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76-664: According to the Vayu Purana, the Madra kingdom was founded by King Ushinara Shibi of the Anu race. Anu was the son of Yayati . According to Bhagavata Purana , The kingdom of Madra was founded by Madra who was the son of Anu King Shibi in Treta Yuga . Bahlika people were considered as "outsiders" of the Vedic culture, as being a foreign tribe of Bharatvarsha . The name Bahlika is also used to denote

152-508: A 13th year to be spent incognito, and if the cover is blown during the 13th year, another cycle of 13 years would ensue. Obeying their uncle's orders, the Pandavas played the round and again lost to Shakuni's cheating. However, this time, their patience had been nearly pushed to its edge. During the 12 years of exile in the forest, they prepared for war. Arjuna performed penance and won the entire gamut of celestial weapons (Divyastras) as boons from

228-460: A Shami stick, he performed a sacrifice. He gave away mountains of gold and billions of cows to Brahmanas. The legend of Yayati appears in the eighteenth and nineteenth chapters of the ninth canto of the Bhagavata Purana . Yayati's father, Nahusha , is transformed into a python by a curse uttered by the sages, as punishment for his arrogance. Yayati's elder brother, Yati, is initially given

304-483: A bet and lost again. Duryodhana now played another trick and told Yudhishthira that he still had his wife Draupadi to place as a bet and if Yudhishthira won, he would return everything to the Pandavas. Yudhishthira fell for the ruse and bet Draupadi, losing her too. At this point, Duryodhana ordered that Draupadi, who was now a slave to him, be brought to the court. None of the Pandavas fought for their wife's honour. Duryodhana's younger brother Dushasana dragged Draupadi to

380-547: A dispute arose between them (8-40,44). The passages that describe this dispute give light to the cultural differences that existed between these warriors. (See Bahlika Culture for more details). During the time of the Gupta Empire , the Indian emperor Samudragupta (ruled 350-375 CE) recorded Madraka as a "frontier kingdom" which paid an annual tribute. This was recorded by Samudragupta's Allahabad Pillar inscription , which states

456-546: A grave turn when Dhritarashtra had to relent to the will of the masses and rightfully appointed his nephew Yudhishthira as crown prince. This went against the personal ambitions of both father and son (Dhritarashtra and Duryodhana) and drove Duryodhana into such a rage that he enthusiastically agreed to an evil ploy by Shakuni to murder Yudhishthira. Shakuni commissioned the construction of a palace in Varnavart, secretly built by incorporating flammable materials like oil, ghee etc. into

532-482: A kingdom different from Madra, Sindhu, Kekeya, Gandhāra & Kamboja. The Kuru king Shantanu , a forefather of Kauravas and Pandavas , had a brother who ruled the Bahlika kingdom . Bahlika or western countries were cold countries and people used blankets. They also reared sheep and drank sheep milk . They had good knowledge of camels. They had horses of excellent quality. Their horses and even horsemen were used in

608-459: A long while, Sharmishtha comes to Yayati, and requests him to give her a child. He refuses, stating that if he were to do so, he would face the wrath of Shukra. Nevertheless, Sharmishtha manages to convince him, saying that it would be against dharma if he were to refuse her request; he being the king, it was his responsibility to ensure the needs of the citizens, and she is desperate to have a child. He reluctantly agrees, and they begin an affair, in

684-451: A mother, he later relents, telling Yayati that if he could persuade one of his (Yayati's) sons to swap ages with him, he will be able to escape the curse, and regain his lost youth for a while. Yayati asks his sons if one of them would give up his youth to rejuvenate his father, but all refuse except the youngest, Puru (one of his sons by Sharmishtha). In grateful recognition of Puru's filial devotion, Yayati makes him his legitimate heir, and it

