Battlefield of the Mahabharata
Kurukshetra
कुरुक्षेत्र
Site of the Great War
Kurukshetra: Site of the Great War, located at coordinates 29.96°N, 76.88°E.
Key Facts
| Type | Battlefield |
|---|---|
| Sanskrit name | कुरुक्षेत्र |
| Coordinates | 29.96°N, 76.88°E |
| Significance | Site of the Great War |
About Kurukshetra
The sacred battlefield where the 18-day Mahabharata war was fought. Krishna delivered the Bhagavad Gita to Arjuna here.
Why it matters: Site of the Great War
Details
- Days
- 18 days of war
- Armies
- 11 Akshauhinis (Kaurava) vs 7 Akshauhinis (Pandava)
- Bhishma
- Bhishma lay on bed of arrows for 58 days
- Gita
- 700-verse conversation between Krishna and Arjuna
On the Map
Kurukshetra sits at 29.96°N, 76.88°E.
View on the full mapEvents at Kurukshetra
- Death of ChitrangadaYear -90The valiant King Chitrangada is killed in a three-year battle by a Gandharva of the same name.
- Parashurama Battles BhishmaYear -89Championing the rejected princess Amba, Parashurama commands his former disciple Bhishma to marry her. When Bhishma refuses, guru and disciple fight a tremendous duel on the field of Kurukshetra that lasts twenty-three days.
- War PreparationsYear -14Both sides gather armies. Krishna offers his army to one side and himself unarmed to the other. Arjuna chooses Krishna.
- Bhagavad GitaYear -14On the first day of war, Arjuna is overcome with despair. Krishna delivers the 700-verse Bhagavad Gita, teaching the yoga of action, knowledge, and devotion.
- The 18-Day WarYear -14The greatest war in history fought for 18 days. Millions died. Bhishma, Drona, Karna, and all Kauravas were killed.
- Bhishma's TeachingsYear -14Lying on a bed of arrows for 58 days, Bhishma teaches Yudhishthira the duties of kingship, moksha dharma, and Vishnu Sahasranama.
- Death of AbhimanyuYear -14On the 13th day, Abhimanyu breaks into the Chakravyuha but is trapped inside alone. Multiple warriors kill him unfairly.
- Arjuna Kills JayadrathaYear -14On the 14th day, Arjuna fulfills his vow by killing Jayadratha with a divine arrow that decapitates him.
- Ghatotkacha's Night BattleYear -14On the 14th night, Bhima's rakshasa son Ghatotkacha wreaks havoc on the Kaurava army. Karna uses his Vasavi Shakti to kill him.
- Death of KarnaYear -14On the 17th day, Arjuna kills Karna while his chariot wheel is stuck in the ground. Karna was trying to lift it when Arjuna shot him.
- Death of DuryodhanaYear -14On the 18th day, Bhima defeats Duryodhana in a mace duel at the same lake. Bhima strikes his thigh against the rules of mace fighting.
- Death of DronaYear -14On the 15th day, Drona lays down his weapons after hearing the false news of Ashwatthama's death. Dhrishtadyumna beheads him.
- Yudhishthira Kills ShalyaYear -14On the 18th day, Yudhishthira kills King Shalya, his maternal uncle, in single combat with a spear.
- Nakula and Sahadeva in BattleYear -14The twins Nakula and Sahadeva prove their valor by defeating numerous Kaurava warriors throughout the war.
- Hanuman on Arjuna's FlagYear -14Hanuman manifests on Arjuna's chariot flag, promising protection and granting victory to the Pandavas.
- Barbarik Arrives At KurukshetraYear -14Barbarik arrives at Kurukshetra with divine arrows that could end the war in one minute.
- Bhishma FallsYear -14On the tenth day of war, Bhishma falls to Arjuna's arrows using Shikhandi as shield.
- Kunti Reveals Karna's BirthYear -14On the eve of war, Kunti reveals to Karna that he is her firstborn son.
- Karna Spares The PandavasYear -14Karna defeats all Pandavas except Arjuna but spares their lives according to his promise to Kunti.
- Night MassacreYear -14After the war, Ashwatthama massacres the sleeping Pandava camp, killing Draupadi's five sons and Dhrishtadyumna.
- Indra Takes Karna's Earrings and ArmourYear -14Knowing Karna's kavacha-kundala (divine armour and earrings) make him invincible, Indra disguises himself as a brahmin and begs them as charity. Karna gives them at the cost of his invincibility.
- Classification of Warriors - Ratha and AtirathaYear -14Before the war, Bhishma classifies all warriors in both armies by their combat abilities - Ratha (one chariot fighter) and Atiratha (one who can fight many simultaneously). Karna is insulted by the classification.
- Uluka Delivers Duryodhana's TauntYear -14On the eve of war, Duryodhana sends his ambassador Uluka (Shakuni's son) with a provocative message to the Pandava camp, challenging them to fight.
- Krishna Shows His Cosmic Form to ArjunaYear -14At Arjuna's request, Krishna reveals his divine Vishvarupa - the cosmic universal form - showing the entire universe and all time contained in his being.
- Drona Arrests the Sky with BrahmastraYear -14On the 14th day, an enraged Drona releases the Brahmastra, a weapon of mass destruction. Arjuna counters it with his own Brahmastra, and the gods urge both to withdraw.
- Arjuna's Vow to Kill JayadrathaYear -14After Abhimanyu's death, a grief-stricken Arjuna vows on the night of the 13th day to kill Jayadratha by the next sunset or enter fire himself.
- Sahadeva Kills ShakuniYear -14On the 18th day, Sahadeva finally fulfills his personal vow and kills Shakuni, the schemer who engineered the dice game that led to all of the Pandavas' suffering.
- Duryodhana Hides in the LakeYear -14After all the Kaurava warriors fall, the fatally wounded Duryodhana hides himself in a lake, using yoga to stop water from entering and waiting there unseen.
- Bhishma Recites the Vishnu SahasranamaYear -14Lying on his bed of arrows, Bhishma teaches the thousand names of Vishnu (Vishnu Sahasranama) to Yudhishthira in the presence of Krishna himself.
- Bhishma Teaches Raja DharmaYear -14Over 58 days on his bed of arrows, Bhishma delivers to Yudhishthira a comprehensive teaching on kingly duties (Raja Dharma), emergency conduct (Apad Dharma), and the paths to liberation (Moksha Dharma).
- The Rules of Righteous WarYear -14Before the first arrow, the Kurus and Pandavas meet and bind themselves to a code: equals fight equals, combat ends at sunset, and the fleeing, the unarmed, and the non-combatant are not to be struck.
- Yuyutsu Crosses the LinesYear -14As the armies stand arrayed on the first morning, Yudhishthira calls out that any who choose dharma may come over. Of all the Kaurava host, only Yuyutsu, Dhritarashtra's son by a Vaishya woman, walks across.
- Prince Uttara FallsYear -14On the first day of battle, the young prince of Matsya charges the Madra king's chariot on his war-elephant and is struck down by Shalya's lance - the war's first great grief.
