The stories of Drupada, Dhrstadyumna and Shikhandi

Even tough originally motivated by revenge, Drupada ended up sacrificing everything for the cause of the Lord, including his material possessions, his actions, words, his family, and even his life.

At the beginning of the Bhagavad-Gita, just after the first verse, spoken by Sanjaya to Dhrtarastra, we find a discourse by Duryodhana:

"O my teacher, behold the great army of the sons of Pāṇḍu, so expertly arranged by your intelligent disciple the son of Drupada. Here in this army are many heroic bowmen equal in fighting to Bhīma and Arjuna: great fighters like Yuyudhāna, Virāṭa and Drupada. There are also great heroic, powerful fighters like Dhṛṣṭaketu, Cekitāna, Kāśirāja, Purujit, Kuntibhoja and Śaibya. There are the mighty Yudhāmanyu, the very powerful Uttamaujā, the son of Subhadrā and the sons of Draupadī. All these warriors are great chariot fighters.

But for your information, O best of the brāhmaṇas, let me tell you about the captains who are especially qualified to lead my military force. There are personalities like you, Bhīṣma, Karṇa, Kṛpa, Aśvatthāmā, Vikarṇa and the son of Somadatta called Bhūriśravā, who are always victorious in battle. There are many other heroes who are prepared to lay down their lives for my sake. All of them are well equipped with different kinds of weapons, and all are experienced in military science. Our strength is immeasurable, and we are perfectly protected by Grandfather Bhīṣma, whereas the strength of the Pāṇḍavas, carefully protected by Bhīma, is limited. All of you must now give full support to Grandfather Bhīṣma, as you stand at your respective strategic points of entrance into the phalanx of the army."

One could question why we should study the words of Dhrtarastra and Duryodhana in the Bhagavad-Gita, being both far from ideal personalities. Srila Prabhupada explains that this is because their words are connected with Krsna. Being Krsna absolute, everything connected with Him exists in the same transcendental platform. The words of Dhrtarastra and Duryodhana before the battle are thus no less important than subsequent verses.

Before the battle, Duryodhana made many diplomatic arrangements to make alliances and secure military support from the smaller kingdoms. The battle of Kuruksetra happened shortly after the Pandavas returned from their exile of thirteen years, therefore Duryodhana expected that they would obtain little support. However, he was surprised when he saw they could gather a sizable military force.

The army of the Pandavas was smaller (they had seven aksauhinis, against Duryodhana's eleven) but they had many experienced generals, as well as powerful warriors such as Arjuna, Bhima, and Abhimanyu. Due to the seriousness of the situation, he approached Dronacarya, the commander-in-chief, to inform him of the happenings. Although Duryodhana appears confident, this is just due to his diplomatic nature. Internally he is fearful. The battle was not going to be the pushover he had expected.

One significant detail is the insolent way Duryodhana addresses his guru. Instead of asking for instructions, he starts lecturing him, coming to the point of indirectly chastising him for having instructed Dhrstadyumna who had now taken the side of the Pandavas and used the knowledge Duryodhana had taught him to expertly arrange their army. This can be contrasted with the submissive way Arjuna approaches Krsna, first explaining his doubts, then surrendering to Him and inquiring submissively. Both passages thus reinforce the proper attitude in studying the verses of the Bhagavad-Gita.

We can also see that the results achieved by both were different. Although also competent to give spiritual knowledge, Dronacarya did not speak to Duryodhana at all. This shows how the transmission of transcendental knowledge depends not only on the qualification of the spiritual teacher but also on the student. If a student doesn't show the proper attitude, even the most qualified teacher may remain silent.

Dronacarya was originally a Brahmana, who due to poverty decided to become a Ksatriya. In the 11th canto of Srimad Bhagavatam, Krsna explains that a Brahmana who is not able to maintain himself and support his family as a Brahmana may work as a Vaisya or even as a Ksatriya to make a living. The position of a Vaisya is preferred because it is a non-violent occupation, but Drona decided to become a Ksatriya to avenge a serious offense from Drupada, the father of Dhrstadyumna.

