Yaksha Prashnam Introduction

Based on, Yaksha Prashnam - A discourse in Tamil by Sri U.Ve. Karunakaran Swamy
(Any errors or inconsistencies in the following series are due to the mistakes I made while taking notes. ) 

Copies of the CDs can be obtained from Sri Karunakaran Swami’s website http://www.nadadoor.org/ . This series is for the benefit of people who do not understand Tamil. Those of you who understand Tamil very well must definitely obtain a copy of Swami’s Upanyasam. You can do so by contacting Nadadoor.org. Swami also renders discourses in English but I am not sure if Yaksha Prashnam discourse is available in English.  The experience of listening to Swami’s upanyasams could never be obtained by reading the following series. I have done my best to take notes with due diligence. I apologize for any errors that I have made while writing this series.

Lord Krishna knew that Duryodhanan was plotting with Kalamamuni a black-magic specialist to kill the five Pandava brothers. In order to save the Pandavas from the demon sent by Kalamamuni to kill the Pandavas, Lord Krishna came up with a plan. As per the plan, he first had a deer steal the arani wood from a Brahmin. Lord Krishna also asked the deity of Dharmam (Lord Yama) who was also Yudhishtirar's father to participate in His plan to save the Pandavas.

The five Pandavas sat outside their Ashram engrossed in discussion. They had to start Agnantha Vasam soon and remain incognito so that the men of Duryodana cannot find them for a year. They had to disguise themselves suitably so that no one will be able to identify them as the Pandavas. They had successfully completed living in the forest for twelve years and compared to the upcoming year the twelve years were passed with ease as it was the easier part of the challenge.

‘Could you please help me?’

The brothers turned to look at a poor Brahmin standing at their door step.

‘How can we help you?’ asked Yudhishtirar.

‘As you can see I am a poor Brahmin. My only property was my arani wood used to churn the sacred fire. I have lost my arani wood. I had hung the wood from a tree branch to keep it safe but alas it got caught on the antlers of a deer that was grazing under the tree. The deer got spooked when I approached it and ran away into the woods with my arani. I seek your help to recover my arani from the deer!’

The brothers immediately left in the direction pointed by the Brahmin in search of the deer. They carried their bow and arrows. They soon came upon the deer and the arani wood was caught between the deer’s antlers. As they neared the deer, it started to run. The brothers chased the deer through the forest. The weather was oppressive and the heat unbearable. They soon felt very tired and lost their quarry. They felt very thirsty.

‘Nakula, please climb that tree and see if you can spot a water body nearby,’ said Yudhishtirar.

Nakulan obliged and climbed a tall tree.

‘I can see some aquatic birds yonder!’ he exclaimed as he shimmied down the tree.

‘Take our quiver bag and fetch us water in our bags,’ requested Yudhishtirar.

In the meantime Duryodanan had sought the help of Kalamamuni and had asked him to use black magic to kill the Pandavas. The muni had created a demon from the fire and sent the demon in search of Nakulan so as to kill Nakulan first. Lord Krishna had arranged for the Brahman’s arani to be stolen by the deer knowing very well that the Pandavas would definitely help the Brahmin. The following events were all part of Lord Krishna’s plan to protect the Pandavas.

Nakulan soon reached a beautiful pond. The water looked inviting. It was refreshing to look at the beautiful oasis. Nakulan walked towards the pond which was filled with beautiful lotus blooms and was about to enter the water when he heard a voice commanding him to stop.

‘Halt! Do not drink the water without answering my questions!’

Nakulan searched for the source of the voice. As he did not find anyone, he ignored the warning and drank the water. As soon as he took a sip, he fell down dead on the bank. At this exact moment the demon sent by Kalamamuni came to the pond looking for Nakulan. As it neared Nakulan it noticed that he was already dead. The demon felt angry that the muni had sent him on a wild goose chase to kill a man who was already dead. The demon went back to the muni but the muni consoled it and asked it to go after Sahadevan.

The brothers waited for a long time but Nakulan did not return.

‘Sahadeva, why don’t you go in search of Nakulan? Please make sure that he is okay and is not in need of any assistance,’ said Yudhishtirar.

