Author: samrudhi

Amba, reborn as Shikhandini, the daughter of Drupada, was born to fulfil her revenge against Bhishma.

Her birth prophesied that she would live her life as a woman for a period of time and would later turn into a man. Drupada thus raised Shikhandini as Shikhandi, a boy, and she was wedded to the daughter of Hiranyavarman.

Soon, Shikhandi’s wife realised that Shikhandi was not a man. King Hiranyavarman, angered by how Drupada had deceived them, waged a war against Drupada.

Saddened by her parents’ problems, Shikhandini built a funeral pyre to commit suicide in the forest. A Yaksha named Stunakarna came across her and enquired about her.

After hearing Shikhandini’s plight, Stunakarna offered to exchange genders for a period of time, and they exchanged their gender.

Shikhandini became a man, and Stunakarna became a Sthuni, a woman.

Loved this story? Read it in the book!
This story is a part of my published book, Epic Tales with Samrudhi.

To get your copy, feel free to mail me at hello@samrudhikadam.in

Ekalavya, the son of the Nishadha chief, offered his right thumb to Dronacharya as Guru Dakshina and as a result, he harboured hatred towards the Yadavas and other allies of the Pandavas.

Despite Ekalavya’s disability, he was brave and was also strong enough to defeat the Pandavas.

Krishna, foreseeing a danger, had to kill Ekalavya in order to protect Dharma, as he would have joined hands with the Kauravas in the future, which could have eventually led to the defeat of the Pandavas.

To prevent this, Krishna killed Ekalavya, and praised him for his bravery and archery skills, despite his disability.

Loved this story? Read it in the book!
This story is a part of my published book, Epic Tales with Samrudhi.

To get your copy, feel free to mail me at hello@samrudhikadam.in

After the completion of the yajna (sacrificial fire), the sages Yaja and Upayaja invited Prishati to consume the sacrificial offering. However, Prishati, who was chewing saffron paste, refused and asked them to wait until she had bathed and washed her mouth.

Seeing Prishati abruptly leave the yajna, Sage Yaja fumed with anger and poured the entire sacrificial offering into the fire. The flames blazed brightly, as if something were emerging from them.

A young man, clad in radiant armor and holding weapons in his hands, emerged from the fire. A divine celestial voice proclaimed that he was born to slay Dronacharya, and the Brahmanas named him Dhrishtadyumna, meaning “bold with glory.”

Loved this story? Read it in the book!
This story is a part of my published book, Epic Tales with Samrudhi.

To get your copy, feel free to mail me at hello@samrudhikadam.in

After the Kuru princes demonstrated their skills, it was time for them to pay gurudakshina to Dronacharya.

Dronacharya, who wanted to avenge himself against the King of Panchala, Drupada, asked the Kuru princes to seize him and bring him captive.

The Kauravas and Pandavas together went to defeat Drupada, the King of Panchala. Arjuna captured Drupada and brought him to Dronacharya.

Dronacharya reminded Drupada of their old friendship and the promise that Drupada had once made.

Dronacharya, then annexed half of the Panchala kingdom, as promised, and crowned Ashwatthama as the King of the annexed territory.

Loved this story? Read it in the book!
This story is a part of my published book, Epic Tales with Samrudhi.

To get your copy, feel free to mail me at hello@samrudhikadam.in

A young man named Karna interrupted Dronacharya and claimed that the declaration Dronacharya had made was false.

He then requested permission to demonstrate his skills, and with Drona’s approval, he performed. The crowd went berserk with amazement. Kunti, who was among the audience, recognized Karna as her son, whom she had once abandoned.

Later, Karna challenged Arjuna to a duel, but he was stopped by Kripacharya, who questioned him about his background. Karna revealed that he was the son of the charioteer Adhiratha and his wife Radha. Since he was a Suta (son of a charioteer), he was deemed unworthy to fight against a Kshatriya.

Loved this story? Read it in the book!
This story is a part of my published book, Epic Tales with Samrudhi.

