to her chamber that night. But in her case, it's not as if the 5 brothers will be trying their best to woo her. On the other hand, every night she has to transform herself according to which husband's night it is and satisfy him and make sure that he is happy. Don't get me wrong- I am not talking about the physical aspect alone- it is much more than that. When she is with Yudhishtir, she has to be well-learned, wise and follow dharma. With Bhim- she has to cook, make him feel happy and press his legs or he threatens to return to his demon wife Hidimba...

The irony of it all is that she knows that, for generations to come, people will mock her, insult her and make jokes. And surprisingly, when I mentioned this book to a friend- he immediately came up with a joke about gloves being condoms for the Pandavas. Sigh..

It will be a really long time before this Yajnaseni- who came out of the sacrificial fire to fight injustice- gets any justice in history. The day people stop saying that Draupadi was the cause of the Mahabharata (just like Sita was the cause of the war in the Ramayana!!), she will get her redemption.