- Krishna Takes Up the WheelYear -14Enraged that Arjuna fights his grandsire half-heartedly while Bhishma scorches the Pandava host, Krishna leaps from the chariot and rushes at Bhishma with a chariot wheel raised, breaking his own vow - until Arjuna drags him back.
- Death of IravanYear -14On the eighth day, Iravan, son of Arjuna and the naga princess Ulupi, shatters the Gandhara cavalry and slays five of Shakuni's brothers before the giant rakshasa Alambusha cuts him down with sorcery.
- The Samsaptaka OathYear -14Susharma of Trigarta and his brothers swear by fire to slay Arjuna or die - the 'sworn ones' whose daily challenges draw Arjuna away from the field so that Drona may strike at Yudhishthira.
- Bhagadatta and the Elephant SupratikaYear -14On the twelfth day, the aged Bhagadatta on his colossal elephant Supratika tramples the Pandava host and hurls the irresistible Vaishnava weapon at Arjuna - which Krishna receives on his own breast, where it becomes a garland.
- Satyaki and the Yupaketu's ArmYear -14On the fourteenth day, the Kuru elder Bhurishravas overpowers the exhausted Satyaki and raises his sword for the kill; Arjuna severs the upraised arm, and the warrior sits in final meditation before Satyaki, against all protest, beheads him.
- Fall of Virata and DrupadaYear -14On the fifteenth day, Drona in his last terrible blaze of mastery slays the two old kings who staked everything on the Pandava cause - Drupada of Panchala and Virata of Matsya.
- Bhima Slays DushasanaYear -14On the seventeenth day, Bhima fulfills the vow of thirteen years: he breaks Dushasana down in front of Karna's line, tears open his chest, and drinks his blood, then carries word of it to Draupadi.
- Death of VrishasenaYear -14Hours before his duel with Karna, Arjuna kills Karna's valiant son Vrishasena before his father's eyes - declared payment for Abhimanyu, slain while Arjuna was far away.
- Gandhari's Curse to KrishnaYear -13When Krishna visits Gandhari after the war, she curses him that his clan will destroy itself in 36 years, just as her sons died.
- Krishna Curses AshwatthamaYear -13For his cowardly night massacre, Krishna curses Ashwatthama to wander the earth for 3000 years with diseases and suffering.
- Removal of Ashwatthama's GemYear -13Arjuna forcibly removes the divine gem from Ashwatthama's forehead as punishment for his atrocities.
- The Women's LamentYear -13After the war, the surviving women of both sides come to the battlefield to grieve over their fallen husbands and sons. Gandhari curses Krishna and the Pandavas face Dhritarashtra's grief.
- Ashwatthama Releases the Brahmashira WeaponYear -13Enraged after the night massacre, Ashwatthama releases the most destructive weapon - the Brahmashira - aimed at the Pandava lineage. Arjuna matches it with his own Brahmastra.
- Bhishma Chooses His DeathYear -13Having waited 58 days for the auspicious Uttarayana (northward sun-movement), Bhishma finally chooses to leave his body. His passing is witnessed by all the gods and sages.
- The Sun That SetYear -12Grieving Abhimanyu, Arjuna vows to slay Jayadratha before sunset or die by fire. The whole Kaurava army shields Jayadratha all day; as the sun sinks, Krishna veils it in false dusk, drawing the exultant Jayadratha into the open, then reveals the sun - and warns of the boon, so Arjuna sends the severed head into his father's lap, where the curse recoils on the father.
- The King of MadraYear -12Shalya, uncle of the Pandavas, is tricked by Duryodhana's hospitality into a boon that binds him to fight for the Kauravas, though he secretly serves the Pandavas by demoralizing Karna. Made the last Kaurava commander on day eighteen, he falls to Yudhishthira's spear, and his death breaks the Kaurava host - the war's tragedy of divided loyalty.
- The Spear Meant for ArjunaYear -11On the torchlit fourteenth night of the war, Bhima's rakshasa son Ghatotkacha ravages the Kaurava army until Duryodhana begs Karna to stop him. Unable to kill the night-giant by any other means, Karna is forced to spend the infallible Vasava Shakti - the one weapon he had saved to kill Arjuna. Ghatotkacha dies, crushing thousands beneath his falling body, and unknowingly saves Arjuna's life.
- Uluka's Embassy - The Last Words Before the WarYear -10With the armies camped across Kurukshetra, Duryodhana spends his final embassy on insults, sending Shakuni's son Uluka with taunts for each Pandava and for Krishna. The answers come back calm, exact, and terrible - and the next sound between the camps is the conch at first light.
- The Weapon That Could Not Be FacedYear -9Grief-maddened at his father Drona's death, Ashvatthama looses the Narayanastra, which grows fiercer the more it is resisted and rains annihilation on the Pandava host. Krishna commands all to throw down their arms and bow in total submission; the weapon passes them by - but proud Bhima must be forcibly disarmed and pulled down to be saved.
- The Gleaner Who Refused HeavenYear -3The sage Mudgala lives at Kurukshetra by gleaning fallen grains like a bird, yet gives away even that little without complaint. The gods send the irascible Durvasa to test him, who devours his food and abuses him through six harvests - and cannot shake his serene contentment. Offered heaven itself as reward, Mudgala questions its nature, learns that heaven too is impermanent, and refuses it to seek the peace that does not pass.
- Sarama's CurseYear 50Janamejaya's brothers beat a dog (Sarama's son) who was simply looking at the sacrificial ghee. The mother dog Sarama curses Janamejaya that evil will befall him.
- The Sage Who Tested the GodsYear 84Sent by the sages to learn which god is greatest in goodness, Bhrigu insults each: Brahma masters his anger, Shiva's wrath is checked by the goddess, but Vishnu, kicked on the chest, shows no anger and tends the sage's foot in concern. The verdict: the truest greatness is forbearance, not the power to punish.
