Summary: An Encounter in the Forest
The play begins with the Pandavas wandering deep into the forest in pursuit
of a deer. They are exhausted and thirsty. Yudhishthira asks Nakula to climb a
tree and see if there is any water-body nearby. Nakula spots cranes and water
plants a little way off and deduces that there must be a waterbody there.
Yudhishthira asks him to get water for all of them. On reaching the pond,
Nakula hears a voice (Yaksha) telling him to answer Yaksha’s questions before
drinking water from the pond as the pond belongs to him. Nakula looks
around and being unable to see anybody, he drinks the water, as he is very
thirsty. He falls unconscious.
After waiting for sometime, Yudhishthira sends Sahadeva to get water and
find Nakula. The same thing happens to Sahadeva. Soon, Arjuna goes to look
for them. Arjuna too does not listen to Yaksha and angrily shoots arrows into
the air. Bhima also does not heed the Yaksha’s warnings and goes on to defy
him and drink the water. He too falls unconscious. After anxiously waiting for
his brothers, Yudhishthira goes to find them. He is shocked and saddened to
see his brothers lying unconscious. He wonders who could have killed his
brothers, who were such powerful warriors, and also how was it that there
were no traces of enemy footprints nearby. He feels that there is something
magical about it. As he decides to drink water from the pond, once again the
voice of Yaksha came. He warns Yudhishthira that he will face the same
consequences like his brothers if he too does not answer his questions before
drinking water from the pond. Yudhishthira uses his sense of judgment and
decides to answer Yaksha’s questions before drinking water from the pond.
Yaksha is happy with Yudhishthira’s answers and says that he will reward him
by restoring the life of one of his dead brothers. To Yaksha’s surprise,
Yudhishthira chooses Nakula so that at least one of Madri’s sons will be alive.
Yaksha then reveals that he is Yama and that he had taken the form of the deer
to test Yudhishthira. As a reward for his sense of judgement, Yaksha restores
the lives of all the Pandava brothers.
In the play, we see the different reactions of the five brothers to the same
situation. Yudhishthira alone uses his sense of judgment. Unlike Arjuna and
Bhima, he does not lose his temper but handles the situation intelligently. His
compassionate and thoughtful nature is evident when he thinks about Madri’s
sorrow while choosing which brother’s life will be restored.
UNIT 12: AN ENCOUNTER IN THE FOREST
Embedded Questions
1. Nakula is filled with gladness and relief on seeing the pond.
2. ● Sahadeva thinks that Nakula has fainted due to thirst and exhaustion.
● No, Sahadeva is not able to keep his word to Yudhishthira.
3. Arjuna should have listened to Yaksha because he had warned Arjuna that he too would die like
his brothers.
4. Bhima wanted to drink the water first so that he would be able to fight better.
5. Yudhishthira found it magical that there were no wounds on his brothers’ bodies and no traces of
enemy footprints nearby.
6. Yudhishthira decided to answer Yaksha’s questions first because Yaksha had warned him that if he
did not do so, he too would die like his brothers.
7. ● Kunti is Yudhishthira’s mother.
● Yudhishthira’s sense of justice pleased Yaksha.
89Comprehension
A. 1. One day, a deer ran away with a poor man’s fire-kindling wood. The poor man went to the
Pandavas for help. The deer, being a magical one, sped away into the forest. In its pursuit, the
Pandavas wandered deep into the forest.
2. Nakula became unconscious as he decided to drink the water before answering Yaksha’s
questions, as he was very thirsty.
3. Yudhishthira sent Arjuna to look for Nakula and Sahadeva as both of them failed to return and he
was worried about them.
4. Madri was Nakula’s mother.
5. Yama had taken the form of the deer to test Yudhishthira.
B. 1. a. Nakula said this to Yudhishthira.
b. At this point of time, Nakula had climbed up a tall tree to look for a waterbody nearby, as all of
them were very thirsty.
c. Nakula drew this conclusion based on the presence of water plants and cranes, which are
usually found near waterbodies.
2. a. Yaksha said this to Yudishthira.
b. Here ‘them’ refers to Bhima and Arjuna. Yudhishthira did not choose ‘them’, as like him, they
were also Kunti’s sons. Instead he chose Nakula, one of Madri’s children, so that Madri would be
spared the grief of losing all her children.
c. Yaksha rewarded Yudhishthira by restoring the lives of all his brothers.
C. 1. After the Pandavas lost sight of the deer, Yudhishthira said that it was pointless looking for it. Also,
he suggested that they rest for a while under a banyan tree since they had been running after
the deer for a long time. Then, he asked Nakula to climb a tree and see if there was a pond or river
nearby, where they could quench their thirst.
2. Arjuna was angry when he heard Yaksha’s words. This shows that Arjuna was impatient and short
tempered, and these clouded his judgement.
3. Bhima was shocked to see his brothers lying dead. He realised that it was the work of the Yakshas
and decided to hunt them down and kill them. However, feeling very thirsty he decided to drink
some water first, so that he would be able to fight better. He was angry and defiant and hence did
not listen to the Yaksha.
4. Yudhishthira realised that there was something magical about what had happened to his brothers
as there were no warriors who could overcome his brothers. Also, there were no wounds on their
bodies that could have led to their death or any traces of enemy footprints nearby.
5. Yaksha warned Yudhishthira that he too would die like his brothers if he did not listen to Yaksha
and answer his questions before quenching his thirst. Seeing the condition of his brothers and
realising that there was something unusual about it, Yudhishthira decided to answer the questions
before drinking the water.
