Divine Realm of the Mahabharata
Kshira Sagara
क्षीरसागर
Site of the Samudra Manthan, the churning of the ocean narrated in the Adi Parva's Astika story.
Kshira Sagara: Site of the Samudra Manthan, the churning of the ocean narrated in the Adi Parva's Astika story, located at coordinates 15.00°N, 70.00°E.
Key Facts
| Type | Divine Realm |
|---|---|
| Sanskrit name | क्षीरसागर |
| Coordinates | 15.00°N, 70.00°E |
| Significance | Site of the Samudra Manthan, the churning of the ocean narrated in the Adi Parva's Astika story. |
About Kshira Sagara
The cosmic Ocean of Milk, churned by the devas and asuras with Mount Mandara as the rod and Vasuki as the rope. From its depths rose the amrita, Lakshmi, Dhanvantari, and the deadly halahala poison.
Why it matters: Site of the Samudra Manthan, the churning of the ocean narrated in the Adi Parva's Astika story.
Rulers and Custodians
- Varuna
- lord of the waters
On the Map
Kshira Sagara sits at 15.00°N, 70.00°E.
View on the full mapEvents at Kshira Sagara
- Kadru and Vinata's WagerYear -990Kadru and Vinata make a wager about the color of the divine horse Ucchaihshrava's tail. Kadru wins by deceiving Vinata, making her a slave.
Stories Set at Kshira Sagara
Samudra Manthan
The Churning of the Ocean
Garuda and the Amrita
The Great Bird's Quest
Krishna at Sandipani's Ashram
The Fee Paid to Death
Krishna and the Flying City
The Fall of Saubha
The Fire in the Sea
Revenge the dead never asked for
The Arm on the Bird's Shoulder
The strongest flier in the worlds, taught his size
The Wager Over the Horse's Tail
How the serpents and the birds became enemies
The War Beneath the Sea
The fee Indra charged for the divine weapons
The Ocean and the Reed
Why the rivers bring down the great trees and spare the slender one
The Sage Who Drank the Sea
Utathya, Bhadra, and the day Varuna came up on foot
The Elephant and the Tortoise
Two brothers who could not divide a house
The Wind Answers the Thousand-Armed King
Kartavirya boasts, and an invisible voice begins to argue
The Mace That Turned Back
Varuna's gift to a river's son, and the one rule he forgot
The Omens of Dwaraka
A City Watches Its Own Death Approach
Balarama Returns to the Sea
The Serpent Leaves by the Mouth It Came From
The Fire That Loved a Princess
Why no army could take Mahishmati
What the Blind King Was Told
Duryodhana's inventory of the rajasuya, and the quarrel it started
The Princes the Earth Hid
What was left of the Kshatriyas after the axe
Bali in the Nooses of Varuna
The prisoner who would not be mocked, and the god who let him be
The Four Shares of a Sin
Who agreed to carry a quarter of Indra's guilt, and what it cost them
Three Balls of Mud
The Boar invents the rite for the dead, and has no one above him to offer it to
The Horse-Headed Voice in the Deep
How the Vedas were sung back out of the hands of thieves
Garuda's Map of the World
The four directions described from a bird's back
The Ascetic Who Would Not Be Carried
A thought Garuda never spoke aloud costs him his wings
The Promise Made in the Kamyaka Woods
The allies arrive, and Draupadi asks Krishna what her friendship is worth
Rudra's Share and the Sinking Earth
Two quarrels over what may be given away, on the Kalinga shore
The Council at Prabhasa
The Yadavas find the exiles on the shore and argue about ending the exile by force
The Map of the Worlds
A priest naming the four quarters of the cosmos from a mountain shoulder
The Fire That Resigned
Two gods each insisting the other keep the office
The Bird With the Burnt Wings
A search that ended at a cliff, and the brother of Jatayu
Arjuna Empties Dwaraka
One bowman escorts a dead city inland, and the sea walks behind him
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 Islands Beyond Jambudvipa
Sanjaya measures the seven islands, the world elephants and the sun
The Tribes Beyond the Pale
Bhishma names the peoples of the borders and dates them to the ending of the first age
The Curses of the Rishis
Krishna names the marks that Brahmanas left on gods, seas and mountains