The First Ever Encrypted Message

First, let me request you to go through the below lines:

A weapon not made of steel or any such element can be sharper and kill an enemy; he who knows this is never killed by it.
Fire cannot extinguish the soul but can annihilate the material body. The one who protects the soul lives
The conflagration that devastates a forest cannot hurt a rat which shelters itself in a hole.
A porcupine escapes from the forest fire by burrowing in the earth
The wise man knows his bearings by looking at the stars

Upon first look, the above may look like some philosophical discourse. However, these were the words told to King Yudhishtra by Vidura as written by Sage Vyasa in the Mahabharata. In fact, I think this might be the first encrypted message ever produced in the history of mankind.

What is Encryption?

Encryption is nothing but the translation of information into a secret code which the intended receiver alone can decipher or understand. This is done to prevent the enemy from getting hold of valuable intelligence. Today, data security is a multi-billion dollar industry with corporates (even countries) investing heavily on it.  The earliest known use of cryptography is some carved cipher text on stone in Egypt around 1900 BCE, though with no serious intent. The world became seriously interested in encryption only around the turn of 20th century. The German cipher machine Enigma was invented by the German engineer Arthur Scherbius who patented it in 1918. Its most famous application was when it was adopted by Nazi Germany during World War II. So it is exciting to know that there was data encryption in 3000 BCE (the approximate timeline of Mahabharata) much before the Western world was aware of it.

The backstory

Before the Battle of Kurukshetra, Duryodhana wanted to eliminate his Pandava cousins without a fight. So with help from his evil uncle Shakuni, he plotted to build a combustible palace (Lakshagraha) and invite them to stay in it. His plan was to set fire to the palace by catching the Pandavas unawares. The architect Purochana was ordered to build the house who built it using lacquer and other combustible substances. Once it was built, Duryodhana invited his cousins to  live in it.

It is then that Vidura had the conversation with Yudhishtra. Vidura was the prime minister of the Kuru Kingdom and was also a well-wisher of Pandavas. According to Lord Krishna, Vidura was considered as Dharmaraja, which means the Lord of Truth. Sensing the danger to Pandavas, he tactfully warned  Yudhishtra  without the Kauravas being aware of it. These are well-described in the Adi Parva of Mahabharata.

Now, if you go to the top and read the quoted text again, you will be able appreciate the intelligence of Vidura explaining Duryodhana’s hideous plot and the means of escape from danger in a cryptic manner.

• There is imminent danger to your lives and it will be caused by fire
• You will have to plan for escaping from it
• A tunnel built underneath the ground can help you escape from the deliberate fire
• Once you are out of the tunnel, use the position of stars to know the way and escape

Equally intelligent, Yudhistra understands this coded message and with the help of his brothers and a few other loyal servants, safely escape from the Lakshagruha killing Purochana in the process. If this episode is not the best example of data encryption, then what is!

Do you agree? Can you think of similar incidents in our history that involve encryption like this? Please write back to us.