Friday, May 20, 2011
Who is Srikandi
Srikandi is told both his parents were born because of desire, namely King and Goddess Drupada Gandawati, wanting a child with a normal birth. Both her sister, the goddess Draupadi and Drestadyumna, born through meditation puja. Draupadi was born from the embers of the fire cult, while smoke was transformed into Drestadyumna.
Rama attacked Ravana
Ravana who knows his kingdom was invaded, sent its allies, including his son - Indrajit - to demolish Rama. Advice Wibisana (sister) is ignored and instead he was expelled. Finally Wibisana sided with Rama. Indrajit nagapasa removing weapons and gain a victory, but not for long. He died at the hands of Lakshmana. After his patih allies and the fall one by one, Rawana come forward and fierce battle took place. With a powerful weapon Brahmastra arrows, Rawana fall as a knight.
Rama was in exile in the forest
In the period of exile in the forest, Rama and Lakshmana met with various rakshasa, including Surpanaka. Because Surpanaka passionate with Rama and Lakshmana, his nose Lakshmana wounded by the sword. Surpanaka complained to Rawana that he dianiyaya. Rawana becomes angry and decides to take revenge. He headed to where Rama and Lakshmana then with the ruse, he kidnapped Sinta, the wife of Rama. In an attempt abduction, Jatayu tried to help but did not succeed so that he died.
King dasaratha from ayodhya
The epic Ramayana tells the story of Rama who ruled in the kingdom of Kosala, north of the Ganges River, the capital of Ayodhya. Previous begins with the story of King Dasarata who has three consorts, namely: Kosalya, Kekayi, and Sumitra. From Goddess Kosalya, Sang Rama was born. From Goddess Kekayi, was born the Bharata. From the Goddess of Sumitra, son born twins, named Lakshmana and Satrugna. Fourth prince was very handsome and proficient armed.
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Yudistira
Meaning of name
Yudhisthira name in Sanskrit means "firm or solid in war." He is also known as Dharmaraja, which means "king of the Dharma", because he always tried to uphold the dharma throughout his life.
Some other nicknames are owned Yudhisthira:
* Ajataśatru, "which has no enemies".
* Bharata, "descendants of Bharata Maharaja."
* Dharmawangsa or Dharmaputra, "descendants of the god Dharma."
* Kurumukhya, "princes of the Kuru".
* Kurunandana, "pet Kuru Dynasty."
* Kurupati, "the king of Kuru Dynasty."
* Pandavas, "son of Pandu".
* Partha, "Pritchard or Kunti's son."
Some of the names above are also used by figures other Kuru dynasty, for example, Arjuna, Bhishma, and Duryodhana. Besides the names above, the puppet version of Java is still there some other name or nickname again to Yudhisthira, for example:
* Puntadewa, "keluhurannya degree equivalent of the gods".
* Yudhisthira, "good at fighting a personal passion".
* Gunatalikrama, "clever speak the language."
* Samiaji, "respect other people like myself."
[Edit] The nature and the supernatural powerThe King
HastinapurFour Pandavas.jpg
Mahabharata• Pratisrawas• Pratipa• Santanu• Citrānggada• Wicitrawirya• Scout• Dhritarashtra• Yudhisthira• Parikesit• Janamejaya• Satanika• Aswamedadata
Yudhisthira properties reflected in the names of his nickname, as already mentioned above. Its most prominent is fair, patient, honest, obedient to the teachings of religion, confident, and dare to speculate. Kesaktian Yudhisthira in the Mahabharata, especially in terms of playing a spear gun. Meanwhile, the puppet version of Java is more emphasis on the supernatural powers of mind, for example, he once told tame wild animals in the forest Wanamarta by simply touching their heads.
Yudhisthira in the puppet a few heirlooms, among others Jamus Kalimasada, Tunggulnaga, and Robyong Mustikawarih. Kalimasada form of the book, while Tunggulnaga the form of an umbrella. Both became the main royal heritage Amarta. Meanwhile, Robyong Mustikawarih tangible necklace contained in skin Yudhisthira. Heritage is giving Gandamana, namely Hastina royal vizier during the reign of Pandu. When Yudhisthira patience to the limit, he fingered the necklace and also he was instantly transformed into a giant great white net.