760-598: A raised chair near Krishna's head and Arjuna sat near Krishna's feet closing his hands. When Krishna woke up, he saw Arjuna first and asked him about the purpose of his visit. Then he found Duryodhana sitting next to him, and asked him the same question. Krishna was then told that war was going to be held and Arjuna and Duryodhana had come to him seeking his military help. To this Krishna replied that he had seen Arjuna first and so he would give him priority, and asked what he needed. He gave Arjuna two options – either his army of 100,000 soldiers or Krishna himself who shall not fight in

836-501: A slave girl has no rights. The elders and warriors in the audience were shocked but did not intervene. As Dushasana began to disrobe her, she prayed to Krishna to protect her honour. Krishna, using his divine powers, protected her by providing her garments with an unending length. Dushasana, shocked and tired, gave up on disrobing Draupadi. Finally, as the blind king Dhritarashtra realized that this humiliation could prompt Draupadi to curse his sons, he intervened, apologizing to Draupadi for

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912-437: A son: When Dhritarashtra heard that the five brothers were alive, he invited them back to the kingdom. However, in their absence, Duryodhana had succeeded in being made the crown prince. Upon the return of the Pandavas, the issue of returning Yudhishthira's crown to him was raised. Dhritarashtra led the subsequent discussions into ambiguity and agreed to a partition of the kingdom "to do justice to both crown princes". He retained

988-505: A strong wind, collecting their clothes upon the stream's banks, and depositing them in a heap. In the ensuing confusion, the two women accidentally don each other's clothes. In the quarrel that ensued, Sharmishtha throws the naked Devayani into a well, and leaves the forest with her retinue. Later, Yayati, son of Nahusha, chanced upon the pool after hunting, and helps Devayani to climb out of it, before returning to his kingdom. Devayani sent her maid, Ghurnika, to her father, and informed him about

1064-619: Is an emperor in Hindu tradition . He is described to be a Chandravamsha king. He is regarded to be the progenitor of the races of the Yadavas and the Pandavas . He is considered in some texts to the son of King Nahusha , and his wife, Ashokasundari , daughter of Shiva and Parvati ; however, early sources state that Virajas, daughter of Ajyapas, was the mother of Yayati. He had five brothers: Yati, Samyati, Ayati, Viyati, and Kriti. Yayati had conquered

1140-503: Is derived from Pandu ( Sanskrit : पाण्डु , IAST : Pāṇḍu ) and means "descendants of Pandu". Other epithets given to the Pandavas are: The Pandava brothers had a group marriage to Draupadi . In the Section 268 of Vana Parva of the epic, Draupadi describes the Pandavas to Jayadratha after he abducted her forcefully and the Pandavas pursuit them. According to the Adi Parva of

1216-571: Is from the Treta age that they have had their origin and began to multiply. When the terrible period came, joining Treta Yuga and the Dvapara Yuga , the Kshatriyas , approaching one another, engaged themselves in battle (12,206). The Madra tribe and Salwa tribe had a common origin as hinted by a myth at (1,121). Here the origin of these two tribes were attributed to a king in the race of Puru , known by

1292-502: Is from the line of Puru - later King Puru - that the Kuruvamsha (Kuru dynasty) later arises. In the words of the story, Yayati enjoys all the pleasures of the senses 'for a thousand years' and, by experiencing passion to the full, comes to realise its utter futility, saying: "Know this for certain... not all the food, wealth and women of the world can appease the lust of a single man of uncontrolled senses. Craving for sense-pleasures

1368-421: Is not removed but aggravated by indulgence even as ghee poured into fire increases it....One who aspires to peace and happiness should instantly renounce craving and seek instead that which neither grows old, nor ceases - no matter how old the body may become." Having found wisdom by following the road of excess, Yayati gratefully returns the youth of his son Puru, and takes back his old age in return, renouncing

1444-516: Is sometimes called Yayati Syndrome. Yayati , a Marathi novel by V. S. Khandekar , won him the Sahitya Akademi Award (1960), and a Jnanpith Award (1974). Playwright Girish Karnad 's debut play Yayati (1961) is based on the story of King Yayati found in the Mahabharata . Pandava The Pandavas ( Sanskrit : पाण्डव, IAST : Pāṇḍava) is a group name referring to