Stories Set at Kurukshetra
The Bhagavad Gita
The Song of God
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 1: Arjuna's Despair
Arjuna Vishada Yoga - The Yoga of Arjuna's Dejection
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 2: The Yoga of Knowledge
Sankhya Yoga - The Deathless Self and the Steady Sage
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 3: The Yoga of Action
Karma Yoga - Acting Without Attachment
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 4: Knowledge and Renunciation of Action
Jnana Karma Sanyasa Yoga - The Descent of the Divine
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 5: The Yoga of Renunciation
Karma Sanyasa Yoga - Renunciation and Action Are One
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 6: The Yoga of Meditation
Dhyana Yoga - The Discipline of the Still Mind
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 7: Knowledge and Realization
Jnana Vijnana Yoga - The Two Natures of God
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 8: The Imperishable Brahman
Akshara Brahma Yoga - The Hour of Death
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 9: The Royal Secret
Raja Vidya Raja Guhya Yoga - The Sovereign Knowledge
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 10: Divine Glories
Vibhuti Yoga - The Splendors of the Infinite
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 11: The Universal Form
Vishvarupa Darshana Yoga - The Vision of the Cosmic Form
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 12: The Yoga of Devotion
Bhakti Yoga - The Path of Love
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 13: The Field and Its Knower
Kshetra Kshetrajna Vibhaga Yoga - Matter and Spirit
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 14: The Three Gunas
Gunatraya Vibhaga Yoga - The Three Strands of Nature
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 15: The Supreme Person
Purushottama Yoga - The Tree of the World and Its Root
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 16: Divine and Demonic Natures
Daivasura Sampad Vibhaga Yoga - The Two Destinies
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 17: The Three Kinds of Faith
Shraddhatraya Vibhaga Yoga - Faith, Food, Sacrifice, and Charity
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 18: Liberation Through Renunciation
Moksha Sanyasa Yoga - The Final Teaching
The Terrible Vow
The Sacrifice of Devavrata
The Meeting of Brothers
The Lesson in Humility
The Fall of the Guru
The Half-Lie of the Dharma King
The Secret of the Sun
A Mother's Plea, A Warrior's Promise
The Forest Retreat
Book 15 - How the Blind King Walked Into the Woods to Die
The Iron Maces
Book 16 - The Curse That Destroyed Krishna's People
The Eve of Battle
Last Embassies Before Kurukshetra
The Fall of Bhishma and the Earrings
Indra's Gift, the Grandsire's Bed of Arrows
Arjuna's Vow and the Fall of Drona
Jayadratha, the Night Battle of Ghatotkacha, and the Lie That Killed a Teacher
Duryodhana's Last Stand
Shalya, the Twins, and a King in a Lake
The Aftermath of War
The Night Massacre, the Women's Lament, and a Curse on Krishna
Bhishma on the Bed of Arrows
Fifty-Eight Days of Teaching, and a King Crowned at His Feet
The Fire-Born and the Woman Who Became a Man
Drupada's Children, Drona's Old Feud, and Amba's Vow Across Lives
Ancient Beginnings
The Earth's Plea, the Descent of the Gods, and the Sages Who Began the Telling
The Epic Composed
Vyasa at Badarikashrama, Astika at the Snake Sacrifice, and the Story First Told
The Serpent Prince's Sacrifice
Iravan, Son of Ulupi, and the Price of Victory
The Abduction of Draupadi
Jayadratha's Crime and the Five Tufts of Shame
The Elephant King of the East
Bhagadatta, Supratika, and the Missile Krishna Took on His Chest
The Oath of the Doomed
Susharma and the Samsaptakas - the Army That Swore to Die
The Last Son of Karna
Vrishaketu, the Boy the Pandavas Raised in Their Brother's Place
The Spear Meant for Arjuna
The Death of Ghatotkacha
The Head That Watched the War
Barbarika and the Three Arrows
The Gleaner Who Refused Heaven
Mudgala and the Test of Durvasa
The Sage Who Tested the Gods
Bhrigu finds the greatest is greatest in forbearance
The Death of Karna
The chariot wheel, the curses, and the fall of the sun
Abhimanyu and the Wheel
The boy who could enter the formation but not leave it
The Sun That Set
Arjuna's sunset vow and Krishna's hidden sun
The Blood Vow
Bhima fulfills the oath sworn over Draupadi's hair
The King of Madra
A good man bound by a rash promise to the wrong side
The Severed Arm
Two breaches of the code in a single combat
The Weapon That Could Not Be Faced
Ashvatthama's irresistible astra, undone by submission
Bhima and Hidimbi
The Birth of Ghatotkacha
Uluka's Embassy
The Last Words Before the War
The Revival of Parikshit
The Act of Truth
Vikarna, the Kaurava Who Spoke
One Voice in the Dice Hall
Yuyutsu Crosses the Field
The One Son of Dhritarashtra Who Chose Dharma
Balarama's Pilgrimage
Forty-Two Days on the Sarasvati While the World Burned
The Lament of the Women
Stri Parva - The Field of Widows
Gandhari's Curse
Thirty-Six Years Hence
The Thousand Names of Vishnu
Vishnu Sahasranama - Bhishma's Last Gift
Kurukshetra Day 1: The Conches Sound
The First Royal Dead
Kurukshetra Day 2: The Pandavas Rally
The Krauncha Array
Kurukshetra Day 3: The Garuda and the Crescent
Krishna's Patience Fails
Kurukshetra Day 4: Bhima Unbound
Eight Brothers Fall in a Day
Kurukshetra Day 5: The Grandsire's Harvest
The Makara Array
Kurukshetra Day 6: Into the Formation
Bhima Cut Off
Kurukshetra Day 7: Mandala and Vajra
The Day of a Hundred Duels
Kurukshetra Day 9: Krishna Takes Up the Wheel
The Vow Almost Broken
Karna and Shalya
The War of Words on the Chariot
The Gandiva Quarrel
Arjuna Nearly Kills His King
The Fall of Shakuni
Sahadeva Keeps His Vow
Kurukshetra Day 11: The Teacher Takes Command
Drona's Vow to Take the King Alive
Kurukshetra Day 16: The Sun-Born Commander
Karna Keeps His Word to Kunti
The Dharma of Kings
Rajadharma - Bhishma on the Art of Rule
The Sage and the Dog's Haunch
Apaddharma - Law in the Time of Ruin
The Thousand Names of Shiva
Shiva Sahasranama - Krishna's Own Teaching
The Song of Manki
The Rope of Desire
Pingala's Night
The Courtesan Who Found Peace
The Python's Way
The Vow of What Comes Unsought
The Dharma of Gifts
Danadharma - What Giving Actually Is
Destiny and Effort
The Seed and the Field
The Golden Son of Srinjaya
The Boy Worth More Than His Life
Bhrigu and Bharadvaja
The Sage's Questions About Everything
The Song of Vritra
The Serenity of the Defeated
Bali and Indra
The Emperor in the Empty House
Namuchi in Chains
The Prisoner Who Slept at Ease
Panchashikha and the King
Liberation Without Leaving the Throne
The Reciter
The Brahmin Who Refused Heaven
The Guest at the Door
Sudarshana's Vow of Hospitality
The Fall of Yayati
The King Who Spent His Heaven
Uma Questions Shiva
The Goddess and the Great God on Dharma
The Song of Ashman
Janaka's Question About Grief
The Song of Sampaka
The Freedom of the Poor Brahmin
The Song of Harita
The Discipline of the Renunciate
The Song of Vichakhnu
The King Who Pitied the Sacrifice
The Cloud's Gift
Kundadhara and the Poor Man
Muchukunda and the Lord of Treasure
The King Who Refused a Borrowed Victory
Indra Questions Shambara
How the Enemy Prospered
Ushanas the Bright
How Shukra Became the Teacher of the Asuras
The Jackal and the Sage
The Worth of a Human Birth
The Golden Swan
What the Sadhyas Learned From a Bird
Kapila and the Cow
The Debate of the Two Roads
