Draupadi shivered.
The air around her kept growing colder and colder, and yet she did not let it stop her. She knew that she was close, so close, and so she kept putting one foot in front of the other as she followed her husbands. She would not allow herself to consider the possibility that she might not make it. I have to get to the top, she thought. Then we will live together in heaven until the end of times.
The sun rose higher and higher above Draupadi and the Pandavas, and they still did not stop. They knew that to stop was to mean death, not the good kind, and they knew that at the end of this mountain lay the entrance to Amravati. As she walked, Draupadi pondered her life and the many actions she had taken that might bar her from reaching the top of the mountain.
She remembered when she married each of her husbands, and how in the early days she would spend one year with one husband and then switch. She remembered how she had been almost sold to Duryodhana until her husbands managed to save her and eventually bring about her retribution for the wrongs suffered to her.
She remembered the feeling of watching her husbands fight against the Kauravas during that long, long war. To her, it had felt like each day was a year, as she feared that either of her 5 husbands or any of her children would fall to the blade of an enemy warrior. And, lastly, she remembered the many years of peace she was fortunate to live once the war was over. And, she admitted to herself, the years she remembered the fondest were those she spent with Arjuna, though she of course loved all of her husbands.
That wouldn't condemn me to Naraka, would it? Draupadi worriedly thought as she chewed on her lip. No, there's no way. I have taken pains to not make my increased affections for Arjuna known. There's no way my husband's could be aware.
Suddenly, Drapaudi was startled as Sahadeva and Nakula fell to the ground ahead of her. She screamed, and ran forward. "Get up! Get up! Please, you must not leave us like this! I know you can make it!" She sobbed, shaking their shoulders. But, she soon realized her actions were futile, and so she sadly stood up and stepped around them.
Shaken by the loss of two of her husbands, she looked up ahead of her as she kept climbing the mountain. The top seemed so near, and yet so far. But, she knew she could reach it. She had to! And so she climbed without sound for what seemed like hours. She stepped in the footsteps of Arjuna, Bhima, and Yudhishthira, and, after most of the day had passed, she stopped as she realized there was nowhere else for them to go.
She smiled, and raised her face to the sun. They had done it. They made it to Amravati.
They were home.
Author's Note: The inspiration for this story came from Tale 191 of Tiny Tales from the Mahabharata by Laura Gibbs. In this tale, the five Pandava brothers and Drapaudi are climbing Mount Meru in order to reach heaven. Only Yudhishthira makes it, however, as Draupadi is the first to fall and then the rest of the brothers fall as well. Yudhishthira's thoughts reveal why each fell. Drapaudi, for example, fell because she loved Arjuna more than her other husbands. I read this tale and immediately wished Drapaudi and some of her husbands could have joined Yudhishthira in the afterlife. As I love writing about female characters, I decided to rewrite Tale 191 from Drapaudi's point of view. I thought it would be interesting to show her thinking back on her life while climbing Mount Meru. Besides that, I did not agree with Drapaudi's personal feelings being a suitable reason to spend the rest of eternity in hell. So, while I decided to have her acknowledge it, I did not make it the reason she could not reach the top. Additionally, while I did not agree with Yudhishthira being the only one to make it to heaven, I thought that at least one of the six should fail to reach the top. I decided to keep Sahadeva and Nakula's fall, because I honestly did not remember them well from the story and liked Drapaudi, Arjuna, and Bhima. And all of that together is how I came up with this story!
Bibliography: Part D, Page 20, Tale 191 of Tiny Tales from the Mahabharata by Laura Gibbs. Link: Tale 191.
HI Tyler!
ReplyDeleteI absolutely love how detailed your author's note is I feel it is a spot where you really should elaborate because many of us are not reading the same versions of these indian epics and having that deep explanation is very useful in really understanding the story. Overall, great job and keep up the good work!
Hello!
ReplyDeleteThis is a story with packed with emotions and I love that it had a happy ending. I did read a different version of this story so after reading your author's note the way you wrote the story made so much more sense. I also have read stories where I do not agree with either the author's point of view, or the storyline and chain of events themselves so your approach makes sense and thanks for putting your thoughts out there. Good job overall. I also liked the image you chose!