1520-515: The Mahabharata 's Adi Parva , as well as in the Bhagavata Purana and the Matsya Purana . Brahma's son was Atri , a Brahmarshi . Atri's son was Chandra , the moon god. Chandra lent his name to the Lunar dynasty (Chandravaṃśa). Chandra's son was Budha . Budha had a son with Vaivasvaita Manu's daughter, Ila . Ila's son was Pururavas , who studied under Sage Kashyapa . Pururavas married

1596-474: The Kurukshetra War . Shalya became indebted to battle for the sake of Duryodhana , by the time he learned the truth. (5,8). The main antagonist of Shalya in bow-fight was, king Yudhishthira (5,57). Both of them engaged many times in battle. (6-45 etc.). He also made many battles with Nakula and Sahadeva . He defeated many like Virata and Drupada . Shalya became the driver of Karna 's chariot on

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1672-550: The a psara Urvashi and had many sons, of whom Ayus was the eldest. Ayus completed his education from Sage Chyavana and married the asura princess Prabha. Ayus 's son was Nahusha , who was educated by the Sage Vashistha . Upon Indra 's loss of power, the devas asked Nahusha to be the new Indra. Nahusha ruled over the three worlds with the guidance of Sage Brihaspati for 100 years. Nahusha's sons, headed by Yati and Yayati, were educated by thousands of Brahmarshis and

1748-802: The 17th day (8,36). On the last day Yudhishthira slew his uncle Shalya , who was then the generalissimo of the Kaurava army (9,17). Madra army battled along with other western armies like the Trigartas , the Kekeyas , the Gandharas , the Yavanas , the Sindhus , the Sauviras , the Amvasthas etc. (6-51 etc.). On the day when Shalya was forced to become the driver of Karna 's chariot,

1824-529: The Gods. They spent the 13th year in Agyaata Vaasa masquerading as peasants in the service of the royal family of Virata , the king of Matsya . Upon completion of the terms of the last bet, the Pandavas returned and demanded that their kingdom be rightfully returned to them. Duryodhana refused to yield Indraprastha. For the sake of peace and to avert a disastrous war, Krishna proposed that if Hastinapura agrees to give

1900-960: The Kankas, the Pathavas, the Andhras , the Madrakas, the Paundras , the Pulindas , the Ramathas, the Kamvojas were mentioned together as tribes beyond the kingdoms of Aryavarta . The Aryavarta-kings had doubts on dealing with them. (12,64) The Andrakas, Guhas, Pulindas, Savaras, Chuchukas, Madrakas, the Yamas, Kamvojas , Kiratas and Barbaras were mentioned as unknown tribes. In the Krita age , they were nowhere on earth (meaning Ancient India). It

1976-480: The Kauravas and go into exile for 13 years. After this time the Kauravas refused to return the kingdom. As a result, the Pandavas waged a civil war against their extended family, and this conflict was known as the Kurukshetra War . With the help of the god Krishna , the Pandavas eventually won the war with the death of the Kauravas, albeit at great cost. The word Pandava ( Sanskrit : पाण्डवा , IAST : Pāṇḍavā )

2052-493: The Madra ( Punjab province of Pakistan) king Aswapati (3,297). Shalya was the most famous king from Madra. He became the generalissimo of the Kaurava army on the last day of the Kurukshetra War . He was the oldest spear-fighter battled in Kurukshetra War . Bhima had defeated Shalya in mace-fight without knowing each other during the self-choice ceremony of Draupadi (1,192). He was slain by Pandava king Yudhishthira during

2128-504: The Madra kingdom also Nakula the son of Pandu , by sheer force, reduced to subjection the Ramathas, the Harahunas , and various kings of the west. And while staying there Nakula sent, messengers unto Vasudeva Krishna . And Vasudeva with all the Yadavas accepted his sway. And the mighty hero, proceeding thence to Sakala , the city of the Madras, made his uncle Shalya accept from affection