Yudhisthira name in Sanskrit means "firm or solid in war." He is also known as Dharmaraja, which means "king of the Dharma", because he always tried to uphold the dharma throughout his life.
Some other nicknames are owned Yudhisthira:
* Ajataśatru, "which has no enemies".
* Bharata, "descendants of Bharata Maharaja."
* Dharmawangsa or Dharmaputra, "descendants of the god Dharma."
* Kurumukhya, "princes of the Kuru".
* Kurunandana, "pet Kuru Dynasty."
* Kurupati, "the king of Kuru Dynasty."
* Pandavas, "son of Pandu".
* Partha, "Pritchard or Kunti's son."
Some of the names above are also used by figures other Kuru dynasty, for example, Arjuna, Bhishma, and Duryodhana. Besides the names above, the puppet version of Java is still there some other name or nickname again to Yudhisthira, for example:
* Puntadewa, "keluhurannya degree equivalent of the gods".
* Yudhisthira, "good at fighting a personal passion".
* Gunatalikrama, "clever speak the language."
* Samiaji, "respect other people like myself."
[Edit] The nature and the supernatural powerThe King
HastinapurFour Pandavas.jpg
Mahabharata• Pratisrawas• Pratipa• Santanu• Citrānggada• Wicitrawirya• Scout• Dhritarashtra• Yudhisthira• Parikesit• Janamejaya• Satanika• Aswamedadata
Yudhisthira properties reflected in the names of his nickname, as already mentioned above. Its most prominent is fair, patient, honest, obedient to the teachings of religion, confident, and dare to speculate. Kesaktian Yudhisthira in the Mahabharata, especially in terms of playing a spear gun. Meanwhile, the puppet version of Java is more emphasis on the supernatural powers of mind, for example, he once told tame wild animals in the forest Wanamarta by simply touching their heads.
Yudhisthira in the puppet a few heirlooms, among others Jamus Kalimasada, Tunggulnaga, and Robyong Mustikawarih. Kalimasada form of the book, while Tunggulnaga the form of an umbrella. Both became the main royal heritage Amarta. Meanwhile, Robyong Mustikawarih tangible necklace contained in skin Yudhisthira. Heritage is giving Gandamana, namely Hastina royal vizier during the reign of Pandu. When Yudhisthira patience to the limit, he fingered the necklace and also he was instantly transformed into a giant great white net.
Hanoman
Hanuman was born to Anjana, a female vanara, and Kesari, a male vanara, near Trimbakeshwar, Maharashtra. His mother was an apsara who was born on Earth as a female vanara due to a curse. She would be redeemed from this curse on her giving birth to an incarnation of Lord Shiva, who is also known as Rudra, and endowed with the Supreme Power of exalted devotion to Bhagwan Hari. Hanuman is endowed with 28 transcendental divine opulences, with perfection in each.
Krishna's help for the Pandavas
Krishna's help for the Pandavas
The Five Pandavas in Wayang form. From left to right: Bhima, Arjuna, Yudhishtira, Nakula, and Sahadeva. Indonesia Museum, Jakarta.
Lord Krishna being a well wisher of the Pandavas, helps them in various ways during the time of their ordeals from time to time as described below:
1) Krishna protected Draupadi's honour in the court of Hastinapur when Dushasana tried to strip her saree. Nobody was able to say any word against Duryodana including Bhishma, Drona and Kripacharya among others.
The Five Pandavas in Wayang form. From left to right: Bhima, Arjuna, Yudhishtira, Nakula, and Sahadeva. Indonesia Museum, Jakarta.
Lord Krishna being a well wisher of the Pandavas, helps them in various ways during the time of their ordeals from time to time as described below:
1) Krishna protected Draupadi's honour in the court of Hastinapur when Dushasana tried to strip her saree. Nobody was able to say any word against Duryodana including Bhishma, Drona and Kripacharya among others.
