Kritavarma

Quick Facts

About Kritavarma

Chief of the Bhoja Yadavas who led Krishna's Narayani Sena into battle for Duryodhana. One of only three Kaurava warriors to survive the war, he stood guard at the gates during Ashwatthama's night massacre, cutting down those who fled the burning camp.

In Their Words

I gave my word to Duryodhana; the rest is the gods' burden.

Kritavarma

Traits

• Loyal
• Grim
• Survivor
• Complicit

Story Appearances

• The Valiant SonOne of six who surround Abhimanyu❧ 16 min
• The Night of BloodGuards the gates of slaughter❧ 19 min
• The Aftermath of WarOne of three Kaurava survivors❧ 25 min

Stories Featuring Kritavarma

89 further tales on this site name Kritavarma, in canonical reading order.

• The Weighing of the BharataThe gods put the epic in a balance against the four Vedas, and Sauti recites the eighteen booksAdi Parva ‧ 24 min
• The Choice at DwarakaTen crore soldiers on one side of the bed, one unarmed man on the otherUdyoga Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Meal He Chose to EatA king's banquet refused, a servant's supper acceptedUdyoga Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Sacrifice of BattleDuryodhana makes the coming war his own rite, and his father disowns him for itUdyoga Parva ‧ 23 min
• The Race for AlliesHow eighteen armies were bought before a shot was firedUdyoga Parva
• The Eighteen DaysWar spares no one - neither the righteous nor the wicked. The Mahabharata war ended with Pandava victory, but the price...Bhishma Parva ‧ 24 min
• Shveta Against the GrandsireThe Matsya prince who broke Bhishma's bow again and againBhishma Parva ‧ 19 min
• The Grandsire Names the GodDuryodhana asks why he keeps losing and gets a theology insteadBhishma Parva ‧ 18 min
• Kurukshetra Day 8: The Rakshasa's HourIravan falls and Ghatotkacha answers for himBhishma Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Herb in the Grandsire's HandA wounded Duryodhana asks Bhishma for reassurance and is given honesty, a pledge, and medicineBhishma Parva ‧ 16 min
• Omens and the Ten Kings Around BhimaDrona reads the signs of Bhishma's last day and sends his son to fightBhishma Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Grandsire Chooses His HourBhishma remembers Santanu's boon and refuses to die in the wrong seasonBhishma Parva ‧ 21 min
• Six Duels on the Eighth DayShikhandi with a broken sword, Duryodhana on foot, and a mace that missedBhishma Parva ‧ 19 min
• The Three ColumnsAt midday on the eighth day the Pandava army splits into three attacking bodies, Arjuna's son Iravan is killed, and Bhishma sends twelve warriors to pull Duryodhana out of the fire.Bhishma Parva ‧ 21 min
• Ghatotkacha and the Javelin of BhagadattaDuryodhana asks to kill a Rakshasa, and a Rakshasa breaks a javelin on his kneeBhishma Parva ‧ 24 min
• The Shield Around BhishmaNinth day: Satyaki trades darts with the grandsire, Abhimanyu unhorses Chitrasena, and Duryodhana orders a wall of men built round BhishmaBhishma Parva ‧ 14 min
• The Wall Before BhishmaEvery Kaurava champion is given one Pandava to stop on the tenth dayBhishma Parva ‧ 15 min
• The Pairings of the Second DayArjuna goes at the grandsire, and the field breaks into nine duelsBhishma Parva ‧ 11 min
• The Guard Drona Had To KillSatyajit of Panchala, and the promise Arjuna left behind himDrona Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Cart, the Lotus and the NeedleDrona builds an array forty-eight miles deep to hide one manDrona Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Blessing at the GateArjuna asks his teacher's leave to break his teacher's lineDrona Parva ‧ 15 min
• The Mace That Turned BackVaruna's gift to a river's son, and the one rule he forgotDrona Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Armour of MantrasThe one day Duryodhana stood in front of Arjuna and did not fallDrona Parva ‧ 21 min
• Kurukshetra Day 14: The Longest DaySunset Vow, False Dusk, and a Battle That Would Not Stop at NightfallDrona Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Order Yudhishthira GaveA king overrules the guard his brother postedDrona Parva ‧ 20 min
• The King Counts His ArmyEvery soldier paid, examined and willing, and still losingDrona Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Grandson of Shini Crosses the OceanOne chariot sent through the whole Kaurava hostDrona Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Second Man SentBhima's crossing and the roar agreed on beforehandDrona Parva ‧ 18 min
