Draupadi Character Analysis in Mahabharata

Draupadi is a princess who is the daughter of Drupada and who eventually becomes the co-wife of all five Pandava brothers. She is a famously dignified and loyal wife, and one of the inciting incidents for the Kurukshetra war is when Duryodhana wins Draupadi in a gambling competition and treats her like a slave. Although Draupadi is modest and well-mannered, she can also be vengeful, like when she urges the Pandavas to kill Aśvatthaman after his night raid. She represents an ideal version of womanhood, motivating the Pandavas to fight in her honor.

Draupadi Quotes in Mahabharata

The Mahabharata quotes below are all either spoken by Draupadi or refer to Draupadi . For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:

But even as the priests talked, some saying one thing, some another, Arjuna stood next to the bow, unmoving as a mountain. The afflicter of his enemies walked around it in respectful circumambulation, bowed to it with his head, then took hold of it in joyful excitement. In the time it takes to blink, he strung it; and he took up five arrows and swiftly pierced the target through the opening. It fell to the ground.

Related Characters: Ugraśravas (speaker), Arjuna , Draupadi , Yudhishthira , Bhima , Nakula and Sahadeva

Page Number and Citation: 71

Explanation and Analysis:

‘Here is the jewel, and here am I.’

Related Characters: Ugraśravas (speaker), Vaiśampayana (speaker), Samjaya (speaker), Aśvatthaman (speaker), Drona, Śiva, Bhima , Draupadi , Krishna

Page Number and Citation: 578

Explanation and Analysis:

‘Great Indra,’ said Yudhishthira, ‘abandoning one who is devoted is considered an extreme sin in the world, equal to that of killing a Brahmin. Therefore for my own well-being today I shall certainly not abandon him.’

Related Characters: Ugraśravas (speaker), Vaiśampayana (speaker), Yudhishthira (speaker), Indra , Bhima , Arjuna , Draupadi , Parikshit , Dharma , Nakula and Sahadeva

Page Number and Citation: 776

Explanation and Analysis:

Draupadi Character Timeline in Mahabharata

The timeline below shows where the character Draupadi appears in Mahabharata. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

...woman chooses a husband). Many have gathered to try to win a Kshatriya princess named Draupadi, with illustrious heroes and kings in the crowd. But there is a bow that none... (full context)

At first the Kshatriya are angry that a Brahmin like Arjuna has won Draupadi, but he fights them off and wins their respect. Back with his brothers, Arjuna feels... (full context)

...and this convinces Drupada to put aside his objections. THE WEDDING. The five Pandavas marry Draupadi. THE COMING OF VIDURA. Duryodhana and Karna hear about the wedding from Vidura. While Duryodhana... (full context)

THE GAINING OF THE KINGDOM. The five Pandavas return home with Draupadi, where Dhritarashtra greets them. The five brothers settle with Dhritarashtra in the city of Bhogavati.... (full context)

...agree that, to avoid jealousy, if any brother sees another alone in a room with Draupadi, he must pledge himself to 12 years of celibacy in the forest. (full context)

...day, Arjuna needs to stop some robbers, but his bow is in a room where Draupadi is with Yudhishthira. He grabs the bow to stop the robbers and later accepts the... (full context)

...angry relatives that Arjuna did the right thing. Arjuna marries Subhadra and completes his exile. Draupadi is jealous of Arjuna’s new wife. With Subhadra, Arjuna has the son Abhimanyu. Meanwhile, Draupadi... (full context)

...but accepts anyway. He rides off to the dwelling of Dhritarashtra for the competition, taking Draupadi and other companions with him. (full context)

...wagers himself and still loses to Śakuni. Now, Śakuni asks for one last throw: for Draupadi. Yudhishthira loses again, and Duryodhana prepares to enslave Draupadi as a maid. Meanwhile, Vidura warns... (full context)

Draupadi refuses to go with Duryodhana’s page, not believing that Yudhishthira really wagered her. Then, Yudhishthira... (full context)

Karna orders one of his brothers to strip the Pandavas and Draupadi. The Pandavas take off their own garments, but when Karna’s brother tries to strip Draupadi,... (full context)

Dhritarashtra, who has sympathy for the Pandavas, offers Draupadi a boon. She asks to rescue Yudhishthira from slavery. He gives her a second boon,... (full context)

...leave and go back to ruling his kingdom. Yudhishthira and the other Pandavas depart with Draupadi. (full context)

The Pandavas keep traveling. Draupadi scolds Yudhishthira for letting the Pandavas fall into such a miserable state while the Kauravas... (full context)