Wife Draupadi's description
Wife Draupadi's description
* Pandava's Wife "Draupadi"
The Pandava brothers were collectively married to Draupadi. On one occasion, Draupadi was kidnapped and abducted from a hermitage in the forest by the wicked king Jayadratha. When her husbands learned of the crime, they came in hot pursuit. Seeing them approach, Jayadratha asked Draupadi to describe them. Angrily, Draupadi told the king his time was up, and that the knowledge would do him no good. She then proceeded to give the description. (Mahabharat, Book III: Varna Parva, Section 268.)
* Pandava's Wife "Draupadi"
The Pandava brothers were collectively married to Draupadi. On one occasion, Draupadi was kidnapped and abducted from a hermitage in the forest by the wicked king Jayadratha. When her husbands learned of the crime, they came in hot pursuit. Seeing them approach, Jayadratha asked Draupadi to describe them. Angrily, Draupadi told the king his time was up, and that the knowledge would do him no good. She then proceeded to give the description. (Mahabharat, Book III: Varna Parva, Section 268.)
Arjuna life
Arjuna was an ambidextrous master archer and played a central role in the conflict between the Pandavas and their adversaries, the sons of Dhritarashtra, known as the Kauravas. Arjuna was reluctant to take part in the battle because he knew he would be expected to potentially kill the enemy, which included many of his own relatives. He was persuaded by his charioteer and close friend, Lord Krishna, to change his mind. Their dialogue about issues related to the war—courage, a warrior’s duty, the nature of human life and the soul, and the role of gods—forms the subject of the Bhagavad Gita, one of the key episodes in the epic Mahabharata. He also played a key role in the killing of Karna, his arch-rival, in reality an unknown brother, on the side of the Kauravas. He bears an additional ten names: Kaunteya (son of Kunti), Phalguna (born in the Indian calendar month Phalguni when the star Uttara Phalguni was in ascension), Jishnu (the victorious one), Kireeti (one adorned with the ornamental crown or Kireetam; it was given by Indra in gratitude), Shwetavaahana (one with chariot drawn by white horses), Bheebhatsu (the fair fighter), Vijaya (the victorious one), Partha (son of Pritha aka Kunti), Savyasaachi (one who can shoot arrows with both hands and is ambidextrous), Dhananjaya (one who has gained wealth; this was the wealth that Arjuna won for his elder brother prior to the Rajasooya Yagna) and Gudakesha (one who has conquered sleep). Arjuna was son of Indra yet he was actually a form of god Shesha. From the Nara-Narayana pair, Krishna was Narayana, the divine soul, while Arjuna was Nara (or Shesha), the human soul. In this manner they came about to be friends and cousins.
Birth
Pandu was unable to sire a child due to a curse. His first wife Kunti had, in her maiden days, received a boon from the sage Durvasa, which enabled her to invoke any deity of her choice and to beget a child by that deity. Pandu and Kunti decided to make use of this boon; Kunti invoked in turn Dharma, Vayu and Indra and gave birth to three sons. Arjuna was the third son, born of Indra, king of the heavenly gods (devas).
[edit] Personality
Arjuna as seen in the Javanese shadow puppet play (wayang)
The son of Indra, Arjuna is said to have been well-built and extremely handsome; he married 4 times. Arjuna was also true and loyal to his friends, among others the great warrior Satyaki and his cousin and brother-in-law, Sri Krishna. He was also sensitive and thoughtful, as demonstrated by his misgivings about the Kurukshetra war, which caused Sri Krishna to impart the Gita to him. He was the only Purna Purush on the Earth (He did not have breasts like any other man, this was the symbol of Purn Purush). His sense of duty was acute; he once chose to go into exile rather than refuse to help a brahmin subject.
[edit] The Diligent Student
Arjuna is known as a great warrior. The foundation of his career as a warrior was laid down when he was young; Arjuna learned everything that his guru Dronacharya could teach him, attaining the status of "Maharathi" or outstanding warrior. A well known story about Arjuna exemplifies his powers of concentration"
Guru Dronacharya decided to test his students in their skill of archery. He hung a wooden bird from the branch of a tree and then summoned his students. He asked the first one to aim for the bird's eye but not shoot just yet. He then asked the student what the student could see. The student replied that he could see the garden, the tree, flowers, etc. Drona asked him to step aside and not shoot. He repeated the same process with a few other students. When it was Arjuna's turn, Arjuna told his Guru that the only thing he could see was the bird's eye. This satisfied the Guru and he allowed Arjuna to shoot the bird. The lesson here is the power of focus.