Sahadevan went in search of Nakulan and he too arrived at the oasis. He saw Nakulan lying dead on the shore. As his throat was parched he wanted to have a drink of water before attending to Nakulan. As he went near the water, he too heard the voice warning him to not drink the water without answering some questions. The tired Sahadevan ignored the command and fell dead after drinking the water. As per Lord Krishna’s plan, the demon arrived after Sahadevan fell dead. The demon felt enraged and rushed back to the muni ; the muni pacified the demon to go after Arjuna.

‘I feel very worried that the twins have not returned! Arjuna, please go in search of them,’ said Yudhishtirar.

The same sequence of events happened and Arjuna too fell dead on the bank next to his brothers and Kalamamuni convinced the demon to get Bhīma instead.

‘Something is not right!’ exclaimed Yudhishtirar. ‘Bhīma please make sure our brothers are all right.’

Bhīma too reached the pond and heard the warning. He too ignored the warning and drank the water. As he fell down, just before passing out he wrote a warning on the sandy shores for Yudhishtirar informing him that the water was toxic. Meanwhile Kalamamuni convinced the demon to go in search of Yudhishtirar.

Yudhishtirar felt very worried and started to search for his brothers. He soon came upon his dead brothers fallen on the shores of the pond. Grief-stricken, he knelt down beside his brother’s and chanted the Dwaya manthram in their ears so that they would reach good worlds. The demon arrived at this moment and was terrified to see Yudhishtirar chanting Dwayam. It rushed backed to Kalamamuni.

‘Are you trying to destroy me? You know very well that Bagawathas cannot be approached by me!’ yelled the demon as it killed the muni with one blow.

Yudhishtirar tried to console himself as it was his duty to go back to the Ashramam to inform Draupadi. He went near the water body to quench his thirst when he too heard the warning.

He stopped and looked around. ‘Please reveal yourself so that I know with whom I am speaking,’ said Yudhishtirar.

A white crane appeared amongst the lotus blooms in the water.

‘This pond is in my possession,’ said the Crane. ‘Your brothers fell dead because they drank the water without my permission. You may drink water as well as carry it in your quiver bags if you answer my questions.’

'I don’t think that you are just a bird,’ said Yudhishtirar, ‘are you the foremost of the Rudras, or of the Vasus, or of the Maruts? My brothers could not have been defeated by just a bird. Neither Devas, nor Asuras or Gandharvas could defeat my brothers in battle. You are definitely a strong being for my brothers were like the four mountains the Himavat, the Paripatra, the Vindhya, and the Malaya; a mere bird could not have overthrown them. Please reveal your true self to me.’

The bird vanished from Yudhishtirar’s view and to his amazement he found a tall Yakshan standing next to a palm tree. The Yakshan was as tall as the palm tree with a formidable appearance. Yudhishtirar was not shaken to see the Yakshan.

‘I am a Yakshan. If you answer my questions I will grant you permission to drink the water.’

‘I will not take that which is in your possession without your permission,’ said Yudhishtirar, ‘therefore, proceed with your questions and I will answer them to the best of my knowledge.’

The hero of Mahabharatam is Yudhishtirar. He is the only one who remained alive during this episode. He is called Yudhishtirar because he stays steady in battle. The battle referred to is the day to day battle when we have to choose between dharmam and our day to day living. Yudhishtirar never strays away from the dharmic path. Despite being shaken up by the tragic death of his four brothers, he faced the Yakshan with courage and answered the Yakshan’s questions. Lord Krishna was very fond of Yudhishtirar because Yudhishtirar never strayed from the dharmic path even when faced with numerous hurdles along his path. Per the ancient laws a person has to pay obeisance to anyone who is older than him/her by three years. Thus Lord Krishna waited for three years after the birth of Yudhishtirar to incarnate so that He can pay His obeisance to Yudhishtirar!

The Yakshan was none other than Lord Yama the deity of Dharmam sent by Lord Krishna to the pond to protect the brothers. Yudhishtirar answered the Yakshan’s questions without realizing that the questions were being asked by his own father!

Continued On: http://thoughtsonsanathanadharma.blogspot.ca/2013/02/yaksha-prashnam-question-1.html