"Time cooks everything." Yudhisthir's statement to the yaksha in Vanaparva is a harsh reminder to all of us mortals that everything in
this world is perishable and surrenders to the never-ending cycle of
time. Perhaps, if Krishna had answered that question, he might have
amended that statement, "Time cooks everything but love." Krishna, the
epitome of eternal and immortal love, the God who lived as a man during
the dvaparyuga, practiced and preached love through his actions and
words. Love but not attachment was his mantra of life. His human avatar
was on a mission"a mission to cleanse the earth and unburden the society
before the end of the yuga. Although, he could have accomplished this
task single handedly, he chose two mortals"Arjuna and Draupadi"also
incarnates of divine souls, to complete his mission. The three of them,
often called the three Krishnas of the Mahabharata were like one soul in
three different bodies. If Krishna was the God" Narayan, the Supreme
Being, then Arjuna was man"the Nar, the do-er and Draupadi, the
woman"the Nari, an incarnate of Sri or good fortune. Without this trio,
the whole epic of Mahabharata would be incomplete.
It's
not a mere coincidence that the three soul mates met for the first time
at the Swayamvar where Arjuna won Draupadi's hand in marriage while
Krishna orchestrated the events at the ceremony through his leela.' The Swayamvar was a turning point in their lives. While Draupadi was
ultimately married off to Arjuna and his four brothers, committing
herself to a life of sacrifice and surrender to preserve dharma"the
ultimate mission of the avatar, Arjuna and his brothers' fortune changed
forever after their marriage. As mortals in the kaliyuga, we would
never know how the dynamics between Arjuna and Draupadi changed or
played out after Kunti inadvertently divided the bride between the five
brothers.
On the surface, Mahabharata is a tale
replete with politics, treachery, jealousy, greed, lust, bravery,
relationships and above all war and its aftermath. However, when one
explores the layers between the basic stories, it's also a tale about
love, sacrifice, divinity and surrender. While most of us in this
century relate to lovers like Romeo-Juliet, Siri-Farhad and Laila-Majnu,
Arjuna and Draupadi didn't follow the conventional definition of love.
Their feelings for each other were not about attachment,
self-centeredness and isolation from the rest of the world, rather they
were all about selflessness, acceptance and deep understanding for each
other. Perhaps, their relationship with Govinda sealed their spiritual
bond to the highest level and that's why there was no need for Ved Vyas
to include conventional romantic or intimate moments between the couple.
However,
their human side does come to the fore at various instances. Draupadi's
expressions of jealousy and possessiveness after his marriage with
Subhadra, craving for Arjuna when he left for Indralok in Vanaparva, her
glare at Govinda when he blamed Arjuna's wandering nature to his high
cheek bones and Yudhisthir's final statement before her demise about her
preference for Arjuna over the other brothers leave no doubts about her
feelings. Arjuna, the silent one, dedicated younger brother seldom
spoke in her favor but just before his battle with Karna, there is an
instance where he insults Yudhisthir and vents out his deepest human
feelings. That's the first time we get a glimpse into a man who despised
sharing his wife with his brothers.
Not too many
couples in history could've made the sacrifices Arjuna and Draupadi
made to achieve the larger goal and purpose in life. One has to delve
beyond polyandry, polygamy, jealousy, possessiveness and selfishness to
understand their love for each other. How else would one explain
Draupadi's wholehearted acceptance of Subhadra and Abhimanyu and
Arjuna's faith in her?
As Govinda would've said,
""To love is not to possess. To desire their happiness and to endeavour
for the same is also love."(SOMAAYA, BHAWANA) Arjuna and Draupadi's love
story was not about possession, but about sacrifice, true happiness,
compassion and acceptance.
Time doesn't cook everything. If at all, with time,
we have all learnt to appreciate the love stories embedded in
Mahabharata and made them immortal 5000 years later.
This FC is for appreciating ArDi as a couple. Please do not compare them to other characters or couples.
