Book 1 of 18 · The Mahabharata

Adi Parva

आदि पर्व

Ādi Parva

The Book of the Beginning

What is the Adi Parva?

The Adi Parva (आदि पर्व) is the first of the eighteen books of the Mahabharata. Its name means “Book of the Beginning”, and this site tells 60 stories drawn from it.

Adi Parva Summary

The first book opens the epic with the frame stories of its own telling: Ugrashrava recites the Mahabharata to the sages of the Naimisha forest, and Vyasa dictates it to Ganesha. It gathers the great origin legends - the churning of the ocean, Garuda and the nectar, the snake sacrifice of Janamejaya - before turning to the ancestors of the Kuru line, from Dushyanta and Shakuntala to Yayati and Shantanu. Here Devavrata takes the terrible vow that makes him Bhishma, the princes are born to Kunti and Madri, and Pandavas and Kauravas grow up together under Drona and Kripa. It ends with the burning of the house of lac, the winning of Draupadi at her swayamvara, the founding of Indraprastha, and the fire that consumes the Khandava forest.

What This Book Is About

  • origins
  • dynasty
  • vows
  • birth
  • rivalry

Stories from the Adi Parva

60 stories on this site are told inside this book, in canonical reading order.

  1. Ancient BeginningsThe Earth's Plea, the Descent of the Gods, and the Sages Who Began the Telling 22 min
  2. The Epic ComposedVyasa at Badarikashrama, Astika at the Snake Sacrifice, and the Story First Told 23 min
  3. Utanka and the EarringsThe Origin of the Snake Sacrifice 20 min
  4. The Disciple in the FieldAruni dams a breach with his own body for his teacher 10 min
  5. UpamanyuThe Student in the Well 6 min
  6. Astika Saves the SnakesThe End of the Sarpa Satra 20 min
  7. Samudra ManthanThe Churning of the Ocean 18 min
  8. Garuda and the AmritaThe Great Bird's Quest 19 min
  9. The Serpent Who Bears the WorldShesha leaves his wicked kin and upholds the earth 10 min
  10. Half a Life for LoveRuru, Pramadvara, and the Snake 11 min
  11. The King and the Hermit GirlDushyanta and Shakuntala 19 min
  12. The King and the ApsaraPururavas and Urvashi 9 min
  13. The Moon and the Stolen BrideChandra, Tara, and the Lunar Dynasty 9 min
  14. The King Who Was BothChanged from man to woman, ancestor of a great line 10 min
  15. The Ancestors of the EpicsYayati, Devayani, and Sharmishtha 17 min
  16. The Secret of Reviving the DeadKacha, Devayani, and the Sanjivani 11 min
  17. The King Who Became a SageVishvamitra's Long Ascent 10 min
  18. The King Who Became a DemonKalmashapada and the Forbearance of Vasishtha 10 min
  19. Tapati and SamvaranaThe Daughter of the Sun 6 min
  20. Chitraratha at the GangaThe Gandharva at the Night Ford 7 min
  21. The River and the IslandBirths of Satyavati and Vyasa 17 min
  22. Shantanu and the River GoddessThe Marriage That Began the Kuru Dynasty 24 min
  23. The Terrible VowTrue love is not possession but sacrifice. 20 min
  24. The Terrible VowThe Sacrifice of Devavrata 23 min
  25. Bhishma's VowThe Terrible Oath of Devavrata 17 min
  26. The Abduction at KashiThe Svayamvara and the Tragedy of Amba 14 min
  27. The Niyoga of VyasaThe Birth of the Kurus 21 min
  28. The Sage on the StakeAni-Mandavya and the Birth of Vidura 11 min
  29. The Birth of the PrincesChildren of the Gods and the Iron Womb 16 min
  30. The Curse of the DeerPandu's Fatal Hunt and the End of a King 21 min
  31. The Curse That Killed a KingPandu's Arrow, Kindama's Curse, and the Birth of the Pandavas 23 min
  32. How Ganesha Got His HeadThe Birth of the Lord of Beginnings 10 min
  33. The Demon Who Burned HimselfBhasmasura and the Dance of Mohini 9 min
  34. The Divine ChildThe Divine descends whenever dharma declines and adharma rises. 21 min
  35. The Divine ChildKrishna's life is the Mahabharata's answer to the question: What does God look like when God walks among us? 28 min
  36. The Boy God of VrindavanKrishna's Childhood Among the Cowherds 24 min
  37. The Demons of VrindavanThe Hunt That Failed 7 min
  38. Brahma Steals the CalvesThe Creator's Test 5 min
  39. The Sea God and the Wives at the FireTwo Small Mercies of Vrindavan 5 min
  40. The Vision in the RiverA devotee granted the sight of Krishna's divinity 10 min
  41. The Slaying of KamsaThe Prophecy Fulfilled 7 min
  42. Krishna at Sandipani's AshramThe Fee Paid to Death 6 min
  43. The Bride From Another AgeA princess of a former yuga wed across the ages 10 min
  44. Karna's Birth & CurseThe Tragic Backstory of the Sun's Son 21 min
  45. A Royal Childhood at HastinapuraPandavas, Kauravas, and the Lessons of Drona 21 min
  46. Drona and DrupadaThe Broken Friendship 7 min
  47. The Bird's Eye and the CrocodileDrona's Tests of Arjuna 6 min
  48. The Price of ExcellenceEklavya's story is deeply troubling - it reveals how caste discrimination denied a brilliant student his potential. 20 min
  49. The Tournament of ChampionsThe Rise of Arjuna and the Arrival of Karna 17 min
  50. Escape from the FlamesThe lac house episode teaches that evil, no matter how carefully planned, cannot triumph over righteousness. 18 min
  51. The House of Lac and the DemonsThe Pandavas' First Exile 17 min
  52. Bhima and HidimbiThe Birth of Ghatotkacha 8 min
  53. Bakasura of EkachakraThe Debt of Bread 7 min
  54. The Fire-Born and the Woman Who Became a ManDrupada's Children, Drona's Old Feud, and Amba's Vow Across Lives 29 min
  55. Draupadi's SwayamvaraThe Choosing of Her Husband 19 min
  56. The Impossible ChallengeDestiny works in mysterious ways. 21 min
  57. The Brothers and the ApsaraSunda, Upasunda, and the Making of Tilottama 11 min
  58. Arjuna's Wandering YearThree Wives in Three Kingdoms 21 min
  59. When Gods Made WarSometimes destruction is necessary for creation. 18 min
  60. The Sage and the Birds in the FireMandapala, Jarita, and the Khandava Blaze 9 min

Where This Book Sits

The Adi Parva is book 1 of the eighteen parvas. It opens the epic. The Sabha Parva, the book of the assembly hall, comes next.

See all eighteen parvas of the MahabharataFollow the epic as a timeline