DRAUPADI - 62

 

Prafulla Kumar Mohanty's 

DRAUPADI - 62 

Draupadi - Arjuna In The Dark

 

Draupadi wondered how sleep

envelopes in her dark folds at night -

She always missed the balm of sleep

after the dice game, its catastrophic

consequences, her sleep is gone, her

slumber breaks by horrible figures

setting fire to the lac palace, demonic

hands clutching at her hair, she wakes up

in a shudder, calms and consoles herself,

changes sides on the mat waiting for the dawn.

The Pandavas too roll guiltily on the floor

like murderers of sleep in self inflicted

remorse often in the open under

the mind blocked sky dark and cruel.

 

The night was somewhat testy

the dew shedding sky half dim

half grim had an eerie silence

to blow out in thoughtless withdrawal

messages of imponderable gloom.

Draupadi in drowsy wakefulness heard

whistling swishing sounds of arrows

hitting stubborn targets afar.

She sat on the mat trying to listen.

Is someone poaching animals

or preparing to attack, she stood up

saw the brothers in deep sleep except

Arjuna: Is he outside for target practice

she came out in slow steps her hair

long uncared for scattered all over

her back and shoulders in mischievous

disarray, she stood for a moment

guessing the direction and distance

she walked northeast on familiar

grounds braving the dark midnight

when an arrow fell at her feet.

And a bunch of ashoka opened up

to greet her, the Princess she was.

Draupadi knew it was Arjuna,

none else could see her from miles away.

She felt relieved and also delighted

although sad, for a moment of bliss:

My Arjuna is here nearer to my heart

yet farther from my eyes - she walked on

suddenly Arjuna stood before her.

Draupadi leaned on his broad chest

controlling the rising sobs to a sigh,

Arjuna clasped her tight: the stars will

rise again, the full moon will dispel

the vile night's dark designs Princess!

How? Draupadi asked in broken voice,

it's more than a year in the forest

I never saw any lines of worry

on Pandava foreheads as though

they are now rehabilitated where they belong.

No Draupadi certain wounds

do not show but fester within

how could I forget your humiliation

our shame and our natural rights

trampled under trickery and deceit?

Draupadi pressed Arjuna's palms - Dearest!

If a wound rots within it entropies

the system incapacitates the will,

do you think hitting targets in New Moon

nights would sky top the moon? No!

The tremor of the Gandiv must shake

the sun, your enemies must perish

only then the wholesomeness of body,

the liberal expanse of the mind

would balance the earth's binaries.

 

Arjuna kissed her teary eyes to comfort

a mind distracted by vile animism:

Go Partha for potent weapons - go

to your father, get from Indra

the unanswerable shafts and defy

unprincipled rules of the dice game and

attack Hastinapur, You alone can

and you should; Thirteen years exile

is not Nature's law nor God's decree.

The man made irrationality must be

countered by man's defiant logic

to set the wrong in the right order -

 

But Princess Elder brother will never permit -

I know he always chooses to get roasted

in the fire of his own dharma, but

what Dharma is this tame surrender

to barbaric rules? Arjuna lifted her

moved towards the tall trees already

shocked into helplessness

by Draupadi's protestations, Arjuna

placed her quietly on the bushy grass

and whispered, Princess

let me collect the powerful weapons

we will then proceed further, for now

patience should be the divine need,

shortly I would go to worship Shiva

and ask for the Pashupat* .

You do whatever relieves your heart

and wait for the fateful moment.

 

 

*Pasupath: Shiva's most potent weapon to destroy the world.