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Kathaa - 4-Van (Forest)

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Index of 4-Van

Van (Forest) section gives the description of the days passed by Paandav in forest - 14 years, from the day they leave for exile till they expose themselves to Raajaa Viraat and marry Abhimanyu to Uttaraa.

1. Paandav Leave for Forest - Paandav wear tree bark and deer skin's clothes, greet their elders and start towards forest; Many Rishi also accompany them; Yudhishthir is sorry for them that he cannot feed them because he himself will have to live up on alms but they don't go away; Vyaas suggests him to please Soorya Dev; Soorya Dev pleased with him gives him a pot which is always full of food; Now he can feed those Braahman; Dhritraashtra is not happy after Paandav have left, he calls Vidur and poses his problem; Vidur suggests that he should get Paandav back, but Dhritraashtra gets angry and sends him out of his capital; Vidur visits Yudhishthir, but then Dhritraashtra calls him back from there by sending Sanjaya.

2. Rishi Maitreya Gives Shaap to Dhritraashtra - Rishi Maitreya comes to Hastinaapur and warns Dhritraashtra that he had done a great injustice with his younger brother's sons; Either he should revert it or he will have to face its consequences; Bheem's vows will surely come true.

3. Paandav Go to Dwait Van - Yudhishthir thinks that they should live somewhere where they can spend their time in peace, so they move to Dwait Van; There Yudhishthir is happy in the company of Rishi, but the other five are burning with anger and want war; They express this to Yudhishthir but he asks them to keep patience for which Bheem is not prepared.

4.  Vyaas Advices Paandav to Prepare for War and Kiraataarjun - Vyaas visits Paandav in Dwait Van and advise Yudhishthir to get ready for war; To send Arjun to do Tap to please Shiv to get Paashupat Astra and other Divine Astra ; Then advises him to move to Kaamyak Van again. Yudhishthir moves to Kaamyak Van; Sends Arjun to get Divine Astra; Arjun does Tap to please Shiv, he tests him by assuming the form of a hunter and fighting with him; Arjun is very surprised to find a person stronger than him; Shiv gives him his Darshan and his Paashupat Astra too; Other Devtaa, Yam, Varun, Kuber also give him their weapons; Indra takes him to Heavens.

5. Arjun and Urvashee - Arjun goes to Heavens; He looks at Urvashee and Urvashee looks at Arjun, she falls in love with Arjun and expresses it; But Arjun sees her as his mother, the beloved of his ancestor Pururavaa, so he refuses her offer; Urvashee gives Shaap that he should be a eunuch for his whole life: Indra helps him to reduce it for one year so that he can use it in his Agyaatvaas year; Arjun collects all Divine weapons and learns music and dance; Indra sends Muni Lomash to comfort Paandav.

6. Durvaasaa Rishi and Paandav - One day Durvaasaa Rishi comes to Duryodhan with his disciples; He welcomes them and sends them to Paandav to bless them also; Rishi tells Yudhishthir to take food after they have taken bath, but by then Draupadee doesn't have any food; She is worried that Krishn saves her from Muni's anger.

7. Yudhishthir's Teerth Yaatraa - Rishi Vyaas comes to Yudhishthir and suggests him to go for Teerth Yaatraa (pilgrimage); All go to Teerth Yaatraa from down south to west then north; In north they come to Badree Van and wait there for Arjun to come on Prithvi from Swarg after five years.

8. Bheem Meets Hanumaan - Once Draupadee sees a flower and requests Bheem to bring more of such flowers; Bheem goes in search of them that he comes up on a place where a monkey is sitting spreading his tail across the road; He politely requests him to move his tail as he wouldn't like to cross it over, but the monkey insists that if he has to go further he may move his tail himself; Bheem tries his best but he cannot even shake it; Then he asks monkey's introduction, the monkey says that he is Hanumaan, his elder brother; Both talks to each other, Hanumaan wants to give something to Bheem,, Bheem just says "If you are pleased then be with us"; Hanumaan says that he will sit on Arjun's chariot's flag and encourage him to fight; Both depart and Bheem comes to Kuber's garden to take flowers, Yudhishthir also comes there; Both are welcomed by kuber; Both come back to their Aashram.

9. Arjun Comes Back to Prithvi - After some time Arjun comes back on Prithvi and tells many stories of Swarg - about his meeting the Kiraat, getting Divine Astra, Urvashee's Shaap, learning of music and dance from Chitrasen etc etc.

