Who was yaksha?why did he ask yudhishthira many questions
Answers
In their years of exile, the Pandavas lived in the picturesque Dvaitavana abounding in beautiful trees and delicious fruits. One day, a deer carried away - between its antlers - the fire-producing sticks of a poor priest who was performing an important yajña. The priest came to the Pandavas seeking help. The five brothers took up their arms and went looking for the deer. Even after exhausting all their knowledge in hunting and combat, they were unable to catch the deer.
Tired, disheartened, and afflicted by thirst, they approached a banyan tree and spent some moments resting in the shade. Nakula climbed the tree and looked for a source of water. Finding one, he soon went in that direction with empty quivers to fill up water. He approached a crystal lake inhabited by cranes. He desired to drink some water to quench his parched throat when he suddenly heard a voice that forbade him to drink from the lake. But Nakula was thirsty and he proceeded to drink the cool water, disregarding the voice. The moment the water touched his lips, he dropped down dead. In succession, all the younger brothers of Yudhishthira came to the lake looking for the previous person, found them lying motionless on the ground, heard the divine words of caution, disregarded it and fell down dead themselves too.
The worried Yudhishthira decided that he would make the trip himself and came upon the celestial lake. By the side of the lake, Yudhishthira saw his mighty brothers on the ground, felled like logs of wood. Before investigating his brothers' deaths, Yudhishthira decided to quench his thirst by drinking the water of the lake when he heard the divine voice. It was the voice of a Yaksha, who asked Yudhishthira to answer his questions, after which he could drink the water.