Dear readers,

On our journey through the annals of the Mahabharata, we reached a point where the Pandavas self-exiled to the forests for the peace of mind of their mother, Kunti. In the forests, they came across the Rakshasa tribe ruled by the tyrant Hidimb. Bheema successfully slayed Hidimb and married his sister Hidimba as per the Rakshasa ritual. 

While the Pandavas were going through the adventures of their own, their past actions had stirred a turmoil in the rest of the kingdoms of the subcontinent, particularly Panchal. 

Earlier I told you how Drupada, the king of Panchal, was humiliated by Drona and forced to divide the kingdom of Panchal. Half of his kingdom was taken by Drona and his son Ashwatthama. Defeated and taken prisoner by the Pandavas, Drupada conceded to Drona’s terms so that he can plan a payback for Drona. 

After division of the kingdom, Drupada moved to the city of Kampilya that became the capital of the southern Panchal. He started looking for ways to defeat Drona in some way. His anger was so much that he only wanted death for Drona. Drupada realized that the only reason why Drona was able to get the better of him was because he had tutored a boy like Arjuna who was equivalent to a son for Drona. Drupada also felt the lack of a son who could avenge his honor.

His queen was too old to bear any more children, so Drupada started looking for a way to obtain a son. 

Amongst the sages who lived in Panchala, there were two who were known to have accumulated so much punya1, that they could ask for anything from the devas in exchange for that punya. They were Yaja and Upyaja.

Drupada sought the two rishis and requested them to ask for a son from the devas using their punya. The rishis agreed on the condition that Drupada will have to accept everything else that the Devas grant them with the son. Drupada was desperate so he agreed to all the conditions.

As per Drupada’s request, the rishis starting performing a yajna. The sacrificial ritual went on for nine days. Yaja and Upyaja sat on the yajna mandap2 for nine days, chanting mantras and demanding the devas to grant a son in lieu of their punya. On the tenth day, the devas communicated with the rishis and agreed to grant Drupada a son.

As the tenth day receded and the dusk was upon them, from the sacrificial fire, emerged a young man.

He emerged from the heart of the flames, his figure gradually materializing as the fire swirled around him, casting an otherworldly glow on his skin. His silhouette was bathed in light, but untouched by the heat that licked at the air. His eyes, burning with intensity, held a strange mixture of power and calm, as if forged from the very essence of the fire itself. His hair, dark with streaks of molten gold, flowed freely, reflecting the flicker of the flames that danced at his feet. His presence radiated both awe and reverence, an aura of pure divinity born from the fire, making him seem less a man and more an immortal being sent from the realms beyond.

“O King Drupada,” said the rishis, “this young man is a gift from the devas. They have christened him Dhristhadhyumna, the courageous and the splendid. He will become your heir and the solution to all your problems. Accept him and cherish him.”

Drupada was overjoyed to see Dhristhadhyumna. He was the embodiment of all of Drupada’s hopes and dreams. Drupada accepted his divine son readily and embraced him.

But this was not the end of the yajna.

Once Dhrishthadhyumna stepped out of the yajna arena. The rishis told Drupada, “O King, now get ready to accept your daughter.”

“Daughter? But I asked for only a son, o rishis.”

“Yes. The devas gave you a son in exchange of all of our punya, but you are destined to be the father of a daughter, this girl, the daughter that the devas have chosen to give you.”

“O venerated ones, if the devas have chosen to bless me with another child, I am ready to accept this daughter as my own.”, said Drupada with folded hands, “but I have one request. I ask the devas to bless me with a daughter who is the epitome of confidence and strength. May she be resilient in the face of all turmoils. May she be able to conquer every challenge that comes her way. May she be blessed with such beauty that every other beautiful thing seems dim in front of her.”

“O Drupada, you did not make any demands for your son, why so for your daughter?”, asked the rishis.

“Because, O rishis, my son’s aim in life is to kill Drona, simple and straightforward. But my daughter’s aim will be to bring upon the downfall of the Kuru kingdom. Her goal is going to be tenfold times more difficult.”

The rishis were shocked to hear what the old king had in mind for his children. But they could not say or do anything about it. 

Quietly, the rishis returned to the sacrificial fire and started chanting mantras again. They conveyed Drupada’s requests to the Devas.

In the dark of the night, the flames shot high.

