El Mahabharata es una de las dos principales epopeyas sánscritas de la antigua India compuesta por Veda Vyasa . En su núcleo se encuentra la lucha épica entre los Pandavas y los Kauravas . Los personajes centrales incluyen a los cinco hermanos Pandava: Yudhishthira , Bhima , Arjuna , Nakula y Sahadeva , junto con su esposa Draupadi . En el lado opuesto, los cien hermanos Kaurava son liderados por el hermano mayor, Duryodhana . Sin embargo, el Mahabharata está ricamente poblado con otras figuras notables como Krishna , Bhishma , Drona , Karna , Kunti , Dushasana , Kripa , Dhritrashtra , Gandhari , Shakuni , Ashwatthama , Balarama , Subhadra , Vyasa , Abhimanyu , Pandu , Satyavati y Amba .
Los manuscritos del Mahabharata existen en numerosas versiones, en las que los detalles y especificaciones de los personajes y episodios principales varían, a menudo significativamente. A excepción de las secciones que contienen el Bhagavad Gita , que es notablemente consistente entre los numerosos manuscritos, el resto de la epopeya existe en muchas versiones. [1] Las diferencias entre las recensiones del norte y del sur son particularmente significativas, siendo los manuscritos del sur más profusos y largos. [2] Los manuscritos encontrados en el norte y el sur de la India tienen una "gran divergencia" en los detalles, aunque la esencia temática es similar. [3] Los académicos han intentado construir una edición crítica , basándose principalmente en un estudio de la edición de Bombay, la edición de Poona, la edición de Calcuta y las ediciones del sur de la India de los manuscritos del Mahabharata . La versión más aceptada es una preparada por académicos dirigidos por Vishnu Sukthankar en el Instituto de Investigación Oriental Bhandarkar , preservada en la Universidad de Kioto , la Universidad de Cambridge y varias universidades indias. [4] [5]
Esta lista sigue la Edición Crítica del Mahabharata , pero puede tener caracteres exclusivos de una recensión particular. [nota 1]
Abhimanyu era hijo del tercer príncipe Pandava, Arjuna, y de la princesa Yadava, Subhadra . Fue discípulo de sus tíos maternos, Krishna y Balarama . Fue asesinado injustamente el día 13 de la Guerra de Kurukshetra . [6]
Adhiratha era el padre adoptivo de Karna. Según el Bhagavata Purana , Adhiratha descendía de Yayati y, por lo tanto, estaba relacionado con Krishna . También era descendiente de Romapada , [7] el rey de Anga y cuñado de Shighra , descendiente de Dasharatha, rey de Ayodhya . Su esposa era Radha y sus hijos biológicos eran shon y shatrunjay/chitrasen.
Adrika era una apsara que fue maldecida a convertirse en un pez y solo ser liberada cuando diera a luz a un ser humano. Adrika, como pez, vivía en el río Yamuna . Una vez entró en contacto con el semen de Uparichara y se embarazó. Después de 10 meses, unos pescadores la atraparon, le abrieron el útero y encontraron dos hijos: Matsyagandha y Matsya . Después del incidente, Adrika fue liberada de su maldición y regresó al cielo. [8] [ página necesaria ]
Agni es el dios hindú del fuego. En el Vana Parva, el sabio Markandeya contó la historia del matrimonio de Agni. En el Khandava-daha Parva, Agni disfrazado se acerca a Krishna y Arjuna en busca de comida suficiente para satisfacer su hambre y expresa su deseo de consumir el bosque de Khandava protegido por Indra por el bien de Takshaka , el jefe de los nagas . Con la ayuda de Krishna y Arjuna, Agni consume el bosque de Khandava . Más tarde, como una bendición, Arjuna obtuvo todas sus armas de Indra y también el arco, Gandiva , de Varuna . [9]
Alambusha era un Rakshasa . En la Guerra de Kurukshetra , luchó del lado de los Kaurava. Durante la guerra, derrotó a Iravan , hijo del príncipe Pandava Arjuna . Más tarde, el día 14 de la guerra de Kurukshetra, Alambusha fue asesinado por el hijo de Bhima, Ghatotkacha . [10]
Era un demonio y amigo de otro demonio llamado Alambusha. Él y Alambusha fueron asesinados por el hijo demonio de Bhima , Ghatotkacha, durante la Guerra Nocturna, el decimocuarto día de la guerra.
Amba era la hija mayor de Kashya, el rey de Kashi y hermana de Ambika y Ambalika. Amba fue secuestrada por el príncipe Kuru Bhishma y lo considera responsable de su desgracia. Su único objetivo en la vida es su destrucción, para lo cual renace como Shikhandini / Shikhandi . [11]
Ambalika es la hija de Kashya, el rey de Kashi , y esposa de Vichitravirya , el rey de Hastinapur . También fue la madre de Pandu , madrastra de Dhritarashtra y abuela de los Pandavas . [12]
Ambika es la hija de Kashya, el rey de Kashi , y esposa de Vichitravirya , el rey de Hastinapura . [13] También fue la madre de Dhritarashtra y madrastra de Pandu y abuela de los Kauravas . [14]
La doncella principal de Ambika , llamada parishrami o maryada, fue enviada por Ambika y Ambalika a Maharishi Vyasa . De su unión nació Vidura.
En el épico Mahabharata , cuando la reina Satyawati tuvo dos hijos, un Dhritarastra que era ciego y un Pandu que estaba físicamente paralizado desde su nacimiento. Entonces Satyawati necesitaba un niño perfecto para el futuro del reino de Hastinapura . Pero en niyoga , Ambika y Ambalika no quieren niyog de nuevo con Vyasa . Entonces Ambika llama a su doncella, Parishrami para niyoga. En niyog Ambika tenía los ojos cerrados, ella tuvo un hijo ciego, Ambalika se asustó, ella tuvo un hijo paralizado, pero Parishrami no cerró los ojos, no se asustó, como resultado tuvo un niño saludable e inteligente llamado Vidura . Así es como ella se hizo famosa.
Amitaujas es el poderoso guerrero del reino de Panchala. Fue el maharata del lado de los Pandavas. [15]
Era hijo de Ghatotkacha y Mourvi . Sus abuelos eran Bhima y Hidimbā . Fue asesinado por Ashwatthama en la Guerra de Kurukshetra .
Arjuna fue el tercero de los hermanos Pandava y era hijo del dios Indra . Era conocido por sus habilidades con el arco y mató a grandes guerreros como Bhishma, Jayadratha y Karna siguiendo al dios Krishna . [16] [17]
En el Mahabharata , Aruni apareció en el Adi Parva . Aruni era discípulo de un sabio llamado Dhaumya. Una vez se produjo una inundación en los campos del ashram (escuela). Se formó una brecha en el terraplén. Dhaumya envió a Aruni para que impidiera que el agua entrara en el terraplén. Después de mucho tiempo, Aruni no había regresado. Entonces, Dhaumya salió a buscar a Aruni. Este último yacía en la brecha del terraplén para evitar que el agua entrara. Debido a su lealtad, Aruni también es conocido como Gurubhakta Aruni.
Los Ashvins o Ashvini son un par de semidioses gemelos. Su padre es Surya y su madre es Saranyu. Son los semidioses de la medicina y la salud. En la epopeya, Kunti se sintió mal por Madri, ya que no tenía hijos debido a una maldición y compartió su mantra secreto con ella. Madri, usando el mantra, invocó a los Ashvins y tuvo un par de gemelos, Nakula y Sahadeva . [18]
Ashwatthama era el hijo del gurú Drona y luchó del lado de los Kauravas contra los Pandavas en la Guerra de Kurukshetra . Ashwatthama tenía varias armas divinas como Narayanastra, Brahmastra y Bhramshira astra. Tenía una gema divina en la frente que le otorgaba poderes sobre los humanos, Danavas, Rakshas, Nagas, Gandharvas, Pisach. Ashvatthama fue designado como el último comandante en jefe de los Kauravas, después de lo cual masacró a la mayor parte del campamento Pandava en una sola ofensiva nocturna . Se cree que Ashwatthama está vivo incluso hoy.
Astika era un rishi , hijo de Jaratkaru y de la diosa serpiente Manasa , hermana del gran rey serpiente Vasuki . Salvó la vida de la serpiente Takshaka , el rey de las serpientes, cuando el rey Janamejaya organizó un sacrificio de serpientes conocido como Sarpa Satra , donde hizo grandes sacrificios de serpientes para vengar la muerte de su padre Parikshit .
Era la esposa de Shalya y madre de Madranjaya, Rukmanagada, Rukmanaratha, Sabidha, Tejasree y Senajiti. Ella era la princesa de Avanti.
Ayu o Ayus fue un antepasado de Shantanu. Era hijo de Pururavas y su esposa apsara, Urvashi . Se casó con Prabha, una princesa asura (hija de Swarbhanu). Fue sucedido por su hijo Nahusha . [19]
Ayodhaumya/Dhaumya era un sabio de Avanti. Tuvo tres discípulos: Aruni de Panchal, Upamanyu y Veda. Incluso acompañó a los Pandavas al bosque de Kurujangala durante su exilio. Cantó canciones del Sama Veda haciendo referencia a Yama .
Babruvahana era uno de los hijos de Arjuna , engendrado por Chitrangada , la princesa de Manipur . Durante el Ashvamedha yagna, mató a su padre Arjuna sin conocer su identidad. Pero la otra esposa de Arjuna, Ulupi, le devolvió la vida con la ayuda de Nagamani.
