On the third day of the war, Bheeshma arranged the Kaurava army in the Garuda or eagle formation. He stood at the mouth of the formation while Drona and Kritavarma were the eyes. Seeing this formation, Arjuna and Dhristadhyumna organized the Ardha Chandra or half-moon formation. At one end of the formation was Bheema with …
The next day, Bheeshma led his mighty army and attacked the Pandavas with great force. He had created a formation that resembled a great cloud. The Vyuha organized by the Pandavas was similar to the Ardha Chandra formation of the previous day, with 4,000 elephants stationed at each of the corners. The Kaurava soldiers shook …
On the second day of the war, the Pandavas were geared up to face up to Bheeshma’s might. Yudhishtira told Dhristadyumna that the sage Brihaspathi had advised Indra once to use the Krauncha or heron formation to achieve victory. He asked Dhristadyumna to use this formation. Dhristadyumna arranged the Krauncha formation with Arjuna at its …
On the 1st day of the war, the two sides assembled in the Kurukshetra battlefield before dawn waiting for the sun to rise. The Kaurava side had a powerful formation with soldiers facing all sides. In response to this formation, the Pandavas used the Vajra (thunderbolt) formation with Bheema at the head. As the two …
Continued from Sabha Parva – 1 Vidura is sent to invite Yudhishtira. Vidura advises against gambling but Yudhishtira decides that as per the Kshatriya dharma, he had no option but to accept the invitation. The Pandavas then reach Hastinapura with Draupadi where they are treated well. The dice game commences and Duryodhana announces that Shakuni …
Continued from Adi Parva – 5 Maya, the asura who is pardoned by Arjuna is the architect of the demons. He wants to help Arjuna and Krishna asks him to build a grand palace with an assembly hall. Maya creates a wondrous palace with many illusions in it. He also gifts a mace to Bheema …
Continued from Adi Parva – 4 Drupada, after being defeated by Drona performed a yajna (sacrifice) to get a powerful son to avenge his humiliation. From the fire emerged a son and a daughter. The son is named Dhrishtadyumna who is destined to kill Drona. The daughter is known as Krishnaa because she is dark …
Continued from Adi Parva – 3 One day Drona pretends to be caught by a crocodile. Without a second thought, Arjuna kills the crocodile and saves Drona even as the others watch. A delighted Drona gifts him the greatest celestial weapon, the Brahmastra (the weapon of Brahma). Karna then asks for the Brahmastra but when …
Everyone knows the story of Abhimanyu. It is the story of a sixteen year old warrior who broke into Drona’s formidable Chakravyuha military formation and created havoc in the Kaurava camp. Single-handedly he battled the entire day with the Kauravas until he was finally killed in cold blood and through deceit by the Kaurava greats. …
Abhimanyu – the mightiest warrior of the Great War Read More »
The Mahabharata has lessons on virtually every subject. Dharma is the principal concept you will find throughout the epic. While the main story of the epic itself presents different perspectives on Dharma, the minor stories also are an important part of the epic. The minor stories or the Upakhyanas are many. All of these upakhyanas …
Taking care of your parents is the greatest dharma Read More »