2204-417: The Pandavas only five villages named Indraprastha ( Delhi ), Swarnprastha ( Sonipat ), Panprastha ( Panipat ), Vyaghrprastha ( Baghpat ) and Tilprastha ( Tilpat ) if these five villages given they would be satisfied and would make no more demands. Duryodhana vehemently refused, commenting that he would not part even with land as much as the point of a needle. Thus the stage was set for the great war, for which

2280-493: The Pandavas were: A few years later after the birth of the Pandavas, Pandu died after trying to have a union with Madri and the latter immolated herself out of remorse. Kunti brought the Pandavas back to Hastinapura , the capital of Kuru, and they were raised together with their cousins, the Kauravas , who were the hundred sons of Dhritrashtra. The Pandavas were guided and taught by Bheeshma , Vidura and Kripa . Duryodhana ,

2356-547: The Pandavas' success and prosperity. Eventually Shakuni sired yet another plot and got Duryodhana to invite the Pandavas over to his court for a game of dice (gambling). Shakuni was a master at gambling and owned a pair of dice which magically did his bidding. Owing to this, bet after bet, Yudhishthira lost all of his wealth, and eventually his kingdom, in the game. He was then enticed by Duryodhana and Shakuni to place his brothers as bets. Yudhishthira fell for it and put his brothers at stake, losing them too. He then placed himself as

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2432-510: The battlefield. This earned them so much merit and credit that it wiped out all their debts. Yudhisthira demanded to know where his brothers and his wife were. He was then taken to hell. Yama explained that they were experiencing the reactions of their actions but it was temporary. Once the debt had been repaid, they would join them in Swarga. Yudhisthira loyally met his brothers, but the sight and sound of gore and blood horrified him. Though initially he

2508-451: The behaviour of his sons, and turned the winnings of the dice game back over to the Pandava brothers, releasing them from the bondage of slavery. Incensed at the loss of all that he had won, Duryodhana threatened suicide and coerced his father into inviting the Pandavas for one last round of gambling, the terms of which were that the loser would be condemned to 12 years of exile into forests and

2584-400: The celestial region, he got stuck in the firmament. His grandsons: Ashtaka, Vasuman, Prattarddana, and Sivi (kings and sons of Mamata or Madhavi) met him. They enquired who he was, and why he was thus. They asked about heaven, about hell, about rebirth. Yayati recited everything. Then, out of compassion, they offered their own meritorious powers to Yayati. With these merits, Yayati attained again

2660-511: The city of Indraprastha after the Kuru Kingdom was split to avoid succession disputes. After the split, the other part of the kingdom was ruled by their cousins, the Kauravas. However, the Pandavas lost their kingdom to Duryodhana (eldest and king of the Kauravas) when Yudhishtira gambled it away during a game of dice. The bet Yudhishtira agreed to was that the Pandavas would hand the kingdom to

2736-510: The condition was violated, the brother, who entered the room, had to go on a pilgrimage for 12 years. Arjuna was the only one to violate this condition. Each Pandava had a son with Draupadi and they were collectively referred to as Upapandavas ; their names were Prativindhya (fathered by Yudhishthira), Sutasoma (fathered by Bhima), Shrutakarma (fathered by Arjuna), Shatanika (fathered by Nakula), and Shrutasena (fathered by Sahadeva). Besides Draupadi, each Pandava had their own wife with whom they

2812-553: The devas who used to wait upon their father. Nahusha eventually became arrogant, and was punished severely, as he was cursed by the saptrishi (seven sages) to be snake and to live further in Naraka (Hell). Indra was once more reinstated as the king of the devas. The Mahabharata mentions about Yayati's achievements. He performed 100 Rajasuyas , 100 Ashvamedhas , 100 Vajapeyas , 1000 Atiratras , 1000 Pundarikas and innumerable Agnishthomas and Chaturmasyas . Wherever he hurled