6. Yudhishthira’s father, Pandu, had two wives—Kunti and Madri. Yudhishthira, Bhima, and Arjuna
were Kunti’s children, while Sahadeva and Nakula were Madri’s children. Since he, a child of
Kunti’s, was alive, he chose Nakula, one of Madri’s children, to spare Madri the grief of losing all her
children.
D. Yudhishthira was wise as he could answer all the questions. He was respectful of Yaksha and decided
to heed his warning. Although grief-stricken, he did not lose his temper and seek to avenge the death
of his brothers impulsively. He was patient and used his sense of judgement. He was also fair and
compassionate, as he wanted Yaksha to restore the life of Nakula.
Grammar
A. 2. has 3. have 4. have 5. Is 6. is
B. 2. right 3. right4. right5. right 6. are → is 7. is → are 8. right
Vocabulary
A. 1. d 2. c 3. b 4. g 5. f 6. a 7. h 8. e
B. 1. make ends meet 2. pulling, leg 3. once in a blue moon 4. eat humble pie
5. beside herself 6. between the devil and the deep sea
7. went through, with a fine-tooth comb 8. piece of, mind
Writing
Free response
AN ENCOUNTER IN THE FOREST
A. Answer in brief.
1. What did Yudhishthira ask Nakula to do?
Ans: In the forest the Pandava brothers ran after a deer with their bows and arrows. They soon
lost its track and couldn’t find it anywhere. Tired and thirsty they sat to rest. Yudhishthira wanted
Nakula to climb a banyan tree and see if there was a pond or river nearby to go and get water.
2. What warning did Yaksha give Nakula? How did Nakula react to that?
Ans: Nakula found a pond and wanted to drink some water before taking water for his brothers.
But he was stopped by a voice which warned him not to touch the water without answering his
questions. Nakula ignored him and said he was too thirsty and wouldn’t be able to wait to answer
any questions.
B. Answer in detail.
1. Where did Yudhishthira send all his brothers? What happened to them?
Ans: Yudhishthira and his brothers were tired and thirsty and wanted to get some water to
drink. Yudhishthira first sent his youngest brother to fetch water and when he did not return
Sahadeva went in search of him. After some time when he too did not return, Yudhishthira
sent Arjuna in search of the two brothers. Even Arjuna did not return and then Bheema went
assuring Yudhishthira that he would bring all his brothers. Thus Yudhishthira sent away all his
brothers each one searching for the others. Yudhishthira was unaware that all his brothers had
fallen prey to Yaksha’s magic. Yaksha had asked each one of them to answer his questions before
drawing water from the pond. All the brothers defied Yaksha which resulted in everyone falling
down lifeless. In the end only Yudhishthira could bring them back to life after answering Yaksha’s
questions.
2. What were the questions asked by Yaksha and how did Yudhishthira tackle all the questions?
Ans: Yaksha, who was the cause for the death of all Yudhisthira’s brothers warned Yudhishthira
that he too would face the same fate if he did not answer his questions . First Yaksha asked what
made the sun shine every day for which Yudhisthira said it was the power of the Almighty. Then to
the questions, which one was the best weapon to use in times of danger and what was faster than
wind, Yudhishthira answered ‘courage’ and ‘mind’ respectively. Then Yaksha went on to ask what
one should give up to be loved by all. For that Yudhishthira answered that by giving up pride one
is loved by everyone. Finally Yaksha wanted to know the loss of what would bring joy and not
sorrow. Yudhisthira answered that the loss of anger would bring a lot of peace and joy.
C. Read the lines and answer the questions.
1. “There must be a water body there”
a. Who speaks the above line?
b. What makes him say that?
c. From where does he observe that?
Ans: a. Nakula speaks the above line.
b. He sees some water plants and cranes a little way off. He concludes that there is a water
body near that place.
c. Nakula observes this from a tall Banyan tree which he climbs to look for any possible
river or pond.
2. “Who are you? Show yourself and I will kill you”.
a. Who speaks the above line? Why is he angry?
b. Who has angered him? Why?
c. What did the speaker do in anger?
Ans: a. The above line is spoken by Arjuna. He is angry because he was stopped from drinking
water from the pond near which Nakula and Sahadeva are found motionless.
b. Yama who had taken the form of the Yaksha has angered him. He wanted the Pandava
brothers to answer his questions before touching the pond, which the Yaksha said
belonged to him.
c. Arjuna immediately shot sharp arrows in the direction of the Yaksha.
D. Answer in brief. (Think and answer)
1. What tells us that Yudhishthira was fair and just?
Ans: As a reward to Yudhishthira’s intelligent answers, Yaksha agreed to give life to one of his
brothers. Yudhishthira chose Nakula because he wanted to be fair and save one of his step
brothers. He did not choose his own brothers as among these brothers, he was alive.
E. Answer in detail. (Think and answer)
Yudhisthira’s wisdom and fair attitude won him his brothers. Justify.
Ans: Yudhishthira, the oldest of the five brothers was a wise and righteous person. He was calm and
acted wisely to win over a situation. Had Yudhisthira also been impulsive like his brothers, the five
Pandavas would have perished. Yaksha was greatly pleased with all his answers and he was ready
to restore the life of one of his brothers. Yudhishthira’s request to give life to Nakula and the reason
he gave for that pleased Yaksha even more and he gave life to all his brothers. Yudhishthira was not
impulsive like his other brothers and thought wisely before he acted. Thus, Yudhishthira’s dealing with
the Yaksha and his questions, won him his brothers.
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