Sage Vyasa

Quick Facts

About Sage Vyasa

The illegitimate son of Satyavati and Sage Parashara. A great ascetic and the author of the Mahabharata. He performed Niyoga to father Dhritarashtra, Pandu, and Vidura to save the Kuru lineage.

In Their Words

I will do what you are commanding me to do. This is an eternal practice.

Sage Vyasa

Traits

• Ascetic
• Divine
• Author

Stories Featuring Sage Vyasa

120 tales on this site name Sage Vyasa, 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 Epic ComposedVyasa at Badarikashrama, Astika at the Snake Sacrifice, and the Story First ToldAdi Parva ‧ 23 min
• The River and the IslandBirths of Satyavati and VyasaAdi Parva ‧ 17 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
• Draupadi's SwayamvaraThe Choosing of Her HusbandAdi Parva ‧ 19 min
• The Impossible ChallengeDestiny works in mysterious ways. The rejected princes of Hastinapura, believed dead, revealed themselves as the...Adi Parva ‧ 21 min
• Kunti's SwayamvaraThe princess no king asked for chooses Pandu in a hall of monarchsAdi Parva ‧ 13 min
• The Priest of DrupadaThe envoy, the guarded answer, and the weapons laid out to catch a king's sonsAdi Parva ‧ 17 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 Lineages of Gods and DemonsVaishampayana recites the descent of every creature from Brahma and the daughters of DakshaAdi Parva ‧ 22 min
• Kunti's BlessingA mother-in-law names seven wives, a throne nobody owns yet, and a son not yet bornAdi Parva ‧ 12 min
• The Fisher Queen's BurdenSatyavati's regency and renunciationAdi Parva
• The Sacrifice That Was StoppedA son's fire, put out by the men it was lit forAdi Parva
• The Birth of DuryodhanaA doom announced and ignoredAdi Parva
• The Blindfold of GandhariA vow read as devotion and as protestAdi Parva
• The Five IndrasThe hidden design behind one bride, five husbandsAdi Parva
• Naimisha, the Forest Where the Epic Is ToldThe audience hall of the MahabharataAdi Parva
• The Imperial CeremonyThe Rajasuya story contains a profound teaching about divine patience and justice. Krishna endured ninety-nine insults...Sabha Parva ‧ 18 min
• The Vow of the Soft TongueVyasa's warning, and the promise Yudhishthira made insteadSabha Parva ‧ 16 min
• What the Blind King Was ToldDuryodhana's inventory of the rajasuya, and the quarrel it startedSabha Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Divine ArsenalArjuna's Ascent to IndralokaVana Parva ‧ 19 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
• The Court of Sages at the Dvaita LakeAn exile that filled up with brahmanas instead of soldiersVana Parva ‧ 17 min
• When Forgiveness Is Not a VirtueAn angry queen quotes an asura grandfather at a patient kingVana Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Queen Who Put God on TrialA bird on a string, and a child breaking its toysVana Parva ‧ 18 min
• The Blind King Counts the OddsA father adds up his enemies and hears whose fault it wasVana Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Five Lakes of BloodParashurama's oblation to the fathers at SamantapanchakaVana Parva ‧ 19 min
• The Argument in the ForestA vow kept, or a vow used as an excuseVana Parva
• How a Charioteer Came to Know GodThe blind king asks why the sight was given to a sutaUdyoga Parva ‧ 17 min
• Twenty-Three Days on the SaraswatiBhishma fights his own preceptor and neither man can winUdyoga Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Sacrifice of BattleDuryodhana makes the coming war his own rite, and his father disowns him for itUdyoga Parva ‧ 23 min
• Sanjaya's Divine EyeHow the War Was ToldBhishma Parva
• The Signs Before the WarWhat Vyasa saw in the sky, the cattle and the birth-roomsBhishma Parva ‧ 18 min
• The Hymn Before the ConchesKrishna sends Arjuna down from the chariot to praise the goddessBhishma Parva ‧ 18 min
• The Grandsire Names the GodDuryodhana asks why he keeps losing and gets a theology insteadBhishma Parva ‧ 18 min
• Karna at the Grandsire's FeetThe forgiveness that came too late to change anythingBhishma Parva ‧ 19 min
• The Grandsire Chooses His HourBhishma remembers Santanu's boon and refuses to die in the wrong seasonBhishma Parva ‧ 21 min
• Sanjaya Describes the EarthThe blind king asks what the earth is worth, and his charioteer answers with the whole of itBhishma Parva ‧ 24 min
• The Golden Son of SrinjayaThe Boy Worth More Than His LifeDrona Parva
• The Banners and the BowsSanjaya names every standard on the fieldDrona Parva ‧ 18 min
• The Dart That Was Never ThrownA blind king asks the only question that matteredDrona Parva ‧ 17 min
