Dhraupadi’s Cursed Dhatura – Navina Jafa

The poem is inspired by the incident of disrobing Dharupadi in the Indian Epic Mahabharat amidst a court filled with elders, which stands as a metaphor for societal shame.

Disrobing Dhraupadi – Guler- 1740, Located V& A Museum

Disrobed, she circled, hair flying, Balancing the Dhatura flower in her hand,

Datura (Devil’s snare, Devil’s trumpet) plant. Each part is poisonous and is an aggressive, invasive weed, but the bloom is also called – Moonflower.

Winds of laughter from those who disrobed dried her tears,

Sprays of the chilled winds of laughter carried the flower outside the one window

Now, only one drop of dew remained

The dew caught the light of the sun

Freezing a timeless vision

An eye saw the bleeding breasts and more

The flower sailed

Nothing Changed

The poison of the trumpet flower blew with winds of chilled laughter

Breaking spaces and time

Just landing on ‘her’ bleeding palms

held up in a delirious dance

Of disrobed Dhraupadis.

Nothing Changed –

The Dewdrop on the Dhatura flower

Travels centuries amidst winds of laughter

Dhraupdi lives to drink the poison