Yuyutsu the defector

The mention of the righteous Vikarna or Vidur in Mahabharat invariably brings up the name of Yuyutsu, by association. Like Vikarna, he was one of the sons of Dhritarashtra, the king of Hastinapur. But he was not born to Gandhari, the queen. Rather, like Vidur, he was a Daasi Putra (son of a maid).

It is gathered from Mahabharat that when Gandhari went into labour, it was literally laborious, with the birth of 100 sons and a daughter. So naturally, Dhritarashtra had to seek solace from other women. Kings are anyway supposed to do this and Mahabharat is quite explicit about it and has many such examples. This was an accepted social more then. Yuyutsu was born out of this union. He too grew up with the other Kaurava princes but had a different moral orientation.

Yuyutsu was a moderate who tried to convince Duryodhana but could not stop the war. Just before the battle started on the first day, Yudhisthir approached the assembled Kaurava army and gave a general call to them to choose the side which they really wanted to be in Dharma (Right) or Adharma(wrong). Yuyutsu decided to abandon the Kauravas and defected to the side of Pandavas then and there.

Yuyutsu was also categorised as an Atirath (top-graded warrior) but not much is described about his exploits in the war. It seems he was well protected by the Pandavas and Yudhisthir had a special fondness towards him. He survived the war and in retrospect was the most benefitted from it. He was the warrior who was chosen by the Pandavas to accompany the women and other non-warriors from the Kaurava camp back to the safety of Hastinapur. Thus, he was also the first person to return from the battlefield and meet King Dhritarashtra, his father, after the war.

Yuyutsu was given great importance by Yudhisthir after he assumed the throne of Hastinapur. He was one of his most trusted administrators in the new setup. After the Pandavas proceeded on their last journey leaving their kingdom behind them, he was appointed as the advisor to the newly crowned king Parikshit (son of Abhimanyu, grandson of Arjun).

It may be worthwhile to note that both Vikarna and Yuyutsu were dissenters. But while Vikarna chose to fight for Duryodhan despite his moral stand and died in the war, Yuyutsu chose to side with Yudhisthir, the victor, and prospered. The nearest analogy of this tale of brothers may also be found in Ramayana - where Kumbhakarna fought for Ravana and Vibhishana defected in favour of Shri Ram. But then, that is another story in another setting.

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