Bahlika, también escrito como Vahlika, fue el rey del reino de Bahlika y el hermano mayor de Shantanu, que fue rey de Hastinapur. Junto con su hijo, Somadatta, y su nieto, Bhurishravas, luchó del lado del ejército Kaurava en la Guerra de Kurukshetra y fue asesinado por Bhima el día 14 de la guerra, cuando esta continuaba después del atardecer.
Bakasura era un demonio que fue asesinado por Bhima cerca de la ciudad de Ekacakrā .
Balarama es el hermano mayor de Krishna . [20] Enseñó a Duryodhana de los Kauravas y a Bhima de los Pandavas el arte de luchar con una maza. No participó en la Guerra de Kurukshetra .
Era hijo de Karna y de su esposa Chandravali . Era un excelente manejador de la maza. El día 16 de la guerra, Banasena estaba luchando con Bhima y luego murió. [21]
Bhadra y Madira fueron la tercera y cuarta esposas de Vasudeva . Eran hijas de Giribhanu/Sumukha y Padmavati/Pataladevi, y hermanas mayores de Yashoda . Los hijos de Bhadra fueron Upanidhi, Gada y Keshi. Los hijos de Madira fueron Nanda, Upananda, Kritaka y Shura. Se incineraron junto con Vasudeva.
Bhadrakali es la forma feroz de Devi. Para destruir el yajna de Daksha, Ella apareció con Veerabhadra. También se la menciona en Shalya Parva, cuando era una de las seguidoras de Kartikeya . [22] [23]
Bhagadatta era hijo de Naraka , rey del reino de Pragjyotisha y segundo en la línea de reyes de la dinastía Naraka . Se puso del lado de Kaurava en la guerra del Mahabharata, ya que era enemigo de Krishna y suegro de Duryodhan. Fue asesinado por Arjuna el día 12 de la batalla.
Bharadvaja era un sabio con poderes divinos. Fue uno de los hijos del dios Brihaspati y el padre de Drona y Shrutavati. Bharadvaja entrenó a su hijo y a su otro discípulo, Drupada .
Bharata es un antepasado de los Pandavas y los Kauravas . Según la epopeya, Bharata era hijo de Dushyanta y era un Chakravartin.
Bhima es el segundo hijo de los Pandavas e hijo de Vayu . Bhima fue considerado uno de los guerreros más fuertes y mató a figuras prominentes como los demonios Bakasura , Hidimbasura, Kirmira, Jatasura; guerreros como Jarasandha y Kichaka . En la guerra de Kurukshetra , Bhima solo mató a 100 hermanos Kaurava .
En el Vana Parva de la epopeya, el sabio Markandeya narró la historia de Nala y Damayanti . Bhima era el rey de Vidarbha y el padre de Damayanti .
Originalmente llamado 'Devavrata', fue el octavo hijo del rey Kuru Shantanu y la diosa del río Ganga . Bhishma fue bendecido con una bendición de su padre que le permitía elegir el momento de su muerte o permanecer inmortal hasta que lo deseara. Estaba emparentado con los Pandavas y los Kauravas a través de su medio hermano, Vichitravirya (hijo de Satyavati). Fue el comandante en jefe del ejército Kaurava durante los primeros 11 días.
Sauti dijo en el Pauloma Parva que Bhrigu era el hijo de Brahma . Estaba casado con Puloma, quien dio a luz a Chyavana. Cuando el demonio Puloma se llevaba a su esposa Puloma, ella dio a luz a su hijo, Chyavana, por cuyo brillo el demonio se quemó hasta convertirse en cenizas. Cuando Bhrigu vio a su esposa llorando, le preguntó la razón. Puloma declaró que Agni le había dicho al demonio Puloma que yo era la muchacha con la que Puloma estaba comprometido. Enfadado, Bhrigu maldijo a Agni para que engullera todo, ya fuera puro o impuro.
Bhurishravas era hijo de Somadatta y nieto de Bahlika, lo que lo convertía en primo de Dhritarashtra, Pandu y Vidura. Bhurishravas tenía dos hermanos: Bhuri y Shala. Se sabe que Bhurishravas, en la Guerra de Kurukshetra , tenía una rivalidad con el general Yadava Satyaki . Bhurishravas finalmente es asesinado por Satyaki en la Guerra.
Budha es el hijo ilegítimo de Chandra , el dios de la luna, y Tara , esposa de Brihaspati e hijo adoptivo de Brihaspati . Conoció a Ilā y se casó con ella. De su unión nació un hijo, que fue conocido como Pururava . Los Pururavas fundaron la gran dinastía lunar .
Brihaspati es el hijo de Angirasa y esposo de Tara . Es el padre de Bharadvaja y sus descendientes son Drona y Ashwatthama . Es el padre adoptivo de Budha . Es el gurú de los devas.
Chandra es el dios de la luna. Es hijo de Anusuya y Atri . La dinastía lunar ( Chandravamsha ) lleva su nombre. Chandra tuvo un romance con Tara , la esposa de Brihaspati . De su unión, Tara quedó embarazada del hijo de Chandra, Budha . El hijo de Budha, Pururavas , fue el primer rey de la dinastía lunar. Más tarde, Chandra se casó con Rohini y nació un hijo llamado Varchas .
Chandravarma Kamboja es el primer rey Kamboja mencionado por su nombre en el Mahābhārata . Fue antepasado de Bhanumati, la esposa de Duryodhana. [24] [25] [26] [27] Parece haber sido un antiguo gobernante muy poderoso y renombrado ( vikhyaat ) de los Kambojas. Se lo menciona en la sección Adiparva del Mahābhārata épico , donde se afirma que era un asura o un gobernante demoníaco . [28] [29] [30]
Chitrasena era hijo de Kashyapa y Arishta/Pradha y el Rey de los Gandharvas que impidió que los Kauravas instalaran su campamento cerca del estanque donde él mismo había acampado.
Chitrasena también fue introducida en la epopeya del Vana Parva como profesora de música de Indra . Indra previó que Arjuna tendría que pasar un año en el palacio del rey Virata como eunuco, tiempo durante el cual necesitaría el conocimiento de la música y la danza. Quería que Arjuna fuera entrenado por el rey de los Gandharvas, Chitrasena. Chitrasena comenzó pronto sus clases y los dos también se hicieron buenos amigos. [31] Cuando Urvashi maldijo a Arjuna para que permaneciera como eunuco de por vida, fue Chitrasena junto con Indra quien mediaron con ella para reducir la duración de su maldición a un solo año. Chitrasena pudo lograr esto narrándole la historia de los Pandavas y la valentía de Arjuna. [32]
Chekitana era hijo del rey Dhrishtaketu de Kekaya y de la reina Shrutakirti, una Yadava. Se describía a Chekitana como un guerrero valiente que luchó con guerreros como Susharma , Kripacharya y Dronacharya . También rescató a Nakula de las garras de Duryodhana . El día 18, Duryodhana lo mató.
Chitra y Chitrasena eran hermanos y los dos reyes del reino de Abhisara. Ambos se aliaron con los Kauravas en la guerra de Kurukshetra. Chitra fue asesinado por Prativindhya el día 16, mientras que Chitrasena fue asesinado por Shrutakarma el mismo día.
Chitrāngada fue un rey de la antigua India. En el Mahabharata , es el hijo mayor de Shantanu y Satyavati, y asciende al trono de Hastinapura tras la muerte de su padre. Sin embargo, poco después es asesinado por un Gandharva llamado Chitrāngada.
Chitrangada era un Gandharva que estaba celoso de Chitrāngada , el hijo de Shantanu , por compartir el mismo nombre. Un día, el Gandharva desafió al príncipe y lo mató.
Chitrāngada era el rey del reino de Kalinga. En el Shanti Parva de la epopeya, Narada narró que la hija de Chitrāngada ( Bhanumati ) estaba con Kaurava Duryodhana. Después de él, Srutayudha se convirtió en el rey de Kalinga, ya que no tenía hijos varones. Posiblemente, su esposa fue Chandramudra.
Chitrāngadā era la princesa guerrera de Manipura . Era la única heredera del rey Chitravahana y una de las consortes de Arjuna . Tuvo un hijo llamado Babhruvahana con él. Más tarde, Babhruvahana mató a su padre sin saberlo, pero fue revivido por Ulupi , amiga y coesposa de Chitrāngadā.
Fue el rey de Manipura y el padre de Chitrangadaa . También fue el abuelo de Babruvahana . Su esposa fue la reina Vasundhara.
Damayanti es un personaje de una historia de amor que se encuentra en el libro Vana Parva del Mahabharata . Ella era una princesa del reino de Vidarbha, que se casó con el rey Nala del reino de Nishadha. Su historia se desarrolla mucho antes de la Guerra de Kurukshetra.
Dantavakra era el rey de Karusha según el Mahabharata y los Puranas .
Danda y Dandadhara son los dos príncipes del reino de Magadha . Lucharon del lado de los Kauravas y fueron asesinados por Arjuna durante la guerra de Kurukshetra. [33] [34]
Dasharaja era el jefe de pescadores de Hastinapura y el padre de Satyavati . Fue él quien le pidió al heredero de Satyavati que fuera el gobernante de Hastinapura, por lo que Bhishma hizo voto de celibato y de no gobernar Hastinapura. Es tatarabuelo de los Pandavas y los Kauravas.
Darada es el rey del reino de Bahlika. Shushipala lo elogió cuando nació. La tierra se partió debido a su peso.
Devaki era la hija de Devaka, la prima de Kamsa , esposa de Vasudeva Anakadundubhi , la madre biológica de Krishna.
