The Palace of Illusions

After Karna leaves, a brahmin enters the contest. He succeeds, and “[b]efore [Panchaali] could take in a breath, the shield cracked in two and fell with a clang” (100). No one knows his identity, and Panchaali puts a garland around his neck, signifying their marriage. The crowd erupts in fury, and they attack him. However, he emerges “from the sea of weapons unscathed” (101). Since Panchaali is now married to a brahmin, she must discard her finery and wear a simple shawl. She walks barefoot through the streets, following her husband as he takes her to his family. Panchaali stops to rest under a tree and removes her husband’s cloak. It turns out that he is Arjun, stripped of his kingly regalia. 

Arjun takes Panchaali to a small settlement on the edge of town. The conditions there are squalid, and his family lives in a hut. Panchaali meets Kurti and Arjun’s brothers. Panchaali notices that her “mother-in-law regarded [her] as [an] adversary” (105). Kurti informs her sons that “[a]ll five of you must marry this woman” (108). That night, Panchaali sleeps on a mat at the brothers’ feet.

The next day, Panchaali wants to cook brinjal, an eggplant dish, for lunch, but Kurti does not give her the necessary implements or ingredients.