Draupadi Reproaches Yudhishthira for His Adherence to Dharma

Draupadi began by bowing to Dhata and Vidhata — the creators who had confused her husband's mind. "You should follow the conduct of your father and grandfather," she said. "But your mind leads you in a different direction. A man never obtains prosperity in this world through dharma, gentleness, forgiveness, uprightness and tenderness. Else, this miserable calamity would not have befallen you." She reminded Yudhishthira of what everyone knew: that dharma was more dear to him than life itself. The brahmanas knew it. The gods knew it. His kingdom was for dharma, his life was for dharma. She told him she believed he could give up Bhima, Arjuna, the twins, and even her — but he would never forsake dharma. "I have heard from aryas that a king protects dharma and dharma in turn protects him. But I think it does not protect you." She catalogued everything he had done. He had followed dharma like a man is followed by his own shadow. He had never disparaged anyone — not equals, not inferiors, certainly not superiors. After conquering the entire earth, his vanity did not increase. He had served the gods, the ancestors, and the brahmanas through every form of worship. He had given forest-dwellers iron vessels. In his house, nothing was withheld from brahmanas. Every morning and evening, after the vaishvadeva ritual, he gave to guests and servants and survived on what remained. He had performed great sacrifices — the horse sacrifice, the rajasuya, the lotus sacrifice, the cow sacrifice — and offered large quantities of dakshina. "And yet," she said, "your intelligence was confounded and you were vanquished in an unequal game of dice. You lost your kingdom, riches, weapons, brothers, and even me." She told him she would recount an ancient tale to show how all the worlds are under the control of the supreme god. Even before the seed is released, the lord Ishana determines happiness and unhappiness, pleasure and displeasure for all beings. These subjects are like wooden puppets — he controls their bodies and limbs. Covering all beings like the sky, the supreme god decides on all that is good and all that is evil. "A bird tied to a string is not its own master. Like that, they are under the control of the supreme god and are not their own master or anyone else's. Like a pearl on a string, like a bull with a rope through its nose, a man is under the control of the creator." She described beings as a tree that has fallen from the bank into the middle of a river — at no time under its own control. Creatures are ignorant. Their happiness or unhappiness is not determined by themselves. They are sent by the supreme god to heaven or hell. All beings are under the control of the creator, like the tips of straws are under the control of the strong wind. Yet the supreme god yokes himself to good deeds and evil ones. He pervades and roams in all beings, but is not noticed. The physical body is only the field — the creator's instrument, which he uses to perform deeds, good and evil. "Look at the powers of maya the supreme god exhibits. He confounds them with illusion and makes beings kill other beings." Like wood is broken with wood, stone with stone, iron with iron — the great grandfather, the self-created one, the illustrious god is not detected, and kills beings with other beings. The lord unites and disunites them as he desires. The illustrious one plays with all beings, like a child with his toys. "The creator does not act towards beings like a father or a mother. Like an inferior person, he seems to be driven by rage." Her thoughts were agitated when she saw that those who are good, righteous, and modest suffer in their conduct, while evil ones are happy. She blamed the creator who tolerates such inequality — who confers prosperity on Dhritarashtra's cruel and avaricious son, who lowers dharma and transgresses what the virtuous sacred texts say. "What fruits does the creator obtain from this? If a performed deed follows its performer and no one else, then the supreme god has certainly been tainted by this evil deed. Or if the evil that is done does not taint the performer, then strength alone is the cause of everything — and I grieve for those who are weak."