Arjuna once noticed his brother, Bhima, who was a voracious eater, eating in the dark as though it was daylight, and realized that if he could practice archery in the dark he would become an even greater master of this skill. This skill proved to be instrumental in the slaying of Jayadratha during the Kurukshetra war.
[edit] Draupadi
Sculptural depiction of the contest (centre) in a Hoysala temple.
His skill in archery played an unusual role in his life, in that it won him the hand of Draupadi, his first wife, the daughter of Drupada, king of Panchala. Drupada held a contest to choose a suitable match for his daughter. A wooden fish was suspended high above a reflective pool of oil; furthermore, the fish rotated. Contestants were required to string a heavy bow and then hit the eye of the rotating fish, but were allowed to aim only by looking at the fish's reflection in the pool of oil. Many princes and noblemen vied for the hand of the princess of Panchala. Although the Pandavas were in hiding at that time, Arjuna had dressed as a high-caste snaataka Brahmin and was allowed to compete. It was Arjuna, the peerless archer, who alone was able to accomplish the set task.
All the five Pandava brothers had attended the tournament without informing Kunti, their mother. They returned home in triumph, bringing the princess Draupadi with them. From outside the house, they called out: "Mother, you will never believe what we have got here! Make a guess!" Busy with her work, Kunti refused to be baited. "Whatever it is, share it between yourselves equally, and do not quarrel over the matter," she said. So seriously did the brothers take even this casual statement of their mother, that they resolved upon making Draupadi their common wife. It says something about the magnanimity of Arjuna that, having won his bride single-handedly, he 'shared' her with all his brothers willingly. Despite marrying all five brothers, Draupadi loved Arjuna the most and always favoured him, and he preferred her of all his wives.
Legend has it that Draupadi had requested of the god Shiva, in a previous life, that she wanted to have a husband with five desirable husbandly traits in the one person. Despite being warned by Lord Shiva that this wasn't possible she insisted and the result was the separate embodiment of each of the five qualities in the five Pandava brothers.
Another version says that Draupadi in her previous birth performed severe penance to obtain a virteous husband;when Lord Shiva pleased by her austerities appeared before and wished to grant ger a boon she in her excited stated asked for a virteous husband five times and Lord Shiva ordained that she will have five husbands in her next life.
[edit] Adherence to his Duty
The brothers agreed upon a protocol governing their relations with Draupadi, their common wife. No brother would disturb the couple when another brother was alone with Draupadi; the penalty for doing so was exile for twelve years. Once, when the Pandavas were still ruling over a prosperous Indraprastha, a brahmin came in great agitation to Arjuna and sought his help: a pack of cattle-thieves had seized his herd and only Arjuna could retrieve them. Arjuna was in a dilemma: his weaponry was in the room where Draupadi and Yudhishthira were alone together, and disturbing them would incur the penalty agreed upon. Arjuna hesitated for a brief moment; in his mind, coming to the aid of his subject in distress, especially a brahmin, was the duty of a prince. The prospect of exile did not deter him from fulfilling his duty of aiding the brahmin; he disturbed the conjugal couple, took up his weaponry and rode forth to subdue the cattle-thieves. After finishing the task, despite the opposition of his entire family including the two people whom he had disturbed, he insisted that the penalty of exile be carried out.
Arjuna's exile led him eventually to Manipur and it was there that the Naga princess, Ulupi, became infatuated with him and asked him to beget a child. Arjuna refuses at first, but then Ulupi explains to him that the meaning of the exile is with respect to Draupadi and not absolute. So, as long as he stays away from Draupadi, his vow would not be falsified. Arjuna agrees with her. During this 12-year period, he visited numerous neighboring kingdoms and entered into marital alliances with their royal princesses, in order to strengthen the Pandavas' support-base, especially in view of the Rajasuya Yagya planned by Yudishthira. Some scholars[Who?] view the "exile" as a scheme to throw the major rivals of the Pandavas, including their cousins the Kauravas, off-track.
