As the Kaurava and Pandava princes grew up and finished their education, it was time for them to take up official duties. Yudhisthir being the eldest as also the son of Pandu the previous king was made the Yuvaraj (king in waiting). Dhritarashtra was not too eager about it but he could do nothing much about it as all the ministers and senior advisors like Bhishma, Vidur, Drona were in support of Yudhishthir. But this made Duryodhan very unhappy and he started devising ways to remove the Pandavas out of his way. His coterie comprising of friend Karna, uncle Sakuni, and brother Dushasan held a consultation together.
Then Duryodhana met his father and asked him to banish the Pandavas to the town of Varanavat to curb their growing influence on the people and the courtiers. He explained that after getting the administration firmly in his grip, the Pandavas may be brought back to Hastinapur, by which time they will not be able to challenge Duryodhan anymore. To dispel the doubts of his father about the reaction of the seniors in court, Duryodhan further explained that Bhishma would be neutral and as Ashwatthama was his friend, Drona would be on his side. Kripa had to be on the side on which Drona and Ashwatthama are as he would never abandon them. About the loyalty of Vidur, Duryodhan was not sure but thought him to be of no consequence. Dhritarashtra had his doubts but gave in, as always to his son whom he loved obsessively.
Thereafter Duryodhana, along with his brothers began to gradually win over the people to his side by grants of wealth and honours. Meanwhile, some clever councillors, instructed by Dhritarashtra, started praising Varanavat as a charming place. This made the Pandavas desirous of visiting the place. Dhritarashtra was happy to hear this and he himself pressed upon the Pandavas to visit the place and stay there as long as they wanted. Yudhishthir could guess that the king wanted them out of the way but being of gentle nature agreed to it. Then taking leave from the elders in the court and family, the Pandavas set out for Varanavat with their mother.
Meanwhile Duryodhan called one of his henchmen Purochan and confided in him about a plan to kill the Pandavas at Varnavat. He asked Purochan reach Varnavat before the Pandavas and use his clever mind to build a palace for them. Only, the palace was to be made of hemp, resin and other inflammable materials. Then plaster the walls with a mixture of little mud with clarified butter, oil, fat and a large quantity of lac. Thus, the house should be ready to be burnt on ignition but not noticeable even by scrutiny. Then place all amenities inside the mansion and welcome the Pandavas there to take up their dwelling. All this was to be managed without anybody, either in Hastinapur or Varnavat having even an inkling of it.
Saluting Duryodhan, Purochan at once proceeded to Varnavat to arrange for the devious setup to ensure that the Pandavas were exterminated from the face of earth with a fiery death by burning inside a house on fire. Reaching there, without loss of time, he set upon obediently to fulfill the instructions of Duryodhan and build the customised Jatugriha (House of fire) for the Pandavas.
(coming up next – how Vidur warned and helped the Pandavas)
No comments:
Post a Comment