2888-430: The developed Hastinapura for himself and Duryodhana and gave the barren, arid and hostile lands of Khandavaprastha to the Pandavas. The Pandavas successfully developed their land and built a great and lavish city, which was considered comparable to the heavens, and thus came to be known as Indraprastha . Reeling under the loss of half the lands of his future kingdom, Duryodhana's jealousy and rage were further fuelled by

2964-400: The eldest Pandava, Yudhisthira , reached the door of Svarga Loka (heaven), carried on Indra's chariot. On reaching Heaven, he did not find either his virtuous brothers or his wife Draupadi. Instead, he finds Karna sitting on a divine throne. He wanted an explanation from Yama, the lord of death. Yama explained that the Kauravas had been allowed into heaven because they died as warriors on

3040-469: The eldest of the Kauravas, refused to accept the Pandavas as his cousins. This usually led to much tension between the cousins. Insecure and jealous, Duryodhana harbored an intense hatred for the five brothers throughout his childhood and youth and following the advice of his maternal uncle Shakuni , often plotted to get rid of them to clear his path to the lordship of the Kuru Dynasty . This plotting took

3116-494: The epic of Mahabharata is known most of all. Krishna, being a well-wisher of the Pandavas, helped them in various ways during the time of their ordeals. When the Kurukshetra war was going to be held, both Arjuna on behalf of the Pandavas, and Duryodhana on behalf of the Kauravas, went to Krishna to seek help. Duryodhana reached first and Arjuna was just behind him. They entered Krishna's room and found him sleeping. Duryodhana sat on

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3192-543: The epic, Pandu was crowned as the king of the Kuru Kingdom despite being younger than his elder brother Dhritrashtra , who was denied the throne for being blind. He married Kunti , a princess of the Yadu clan, and Madri , the princess of Madra Kingdom. Once he was hunting in a forest when he shot a copulating pair of deer. However, they turn out to be a sage named Kindama and his wife, who had used their divine powers to take

3268-477: The five brothers survived. After having won the war, Yudhishthira was crowned the king. At the end of the war, only 10 survived the war on both sides, namely Ashwatthama, Kripacharya and Kritverma on the Kaurava side and the five Pandavas, Krishna and Saatyakee on the Pandava side. The Pandavas ruled Hastinapura for 36 years and established a righteous kingdom. Shortly after Krishna left the Earth, they all decided that

3344-505: The five legendary brothers, Yudhishtira , Bhima , Arjuna , Nakula and Sahadeva , who are central figures of the Hindu epic Mahabharata . They are acknowledged as the sons of Pandu , the King of Kuru , but were fathered by different Devas (gods) due to Pandu's cursed inability to naturally conceive children. In the epic, the Pandavas married Draupadi , the princess of Panchala , and founded

3420-410: The five of them. Even when uttered erroneously, their mother's word was supreme for the Pandavas, and they agreed to share the princess, who was subsequently married to all five brothers. To prevent jealousy among the brothers and identify the paternity of Draupadi's children, the Pandavas followed a condition in which one brother was given a year with her and others were forbidden to enter her chamber. If

3496-555: The following in lines 22–23. "Samudragupta, whose formidable rule was propitiated with the payment of all tributes, execution of orders and visits (to his court) for obeisance by such frontier rulers as those of Samataṭa, Ḍavāka , Kāmarūpa , Nēpāla , and Kartṛipura , and, by the Mālavas , Ārjunāyanas , Yaudhēyas , Mādrakas , Ābhīras , Prārjunas, Sanakānīkas, Kākas, Kharaparikas , Karna and other nations" Yayati Yayati ( Sanskrit : ययाति , romanized :  Yayāti )

3572-487: The form of the animals. Enraged, Kindama berated the king for having killed him before he had finished the act of mating and before dying, he cursed Pandu that he would die the moment he touched his wife intending to make love. After the event Pandu voluntarily renounced royal life as penance, leaving the Kingdom under Dhritarashtra. Kunti and Madri accompanied Pandu and together they lived in a forest. Before her marriage, Kunti

