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| E for Eklavya Google Images |
One night, some of the princes happened along the path where Eklavya was practising his archery. Arjuna was amazed at the Nishadh boy’s prowess. Drona followed his students and was equally impressed. But soon, the Acharya’s mind began to play. What if this boy became a better archer than Prince Arjuna? That’s when he decided to ask for Gurudakshina.
Eklavya’s surrender to his Guru was so complete that he agreed to give Dronacharya any Gurudakshina that he sought. He did not even wait to find out what was it that the Acharya sought.
And Drona could not have asked for anything worse. It would have been better if he had asked for Eklavya’s life. The cunning Dronacharya requested Eklavya for his right thumb, the thumb without which the boy would never be able to wield an arrow. Did Eklavya refuse? Of course not. He did not even hesitate before taking out a small knife that he carried in his waistband and cutting off his thumb, presented it to his Guru.
While Dronacharya had done his best to remove Arjuna’s competition, he never foresaw Eklavya’s determination to become a skilled archer. That he became, despite the lack of his thumb. It is proof of his greatness that Eklavya never sought to compete with Arjuna nor did he ever lose respect for his Guru in the process.
Glossary:
Acharya / Guru - Teacher
Gurudakshina - Teacher's fee
Check out some of my favourite bloggers who are also participating in A-Z April Challenge 2015
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Prasanna Rao
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Great story! It's a typical classic tale, and you did a nice job telling it.
ReplyDeleteHumans in that era were also not above manipulating people. So true even today. well narrated Sundari!
ReplyDeleteThank you for stopping by John Holton. Yeah, it is a tale from the Indian epic Mahabharata and this is my take on the scene :)
ReplyDeleteThank you Ruchi! I think manipulating kind of began in that time - Kurukshetra was the beginning of Kali Yuga :)
ReplyDeleteWow. Loss of thumb? Amazing. Glad to meet you through the A to Z challenger!!
ReplyDeleteHi Tammy, welcome to my blog.
ReplyDeleteLovely meeting you here :)
Yeah, it's an ancient tale from the Indian epic - Mahabharatha.
Such an inspiring story. It proves that if you put your mind to a task you can even accomplish the impossible.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely! Thank you for stopping by Prasanna :)
DeleteOne of my favorite characters from the mythology of India :)
ReplyDeleteOkay! :)
DeletePowerful tale, well summarized. One of the few that I actually knew. :-)
ReplyDeleteThank you Devika! That's nice to know. By the time A-Z finishes, you will learn a lot more on Indian Mythology I hope ;)
DeleteIts a good story reminder. I love your theme..
ReplyDeleteThank you for stopping by Ls :)
DeleteThis tale is one that will remain a black spot in the Mahabharata forever, the episode that revealed the weakness of Dronacharya, and his lack of confidence in his star pupil, Arjuna! You have brought it out so simply and lucidly, Sundari!
ReplyDeleteHi Deepti,
DeleteI would say one of the black spots :) Recently been studying the Mahabharatha from many angles all thanks to A-Z. My perceptions as a kid and teenager were very different I realise. I am seeing a lot of glaring greys in all the characters who I believed were good. Onset of the Kali Yuga I guess - all had their weaknesses
And thank you, I am glad you liked my post :)
Even after the Guru asked his thumb, he offered it and didn't stop respecting him! It speaks volumes about Ekalavya :)
ReplyDeleteEntrapped
Very true Swathi! It speaks of Eklavya's greatness as against Dronacharya's terrible treatment of a young man.
DeleteThe write up made me relive the days of watching Mahabharat in Doordarshan :)
ReplyDeleteThank you for visiting Sushree Dash :)
DeleteGreat set of entries for the challenge...I enjoyed reading them.....
ReplyDeleteThank you Shweta :)
DeleteI believe that it was considered one's moral duty to give whatever guru dakshina was asked in those days. But, the fact that Eklavya did not hold a grudge against Drona for this, speaks volumes about his strength of character.
ReplyDelete*Shantala @ ShanayaTales*
I think Eklavya is one of the very few really good people in Mahabharata
DeleteThank you for stopping by Shanaya :)
I guess this tale also shows that inherent talent cannot be supressed any which way...i loved ur take on the story...the little bits of detailing made great reading!
ReplyDeleteThank you Little Princess! Glad you enjoyed my take on the story :D
DeleteI always felt so bad about Ekalavya. So he became a good archer despite his lost thumb? That part of the story was totally inspiring. How can teachers be like Dronacharya? Poor Ekalavya
ReplyDeleteHi Preethi, thank you for stopping by. Yeah, that's how the story goes. That Eklavya became a great archer despite losing his thumb. His level of surrender to his Guru is what his story is about. :)
DeleteEklavya is one story of determination and many of the hidden stories which makes you question the good vs evil. Maybe one of the most gray spots of Mahabharata. There are many like that for if these incidents had not occured maybe Mahabharata would have had another ending.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you Ina. Sadly, Kurukshetra is the beginning of Kali Yuga. The ending could have only got worse. Though I have written a few stories in A-Z with different endings that probably would have changed the course of the Mahabharata. Wishful thinking on my part ;)
DeleteBrilliant, Sundari. This is true wisdom and greatness never lies in competing with others but the self. I love this interpretation and the words of wisdom you injected in your take of this great man called, Eklavya:)
ReplyDeleteThank you vishal :)
DeleteWhat Drona did to Ekalavya is one of the worst injustice in Mahabharata!
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely :)
DeleteEkalavya and Karna were at least two of the characters in Mahabharatha who faced plenty of injustice.But then, I am not sure why Drona did not want Arjuna to have ANY competition. There must have been some strong reason.
ReplyDeleteI suppose teachers get possessive of their students. He wanted Arjuna to be a star and that means no competition. A sick way to deal with things, but we know that's how the story went. Thank you for stopping by Prathima :)
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