• Three Men and a Drawn SwordKarna boasts, Kripa answers, and Ashwatthama draws on his own sideDrona Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Night They Lit the FieldDuryodhana's order that turned a battlefield into a lamp-lit hallDrona Parva ‧ 16 min
• Kurukshetra Day 15: The Day the Teacher DiedFrom the Dawn Prayers to the Half-Truth at NoonDrona Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Two MacesBhima sends Abhimanyu aside and meets the king of Madra blow for blow until both men fallDrona Parva ‧ 14 min
• The King Put Off His ChariotSatyaki kills Duryodhana's horses and driver, cuts his bow at the handle, and the king escapes on Kritavarma's carDrona Parva ‧ 13 min
• The Two Who RememberedDuryodhana and Satyaki meet on the fifteenth day and talk about their childhood before they fightDrona Parva ‧ 15 min
• The Boon Somadatta Asked ForA wrestling match at Devaki's self-choice, and the son born a generation later to answer itDrona Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Mouth of the GarudaDrona draws his host as a bird and comes for Yudhishthira on the twelfth morningDrona Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Road to JayadrathaArjuna breaks through the head of Drona's array on the fourteenth morning, from the omens at dawn to the river of bloodDrona Parva ‧ 23 min
• The Stones and the Golden KingSatyaki kills Sudarsana on the road to Arjuna, and cuts the mountaineers' stones out of the airDrona Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Field Krishna Showed HimArjuna is driven at a walk over the ground he has won, and Yudhishthira answers with a hymnDrona Parva ‧ 22 min
• The Night Falls on the Fourteenth DayAshwatthama breaks the Panchalas after dark, Drona looses the wind weapon, and Krishna pulls Yudhishthira out of a fight he is winningDrona Parva ‧ 18 min
• The Guard at Drona's Right WheelYudhishthira orders his whole army against Drona, and never gets past KritavarmaDrona Parva ‧ 15 min
• Duels by TorchlightSix single combats fought by lamplight on the road to Drona's carDrona Parva ‧ 20 min
• Satyaki of the VrishnisLoyalty that outran judgmentDrona Parva
• Kurukshetra Day 17: The Earth Takes the WheelKarna's Last Morning to Karna's Last HourKarna Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Word Brought to HastinapuraSanjaya rides through the night with the news of KarnaKarna Parva ‧ 21 min
• The King Against the KingYudhishthira brings Duryodhana down and Bhima stops the blowKarna Parva ‧ 17 min
• Karna Spares the KingThe armour cut away, and a hand laid on Yudhishthira's shoulderKarna Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Brothers Bhima CountedDuryodhana's kin fall in handfuls on the seventeenth dayKarna Parva ‧ 16 min
• Ashvatthama Asks for PeaceA hand on Duryodhana's wrist while the gods watchKarna Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Field After the Sun FellShalya counts the dead and the Kauravas walk awayKarna Parva ‧ 18 min
• The Duel the Gods ApplaudedAshwatthama and Bhima fight to a standstill and are carried off senseless by their own driversKarna Parva ‧ 14 min
• The Old Preceptor and the Slayer of DronaKripa freezes Dhrishtadyumna until his own driver turns the car and runsKarna Parva ‧ 11 min
• The King Names the PairsYudhishthira assigns each Pandava his enemy as Karna's array comes onKarna Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Son Bhima BeheadedBhima cuts down Karna's son Bhanusena while Karna fights his way toward YudhishthiraKarna Parva ‧ 14 min
• The Night After DronaThe sleepless camp, four men in a tent, and the thread tied round Karna's wristsKarna Parva ‧ 14 min
• The First Duels of the Sixteenth DayBhima kills a king off an elephant, Satyaki kills two brothers, and Draupadi's sons kill two moreKarna Parva ‧ 17 min
• Karna and Satyaki ClashOne Vrishni holds the Kaurava army, and the sixteenth day ends in dustKarna Parva ‧ 14 min
• The Prince Who Went In for ShikhandiKripa strips Shikhandi on the seventeenth day, and a young ally buys him a way out with his lifeKarna Parva ‧ 12 min
• Satyaki Unhorses ShakuniThe seventeenth day breaks into single combats, and the gambler of Gandhara is carried off the field by his sonKarna Parva ‧ 14 min
