Draupadi

Draupadi (Sanskrit: द्रौपदी, romanized: draupadī, lit. 'Daughter of Drupada'), also referred to as Krishnā, Panchali and Yajnaseni, is one of the central characters of the ancient Sanskrit epic, the Mahabharata (c. 400 BCE – 400 CE). Born from a yajna (fire sacrifice) conducted by King Drupada of Panchala, she is the princess of the Panchala Kingdom and the common wife of the five Pandava brothers—Yudhishthira, Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula, and Sahadeva—in a polyandrous marriage sanctioned by divine prophecy and narratives of her previous lives. Attested as a partial incarnation of the goddess Shri, Draupadi initially serves as the queen of Indraprastha, overseeing the kingdom's finances and treasury. She is also described as a sakhi (close friend) of the god Krishna.

The most notable episode featuring Draupadi takes place during the game of dice at the Kuru court. In this game, Yudhishthira, having lost Indraprastha and his freedom, wagers and loses Draupadi to his cousin Duryodhana—the leader of the Kauravas. She is forcibly dragged into the royal assembly and deemed a slave. However, she challenges the assembly, questioning the legality of being staked after her husband had already forfeited his own freedom. After she is publicly humiliated by Duryodhana and his ally Karna for being married to five men, the Kaurava prince Dushasana attempts to disrobe her, but her honour is miraculously preserved, as her garment becomes endlessly extended. The Kuru king Dhritarashtra then intervenes and grants Draupadi two boons, resulting in the release of the Pandavas from bondage.

Afterwards, Draupadi accompanies the Pandavas into their thirteen-year exile after they lose their kingdom to the Kauravas. In the final year of exile, Draupadi lives incognito, disguised as a maid to Queen Sudeshna of Matsya. When she is harassed by the Matsya general Kichaka, she successfully persuades Bhima to kill Kichaka. After the exile, when Duryodhana refuses to restore the Pandavas' kingdom, Draupadi strongly supports the call for the Kurukshetra War, recalling the humiliations and assaults she had suffered and demanding punishment for her culprits. Although the Kauravas are slain, the war also leads to the deaths of her father, brothers, and her five sons. These sons—each born to one of the Pandavas—are collectively known by the matronymic Draupadeyas. After the Pandavas' victory, she becomes the empress of the Kuru Kingdom for thirty-six years. In the epic's conclusion, Draupadi joins the Pandavas on their final journey toward heaven, during which she is the first to fall.

Draupadi is a significant figure in Hindu and Indian culture, particularly noted for her beauty, courage, devotion, intelligence, resilience and rhetorical skills. She is also extolled as one of the panchakanya (five virgins), archetypes of female chastity whose names are believed to dispel sin when recited. Mediaeval classical literature introduces several new narratives centred on Draupadi, including her untied hair and the vow to wash her hair with Dushasana's blood as a symbol of revenge. In some parts of the sub-continent, a sect of Draupadi exists, where she is worshipped as a goddess. Her story has been an inspiration for various arts, performances and secondary literature.