EKALAVYA-skit

 

EKALAVYA-skit

Narration 1: This is the story of a long-gone era. In the country of India, nearly five thousand years back, lived a boy named Eklavya, the son of a tribal chief in the forests of the kingdom- Hastinapura. Eklavya was a brave, handsome boy. He was loved by all. But he was not happy. His father saw that something troubled Eklavya. More than once, he found his son lost deep in thought when other boys enjoyed the pleasures of hunting and playing. One day, the father asked his son……………..

(SCENE-1) …….in Ekalavya’s place…..

Father:   “Why are you so unhappy, Eklavya? Why don’t you join your friends?

Mother:    What happened, putra? What’s troubling you?

Father:     Why are you not interested in hunting?

Mother :   Do you have any problem?

Father:     Please, share with us , putra.

 

Ekalavya:   Father, I want to be an archer. I want to become a disciple of the great Dronacharya,  the great tutor of Archery in Hastinapura. His Gurukul is a magical place where ordinary boys are turned into mighty warriors.

Father, I know that we belong to the hunting tribe, but I want to be a warrior, not a mere hunter. So please allow me to leave home and become the disciple of Dronacharya

Father:      Fine, my son! Our blessings are always there to shield you. Go and explore your life.

 Narration2: Eklavya set on his way. Soon he reached the part of the forest where Drona taught the princes of Hastinapur. When the boy reached Dronacharya’s Gurukul, there was the man standing near a tree busy instructing a boy, who was none else than the third Pandava prince Arjuna.

(SCENE-2) …………in Drona’s Aashram……

Drona : To be the best archer, you need to sharpen your attention and concentration skills.

Arjuna: How to develop concentration, master?

Drona : Well, that’s a good question! Abhyasa…a constant practice. That is Thrataka. It is only through Abhyasa, you can develop your concentration. Look at the spot you are aiming at….concentrate and then release your arrow with precision. That’s how you need to do the abhyasa.

Arjuna: Thank you , Gurudev! I’ll follow your instructions with all my heart and soul !

Drona :  Aayushmaanbhava!

Nakula :  Gurudev, someone has come to meet you. Shall I send him to you?

Drona :   I’d be pleased to meet him.

Ekalavya: Pranamam, Gurudeva ! I am blessed to meet you.

Drona :     Who are you, putra! I have never seen you before.

Ekalavya:  Gurudev, I am Eklavya, the son of the Tribal Chief in the western part of the forests of Hastinapura. I have come here to learn archery.  Please accept me as your disciple and  teach me the wonderful art of Archery.

Drona :      Eklavya…. you are a tribal hunter. I cannot teach a tribal boy. My training is restricted only to the princes of the royal birth.

Ekalavya:   Please, Gurudev! I love archery. I am sure that I can excel in that art if you can be my master. Please do not reject me because I am a tribal.  Give me a chance to serve you,      Gurudev. I shall be a sincere, dedicated and obedient student. Please accept me as your disciple!

Drona :  I am sorry, putra ! You cannot be my disciple-not at least in this birth of yours. You may leave..

Narration3:The innocent tribal boy was deeply hurt by Drona’s refusal to teach him. He left the place with a broken heart and a bitter taste in his mouth. He was disappointed and disheartened. His hopes crashed. But it could not shatter his ambition to learn Archery. He was still determined to learn Archery.

(SCENE-3)…….in Ekalavya’s place…..

Ekalavya:(Monologue)

 How happy and hopeful I was before going to the ashram. I thought Gurudev would accept me as his disciple and I would get that divine opportunity to get trained by him. I cannot digest the fact that Gurudev has rejected me because of my low birth. It’s not fair!. God has given knowledge to all, but man alone differentiates his kind.

Why such differences…….why…….why? Can my birth and my status stop me from learning archery? Wouldn’t I ever get a chance to excel in archery because I am a tribal boy? Is this what I am destined to…..? Is this what I deserve? ……..

No…….I can’t let this happen. What if I am a tribal boy! What if I am of low birth! What if I am not a prince! I can still learn archery. If Gurudev cannot accept me as his student….I cannot stop accepting him as my Guru.  I have already accepted him as my Guru with my heart , mind and soul. No one can take away this feeling from me even if it is Guru himself. So what if he cannot let me in his ashram… I can let him come to my place.

