Yudistira

Despite the wooden armlets and bracelets, which are innapropriate for a modest wayang character, this is probably Yudistira, the eldest of the five Pandawa brothers from the Mahabharata. Semidivine son of Pandu and Dewi Kunti, he is righteous, careful, wise, honest, polite and quiet. He is also known as Darmaputra, Darmawangsa and Puntadewa.

Wayang performances are used for moral guidance as well as for entertainment, and Yudistira is one character who is frequently invoked. He is a model leader, never lying or showing anger and ruling his kingdom with perfect justice. He has no weapons, unlike the other heroes, but he does have the Kalimasada, a holy book containing the secrets of religion and the universe.

Lacking showy ornaments, his aristocratic head gently inclined, Yudistira is the ideal Priest/King, but he does have a weakness for gambling. In one of the central scenes of the Mahabharata, he loses his kingdom to his cousins the Kurawas in a game of dice.

At the close of the Mahabharata, Yudistira and his brothers retire, leaving the throne to their only descendant to survive the war. Giving up all their belongings and ties, the Pandawas, accompanied by a dog, make their final journey of pilgrimage to the Himalayas. While climbing the peaks, Draupadi and four of the Pandawas fall to their deaths, dragged down by the weight of guilt for their sins. Yudistira, unblemished by sin, is the only one to reach the mountain peak.

On reaching the top, Indra asks him to abandon the dog before entering heaven, but Yudistira refuses, citing the dog's unflinching loyalty as a reason. It transpires that the dog is the embodiment of Dharma, or right action.

56cm x 14cm; puppet-- wood, fabric (cotton and velvet), glass and metal beading, ribbon, wool tassels / stand--plastic bottle, sand.