Altogether, Arjuna had also many wives. However, he accorded importance to only a handful of them, as enumerated in the following section.
[edit] Marital engagements
Arjuna had more than forty main wives and hundreds others in course of his adventures. Chief wives which played some role in the epic are listed
Draupadi: The most notable wife of Arjuna, she was wed to him following a swayamvar - a practice where a woman is allowed to choose her life mate by placing a garland on his neck. After marrying Draupadi, the [Pandavas] who were disguised as brahmans came home - which at that time was in a forest and told their mother Kunti that their brother had got 'bhiksha'. Kunti, without seeing what they had got, told them to divide the bhiksha between the brothers. She felt sorry after realizing that the Pandavas actually meant that Arjuna had got a daughter-in-law for her. Since a mother's wish could not be rejected, all the five pandavas were wondering what could be done - as it was not common for one wife to be shared by five men. In the meanwhile, Lord Sri Krishna came and he made Draupadi remember her wish which she asked from Mahadeva (Lord Shiva). Draupadi wanted a man who would be strong, could protect her from evil, was good in making wise decisions, attractive and also tolerant and resilient. Krishna told Draupadi that she could not refuse Mahadeva's gift that was bestowed upon her. She had a strong husband in Bhima, a protector in Arjuna, a wise man in Yudhishthira, an attractive man as Nakula and a resilient man as Sahadeva. Hence Arjuna's wife Draupadi then became the wife of all Pandavas. Panchali means lady from kingdom of Panchala.
Arjuna and Subhadra.
Painting by Raja Ravi Varma.
Chitrangada: Arjuna traveled the length and breadth of India during his term of exile. His wanderings took him to ancient Manipur in the eastern Himalayas, an almost mystic kingdom renowned for its natural beauty. Here he met the gentle Chitrangada, daughter of the king of Manipura, and was moved to seek her hand in marriage. Her father the king demurred on the plea that, according to the matrilineal customs of his people, the children born of Chitrangada were heirs to Manipur; he could not allow his heirs to be taken away from Manipur by their father. Arjuna agreed to the stipulation that he would take away neither his wife Chitrangada nor any children borne by her from Manipur. A son, whom they named Babruvahana, was soon born to the happy couple and thus became the heir to his grandfather's kingdom.
Ulupi: While Arjuna was in Manipur, Ulupi, a Naga princess of noble character, became infatuated with him. One son was born to them and was named Iravan who died in the Kurukshetra War. Ulupi abducted Arjuna to her realm in the netherworld that he might become her husband, but later restored Arjuna to the lamenting Chitrangada. Ulupi played a very major part in the upbringing of Babruvahana and had much influence with him; he allowed her to restore Arjuna to life after he was slain in battle by Babruvahana.
Subhadra: Arjuna decided to spend the last portion of his term of exile in an orchard near Dwarka, the residence of his cousins Balarama, Krishna and Subhadra, who were the children of his maternal uncle Vasudeva. He and Subhadra fell in love with each other, aided by Krishna, who loved both Arjuna and Subhadra. Knowing that the entire family would view with disfavour the prospect of Subhadra becoming the fourth wife of her cousin Arjuna, Krishna facilitated the elopement of the couple and their departure for Indraprastha. On Krishna's advice, Subhadra drove the chariot from Dwarka to Indraprastha. Krishna used this fact to persuade his family that Arjuna had not abducted Subhadra, but rather the reverse, she had kidnapped him. A son, Abhimanyu, was born to Arjuna and Subhadra. Parikshita, son of Abhimanyu and Uttara, born after Abhimanyu was killed in the battlefield, was the sole surviving dynast of the Kuru clan, and succeeded Yudhishtra as the emperor of the Pandava kingdom.
