The greatest epic of all times does not credit Draupadi. History has never really given women their due. It makes this world view only one side of the story, only one side of the flaw. They say, ” Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.” Mahabharata proved it right by all means. Humiliation inflicted on the chastity of a woman, costed Bharat to bleed.
Draupadi was an ordinary woman. A woman who felt conscious about her appearance, a woman who was insecure about her complexion, a woman who craved attention, a woman who wanted to please people. She was a woman like any other. The thing that set her apart was that she learned. She learned every step of the way. She didn’t cause the most chaotic war. It was the fire in her that caused it. The fire that longed to be free from all the shackles that defined women, the fire that ignited in her to leave a mark on the history. And mark she did leave. Some say her anger and her sharp tongue marked a blotch on the map of Bharat. I say, her fire marked a lesson in history. A lesson that no matter how challenging or painful the times are, a slip of the tongue and a delay of a moment can change the entire game.
Draupadi learned with all the mistakes she made. She learned to be comfortable in her own skin, she got rid of her insecurities, she grew confident. That woman was different. She wasn’t one of those women who gossiped and shrieked. She was one of those who observed, analyzed, acted in the heat of the moment, loved, healed. Yes, she was full of pride and honour, and fame meant the world to her; for that, she paid dearly. She paid with a million lives, including her own sons, her own brother, her and father. You see, the root of it all was love.
All women or for, that matter, any human craves love, acknowledgement, and reciprocation. But, Draupadi didn’t receive that kind of reciprocation. Her husband’s honored her and respected her but, did they truly love her? They didn’t. Because love never makes anyone think twice before doing anything at all. But, everyone just stood there and looked at Draupadi when she was humiliated. A kind of humiliation that no woman deserves. Later these men would say that they were bound by the laws or their oath. But Krishna didn’t think twice. He was always there for Draupadi no matter what. He loved her, and that was the kind of love she craved from everybody else. The love she didn’t receive created a void in her that could only be filled with vengeance. She risked it all to fill that void in her. So I say Draupadi is inevitable. She stays within every woman, ready to devote herself and make sacrifices for their comfort, and in return, all she craves is love and care. And once you scorn her, you suffer. You suffer till she has filled that hollow in her, snatching away your pride and honour and fame.
She will love you and care for you
She will devote her entire life for your well being
She’ll be your companion in need
And your charioteer, when you need guidance
She’ll hold your hand no matter what and never look back
She’ll accept you for your imperfections and all that the world hates about you
But, you scorn her once, you don’t love her, or you don’t respect her
Your peace will be gone forever
She’ll wreak havoc and chaos
And she’ll find peace in all of that
And so I say Draupadi, the daughter of the fire, is inevitable.
This post was by Samiksha Yadav, IInd year.
