The legend of Draupadi

Draupadi is the daughter of King Durupada of the Panchala kingdom; hence she was named as Draupadi and Panchali. According to the Mahabharata, she took birth from the sacred fire. She took birth as a maiden and never went through the stages of childhood. She is also called as Yagnaseni as she took birth from the sacred fire.

She is the common wife of the five Pandavas. For this she has been ridiculed by many throughout the ages. The five Pandavas were the five previous Indras of Heaven. Draupadi was the embodiment of the wives of the five Indras; to make it easier to understand think of five souls living in one body. Even our body is host to many souls; other than us millions of microbes live in our body. Since Arjuna also had the energy of Lord Vishnu, Draupadi had the energy of goddess Sri Devi. This is the superficial explanation about the relationship between Draupadi & the five Pandava brothers. Please see below for the esoteric meaning.

In her former birth Draupadi was Nalayani, the daughter of king Nala. She married a very old man named Sthavira. Her husband was a leper but yet she loved him with devotion. She always ate from the plate of her husband. One day her husband’s thumb fell into the plate and yet she partook the food without feeling any disgust. Her husband pleased with her and he turned into five handsome youths and loved her.

Both the legends of Draupadi and Nalayani can be explained the moment we realise that they represent Budhi i.e. intelligence. The five youths and the Pandavas represent the five prana vayus as well as the five senses. The five males are also the five Purushas of the senses who make up the one Purusha. The thumb of Nalayani’s husband indicates the Supreme Self located in our hearts called as Angushtamatra. The Supreme Self is compared to an old leper because samsaric people do not turn to Him. They cast Him away so that they can go after materialistic pursuits. As soon as the Supreme Self residing in our hearts is realised, God reveals Himself to us and cuts our Samsaric ties. This is shown when Nalayani’s old husband turns into five youths. The liberated soul experiences Supreme bliss. The company of the soul is enjoyed by God as He is the enjoyer.

The five pranas are Prana, Apana, Vyana, Udana and Samana. The five Pandavas are the five Pranas and vital spirits of the soul. Yudhishthira is the vital spirit of the sense of hearing, Bhima is the vital spirit of touch, Arjuna is the vital spirit of sight, and the twins are the vital spirits of taste and smell. The Pandavas are the soul consisting of the five Pranas. The soul is married to Intellect. Draupadi is intellect and the five Pandavas together are the soul. The eldest of the Pandava brother is Karna who sides with the Kauravas. Karna represents mind and the Kauravas the modes of passion. In order to free oneself from the modes of passion mind has to be controlled. This is indicated when Karna is defeated in battle. It is only after defeating Karna are the Kauravas defeated.

For a soul to realise the Supreme Self within, the five sense organs must function well along with the presence of intelligence. A person must be able to hear well, see well, speak well etc. as well as have the capacity to think in order to realise the Supreme Self.

Finally when the soul is released from its body, the five Pranas and Budhi leave first. This is narrated through the following story. The five Pandavas along with Draupadi leave for Heaven. They climb a mountain to reach the gates of Heaven. They are followed by a dog. En-route, Draupadi falls down and dies first followed by the twins, Arjuna and Bhīma. In the end only Yudhishthira along with the dog arrives at the gates of Heaven. At the time of death, intellect leaves us first followed by the sense organs and the five Prana Vayus. The soul freed from its body is accompanied only by its Karmas which are represented by the dog.

The Mahabharata is not a myth but is history. It is not too difficult for Paramatma to set-up a stage and engage actors to illustrate the hidden Vedantic meanings. Draupadi was a princess and she was the embodiment of five souls of the wives of Indra. She also represents intellect and the five Pandava brothers together form the soul with the five senses wedded to intellect.