• Arjuna Rides Out for KarnaThe car is yoked again, the omen birds go on ahead, and the field between Arjuna and Karna breaks into duelsKarna Parva ‧ 23 min
• Arjuna Cuts His Way to KarnaAn army ordered to tire one man before Karna kills himKarna Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Vows Before the Final DuelKarna, Shalya, Krishna and Arjuna each say what they will do when the other man diesKarna Parva ‧ 24 min
• The Fourth CommanderA nephew's water poured on an uncle's head at the foot of HimavatShalya Parva ‧ 18 min
• Shalya Alone Against FiveThe last commander's one unanswerable morningShalya Parva ‧ 20 min
• The King on the Mountain of FleshOne elephant breaks an army, and two men bring it downShalya Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Last of the HundredBhima closes an eighteen-year account in a single afternoonShalya Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Oath Comes DueSusharman, his thirty-five sons, and the last of the sworn menShalya Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Men Who Carried the MeatA king's hiding place sold for a purseShalya Parva ‧ 16 min
• Duryodhana Rises from the LakeTaunted in the water, the last Kaurava comes up armed and asks for one man at a timeShalya Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Last Words of DuryodhanaBroken-thighed on the field, the Kuru king laments his dead, sends his last words home, and names a general with a dying man's hand.Shalya Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Eighteenth MorningChekitana takes a lance, Suratha takes a single arrow, and Duryodhana is carried off his own field by bolting horsesShalya Parva ‧ 22 min
• The Seventeen HundredShalya's followers charge against orders, and Duryodhana's army breaks twice before he turns it roundShalya Parva ‧ 19 min
• The Afternoon of the Eighteenth DaySatyaki takes Kritavarma's car again, Duryodhana holds the field alone, and the last elephants fallShalya Parva ‧ 22 min
• The Flight of the Royal LadiesThe last of the eleven armies dies, Duryodhana walks into a lake, and the Kaurava camp runs for HastinapuraShalya Parva ‧ 20 min
• The Muster of the Eighteenth DayAn oath never to fight alone, and the count of what was left of both armiesShalya Parva ‧ 15 min
• The Count on the Nineteenth MorningEighteen armies, and the men who walked off the fieldShalya Parva
• The Owl in the Banyan TreeWhat three beaten men argued about in the darkSauptika Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Being at the GateAshvatthama offers himself to MahadevaSauptika Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Last ReportThree men bring good news to a dying kingSauptika Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Gem on Ashwatthama's HeadDraupadi sits down to starve until the stone is brought to herSauptika Parva ‧ 15 min
• Kritavarma's RoadSmall compromises on the way to atrocitySauptika Parva
• The Queens Who Came a Long WayWhat the Kuru quarrel cost the kingdoms that were only alliesStri Parva ‧ 17 min
• What Gandhari SawThe blind queen, given sight for one afternoon, walks Kurukshetra naming the dead of both armiesStri Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Iron MacesBook 16 - The Curse That Destroyed Krishna's PeopleMausala Parva ‧ 21 min
• Balarama Returns to the SeaThe Serpent Leaves by the Mouth It Came FromMausala Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Death of VasudevaKrishna's Father Outlives EveryoneMausala Parva ‧ 16 min
• Arjuna Empties DwarakaOne bowman escorts a dead city inland, and the sea walks behind himMausala Parva ‧ 18 min
• Uddhava Takes His LeaveThe one Yadava who left Prabhasa before the grass turned to ironMausala Parva ‧ 12 min
• The Return of the PortionsWho everybody turned out to have beenSvargarohana Parva ‧ 17 min

Character Arc

1. 1The ChoiceTakes the Narayani Sena to Duryodhana
2. 2The NightBars escape from the burning camp

Key Relationships

• Estranged Kinsman➝Krishna
• Commander for➝Duryodhana

Places in Kritavarma's Story

Drawn from the stories Kritavarma appears in.

• Kurukshetraकुरुक्षेत्र
• Pandava Campपाण्डव शिविर
• Dwarakaद्वारका
• Prabhasaप्रभास
• Hastinapurहस्तिनापुर
• Madraमद्र
• Kekeyaकेकय
• Pragjyotishaप्राग्ज्योतिष
• Kalingaकलिंग
• Virataविराट
• Gandhamadanaगन्धमादन
• Nagalokaनागलोक

Related Characters

Others counted among the Kauravas.

• ⚔︎Duryodhana
• ☠︎Dushasana
• ⚄Shakuni
• ☀︎Karna
• ☮︎Yuyutsu
• ⛨︎Shalya