She emerged from the flames with a quiet, ethereal grace, as if the fire itself had gently woven her into existence. The air around her shimmered, the heat giving her skin a soft, incandescent glow, as though she was lit from within. Her hair cascaded in long, shimmering strands, the color of burning embers, moving with the fluidity of smoke in the wind. Her eyes, a mesmerizing amber, held the warmth of a hearth but with an intensity that spoke of untamed power, flickering like the heart of the fire. There was a softness to her beauty—delicate, almost fragile, yet impossible to look away from—as if she was both born from destruction and untouched by it. She was the embodiment of fire's dual nature: gentle warmth and wild, consuming energy, both exquisitely beautiful and infinitely untouchable.

“This girl, Drupada, is your daughter. She is Krishnaa, the dark skinned one. She is ayonija3, not borne by a woman. She is yojanagandha4, one whose fragrance is spread in miles. She is Yajnaseni5, one born out of fire.”

“And she is Draupadi, daughter of Drupada.”, said Drupada.

As Draupadi stepped out of the fire, every eye turned towards her. She truly was the epitome of beauty. Divine and celestial, she walked up to her brother. Together the twins bent down and touched their father’s feet. Drupada blessed the two and embraced them. They were going to help him achieve the vendetta he held in his heart.

Drupada was rejoicing the birth of his children when a voice rang through the grounds.

“O King Drupada, do not make this mistake.”

Everyone turned to see who had spoken. From far end of the arena, a short, dark skinned man was walking towards the altar. He wore yellow and golden clothes and had a peacock feather on his crown. People recognized Krishna and bowed their heads in greeting.

“Vasudev Krishna, what a surprise! You have arrived on a very happy occasion.” Drupada smiled and welcomed Krishna with open arms.

“O Drupada, I had to. Through you, the devas have blessed us all. Your children are boons. But you are making a huge mistake by making them your weapons to achieve your vendetta.”, said Krishna.

Drupada grew serious, “What do you mean?”

“I mean that the devas have sent them on this earth with a purpose. But that purpose is not what you think it is,” continued Krishna, “your son, Dhristhadhyumna will carry on the legacy of your dynasty and rule the kingdom of Panchal. Yes, he will kill Dronacharya but not because you want him to but because he would have to for the greater good.”

“What are you saying Vasudev. I am not able to understand.”

“King Drupada, your children are divine. Your son is destined for greater things, and your daughter? Your daughter will become an instrument of change for this world. Trust me when I say this you are making a grave mistake by using them for something as petty as your vengeance.”

Drupada was stunned to hear Krishna’s predictions. He knew there was something divine about Krishna. The whole subcontinent believed that he was an incarnation of Vishnu.

Drupada realized that he might actually be committing a mistake.

He thanked Krishna and decided to let his children decide the path of their lives promising to be their guide on the way. 

Krishna went up to Draupadi and said, “Princess, you and I share a name, how would you like to be my friend?”

The innocent Draupadi looked up and replied, “O Govind, you are older than me, also much more knowledgeable. Is friendship possible between unequals?”

“Of course, it is possible. Friendship is not quantifiable in money, age, or knowledge, dear sakhi6. From this day to the end of my days, I promise to be your friend.”

And so began a friendship which was hitherto deemed unlikely, friendship between a man and woman.

Draupadi, as was foretold, was an instrument of change. As the story progresses, you will see that she changes the workings of Aryavarta in unimaginable ways. But more than anything else Draupadi would become the epitome of feminine in the epic and the ages to come. 

How? We’ll get there in time.

This is that point in the epic from where you know things are going to change. For the first time, we see Krishna entering the main narrative. His intervention means that things will now move towards action. I particularly like this point. There are many reasons behind it.

First, this is where the heroine enters. Draupadi, the one born of fire, is the fiercest female in the history of Indian literature. I like how Krishna, who is literally god, decides to take charge of things as soon as it comes to giving directions to Draupadi’s life. Notice how he doesn’t do the same for any of the other characters. Somewhere Krishna’s actions foreshadows the power that Draupadi is. If that isn’t channelized in the right direction, she might just end up destroying everything.

Another thing that I love about this story is the readiness with which Drupada embraces a daughter. True, he wants a son but he doesn’t deny a daughter and treats her as a blessing too. In many versions of the epic, that’s not how its described. The other versions of the story have portrayed Drupada as a misogynistic duff who outrightly denied a daughter and blamed the devas for forcing him to adopt a daughter. Many versions say he demanded a daughter from the devas for creating a divide between the Kuru princes. We really can’t decide which version is right. But that’s another beautiful thing about the epic, we can choose what we want to accept. I find this version the most accurate considering the fact that Drupada already had a daughter, Shikhandi, who was brought up quite progressively. If he was a good father to her, why would he not embrace Draupadi?

But then I could be wrong too. After all, people reject baby girls in this day and age, there are a lot more chances of that happening five thousand years ago.

Do you agree? 

Let me know what you think in the comments below.