Short Story: Draupadi’s Samsara by Sahana Pathak

In this short story, Sahana Pathak tells the tale of Draupadi and the world, as she saw it.

She liked to believe that she had achieved quite a lot within her lifespan. As she walked along the crumbling cliffside, she reflected on some of her proudest moments. She was revered as a formidable queen, and not only because she was the wife of the great Pandavas, but because of her unwavering resolve, and sharp intellect. She had lived a full life from the perspective of most; Her husbands had won the war against their cousins, she had redeemed the honor that had been cruelly stripped from her, and she had owned beautiful palaces, jewels, and gowns galore in her prime.

Her ankle twisted painfully after a wrong step, and she let out a short cry, her husbands barely looked back at her before continuing forward. They all knew why they were on this pathway today, and while it shook Draupadi to her core, she could not sense any fear in her warrior husbands. How would she know whether or not this was her last life? Did she have another reincarnation left, and would she be able to carry the wisdom she had learned in this world to her next one? Would her pain, and the ghosts of the past follow her into every life, or could she freely love and be loved in the next life?