• Kurukshetra Day 15: The Day the Teacher DiedFrom the Dawn Prayers to the Half-Truth at NoonDrona Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Weapon That Would Not Burn ThemAshwatthama's fire, and why it left two men standingDrona Parva ‧ 21 min
• The One Who Walked Ahead of the ChariotArjuna finally asks who has been winning his battlesDrona Parva ‧ 17 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
• The One Who Walked Before the CarVyasa tells Arjuna whose lance was breaking the ranks in front of himDrona Parva ‧ 24 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 Whole Host Against DronaYudhishthira sends every man he has at the preceptor, and the fifteenth morning breaks into duelsDrona Parva ‧ 23 min
• The Arrow Cut in the AirSatyaki saves Dhrishtadyumna from the preceptor's shaft and holds three great bowmen at once, and the day ends with Drona's head in the dustDrona Parva ‧ 18 min
• The Errand Before the GriefKrishna drives to Hastinapura to reach a mother before her curse doesShalya Parva ‧ 16 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 Lords of the Waters and the TreasuresBalarama walks the Sarasvati past the fords where Varuna, Kubera, Indra and Surya won what they holdShalya Parva ‧ 18 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 Duel of the Brahmashira WeaponsAshwatthama and Arjuna loose the world-ending astra at Vyasa's hermitageSauptika Parva ‧ 18 min
• The Aftermath of WarThe Night Massacre, the Women's Lament, and a Curse on KrishnaStri Parva ‧ 25 min
• The Lament of the WomenStri Parva - The Field of WidowsStri Parva
• The Queen Asks Her QuestionsGandhari puts the victors on trial, and Vyasa stands in the wayStri Parva ‧ 18 min
• The Queens Who Came a Long WayWhat the Kuru quarrel cost the kingdoms that were only alliesStri Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Count of the DeadKrishna's blunt answer, and a king who could see where they had goneStri Parva ‧ 16 min
• Gandhari Shows Krishna the FieldWith the sight Vyasa gave her, the blindfolded queen walks Krishna through the dead of KurukshetraStri Parva ‧ 21 min
• What Gandhari SawThe blind queen, given sight for one afternoon, walks Kurukshetra naming the dead of both armiesStri Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Secret of the GodsVyasa tells the blind king why the war was ordained before his eldest son was bornStri Parva ‧ 14 min
• The Sixteen KingsThe Consolation of YudhishthiraShanti Parva
• The Victory Nobody WantedFive brothers, a wife and a sage argue a king back onto his throneShanti Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Son Struck From the Fire SticksA hundred years of penance, a parrot on a branch, and a child born of frictionShanti Parva ‧ 18 min
• Three Doors and Fifty WomenThe son of Vyasa is made to walk, and then made to waitShanti Parva ‧ 19 min
• The Rishi Born From a WordVyasa tells his disciples who he was before he was VyasaShanti Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Sins That Need ExpiationVyasa reads Yudhishthira the whole catalogue of acts that make a man liable, and then the exceptionsShanti Parva ‧ 15 min
• Arishtanemi and King SagaraA sage tells a reigning king when to let go of his house, and the king keeps his throneShanti Parva ‧ 15 min
• The Road of WorksBrahman and the first Rishis stand a thousand years on the shore, and sacrifice is foundedShanti Parva ‧ 22 min
• Krishna's Gift to the Dying GrandsireThe Boon That Took Away Pain, Hunger and Thirst So Bhishma Could SpeakShanti Parva ‧ 19 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 Gods and the SalavrikasVyasa answers Yudhishthira's guilt with the war heaven fought for thirty-two thousand yearsShanti Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Legs of the SnakeBhishma on how to live through a lawless season, and why slander must never be heardShanti Parva ‧ 15 min
• The Tribes Beyond the PaleBhishma names the peoples of the borders and dates them to the ending of the first ageShanti Parva ‧ 18 min
• The Seven WindsVyasa halts a recitation on the Himavat and names the winds that move the worldsShanti Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Gold Mountain in the Ocean of MilkBrahma tells Rudra of the one Purusha whom neither of them can seeShanti Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Son Who Flew to FreedomShuka, Vyasa, and the Inward RenunciationShanti Parva ‧ 9 min
• The Worm That Ran From the CartVyasa asks what such a life has to loseShanti Parva