3648-428: The four kings of Madra. Madra Custom of Marriage Bhishma , the fatherlike guardian of Kuru king Pandu went to the capital of Madra, to ask for Shalya 's sister as a bride to Pandu. Upon which Shalya replies:- "There is a custom in our family observed by our ancestors, which, be it good or bad, I am incapable of transgressing it. It is well-known, and therefore is known to thee as well, I doubt not." The custom

3724-464: The hopes that she would conceive. In due course, Devayani gives birth to two sons: Yadu and Turvasu, while Sharmishtha begets three sons: Druhyu, Anudruhyu, and Puru. Eventually, Devayani learns of her husband's affair with Sharmishtha, and complains to her father. Enraged at his son-in-law's disobedience, Shukra curses Yayati with premature old age in punishment for inflicting such pain upon his daughter. However, on learning Sharmishtha's desire to become

3800-618: The incarnation of previous Indra 's. After the Duration, the lifespan of Indra, is completed Krishna assures Pandavas of offering them Moksha for their Devotion and purity. Harivamsa Purana (8th century CE) narrates the Jain version of their story. In the Garhwal region of Uttarakhand , there has been a long tradition of villagers performing the Pandav Lila , a ritual re-enactment of episodes from

3876-438: The kingdom, but turns it down, and instead becomes an ascetic . Yayati then becomes king in his place and rules the earth. He appoints his four younger brothers to rule the world's cardinal directions. One day, Sharmishtha, daughter of the daitya king Vrishaparvan , and Devayani, daughter of Shukra, go with Sharmishtha's retinue to bathe in a forest pool not far from their home. While they bathe, Indra transforms himself into

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3952-400: The last day (18th day) of Kurukshetra War . Shalya was rated by Bhishma as an Athiratha ( a great chariot-warrior) (5,166). Shalya was also skilled in knowledge of steeds and in driving the chariot on the battlefield (8,31). For this reason, Shalya was forced to be the charioteer of Karna for one day during the war. Shalya had two sons named Rukmangada and Rukmaratha (1,188). Rukmaratha

4028-424: The name of Vyushitaswa. His wife was Bhadra, the daughter of Kakshivat (Kakshivat was the son of Gautama-Dirghatamas, begotten upon the servant-maid of the queen of a king named Vali who ruled in the outskirts of Magadha . (See also Anga and Magadha ). Seven sons were born to Bhadra, after the death of Vyushitaswa. Later they all became kings. Three of them became the three kings of Salwa and four of them became

4104-435: The princess of Panchala Kingdom who was prophesied to bring the end of the Kauravas. The Adi Parva narrates that after their flight from the palace, the five brothers lived in the forests for some time disguised as Brahmins. They heard from a group of travelling sages about a contest ( Svayamvara ) being held in the Kingdom of Panchala that offered Draupadi's hand in marriage to the winner. The Svayamvara turned out to rely on

4180-482: The quarrel. Shukra is enraged, and to placate him, Vrishaparvan agrees to offer a thousand maids, along with his daughter Sharmishtha, to serve Devayani. Some time afterwards, Yayati meets Devayani again, and the two fall in love. After Shukra offers his consent, the two marry. When Devayani moves to Yayati's palace after her marriage, Sharmishtha, now her maidservant, also goes along. Shukra, however, sternly warns Yayati never to have any affairs with Sharmishtha. After

4256-538: The realm of heaven. Five golden chariots arrived and took them to the region of eternal bliss, because of the merits of his grandsons and his own. Another one of his descendants (through Puru ) was King Bharata , the son of King Dushyanta and Shakuntala . Further descendants were part of the Kuru kingdom , including Shantanu , Dhritarashtra , Pandu , Yudhishthira , Abhimanyu , and Parikshit . In modern language and usage, trading conscientious behaviour for external gain

4332-567: The region of Brahma and sometimes stayed at Amaravati, the region of Indra . One day, when Yayati and Indra were conversing, Indra asked him questions. Indra asked him how many sacrifices he did and whom he was equal to in sacrifices. Yayati boastingly said the number of his sacrifices was innumerable, and proclaimed his superiority. Indra was angered by this bragging, and threw Yayati out of heaven. Yayati begged his pardon, so Indra said even though he would be thrown out of heaven, he would fall amidst virtuous and wise humans. Thus, while Yayati fell from

