Shikhandi

Quick Facts

About Shikhandi

Born as Amba's reincarnation and raised as Drupada's daughter before becoming a man, Shikhandi lived for a single purpose - the fall of Bhishma. On the tenth day of the war, Bhishma lowered his bow before Shikhandi, allowing Arjuna's arrows to bring the grandsire down.

In Their Words

I was born once for love, and born again for vengeance.

Shikhandi

Traits

• Vengeful
• Determined
• Transformed
• Fearless

Story Appearances

• The Princess Who Became DeathAmba reborn for vengeance❧ 22 min
• The Eighteen DaysInstrument of Bhishma's fall❧ 24 min
• The Night of BloodSlain in the night raid❧ 19 min

Stories Featuring Shikhandi

83 further tales on this site name Shikhandi, in canonical reading order.

• The Terrible VowThe Sacrifice of DevavrataAdi Parva ‧ 23 min
• The Fire-Born and the Woman Who Became a ManDrupada's Children, Drona's Old Feud, and Amba's Vow Across LivesAdi Parva ‧ 29 min
• 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 Promise Made in the Kamyaka WoodsThe allies arrive, and Draupadi asks Krishna what her friendship is worthVana Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Choosing of the GeneralissimoFive brothers name five different men, and Krishna names the sixthUdyoga Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Cities of TentsTwo capitals raised on Kurukshetra before a single arrowUdyoga Parva ‧ 16 min
• Twenty-Three Days on the SaraswatiBhishma fights his own preceptor and neither man can winUdyoga Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Yaksha Who Lent His ManhoodSthuna, Sikhandini, and the curse that made the loan permanentUdyoga Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Question of DaysEach commander prices the enemy army in morningsUdyoga Parva ‧ 16 min
• Arjuna's Message to the KurusSanjaya recites the message in open court, and names every man who will dieUdyoga Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Sacrifice of BattleDuryodhana makes the coming war his own rite, and his father disowns him for itUdyoga Parva ‧ 23 min
• Eighteen Days of DestructionThe Kurukshetra War teaches that there is no such thing as a 'clean' war. Even a war fought for the most righteous...Bhishma Parva ‧ 31 min
• The Fall of Bhishma and the EarringsIndra's Gift, the Grandsire's Bed of ArrowsBhishma Parva ‧ 26 min
• Shveta Against the GrandsireThe Matsya prince who broke Bhishma's bow again and againBhishma Parva ‧ 19 min
• Kurukshetra Day 8: The Rakshasa's HourIravan falls and Ghatotkacha answers for himBhishma Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Son of RishyasringaAlambusha, the illusion-fighter the Kauravas kept for the Pandava sonsBhishma Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Pillow of ArrowsBoth armies lay down their weapons for one eveningBhishma Parva ‧ 18 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 Wall Before BhishmaEvery Kaurava champion is given one Pandava to stop on the tenth dayBhishma Parva ‧ 15 min
• The Last Push on the Tenth DayTenth day: Bhishma asks Yudhishthira to kill him, and the champions of both armies pair off across the field while Dushasana alone stands between him and ArjunaBhishma Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Evening After Bhishma FellBoth armies stop the war for a night, and Arjuna gives the grandsire the only pillow he will accept.Bhishma Parva ‧ 19 min
• The Pairings of the Second DayArjuna goes at the grandsire, and the field breaks into nine duelsBhishma Parva ‧ 11 min
• Shikhandi's WarThe life after the purposeBhishma Parva
• The Guard Drona Had To KillSatyajit of Panchala, and the promise Arjuna left behind himDrona Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Banners and the BowsSanjaya names every standard on the fieldDrona Parva ‧ 18 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 Dart That Was Never ThrownA blind king asks the only question that matteredDrona Parva ‧ 17 min
• Held Back by Bhima's ArmsSatyaki and Dhrishtadyumna nearly finish the war for the KauravasDrona Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Sword That Broke on the ShieldAbhimanyu strips a king of everything, and Jayadratha comes down off his car to stop himDrona Parva ‧ 13 min