• The Savitri Mantra of SalutationsBhishma gives Yudhishthira the roll of names to be said at dawnAnushasana Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Names That Cleanse SinAsked what destroys sin, Bhishma answers with a litany of gods, rivers, mountains, sages and kingsAnushasana Parva ‧ 15 min
• The Guest Who LaughedVyasa and Maitreya argue over gift, penance and knowledge at BaranasiAnushasana Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Vow of Ten and Two YearsKrishna keeps a twelve year vow on the mountain and a fire walks out of his mouthAnushasana Parva ‧ 19 min
• The Ten Sins of Body, Speech and MindBhishma answers the plainest question with a list of ten things not to doAnushasana Parva ‧ 16 min
• How Vishnu Got the DiscusUpamanyu tells Krishna where Sudarsana came from, and Krishna climbs Himavat to ask Mahadeva for a sonAnushasana Parva ‧ 23 min
• The Devotees of MahadevaKapila, Valmiki, Gritsamada and others tell Yudhishthira what a lifetime's devotion to Mahadeva bought them.Anushasana Parva ‧ 18 min
• What Sends a Man to Heaven or HellBhishma on gifts, the Sraddha, and the two lists of deedsAnushasana Parva ‧ 24 min
• The Mysteries of Religion, Part OneThe deities, the Pitris and the Rishis each give up a duty whose reason is secretAnushasana Parva ‧ 24 min
• The Mysteries of Religion, Part TwoLomasa, Arundhati, the night-wanderers and the elephants of the quarters give up the last of their secretsAnushasana Parva ‧ 18 min
• Whom One Should WorshipYudhishthira asks whom a man should bow to, and Bhishma answers with the brahmanasAnushasana Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Foundations of RighteousnessBhishma is asked whether the eye or the scripture decides, and answers with three foundations and a long list of small rulesAnushasana Parva ‧ 18 min
• Four Faces and a Blue ThroatUma asks her husband to account for himselfAnushasana Parva ‧ 19 min
• The Departure of BhishmaThe sun turns north, and the grandsire lets goAnushasana Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Horse SacrificeArjuna Follows a Wandering Horse, and Dies at His Own Son's HandAshvamedhika Parva ‧ 23 min
• The Naked Priest of VaranasiHow a king outbid Indra for a brother nobody wantedAshvamedhika Parva ‧ 31 min
• The Battle No One Else Can FightKrishna names the enemies still living in Yudhishthira's fleshAshvamedhika Parva ‧ 16 min
• The News Krishna Held BackA grandfather is spared until his daughter refuses itAshvamedhika Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Sacrifice of Profuse GoldYudhishthira gives away the earth and is given it backAshvamedhika Parva ‧ 19 min
• Arjuna's Hymn at PartingOn the road to Hastinapur, Arjuna praises Krishna and gives him leave to go homeAshvamedhika Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Gold of King MaruttaHow the ruined victors paid for the ashvamedhaAshvamedhika Parva
• The Forest RetreatBook 15 - How the Blind King Walked Into the Woods to DieAshramavasika Parva ‧ 26 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 Court Comes to the ForestAn Army Marches Out to Visit Two Old AsceticsAshramavasika Parva ‧ 18 min
• The Night the Dead ReturnedVyasa Calls the Fallen Out of the GangaAshramavasika Parva ‧ 20 min
• Vyasa Brings Back ParikshitA Son Bathes His Dead Father at the Snake SacrificeAshramavasika Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Last WitnessSanjaya after the divine eyeAshramavasika Parva
• Vidura, Dharma in a Servant's HouseThe clean conscience of HastinapuraAshramavasika Parva
• 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
• Arjuna Empties DwarakaOne bowman escorts a dead city inland, and the sea walks behind himMausala Parva ‧ 18 min
• When the Gandiva FailedArjuna's last, lost escortMausala Parva
• The Return of the PortionsWho everybody turned out to have beenSvargarohana Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Rewards of the Eighteen ParvasVaishampayana prices each stage of hearing the Bharata against a sacrifice, from the Agnishtoma to twenty-one thousand years with IndraSvargarohana Parva ‧ 17 min

Places in Sage Vyasa's Story

Drawn from the stories Sage Vyasa appears in.

• Kampilyaकाम्पिल्य
• Ekachakraएकचक्र
• Indraprasthaइंद्रप्रस्थ
• Magadhaमगध
• Hastinapurहस्तिनापुर
• Shuktimatiशुक्तिमती
• Yamunaयमुना
• Gandharaगान्धार
• Mount Shatashringaशतशृङ्ग
• Amaravatiअमरावती
• Mount Kailasaकैलास
• Kurukshetraकुरुक्षेत्र

Related Characters

Others counted among the Divine Beings.

• ❉Krishna
• ◭Hanuman
• ❧Kacha
• ≈Goddess Ganga
• ★The Eight Vasus
• ✶Sage Durvasa