4408-455: The royal court, pulling her by her hair, insulting her dignity and asserting that she, like the Pandava brothers, was now their servant. This caused immense anguish to all the great warriors seated in the court, but each of them, namely, Bheeshma (grandsire of the clan), Dronacharya (teacher/ guru of Kauravas and Pandavas) and Kripacharya except Vidura remained silent. Duryodhana then ordered Dushasana to disrobe Draupadi before everyone, as

4484-399: The skills of archery , and Arjuna, who was a peerless archer, entered the competition and won. When the brothers took Draupadi to introduce her to their mother, they jokingly announced to Kunti that they had arrived with excellent alms. Kunti was busy with some work and replied without turning to look at Draupadi (who the alms referred to) ordering the brothers to share the alms equally amongst

4560-510: The structure, most notably the lacquer known as lac . This palace was known as Lakshagraha . Duryodhana then successfully lobbied Dhritarashtra to send Yudhishthira to represent the royal household in Varnavarta during the celebrations of Shiva Mahotsava. The plan was to set the palace on fire during the night while Yudhishthira would likely be asleep. Yudhishthira left for Varnavrata, accompanied by his four brothers and their mother Kunti. The plan

4636-405: The sway of the Pandavas . The illustrious prince deserving the hospitality and entertainment at his uncle's hands, was well entertained by his uncle. Nakula obtained from Shalya a large quantity of jewels and gems and left his kingdom. Madra king Shalya , came with an Akshouhini of troops to join the army of Pandavas , since his nephews viz the twins Nakula and Sahadeva were none other than

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4712-463: The time had come for them to renounce the world, as the age of Kali Yuga had started. So the five Pandavas and Draupadi left to the path of liberation. For this purpose, they all climbed Mount Kailash , which leads to the Swarga Loka . On their way, all except Yudhisthira slipped and died one by one. Yudhisthira was accompanied by a dog who was none other than God Yama himself. The first to die

4788-459: The war. To this Arjuna immediately opted for Krishna for his help and thus Duryodhana was given Krishna's army. Duryodhana was very satisfied to have received a huge army. The war was intense and lasted 18 days, over the course of which both parties worked around, bent and even broke rules of warfare. In the end, all 100 Kaurava brothers and their entire army was slain, with only three surviving on their side. The Pandavas too lost several allies but

4864-408: The wars between kings of Aryavarta (North Indian kingdoms where Vedic culture of the norm, prevailed). Their soldiers used to aid both the parties engaged in a battle on a payment basis. Probably this was the reason why Shalya, the Madra king, has to side with Duryodhana in the Kurukshetra War , since he was tricked to accept the payment for siding with Duryodhana. Another collective name denoting

4940-699: The western kingdoms is Arashtra or Aratta , meaning a kingless country. This raises the doubt, whether these countries were a republic ruled by elected chiefs, if we take the positive sense of the word. In a negative sense the word Arashtra can mean a kingdom with no control or with utter disorder. The Yavanas , the Kiratas , the Chinas , the Savaras , the Barbaras, the Sakas , the Tusharas ,

5016-527: The whole world and was the Chakravarti ("Universal Monarch" or "World Emperor"). He married Devayani , the daughter of Shukra , and also took Sharmishtha , daughter of king Vrishaparvan , and the maid of Devayani , as his mistress. Upon hearing of his relationship with Sharmishtha, Devayani complained to her father, who in turn cursed Yayati to old age in the prime of life, but later allowed him to exchange it with his son, Puru . His story finds mention in

5092-457: The world to spend his remaining days as a forest ascetic. His spiritual practices are, at long last, blessed with success and, alone in the deep woods, he is rewarded with ascension to Svarga - the heavenly realm of the righteous, ruled by Indra , that is but one step below the ultimate liberation of moksha . Yayati ascended to heaven due to his virtues. He was so virtuous that he could travel to many celestial regions. Sometimes, he went to