Devayani era hija de Shukra , el gurú de los asuras . Se casó con Yayati y tuvo dos hijos, Yadu y Turvasu , y una hija, Madhavi. Antes de casarse, se enamoró del hijo de Brihaspati, Kacha . Sin embargo, Kacha se negó a casarse con ella. Tenía una amiga llamada Sharmishtha que mantenía una relación secreta con su marido Yayati. [35]
Devika era hija de Govasena, el rey del reino Sivi de la tribu Shaivya, y la segunda esposa de Yudhishthira . Se casaron en una ceremonia elegida por ellos mismos y tuvieron un hijo llamado Yaudheya.
Dhrishtadyumna era hijo de Drupada y hermano de Draupadi, Shikhandi y Satyajit en la epopeya Mahabharata . Tuvo cuatro hijos: Kshatradharman, Kshatravarman, Kshatranjaya y Dhrishtaketu. Fue el comandante en jefe del ejército Pandava durante toda la Guerra de Kurukshetra, es decir, durante 18 días. Dhrishtadyumna mató a Drona, el gurú real, cuando estaba meditando, lo cual iba en contra de las reglas del combate.
En la epopeya Mahabharata , Dhritarashtra es el rey del reino de Kuru , cuya capital es Hastinapur . Nació de la primera esposa de Vichitravirya , Ambika . Dhritarashtra nació ciego y fue padre de 100 hijos y una hija, Dushala, con su esposa Gandhari (Gāndhārī), y otro hijo , Yuyutsu, con Sughada, la doncella de su esposa. Estos hijos, incluido el hijo mayor Duryodhana , llegaron a ser conocidos como los Kauravas .
Dhrishtaketu era hijo del rey Shishupala de Chedi , que era primo de Krishna. Dhrishtaketu se convirtió en el rey de Chedi después de la muerte de su padre y se convirtió en aliado de los Pandava . Dhrishtaketu y sus hermanos e hijos participaron en la Guerra de Kurukshetra , donde todos fueron asesinados.
Dhrishtaketu era el gobernante de Kekeya , y su esposa era Shrutakirti, una Yadava que era hija de Shurasena . Muchos de los hijos de Dhrishtaketu participaron en la Guerra de Kurukshetra, participando en ambos bandos. Vrihadkshatra y Chekitana fueron dos de sus hijos notables. La hija de Dhrishtaketu, Bhadra, se casó con Krishna, quien le dio muchos hijos.
Draupadi, también conocida como Panchalī, es la mujer más importante y uno de los personajes más importantes del Mahabharata . Nació de un yajna organizado por el rey Panchala Drupada y se la describe como la mujer más hermosa de su tiempo. Era la esposa común de los Pandavas , quienes lucharon contra sus primos, los Kauravas, en la gran Guerra de Kurukshetra . Tuvo cinco hijos de cada Pandava, a quienes colectivamente se les llamó Upapandavas .
En la epopeya Mahabharata , Droṇa o Droṇāchārya era el preceptor real de los Kauravas y Pandavas . Era hijo del rishi Bharadvaja y descendiente del sabio Angirasa . Era un maestro de las artes militares avanzadas, incluidas las armas divinas o Astras . También fue el segundo comandante en jefe del ejército Kaurava desde el día 11 hasta el día 15. Fue decapitado por Dhrishtadyumna cuando estaba meditando para liberar su alma en el campo de batalla. [8]
Drupada era hijo del rey Prishata. Era el rey de la tierra de Panchala del Sur . Su capital era conocida como Kampilya . Fue el padre de Shikhandi , Satyajit, Dhrishtadyumna y Draupadi . Fue amigo y rival de Droṇa y la rivalidad surgió cuando humilló a Droṇa frente a sus ministros. Más tarde, con la ayuda de Arjuna, Droṇa tomó la mitad del reino de Drupada. Esto llevó a Drupada a realizar un yajna del que surgieron Draupadi y Dhrishtadyumna. Fue asesinado por Droṇa durante la Guerra de Kurukshetra.
Durmasena era el hijo de Dushasana . Ayudó a su padre muchas veces en la guerra de Kurukshetra. También estuvo presente dentro del Chakra Vyuha en el decimotercer día de la guerra. Fue privado de su carro por Abhimanyu y salvado por Ashwatthama cortando la flecha de Abhimanyu en el aire. Después de eso, Durmasena mató brutalmente a Abhimanyu, que estaba brutalmente herido , en un duelo con mazas. El día 14, Durmasena fue brutalmente asesinado por los hijos de Draupadi, los Upapandavas , en venganza por Abhimanyu.
Duryodhana, también conocido como Suyodhana, es un antagonista importante en el Mahabharata y fue el mayor de los Kauravas , los cien hijos de un rey ciego, Dhritarashtra, y la reina Gandhari . Siendo el hijo primogénito del rey ciego, fue el príncipe heredero del Reino Kuru y su capital , Hastinapura, junto con su primo Yudhishtra , que era mayor que él. Karna era el amigo más cercano de Duryodhana y su hermano, murió a manos de Bhima el día 18 de la guerra.
La esposa de Duryodhana, llamada Bhanumati en relatos posteriores, es un personaje secundario en el Mahabharata y aparece principalmente en los cuentos populares. [36] No se la nombra en la epopeya, pero se describe que era la princesa del reino de Kalinga y era la hija de Chitrangada. Fue secuestrada por Duryodhana con la ayuda de su amigo Karna . De Duryodhana , ella es la madre de un hijo, Laxman Kumara , y una hija, Lakshmanaa . La suegra de Bhanumati , Gandhari, la describió a Krishna en la parte posterior de la batalla de Kurukshetra . [37]
La diosa Durga también es mencionada en el Mahabharata. En el Virata Parva y el Bhishma Parva de la epopeya, Yudhishthira y Arjuna la elogiaron . [38] [39]
Dushala era hija de Dhritarashtra y Gandhari , hermana de los Kauravas y esposa del rey de Sindhu, Jaydrath. Era la única hija de Gandhari de los 101 hijos. Tuvo un hijo llamado Suratha, que sucedió a su padre, después de que Jayadratha fuera asesinado por Arjuna en la Guerra del Mahabharata. Suratha fue asesinado por Arjuna durante su campaña en Sindhu.
Dushasana era un príncipe Kaurava , el segundo hijo del rey ciego Dhritarashtra y Gandhari y el hermano menor de Duryodhana en la epopeya hindú Mahabharata . Dushasana se casó con la princesa del reino de Trigarta. En un relato posterior, se la conoce como Chandramukhi. [ cita requerida ] Tuvieron un hijo llamado Drumasena.
Dushyanta fue antepasado de Shantanu y rey de Hastinapura. Fue esposo de Shakuntala y padre del emperador Bharata .
Ekalavya (en español: एकलव्य, ékalavya) es un personaje de la epopeya Mahābhārata . Era un joven príncipe de los Nishadha, una confederación de tribus de la jungla (adivasi) en la antigua India.
Gandhari es uno de los personajes más destacados de la epopeya india Mahabharata . Era una princesa de Gandhara (actual Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa) y la esposa de Dhritrashtra , el rey ciego de Hastinapura , y madre de cien hijos, los Kauravas .
La doncella principal de Gandhari, llamada Sughada en un relato posterior, era la madre de Yuyutsu . Cuando Gandhari estaba embarazada de más de nueve meses, Dhritrashtra, temiendo que no hubiera heredero, embarazó a la doncella. Más tarde, Gandhari dio a luz a los 100 Kauravas y Sughada dio a luz a Yuyutsu.
Ganesha es el dios de los comienzos. Es hijo de Shiva y Parvati . El poema épico Mahabharata dice que el sabio Vyasa le pidió que fuera su escriba para transcribir el poema tal como él se lo dictaba. Ganesha aceptó, pero sólo con la condición de que Vyasa recitara el poema sin interrupciones, es decir, sin pausas. El sabio aceptó, pero descubrió que para descansar necesitaba recitar pasajes muy complejos, por lo que Ganesha tendría que pedirle aclaraciones. [nota 2]
In the Mahabharata, Ganga was the first wife of Shantanu, and the mother of heroic warrior-patriarch, Bhishma. When she met Shantanu for the first time, Shantanu asked her to become his wife. She agreed on the condition that he would not ask her a single question. Later, she gave birth to 8 children, who were Vasus reborn as mortals due to a curse. Ganga drowned her seven sons as the Vasus requested her to do so. However, Shantanu stopped her from drowning their eighth son, who was Bhishma, and asked her questions. Ganga's condition was broken and she left Shantanu. However, she promised him to return his son. When Bhishma is mortally wounded in the Kurukshetra War, Ganga came out of the water in human form and wept uncontrollably over his body.
Ghatotkacha was the son of the Pandava Bhima and Hidimbi. His name comes from the fact that his head was hairless (utkaca) and shaped like a ghatam. He died in Kurukshetra War in the hands of Karna.
Ghritachi is one of the prominent Apsara. In the Mahabharata, she appeared in Adi Parva. According to the story, she was bathing in a river. Bharadvaja was passing by, then he saw her. He was filled with desire and discharged his seed. It fell into a pot and Drona was born.
Unlike Ramayana, lord Hanuman does not have a large role in Mahabharata. He appears during the exile of Pandavas. In the story, Bhima, Hanuman's celestial brother, performed a penance to gain more strength. Hanuman wanted to test Bhima and appeared as a normal monkey in front of him. The monkey asked Bhima to lift his tail if he believed in his strength. But, Bhima was not able to lift the tail. Later, he realised who the monkey was and apologized.[40] Hanuman taught battle-skills to Bheema for some time.