• The Guard at the WheelKumara of Panchala checks Drona in front of Yudhishthira's chariot, and pays for itDrona Parva ‧ 14 min
• The King Who Went In AloneDuryodhana charges the whole Pandava army by himself, and Yudhishthira cuts his bowDrona Parva ‧ 14 min
• The King They Thought Was DeadBhima's mace crushes Duryodhana's chariot, and both armies believe the Kuru king killedDrona 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 Telling in the RoutAshwatthama rides back through a fleeing army to ask what happened, and Kripa has to tell him how Drona was killedDrona Parva ‧ 16 min
• Karna Takes the FieldThe vow that kept him out of ten days of war, and the grief that brought him into itDrona Parva ‧ 17 min
• How Drona Won the Narayana WeaponAshwatthama tells the Kauravas where his father's last astra came from, and the one rule that came with itDrona Parva ‧ 15 min
• The King Falls Out of His SeatDhritarashtra hears that Drona is dead, faints in his hall, and wakes to ask who was supposed to be guarding himDrona Parva ‧ 20 min
• The Mouth of the GarudaDrona draws his host as a bird and comes for Yudhishthira on the twelfth morningDrona Parva ‧ 21 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 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
• Karna by Night Against the PanchalasThe armies throw down their torches, and the Suta's son scatters Dhrishtadyumna and all of Panchala in the darkDrona Parva ‧ 17 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 Field After the Sun FellShalya counts the dead and the Kauravas walk awayKarna Parva ‧ 18 min
• A Thousand Lamps Around KarnaYudhishthira rises from his bed to look at his enemyKarna Parva ‧ 16 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 Elephant Standard Comes DownDhrishtadyumna leaves Duryodhana without horses, driver, weapons or banner at noon on the seventeenth dayKarna Parva ‧ 18 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
• The Kings of the East FallSatyaki, Sahadeva and Nakula break the elephant corps of the eastern kingsKarna Parva ‧ 11 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 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 Men Who Carried the MeatA king's hiding place sold for a purseShalya Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Verdict at the Fallen KingBalarama's plough, Duryodhana's indictment, and the flowers that fell from the skyShalya Parva ‧ 17 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 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 Plunder of the Kaurava CampThe victors ride into Duryodhana's empty tents, and Arjuna's chariot turns to ashShalya Parva ‧ 14 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 Owl in the Banyan TreeWhat three beaten men argued about in the darkSauptika Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Last ReportThree men bring good news to a dying kingSauptika Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Count of the DeadKrishna's blunt answer, and a king who could see where they had goneStri Parva ‧ 16 min
• Bhishma on the Bed of ArrowsFifty-Eight Days of Teaching, and a King Crowned at His FeetShanti Parva ‧ 24 min
• The Departure of BhishmaThe sun turns north, and the grandsire lets goAnushasana Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Night the Dead ReturnedVyasa Calls the Fallen Out of the GangaAshramavasika Parva ‧ 20 min
• Balarama Returns to the SeaThe Serpent Leaves by the Mouth It Came FromMausala Parva ‧ 16 min

Character Arc

1. 1The RebirthAmba's hatred takes new form
2. 2The Tenth DayStands before Bhishma's chariot

Key Relationships

• Sworn Enemy➝Bhishma
• Previous Birth➝Princess Amba
• Battle Companion➝Arjuna

Places in Shikhandi's Story

Drawn from the stories Shikhandi appears in.

• Kurukshetraकुरुक्षेत्र
• Kashiकाशी
• Hastinapurहस्तिनापुर
• Shalvaशाल्व
• Gandhamadanaगन्धमादन
• Himavatहिमवत्
• Kampilyaकाम्पिल्य
• Banks of the Yamunaयमुना तट
• Indraprasthaइंद्रप्रस्थ
• Pushkaraपुष्कर
• Banks of the Gangaगङ्गा तट
• Forest Hermitageवन आश्रम

Related Characters

Others counted among the Pandavas.

• ❈Yudhishthira
• ⛏︎Bhima
• ◎Arjuna
• ✧Nakula
• ❧Sahadeva
• ✶Draupadi