In the previous episode, we had witnessed the proceedings of Day Eleven at Kurukshetra wherein the ply was very clear – To somehow isolate Yudishtra from the rest of the Paandava army and to capture him alive. However, what conspired on the battlefield was something different. As the war began on Day Eleven, Yudishtra was heavily guarded by Bheemasena and Arjuna on either sides and not even for a single split of a second, this guard was compromised! This eventually made it very difficult for Guru Dhronachaarya to breach this fortress and enter inside. Meanwhile from the other side, Duryodhana tried his best to remove Bheemasena and Arjuna, but he failed miserably in his attempt. Thus, at the end of the eleventh day, the Paandava army had an upper hand over the Kauravas, which now leads the latter to do a lot of thinking and introspection.
Now, as the twelfth day war is about to commence, Susharma, leader of the Trigatthas is going to be deputed for this job. This “Upa-Parva” which we’re entering into now is called “Sham-Saptaka Parva”. Now why is this “Upa-Parva” called this way? There’s a fascinating reason behind it. We might be remembering that during the “Agnyaatavaasam” period (Thirteenth year of the Vana-Vaasam of Paandavas), Yudishtra and Co. were residing at the Viraata Desha. Duryodhana somehow smelled this and he wanted to expose the identity of the Paandavas to send them back to the forest once again for the next twelve years. To prove to the world that the Paandavas were residing there, Duryodhana sent his messengers to drive away all the cows and calves from Viraata Desha, with a ploy to invite Arjuna to the battlefield, so as to fight with him and obtain the cows back. As Arjuna would come to fight with him, Duryodhana can openly declare that he has found the identity of the Paandavas and as per the earlier agreement, they’ve to once again go back to the forest for the next twelve years. However, as we’ve seen earlier, what conspired was grossly different! The cows were saved, but these “Trigatthas” sent by Duryodhana were badly injured and insulted by Arjuna!
Recalling this incident in mind, Susharma, who is the leader of the Trigatthas takes a pledge in front of Duryodhana thus, “Oh Duryodhana! The insult that we obtained from Arjuna on that day is still fresh in our minds until this minute! Hence, we will go and capture Arjuna and insult him back as a token of revenge for what conspired then! For this, we’ve taken a pledge under the sacrificial “Agni Bhagawan” (Fire). So what we’ll do is, we shall call Arjuna for a war separately off the main Kurukshetra battlefield and take him somewhere else! We have a huge army behind us and we will make Arjuna fight with our army. Meanwhile in his absence, you can capture Yudishtra alive!”
As Susharma speaks thus, Duryodhana is seemingly convinced that this sounds like a good plan. Thus, the twelfth day of the war commences and immediately Susharma unleashes his plan. He calls Arjuna separately for a battle and Arjuna obeys Susharma’s call! Before going behind Susharma, Arjuna hands over the responsibility of protecting Yudishtra to Saatyaki, King Drupada and Bheemasena. Arjuna instructs all three of them to be around Yudishtra all the time and to ensure that nobody is trying to isolate him and take him away. As Arjuna departs, the war begins on both sides. On one hand, Arjuna and Susharma fight a fierce battle with each other, even as things unfold in Kurukshetra as well. Guru Dhronachaarya continues with his pursuit to isolate Yudishtra, only for his plan to get thwarted everytime by Bheemasena and King Drupada. Saatyaki is also attacking and holding fort on one end and Bheemasena guards the other. Yudishtra is very carefully protected by this trio.
Meanwhile on Arjuna’s side, a fierce battle ensues and there are “signal languages” being communicated between Arjuna and Yudishtra at all times. For instance, if Yudishtra is able to hear Bhagawan Krishna’s “Paanchajanya” sound (Sound of the Shankam that Bhagawan Krishna holds) from time to time, it means that Arjuna is safe. If Arjuna’s “Gaandeepa” sound keeps thundering through the air from any direction, it means Arjuna is safe and the fight is going on! Meanwhile, Arjuna keeps checking with Bhagawan Krishna whether Yudishtra is safe and secure. On the other side, if Yudishtra’s “Shankam” keeps emitting the desired sound, it is a signal for Arjuna that Yudishtra is safe. Thus, the battle continues interestingly and for today, let us understand up to this point. We shall continue this interesting and absorbing accord further in the next episode! Stay tuned! 🙂
The Indian Dharma 