Nahusha

Quick Facts

About Nahusha

An ancestor of the Kurus who once ruled heaven in Indra's place until pride felled him into the body of a great serpent. He seized Bhima in the forest and was released from his curse by Yudhishthira's answers.

In Their Words

I who rode the sages now crawl - answer me, and free us both.

Nahusha

Traits

• once-glorious
• prideful
• redeemed

Story Appearances

• Adventures in the ForestThe python ancestor questioned by Yudhishthira❧ 30 min

Stories Featuring Nahusha

19 further tales on this site name Nahusha, in canonical reading order.

• Ancient BeginningsThe Earth's Plea, the Descent of the Gods, and the Sages Who Began the TellingAdi Parva ‧ 22 min
• The Four Ways to Spend a LifeYayati, falling out of heaven, answers Ashtaka on the asramas and the road to BrahmaAdi Parva ‧ 19 min
• What the Blind King Was ToldDuryodhana's inventory of the rajasuya, and the quarrel it startedSabha Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Python's QuestionsThe Curse of NahushaVana Parva ‧ 12 min
• The Measure of a King's GivingThree short tests of what a gift is worthVana Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Golden PloughThe sacrifice a king held because the one he wanted was forbidden himVana Parva ‧ 18 min
• Amaravati, City of IndraThe capital of heaven in the epicVana Parva
• Madhavi Chooses the ForestAt her own swayamvara she passes over every king and takes the woods for a husbandUdyoga Parva ‧ 12 min
• The Kings Who Were Passed OverDhritarashtra reads his son the family's own record of elder sons who never got the throneUdyoga Parva ‧ 13 min
• The Mortal Who Sat on Indra's ThroneA warning tale for a king about to winUdyoga Parva
• The Oath of a Bereaved FatherThe house of Bahlika ends in a single nightDrona Parva ‧ 18 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 Kingdom Poured on the FireA sage is mocked with dead cattle and burns a realm with themShalya Parva ‧ 17 min
• The King Who Was Left AloneVyasa tells Yudhishthira of Hayagriva, who fought robbers after his army was gone and won heaven at his postShanti Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Song of BodhyaSix teachers and no preceptorShanti Parva
• The Names That Cleanse SinAsked what destroys sin, Bhishma answers with a litany of gods, rivers, mountains, sages and kingsAnushasana Parva ‧ 15 min
• Bhrigu in Agastya's HairHow an unseen sage cursed the mortal king of heaven into a snakeAnushasana Parva ‧ 19 min
• The Fourfold Religion of CompassionBhishma on abstaining from meat, and the kings who kept the vowAnushasana Parva ‧ 24 min
• The Price of a SageChyavana caught in the fishermen's netAnushasana Parva

Places in Nahusha's Story

Drawn from the stories Nahusha appears in.

• Kamyaka Forestकाम्यक वन
• Dvaitavanaद्वैतवन
• Gandhamadanaगन्धमादन
• Amaravatiअमरावती
• Badarikashramaबदरिकाश्रम
• Nagalokaनागलोक
• Brahmalokaब्रह्मलोक
• Naimisharanyaनैमिषारण्य
• Chediचेदि
• Hastinapurहस्तिनापुर
• Forest Hermitageवन आश्रम
• Gangaगङ्गा

Related Characters

Others counted among the Sages & Others.

• ✦Sage Kanva
• ◎Eklavya
• ★Shukracharya
• ♛Vrishaparva
• ♛Yadu
• ✧Princess Amba