KumaravyasaBharata : SabhaParva - Part 3

Inherent Essence

Its very hard to believe, all elders and elite people like Bhisma, Drona, Gandhari kept mum during the game of dice when Yudhistira kept losing cows, sheep, village, cities, wealth, his brothers, himself and finally Draupadi. 

Not one, interfered to stop. All this attributes to the idea of their understanding of "Dharma". It had been taught that dharma is about adhering to rules, and not about human empathy (Think about the instances: Dasharatha asking Rama's exile, Rama abandoning Sita, Renuka beheaded by her own son). Dharma speaks only of duty. But Draupadi, for first time in that era, demanded her rights. She put forth the idea that Dharma is not just about doing one's own duty, but also about ensuring that no one else's rights were violated. She demanded empathy! For the first time, she took up the stand that a person was always sovereign over themselves - and this sovereignty could not be challenged by any authority.The real deal of Mahabharata, starts from this game of dice, where Draupadi and Krishna go on to redefine dharma.