Upamanyu and the Ocean of Milk
The Boy Who Cried for Milk
The Gift of Cows
Why the Cow Is the First of Gifts
Where Fortune Dwells
Lakshmi Among the Cows
Chyavana Tests the King
Twenty-One Days of Stillness
Baka Dalbhya and the King of Heaven
The Long-Lived Sage's Ledger
The Dharma of Fasting
What Hunger Teaches
The Feeding of the Fathers
How the Shraddha Began
Matanga's Austerity
The Man Who Asked to Change His Birth
The Merit of the Fords
Why the Waters Wash
Sanjaya's Divine Eye
How the War Was Told
The Science of Formations
What a Vyuha Is
The Rules of the War
The Covenant and Its Breaking
The Five Sons of Draupadi
The Upapandavas
The Guards of the Wheels
Yudhamanyu and Uttamaujas
Kripa, the Man Who Survived Everything
The Teacher Who Outlived the Age
The Fire-Born General
Dhrishtadyumna's command of the great war
Kritavarma's Road
Small compromises on the way to atrocity
Sahadeva, the Silent Seer
Knowledge that could not save
The Last Witness
Sanjaya after the divine eye
Satyaki of the Vrishnis
Loyalty that outran judgment
Shikhandi's War
The life after the purpose
The Teacher of Maces
Balarama between his two pupils
The King Who Fought His Name
Chitrangada and the gandharva's duel
The Iron Embrace
Dhritarashtra's grief given a body
The Fall of Vikarna
The good man on the wrong side
The Ape on the Banner
Hanuman's unseen war
Kurukshetra Before the War
Why the field was already holy
The Dice King's Son
Fathers' games, sons' funerals
The Price of Shelter
Virata, the old king who gave everything
Vrishasena, Heir of Anga
War's arithmetic visits the children
The Dog at the Sacrifice
The curse that began a dynasty's last chapter
The Serpent in the Arrow
A grudge that waited a generation for one shot
The Robber Who Kept the Rules
Kayavya, the Nishada who plundered by law
The Birth of the Sword
Nakula asks which weapon came first
The Worm That Ran From the Cart
Vyasa asks what such a life has to lose
The Rakshasa Who Came for a Debt
Alayudha, and the night that belonged to the man-eaters
Kripa's Last Argument
The morning after Karna, somebody finally says stop
The Mortal Who Sat on Indra's Throne
A warning tale for a king about to win
The Commander Accused
Duryodhana tells Drona to his face that he is sparing them
The Count on the Nineteenth Morning
Eighteen armies, and the men who walked off the field
The Day Bhima Asked for Peace
Krishna goads the one brother who never flinched
The Fifteenth Morning
Drona alone, and the old kings who tried to stop him
The Journey to the Mountain
Krishna and Arjuna go north in the night before the vow
The Night the Armies Slept
A truce called for the moon on the fourteenth night
The Reckoning of the Warriors
Bhishma prices every man on the field, and Karna walks out
Why Gold Is the Highest Gift
The metal left behind by fire
Saraswati, the Vanishing River
The river of sages that hides in the sand
The Burning Ghats of Kurukshetra
The rites that closed the war
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 1, Verses 1-27: The Field and the Armies
What Arjuna sees before he breaks
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 1, Verses 28-47: The Bow Slips
Grief argued into a philosophy of refusal
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 2, Verses 1-38: The Teaching Begins
Why the imperishable self cannot be killed
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 2, Verses 39-53: Act Without the Fruit
Skill in action and the end of anxious wanting
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 2, Verses 54-72: The Steady in Wisdom
The portrait of a mind that no longer swings
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 3, Verses 17-43: Loka-sangraha and the Enemy Within
Working for the world, and naming desire the foe
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 3, Verses 1-16: No One Can Be Still
Action as sacrifice and the turning wheel
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 4, Verses 16-42: Action in Inaction
The many sacrifices and the fire of knowledge
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 4, Verses 1-15: The Descent of the Teaching
Lineage, avatara, and the birth that is not birth
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 5, Verses 15-29: Equal Vision, Inner Joy
Same sight for brahmin and dog, and peace as friend
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 5, Verses 1-14: Renunciation or Action
The lotus leaf and the nine-gated city
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 6, Verses 1-23: The Seat and the Lamp
How to actually sit, eat, sleep and steady the mind
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 6, Verses 24-47: The Restless Mind and the Fallen Yogi
Practice, dispassion, and no good effort wasted
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 7, Verses 15-30: Four Who Come, and Why Most Do Not
Kinds of devotion and the veil of yoga-maya
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 7, Verses 1-14: The Two Natures
Pearls on a thread and the crossing of maya
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 8, Verses 15-28: Cosmic Time and the Two Paths
Days of Brahma, bright road and dark
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 8, Verses 1-14: Seven Questions and the Hour of Death
You become what you remember
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 9, Verses 1-19: The Sovereign Secret
In me and not in me: the great paradox
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 9, Verses 20-34: Leaf, Flower, Fruit, Water
The offering anyone can make and the promise none lose
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 10, Verses 19-42: The Catalogue of Glories
Wherever there is splendour, a spark of one fragment
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 10, Verses 1-18: The Source of All
The lamp of knowledge and Arjuna's hunger to hear
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 11, Verses 15-34: I Am Time
The mouths of the god and the instrument's task
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 11, Verses 1-14: The Divine Eye
The request, the gift, and a thousand suns
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 11, Verses 35-55: Bear With Me as a Friend
The hymn, the apology, and the return of the gentle form
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 12, Verses 13-20: He Who Is Dear to Me
The portrait of the devotee, sung as a litany
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 12, Verses 1-12: Personal or Unmanifest
A ladder with a rung for everyone
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 13, Verses 19-35: Prakriti, Purusha, and the Witness
Seeing the imperishable in the perishing
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 13, Verses 1-18: Field and Knower of the Field
Body as field, humility as knowledge
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 14, Verses 14-27: Crossing the Gunas
The one who watches the qualities operate
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 14, Verses 1-13: The Three Gunas
Ropes of gold, fire and lead
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 15, Verses 12-20: Purushottama
The light in the sun, the fire in the belly, the memory in the heart
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 15, Verses 1-11: The Inverted Tree
Cut it with the axe of non-attachment
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 16, Verses 10-24: The Three Gates
The inner monologue of appetite, and how it closes
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 16, Verses 1-9: Two Estates