10. Bheem Meets Raajaa Nahush - One day Bheem goes for preying, that he comes across to a huge python; He had never seen such a huge python, he catches him in his coil; Bheem tries to release himself from his grip but in vain; He asks him as who he is because no beast has never defeated him like this, he must be somebody else; Python introduces himself as Raajaa Nahush and tell him the story about Agastya's Shaap because of which he was in this condition; Then he tells that he will be released from this Shaap when he had caught the most powerful man of the Earth and a king of Chandra family will answer all of his questions on ethics; Yudhishthir comes there in search of Bheem, answers the python's questions and gets his brother released; Python is also released from his Shaap.

11. Duryodhan's Ghosh Yaatraa -  When Duryodhan hears that Arjun has come back from Swarg with all kinds of Divine Astra, he gets worried; But Karn assures him and suggests him to go to near Dwait Van where they were living to harass them and insult them; Duryodhan, Dushaasan, Karn and Shakuni go there along with their women and army. Duryodhan picks up a quarrel with a Gandharv; Gandharv captures Duryodhan; Some soldiers panic and in panic they go to Yudhishthir and tell everything; Yudhishthir sends his brothers to get him released; Arjun gets him released because that Gandharv, Chitrasen, was his friend and Guru; Arjun asks him to release Duryodhan but Chitrasen says that he will release him only in front of Yudhishthir; He does so, Yudhishthir is grateful to Chitrasen, and Duryodhan goes away from there embarrassed and insulted.

12. Duryodhan Feels Embarrassed - Duryodhan is so much embarrassed that he wants to commit suicide; But Karn, Dushaasan and Shakuni comfort him and stop him to do so; Then he performs Raajsooya Yagya with the help of Karn.

13. Draupadee and Jayadrath - Once Jayadrath sees Draupadee, is attracted to her so abducts her; Paandav know about it through Rishi Dhaumya; They follow him and get her released; Arjun and Bheem catch him, beat him and disfigure his head; Yudhishthir frees him; Because of this insult he doesn't go home, does Tap for Shiv, and gets a Var to defy Paandav without Arjun and Krishn only on one day.

14. Maarkandeya Muni Comes Again - This time Maarkandeya Muni tells Yudhishthir Raam and Saavitree's stories.

15. Yudhishthir and Yaksh - Once helping a Brahman for his sacrificial firewood, Paandav feel thirsty; But all four younger brothers die on a lakeshore while bringing water from there; In the last Yudhishthir goes and answers a Yaksh's questions to get his brothers back.

16. Yaksh's Questions 1 - Lists his 32 questions.

17. Yaksh's Questions 2 - Lists his 37 questions.

18. Preparation for Agyaatvaas - Everybody is prepared for Agyaatvaas in his own way; Duryodhan, Karn, Shakuni, Gaandhaaree are preparing in their own way; Krishn is preparing in His own way; And Paandav are preparing in their own way; They chose their names and professions working for Raajaa Viraat.

19. Agyaatvaas Begins - All Paandav and Draupadee go to Raajaa Viraat one by one; They are accepted there and start their work.

20. During Agyaatvaas - Wrestling Match - A wrestler challenges in Raajaa Viraat's court; Yudhishthir suggests Bheem's name and Bheem accepts his challenge; In the last Bheem kills him.

21. Karn's Dream - Soorya Dev, Karn's father, comes in his dream and warns him of Indra who is going to come next day in the form of a beggar to ask for his Kavach and Kundal, that he should never give these things away; Those things were the protector of his life, but Karn stays on his vow and refuses to obey him; At this Soorya says to ask Indra's Power in exchange of his Kavach and Kundal; Karn doesn't reply to that and asks his blessings to fulfill his vow.

22. Indra Begs Karn - Next day as Soorya had said to Karn, Indra comes to Karn and begs his Kavach and Kundal; Karn first asks Him to ask anything else in exchange of that, but Indra is adamant to take them only; Karn gives him his life and gets His Shakti (Power) knowingly fully well that it will not work on Arjun.

23. Agyaatvaas Comes to an End 1 - Shakuni feels happy that Paandav's Agyaatvaas could not be broken so his wish that the whole Kaurav family is destroyed is going to fulfill through war; Karn is happy that he will be able to show his art of archery in war against Arjun; Although he knows that his Guru's Shaap, giving his Kavach and Kundal to Indra in alms will work against him.

