Yaksha Prashna

The best time to learn is now.

Here is a beautiful subhashita, relevant during this lockdown – 

क्षणशः कणशश्चैव विद्यामर्थं च साधयेत् ।
क्षणत्यागे कुतो विद्या कणत्यागे कुतो धनम् ॥

Knowledge must be gained through minute by minute efforts. Wealth must be collected from every minute resource. If you waste time, how can you gain the knowledge? If you neglect the resources, how can you accumulate wealth?

Against this background, we start a daily series on the Yaksha Prashna. 

The Yaksha Prashna are found in chapter 312 and 313 of the Vana Parva in the Mahabharata. When the Pandavas lose the play of dice against the Kauravas, they are sent into exile for thirteen years. During this time, they live in the forest and travel from one place to another. One day while they are roaming in the forest, they become thirsty. Yudhishtira the eldest of all brothers orders the youngest of all brothers, Sahadeva, to look for water and bring it to them while they rest under a tree. Sahadeva comes across a lake nearby. He decides to quench his thirst before carrying water back to his brothers. As he is about to drink the water, he hears a voice, “Stop! I am the owner of this lake. Before drinking the water, you must first answer my questions. If you don’t, you will lose your life.” Sahadeva ignores the voice and drinks the water. In no time he falls down dead.

Worried that Sahadev hasn’t returned, Yudhishthira sends Nakula in search of him. The same thing happens with Nakula too. Yudhishthira sends all his brothers one by one and they all face the same fate. Finally, it is Yudhishthira’s turn. Yudhishthira reaches there and as he is about to drink water, he hears the same voice. “Hey Yudhishthira, I am the Yaksha who owns this lake. I have some questions to ask. Unless you answer my questions, you cannot drink the water. If you drink the water without answering my questions, you will meet the same fate as your brothers.” The humble Yudhishthira bows down to the Yaksha and asks him to present his questions. The Yaksha asks 126 questions on a variety of topics related to life, the world, Purusharthas etc. Yudhishthira provides appropriate replies to all the questions. This dialogue is called Yaksha Prashna. 

Follow the knowledge exchange between the Yaksha and Yudhishthira on our social media.

The content for this series on the Yaksha Prashna has been compiled by Asst. Prof. Vinayak Rajat Bhat, Head, School of Vedic Knowledge Systems, CVV.