This is a very popular story and there are two versions of it. The first version mentions that the Lord hurt his finger while killing the evil King Shishupal. He sent his lightning fast Sudarshana Chakra to kill Shishupal, and while the evil king was beheaded immediately, Lord Krishna’s little finger started bleeding profusely. In another version of the story, the Lord is believed to have hurt his finger while dealing with sugarcane on the day of Sankranti. Both Lord’s wives, Rukmini and Satyabhama, rushed to arrange the bandage for their husband. But, it was Draupadi, who was present there, immediately tore a small strip of cloth from her sari, and wrapped it around Krishna’s finger. The lord was so moved by this gesture of Draupadi, whom he used to call his “priya sakhi”, meaning dear friend that he promised to protect her whenever she would be in trouble. The Lord is believed to have blessed Draupadi by uttering the word “Akshayam”, meaning unending or endless. The Lord kept his promise and repaid his debt by protecting Draupadi when she was being disrobed by the Kauravas in the open assembly of King Dhritarashtra. Her disrobement could not happen as her sari kept getting extended, turning out to be truly “Akshyam”, unending or endless — the boon the Lord had granted earlier to his dear friend. The only difference between the two versions is in the way in which Lord Krishna got his finger hurt. What remains the same is Draupadi’s act of tearing a small piece of cloth from her sari; her bandaging Krishna’s finger, and Krishna’s promise to protect her – the bond of protection — the very essence of the festival of Raksha Bandhan.