[edit] Gandeeva
Shortly after his return to Indraprastha, Arjuna visited the Khandava forest with Krishna. They encountered Agni, the fire-god, who was ill from consuming ghee as one king had performed many 'yagnas' (ritual invocations with fire), thus feeding ghee to Agni. He asked for Arjuna's and Krishna's help in consuming the forest in its entirety to restore him to health. Takshaka, the serpent-king, a friend of Indra's, resided there and Indra caused rain whenever Agni tried to burn his friend's home (it was due to this fire that the serpent king fled from there and took refuge with Karna and told him that he can use him at the tip of his arrow when fighting with Arjuna). Arjuna told Agni that he must possess a powerful unbreakable bow to withstand the power of Indra's astras. Agni invoked Varuna, and gave Arjuna the Gandeeva, an incredibly powerful bow, which gave its master victory in battle and a divine chariot, with powerful white horses that did not tire and could not be wounded by ordinary weapons.
Birth
Pandu was unable to sire a child due to a curse. His first wife Kunti had, in her maiden days, received a boon from the sage Durvasa, which enabled her to invoke any deity of her choice and to beget a child by that deity. Pandu and Kunti decided to make use of this boon; Kunti invoked in turn Dharma, Vayu and Indra and gave birth to three sons. Arjuna was the third son, born of Indra, king of the heavenly gods (devas).
[edit] Personality
Arjuna as seen in the Javanese shadow puppet play (wayang)
The son of Indra, Arjuna is said to have been well-built and extremely handsome; he married 4 times. Arjuna was also true and loyal to his friends, among others the great warrior Satyaki and his cousin and brother-in-law, Sri Krishna. He was also sensitive and thoughtful, as demonstrated by his misgivings about the Kurukshetra war, which caused Sri Krishna to impart the Gita to him. He was the only Purna Purush on the Earth (He did not have breasts like any other man, this was the symbol of Purn Purush). His sense of duty was acute; he once chose to go into exile rather than refuse to help a brahmin subject.
[edit] The Diligent Student
Arjuna is known as a great warrior. The foundation of his career as a warrior was laid down when he was young; Arjuna learned everything that his guru Dronacharya could teach him, attaining the status of "Maharathi" or outstanding warrior. A well known story about Arjuna exemplifies his powers of concentration"
Guru Dronacharya decided to test his students in their skill of archery. He hung a wooden bird from the branch of a tree and then summoned his students. He asked the first one to aim for the bird's eye but not shoot just yet. He then asked the student what the student could see. The student replied that he could see the garden, the tree, flowers, etc. Drona asked him to step aside and not shoot. He repeated the same process with a few other students. When it was Arjuna's turn, Arjuna told his Guru that the only thing he could see was the bird's eye. This satisfied the Guru and he allowed Arjuna to shoot the bird. The lesson here is the power of focus.
Arjuna once noticed his brother, Bhima, who was a voracious eater, eating in the dark as though it was daylight, and realized that if he could practice archery in the dark he would become an even greater master of this skill. This skill proved to be instrumental in the slaying of Jayadratha during the Kurukshetra war.
[edit] Draupadi
Sculptural depiction of the contest (centre) in a Hoysala temple.
His skill in archery played an unusual role in his life, in that it won him the hand of Draupadi, his first wife, the daughter of Drupada, king of Panchala. Drupada held a contest to choose a suitable match for his daughter. A wooden fish was suspended high above a reflective pool of oil; furthermore, the fish rotated. Contestants were required to string a heavy bow and then hit the eye of the rotating fish, but were allowed to aim only by looking at the fish's reflection in the pool of oil. Many princes and noblemen vied for the hand of the princess of Panchala. Although the Pandavas were in hiding at that time, Arjuna had dressed as a high-caste snaataka Brahmin and was allowed to compete. It was Arjuna, the peerless archer, who alone was able to accomplish the set task.
All the five Pandava brothers had attended the tournament without informing Kunti, their mother. They returned home in triumph, bringing the princess Draupadi with them. From outside the house, they called out: "Mother, you will never believe what we have got here! Make a guess!" Busy with her work, Kunti refused to be baited. "Whatever it is, share it between yourselves equally, and do not quarrel over the matter," she said. So seriously did the brothers take even this casual statement of their mother, that they resolved upon making Draupadi their common wife. It says something about the magnanimity of Arjuna that, having won his bride single-handedly, he 'shared' her with all his brothers willingly. Despite marrying all five brothers, Draupadi loved Arjuna the most and always favoured him, and he preferred her of all his wives.