Hayagriva was a horse headed avatar of Vishnu. He incarnated to slay the demons named Madhu and Kaitabha and brings the Vedas to Brahma.[41]
Hidimba was a Rakshasa and the brother of Hidimbi. He was killed by Bhima, who later married his sister.
Hiḍimbī or Hiḍimbā was a Rakshasi in the Mahābhārata. Hidimbi, along with her brother, Hidimba, tried to eat the Pandavas, when they entered their forest. But when she met Bhima, she fell in love with him and told them the plan. After Bhima killed Hidimba, Hidimbi married Bhima and gave birth to Ghatotkacha.
Ila or Ilā was a character from Mahabharata who could change his/her gender. As a woman, she married Budha, son of Chandra, and had a son named Pururavas. Pururavas's descendants founded the lunar dynasty.
In the epic, Indra appears numerous times. He is son of Kashyapa and Aditi. He is the spiritual father of Arjuna. He was the reason for the separation of Urvashi and Pururavas. During his temporary absence, Nahusha took his place as the king. He is called by Kunti after Dharmaraj and Vayu. Later in the epic, he is shown protecting Takshaka's forest from Arjuna. The Pandavas named their capital, Indraprastha, after him. During the exile of Pandavas, Arjuna came to meet him. During the Kurukshetra war, he took the indestructible armor and earrings from Karna and gave him a powerful weapon. These were some of his appearances in the epic.
Iravan also is known as Aravan and Iravat[42] is a minor character in Mahabharata. He was a son of Pandava prince Arjuna (one of the main heroes of the Mahabharata) and the Naga princess Ulupi, Iravan is the central deity of the cult of Kuttantavar which is also the name commonly given to him in that cult—and plays a major role in the cult of Draupadi. Iravan played a huge role in the Kurukshetra War. On the 7th day, he massacred the Kaurava army and killed many brothers of Shakuni. However, on the 8th day, in a battle of many illusions and magical powers, Iravan is beheaded by the demon Alambusha.
Jambavati is second of the Ashtabharya, the eight principal queen-consorts of Krishna. She was the only daughter of the bear-king Jambavan. Krishna married her, when he defeated Jambavan to retrieve the stolen Syamantaka jewel.[43]
Janamejaya was a Kuru king and a descendant of Arjuna. He was the son of Parikshit and the grandson of Abhimanyu and Uttarā. He performed a snake sacrifice called Sarpa Satra to avenge his father's death, who was killed by Takshaka, Arjuna's naga enemy. Astika, son of Manasa, stopped the sacrifice.
Janapadi is an Apsara, who once roamed in the forests. One day, upon seeing her, Shardavan, son of Gautama Maharishi discharged his seed. From his seed, Kripa and Kripi were born.
Jara was a demoness. When King Brihadratha's queen threw away their half-born child, Jara joined the two halves. The child was named Jarasandha.
According to the Hindu epic Mahabharata, Jarasandha was a powerful king of Magadha. He was a descendant of a king Brihadratha, the creator of the Barhadratha dynasty of Magadha. He was killed by second Pandava Bhima.
Jaratkaru was a sage who wandered all over the earth and remained unmarried. He encountered his ancestors who hung upside down, leading to hell for he did not have any son. This led to his marriage with the snake goddess, Manasa. They gave birth to Astika who saved the snakes from being burnt during the snake sacrifice.
According to the Vana Parva of Mahabharata, Jatasura was a demon. He attacked the Pandavas in there exile. Then Bhima killed him.
Jayadratha was King of Sindhu Kingdom. He was the son of King Vridhakshtra. He was married to Kauravas' only sister and only daughter of Dhritarashtra and Gandhari, Dushala. He kidnapped Draupadi on Duryodhana's order but was stopped by Arjuna and Bhima. His hairs were cut off as a punishment. He was the biggest reason for Abhimanyu's death. Abhimanyu's father Arjuna swore to kill Jayadratha and he fulfill his oath.
Jayatsena is the son of Jarasandha and king of Magadha. He is stated as one of the powerful kings of the time, who could be summoned to the cause of the Pandavas, before Kurukshetra war. He accepted that and came with an Akshauhini on the side of Pandavas.
Kadru was the daughter of Daksha and wife of Kasyapa. She was the mother of thousand nāgas. She even cursed her children for not obeying her to be burnt in the snake sacrifice.
He was the most loyal companion, commander-in-chief and main bodyguard of Kamsa. He was always appreciated by Kamsa. He was also cruel like Kamsa. When Krishna was killing Kamsa, Balarama killed him by beating him and cutting his head with hands.
Kalaratri is the seventh among the Navadurgas. She is stated in Sauptika Parva. When she appears to the Pandava soldiers in dreams, she appears amidst the fighting during an attack by Drona's son Ashwatthama.[44]
Kalki is the final incarnation of the preserver deity, Vishnu. He is stated in Vana Parva of the epic, to incarnate at the end of the Kali Yuga and protect dharma, by destroying the sinners and Mlecchas.[45][46]
Kacha's story is mentioned in Mahabharata's Adi Parva. He was the son of Brihaspati and Tara. He was sent by Devas to Sukracharya's ashram to learn about Mrita Sanjeevani mantra. Sukra's daughter Devyani fell in love with him. However, Kacha later refused to marry her.[47]
Kamsa or Kamsa was the tyrant ruler of the Vrishni kingdom with its capital at Mathura. He is the brother of Devaki, the mother of the god Krishna who later slew Kamsa.
Kanika was a sage of Hastinapur. He acted as a counselor to Dhritarashtra. When Yudhisthira was announced the crown prince, Dhritarashtra became sad for his sons were deceived. And at this time Kanika was summoned to counsel the king, who advised Dhritarashtra not to resort to fight but remove his foes secretly. Unethical methods may also be adopted for killing a foe, was his advice. Then he narrated a story of a jackal, who deceived his companions (tiger, mongoose, wolf, and mouse) by tricking them. Influenced by his counsels Dhritarashtra exiled the Pandavas to Varanavata and constructed the house of lac.[48]
Karenumati was the daughter of Damaghosha,and Srutashrava. And the sister of Chedi king Shishupala, and Dhrishtaketu. She was the wife of Pandava Nakula and begot him a son, Nirumitra. Nirumitra succeeded his father Nakula to the throne of the Northern Madra Kingdom.
In the epic, Karna is one of the main antagonist, he was the spiritual son of Surya (the Sun deity) and son of princess Kunti (later the Pandu's queen). He was raised by foster Suta parents named Radha and Adhiratha. Adhiratha was the charioteer and poet profession working for king Dhritarashtra. Karna grows up to be an accomplished warrior, a gifted speaker and becomes a loyal friend of Duryodhana.[49] He is appointed the king of Anga (Bengal) by Duryodhana. Karna joined the Duryodhana's side in the Kurukshetra War and was defeated by many warriors like Arjuna, Bhima abhimanyu, satyaki though he defeated Yudhishthira, Nakula, Sahadeva, Bhagadatta, Jarasandha, Ghatotkacha, Shishupala etc. He was Maharathi. Karna fought valiantly after the fall of Bhishma, and killed various worriers on the Pandava side, he was born with a natural armour and earrings,his hatred and jealousy towards Arjuna led to his rivalry and ultimately his defeat and death at hands of arjuna , he was killed by Arjuna on the 17th day of fighting when his wheel was stuck in the mud. Karna had three curses in during his lifetime. He was the one who supported the Kauravas disrobing of Draupadi and called her vaishya.
Adhiratha and Radha, the adoptive parents of Karna, had some biological children. Karna's adoptive brothers were killed during the Kurukshetra War.[50] In later retelling, one of them is named Shona, who was killed by Abhimanyu on the 13th day of Kurukshetra War.
In the original Mahabharata, there are some mentions of Karna's wife. Her name is not revealed, sometimes assumed as Vrushali.It is described that she belonged to Suta (charioteer) community.[50] The names and stories appear in later texts and interpolation.
Kauravas were the 102 sons of Dhritarashtra. Out of which, 101 were his legitimate children from his wife Gandhari. He had one illegitimate son named Yuyutsu, who was conceived through a maid during Gandhari's two-year-long pregnancy. Out of these children, Dushala is the only girl. The names of the 102 Kauravas are:
He was the father of Ulupi and grandfather of Iravan. His wife was Vishvahini.
Kichaka was the general of the Matsya kingdom. He was the brother of Sudeshna, queen of Matsya. He was very powerful and feared by Virata and the citizens of the kingdom. He was killed by Bhima when he tried to force himself on Draupadi.
Kirmira was a demon and younger brother of demons Baka. When Pandavas and Draupadi went Kamyaka Forest, Kirmira encountered them and challenged Bhima for a fight as Bhima killed his brother Baka. After a tough fight, Bhima beheaded Kirmira.
Kratha is the Kshatriya king and the reincarnation of Rahu. He fought the side of Kauravas and killed by a Kulinda king during Kurukshetra war.[51]
Kripa was the son of Śaradvān and Jānapadī, born in a particularly extraordinary manner. He was the grandson of Maharishi Gautama. He was a descendant of sage Angiras. He along with his sister Kripi were adopted by King Shantanu. Later on Kripa became an acharya, teacher of the royal children, giving him the honorific Kripacharya. His twin sister Kripi married Drona. Kripa was among the Maharathis who fought on the Kauravas's side against the Pandavas in the Kurukshetra war in the Hindu epic of the Mahabharata.
