A Story of Dvapar Yuga in Prose ( part 23 B)
By Lokanath Mishra:
Shakuni’s Escape and Duryodhana’s Big Mistake
One morning, a maid named Damayanti came to give water to Shakuni, who was kept in a lonely prison. But she looked sad.
Shakuni asked, “Why are you unhappy?”
Damayanti said,
“Today King Duryodhana smiled under a banyan tree. I smiled back. He asked me why he was smiling. I didn’t know the answer. He said if I cannot tell him tomorrow, he will send me to prison!”
Shakuni thought for a moment and told her,
“Go tomorrow and say: ‘The king laughed after thinking how a big banyan tree comes from a tiny seed.’”
Damayanti didn’t understand, but she trusted him.
The next morning, Duryodhana was surprised by her clever answer. He asked how she knew it. Soon he discovered that Shakuni was still alive in the old prison.
When Duryodhana opened the gate, he saw a weak man with long hair and torn clothes—but it was his uncle Shakuni. Feeling guilty, he touched Shakuni’s feet and took him to the palace. Shakuni was bathed, dressed, fed, and made the Chief Minister of Hastinapura.
But Shakuni’s heart carried anger. Gandhari, his sister, warned her son Duryodhana not to trust him blindly. But Duryodhana didn’t listen. He brought into his court the very person who would one day bring terrible trouble for him and the Kuru family.
The Birth of Dwarka, Krishna’s New City
Meanwhile, far away, Sage Narada came to meet Krishna with worrying news.
A mighty warrior named Kalayavana, blessed so that weapons could not harm him, was marching with a huge army. He wanted to fight a powerful enemy—and Narada told him about Krishna.
Krishna knew Mathura was already suffering from Jarasandha’s repeated attacks. If Kalayavana also attacked, the people would not survive.
Sage Narada said,
“If you want to move your people somewhere safe, I can call Vishwakarma, the heavenly architect.”
Krishna agreed.
Vishwakarma suggested building a new city near the seashore, but for that, the ocean needed to move back. Krishna sent a message to Varuna, the Sea God, who moved the waters away.
On that new land, Vishwakarma built a shining, beautiful city—Dwarka—a safe home for Krishna and the people of Mathura. It stood like a jewel on the western coast of India.
( to be continued)
A Story of Dvapar Yuga in Prose
A Story We Don’t Talk About