Fearlessness first, and the world without a Lord
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 17, Verses 15-28: Speech, Mind, and Giving
Austerity that heals, gifts that cost nothing back
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 17, Verses 1-14: As His Faith Is, So Is He
Faith, food and the sacrifices we choose
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 18, Verses 1-40: Renunciation Rightly Understood
Tyaga, the five factors, and the great threefold table
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 18, Verses 41-66: Your Own Work, and the Final Refuge
Prakriti will compel you, so choose freely and surrender
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 18, Verses 67-78: Delusion Gone, I Will Do Your Word
Transmission, Arjuna's answer, and Sanjaya's last verse
The King Who Atoned
Janamejaya, Indrota Shaunaka, and the Long Road Back
The Sage with the Ape's Face
Narada, Parvata, and a Vow Between Friends
The Hermit and the Dog
Bhishma on royal appointments, and the creature a kind man made out of his own pity
The King the Demon Could Not Eat
A rajadharma parable Bhishma tells Yudhishthira
The Three Fishes
Bhishma on the pond that shrank, and the only kind of failure a king is never forgiven
The Age After the Axe
How the warrior caste came back, and how it was spoiled again
The Bow Out of the Water
What Varuna kept until two men needed it
The Two Bowls of Rice
How a mother's swap made a brahmana of one line and a warrior of the other
The Man Who Was Not Allowed In
A Sudra's hermitage, a sage's kindness, and two lives turned inside out
The Cow Born of Nectar
Daksha's gift, Mahadeva's third eye, and why cattle wear many colours
The Hand That Rose From the Grass
Bhishma's own memory of Shantanu's shraddha at the gate of Ganga
The Man Who Remembered His Births
A chandala brushing milk from his skin
The Elephant the Sage Called Son
Gautama argues his way through every heaven for a stolen calf
Why Are You Pale and Lean
A man-eater asks a question instead of eating
Four Faces and a Blue Throat
Uma asks her husband to account for himself
The Wind Answers the Thousand-Armed King
Kartavirya boasts, and an invisible voice begins to argue
The Departure of Bhishma
The sun turns north, and the grandsire lets go
The King Asks Leave of His People
An Assembly Absolves the Man Who Ruined It
Satayupa and the Forest Kings
Narada Names the Rulers Who Chose the Woods
The Court Comes to the Forest
An Army Marches Out to Visit Two Old Ascetics
The Night the Dead Returned
Vyasa Calls the Fallen Out of the Ganga
The Battle No One Else Can Fight
Krishna names the enemies still living in Yudhishthira's flesh
The News Krishna Held Back
A grandfather is spared until his daughter refuses it
The Signs Before the War
What Vyasa saw in the sky, the cattle and the birth-rooms
The Hymn Before the Conches
Krishna sends Arjuna down from the chariot to praise the goddess
The Walk Across the Field
The king who laid down his armour before the first arrow
Shveta Against the Grandsire
The Matsya prince who broke Bhishma's bow again and again
The Grandsire Names the God
Duryodhana asks why he keeps losing and gets a theology instead
Kurukshetra Day 8: The Rakshasa's Hour
Iravan falls and Ghatotkacha answers for him
The Son of Rishyasringa
Alambusha, the illusion-fighter the Kauravas kept for the Pandava sons
The Pillow of Arrows
Both armies lay down their weapons for one evening
Karna at the Grandsire's Feet
The forgiveness that came too late to change anything
The Guard Drona Had To Kill
Satyajit of Panchala, and the promise Arjuna left behind him
The Banners and the Bows
Sanjaya names every standard on the field
The Gandhara Brothers and the War of Illusions
Shakuni fights the only battle he ever fought himself
The Night the Sindhu King Asked to Leave
Jayadratha wants his horses saddled, and Drona tells him the truth
What Krishna Told His Charioteer
The night Krishna decided to break his own vow
The Cart, the Lotus and the Needle
Drona builds an array forty-eight miles deep to hide one man
The Blessing at the Gate
Arjuna asks his teacher's leave to break his teacher's line
The Mace That Turned Back
Varuna's gift to a river's son, and the one rule he forgot
The Armour of Mantras
The one day Duryodhana stood in front of Arjuna and did not fall
The Lake and the Hall of Arrows
Krishna unyokes the horses in the middle of the battle
Kurukshetra Day 14: The Longest Day
Sunset Vow, False Dusk, and a Battle That Would Not Stop at Nightfall
The Order Yudhishthira Gave
A king overrules the guard his brother posted
The King Counts His Army
Every soldier paid, examined and willing, and still losing
The Grandson of Shini Crosses the Ocean
One chariot sent through the whole Kaurava host
The Second Man Sent
Bhima's crossing and the roar agreed on beforehand
The Bow Tip and the Boast
Karna keeps his word to Kunti and pays for it in insults
The Arrows He Did Not Want to Shoot
Arjuna, Kripa, and a lesson in arms turned back on its teacher
One Man Against an Army of the Night
Ashwatthama burns a full akshauhini of Ghatotkacha's rakshasas
The Oath of a Bereaved Father
The house of Bahlika ends in a single night
Three Men and a Drawn Sword
Karna boasts, Kripa answers, and Ashwatthama draws on his own side
The Night They Lit the Field
Duryodhana's order that turned a battlefield into a lamp-lit hall
What Krishna Had Already Done
Arjuna asks, and gets a list he did not expect
The Dart That Was Never Thrown
A blind king asks the only question that mattered
Kurukshetra Day 15: The Day the Teacher Died
From the Dawn Prayers to the Half-Truth at Noon
Held Back by Bhima's Arms
Satyaki and Dhrishtadyumna nearly finish the war for the Kauravas
The Weapon That Would Not Burn Them
Ashwatthama's fire, and why it left two men standing
The One Who Walked Ahead of the Chariot
Arjuna finally asks who has been winning his battles
Kurukshetra Day 17: The Earth Takes the Wheel
Karna's Last Morning to Karna's Last Hour
The Word Brought to Hastinapura
Sanjaya rides through the night with the news of Karna
Arjuna Against the Preceptor's Son
The duel Ashvatthama could not win twice
Pandya of the Malaya Hills
The southern king who thought himself greater than Bhishma
The King Against the King
Yudhishthira brings Duryodhana down and Bhima stops the blow
The Calf and the Wheel
Karna tells his charioteer the curse that will kill him
Karna Spares the King
The armour cut away, and a hand laid on Yudhishthira's shoulder
The Brothers Bhima Counted
Duryodhana's kin fall in handfuls on the seventeenth day
The Bhargava Weapon
Karna spends his teacher's last gift on the Pancalas
Ashvatthama Asks for Peace
A hand on Duryodhana's wrist while the gods watch
The Field After the Sun Fell
Shalya counts the dead and the Kauravas walk away
A Thousand Lamps Around Karna
Yudhishthira rises from his bed to look at his enemy
The Omens of Dwaraka
A City Watches Its Own Death Approach
The Owl in the Banyan Tree
What three beaten men argued about in the dark
The Being at the Gate
Ashvatthama offers himself to Mahadeva
The Last Report
Three men bring good news to a dying king
The Weapon He Could Not Lift
Ashvatthama's bargain on the Dwaraka shore
Why Rudra Broke the Sacrifice
Krishna explains who really emptied the camp
The Fourth Commander
A nephew's water poured on an uncle's head at the foot of Himavat
The Sons of the Sun Go Down
Nakula's one great hour, and the end of Karna's line
Shalya Alone Against Five
The last commander's one unanswerable morning