Kripi was the sister of Kripa. She and her brother were adopted by the Rajguru of King Shantanu. Her actual parents were Saradvan and Janapadi. She married Dronacharya, who was poor at that time. When they wanted a powerful son, they prayed to Shiva, and a son named Ashwathama was born.
Krishna is a Hindu deity. He is also a major character in epic Mahabharata. He was an eighth avatar of Vishnu. He was born to Devaki and her husband, Vasudeva of the Yadava clan in Mathura. During the Kurukshetra War, he became strategist of Padavas and charioteer of Arjuna. At the start of the Dharma Yudhha (righteous war) between Pandavas and Kauravas, Arjuna is filled with moral dilemma and despair about the violence and death the war will cause in the battle against his own kin. He wonders if he should renounce and seeks Krishna's counsel, whose answers and discourse constitute the Bhagavad Gita. Krishna counsels Arjuna to "fulfill his Kshatriya (warrior) duty to uphold the Dharma" through "selfless action".
Kritavarma was one of the Yadava warriors and chieftain, and a contemporary of Krishna. During Kuruksetra war, Kritavarma fought for Kauravas along with Krishna's Narayani sena and was one of survivors of the war.
In Mahabharata, Kunti-Bhoja (or Kuntibhoja) was the adoptive father of Kunti and cousin of Shurasena. He was the ruler of the Kunti Kingdom. Kunti was a daughter of King Shurasena but was later given to Kuntibhoja since he was devoid of children.[52] Kuntibhoja raised her as his own daughter and loved her.[53] She was very beautiful and intelligent and later married Pandu.[54] When Kunti was a young girl, the sage Durvasa visited Kuntibhoja one day and sought his hospitality. The king entrusted the sage to Kunti's care and tasked Kunti with the responsibility of serving the sage and meeting all his needs during his stay with them.[55] Eventually, the sage was gratified. Before departing, he rewarded Kunti by teaching her Atharvaveda mantras which enabled her to invoke any god of her choice to beget children by them.[56] His son Visharada succeeded him who was killed by Duryodhana on the eighth day.
Kunti or Pritha was the daughter of Shurasena, and the foster daughter of his cousin Kuntibhoja. She was married to King Pandu of Hastinapur and was the mother of Karna and the Pandavas Yudhishthira, Bhima, Arjuna. She was the paternal aunt of Krishna, Balarama, and Subhadra. She was the step mother of Nakula and Sahadeva. She was very beautiful and intelligent.
Kuru is the name of the ancestor of the clan of the Kurus in the Mahabharata. He was the son of Samvarana and of Tapati, the daughter of the Sun.[57]
In the literature, Kuru is an ancestor of Pandu and his descendants, the Pandavas, and also of Dhritarashtra and his descendants, the Kauravas. This latter name derived as a patronym from "Kuru", is only used for the descendants of Dhritarashtra.[58]
King Kuru had two wives named Shubhangi and Vahini. He had a son named Viduratha with Shubhangi, and five sons with Vahini, named Ashvavat, Abhishyat, Citraratha, Muni, and Janamejaya.[59][60] Due to his merits and great ascetic practices the region "Kurujangal" was named after him. It has also been known as Kurukshetra since ancient Vedic times.[61]
In the Hindu epic Mahabharata, Laxman Kumara or simply Laxman (Lakshman(a)) is the son of Duryodhana, and grandson of Dhritarashtra. He had a twin sister called Lakshmanaa who was kidnapped by Samba (Krishna's son). Not much is revealed about Laxman in the Mahabharata, He was beheaded by Abhimanyu.
In the Bhagavata Purana, Lakshmanaa (also spelled Laxmanaa or Lakshmanā), also known as Lakshana, is the daughter of Duryodhana. Little is revealed about Laxmanaa in the text other than her marriage to Krishna's son Samba.
He was Prime Minister of Kuru Kingdom before Vidura. When Bhishma gave his post to Vidura, he tried to kill Vidura but he fought and was beheaded by Bhishma.
Madhavi was the daughter of King Yayati.
He was eldest son of Shalya and Avantini who was killed on second day of war by Virata.
He was younger brother of Shalya and elder brother of Madri. He was uncle of Nakula and Sahadeva. He was unmarried and was killed by Yudhishthira along with Shalya on the last day of war.
In the Mahabharata epic, Madri, was sister of Shalya, princess of the Madra Kingdom, second wife of Pandu and the mother of two sons: Nakula and Sahadeva.[62][63] One day, Pandu and Madri made love; this led Pandu to die due to his curse and Madri to commit suicide.
She was maid of Draupadi married to a Kshatriya soldier Pralanksena. Her son Nakusha was Bodyguard of Drupada. Her husband and son were killed by Drona before Drupada's death on the 15th day of war.
In the Mahabharata, Naga Goddess Manasa is the wife of Jaratkaru. They had a son, Astika, who saved the serpents including Takshaka from Sarpa Satra organised by king Janamejaya to avenge his father's death.[64]
Manimat or Maniman is the king who was the rebirth of Vritra, the son of Danayu. He fought the side of Pandavas and killed by Bhurishravas in the Kurukshetra war.[65]
Shurasena was married to a Nāga (or serpent) woman named Marisha. She bore all of his children and was the cause for Vasuki’s boon to Bhima.[66][67][68] after whom the Surasena Kingdom or mahajanpada and the Yadava sect of Surasenas[69] were named. She was the mother of Kunti and Vasudeva as well.
Markandeya was blessed by Shiva to remain young till the end of Kali Yuga. In the Mahabharat, Markandeya visits the Pandavas during their exile and tells them the story of Nala and Damayanti, Savitri and Satyavan, etc.
He was the son of Ghatotkach and Maurvi. He was the grandson of Bhima and Hidimbi. He was the brother of Anjanaparvana. He did not fight the War, and hence, was the only alive son of Ghatotkacha.
Menaka was a beautiful apsara. She was sent by Indra to fill Vishwamitra with lust and destroy his penance. Upon seeing her, Vishwamitra was filled with desire and from their union, Shakuntala, mother of great king Bharat, was born. Menaka left Shakuntala and Vishwamitra again started to meditate. Shakuntala was left with sage Kanva.
Muchukunda, son of King Mandhata, and brother of equally illustrious Ambarisha, was born in the Ikshvaku dynasty. He later became a sage and his divine powers killed Kalyavana.[70]
Nala is the main character of a love story in the Vana Parva of Mahabharata. He was king of Nishada. He fell in love with Damayanti and married her. But they struggled a lot after their marriage. His story is set long before the Kurukshetra war.
Nahusha was a king from lunar dynasty and an ancestor of Shantanu. He was the son Ayu and Prabha. He was equal to Indra in every way and was made the ruler of Swarga in Indra's absence. He married Ashokasundari/Viraja, the daughter of Devi Parvati and Shiva, and had a son named Yayati. He was removed from his position as the king because of his arrogance and cursed to a snake. His curse was over when he met Yudhishthira in a forest.
Nakula was fourth of the five Pandava brothers. Nakula and Sahadeva were twins born to Madri, who had invoked the Ashwini Kumaras. Nakula and his brother Sahadeva, are both called as Ashvineya (आश्विनेय), as they were born from Ashvinas. Nakula was said to be a skilled master in sword-fighting. On the 18th day of Kurukshetra War, Nakula had killed three sons of Karna.
Nand was the head of the Gopas tribe of Yadava cowherds referred as Holy Gwals. He was a friend of Vasudev, spouse of Yashoda and the foster father of Krishna.
Narakasura was the son of Bhumi, the earth goddess. He gained a boon that only his mother could kill him. He captured and married women forcefully. Krishna and Satyabhama (the human incarnation of Bhumi) killed him.
In the Hindu epic Mahabharata, Niramitra (Sanskrit: निरमित्र, lit. 'he who has no enemies') was the son of Nakula and his wife Karenumati.[71][72]
Padmavati is the goddess who mentioned in Tantras.[73] She also mentioned in Shalya Parva of the epic, as one of the followers of Kartikeya.[23]
Parashara was a sage. He was the grandson of Vasishtha, the son of Śakti Maharṣi, and the father of Vyasa. Before Satyavati married Shantanu, she had an affair with Parashara. During that time, she was known as Matsyagandha. Later they had a child named Vyasa. However they parted away but before leaving, Parashara restored Matsyagandha's virginity and gave her an enchanting scent.
Parashuram is the sixth avatar of Vishnu in Hinduism and he is one of the chiranjeevis who will appear at the end of the Kali Yuga. He was born to destroy evil Kshatriya, who had begun to abuse their power. Parashurama is also the Guru of Bhishma, Dronacharya, and Karna.[74][75]
Parikshit was a king from kuru lineage. He was the son of Abhimanyu (Arjuna's son) and Uttarā. When he was in his mother's womb, he was attacked and killed by Ashwatthama using Brahmastra. However Shri Krishna revived him and named him Parikshit. After the Pandavas and Draupadi retired for heaven, he was crowned as the new king. Later, Kali (demon) manipulated Parikshit and he placed a dead snake on a meditating rishi. The Rishi's son saw it and cursed him to die by a snakebite. After he was bitten and killed by Takshaka, his son Janamejaya performed Sarpa Satra. This is where he hears the story of his great-grandfathers.
Pandu was the king of Hastinapur, the son of Ambalika and Vichitravirya. He is popularly known as the father of the Pandavas, who were called so after him. Pandu was responsible and a great warrior, who expanded his kingdom during his rule. He had two wives named Kunti and Madri. He died early due to a curse of a sage.
He is the king of Pandya Kingdom. He came to help the Pandavas with an army and also an maharathi on the side of Pandavas.
