In this episode of Mahabharata, Jayadrath, stinging from his defeat and humiliation at the hands of the Pandavas, gets two boons that may protect him from them, and may help him defeat them.
Meanwhile, Yudhistir gets to save the day as a yaksha (spirit) incapacitated all of his brothers, and threatens him with a riddle. The Pandavas make plans for how to spend the year incognito. Arjun laughingly suggests that Bhim become a cook, Nakul decides to work in a stable tending horses, Sahadev decides to become a cowherd while Draupadi suggests that Yudhistir join a royal court as an advisor. But what will Arjun do? The Pandavas don’t know of his music and dance training, nor his curse of impotence.
Abhimanyu duels (and defeats) the General of Dwarka’s army, Kritvarma to be considered a Warrior. Duryodhan’s spies try to close in on the Pandavas so as to discover their incognito identities on day one, and consign them to twelve more years in exile, but Arjun fires an arrow that conjures up a thick fog, allowing them to give Duryodhan’s spies the slip.
Tropes found here are
- Chekhov's Skill: Turns our, all Pandavas have one to help them live a year incognito. Bhim is a chef, Yudhistir can pass for a court advisor, Nakul loves tending horses in a stable, while Sahadev can herd cows. Arjun can be a singing, dancing eunuch but no one knows this yet.
- I'll Kill You!: A furious Duryodhan demands that his spies somehow find the Pandavas, or they will be used as targets for Duryodhan to practice mace combat on.
- The Penance: Jayadrath is meditating on Lord Shiva. Is he doing this as repentance for kidnapping Draupadi? Not!! He is doing this to be given a weapon with which to defeat the Pandavas.
- Please Spare Him, My Liege!: The “yaksha” allows Yudhistir to choose only one of his brothers to be resurrected. Yudhistir pleads for Nakul to be saved, so that both Kunti and Madri have one son alive. This is actually a Secret Test of Yudhistir’s compassion and selflessness.
- The Reveal: The “yaksha” was actually Yama, the God of Death and Yudhistir’s divine father.
- Riddling Sphinx: A yaksha spirit demands that thirsty Pandavas answer his questions before they can drink from a random stream. If they drink without his permission, or fail his riddles, they will die. Nakul, Sahadev, Arjun and then Bhim arrogantly drink from the stream and pass out. Only Yudhistir attempts to solve the riddles. The riddles however, aren’t brain teaser puzzles, they are instead a philosophical pop quiz.
- Rite of Passage: A teenage Abhimanyu must defeat Kritvarma in a (non fatal) sword duel, to be accepted as a Warrior Prince.
- Secret Test of Character: The whole riddle and dead brothers situation was a test by Yama to see if Yudhistir had still maintained his ethics, virtue, intelligence and compassion during these twelve years in exile.
- Smoke Out: Arjun fires an elemental arrow to generate a thick fog which they use to decamp from Duryodhan’s spies, to parts unknown.