The King on the Mountain of Flesh
One elephant breaks an army, and two men bring it down
Where the Carnage Did Not Cease
Arjuna counts every point at which the war should have stopped
The Last of the Hundred
Bhima closes an eighteen-year account in a single afternoon
The Oath Comes Due
Susharman, his thirty-five sons, and the last of the sworn men
The Men Who Carried the Meat
A king's hiding place sold for a purse
The River With Seven Names
Wherever she was called, she came
The Duel on the Southern Bank
Two pupils of one teacher settle a war with clubs
The Verdict at the Fallen King
Balarama's plough, Duryodhana's indictment, and the flowers that fell from the sky
The Errand Before the Grief
Krishna drives to Hastinapura to reach a mother before her curse does
Karna at Rajapura
A bride carried off, a hundred kings unhorsed, and the city a rival gave away
The Victory Nobody Wanted
Five brothers, a wife and a sage argue a king back onto his throne
The Queen's Answer to the Beggar King
Janaka shaves his head, and his wife takes his renunciation apart
The Princes the Earth Hid
What was left of the Kshatriyas after the axe
The Age Before Kings
How men who protected one another stopped, and what had to be written
Mandhatri Asks to See God
The emperor got an answer instead of a vision
The Weapon Not Made of Steel
Krishna tells Narada what his own kinsmen do to him
The Day the Rod Vanished
What happened to the world when Chastisement disappeared
What the Brothers Wanted Most
An evening argument about virtue, wealth and desire
The Two Who Argued Over a Debt
Desire and Wrath come to court in rags
Prahlada in Chains
Indra asks a bound enemy why he does not grieve
Bali in the Nooses of Varuna
The prisoner who would not be mocked, and the god who let him be
Fortune Changes Sides
Why Sri deserted the asuras, told on a bank of the Ganga
The Deer Who Asked to Be Killed
A poor brahmana's sacrifice and the neighbour who begged for the knife
The Four Shares of a Sin
Who agreed to carry a quarter of Indra's guilt, and what it cost them
The Sweat That Became Fever
A drop from Shiva's forehead, and the disease scattered through the world
The Sage Inside the God
How Usanas robbed Kuvera and came out as Shukra
The Son Struck From the Fire Sticks
A hundred years of penance, a parrot on a branch, and a child born of friction
Three Doors and Fifty Women
The son of Vyasa is made to walk, and then made to wait
The Guest Nobody Could See
Brihaspati throws down the ladle at a sacrifice where no animal was killed
The Queen Asks Her Questions
Gandhari puts the victors on trial, and Vyasa stands in the way
The Queens Who Came a Long Way
What the Kuru quarrel cost the kingdoms that were only allies
The Count of the Dead
Krishna's blunt answer, and a king who could see where they had gone
The Cities of Tents
Two capitals raised on Kurukshetra before a single arrow
The Consecration of the Grandsire
Bhishma takes command on two conditions, and the sky rains blood
Twenty-Three Days on the Saraswati
Bhishma fights his own preceptor and neither man can win
The Yaksha Who Lent His Manhood
Sthuna, Sikhandini, and the curse that made the loan permanent
The Question of Days
Each commander prices the enemy army in mornings
The Herb in the Grandsire's Hand
A wounded Duryodhana asks Bhishma for reassurance and is given honesty, a pledge, and medicine
Omens and the Ten Kings Around Bhima
Drona reads the signs of Bhishma's last day and sends his son to fight
The Sword That Broke on the Shield
Abhimanyu strips a king of everything, and Jayadratha comes down off his car to stop him
The Two Maces
Bhima sends Abhimanyu aside and meets the king of Madra blow for blow until both men fall
The Guard at the Wheel
Kumara of Panchala checks Drona in front of Yudhishthira's chariot, and pays for it
The Elephant Corps and the King of Anga
Bhima breaks Duryodhana's elephant division and beheads the Anga king in mid-fall
The Sword on Drona's Yoke
Dhrishtadyumna leaps onto his enemy's chariot to kill him, and Satyaki cuts the arrow that would have killed him first
The King on Foot
Drona breaks Yudhishthira's bow, dart, mace and car, and the king escapes on Sahadeva's chariot
The Dice That Turned Into Arrows
Drona rebukes the fleeing Dushasana, and then wakes with a sword over his neck
The King Who Went In Alone
Duryodhana charges the whole Pandava army by himself, and Yudhishthira cuts his bow
The Stake on the Table
Drona tells Duryodhana that the dice in the sabha were arrows, and that Jayadratha is what they are playing for
The Brahma Weapon Answered
Drona empties the celestial arsenal at Yudhishthira on the fourteenth night, and the king matches him astra for astra
The King They Thought Was Dead
Bhima's mace crushes Duryodhana's chariot, and both armies believe the Kuru king killed
The Fourth Son Karna Let Go
Karna disarms Sahadeva in the night battle and sends him away alive
Seven Bows Against One
Dhrishtadyumna rides at Drona in the night battle and answers seven champions with three arrows apiece
The King Put Off His Chariot
Satyaki kills Duryodhana's horses and driver, cuts his bow at the handle, and the king escapes on Kritavarma's car
The Two Who Remembered
Duryodhana and Satyaki meet on the fifteenth day and talk about their childhood before they fight
Sword and Shield Against the Preceptor
Dhrishtadyumna, stripped of car and bow, dances the twenty-one motions to reach Drona
The Telling in the Rout
Ashwatthama rides back through a fleeing army to ask what happened, and Kripa has to tell him how Drona was killed
The Duel the Gods Applauded
Ashwatthama and Bhima fight to a standstill and are carried off senseless by their own drivers
Sahadeva Against Dushasana
The quiet twin puts one arrow through the man Bhima had sworn to kill
The Old Preceptor and the Slayer of Drona
Kripa freezes Dhrishtadyumna until his own driver turns the car and runs
The King Names the Pairs
Yudhishthira assigns each Pandava his enemy as Karna's array comes on
The Son Bhima Beheaded
Bhima cuts down Karna's son Bhanusena while Karna fights his way toward Yudhishthira
Ashwatthama Breaks the King's Guard
A roof of arrows over Yudhishthira, and the insult the king threw back
The Elephant Standard Comes Down
Dhrishtadyumna leaves Duryodhana without horses, driver, weapons or banner at noon on the seventeenth day
Ashwatthama at Dhrishtadyumna's Throat
The vow he very nearly kept on the seventeenth day
The Sins That Need Expiation
Vyasa reads Yudhishthira the whole catalogue of acts that make a man liable, and then the exceptions
The Night Janaka Opened the Sky
Before the battle with Pratardana, the king of Mithila shows his army heaven and hell
What Is Owed to Mother, Father and Teacher
Asked which duty matters most of all, Bhishma names three people and calls them the three sacred fires
The Root of All Accomplishment
Bhishma teaches that the world, the Vedas and the rank of the gods were all bought with penance
The Rules of an Ordinary Day
Bhishma sets out the whole practice of good conduct, from the morning ablution to the last word spoken to an elder
The Vow of Brahmacharya
Bhishma on the rules of abstention, and the duct called Manovaha
The Cheerful Ascetic
Narada asks Samanga why he is never sorry, and gets an answer about acts and their fruits
Arishtanemi and King Sagara
A sage tells a reigning king when to let go of his house, and the king keeps his throne
Narada Questions the Apsara
Panchachuda is made to name the faults of women, and traces them back to their maker
The Three Born of the Fire