Paurava is a king and the rebirth of Asura Sarabha. He fought the side of Kauravas and killed by Arjuna during Kurukshetra war.
Prabha, sometimes Indumati, was the daughter of Asura Svarbhanu, who later became Rahu and Ketu. She married Ayu, son of Pururavas of lunar dynasty, and had a son named Nahusha.
Pradyumna was the son of Krishna and Rukmini. He is the reincarnation of Kamadeva, who was burnt by Shiva for shooting arrow of love at him. After his birth, he was kidnapped by Sambara and thrown into water. However, he survived and was raised by Mayawati (reincarnation of devi Rati). Later, he defeated Sambara and returned to Dvaraka. He married Mayawati, Prabhavati and Vidarbha princess Rukmavati, and had a son Aniruddha.
Pratipa was a king in the Mahabharata, who was the father of Shantanu and grandfather of Bhishma.[76]
Prativindhya was the son of Yudhishthira and Draupadi. He was the eldest brother among Upapandavas.
Prishati (lit. daughter-in-law of Prishata) was the wife of King Drupada and the mother of Shikhandini, Dhrishtadhyumna, Draupadi (Panchali) and the sister-in-law of Satyajit, Drupada's younger brother. After Drupada performed a yajna (fire-sacrifice) to obtain a powerful son, she was asked by the sages to consume the sacrificial offering to conceive a child. However, Prishati had perfumed saffron in her mouth and requested the sages to wait till she had a bath and washed her mouth. The sages criticised her untimely request and poured the offering into the flames of the yajna, from which Dhrishtadhyumna and Draupadi emerged. Overwhelmed by their arrival, Prishati requested the sages to declare her as the mother of Dhrishtadhyumna and Draupadi.[77]
Purochana was the builder of the Lakshagraha. However, he, along with his wife and her sons, perished in the fire. He was the royal chief architect in Hastinapura. He was a friend of Shakuni and Duryodhana. Purochana built the Lakshagraha palace and burnt it. He was killed by Bhima in the Lakshagraha palace. Purochana had a wife and many sons. In his last life, Purochana had been Prahasta, Ravana's uncle and commander-in-chief of his army. Shakuni and Duryodhana made another plan to kill the Pandavas. Shakuni told Purochana to build a really beautiful palace in Varnavrata out of only materials that can catch and spread fire easily. Purochana quickly did as Shakuni had said. Purochana called the palace Lakshagraha. It was made out of materials such as wax and twigs. After some time, Shakuni convinced the Pandavas and Kunti to visit Lakshagraha. Purochana and his wife welcomed the Pandavas and Kunti grandly. After 10 days, during the night, Purochana set fire on the palace. The Pandavas woke up and realized that this had been another one of Duryodhana and Shakuni's evil schemes. Bhima got really mad. While Purochana and his sons and wife were trying to escape, Bhima killed all of them, including Purochana. The Pandavas barely managed to escape the fire.
Pururavas was the first king from the lunar dynasty. He was the son of Budha and Ila. He married Urvashi but she left him. He was succeeded by his son, Ayu.[citation needed]
Radha was the foster mother of Karna, one of the central characters in the Hindu epic Mahabharata. She was the wife of Adhiratha, the charioteer of Bhishma. Radha also bore a son named Shon. The young Kunti used a mantra to beget a son from the Sun god Surya. Afraid of the taint of being an unwed mother, she placed the baby in a basket and set him afloat a river. The child later known as Karna was found and adopted by Radha and Adiratha, who raised Karna as their own. Karna is known by the matronymic Radheya. Karna, once he knows from Krishna and Kunti about his birth secret, having done so much harm to his brothers Pandavas, was in no position to abandon Duryodhana.[78]
In Mahabharata, Revati was daughter of King Kakudmi and consort of Balarama, the elder brother of Krishna.
She was the wife of Vasudeva and mother of Balrama. She looked after Balaram in his childhood. After Vasudeva and Devaki were released, she started living with them. After the passing of Vasudeva in the Yadu massacre, Rohini cremates herself on Vasudeva's pyre along with his other wives Devaki, Bhadra and Madira.[79]
Rochamana was Kshatriya king of Aswamedha kingdom. He was a warrior on the side of Pandavas and killed by Karna in the Kurukshetra war.
Rukmi was the ruler of Vidarbha. He was the son of king Bhishmaka and elder brother of Rukmini.
Rukmini was the first and chief queen consort of Krishna. She was an avatar of goddess Lakshmi. She was the daughter of king Bhishmaka, sister of Rukmi and the princess of Vidarbha.
Ruru was a rishi(sage) of the epic Mahabharata. He was the son of Pramati and Ghritachi, the celestial dancer and a descendant of Bhrigu. Ruru married Pramadvara, foster-daughter of sage Sthulakesha. He was the father of Sunaka.
Sahadeva was the youngest of the five Pandava brothers. Nakula and Sahadev were twins born to Madri who had invoked the Ashvins. Sahadeva had two wives, Draupadi and Vijaya. Draupadi was the common wife of Pandavas, while Vijaya was the beloved wife of Sahadeva. Similar to his twin brother Nakula, Sahadeva was also accomplished in swordsmanship. On the 18th of war, Sahadeva had killed Shakuni who was mainly responsible for the Kurukshetra War.
Sahadeva was the son of powerful king Jarasandha. When Bhima slew his father, Krishna declared him to be the new ruler of Magadha. Sahadeva is a frequent ally of the Pandavas, and attended the rajasuya of Yudhishthira. During the Kurukshetra War, he fought on the side of Pandavas, and was slain by Karna.
He was son of King Srutayudha and Queen Sakrayani of Kalinga. He was the yuvaraja (crown prince) of Kalinga. He was killed by Bhima on the second day of war along with many soldiers, and two generals, Satya and Satyadeva.
Samba is the mischievous son of Krishna and his second wife, Jambavati. He was born as a boon of Shiva. Samba was the husband of Lakshmana, Duryodhana's daughter. Later in the epic, his mischief becomes the reason for the destruction of Krishna's Yadu clan, owing to the curse of Gandhari.
Samudrasena is a king. Once, Bhima defeated Samudrasena and his son, Chandrasena, during his war of conquest. In the Kurukshetra War, he fought on the side of the Pandavas and was killed by the Kaurava army.[80]
Shamika is a sage featured in the epic. One day, while hunting, Parikshit had wounded a deer, but lost it in the woods. Searching for it, fatigued, he asked the meditating Shamika about the deer. The sage did not answer as he was observing the vow of silence. This angered the king, who placed a dead snake on Shamika's shoulder. Sringin, the son of Shamika, enraged by this act, cursed Parikshit to be killed by Takshaka (snake) within seven days.
Samvarana was a king from the Lunar dynasty and an ancestor of Shantanu. He married Tapati, daughter of Surya, and had a child named Kuru.
Sanjaya was Dhritarashtra's advisor and also his charioteer. Sanjaya was a disciple of the sage Vyasa and was immensely devoted to his master, King Dhritarashtra. Sanjaya – who has the gift of seeing events at a distance (divya-drishti) right in front of him, granted by the sage Vyasa – narrates to Dhritarashtra the action in the climactic battle of Kurukshetra, which includes the Bhagavad Gita.
Sarama, according to the Mahabharata, is a celestial female dog. Janamejaya and his brothers beat one of her sons without any reason when the dog arrives at an occasion of sacrifice. This angers Sarama, and she curses the princes and Janamejaya that evil may happen to them.
Featured in the Mahabharata and the Bhagavata Purana, Satrajit was a Yadava king who was a great devotee of Surya, the Sun god. He is famous for his role in the story of Syamantaka gem. He was the father of Satyabhama, who became Krishna's third wife.[81][82]
Satyabhama is the third consort of Krishna. She is believed to be an avatar of Bhumi, the goddess of the Earth. According to some traditions, she is regarded to have aided Krishna in defeating the demon Narakasura. She visited the Pandavas during their exile and had a conversation with Draupadi.
Satyajit was the brother of King Drupada and brother-in-law of Queen Prishati and the younger paternal uncle of Shikhandini/Shikhandi, Dhrishtadyumna, and Draupadi. Not much is written about him in the epic, but he acted as a regent while his brother, the king, was away for some time for summoning the sages Yaja and Upayaja for a powerful penance to beget children.
Yyudhana, also known as Satyaki, was a powerful warrior belonging to the Vrishni clan of the Yadavas, to which Krishna also belonged. Satyaki was also a student of Arjuna, due to which he fought on the Pandavas's side.
Satyavati is a matriarch of the Kuru dynasty in the Mahabharata. She was a fisherwoman before her marriage with Shantanu. She, along with her father, Dasharaja, proposed the conditions that led Bhishma to take his vow of celibacy. Married to Shantanu, she became the mother of Chitrangada and Vichitravirya. She is also the mother of the Vyasa, the author of the epic, whom she called to engage in niyoga when Vichitravirya died without leaving an heir.
In the Mahabharata, Savitri and Satyavan are characters appearing in the Vana Parva of the epic. Savitri is a princess born by the boon of Savitr. Described to be wise and beautiful, she fell in love with and married Satyavan, a prince who was destined to die at a very young age. The latter part of the story describes Savitri's love, and her wit, which saves her husband from Yama, the god of death.
Senavindu, also called as Senabindu, is a king and the rebirth of the asura Tuhunda. Arjuna twice defeated this king during his digvijaya. He is stated by Drupada as one of the kings who could be summoned to the cause of the Pandavas in the Kurukshetra War. He was killed by the Kauravas in the war.
