The mango of truth (Sarala Mahabharata)

Variant

A fruit that only ripens when the Pandavas confess - and Draupadi's confession changes by manuscript.

Krishna asks the Pandavas and Draupadi, in Vyasa's presence, each to tell a truth about themselves; a ripe mango appears and the tellings have consequences. Draupadi confesses she favours Arjuna most (some palm-leaf manuscripts say she is drawn to Karna's looks); Yudhishthira says he would fight for his share; Sahadeva says he knows the future but will tell only when asked. Krishna undoes the effect using his own 'truthful lies'. A similar episode is in Kashidasi's Bengali Mahabharata.

Who: Krishna, Draupadi, Yudhishthira, Sahadeva, Vyasa

Bound to

Jambhul Akhyan: Draupadi's confession about Karna same-story-other-version

Sarala's unique episodes: river of blood and Krishna as Nilamadhaba same-story-other-version

Places: Odisha, Bengal

Where this comes from

commentary · Sarala Mahabharata blog: 'Wherefore the Mango of Truth?'
regional-literary · Sarala Das, Sarala Mahabharata (Odia, 15th c.)

See it on the tree · All stories

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