The story is that Drona and Drupada had studied in the same gurukula, where they became friends. Drupada was a prince, and Drona a poor Brahmana, but due to their friendship, he promised to share everything with him when he would become king. Later, when Drona was in financial difficulties, having no means even to buy milk for his child, he remembered Drupada's promise and went to him to beg for a cow.

Drupada, however, had become proud, and when Drona mentioned their friendship, he humiliated him by saying that friendship can exist only between equals. Being just a beggar, he said, Drona had no right to claim to be his friend. Being kicked out of the palace, Drona vowed revenge. Using his knowledge of the Dhanur-Veda, he became a great Ksatriya and the martial teacher of the Kuru dynasty. After training both the Pandavas and the Kauravas, he asked them to defeat Drupada and bring him to him as guru-dakshina. The Kauravas, led by Duryodhana, failed, but the Pandavas succeeded in defeating Drupada and brought him to their teacher bound by ropes.

Drona took half of the kingdom from him and in return, Drupada made a great sacrifice to obtain a son capable of killing Dronacarya, resulting in the birth of Dhrstadyumna. Being a liberal Brahmana at heart, Drona didn't hesitate to teach him everything. Duryodhana however blamed him for that.

Although Drupada was defeated by the young Pandavas and brought by them to Dronacarya, he didn't hold a grudge against them, understanding that they acted under the order of Drona, as obedient students. This explains why he later sided with the Pandavas in the battle of Kuruksetra. His grudge was against Drona, and not against them.

Other factors were that the Pandavas were married to Draupadi, his daughter and that the Pandavas represented the path of Dharma, while Duryodhana was on the path of irreligion. Drupada was also inimical to Duryodhana and his cause because they attempted to humiliate Draupadi in the assembly, and because of what she and the Pandavas suffered due to his actions. Drupada was the king of Pañcāla and provided one of the seven aksauhinis in the army of the Pandavas, as well as shelter, supplies, and military expertise. The Pañcāla forces also included both Dhrstadyumna and Shikhandi, who were instrumental in the defeat of both Drona and Bhisma, the two main Kaurava generals.

Just as Dhrstadyumna was conceived specifically to kill Drona, Shikhandi was born to kill Bhisma.

Bhisma was the oldest member of the Kuru Dynasty, the son of King Shantanu and Ganga. He was supposed to be the heir to the kingdom, but he renounced the right to allow his father to marry Satyavati and satisfy his lust. Although a Ksatriya, he made a vow to remain celibate for his whole life, and thus received the name Bhisma, "One who has taken a terrible vow" and received the blessing that he would die only at the time of his choosing.

During the battle of Kuruksetra, Bhisma was trespassed by numerous arrows shot by Arjuna, which formed a kind of bed, preventing his body from touching the ground when he fell. Still, because of the blessing he didn't die, remaining alive for a long time after the battle, leaving his body only in a particularly auspicious moment in the presence of Krsna, returning thus back home, back to Godhead. His passing away is narrated in the first canto of Srimad Bhagavatam.

Bhisma was so powerful that he once fought Paraśurāma to a standstill. Paraśurāma had previously exterminated the Ksatriyas of the world twenty-one times, but still, he couldn't defeat Bhisma in battle. The story is that at a certain point, Bhisma kidnapped Amba to marry her to his half-brother, Vichitravirya. However, because she was already in love with Salva, Vichitravirya refused to marry her. Salva in turn also refused because she had been kidnapped by another man. Put in such a situation, she demanded Bhisma marry her since he was the one who created the situation by kidnapping her in the first place, but he refused because of his vow of Brahmacharya. She then took shelter of Paraśurāma, who, being the martial guru of Bhismadeva, promised to help her. When Bhisma refused to marry Amba, Paraśurāma fought with him, but after Bhisma held his own for twenty-three days, he had to admit that he would not be able to defeat him. Amba then practiced severe austerities with the goal of killing Bhisma and eventually was reborn as Shikhandi, who joined the Pandava army and was instrumental in defeating Bhismadeva.

