Ekalavya’s Tragic Sacrifice: Why The Archer Sliced His Thumb
Ekalavya, a Nishada prince, was one of the best archers who lived in the time of the Pandavas. He is still remembered for his complete dedication as a student and for the shocking Guru Dakshina or offering of his thumb to his teacher or Guru, Drona.
Ekalavya wanted to be the best archer and he wanted to be trained by the best teacher–Drona. Drona, however, refused to teach him because Ekalavya was a Nishada. But a determined Ekalaya wasn’t ready to give up. His actions put to test Drona’s relationship with his most favored student Arjuna. Arjuna did not accept a threat to his position as the best archer around!
Listen to the story on the Stories Of India Retold Podcast–Available on all major podcast apps. (Apple Podcast, Google Podcast, Spotify, Amazon Music, Audible, iHeartRadio, PlayerFM, and others!)
Ekalavya is refused by Drona
Ekalavya was the son of Nishada King, named Hiranyadhanu, who was the general of the very powerful King Jarasandha, the king of Magadha. The term Nishada was used by the Indo-Aryans to identify the indigenous tribes who were not Aryans. They were a fishing and hunting community and lived in the mountains and in the forest.
Ekalavya was ambitious–he wanted to be the best archer he could be, and he wanted to train under the best of the best, who, at the time happened to be Drona. So, Ekalavya went to Drona and asked to be accepted as his student. But Drona turned him down as he was a Nishada and the son of Hiranyadhanu.
Ekalavya Trains On His Own
Disappointed, but unwilling to give up on his dreams, Ekalavya decided to train on his own. He went to the forest, built a statue of Drona from clay and began his training. He worshipped Drona’s statue to derive inspiration for his training and dedicated all his time and efforts into training himself to become an excellent archer.
Was Ekalavya The Best Archer?
One day, the Pandavas went to the forest on a hunting trip. They were accompanied by their servants and a dog. The dog found a stranger and started to bark at him. When the poor dog returned to the Pandavas, they were astonished to see that the dog had 7 arrows in it’s mouth. They realized that this was the work of a skillful archer. Amazed at the individual’s obvious talents, they went in search for him.
The trail led them to a young man. The Pandavas learned from him that he had heard the dog bark at him whilst he was practicing and swiftly shit seven arrows into it’s mouth to make it stop.
Arjuna is Threatened
“Who are you?” the Pandavas asked the young man.
“My name is Ekalavya. I am son of Hiranyadhanu and I am a disciple of Drona.” the young man said.
The Pandavas, especially, Arjuna, were stunned. Drona had promised Arjuna that he would be the best Archer he had ever trained. But it looked like Drona failed to keep his promise because they had never seen anyone as skilled as Ekalavya.
Confused and dissappointed, the Pandavas went to Drona and told him what happened. Arjuna asked him how was it that he had trained a better student when he had promised Arjuna that he would be his best student.
Drona Asks Ekalavya For His Thumb
Drona was confused. He decided to check the situation on his own, accompanied by the Pandavas, he went to visit Ekalavya. After listening to Ekalavya’s explanation, Drona demanded Ekalavya’s thumb as Guru Dakshina or offerring. Without a moment’s hesitation, Ekalavya cut his thumb off of his right hand and offered it to Drona.
This is the story of the brave and talented Ekalavya.
The End
For a more detailed story, listen to the story on the Stories Of India Retold Podcast–Available on all major podcast apps. (Apple Podcast, Google Podcast, Spotify, Amazon Music, Audible, iHeartRadio, PlayerFM, and others!)
Listen to the story to learn more about:
- Why Drona refused to accept Ekalavya as his student.
- Why Arjuna felt threatened by Ekalavya.
- How Ekalavya lost his thumb.
- Later life of Ekalavya.
- Krishna’s role in Ekalavya’s death.
References:
The Mahabharata 1: Complete and Unabridged; translated by Bibek Debroy. (2015). Penguin Random House India. (Original work published 2010)
Images:
Author Sister Nivedita and Ananda Kentish CoomaraswamyIllustrator Nandalal Bose, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Warwick Goble (d. 1943), Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Ramnarayandatt Shastri Pandey, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Unknown artistUnknown artist, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons