Shakuni: The Tale Of Epic Revenge

Who was Shakuni?

We all know the character of Shakuni Mama in Mahabharat as the one whose sole purpose was to bring the downfall of Hastinapur. His clever strategy resulted in the destruction of all Kuru-clan (Kuruvansh). Shakuni cleverly made Pandavas lose against Kauravas in the game of Shatranj. Moreover, the immense amount of destruction that it brought forth was all credited to Shakuni. This was Shakuni role in Mahabharat.

So, let’s take a dive into what made Shakuni the sworn enemy of all Kuru-vansh.

How it all began?

As per the texts of Maharashtra, Shakuni is the personification of Dwapar Yuga, the third yuga as per Hindu Mythology. He was the son of the king of Gandhara, Subala and was one of the most promising sons of the king. Also, he had many wonderful brothers and a beautiful sister named Gandhari.

As Gandhari became young, her kundali or astrological chart, was made as per Hindu traditions. The acharyas, after assessing her chart, came to the conclusion that Gandhari’s husband would die soon after marriage. This problem was unique but not irreparable.

The astrologers suggested to King Subala that Gandhari should be married to a goat first. Therefore, the king, along with his sons, married off the princess to a goat as advised and then sacrificed the goat. The princess was free of the ill effects of her birth chart and now was ready to be married off.

Gandhari and King Dhritrashtra Gath Bandhan

As her beauty and fame reached far and wide, many alliances came for Gandhari. Among them came the alliance of one of the strongest and most influential kings, King Dhritarashtra, the king of Hastinapur.

The only issue was that he was blind. But Bhishma, Dhritrashtra’s uncle, bought the alliance and refusing them would mean risking the lives of their whole kingdom. Therefore, Gandhari decided to agree to the marriage. The wedding was celebrated with much confidence, and Gandhari went to settle herself in her Hastinapur accompanied by Shakuni.

Why did Bhishma imprison King Sabula and his sons?

After a few days, Bhishma came to know of a rumour about Gandhari. According to this rumour, Gandhari was a widow. Bhishma was very angry with King Sabula, Gndhar Naresh. As he felt cheated. He accused Subala of marrying off their ‘widowed’ daughter to Dhritarashta, the king of Hastinapur.

Before the rumour could be cleared by Gandhar-Naresh, Bhishma took the whole family captive, including Shakuni and his brothers. They were sentenced to die in jail for treason. Bhishma kept the entire Gandhar family tortured. Also, they had very little ration to survive. Thus, it was impossible for them to overcome this ordeal. Hence, they would all collect their limited supplies and give it to Shakuni as he was the brightest of them all.

What were King Sabula’s deeds to death?

One by one, all the brothers of Shakuni perished, and as his father, King Subala, came to his last moments, too, he begged Bhishma to free his son. Bhishma took pity and decided to release Shakuni. Simultaneously, his father drew his last breath, but before dying, he did 2 very important deeds that would shape the destiny of Hastinapur:

He broke Shakuni’s leg to always remind him of what Bhishma had done.
Subala advised his son to collect his bones and make dice out of them. These dice would have the curse of Subala in them. Thus, Shakuni would win any gambles played with them.

Shakuni-Mahabharat story begins

After this, the king died, and Shakuni was freed from the prison. His sister took pity on his crippled form and decided that he could stay at Hastinapur. This is where Shakuni devised his plan to bring the ruins to Hastinapur. His target was the young and volatile prince Dushhasan. He poisoned the mind of the young Kaurav, pitting the brothers against their own cousins, Pandavas.

Shakuni ka Shatranj

Shakuni and his very famous Shatranj were just the beginning of the Maharashtra war. The very game that will make Pandavas lose all their wealth and cause irreparable damage to the prestige of Draupadi. Consequently, Pandavas lost their wealth and were punished to go to exile. Once they had rightfully completed the exile, the Pandavas came back to settle their debts with Kauravas. When they asked for the equal division of the kingdom, it was Shakuni who advised Dushhasan not to relent, leading to the war, Mahabharat.

Conclusion

However, as one dives deeper into the story of Shakuni in Mahabharat, it is easy to note that even the biggest of kingdoms fell with enough cunning. It is also notable that a short temper and naivety can cause one to invite destruction for not just themselves but their whole clan.