Legend has it that Draupadi had requested of the god Shiva, in a previous life, that she wanted to have a husband with five desirable husbandly traits in the one person. Despite being warned by Lord Shiva that this wasn't possible she insisted and the result was the separate embodiment of each of the five qualities in the five Pandava brothers.
Another version says that Draupadi in her previous birth performed severe penance to obtain a virteous husband;when Lord Shiva pleased by her austerities appeared before and wished to grant ger a boon she in her excited stated asked for a virteous husband five times and Lord Shiva ordained that she will have five husbands in her next life.
[edit] Adherence to his Duty
The brothers agreed upon a protocol governing their relations with Draupadi, their common wife. No brother would disturb the couple when another brother was alone with Draupadi; the penalty for doing so was exile for twelve years. Once, when the Pandavas were still ruling over a prosperous Indraprastha, a brahmin came in great agitation to Arjuna and sought his help: a pack of cattle-thieves had seized his herd and only Arjuna could retrieve them. Arjuna was in a dilemma: his weaponry was in the room where Draupadi and Yudhishthira were alone together, and disturbing them would incur the penalty agreed upon. Arjuna hesitated for a brief moment; in his mind, coming to the aid of his subject in distress, especially a brahmin, was the duty of a prince. The prospect of exile did not deter him from fulfilling his duty of aiding the brahmin; he disturbed the conjugal couple, took up his weaponry and rode forth to subdue the cattle-thieves. After finishing the task, despite the opposition of his entire family including the two people whom he had disturbed, he insisted that the penalty of exile be carried out.
Arjuna's exile led him eventually to Manipur and it was there that the Naga princess, Ulupi, became infatuated with him and asked him to beget a child. Arjuna refuses at first, but then Ulupi explains to him that the meaning of the exile is with respect to Draupadi and not absolute. So, as long as he stays away from Draupadi, his vow would not be falsified. Arjuna agrees with her. During this 12-year period, he visited numerous neighboring kingdoms and entered into marital alliances with their royal princesses, in order to strengthen the Pandavas' support-base, especially in view of the Rajasuya Yagya planned by Yudishthira. Some scholars[Who?] view the "exile" as a scheme to throw the major rivals of the Pandavas, including their cousins the Kauravas, off-track.
Altogether, Arjuna had also many wives. However, he accorded importance to only a handful of them, as enumerated in the following section.
[edit] Marital engagements
Arjuna had more than forty main wives and hundreds others in course of his adventures. Chief wives which played some role in the epic are listed
Draupadi: The most notable wife of Arjuna, she was wed to him following a swayamvar - a practice where a woman is allowed to choose her life mate by placing a garland on his neck. After marrying Draupadi, the [Pandavas] who were disguised as brahmans came home - which at that time was in a forest and told their mother Kunti that their brother had got 'bhiksha'. Kunti, without seeing what they had got, told them to divide the bhiksha between the brothers. She felt sorry after realizing that the Pandavas actually meant that Arjuna had got a daughter-in-law for her. Since a mother's wish could not be rejected, all the five pandavas were wondering what could be done - as it was not common for one wife to be shared by five men. In the meanwhile, Lord Sri Krishna came and he made Draupadi remember her wish which she asked from Mahadeva (Lord Shiva). Draupadi wanted a man who would be strong, could protect her from evil, was good in making wise decisions, attractive and also tolerant and resilient. Krishna told Draupadi that she could not refuse Mahadeva's gift that was bestowed upon her. She had a strong husband in Bhima, a protector in Arjuna, a wise man in Yudhishthira, an attractive man as Nakula and a resilient man as Sahadeva. Hence Arjuna's wife Draupadi then became the wife of all Pandavas. Panchali means lady from kingdom of Panchala.
Arjuna and Subhadra.
Painting by Raja Ravi Varma.
