My story was inspired by the Pandavas during their period of exile in the forest. It is set just briefly after Arjuna had prayed for a long period to several gods receiving many magnificient weapons, and it is just prior to their interaction with Yama at a small lake. In the lake scene, the Pandavas are told one by one not to drink from the lake before answering some questions, but they are each overcome by their thirst, only to die immediately after drinking. Except for Yudhishthira who resists, answers the questions, and finds that he was being tested by Yama.
This bit of story comes up very unexpectedly in the text I was reading, and I was wondering why Yama felt the need to test the men in the way he did. Since Arjuna had just done some amazing things, I thought it would be interesting if Yama had gotten jealous of Arjuna father, Indra, and decided to test them to prove a point. My story goes through this scene, leading up to Yama's test of the Pandavas.
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Indra walked into the room, a smug look across his face. Yama rolled his eyes, he knew what was coming next. Indra had been bragging to the rest of the gods ever since his earthly son, Arjuna, had learned those mantras and started gathering weapons and boons.
Indra walked over to Yama. "Guess what?!" he exclaimed as he looked on at Yama expectantly.
"What is it?" inquired Yama in a dull, disinterested tone.
"He's done it again! My boy, Arjuna, has done it again," stated Yama. "He has proven once again that he is the most devote and disciplined of the Pandavas."
At this, Yama came to full attention. "He may be devote, but he is by no means the most disciplined," replied Yama. "That title would go to my son Yudhishthira, who has demonstrated time and again his deep understanding of the old ways and, even now, stands by his word, living a life of exile."
"Ha! Of course, Yudhishthira is the epitome of discipline. He would never over-indulge in the vices of man, like drugs or gambling..." Indra trailed off his last sentence with a strong note of sarcasm.
Yama was beginning to become visibly annoyed by Indra's jesting. "One mistake!" He cried, "One mistake, and he's labeled an addict. You know as well as I do that he was tricked into that game by those devilish cousins of his. If I hadn't been busy in the underworld at the time, I would have struck down those buffoons myself, on the spot. By resisting his own urge to do just that, Yudhishthira demonstrated discipline of mind and body far beyond that of a mere mortal."
"Sure, your son held back his hand and agreed to go into exile. But, he dragged his brothers and wife down with him. What has he done since then? Nothing! Meanwhile, my son has been spending days on end meditating in preparation to regain their family's honor. Why now, he just resisted the temptations of one of the finest women in my city because he needed to honor his vow of exile."
"Yudhishthira has simply been biding his time, quietly planning for the future. He need not constantly demonstrate his strong control over both his mind and body. But, if you must continually insist that Arjuna is his better, I shall prove you wrong. Let's test the Pandavas, one at a time, to see who is the most disciplined. I'll even conduct the test personally."
A wry grin came across Indra's face at the thought of another chance to demonstrate Arjuna's greatness, and a contest at that. "Very well," he replied,"However, we must ensure that the trial is fare. Since you are running the test, Yudhishthira would normally have an advantage. You must conduct the test outside of your domain, in an open space, and they must be completely unaware of your presence."
"I agree to your terms. Now watch, as Yudhishthira outshines the others with his extensive control of himself." At that point, Yama stood up and began heading in the direction of the forests of Dwaitavana.
As Yama left, Vayu and Surya looked on from their seats across the hall. They had begun following the conversation as it became more heated. Vayu spent a moment in thought, then stated, "I've got 50 gold pieces on Arjuna going down first."
"You're on," replied Surya.
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| The Lake Questions Yudhishthira courtesy of Wikipedia |
Reading: The Mahabharata by R. K. Narayan (1978)
Hi William! I thought it was interesting that you put the author's note at the beginning instead of the end. I liked having a little insight to your thought process even before I started reading the story. I also like how much dialog there is in your story. I do not add any dialog in mine but maybe I should start. Great read!
ReplyDelete-Sara
William,
ReplyDeleteGreat story, once again! You do a great job explaining the characters and personalities behind each that makes them so clear and easy to understand. I love the back and forth bickering between Indra and Yama throughout the story, it really sets up the ending well. I also like the open-ended interpretation at the end; I wonder who will win. And then ending it with a light hearted comment about wagering a bet on Arjuna losing is a great way to wrap up the story. Great job!