24. Keechak Vadh - Viraat's queen Sudeshnaa's brother Keechak gets attracted to Draupadee; She warns him of her five mighty Gandharv husbands, but he doesn't listen to her and molests her; Sudeshnaa works as a mediator in this; Draupadee complaints to Raajaa Viraat but he cannot help her; She tells Sudeshnaa that now Keechak will not live for long; She talks to Bheem and Bheem kills Keechak; Keechak's brothers try to kill Draupadee but Bheem kills them also; Sudeshnaa is very upset at this and asks her to go away from there but Draupadee begs her to stay there just for a few days more.

25. Duryodhan Attacks Matsya Desh - As Keechak is killed, this news reaches Hastinaapur; Keechak was one of the four mightiest warriors - Balraam, Bheem, Shalya and Keechak, who were greater than Indra in strength and power; "So only Bheem has killed Keechak", with this notion Duryodhan attacks Viraat Nagar; Susharmaa from southern side and next day Duryodhan from northern side; Susharmaa is defeated and is released at Yudhishthir's advice.

26. Arjun is Exposed - As per their plan, next day Duryodhan attacks Matsya Desh from its northern side; Only Uttar, Viraat's younger son, was there so he had to come to fight; Draupadee sends Arjun as his Saarathee; First he boasts about himself but as he sees Kaurav army he runs away from the battlefield; Somehow Arjun brings him back assuring that he himself will fight with the army, he just has to be his Saarathee; Drone recognizes Arjun, so Duryodhan gets happy that now he will be able to send them to Van again for 13 years.

27. Arjun Gets Ready for Fight - Arjun goes to the Shamee tree on which their weapons are kept; He takes out his weapons and proceeds to battlefield; Uttar is greatly surprised to see all this; He asks about those weapons, Arjun tells that they are of Paandav, he again asks "then how can you use them?", Arjun says "because I am Arjun"; Uttar does not believe this and says "if you are Arjun then tell me his ten names and the reasons for them"; Arjun removes his doubts by telling his ten names and their reasons.

28. Kaurav Get Ready for Fight - As Drone declares that Arjun is coming, Karn gets happy that now he has got the opportunity to kill him; Drone explains him that he can never even defeat Arjun let alone kill him, so he should stay within himself; Then he divides his army in four parts, one part goes with Duryodhan to Hastinaapur, the second part will take cows and the other two will stay with them to fight; Arjun understands this arrangement.

29. Arjun Kaurav Fight - Arjun greets his elders and asks their permission to fight through his arrows; He notices that Duryodhan is nowhere to be seen, then he finds him going towards Hastinaapur; He follows him and defeats everybody including Karn, Drone, Ashwatthaamaa on his way and catches Duryodhan; He defeats him too; Then he makes all Kaurav army faint, takes their clothes and jewels and comes back to Viraat Nagar.

30. Yudhishthir's Blood - Viraat comes back after defeating Susharmaa and he hears about Uttar and Brihannalaa gone to fight with Kaurav army; Viraat gets worried hearing this because he does not trust Brihannalaa at all, but Yudhishthir assures him that if Brihannalaa is his Saarathee, he need not to worry at all; Arjun sends news of Uttar's victory to Viraat through some people coming to town; Raajaa gets very happy to hear about his son, but Yudhishthir said, "I told you when Brihannalaa is there you need not to worry."; Viraat sits to play dice game in celebration of Uttar's victory; Yudhishthir again praises Brihannalaa, so Viraat throws the dice at his head which causes bleeding, but Sairandhree collects that blood in a bowl and doesn't let it fall; Arjun doubts Yudhishthir's behavior with him and threatens him to kill Viraat and his family, but Yudhishthir stops him doing so.

31. Paandav Expose Themselves - Paandav expose themselves to Viraat; Viraat asks pardon for his misbehavior done so far; He requests Arjun to marry his daughter but Arjun accepts her for his son Abhimanyu; Duryodhan sends a message that Paandav will have to go exile again as one of the Paandav was seen before their 13th year expired; Yudhishthir replies that if Bheeshm confirms this then they will go again for it; Abhimanyu and Uttaraa get married.

 

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Created by Sushma Gupta On 03/09/02
Contact: sushmajee@yahoo.com
Modified on 11/18/10