Bhrigu, Angiras and Kavi rise from a libation, and three gods claim them
Righteousness, the Only Friend
Brihaspati comes down from the sky to tell Yudhishthira what follows a man past death
The Savitri Mantra of Salutations
Bhishma gives Yudhishthira the roll of names to be said at dawn
The Names That Cleanse Sin
Asked what destroys sin, Bhishma answers with a litany of gods, rivers, mountains, sages and kings
The Five Lakes of Blood
Parashurama's oblation to the fathers at Samantapanchaka
The March to Kurukshetra
Duryodhana walks out on the last counsel and orders the host to move that same day
The Cat Who Played the Hermit
Duryodhana's last message to Yudhishthira is a fable about a holy man who ate his worshippers
The Grandsire Chooses His Hour
Bhishma remembers Santanu's boon and refuses to die in the wrong season
Karna Takes the Field
The vow that kept him out of ten days of war, and the grief that brought him into it
The Consecration of Drona
Karna names the Preceptor commander, and Drona names the man he cannot kill
The Silent Camp
Arjuna comes back at dusk from the samsaptakas and learns that Abhimanyu is dead
The Boon Somadatta Asked For
A wrestling match at Devaki's self-choice, and the son born a generation later to answer it
How Drona Won the Narayana Weapon
Ashwatthama tells the Kauravas where his father's last astra came from, and the one rule that came with it
The One Who Walked Before the Car
Vyasa tells Arjuna whose lance was breaking the ranks in front of him
How Parashurama Won Shiva's Weapons
Years of penance, a war fought with empty hands, and the arsenal that reached Karna
Duryodhana Rises from the Lake
Taunted in the water, the last Kaurava comes up armed and asks for one man at a time
The Gem on Ashwatthama's Head
Draupadi sits down to starve until the stone is brought to her
The Duel of the Brahmashira Weapons
Ashwatthama and Arjuna loose the world-ending astra at Vyasa's hermitage
Gandhari Shows Krishna the Field
With the sight Vyasa gave her, the blindfolded queen walks Krishna through the dead of Kurukshetra
What Gandhari Saw
The blind queen, given sight for one afternoon, walks Kurukshetra naming the dead of both armies
Krishna's Gift to the Dying Grandsire
The Boon That Took Away Pain, Hunger and Thirst So Bhishma Could Speak
The Fowler's Cry
Brihaspati teaches Indra how to subdue an enemy without fighting him
Upamanyu's Penance
The boy who refused every god but Shiva, and the god who came disguised as Indra to hear him do it
Tandi and the Ten Thousand Years
A rishi meditates for a hundred centuries, sees Mahadeva, and hymns him as the end of all five roads
Bhrigu in Agastya's Hair
How an unseen sage cursed the mortal king of heaven into a snake
The Guest Who Laughed
Vyasa and Maitreya argue over gift, penance and knowledge at Baranasi
The Vow of Ten and Two Years
Krishna keeps a twelve year vow on the mountain and a fire walks out of his mouth
The Three Sages Who Saved the Gods
Agastya burns the Danavas, Vashishtha brings down the Sarayu, and Atri becomes the moon and the sun
Arjuna Empties Dwaraka
One bowman escorts a dead city inland, and the sea walks behind him
The Ten Kinsmen Against the Ten Sons
Day six: Dhrishtadyumna kills two princes, ten Pandavas duel ten Kauravas, and Bhima goes into the elephants on foot
The Seventh Day After Noon
Bhima and Duryodhana wound each other twice, Sanjaya tells the blind king whose fault the war is, and Satanika kills Dushkarna
Six Duels on the Eighth Day
Shikhandi with a broken sword, Duryodhana on foot, and a mace that missed
The Three Columns
At 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.
Ghatotkacha and the Javelin of Bhagadatta
Duryodhana asks to kill a Rakshasa, and a Rakshasa breaks a javelin on his knee
The Shield Around Bhishma
Ninth day: Satyaki trades darts with the grandsire, Abhimanyu unhorses Chitrasena, and Duryodhana orders a wall of men built round Bhishma
The Wall Before Bhishma
Every Kaurava champion is given one Pandava to stop on the tenth day
The Last Push on the Tenth Day
Tenth 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 Arjuna
The Evening After Bhishma Fell
Both armies stop the war for a night, and Arjuna gives the grandsire the only pillow he will accept.
The King Falls Out of His Seat
Dhritarashtra hears that Drona is dead, faints in his hall, and wakes to ask who was supposed to be guarding him
The Mouth of the Garuda
Drona draws his host as a bird and comes for Yudhishthira on the twelfth morning
The King of the Fire City
Ashwatthama kills Nila of Mahishmati, and Arjuna kills three of Karna's brothers in his sight
The Field at Dusk
Sanjaya describes the evening of the thirteenth day, and the army that won walks home through it
The Blind King Is Answered
Dhritarashtra laments the night after Abhimanyu's death, and his own messenger tells him whose fault it is
The Road to Jayadratha
Arjuna breaks through the head of Drona's array on the fourteenth morning, from the omens at dawn to the river of blood
The Brothers of Avanti
Two kings see Arjuna's horses tire, and one of them walks up to Krishna with a mace
Four Duels on the Fourteenth Day
Kshemadhurti, Viradhanwan, Niramitra and Vyaghradatta go down before Drona's division
The Stones and the Golden King
Satyaki kills Sudarsana on the road to Arjuna, and cuts the mountaineers' stones out of the air
What Drupada Said About Duryodhana
Five kings die in front of Drona in one afternoon, and Drupada names the man who is not on the field
The Field Krishna Showed Him
Arjuna is driven at a walk over the ground he has won, and Yudhishthira answers with a hymn
Bhima's Harvest on the Fourteenth Evening
Drona takes the head of the king of Sivi, and Bhima kills with his fists, his palm and a caught dart until the kings call him Rudra
The Night Falls on the Fourteenth Day
Ashwatthama breaks the Panchalas after dark, Drona looses the wind weapon, and Krishna pulls Yudhishthira out of a fight he is winning
The Guard at Drona's Right Wheel
Yudhishthira orders his whole army against Drona, and never gets past Kritavarma
Duels by Torchlight
Six single combats fought by lamplight on the road to Drona's car
Karna by Night Against the Panchalas
The armies throw down their torches, and the Suta's son scatters Dhrishtadyumna and all of Panchala in the dark
The Whole Host Against Drona
Yudhishthira sends every man he has at the preceptor, and the fifteenth morning breaks into duels
The Arrow Cut in the Air
Satyaki saves Dhrishtadyumna from the preceptor's shaft and holds three great bowmen at once, and the day ends with Drona's head in the dust
Bhima Carried From the Field
Ashwatthama's afternoon after the Narayana weapon, and the shaft that took Bhima's charioteer
The Night After Drona
The sleepless camp, four men in a tent, and the thread tied round Karna's wrists
The First Duels of the Sixteenth Day
Bhima kills a king off an elephant, Satyaki kills two brothers, and Draupadi's sons kill two more
Dandadhara of Magadha
Two brothers on elephants, and the field Krishna made Arjuna look at
The Kings of the East Fall
Satyaki, Sahadeva and Nakula break the elephant corps of the eastern kings
Sutasoma and the Broken Scimitar
Yuyutsu and Uluka trade blows, and Bhima's son fights Shakuni on foot with half a sword
Karna and Satyaki Clash
One Vrishni holds the Kaurava army, and the sixteenth day ends in dust
The Price on Arjuna's Head
Karna offers everything he owns to any man who will point out Arjuna
The Prince Who Went In for Shikhandi
Kripa strips Shikhandi on the seventeenth day, and a young ally buys him a way out with his life
