Reading Notes: "Draupadi, the Fire-Born Princess" Part A

Draupadi: The Fire-Born Princess [Graphic Novel on Reserve]
                 Part A, Pages 1-31

Draupadi Graphic Novel Cover Page. Source: Indian Epics Blog

POV: Third person
Summary:

• Starts off at the beginning where Draupadi and her mans dem (the Pandavas) are trekking up the mountain for their Mahaprasthana; as Draupadi climbs she tells the story of her life, remembering Krishna first and then starting from the very beginning (before she was even born)
• She tells the story of Bheeshma, born to Ganga and the king, and how he took his oath in front of the gods; in this version, both Dhritarashtra and Pandu are the sons of Bheeshma's half brother (interesting)
• Next the story of Pandu being crowned and here it is said that Dhritarashtra has growing resentment for his brother because he is crowned instead of him;
• The story of the Gandhari, Kunti and Madri, the wives of the two brothers and then the mothers of the next generation who will also give birth the great war; in this Yud is born to Kunti from Dharma, god of righteous (which perhaps explains more of his personality and being noble and seeking peace at every turn later on in the Mahabharata)
• Now the story of the Pandavas and their one hundred cousins unfolds, where the rivalry grows throughout their respective childhoods; of course, the Pandavas tend to best them at every turn, which only makes the Kauravas even more hateful
• The 105 children are trained by Dronacharya (long for Drona), who favours Arjuna of all the children; here the hatred for Arjuna is fostered in Ashwatthama, Drona's son and he forms an alliance with Duryodhana in their mutual hatred for the Pandavas
• Although Yud was the eldest, King Dhritarashtra still refused to give up his throne (here he is portrayed as more greedy and selfish, taking his own actions towards dethroning and dishonouring the Pandavas instead of just being swayed by his evil first born Duryodhana)
• We see an introduction to Karna, who until the end in this version, is unknown as the eldest brother to the Pandavas; Karna is aligned with Duryodhana, and this is paralleled with Krishna's alignment with the Pandavas
• Here, Draupadi tells of her deep friendship with Krishna, who predicts her destiny-and her struggles;
• The story of the Pandavas continues, with the small plot of barren land they are given that they turn into a prosperous kingdom, the jealousy of Duryodhana and then the game of dice that Yud loses all in
• When Draupadi is brought before the court, now supposed to be a 'servant' she retells her story of how she came to be the wife of the Pandavas:
• When her father was beaten and brought before Drona by the Pandavas, he vowed to get revenge and prayed to the gods to bless him with a son to kill Drona and a daughter to marry Arjuna
• She and her brother were born of the flames; she was called "lotus-eyed" and "bewitching" and was given many names including Krishnaa (as good friend and devotee of Krishna), Panchali (as princess of Panchala) and Draupadi (as daughter of Drupada)
• She is said to be the woman who will cause the destruction of all evil Kshatriyas (the Kauravas)

Draupadi and the Pandavas. Source: Wikimedia Commons

Reference: Draupadi: The Fire-Born Princess, Saraswati Nagpal. [Printed Graphic Novel]