It is very important for the Kshatriyas, that is the warrior clan, to be proficient in archery and sword fencing. We already know that the Pandavas and the Kauravas were being brought up together by Ehishma. He always showed keen interest in their education and proficiency in warfare. He therefore wanted the best among the tutors to t rain Pandavas and Kauravas in archery and sword fighting.
One day, all the princes were playing the ball game together and the ball fell into a dilapidated well. How to take out the ball was their problem. Just at that time, they spotted a Brahmin. He was a thin person, but his bright eyes and the glow on his face indicated a brilliant man. The Brahmin listened to the children and said in a teasing voice, “You are from a warrior clan and still you do not know how to take out the ball from the well!” The children were surprised. What is the relationship between the ball and the warrior clan, they wondered. They raised this doubt with the Brahmin. He replied, “Let me show you.”
The Brahmin was not an ordinary person. He pulled out a blade of gross and after chanting a mantra, threw it into the well. The gross hit the ball with a lot of force and the ball bounced out of the well. The princes realised that he was an extraordinary man. They wanted to know his name. But the Brahmin smiled and said, “Go to your grandfather Bhishma and narrate this incident to him. He will know who I am.”
It didn’t take long for Bhishma to know the identity of this Brahmin. He was none other than Dronacharya. Bhishma knew that no one could match Drona’s skill in archery in the whole county. So, Bhishma hastened to meet Dronacharya and appointed him as the tutor for‘the princes. All the princes felt
happy and proud that they were Dronacharya’s disciples.
Among all the princes, Arjun was Dronacharya’s favourite disciple. Arjun always aimed his bow very well. He always respected his Guru. And though the other princes received good training from their master, it was Arjun who excelled himself in archery.
Previously Drona had a friend by name Drupada. They were fellow students under Bharadhwaja. Drupada the prince of Panchala had promised Drona that in proof of their true friendship, he would share his kingdom with Drona when he ascended the throne.
After completing his education, Drona married Kripacharya’s sister. A son was born to the couple and he was named as Ashwathama. To ensure a good life for his son, Drona decided to employment under a king. He then remembered Drupada and also recalled his promise about sharing the kingdom. But when he went to meet Drupada, a rude shock awaited him. Drupada refused to recognise him. “I do not know who you are,” he said. “People will laugh if you say you are a friend of mine, because you are a beggar and I am the king.” Drona, a great scholar and a great warrior felt very humiliated., He did not want to stay there even for a moment. He went straight to Kripacharya and poured out all his anguish to him.
Ever since this incident, Drona waited for an opportunity to teach a lesson for Drupada’s arrogance. With brave Arjun, with Duryodhana who was good at the mace, with the powerful Bhima and with courageous Yudhistira as students, Drona felt that the time was right for him to seek his revenge against Drupada. So, first of all, he ordered Duryodhana to wage a war against the Panchala king and drag him by the hair through the battlefield. But Duryodhana was no match for Drupada and was easily defeated by him. Disappointed, Drona entrusted this task to Arjun.
It did not take long for Aijun to defeat Drupada. He imprisoned the king and produced him before Drona. Drupada felt punished. All the insults that he had heaped on Drona flashed through his mind. He stood before Drona with a bowed head.
Since Drupada was defeated in the war. Drona had the right to claim the entire kingdom as his own. But he was an unselfish person. So he told Drupada, “My friend, let one half of the kingdom be with you. I will retain the other half so that both of us can be equals. Then you will have no hesitation in accepting me as your friend.”
This generous attitude of Drona made Drupada feel all the more humiliated. But instead of being grateful to him, a feeling of revenge grew strong in Drupada. He craved for a son who would be able to kill Drona.
