The attempted stripping
This key incident is often considered to mark a definitive moment in the story of
Mahābhārata. It is the one of the driving reasons that ultimately led to the Mahābhārata war, though it cannot be considered the central or the most important one.
Yudhishthira and his four brothers were the rulers of
Indraprastha under the sovereignty of King
Dhritarashtra. Dhritarashtra’s son
Duryodhana who resided in the capital of the empire
Hastinapura was always jealous of his cousins and the wealth they had acquired by building Indraprastha. To take revenge on the Pandavas, his uncle Shakuni came up with a plan and together with his brothers, his friend
Karna and maternal uncle
Shakuni, he conspired to call the Pandavas at Hastinapura and win their kingdoms in a game of gambling. Shakuni was skilled at winning by unfair means. The idea was that Shakuni would play against Yudhishthira and win at the gambling table what was impossible to win at the battlefield.
As the game proceeded, Yudhishthira lost all