Who was Yuyutsu ?

Yuyutsu was one such Mahabharata character, who although a Kaurava, had a good knowledge of the good and the evil. He never betrayed his consciousness and stayed where the light was.

He was one of the 102 children of Dhritarashtra

Yes, contrary to a popular belief, Dhritarashtra had more than 100 children. The tale of this Kaurava’s birth is as unique as himself. Yuyutsu was a half-brother to the rest of the Kuru brothers. When the trials of Gandhari were failing at producing a child, a fearful Dhritarashtra produced a child with a Vaishya daasi named Sugadha, and so was born Yuyutsu. He was born on the same day as his other 100 Kuru brothers and a sister Duhsala.

A righteous Kaurava, he chose to play it smart…

While there was a handful of Kauravas who were aware of the evil brewing on their side; in the name of dharma, friendships, and favours, they didn’t act on their inner calling. Yuyutsu, however, was a little different.

Since Mahabharata was called the righteous war, both sides (Pandavas and Kauravas) were given absolute freedom to choose any side they wished. Yuyutsu could see Kauravas going down. He didn’t turn a blind eye towards the fraudulent and evil practices of Duryodhana. He, very smartly, did what had to be done

Possessing the ability to fight 60,000 warriors simultaneously, he was one of the Atirathis among the Kauravas. But, he chose to fight for the right with the right, and hence, took part in the Kurukshetra war from the Pandavas’ side.

Yuyutsu was one of the 11 who managed to survive the war.

Years after the war and prior to the Yadava crisis, Yuyutsu found the city falling apart. The citizens would pick up fights with each other and live in depravity. When Yuyutsu desired to know the cause, they would hurl abuses at him and call him a traitor and a kinslayer. But, who said the right path was easy anyway?