Now, the same in the form of a short story to help you remember the main points:

Friendship Turned to Bitterness

In a peaceful gurukula, at the end of the previous Dvapara-yuga, a humble Brahmana, and Drupada, the young prince of Panchala, formed a bond that seemed unbreakable. Drupada, full of boyish enthusiasm, declared, “When I become king, all that I have shall be yours too.”

But time is a relentless force, and with its passage, promises can crumble. As years went by, Drupada forgot his words. He ascended the throne of Panchala, living in royal splendor, while Drona struggled in poverty, unable even to provide milk for his son, Asvatthama.

Once, driven by the pressing needs, Drona visited Drupada’s court, clutching the memory of their childhood friendship. “Drupada,” he pleaded, “do you remember me? I come not as a beggar but as a friend, seeking refuge in your past promise.”

Drupada laughed mockingly. “Friendship?” he scoffed. “Friendship exists only between equals. I am a king, and you… you are just a beggar. Get out of here.”

Humiliated and kicked out, Drona vowed to avenge this insult. Using his knowledge of the Danur-Veda, he became a Ksatriya, the martial teacher of the Pandavas and Kauravas, the princes of Hastinapura.

When the time came for guru-dakshina, Drona commanded his students to capture Drupada and bring him as a token of gratitude. The Kauravas, despite their determination, failed in this task. But the Pandavas, however, succeeded. With determination and skill, they stormed Panchala, defeating Drupada and presenting him, bound and defeated, to Drona.

For a brief moment, Drona enjoyed his triumph. But as a Bramana he was not greedy and offered a compromise: “I will not take everything from you, Drupada,” he said. “I claim only half your kingdom. Now, we are equals.”

However, this humiliation planted a seed of rage in Drupada’s heart. Seeking revenge, he performed a great yajña, and from the sacrificial fire emerged two children: Dhrishtadyumna, destined to kill Drona, and Draupadi, destined to become the wife of the Pandavas.

Despite his defeat, Drupada bore no grudge against the Pandavas. He understood they had acted out of duty to their teacher. Later, when Draupadi became the wife of the Pandavas, their bond deepened. Together, they stood against the Kauravas and Drona, who had aligned himself with adharma, and thus lost his respectability as a teacher.

As the war of Kurukshetra approached, Drupada pledged his loyalty to the Pandavas. He provided them with his army, adding one extra aksauhini to the six the Pandavas had already gathered, and added both Dhrishtadyumna and Shikhandi to their forces, who would prove instrumental to their victory.

His son, Dhrishtadyumna, commanded the Pandava forces with brilliance, countering the Kauravas' numerical superiority, while Shikhandi fulfilled his fateful role. Bhishma, the invincible grandsire of the Kauravas, refused to fight Shikhandi, perceiving him as a woman in spirit. Taking advantage of this, Arjuna used Shikhandi as a shield to bring down Bhishma, breaking the Kauravas’ morale.

Drupada’s life ended in a fateful duel with his old rival, Drona. Despite his courage, Drupada could not match Drona’s skill. The king of Panchala had done his duty, offering his kingdom and his family, as well as his life to the cause of dharma, supporting the Pandavas, the pure devotees of the Lord. He knew his son Dhrstadyumna would fulfill his destiny, avenging his father. Just like the other soldiers who fell in the battle, he thought about Krsna in the last moment and went back home, back to Godhead for an eternal and blissful life.

Under Drupada’s banner, the Panchala forces became instrumental in the Pandavas' victory. They brought not only soldiers but warriors, contributing to their divine cause. Dhrishtadyumna’s and Shikhandi’s roles in the fall of Bhisma and Drona turned the tide of the war.

Drupada’s story shows how even the desire for revenge can be used in the service of the Lord, serving a higher purpose. Through his sacrifices, the Pandavas achieved victory, restoring the principles of dharma, that had suffered under Duryodana’s rule. Drupada ended up sacrificing everything for the cause of the Lord, including his material possessions, his actions, words, his family, and even his life. Even though originally motivated by revenge, his sacrifice granted him eternal life.