Dharma Prashna: Questions of a Yaksha

Yaksha tests Yudhishthira

Near the end of their forest exile, the Pandavas encounter a mysterious crisis. A brahmin's fire sticks are carried away by a deer, and he asks the Pandavas to retrieve them. While pursuing the deer, the brothers become exhausted and thirsty. Nakula goes to find water and discovers a beautiful lake - but before he can drink, a voice warns him to answer questions first or die. Nakula ignores the warning and falls dead. One by one, Sahadeva, Arjuna, and even mighty Bhima meet the same fate. When Yudhishthira finally reaches the lake, he finds his four brothers lifeless. The voice reveals itself as a Yaksha who guards the waters. Only by answering the Yaksha's questions can Yudhishthira save anyone.

Dharma Prashna: Questions of a Yaksha

As the twelfth year of exile drew to a close, the Pandavas faced one final test - one that would prove whether Yudhishthira truly deserved his title as Dharmaraja, the king of righteousness.

The Brahmin's Request

The day began simply enough. A brahmin came to the Pandava camp in great distress. His arani - the fire sticks used to kindle the sacred fire - had been mysteriously carried away by a deer that had wandered through the clearing.

"Without my fire sticks, I cannot perform my rituals," the brahmin said. "Please help me recover them."

The Pandavas immediately set out to track the deer. This was their dharma as Kshatriyas - to help brahmins in need. The deer's trail led deep into an unfamiliar part of the forest.

The Elusive Deer

The deer proved impossible to catch. Each time the brothers came close, it bounded away. They chased it for hours through dense undergrowth and across rocky terrain. By afternoon, they were far from any familiar landmark, exhausted and desperately thirsty.

"This is no ordinary deer," Yudhishthira said finally. "I suspect we are being tested. But we cannot abandon our promise to the brahmin."

"We need water," Bhima said. "None of us can continue much longer in this state."

Yudhishthira agreed. "Nakula, climb that tall tree and see if you can spot water nearby."

Nakula climbed and scanned the horizon. "There!" he called down. "I see a lake surrounded by trees. And I hear cranes calling - there must be water."

"Go quickly," Yudhishthira said. "Drink and bring water back for the rest of us."

The First Death

Nakula hurried toward the lake. When he reached it, he found a body of crystal-clear water surrounded by flowering trees. Birds sang in the branches. It seemed like paradise.

His throat burning with thirst, Nakula knelt to drink. Just as his hand touched the water, a voice boomed from nowhere:

"Stop! This lake is mine. Do not drink until you have answered my questions. If you drink without answering, you will die."

Nakula looked around but saw no one. His thirst was overwhelming, and he had faced dangers far more visible than a disembodied voice. He thought the warning was a trick or illusion.

"I am a prince of the Kuru lineage," he said. "I fear no lake spirits."

He scooped water to his lips and drank.

Instantly, Nakula collapsed. His eyes rolled back, his body went rigid, and he fell dead beside the water.

One by One

When Nakula did not return, Yudhishthira sent Sahadeva to find him. The twin reached the lake and saw his brother lying motionless on the shore.

"Nakula!" Sahadeva ran to him, checking for breath, for pulse. Nothing. His brother was dead.

Mad with grief and desperate for water to revive his twin, Sahadeva reached for the lake. The voice came again:

"Your brother died because he did not heed my warning. Answer my questions first, then drink."

"My brother is dead!" Sahadeva shouted. "I have no time for questions!"

He drank, and fell dead beside Nakula.

Arjuna was sent next. The greatest archer in the world found two of his brothers dead and the same mysterious voice warning him away. Arjuna responded by stringing his bow.

"Show yourself, spirit! I will destroy you for killing my brothers!"

He fired arrows in every direction, but they struck nothing. There was no enemy to fight. Finally, overcome by thirst, Arjuna drank. He too fell dead.

Bhima came last among the four. Finding three brothers dead drove him into a fury unlike any he had known. He tore at trees, roared threats at the invisible voice, and ultimately reached for the water, determined to drink and then destroy whatever creature was responsible.

The warning came once more. Bhima ignored it. His legendary strength meant nothing. He fell beside his brothers.

Yudhishthira's Arrival

Yudhishthira waited as long as he could, but when none of his brothers returned, he knew something terrible had happened. He made his way to the lake, following the same path they had taken.

What he found there stopped his heart.

All four of his brothers - Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula, Sahadeva - lay dead around the lake. The strongest, the most skilled, the most beloved - all gone. No wounds marked them. No enemy was visible. They simply lay there as if fallen asleep.

Yudhishthira fell to his knees beside them. For a long moment, grief overwhelmed him. Then his mind began to work. No tiger had killed them. No human enemy could have defeated all four. This was no ordinary death.

He examined the lake. Clear, clean water - nothing poisonous. Yet his brothers had died immediately after drinking.

"What power killed my brothers?" he asked aloud.

The Voice Speaks

The voice answered: "I killed them, O king. I am a Yaksha, and this lake belongs to me. They each refused to answer my questions before drinking. That is why they died."

Yudhishthira looked around but still saw nothing. "Show yourself."

"First answer: will you drink without answering, as they did?"

Yudhishthira looked at the water, then at his brothers' bodies. His own thirst was agonizing. But unlike his brothers, he stopped to think.

"If you are powerful enough to kill even Bhima and Arjuna, then there is nothing I can do by force. And if my brothers died for ignoring your questions, then wisdom demands I answer them."

"A wise response," the voice said. "Answer my questions correctly, and you may drink. Answer them all, and perhaps your brothers may live again. But answer wrongly, and you will join them in death."

Yudhishthira stood, facing the lake. "Ask your questions, Yaksha. I am ready."

The air seemed to thicken. The birds fell silent. Even the wind stopped. And then the questions began.