5168-623: The youngest Pandavas. His troops marched slowly on every day from Madra ( Punjab province of Pakistan) to Upaplavya (somewhere on the border of Rajasthan and Haryana ), the Matsya city, where the Pandavas were camped. When his army reached Kurujangala (the kingdom of the Pandavas, the modern-day Haryana ), Duryodhana 's men intercepted the army. They, without revealing their identity, received Shalya and his men, made tents for them and refreshed them with all comforts. The Madra soldiers also received payment from Duryodhana's officers for taking part in

5244-483: Was Draupadi ; she was imperfect because she loved Arjuna more than her other husbands. Then it was Sahadeva , imperfect because he was overconfident about his knowledge in science. He was followed by Nakula , imperfect because he was over-enthusiastic about his good looks. Then fell Arjuna , imperfect because he was proud of his skills—he challenged Hanuman and Shiva . Next was Bheema , imperfect because he killed his enemies brutally—thus enjoyed their sufferings. Only

5320-577: Was all illusion created by Yama himself. It was a punishment to Yudhishtira to feel sad and soak tears on seeing his beloved ones being punished. It was because Drona felt sad on hearing fake news that his son was dead. Yudhishtira told the message incompletely due to which Drona felt sad and cried in grief. Because of this, Yudhishtira had to feel sad in a similar manner. Hence Yama created this illusion. In reality, Pandavas and Draupadi reached heaven just after their deaths. Yama explained everything and Yudhishtira reached heaven with his mortal body. Pandavas were

5396-413: Was blessed with a boon by the sage Durvasa , that she could have a son by any god whom she respects without having any marital affair. After Pandu learned of this, he asked her to perform Niyoga and bear him sons using the boon. The first three of the Pandavas were the sons of Kunti, while the younger two were born to Madri after Kunti shared her mantra with her at Pandu's request. The divine fathers of

5472-409: Was discovered by their paternal uncle Vidura , who was very loyal to them and an extraordinarily wise man. In addition, Yudhishthira had been forewarned about this plot by a hermit who came to him and spoke of an imminent disaster. Vidura arranged for a tunnel to be secretly built for the Pandavas to safely escape the palace as it was set afire. The Pandavas had polyandrous marriage with Draupadi ,

5548-425: Was mentioned as participating in the war. Similarly, many brothers of Shalya also participated in the war. His younger brother was slain by Abhimanyu (8,5). He is also called as Mukappan. There were other Madra kings like Dyutimat mentioned at (1,95) as the father-in-law of Pandava Sahadeva . Nakula , during his military campaign to the west, to collect tribute for Yudhishthira 's Rajasuya sacrifice came to

5624-437: Was tempted to flee, he mastered himself and remained after hearing the voices of his beloved brothers and Draupadi calling out to him, asking him to stay with them in their misery. Yudhisthira decided to remain, ordering the divine charioteer to return. He preferred to live in hell with good people than in the heaven of his enemies. Eventually, this turned out to be another illusion to test him. Yama explained to Yudhishtira that it

5700-418: Was that the groom had to give dowry to the kinsmen of the bride. Bhishma gave much wealth to Shalya and took Madri as the bride for Pandu (1,113). Pandava Sahadeva married Vijaya, the daughter of Dyutimat, the king of Madra, obtaining her in a self-choice ceremony and begat upon her a son named Suhotra. (1,95) Aswapati was the son of Madra (the founder of Madra kingdom) and grandson of King Shibi . He

5776-423: Was the father of Savitri the famous princess of Madra, who became the lover (and later, wife) of the famous Salwa prince Satyavan . Aswapati's wife was from a minor tribe known as Malava . She was known as Malavi (3,291). The sons of Aswapati and Malavi, later became the powerful Malava kings. They spread their kingdom as far as Avanti ( Ujjain , Madhya Pradesh ). Thus the royal line of Malavas originated from

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