Legend of the Virtuous Crane

After getting humiliated and loosing all that they ever had in the game of Dice at the courts of Kauravas, Pandavas were sentenced to 12 years of exile followed by 1 year of Ajnata Vasa (living Incognito).

In the twelve-year exile the Pandavas and their wife Draupadi were never alone. They were constantly accompanied by priests who took them to holy spots and told them sacred stories. Travelling to holy spots and listening to sacred stories were believed to reduce the burden of karmic debts and increase the load of karmic equity. The unlucky Pandavas thus use their long period of exile to clean up their fate.

Pilgrimage is said to be an important part of Hindu spiritual practice. The Mahabharata uses every occasion to list the sacred spots of India and the stories connected with each one. The narration is used to inspire the settled communities to go on pilgrimage sometime in life. Travel, realized the wise men who wrote these great epics, was an important way to widen the outlook of otherwise inward-looking communities. The problem we face the most even in today’s world - resistance to have an open mind.

Coming back to the story, in the twelfth year of exile, the Pandavas came across a Rishi who sought their help. “The sticks that I use to produce fire (Arani)for my rituals were hanging on the branches of a tree. They got entangled in the horns of an antelope. Can you bring them back for me? I am no hunter. But I know the pond where the antelopes goes to drink water every evening.”

Yudhistira ordered Nakula to hunt down the deer and fetch the Arani. On this quest, he reached the lake pointed out by the Rishi. There was no living creature near the lake except a Crane (Baka). Thirsty Nakula went to the lake and wished to drink some water. When he attempted to do so, the Crane spoke: “O Nakula! The water of this lake will turn into poison if you take it without satisfactorily answering my questions.” Nakula didn’t pay any heed to the Crane and drank the water which instantaneously turned into poison and killed him. Sahadeva then came in search of Nakula and went through the same ordeal followed by Arjuna and Bhima. Last came Yudhistira, upon listening to the warning of the Crane and looking at lifeless bodies of his brothers, he realized the Crane held answers to what had happened. He decided to answer the questions. Before putting the questions to Yudhishthira, the crane revealed itself as a Yaksha (Nature-Spirit).

Question 1. The Yaksha asked Yudhisthira, “Who makes the sun rise and ascend in the skies? Who moves the Sun around? Who makes the sun set in the horizons? What is the true nature of the Sun and where is the Sun established”?

Yudhishthira answered, “Brahma makes the sun rise and ascend. The Gods perambulate about the Sun. The Dharma sets the Sun. Truth is the actual Sun and the Sun is established in Truth only”.

Question 2. The Yaksha asked, “What makes a Brahman? What makes a Brahman worth of worship?

Yudhishthira replied, “”Brahman is one who has understanding of the Veda. A Brahmans ability to control their mind makes him worthy of worship.”

Question 3. The Yaksha asked, “What instills divinity in Kshatriyas? What is the quality of virtuosity in a Kshatriya? What is the humanity of a Kshatriya? What is the conduct akin to a non-virtuous person in a Kshatriya”?

Yudhishthira replied, “The art of archery instills divinity in a Kshatriya. Charity is the quality of virtuosity in a Kshatriya. Fear is his humanity. Abandoning people under protection of the Kshatriya is conduct akin to a non-virtuous person in the Kshatriya”.

Question 4. The Yaksha asked, “What is heavier than Earth, higher than heavens, faster than the wind and more numerous than straws”?

Yudhishthira answered, “One’s mother is heavier than the Earth, one’s father is higher than the heavens, the mind is faster than the wind and our worries are more numerous than straws “.

Question 5. The Yaksha asked, “Who is the friend of a traveler? Who is the friend of one who is ill and one who is dying”?

Yudhishthira’s response, “The friend of a traveler is his companion. The physician is the friend of one who is sick and a dying man’s friend is charity”.

Question 6. The Yaksha asked, “What is that which, when renounced, makes one lovable? What is that which is renounced makes happy and wealthy”?

Yudhishthira replied, “Pride, if renounced makes one lovable, renouncing desire one becomes wealthy and to renounce avarice is to obtain happiness”.

Question 7. The Yaksha asked, “What enemy is invincible? What constitutes an incurable disease? What sort of man is noble and what sort is ignoble”?

And Yudhishthira responded, “Anger is the invincible enemy. Greed is a disease that is incurable. He is noble who desires the well-being of all creatures, and he is ignoble who is without mercy”.

Question 8. The Yaksha asked, “Who is truly happy? What is the greatest wonder? What is the path? And what is the news”?

Whereupon Yudhishthira replied, “He who has no debts is truly happy. Day after day countless people die. Yet the living wish to live forever. O Lord, what can be a greater wonder? Argument leads to no certain conclusion, the Srutis are different from one another; there is not even one Rishi whose opinion can be accepted by all. The truth about Dharma and duty is hid in the cave of our hearts, therefore that alone is the path along which the great have walked. This world full of ignorance is like a pan. The sun is fire, the days and nights are fuel. The months and the seasons constitute the wooden ladle. Time is the cook that is cooking all creatures in that pan (with such aids). This is the news”.

Yudhishthira could answer all the many questions put forth by the Yaksha, but although he doubted the real nature of the Yaksha, raising a question in this regard, he received no response. However, at the end of the questions the Yaksha revealed himself to be Yama-Dharma, the god of death, who was none other than Yudhishthira’s father. He also admitted to Yudhishthira that it was he who had stolen the arani disguised in the form of the deer. He blessed him saying since he had adhered to Dharma (righteousness), the Dharma would protect them and no-one would recognize them during the Ajnata Vasa.

I will leave you with this story to ponder on what you can learn from this and what you dare really implement in your life. Humans know a great deal of knowledge these days because of the Internet. What one does with this knowledge is the defining thing.

This story has been picked up from the book Jaya and Wikipedia page of Yaksha Prashna.