Yaksha Prasna

Monday, May 17, 2010, 17:43

Yaksha Prasna episode in Mahabharata is one of the finest situations which brings to limelight and into focus the excellent character of Yudhisthira and also incidentally provides a set of answers to many significant problems of our life. In a sense it is a social philosophy of that time, providing us with an insight into their thinking and living. The episode of the questioning of Yaksha appears in the Mahabharata at the end of Vanaparva (chapters 312 to 314).

The Pandavas along with Draupadi reached Dvaitavana having left the Kamyaka forest-range. They were all tired and exhausted and extremely thirsty. Yudhishtira asked Nakula to climb up a tree to locate any source of water. Nakula did accordingly and located the evidence for some water source by water-creepers, cranes etc.
Yudhistira asked Nakula to go to the source and get immediately some water. He went there and saw a lake with crystal clear water and was about to drink it when he heard a voice: 'Don't venture to drink the water before answering my questions. Otherwise you will come to grief.' Nakula did not heed his words and tried to drink the water. Immediately he fell down dead.

When Nakula did not return for a long time, Yudhishtira sent Sahadeva, who also met the same fate without listening to the warning of the Yaksha. Then Arjuna came and he also did not care for the warning of the Yaksha and thus fell down dead.

Bhima also met with the same fate.

Then Yudhishtira got worried and went to investigate the fate of his brothers. He was near the beautiful lake, as if constructed by Vishvakarma himself, all his brothers lying down dead.

When he saw their fate, he lamented on their death. Even though they were dead they had not lost their color, there was no ghastly distortion of expression and he began to wonder as to the cause of this extraordinary situation. Then he heard the voice of Yaksha. “I am a Yaksha in the form of a Crane eating fish and water plants, and because of me all your brothers are dead. I asked them not to venture to drink the water of this pond without answering my questions. You will be the fifth one. Don't venture to do so before answering all my questions.

Yudhishtira asked him about his history and the Yaksha told him: I am not a bird. Please answer my questions and then you may drink the water. Yudhishtira told him that he did not want to incur the wrath of the Yaksha, “You may ask your questions and I shall reply them"

Thereupon the Yaksha asked a number of questions covering many moral, social and philosophical issues and Yudhishtira replied each one of them to the satisfaction of the Yaksha. Both the questions and answers are profound and esoteric in their import and one should study them with the available commentary to understand the significance of these dialogues.