Shakuni was the prince of Gandhara Kingdom in present-day Gandhara. He is a major antagonist in the epic. He was the brother of Gandhari and hence Duryodhana's maternal uncle. Shakuni was killed by Sahadeva on the 18th day of the Kurukshetra War.
Shakuntala was the wife of Dushyanta and the mother of Emperor Bharata. Her story is told in the Mahabharata and dramatized by many writers, the most famous adaption being Kalidasa's play Abhijñānaśākuntala (The Sign of Shakuntala).
Shalva was the king of the Shalva kingdom. He and Amba, the princess of Kashi, fell in love, and Amba decided to choose him during her svayamvara. However, Bhishma won the princesses for his brother Vichitravirya. When Amba told Bhishma about her love, he sent her with honour to Shalva. But Shalva rejected her and told her that he would not be able marry her as she had been won by Bhishma.
In the epic Mahabharata, King Shalya was the brother of Madri (mother of Nakula and Sahadeva), as well as the ruler of the Madra kingdom. A powerful spear fighter and a formidable charioteer, he was tricked by Duryodhana to fight the war on the side of the Kauravas. On the last day of the Kurukshetra War, Yudhishthira killed him during a spear fight.
Shankha was third son of King Virata. He was killed by Bhishma on the very first day of the war.
Shantanu was a Kuru king of Hastinapura in the epic Mahabharata. He was a descendant of the Bharata race, of the Lunar dynasty, and great-grandfather of the Pandavas and Kauravas. He was the youngest son of King Pratipa of Hastinapura and had been born in the latter's old age. He was the husband of Ganga and Satyavati. He was the father of Devavrata (Bhishma), Chitrāngada, and Vichitravirya.
Sharmishtha was an asura princess and a spouse of Yayati, an ancestor of Shantanu.
Shatanika was the son of Nakula and Draupadi. He was the third brother among the Upapandavas.
Shaunaka headed the sages during their conclave at his twelve-year sacrifice, where Ugrashravas Sauti recited the Mahabharata.
Shikhandi was born as a girl named Shikhandini, to Drupada, the king of Panchala. She changed her sex with a yaksha and took the name Shikhandi. He fought in the Kurukshetra War for the Pandavas along with his father Drupada and brother Dhristadyumna. He was the princess Amba in his previous birth.
Shishupala was the son of Damaghosha. He was slain by his cousin Krishna, at the great coronation ceremony of Yudhishthira as punishment for his exceeding insults against the deity. He was also called Chaidya, being a member of the Chedi kingdom.
Shrutakarma was the son of Arjuna and Draupadi. He was the youngest brother among the Upapandavas.
Shrutasena was the son of Sahadeva and Draupadi. He was the fourth brother among Upapandavas.
Shukra is the son of sage Bhrigu and his wife Kavyamata. After the devas killed his mother (who was later revived), Shukra developed a deep hatred towards the devas and became the guru of the asuras. He had a daughter named Devayani, who was married to the king Yayati. But Yayati had an affair with Devayani's maid, Sharmishtha. This led Shukra to curse Yayati to lose his youth.
He was the second son of Virata, also called Shvetavarman. He was killed on the first day of the war by Shalya.
Shvetaki was a king who performed numerous yajnas. He is the reason of the destruction of the Khandava forest (Khandava Dahana).[83]
Great Karna's sons were Vrishasena, Vrishaketu, Banasena, Chitrasena, Satyasena, Sushena, Shatrunjaya, Dvipata, and Prasena. All except for Vrishaketu were killed in the war.
Shalya and Avantini's three sons were Madranjaya, Rukmanagada, and Rukmanaratha. Madranjaya was the eldest than other two with a gap of 10 years. Rukmanagada and Rukmanaratha were twins. Madranjaya was killed on 2nd day of war by Virata and other two were killed by Abhimanyu inside the chakravyuha on 13th day.
The four sons of Chedi King Shishupala were Dhrishtaketu, Mahipala, Suketu, Sarabha. They had a sister named Karenumati who was younger than Dhrishtaketu but elder than other three. Dhrishtaketu succeeded the throne of Chedi after Shishupala's death. Dhrishtaketu was killed by Drona on 6th day of war and other three were killed by Shakuni's son Vrikasura.
Shreniman was a king. He ruled the Kumaradesa. Nakula defeated him during his digvijaya. In the Kurukshetra War, he fought on the side of the Pandavas and was killed by Drona.
Subala was the father of Shakuni and Gandhari. He was the King of Gandhara and he was the husband of Sudharma.
In the epic, she is the sister of Krishna and Balarama, wife of Arjuna and mother of Abhimanyu and grandmother of Parikshit. She is the daughter of Vasudeva and Rohini. When Arjuna visited Dvaraka, he fell in love with Subhadra and ran away with her. Hindus believe Subhadra to be a form of the goddess named Yogamaya.
Sudakshina was a king of the Kambojas, and fought on the side of the Kauravas in the Kurukshetra War. She was so beautiful in all order
Sudeshna was the wife of King Virata, at whose court the Pandavas spent a year in concealment during their exile. She was the mother of Uttara, Uttarā, Shveta, and Shankha. She had a younger brother named Kichaka and a brother-in-law named Sahtanika.
Sunaka was the son of Sage Ruru and Pramadvara. This royal sage was a member of Yudhishthira's assembly. He received a sword from King Harivamsha and presented it to the king Ushinara.[84][85]
Surya is the god of the Sun. He is a son of Aditi and Kashyapa. He is the consort of Saranyu. In the epic, he was the first god called by Kunti using the mantra given by the sage Durvasa to obtain a child. She did it out of curiosity and gave birth to Karna, who was born with indestructible armour and earrings. During that time, as she was not married, she had to abandon the child. Later in the epic, Surya gave the Akshaya Patra to Yudhishthira.
Susharma was the king of the Trigarta Kingdom. He supported the Kauravas in the war. He was a friend of Duryodhana. He was killed by Arjuna on the fourteenth day of the war.
Sutasoma was the son of Bhima and Draupadi. He was the second brother among the Upapandavas.
Svaha is the daughter of Prajapati Daksha and the wife of Agni. In the Vana Parva, the sage Markandeya narrated her story to the Pandavas. As per the story, Agni visited the ashram of the seven Saptarshi and saw their wives. He was attracted towards them, but controlled his lust. Svaha was attracted to Agni, and wishing to sleep with him, she assumed the form of the wives of sages (except Arundhati), slept with Agni six times, later becoming his consort.
Takshaka was the king of nagas. He lived in a city named Takshasila, which was the new territory of Takshaka after his race was banished by Pandavas led by Arjuna from the Khandava Forest and Kurukshetra, where they built their new kingdom. Because of this, he made a fierce rivalry with Arjuna. During the Kurukshetra war, he sat on an arrow of Karna which was shot at Arjuna. However Krishna saved Arjuna. After his failure, Takshaka vowed to end Arjuna's lineage. After the Pandavas and Draupadi left for heaven, Takshaka killed Parikshit.
Tapati is a river goddess. She is daughter of Surya and Chhaya. She married Samvarana and had a child named Kuru. Kuru was an ancestor of Shantanu.
In the Hindu epic Mahabharata, Tilottama is described to have been created by the divine architect Vishwakarma, at Brahma's request, by taking the best quality of everything as the ingredients. She was responsible for bringing about the mutual destruction of the Asuras, Sunda and Upasunda. Even gods like Indra are described to be enamoured by Tilottama. Her story was told by sage Narada to the Pandavas as he wanted to tell them how a woman can lead to rivalry between brothers.
Tara is the goddess of felicity. She is spouse of Brihaspati, a guru of gods and mother of Kacha. Brihaspati often ignored Tara and she started to have an affair with Chandra, the moon god and eloped with him. From their union, Budha was born, whose son, Pururavas, founded the lunar dynasty.
Uṣā or Usha was daughter of Banasura, powerful king of Sonitpur and a devotee of Shiva. Later Usha was married to Aniruddha, grandson of Krishna.[86]
Ugrasena (Sanskrit: उग्रसेन) is a Yadava king in Mahabharata epic. He was the king of Mathura, a kingdom that was established by the powerful Vrishni tribes from Yaduvanshi clan. Krishna was the grandson of Ugrasena. He established his grandfather as the ruler of Mathura again after defeating his uncle, King Kamsa who was a cruel and greedy ruler. Before this, King Ugrasena was overthrown from power by his own son Kamsa and was sentenced to prison along with his daughter Devaki and son in law Vasudeva to prison. Devki and Vasudev were parents of Krishna.
Ugrashravas Sauti was the son of Lomaharsana. He was the Lomaharshana. He was a disciple of Vyasa. He was the narrator of Mahabharata and several Puranas before the gathering of the sages in Naimisha Forest.
Uluka was eldest son of Shakuni and Arshi. He was sent as messenger to Pandavas by Duryodhana. He was killed by Sahadeva on 18th day of war before his father's death.
Ulupi was daughter of Kauravya, the king of Nāgas, she was among the four wives of Arjuna. She had a son named Iravan.
Urvashi was a celestial maiden in Indra's court and was considered the most beautiful of all the Apsaras. She was the consort of Pururavas, an ancestor of Pandavas and Kauravas. Later she left him and returned to heaven.[citation needed] When Arjuna came to heaven to meet Indra, she fell in love with him. But Arjuna refused her as he thought her as his mother.
In the epic Mahabharata, Uttamaujas was a powerful Panchala warrior. He is described to be a protector of Arjuna. With his brother Yudhamanyu, they fought a battle against Duryodhana. He was killed during Ashwatthama's night raid. Sometimes, he is described to be Drupada's son and identified with Satyajit.
