Why didn't Krishna stop the Pandavas before the start of the game of dice but helped Draupadi?

 

I) Krishna helping Draupadi during an attempt to disrobe her

If we carefully study the Sabha Parva of the Mahabharata, we can find that the episode of an attempt to disrobe Draupadi and Krishna providing help her, is an interpolated story.

a) If we carefully study the 67th, 68th and 69th chapters of Sabha Parva, we can easily decipher that this episode is an interpolation.

b) In 67th Chapter of Sabha Parva, Draupadi was dragged by her hair by Dussasana and she was humiliated. Even Bhishma, though capable of stopping that humiliation, remained silent.

c) It is in 68th Chapter of Sabha Parva that the episodes of (i) Vikarna raising his voice, (ii) Karna’s snubbing Vikarna, (iii) Karna’s instigation of Dussasana to disrobe Draupadi, (iv) an attempt to disrobe Draupadi and (v) Shri Krishna’s saving her from being disrobed, were mentioned.

II) Why didn't he help the Pandavas initially before the game or even in the early stages of the game?

This question might have arisen due to incorporating interpolated versions in the Mahabharata, elevating Sage Vyasa’s version of Krishna, as a great schemer, a great charioteer, a warrior, a person adherent to TRUTH and Dharma, to the level of incarnation of Vishnu, a SUPREME GOD.

Please note that Shri Krishna is not an incarnation of Vishnu.

Due to the interpolated versions, the original statement of Shri Krishna, as to why he could not stop the game of dice, was lost sight of.

This was what Shri Krishna said:

वासुदेव उवाच॥

नेदं कृच्छ्रमनुप्राप्तो भवान्स्याद्वसुधाधिप । यद्यहं द्वारकायां स्यां राजन्संनिहितः पुरा ॥ १॥

आगच्छेयमहं द्यूतमनाहूतोऽपि कौरवैः । आम्बिकेयेन दुर्धर्ष राज्ञा दुर्योधनेन च ॥ २॥

वारयेयमहं द्यूतं बहून्दोषान्प्रदर्शयन् । भीष्मद्रोणौ समानाय्य कृपं बाह्लीकमेव च ॥ ३॥

वैचित्रवीर्यं राजानमलं द्यूतेन कौरव । पुत्राणां तव राजेन्द्र त्वन्निमित्तमिति प्रभो ॥ ४॥

तत्र वक्ष्याम्यहं दोषान्यैर्भवानवरोपितः । वीरसेनसुतो यैश्च राज्यात्प्रभ्रंशितः पुरा ॥ ५॥

अभक्षितविनाशं च देवनेन विशां पते । सातत्यं च प्रसङ्गस्य वर्णयेयं यथातथम् ॥ ६॥

स्त्रियोऽक्षा मृगया पानमेतत्कामसमुत्थितम् । व्यसनं चतुष्टयं प्रोक्तं यै राजन्भ्रश्यते श्रियः ॥ ७॥

तत्र सर्वत्र वक्तव्यं मन्यन्ते शास्त्रकोविदाः । विशेषतश्च वक्तव्यं द्यूते पश्यन्ति तद्विदः ॥ ८॥

एकाह्ना द्रव्यनाशोऽत्र ध्रुवं व्यसनमेव च । अभुक्तनाशश्चार्थानां वाक्पारुष्यं च केवलम् ॥ ९॥

एतच्चान्यच्च कौरव्य प्रसङ्गि कटुकोदयम् । द्यूते ब्रूयां महाबाहो समासाद्याम्बिकासुतम् ॥ १०॥

एवमुक्तो यदि मया गृह्णीयाद्वचनं मम । अनामयं स्याद्धर्मस्य कुरूणां कुरुनन्दन ॥ ११॥

न चेत्स मम राजेन्द्र गृह्णीयान्मधुरं वचः । पथ्यं च भरतश्रेष्ठ निगृह्णीयां बलेन तम् ॥ १२॥

अथैनानभिनीयैवं सुहृदो नाम दुर्हृदः । सभासदश्च तान्सर्वान्भेदयेयं दुरोदरान् ॥ १३॥

असांनिध्यं तु कौरव्य ममानर्तेष्वभूत्तदा । येनेदं व्यसनं प्राप्ता भवन्तो द्यूतकारितम् ॥ १४॥

सोऽहमेत्य कुरुश्रेष्ठ द्वारकां पाण्डुनन्दन । अश्रौषं त्वां व्यसनिनं युयुधानाद्यथातथम् ॥ १५॥

श्रुत्वैव चाहं राजेन्द्र परमोद्विग्नमानसः । तूर्णमभ्यागतोऽस्मि त्वां द्रष्टुकामो विशां पते ॥ १६॥

"Vasudeva said, O lord of earth, if I had been present at Dwaraka, then, O king, this evil would not have befallen thee! And, O irrepressible one, coming unto the gambling-match, even if uninvited by the son of Amvika (Dhritarashtra), or Duryodhana, or by the other Kauravas, I would have prevented the game from taking place, by showing its many evils, summoning to my aid Bhishma and Drona and Kripa, and Vahlika!

O exalted one, for thy sake I would have told the son of Vichitravirya--O foremost of monarchs, let thy sons have nothing to do with dice!--I would have shown the many evils (of dice) through which thou hast fallen into such distress and the son of Virasena was formerly deprived of his kingdom! O king, unthought of evils, befall a man from dice! I would have described how a man once engaged in the game continueth to play (from desire of victory).

Women, dice, hunting and drinking to which people become addicted in consequence of temptation, have been regarded as the four evils that deprive a man of prosperity. And those versed in the Sastras are of opinion that evils attend upon all these. They also that are addicted to dice know all its evils. O thou of mighty arms, appearing before the son of Amvika, I would have pointed out that through dice men in a day lose their possessions, and fall into distress, and are deprived of their untasted wealth, and exchange harsh words!

O perpetuator of the Kuru race, I would have pointed out these and other attendant evils! If he had accepted my words thus addressed, the welfare of the Kurus as also virtue itself would both have been secured! And, O foremost of kings, if he had rejected my gentle counsels offered as medicine, then, O best of the Bharata race, I would have compelled him by force! And, if those who wait at his court, professing to be his friends but in reality his foes, had supported him, then I would have slain them all, along with those gamblers, there present!

O Kauravya, it is owing to my absence from the Anartta country at that time that thou hast fallen into such distress begot of dice! O thou best of Kurus, O son of Pandu, on arriving at Dwarka I learnt from Yuyudhana all about thy calamity! And, O foremost of kings, directly I heard it with a heart sore agitated by grief, have I speedily come here wishing to see thee, O king!

——

The story that Shri Krishna was busy in fighting with Salva, which appears in the subsequent chapters, is an interpolated story.