Shraapa: The Cursed King
Jayadratha humiliated and cursed
The Pandavas overtake Jayadratha's fleeing chariot. Bhima drags the terrified king from his seat and prepares to kill him. But Yudhishthira intervenes - Jayadratha is the husband of their cousin Duhshala, and killing him would make her a widow. Instead, the Pandavas devise a punishment worse than death for a Kshatriya: complete humiliation. Bhima shaves Jayadratha's head, leaving only five tufts of hair to mark him as slave to the five brothers. Released in disgrace, Jayadratha performs severe penance to Lord Shiva and receives a boon that will allow him to stop the Pandavas in battle - all except Arjuna. This sets the stage for his devastating role in Abhimanyu's death years later.
Shraapa: The Cursed King
The pursuit was over in moments. A chariot, however swift, could not outrun the sons of gods when they were filled with righteous fury.
The Capture
Bhima reached the chariot first. With a roar that echoed across the forest, he seized the back of the vehicle and brought it to a grinding halt. The horses reared and screamed. Jayadratha tumbled from his seat.
Before the king of Sindhu could rise, Bhima was upon him. One massive hand closed around Jayadratha's throat, lifting him from the ground.
"You touched our wife," Bhima snarled, his voice barely human. "You dragged her like cattle. Now you will die like an animal."
Arjuna arrived next, arrow still nocked. His face was cold as stone. "Let me have him, Bhima. One arrow is all I need."
The twins flanked the chariot, cutting off any escape. Yudhishthira came last, his expression grim but more controlled than his brothers'.
Draupadi stood in the chariot, her face bruised where Jayadratha had struck her, but her eyes blazed with satisfaction. "I told you," she said to her captor. "I warned you what would happen."
The Plea for Mercy
Jayadratha's arrogance had evaporated entirely. Dangling in Bhima's grip, gasping for air, he looked at the faces of five brothers who had every reason and every right to kill him.
"Mercy," he croaked. "Please... I was a fool... I was not thinking..."
"You were thinking," Bhima replied. "You were thinking with your lust, not your head. Now I will remove the head entirely."
"Wait!" Jayadratha gasped. "Think of Duhshala! Your own cousin! If you kill me, you make her a widow!"
This gave even Bhima pause. Duhshala was indeed their cousin - the only sister of the hundred Kauravas, daughter of their uncle Dhritarashtra. Though her brothers had wronged them terribly, Duhshala herself had done nothing wrong.