The Gates of Heaven Stand Open
Duryodhana tells his kings that dying well is winning, and Krishna drives Arjuna through what that costs
Satyaki Unhorses Shakuni
The seventeenth day breaks into single combats, and the gambler of Gandhara is carried off the field by his son
Arjuna Rides Out for Karna
The car is yoked again, the omen birds go on ahead, and the field between Arjuna and Karna breaks into duels
Arjuna Cuts His Way to Karna
An army ordered to tire one man before Karna kills him
The Vows Before the Final Duel
Karna, Shalya, Krishna and Arjuna each say what they will do when the other man dies
The Eighteenth Morning
Chekitana takes a lance, Suratha takes a single arrow, and Duryodhana is carried off his own field by bolting horses
The Seventeen Hundred
Shalya's followers charge against orders, and Duryodhana's army breaks twice before he turns it round
The Afternoon of the Eighteenth Day
Satyaki takes Kritavarma's car again, Duryodhana holds the field alone, and the last elephants fall
The Flight of the Royal Ladies
The last of the eleven armies dies, Duryodhana walks into a lake, and the Kaurava camp runs for Hastinapura
The Lords of the Waters and the Treasures
Balarama walks the Sarasvati past the fords where Varuna, Kubera, Indra and Surya won what they hold
The Plunder of the Kaurava Camp
The victors ride into Duryodhana's empty tents, and Arjuna's chariot turns to ash
The Weighing of the Bharata
The gods put the epic in a balance against the four Vedas, and Sauti recites the eighteen books
Sakamvari and the Ford of Gold
The goddess who fed the sages on herbs, and the tirtha where Vishnu knelt to Rudra
The Sacrifice of Battle
Duryodhana makes the coming war his own rite, and his father disowns him for it
Sanjaya Describes the Earth
The blind king asks what the earth is worth, and his charioteer answers with the whole of it
The Pairings of the Second Day
Arjuna goes at the grandsire, and the field breaks into nine duels
Portents Before the Fourteenth Day
The night the sky and the rivers answered Arjuna's vow, and the morning ritual of a king
The Shape of Ghatotkacha
Sanjaya describes the rakshasa's body, chariot and host as he charges Karna at midnight
Karna's Tales of the Madrakas
The abducted woman's curse, the rakshasa's ranking of dirt, and a driver who cannot get off the chariot
The Muster of the Eighteenth Day
An oath never to fight alone, and the count of what was left of both armies
The King Who Was Left Alone
Vyasa tells Yudhishthira of Hayagriva, who fought robbers after his army was gone and won heaven at his post
The Gods and the Salavrikas
Vyasa answers Yudhishthira's guilt with the war heaven fought for thirty-two thousand years
The Sudra Who Gave a Hundred Thousand
Bhishma sets out the duties of the four orders, and names the servant whose sacrifice is still remembered
The Oath to Conquer or Die
Bhishma on marching, arraying and swearing in an army, and the men a soldier may never strike
The Practices That Overcome Difficulty
Bhishma on when a truthful man may lie, and the long list of habits that carry a person through
Kamandaka and the Sinning King
A king who repents asks a rishi by what acts a sin is destroyed
The Debt Penance Could Not Pay
Yama climbs the Paripatra hills, and Gotama asks him what is owed to a mother and a father
The Legs of the Snake
Bhishma on how to live through a lawless season, and why slander must never be heard
The Marks of a True Friend
Bhishma lists the men a king may bind himself to, and the men he must keep at a distance
The Tribes Beyond the Pale
Bhishma names the peoples of the borders and dates them to the ending of the first age
On Dreams and Sleep
Bhishma explains where dreams come from and who stays awake in dreamless sleep
Narada as Krishna Praised Him
Ugrasena asks why everyone speaks well of one sage, and Krishna answers him item by item
The Road to Emancipation
Bhishma names, one by one, the tool that lifts each weight
The Eighth Portion of Vishnu
Sanatkumara tells the defeated Vritra what holds up the universe, and Bhishma tells Yudhishthira who Krishna is
Galava Asks What Is Beneficial
Narada answers a student who cannot tell which scripture to obey
Does Consciousness Survive
Yudhishthira asks whether anyone is left awake in the emancipate state, and Bhishma answers out of the Sankhya of Kapila
The Signs of Approaching Death
Yajnavalkya tells the king of Mithila which door the soul leaves by, and how a man learns that his year has begun
The Seven Winds
Vyasa halts a recitation on the Himavat and names the winds that move the worlds
The Curses of the Rishis
Krishna names the marks that Brahmanas left on gods, seas and mountains
The Thousand Doors to Heaven
A guest who cannot answer counts the ways men have got in, then names one serpent worth asking
The Wife Who Cooled a Naga's Anger
Padmanabha would not go out to a waiting guest, until his wife named the ends of Ravana and Kartavirya
The Jackal and the Ape
Two friends meet again in a burning ground and account for their bodies
The Ten Sins of Body, Speech and Mind
Bhishma answers the plainest question with a list of ten things not to do
How Vishnu Got the Discus
Upamanyu tells Krishna where Sudarsana came from, and Krishna climbs Himavat to ask Mahadeva for a son
The Devotees of Mahadeva
Kapila, Valmiki, Gritsamada and others tell Yudhishthira what a lifetime's devotion to Mahadeva bought them.
What Sends a Man to Heaven or Hell
Bhishma on gifts, the Sraddha, and the two lists of deeds
The Brahmanas Who Deserve Worship
Narada tells Krishna whom he bows to, and Bhishma tells a king what it costs to forget
Why Men Cling to Women
Yudhishthira asks the question that Panchachuda's answer left standing
The Five Forms of Marriage
Bhishma on how a daughter is given, what a dower does not buy, and the honour owed to women
The Kinds of Sons and Their Shares
Bhishma divides a dead man's property, names the children of crossed orders, and settles who a son belongs to
Gifts Under the Lunar Mansions
Narada tells Devaki what to give under each star, and the gods ask Brahman for ground to stand on
The Wrong Man Before Yama
A crow-faced messenger seizes the neighbour instead of Sarmin, and Yama sends him home with a rule of life
The Sraddhas Under the Constellations
Yama's calendar of offerings to the fathers, and the king who won the earth by it
Flowers, Incense, and Lamps
The goddess Earth tells Krishna what a household owes each day, and Shukra tells Bali which flowers belong to which beings
Rules for a Long Life
Bhishma sets out the conduct of an ordinary day, and how brothers should hold together
The Fourfold Religion of Compassion
Bhishma on abstaining from meat, and the kings who kept the vow
The Mysteries of Religion, Part One
The deities, the Pitris and the Rishis each give up a duty whose reason is secret
The Mysteries of Religion, Part Two
Lomasa, Arundhati, the night-wanderers and the elephants of the quarters give up the last of their secrets
Whose Food May Be Eaten
Bhishma on the tables a man may sit at, and the expiations for the rest
Whom One Should Worship
Yudhishthira asks whom a man should bow to, and Bhishma answers with the brahmanas
The Brahmanas and the Kapas
The gods lose heaven and earth, and men on the ground win them back
The Child Who Stopped Indra's Arm
A boy on Uma's lap holds the thunderbolt in the air
The Foundations of Righteousness
Bhishma is asked whether the eye or the scripture decides, and answers with three foundations and a long list of small rules