Chitrangada: Arjuna traveled the length and breadth of India during his term of exile. His wanderings took him to ancient Manipur in the eastern Himalayas, an almost mystic kingdom renowned for its natural beauty. Here he met the gentle Chitrangada, daughter of the king of Manipura, and was moved to seek her hand in marriage. Her father the king demurred on the plea that, according to the matrilineal customs of his people, the children born of Chitrangada were heirs to Manipur; he could not allow his heirs to be taken away from Manipur by their father. Arjuna agreed to the stipulation that he would take away neither his wife Chitrangada nor any children borne by her from Manipur. A son, whom they named Babruvahana, was soon born to the happy couple and thus became the heir to his grandfather's kingdom.
Ulupi: While Arjuna was in Manipur, Ulupi, a Naga princess of noble character, became infatuated with him. One son was born to them and was named Iravan who died in the Kurukshetra War. Ulupi abducted Arjuna to her realm in the netherworld that he might become her husband, but later restored Arjuna to the lamenting Chitrangada. Ulupi played a very major part in the upbringing of Babruvahana and had much influence with him; he allowed her to restore Arjuna to life after he was slain in battle by Babruvahana.
Subhadra: Arjuna decided to spend the last portion of his term of exile in an orchard near Dwarka, the residence of his cousins Balarama, Krishna and Subhadra, who were the children of his maternal uncle Vasudeva. He and Subhadra fell in love with each other, aided by Krishna, who loved both Arjuna and Subhadra. Knowing that the entire family would view with disfavour the prospect of Subhadra becoming the fourth wife of her cousin Arjuna, Krishna facilitated the elopement of the couple and their departure for Indraprastha. On Krishna's advice, Subhadra drove the chariot from Dwarka to Indraprastha. Krishna used this fact to persuade his family that Arjuna had not abducted Subhadra, but rather the reverse, she had kidnapped him. A son, Abhimanyu, was born to Arjuna and Subhadra. Parikshita, son of Abhimanyu and Uttara, born after Abhimanyu was killed in the battlefield, was the sole surviving dynast of the Kuru clan, and succeeded Yudhishtra as the emperor of the Pandava kingdom.
[edit] Gandeeva
Shortly after his return to Indraprastha, Arjuna visited the Khandava forest with Krishna. They encountered Agni, the fire-god, who was ill from consuming ghee as one king had performed many 'yagnas' (ritual invocations with fire), thus feeding ghee to Agni. He asked for Arjuna's and Krishna's help in consuming the forest in its entirety to restore him to health. Takshaka, the serpent-king, a friend of Indra's, resided there and Indra caused rain whenever Agni tried to burn his friend's home (it was due to this fire that the serpent king fled from there and took refuge with Karna and told him that he can use him at the tip of his arrow when fighting with Arjuna). Arjuna told Agni that he must possess a powerful unbreakable bow to withstand the power of Indra's astras. Agni invoked Varuna, and gave Arjuna the Gandeeva, an incredibly powerful bow, which gave its master victory in battle and a divine chariot, with powerful white horses that did not tire and could not be wounded by ordinary weapons.
Parent of pandava's
The first three of the Pandavas were the sons of Kunti, and the younger two were sons of Madri. Since Pandu had been cursed to die if ever he had intercourse with a woman, the actual fatherhood of the children is traditionally attributed to various gods, in virtue of a boon that Kunti had received from Durvaasa and had transferred to Madri. Thus, Yudhisthira was the son of Dharma, the god of righteousness; Bhima the son of Vayu, the wind-god; Arjuna the son of Indra, the sky-god; and Nakula and Sahadeva the sons of the Ashwini Gods. Karna was also born of Kunti Devi, and was the son of Surya, the Sun God.
Pandawa
The story began with the introduction of the brothers' parents. Amongst the primary antagonists was Duryodhan (Sanskrit: ????????) christened Suyodhan (Sanskrit: ??????) at birth, but came to be known notoriously as Duryodhana due to his foul deeds. He was the eldest of the 100 brothers known as the Kauravas, who were born to the blind king of Hastinapura Dhritarashtra and his queen Gandhari (princess of Gandhara - modern day Kandahar).
History Of Wayang Kulit
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