King Pandu

Quick Facts

About King Pandu

The pale son of Vyasa and Ambalika. A great warrior and archer who ruled Hastinapura and was the father of the five Pandavas.

In Their Words

The valorous Pandu excelled over all other men in archery.

King Pandu

Traits

• Pale
• Archer
• Righteous

Stories Featuring King Pandu

35 tales on this site name King Pandu, in canonical reading order.

• The Epic ComposedVyasa at Badarikashrama, Astika at the Snake Sacrifice, and the Story First ToldAdi Parva ‧ 23 min
• The Niyoga of VyasaThe Birth of the KurusAdi Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Birth of the PrincesChildren of the Gods and the Iron WombAdi Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Curse of the DeerPandu's Fatal Hunt and the End of a KingAdi Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Curse That Killed a KingPandu's Arrow, Kindama's Curse, and the Birth of the PandavasAdi Parva ‧ 23 min
• The Ascetics at the GateThe morning five orphans were handed to HastinapuraAdi Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Heir ApparentA crown promised, a second fee demanded, and the conquests that frightened a blind kingAdi Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Watch Under the BanianOne brother awake while the rest of the Kurus sleep on bare groundAdi Parva ‧ 16 min
• Kunti's SwayamvaraThe princess no king asked for chooses Pandu in a hall of monarchsAdi Parva ‧ 13 min
• Kunti Knows Her SonThe mother who recognised Karna in the arena and stayed silentAdi Parva ‧ 14 min
• The Priest of DrupadaThe envoy, the guarded answer, and the weapons laid out to catch a king's sonsAdi Parva ‧ 17 min
• Pandu's ConquestThe pale king who filled the treasuryAdi Parva
• The Sons of the Dead KingKunti answers Pandu's plea for niyoga with the tale of a widow's unbroken faithAdi Parva
• Madri, the Second QueenThe overshadowed wife who chose the fireAdi Parva
• The Boy Who Invented MarriageThe argument Pandu made on the mountainAdi Parva
• Madra, Kingdom of Shalya and MadriThe uncle's land between two loyaltiesAdi Parva
• The Road Out of HastinapuraWhat Vidura read in the way they walkedSabha Parva ‧ 19 min
• The Vows Sworn Before ExileFour brothers name their killings on the way out of the dice hallSabha Parva ‧ 23 min
• The Ones Who Would Not Turn BackThe city walks out with its kings, and a sage answers the weepingVana Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Cow Who Wept for the Weaker CalfIndra learns why a mother's love is not divided equallyVana Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Curse on Duryodhana's ThighA sage asks politely once, and is answered with a scratched footVana Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Promise Made in the Kamyaka WoodsThe allies arrive, and Draupadi asks Krishna what her friendship is worthVana Parva ‧ 17 min
• When Forgiveness Is Not a VirtueAn angry queen quotes an asura grandfather at a patient kingVana Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Lineage of GandivaBrihannala names five sets of weapons and the six who held the great bowVirata Parva ‧ 12 min
• What Kunti Sent Instead of ComfortA mother counts her sons aloud, then tells them to fightUdyoga Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Tree and the ForestKrishna answers Sanjaya at Upaplavya and decides to go to the Kurus himselfUdyoga Parva ‧ 18 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 Elephant King of the EastBhagadatta, Supratika, and the Missile Krishna Took on His ChestDrona Parva ‧ 20 min
• The Night the Sindhu King Asked to LeaveJayadratha wants his horses saddled, and Drona tells him the truthDrona Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Blind King Is AnsweredDhritarashtra laments the night after Abhimanyu's death, and his own messenger tells him whose fault it isDrona Parva ‧ 15 min
• The Wordy DartsFifteen Years of Bhima's UnforgivenessAshramavasika Parva ‧ 19 min
• The King Asks Leave of His PeopleAn Assembly Absolves the Man Who Ruined ItAshramavasika Parva ‧ 17 min
• Satayupa and the Forest KingsNarada Names the Rulers Who Chose the WoodsAshramavasika Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Night the Dead ReturnedVyasa Calls the Fallen Out of the GangaAshramavasika Parva ‧ 20 min
• The Return of the PortionsWho everybody turned out to have beenSvargarohana Parva ‧ 17 min

Places in King Pandu's Story

Drawn from the stories King Pandu appears in.

• Hastinapurहस्तिनापुर
• Gandharaगान्धार
• Madra Kingdomमद्र देश
• Mount Shatashringaशतशृङ्ग
• Badarikashramaबदरिकाश्रम
• Naimisharanyaनैमिषारण्य
• Kurukshetraकुरुक्षेत्र
• Pragjyotishaप्राग्ज्योतिष
• Dasharnaदशार्ण
• Magadhaमगध
• Kashiकाशी
• Himavatहिमवत्

Related Characters

Others counted among the Kuru Dynasty.

• ✦Pritha (Kunti)
• ✦King Dushyanta
• ✦Shakuntala
• ✦Emperor Bharata (Sarvadamana)
• ⚔︎Bhishma
• ∵Drona