In the Mahabharata, Uttanka is described as the disciple of the sage Gautama. In both legends, he is a learned sage who goes through many hurdles in procuring the earrings demanded by his guru's wife as the fee for the teacher (gurudakshina).
Uttara or Uttara Kumara was the prince of Matsya Kingdom and the son of King Virata, at whose court the Pandavas spent one year in concealment during their exile. His sister Uttarā was given in marriage to Abhimanyu, son of Arjuna.
Uttarā was the daughter of King Virata, at whose court the Pandavas spent a year in concealment during their exile. She was sister of Prince Uttara. She was wife of Abhimanyu and mother of Parikshit.
He was the son of Aniruddha. Vajra was crowned as the King of Indraprastha on the request of Krishna by the Pandavas after the Yadava fratricide just before the Pandavas' exile.
Vajra in the Vayu Purana and the Harivamsa, described as the son of Bhanu, the eldest son of Krishna and Satyabhama. He had a sister named Bhanusammati.
Valandhara was the princess of the Kashi Kingdom, daughter of King Devesha and wife of Bhima. They both had a son Sarvaga, who became the King of Kashi after the Kurukshetra War. Sarvaga's granddaughter Vapusthama married Janamejaya, the great-grandson of Arjuna, and bore him two sons – Shatanika and Sahashranika.[87]
Vapusthama was the princess of Kashi, the daughter of Subarnavarma,the granddaughter of King Sarvaga and great-granddaughter of Bhima, the second Pandava. Vapusthama was married to Arjuna's great-grandson Janamejaya, and bore him two sons – Shatanika and Sankukarna.
Varaha is the boar-incarnation of Vishnu. He is stated in Vana Parva of the epic, when he rescued Bhumi during the Mahapralaya (great-flood).[88]
Vasudeva the father of the Hindu deities Krishna, Balarama and Subhadra. He was a member of Vrishnis and a Yadava. He was the son-in-law of the Yadava king Shurasena. His sister Kunti was married to Pandu.
She was the queen of Manipura and the mother of Chitrangada. She was also the grandmother of Babruvahana. Her husband was King Chitravahana.
Vayu deva is the god of wind. He is son of Aditi and Kashyapa. In the epic, he is the spiritual father of Hanuman and the Pandava, Bhima. He was the second god called by Kunti after her marriage using a mantra as her husband could not conceive due to a curse.
Veerabhadra was the fierce god who incarnated from Shiva to destroy Daksha's yajna. He is also stated in Shanti Parva of the epic Mahabharata.[22]
Vichitravirya (Sanskrit: विचित्रवीर्य, vicitravīrya) was a king and the younger son of queen Satyavati and king Shantanu and grandfather of the Pandavas and Kauravas.
In the epic Mahabharata, Vidura is described as the prime minister of the Kuru Kingdom and also the uncle of the Pandavas and Kauravas. He was born from Niyoga- between sage Vyasa and Parishrami, a handmaiden to the queens- Ambika and Ambalika.
The wife of Vidura, the half-brother of King Dhritarashtra and the Prime Minister of Hastinapur. She was also a chaste woman of supreme order. She too had a high degree of devotion and abdication. When Krishna visited Hastinapur as an emissary of Pandavas, he had not accepted Duryodhana's request to stay in his palace but instead he chose to stay at Vidura's home and accepted a simple meal there. She is named Sulabha in later versions of the Mahabharata.[89][90][91] Sulabha was a great devotee of Krishna. One day he came to her home for a surprise meal. She was enchanted by his glowing face. In absence of her husband, she offered him peels of banana instead of the fruit. And he ate them respecting her bhakti note.[91]
In the Hindu epic Mahabharat, Vijaya was the daughter of king Dyutimata of Madra (Bahalika) and wife of Sahadeva. They got married in a self choice ceremony. Vijaya was Nakula's maternal uncle's daughter. They had a son Suhotra.[71] After the Kurukshetra War, Vijaya lived in Madra.
Vijayasiddhasena "(In Sanskrit विजयसिद्धसेन) According to Mahabharata 1988 – 1990 TV Series, Vijay Siddha Sen was Barbarika's GURU. Barbarika is not mentioned in Mahabharata. But the story of Barbatika is mentioned in Skanda Purana
Vikarna was third Kaurava, son of Dhritarashtra and Gandhari and a brother to the crown prince Duryodhana. Vikarna is universally referred to as the third-most reputable of Kauravas. Usually, he is also indicated as the third-oldest son, but in other sources, the "third-strongest" reputation remained and it is implied that Vikarna is just one of Gandhari's 99 children (after Duryodhana and Dussasana). Vikarna was the only Kaurava who questioned the humiliation of Draupadi, the wife of his cousin Pandavas after they lost her in a game of dice to Duryodhana.
Vinata, was the mother of Aruna and Garuda (the birds). She was also the daughter of Daksha and wife of sage Kasyapa.
Vinda and Anuvinda were brothers, and the two kings of Avanti. They were the sons of Jayasena and Rajadhidevi. They also had a sister, Mitravinda, who married Krishna. They were good friends of Duryodhana, and fought for his cause in the Kurukshetra War.
In the Harivamsa, (an appendix of Mahabharata), the spouse of Nahusha is mentioned to be Viraja, the daughter of Pitrs.[92] Later, she was replaced by Ashokasundari, the daughter of goddess Parvati and Shiva.
In the epic, Virata was the king of Matsya Kingdom with its Virata Kingdom, in whose court the Pandavas spent a year in concealment during their exile. Virata was married to Queen Sudeshna and was the father of Prince Uttara and Princess Uttarā, who married Abhimanyu, the son of Arjuna.
Vishoka was the charioteer of Pandava Bhima during the Kurukshetra War.
Vrihanta was king of the Ulukas. His name appears at several places in the Mahabharata.
He was former king of Singhu Kingdom. He was father of Jayadratha and Vijayadratha. He later became a rishi. When Arjuna beheaded his son Jayadratha, his head came on his lap while he was doing tapa and when he stood up and Jayadratha's head blasted, killing Vridhakshtra.
Vrishaketu is a figure in the Sanskrit epic Mahabharata. He was the youngest and only surviving son of Karna and Arjuna teaches him many more skills of great warrior. Later, he becomes King of Anga.
Vrishasena was the son of Karna and Vrishali. With his father, he entered battle field on the 11th day of Kurukshetra war and fought for Kauravas. He was killed by the pandavas, his uncles to avenge abhimanyu's death,who later blessed him on his deathbed.
Vyasa was the author of epic Mahabharata. According to the Mahabharata, the sage Vyasa was the son of Satyavati and Parashara. He was also the surrogate father of Dhritarashtra, Pandu and Vidura. They were born through Niyoga. Later, he helped in birth of 101 children of Dhritarashtra and Gandhari. He also helped the Pandavas many times.
In the epic, the death god Yama—often identified with the god Dharma—is the spiritual father of Yudhishthira. He was the first god invoked by Kunti after her marriage using a mantra as her husband could not conceive. Yama also appeared in the tale of Savitri and Satyavan. In the story, he tried to take Satyavan's soul during his predestined time of death, but Savitri was able to persuade the deity to let her husband live. Dharma, later in the epic, appears testing Yudhishthira by taking form of a yaksha. When the Pandavas and Draupadi departed to heaven, he accompanied them by taking the form of a dog and was the only survivor left, along with Yudhishthira. In the end, he showed his true form to Yudhishthira.
Yamuna or Yami is a river goddess. She is the daughter of Surya and Saranyu as well as the twin of Yama. In the epic, she appears as Kalindi, becoming one of Krishna's eight wives.
Yashoda is the wife of Nanda (head of Gokulam) and the foster-mother of Krishna and Balarama. Krishna and Balarama spent their childhood with Yashoda and Nanda, and the couple took care of them. Her daughter, who was Vishnu's Yogamaya, was swapped by Vasudeva with Krishna during the birth of the deity.
Yaudheya was the son of Yudhishthira and Devika, and the grandson of Govasena, who was the king of Sivi Kingdom. Yaudheya succeeded his grandfather after his death in the Kurukshetra War.
According to the Matsya Purana, Yaudheya is also the name of the eldest son of Prativindhya and his first wife Subala, however he does not succeed Yudhishthira to the throne of Hastinapura as he inherits his maternal kingdom.
Yayati was an ancestor of Shantanu and the son of king Nahusha and Ashokasundari, the daughter of goddess Parvati. He had two wives, Devayani and Sharmishtha.
Yogamaya or Vindhyavasini is a goddess who is the personified divine energy of the deity Vishnu. She was the daughter of Yashoda and Nanda, the foster parents of Krishna. Krishna and Yogamaya were born on the same day. They were exchanged by their parents to save Krishna from Kamsa. Many believe that Subhadra was her reincarnation.
Yudhishthira was the first among the five Pandavas, granted by death god Yama to Pandu and Kunti. He became the king of Indraprastha and later of Hastinapura (Kuru). He was the leader of the successful Pandava side in the Kurukshetra War. At the end of the epic, he ascended to heaven. He was also blessed with the spiritual vision of second sight by a celestial rishi as a boon.
Yuyutsu was the illegitimate son of Dhritarashtra with a Vaishya woman who his wife Gandhari's maid. He was the paternal half–sibling to Gandhari's children: Duryodhana and the rest of the hundred Kaurava brothers and their sister Dushala. He was the only son of Dhritarashtra who survived the Kurukshetra War.
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