Ekalaya - (Wayang Kulit)

Ekalaya - son of King Hiranyadanu

Title	Ekalaya - (Bambang) - Mahabharata
Other names	Ekalya, Palgunadi
Size	50 cm
Personal data	Ekalaya was the son of King Hiranyadanu from Nisada Country who later inherited his father's throne. He was known as a handsome, powerful king who had a beautiful and loyal wife named Anggraini, the daughter of Warsiki's hapsari/fairy. In Wayang Purwa, especially in Central Java and East Java, Ekalaya is not the Nisada king but the Paranggelung king.
Appearance	Ekalaya has a character; honest, loyal, diligent and steadfast, loves his wife very much.
Collection	Private collection

Ekalaya - (Bambang) - Mahabharata

When Ekalaya heard about the existence of a clever teacher named Resi Drona, he came to the Astina Kingdom and applied to become his student. However, his wish did not come true, because Begawan Drona had promised that he would only teach his knowledge to the Kauravas and Pandavas. Because he was not accepted as a student, Ekalaya then overheard Drona's every word while the great teacher was teaching. After that, he diligently practiced Drona's teachings, because of his persistence, over time, Ekalaya's knowledge was comparable to Arjuna's, especially in archery.

One day when Ekalaya (alias Palgunadi) was practicing archery in the forest, a hunting dog came close and barked at him. Ekalaya tried to chase him away, but the animal kept barking. Eventually, Ekalaya's patience ran out. He took seven arrows, put them on his bow, and with one shot, all seven arrows shot and stuck straight into the dog's snout. Not long after, the dog's owner arrived, who turned out to be Arjuna. At that time Arjuna was hunting accompanied by his dog. When he saw his dog die with seven arrows stuck in its snout at once, he was angry. However, apart from being angry because of the death of his dog, Arjuna also felt amazed and jealous because his skills in archery now rivaled his. As a person who was known to be the most skilled at archery, Arjuna felt that he would not be able to aim at the target with seven arrows at once as his dog killer had done. With a very curious heart, Arjuna looked for the person who had killed his dog.

Finally, Arjuna met Ekalaya from the country of Paranggelung. To Arjuna, Ekalaya also admitted that he got his archery skills from Begawan Drona, who was considered his teacher. After hearing this statement, Arjuna hurriedly returned to Astina Palace. His heart was angry because he felt betrayed by his teacher, Begawan Drona. Arjuna accused Begawan Drona of breaking his promise to give all his knowledge only to Arjuna. Drona, who felt he had not broken his promise, denied that he had taught archery to other people. Begawan Drona also denied that he knew a man named Ekalaya. To convince Arjuna that Ekalaya was not his student, Drona then asked to meet the man named Ekalaya. Arjuna then took his teacher to a small hermitage where Ekalaya was located. In the Hermitage, Begawan Drona saw a statue that resembled himself. Meanwhile, Ekalaya was very happy to see Begawan Drona's arrival. Immediately he offered respectful obeisance, like a student welcoming the arrival of his teacher. After introducing themselves to each other, Drona asked: "Ekalaya, who taught you the skill of archery?"
Ekalaya: "Your Majesty, whom I respect."
Drona: " Are you studying with my permission?"
Ekalaya: "No, Master. Because of this insolence, I apologize a thousand times."
Drona: "I forgive, but.. I as your teacher demand your loyalty and obedience as a student."
Ekalaya: "I will always be faithful and obedient, Master."
Drona: "As proof of your loyalty and obedience, I ask you to give me the thumb of your right hand. Are you willing to give it?”
Ekalaya thought for a moment. His heart was doubtful. On the thumb of Ekalaya's right hand, he has had a Mustika Ampal ring given by God since birth. The ring has been there since he was born. However, because Ekalaya really wanted to serve Sage Drona, this request was finally fulfilled. His right thumb was immediately cut off by himself and handed over to Drona.
Thus, Ekalaya cannot shoot well, because his right hand now only has four fingers. After receiving Ekalaya's thumb, Begawan Drona then gave it to Arjuna. A miracle happened, Ekalaya's fingers immediately attached to Arjuna's right hand, so that from then on, Arjuna's right hand had six fingers.

One day, by chance, Arjuna and Dewi Anggraini were walking alone. Arjuna was captivated by the beauty of Ekalaya's wife. In various ways, Arjuna tried to get Anggraini to become his wife, even though he knew that the woman was already married. However, Anggraini was not tempted in the slightest. Finally, Arjuna used violent methods. As a result, to save his honor, Anggraini committed suicide by jumping into a ravine. This incident made Ekalaya angry and demanded a duel with Arjuna. Ekalya knew that since he lost the Mustika Ampal on his thumb, he was unable to aim well. But for the sake of his wife's honor and his own pride, he had to challenge Arjuna. In the end, Ekalaya did lose. He fell hit by Arjuna's arrow.
Nearing his death, Ekalaya realized that Begawan Drona had tricked him by asking for the thumb of his right hand. So, he cursed that he would take revenge when Baratayuda broke out. His spirit will infiltrate the body of a young knight who once studied with Rishi Drona. It turns out the curse was proven. In Baratayuda, Rishi Drona finally died at the hands of Drestajumena, the son of King Drupada who was infiltrated by the spirit of Bambang Ekalaya. At that time, Begawan Drona was confused and lost consciousness after hearing the news of Aswatama's death. Drestajumena slashed Drona's neck with a sword.

Bambang Ekalaya's death
In the puppet story, the story of Bambang Ekalaya's death is told as follows.
When Arjuna was chasing Dewi Anggraini, his actions were discovered by Ashwatama, son of Begawan Drona. Ashwatama immediately rebuked Arjuna and reminded him that such actions were inappropriate for a noble knight like Arjuna. However, Arjuna didn't care and they even fought. Dewi Anggraini used this opportunity to run back to Paranggelung and complain about Arjuna's actions to her husband, Prabu Ekalaya. However, Palgunadi did not believe his wife's report. As far as he knew, Arjuna was the main knight, it was impossible for him to do such a shameful act. Palgunadi actually accused Anggraini of deliberately pitting himself against Arjuna, and that if he died, there would be an excuse for Dewi Anggraini to marry Arjuna. Palgunadi's prejudice against Anggraini finally disappeared after Aswatama came and confirmed all of Dewi Anggraini's complaints. Ekalaya became angry, then came to Arjuna and challenged him. Arjuna accepted this challenge, even though in his heart he felt guilty. Ekalaya finally died in the duel and Dewi Anggraini committed suicide after hearing the news of her husband's death.

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Blog: Hadisukirno – Yogyakarta - 2011