...story, the Pandavas continue their journey, traveling through dangerous, stormy lands where supernatural creatures live. Draupadi begins to tire from so much traveling. Bhima goes to fetch her flowers to cheer... (full context)

DRAUPADI’S CONVERSATIONS WITH SATYABHAMA. Draupadi gives advice to Krishna’s chief queen, Satyabhama, saying she should please her husband not with... (full context)

...ABDUCTION OF DRAUPADI. One day, King Jayadratha passes by the Pandava camp, becomes infatuated with Draupadi, and tries to convince her to join him. Jayadratha tries to abduct her, but the... (full context)

SAVITRI. Yudhishthira asks Markandeya if there’s ever been a woman as noble as Draupadi. He replies that yes, there was a goddess named Savitri. A king showed great loyalty... (full context)

...and eventually have their 100 sons, all because of what Savitri did—and Markandeya says that Draupadi is like Savitri. (full context)

Draupadi says she’ll joining them, pretending to be a maidservant skilled in hairdressing who attends to... (full context)

Similarly, no one believes that the beautiful Draupadi is really a maid—they wonder if perhaps she’s even a goddess—but Sudeshna sees no one... (full context)

THE KILLING OF KICAKA. Now, 10 months have passed, and Draupadi suffers the most because she isn’t suited to be a servant. A general of Virata’s... (full context)

Kicaka can’t let go of his lust for Draupadi, so he speaks to Sudeshna again, begging her to arrange things so he can “lie... (full context)

Kicaka welcomes Draupadi when he sees her approach his dwelling. He says he has a bed ready and... (full context)

Draupadi gives a speech to Virata, repeating many times how “the son of a Suta has... (full context)

That night, Draupadi wakes Bhima and tells him to kill Kicaka. She is frustrated with how Yudhishthira has... (full context)

Later, Kicaka approaches Draupadi and begs her for another chance. She says she accepts, but on one condition: that... (full context)

Virata hears news of Kicaka’s death. Some of Kicaka’s surviving relatives blame Draupadi and want her to be burned on his funeral pyre. They seize Draupadi to take... (full context)

Virata orders a mass funeral pyre, then tells Sudeshna to dismiss Draupadi, out of fear that he himself might one day have to face her supposed Ghandarva... (full context)

...He and the other Pandavas finally reveal to Virata their true identities, and so does Draupadi. Virata is so overjoyed by this revelation that he makes a treaty and offers his... (full context)

...foot on Duryodhana’s head and says that this is all punishment for how he treated Draupadi like a slave after the gambling competition. Yudhishthira scolds Bhima, telling him not to disrespect... (full context)

...Janamejaya. Yudhishthira hears what happened from Dhrishtadyumna’s charioteer and faints with grief. He dreads telling Draupadi that she lost her sons, her brother, and her father. Draupadi also faints at the... (full context)

The Pandavas hurry back with the jewel to Draupadi to stop her fast. They explain that they’ve defeated Aśvatthaman, even though his body technically... (full context)

...king to rule. Bhima agrees with Arjuna, and then Nakula and Sahadeva say something similar. Draupadi encourages Yudhishthira to say something, but he doesn’t, so his brothers continue to give him... (full context)

...hero, which convinces Yudhishthira not to give up his kingship, pleasing the other Pandavas and Draupadi. (full context)

...Krishna and Balarama. Then Yudhishthira leaves the city of Hastinapura, accompanied by his four brothers, Draupadi, and a dog. (full context)

...Yudhishthira is apprehensive, saying he doesn’t want to go to heaven without his brothers and Draupadi. Indra tells him to stop grieving and also that he must leave behind the dog.... (full context)

...the splendor of the place, Yudhishthira says he would rather be wherever his brothers and Draupadi are. (full context)

...dead heroes like Karna, Satyaki, and Dhrishtadyumna. He asks again to see his brothers and Draupadi. (full context)

...until he hears voices in pain. The voices cry out that they are his brothers, Draupadi, and the other famous warriors that died in the war. Yudhishthira is full of grief... (full context)

...while bad kings do the reverse. He shows Yudhishthira that Arjuna, Bhima, Nakula, Sahadeva, and Draupadi are all safe, along with the other warriors from the war. (full context)

Mahabharata

Draupadi Character Analysis

Draupadi Quotes in Mahabharata

Chapter 1. Beginnings Quotes

Chapter 10. The Night-Raid Quotes

Chapter 17. The Great Journey Quotes

Draupadi Character Timeline in Mahabharata