To get your copy, feel free to mail me at hello@samrudhikadam.in

After 13 years, the Kuru princes had finally completed their training under Dronacharya. To showcase their talents, Dronacharya organized a grand tournament. Everyone from Hastinapur gathered to witness the event, including Dhritarashtra, Gandhari, Kunti, and Bhishma.

Each Kuru prince had specialized in a particular weapon of warfare. Yudhishthira excelled in the use of the spear, Arjuna in archery, Sahadeva in the sword, and Nakula in the axe. Bhima and Duryodhana, excelled in the use of the mace.

One by one, the princes demonstrated their skills. Soon, Bhima and Duryodhana began a mock fight, which escalated into a serious duel, which was stopped by Ashwatthama upon Dronacharya’s order.

Loved this story? Read it in the book!
This story is a part of my published book, Epic Tales with Samrudhi.

To get your copy, feel free to mail me at hello@samrudhikadam.in

The child Kunti had placed in a basket was found by Radha, the wife of Adhiratha, a charioteer, who raised Karna as their own son.
Karna was initially trained by Dronacharya alongside the Kuru princes, but Dronacharya refused to teach him the Brahmastra, the divine celestial weapon, as Karna wished to outshine Arjuna. Karna left Dronacharya’s ashram and went to Parashurama.
Since Parashurama taught only Brahmins and Kshatriyas, Karna lied that he was a Brahmin and was trained by Parashurama.

One day, while Parashurama was asleep on Karna’s lap, an insect stung Karna. He endured the pain and did not move in order not to disturb his guru while he slept.

When Parashurama woke up and saw the blood, he questioned Karna, who explained that an insect had stung him.

Loved this story? Read it in the book!
This story is a part of my published book, Epic Tales with Samrudhi.

To get your copy, feel free to mail me at hello@samrudhikadam.in

Ekalavya was the son of a Nishadha chief. He requested Dronacharya to train him, but Dronacharya refused, as Ekalavya belonged to a tribe and could not be trained alongside the Kuru princes.

Determined to learn archery, Ekalavya made a clay idol of Dronacharya to supervise him during his training.

One day, while Dronacharya was bathing in a river, he was attacked by a crocodile. Arjuna shot five arrows at the crocodile, saving Dronacharya’s life. Dronacharya promised Arjuna that he would make him the greatest archer.

Later, while Ekalavya was training, a dog belonging to the Kuru princes kept barking and disturbing him. Ekalavya skillfully shot arrows into the dog’s mouth without causing it any injury.

Loved this story? Read it in the book!
This story is a part of my published book, Epic Tales with Samrudhi.

To get your copy, feel free to mail me at hello@samrudhikadam.in

All the Kuru princes had excelled in various weapons used in warfare, and Arjuna had mastered the art of archery.
One day, Dronacharya summoned the Kuru princes and challenged them to shoot the eye of a wooden bird placed on a tree.
Yudhisthira went first. Dronacharya asked him, “What do you see?” Yudhisthira replied that he could see the tree, the branch, the bird, and the surroundings. Hearing this, Dronacharya stopped him and asked the next disciple to step forward.
Each prince who came forward gave similar answers and each was sent away by Dronacharya, as he was not satisfied by the answer the princes gave.

Loved this story? Read it in the book!
This story is a part of my published book, Epic Tales with Samrudhi.
To get your copy, feel free to mail me at hello@samrudhikadam.in

Dronacharya left Drupada’s kingdom and vowed to take revenge against him. Kripacharya, the brother of Kripi and the guru of Dhritarashtra, suggested to Dronacharya that he should seek employment in Hastinapur.

Dronacharya agreed, and, along with his family and Kripacharya, left for Hastinapur.

After reaching Hastinapur, Drona encountered the Kuru princes and helped them retrieve their ball from a well by tying together stalks of grass.

When Bhishma found out about this, he was impressed and appointed Dronacharya as the guru of the Kuru princes (the Kauravas and the Pandavas).

Dronacharya agreed to train the Kuru princes on the condition that, after their training, they would defeat the King of Panchala, Drupada, as Guru Dakshina.

Loved this story? Read it in the book!
This story is a part of my published book, Epic Tales with Samrudhi.

To get your copy, feel free to mail me at hello@samrudhikadam.in