The Yaksha’s Questions

Yudhishthira was meditating in one corner of a sparse but tidy mud hut just big enough to comfortably house six adults. A neat pile of rolled sleeping mats was in another corner of the room. Bhima was helping Draupadi in the kitchen which was just a little alcove at the eastern side of the hut. Six sets of plates and tumblers were neatly arranged on the floor for the afternoon meal. 

Arjuna was practicing archery in the wide clearing at the back of the house, and the repeating twanging of his bow and arrow resonated through the forest. The merry gurgle of a stream could be heard from somewhere beyond the clearing. The twins, Nakula and Sahadeva, walked in through the back entrance after chopping and piling up firewood for the next few days. 

Suddenly, a voice at the front door said, “Is this the home of the Pandavas in exile?” There was something so powerful in that voice that the five brothers and Draupadi were drawn to it instantly. They saw a tall, majestic-looking Brahmin dressed in pristine white standing at their doorstep. The tightly knotted thick shikha was the only relief on his otherwise cleanly tonsured, shiny head. 

Ushering him inside their humble hut respectfully, Yudhishthira asked, “What can we do for you, O Brahmin?” 

“Some forest dwellers guided me to your home. I need the help of powerful Kshatriyas like you. I have been living alone in these forests for years now. I had a pair of special fire-sticks to start the fire for my daily yagnas. I had hung the sticks on a tree near my home. The sticks seemed to have gotten entangled in the large antlers of a deer that was frolicking under it. Before I could catch the animal, it ran away with my fire sticks stuck in its antlers. Can you help me find the deer and get my sticks back?”

Assuring the Brahmin they would do their best to help him, and asking him to remain in their hut until they returned with the fire sticks, the Pandavas immediately left in search of the deer. They were Kshatriyas and the protection of men, animals, and property was part of their dharma.

The five searched high and low for the elusive animal, to no avail. Running around the forest for many hours made them very thirsty. They were hungry too. Yudhisthira asked Sahadeva to climb the tallest tree and see if he could find a source of water close by. The youngest Pandava saw a beautiful, large lake with clear water at some distance. He told his brothers to wait while he went and fetched water for all of them. 

He reached the lake in a few minutes. Delighted at the sight of an abundant supply of pure water ahead, he ran to the lake and put his hands into it in the hope of soothing his parched throat with the coolness of the water. However, just as he reached the edge of the lake, he heard a voice, “Stop! I am a yaksha and this lake belongs to me. You can drink from it only when you have answered my questions.”

But Sahadeva was too thirsty to stop and heed the voice’s warning words. Moreover, he arrogantly thought to himself, “Who can harm me for drinking water?” So, be bent down, cupped some water in his hands, and sipped it. The instant the water touched his lips, he fell down dead. 

When Sahadeva didn't return for a long time, Yudhisthira sent Nakula to find him. Nakula reached the lake and was horrified to find the body of his twin there. Again, he was too thirsty to think clearly and went first to drink water. The voice warned Nakula just as it warned Sahadeva. 

“This lake belongs to me. Answer my questions, and only then you can safely drink the water.”

Nakula, like his brother, arrogantly challenged the voice, and said, “What can you do to me?” So saying, he cupped water in his palms and took to it his lips. He fell down dead too.

Seeing that neither of the twins had returned, Yudhisthira sent Arjuna, the third Pandava, and then the mighty Bhima. Both of them met the same fate as their younger siblings.

Finally, Yudhisthira reached the lake. He was shocked at seeing the corpses of his four brothers. He howled loudly in agony at the horrifying sight. Although he felt deeply aggrieved, he was equally puzzled at the turn of events. The difficult years in exile taught the eldest Pandavas many important lessons. He was able to control his emotions and was able to look at the situation objectively. 

“Who could have killed the mighty Pandavas? Very few people could match their skills and prowess?” He thought. He realized some great, divine power was at play. 

However, like his brothers, he was thirsty too. “Let me quench my thirst, and then, I would be able to think better and solve the mystery of my brothers’ deaths.”

As he cupped his hands to take water from the magical lake, the voice that stopped his four brothers stopped him too. 

“I am a yaksha and this lake is mine. You cannot drink water from it unless you have answered my questions satisfactorily. Your brothers met with this fate for not heeding my words.”

Yudhisthira bowed humbly in the direction of the voice and said, “Oh Yaksha! I will not take what belongs to you without your permission. Ask me the questions and I will try my best to give you satisfactory answers.” And thus, began the Yaksha’s questions: 

Q: Who is man’s best friend? 

