This blogpost discusses the life and actions of Ashwatthama, the son of the greatest teacher, Dronacharya.
EARLY LIFE
Born with a Gem
Ashwatthama was born to Dronacharya after he pleased Lord Shiva and was awarded the boon of a son with the courage of Lord Shiva. One of the most exceptional features of the birth of Ashwatthama was the gem he was born with. Ashwatthama was born a Chiranjeevi with a gem on his forehead. This gem gave him the power to never succumb to any kind of fatigue, hunger and thirst. Since his birth he was an exceptional child and being the son of Dronacharya, he was destined to become a great warrior.
LIFE EVENTS AND CONTRIBUTION TO SOCIETY
A Great Trained Warrior
During his childhood and formative years, Dronacharya taught him the same skills he taught the Kauravas and Pandavas. He grew up with the princes and learning skills of warfare. Dronacharya awarded him the kingdom of South Panchala and made him the king. During the war of Kurukshetra, he sided with the Kauravas to fight against the Pandavas. After the death of Dronacharya in the war, Ashwathhama released the Nayanastra to defeat and destroy the Pandavas.
LIFE AFTER MAJOR EVENTS
The Last Commander of Kaurava’s Army
Apart from being a fierce warrior, he was also the last standing commander of the army of the Kauravas. After Duryodhan was killed in the war, he made Ashwatthama the commander of his army. He was so ruthless that he unleashed his wrath on the sons of the Pandavas.
LIFE LESSONS
His Father denied him the blessing
During the war, Ashwatthama requests his father Dronacharya to bless him for victory but Dronacharya denies the request and asks him to win the battle with his abilities and not blessings. With the use of Agniastra, Ashwatthama ruined more than half of the army of the Pandavas. As the last commander of the Kaurava army, he along with his two allies, attacked the remaining camp of the Pandavas at night while the Pandavas were away and everyone was asleep. This attack led to killing of many important warriors like Shikhandi and angered the Pandavas immensely.
Ashwatthama was an extraordinary warrior but he did not know how to take back the Brahmastra he launched against Arjun so he diverted it towards Uttara, the daughter-in-law of Arjuna and aimed to finish the lineage of the Pandavas. However, this attempt was thwarted by Lord Krishna.
Due to his attempts to kill the sons of Pandavas, Lord Krishna cursed him with immortality and demanded to him to remove the gem he was born with.
BOOKS/LITERATURE PUBLISHED
Sauptika Parva: The Story of Ashwatthama’s Revenge
One of the eighteen books of the epic Mahabharat named Sauptika Parva contains the story of how Ashwatthama launched an attack on the sleeping army of the Pandavas and killed some of the very important warriors of the army of Pandavas.
This book also tells the tale of Lord Krishna cursing him to roam the earth for 3000 years riddled with diseases and loneliness. In this part of the epic of Mahabharat, it is revealed that Ashwatthama’s powers came through the gem and all the powers awarded to him at the time of his birth by the Lord Shiva.
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