But…he’ll never step into my place. If it is his physical presence which can assure me of learning archery…I’ll carve his statue and invoke his spiritual presence. Nobody can deter me from becoming his disciple. I am as strong and zealous as Guru Drona’s princes and disciples. If I practice the art everyday believing that my Guru is supervising my abhyasa, I can surely become an archer.

(………..Ekalavya builds a statue of Drona…..worships…..and recites a sloka….Guru brahma…..)

Narration4: Day after day, he took his bow and arrow, worshipped the statue of Drona and started practice. In no time…. faith, courage and perseverance transformed Eklavya the mere tribal hunter into Eklavya the extraordinary archer. Eklavya became an archer of exceptional prowess, superior even to Drona’s best pupil, Arjuna.

(SCENE-4) …………in Drona’s Aashram……

 

Nakula :   Pranamam, Gurudev ! I saw a dog with several arrows in its mouth wandering in the forest. It’s fine and not hurt.

 

Drona:   Such an excellent aim can only come from a mighty archer. If somebody was such a good archer then he surely needed to be met.  I desire to meet that skillful archer. Can you take me there?

Nakula :   Yes,Gurudev. Let’s go there. (……Drona goes to Ekalavya’s place with Arjuna and Nakula where he sees the dog with arrows in its mouth….)

…….in Ekalavya’s place…..

Drona:     Are you the one who shot this dog?

Ekalavya:   Pranamam,Gurudev !  I am the archer you are looking for. I shot the dog as it was disturbing my abhyasa of archery.

Drona:      Your aim is truly remarkable, putra ! From whom did you learn Archery?

Ekalavya: From you, my Master. You are my Guru.

Drona:    Your Guru?!  How can I be your Guru? I have never seen you before!” ……………….Now I remember. Are you not the same hunter boy whom I refused admission in my Gurukul some months back?

Ekalavya:    Yes, Gurudev .After I left your Gurukul, I came home and made your statue and  worshipped it every day. I practiced before your image. You refused to teach me, but your statue did not. Thanks to it and to you , Gurudev. I have become a good archer.

(…………….Ekalavya ,touching the feet of Drona, recites a sloka…Dhyanamoolam Guru murthi………)

Arjuna:   But…...Gurudev ! You promised me that you’d make me the best archer in the world!  Now  how can a common hunter become better than me!

Drona:     Ekalavya, if you claim to be my student, I have some demands from you as your Guru. Where is your guru dakhshina? You have to present me a gift for this excellence in archery you claim to have learnt from me.

Ekalavya:   Gurudev, I’ll be the happiest person on earth to serve you. Ask me anything and I will offer  it to you as my guru dhakshina .

 Drona:       I might ask something you don’t like to give me. What if you refuse the dhakshina I want?

Ekalavya:   No! How can I, Gurudev? I am not that ungrateful. I would never dare even in my dreams to refuse anything you ask, Gurudev! You are my God of knowledge.

Drona:      Eklavya, as you think you are obedient enough to offer me anything unconditionally, I seek to have your right-hand thumb as my guru dhakshina.

Ekalavya: …….silence…….

Ok Gurudev, as you wish. I wouldn’t refuse even if you asked my life. And my thumb is just a     small gift I can offer you, Gurudev. I am happy that you have accepted me as your disciple, even if I’m a mere hunter.

(…cutting the thumb…..)It is with my sense of pure gratitude and submissive obedience, I gift you my thumb. Here is my guru dakshina .Please, accept it, Gurudev !

(………………..Ekalavya recites a sloka…with his offer….tvameva maata cha pita tvameva….. )

Drona:   Eklavya, even without your thumb, you’ll be known as a great archer. I bless you that you will be remembered forever for your loyalty to your guru. Aayushmaanbhava, putra !

Narration 5 : Thus Ekalavya, a mere tribal hunter goes on to become the most dedicated and obedient student . It was with his sheer interest in the art he chose and the determination he worked with that made him an extraordinary student.