“His wife,” replied Yudhishthira spontaneously. “She leaves her home to come and share her husband’s life and has only his good intentions at heart. She is one who will not hesitate to tell her husband if he is doing something wrong.” 

Yudhishthira thought of how much Draupadi tried to dissuade him from accepting the gambling challenge sent by his cousins, the Kauravas. Today, the truth hit him hard when he realized that the guilt for not listening to her was still nagging him. And the difficult life he shared with her made him realize his deep love and respect for her. 

Q: What is ignorance? 

Yudhishthira thought for a while, reflecting on his life experiences trying to understand his own ignorance. “It was my duty to protect my family and kingdom, and yet I chose to give in to my weakness because of ignorance. If I was truly wise, I would never have forsaken my duties.” These self-reflective thoughts gave him the answer to the yaksha’s question. He said, “Ignorance is when one is not aware of or conscious of one’s duties.”

Q: What is the best bath? 

Again, Yudhishthira looked back at his life experiences and recalled many instances in his childhood and student days when he couldn't control his anger, especially when his cousins fought with him and his brothers. He recalled the number of times he felt arrogant when he and his brothers did better than the Kauravas at duels and in classes. This arrogance was the root of his desire to become king. 

After losing miserably at gambling, he recalled the numerous occasions in the early part of his exile when the desire for revenge was powerful in his mind. He would have been able to manage all these desires if his mind was pure. So, he answered the yaksha with, “The best bath is what cleanses the mind and keeps it pure.”

Q: Who can be truly happy? 

He had prompt answers for this question, He said, “Anyone who spends less than he earns can be truly happy.” He thought how he staked more than what he could afford (how did he think he could afford to lose his brothers and wife!) at the gambling game, making him a debtor to his cousins.

He continued, “The one who doesn't have to leave his home to earn a livelihood can be truly happy.” He recalled the happy times he spent with his family in his home, Indraprastha, and compared it with the suffering and sorrow of living in exile away from his home, his mother, and his loved ones all the time enduring the loneliness rooted in homesickness. 

Q: What is the most intriguing thing? 

Yudhishthira replied, “The most intriguing thing is that human beings see death everywhere, and yet behave as if we will live forever. Our arrogance when we succeed, our overwhelming sadness when we fail, and all the emotions in-between make us focus so much on our lives that we forget we are moving towards death. And this dichotomous approach to life is the most intriguing thing.” 

Q: What is swifter than the wind? 

Yudhishthira thought to himself that in the few minutes the yaksha questioned him, he had traveled to his childhood, to the dazzling home in Indraprastha, to the horrible experiences of the fateful day when he lost everything to his cousins, to the various difficulties he faced while in exile, and more. He moved from one thought to another in the blink of an eye. His reply was prompt, “The mind is swifter than the wind.” 

The yaksha asked many more questions, and Yudhishthira was able to answer every one of them patiently and convincingly. 

At last, the yaksha said, “You have answered all my questions thoughtfully and I am satisfied. In return for your humility and patience, I can revive one of your four brothers. Which one do you choose?”

“Revive Nakula, O Yaksha,” came Yudhishthira’s immediate response.

“Why Nakula? Don't you need the skill of Arjuna or the might of Bhima for the impending fight against the Kauravas? Also, Nakula is your step-brother. Why choose him over your own brothers?”

“I wronged Nakula and Sahadeva when I chose them over my own brothers when I staked them first in the game of dice. I want to use this chance to undo at least a part of that mistake. Also, I am Kunti’s son, and it is only fair that a son of my other mother, Madri, be alive with me.”

The yaksha was delighted with Yudhishthira’s answers, and he decided to appear before the learned man. The eldest Pandava saw that the Brahmin who approached them for help in the morning emerge from the lake and walk up to the banks. His form changed again when he reached the banks. Yudhishthira realized that this divine being was none other than his father, Yama Dharmaraja, the Lord of Death and Dharma! 

The son prostrated before his divine father who blessed his son and hugged him joyfully. He said, “I am proud of you. You have passed my test admirably.”

The Lord of Death and Dharma continued, “You have used the years of exile wisely, learning from your mistakes. The years of exile for you was not a punishment. Instead, it was a period which helped you evolve from being an ordinary mortal to gaining the wisdom and knowledge to become an extraordinary king. Now, you truly deserve the throne of Hastinapur because of the valuable lessons you have learned in the forests. Duryodhana will never learn these lessons while living in the comforts of his palace and surrounded by his arrogance and power.”

The Lord of the Death and Dharma revived all the four brothers, blessed them, and went his way, proud that his son turned out righteous, compassionate, and highly knowledgeable, all discerning qualities of a wise man.