Book 2 of 18 · The Mahabharata

Sabha Parva

सभा पर्व

Sabhā Parva

The Book of the Assembly Hall

What is the Sabha Parva?

The Sabha Parva (सभा पर्व) is the second of the eighteen books of the Mahabharata. Its name means “Book of the Assembly Hall”, and this site tells 42 stories drawn from it.

Sabha Parva Summary

Mayasura builds the Pandavas a hall of illusions at Indraprastha, and Yudhishthira performs the Rajasuya sacrifice that makes him emperor of the known world. Jarasandha is killed, Shishupala is beheaded for insulting Krishna, and the brothers reach the height of their fortune. Then Duryodhana, humiliated by the magical floors of the hall, persuades his father to invite Yudhishthira to a game of dice against Shakuni. In a single night the Pandavas gamble away wealth, kingdom, brothers, themselves and Draupadi, who is dragged into the assembly and saved only by Krishna, and the second throw sends them into thirteen years of exile.

What This Book Is About

  • empire
  • pride
  • gambling
  • humiliation
  • injustice

Sub-Books (Upaparvas) of the Sabha Parva

The Mahabharata divides itself into one hundred upaparvas; 9 of them belong to this book.

  1. Sabha ParvaThe Book of the Assembly HallSub-book 20 of 100
  2. Mantra ParvaThe Book of CounselSub-book 21 of 100
  3. Jarasandha-vadha ParvaThe Book of the Slaying of JarasandhaSub-book 22 of 100
  4. Digvijaya ParvaThe Book of the Conquest of the DirectionsSub-book 23 of 100
  5. Rajasuyika ParvaThe Book of the Rajasuya SacrificeSub-book 24 of 100
  6. Arghyabhiharana ParvaThe Book of the Offering of the Guest GiftSub-book 25 of 100
  7. Shishupala-vadha ParvaThe Book of the Slaying of ShishupalaSub-book 26 of 100
  8. Dyuta ParvaThe Book of the Dice GameSub-book 27 of 100
  9. Anudyuta ParvaThe Book of the Subsequent Dice GameSub-book 28 of 100

Stories from the Sabha Parva

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

  1. The Imperial SacrificeIndraprastha, Jarasandha, and the Rajasuya Yagna 26 min
  2. The Palace of IllusionsMayasura's Masterpiece and the Laughter That Started a War 21 min
  3. The Fall of JarasandhaBhima's Fourteen-Day Duel at Girivraja
  4. The Imperial CeremonyThe Rajasuya story contains a profound teaching about divine patience and justice. 18 min
  5. The Theft of RukminiHow Krishna Won His Queen at the Edge of a Wedding 28 min
  6. The Slaying of NarakaKrishna, Satyabhama, and the Festival of Lights 10 min
  7. The Thousand-Armed KingUsha, Aniruddha, and the War of Banasura 11 min
  8. The God of Love RebornPradyumna, Shambara, and the Return to Dwaraka 9 min
  9. The King Who Slept in the CaveMucukunda, Krishna, and Kalayavana 9 min
  10. The Jewel of the SunKrishna, the Syamantaka, and Jambavan 11 min
  11. The Friend Who Brought RiceSudama and the Grace of Krishna 11 min
  12. The King Who Never LiedHarishchandra's Trial of Truth 11 min
  13. The Dice GameThe Game That Changed Everything 18 min
  14. The Fateful GameAddiction blinds even the wisest of men. 17 min
  15. The Infinite SariIn our darkest hour, when all worldly help fails, surrender to the Divine is our last and most powerful refuge. 16 min
  16. Vikarna, the Kaurava Who SpokeOne Voice in the Dice Hall
  17. The Fall of DharmaThe Fall of Dharma teaches the most terrifying lesson of the Mahabharata: that evil does not triumph through its own strength alone. 24 min
  18. The Lake Called BinduWhere Maya found Bhima's club and Arjuna's conch 18 min
  19. The Hundred Questions of NaradaA sage audits an emperor before he lets him boast 17 min
  20. The King Made of Two HalvesA mango, two queens, and the demoness who put a child together 17 min
  21. The Fire That Loved a PrincessWhy no army could take Mahishmati 16 min
  22. The Vow of the Soft TongueVyasa's warning, and the promise Yudhishthira made instead 16 min
  23. What the Blind King Was ToldDuryodhana's inventory of the rajasuya, and the quarrel it started 21 min
  24. The Honey-Gatherer on the CliffVidura's last warnings, and the answer he got 16 min
  25. The Second ThrowOne cast of the dice for thirteen years 20 min
  26. The Road Out of HastinapuraWhat Vidura read in the way they walked 19 min
  27. The Errand Vidura Did Not WantCarrying the invitation to the dice game he had begged the king not to send 13 min
  28. The Kingdom Given BackDhritarashtra releases the Pandavas and returns everything they lost 12 min
  29. The Vows Sworn Before ExileFour brothers name their killings on the way out of the dice hall 23 min
  30. Krishna Takes Leave of IndraprasthaThe farewell on the road to Dwaraka, and the promise to return 11 min
  31. Nakula, the BeautifulThe overshadowed twin's own account
  32. Sahadeva, the Silent SeerKnowledge that could not save
  33. Indraprastha, the City the Pandavas BuiltFrom burned forest to imperial capital
  34. The Uncle Who StayedShakuni of Gandhara, without the legends
  35. Magadha and the Fortress of GirivrajaThe empire of Jarasandha
  36. Chedi, Kingdom of the Sky-Going KingFrom Uparichara Vasu to Shishupala
  37. The Conquest of the NorthArjuna's road for the rajasuya
  38. The Conquest of the EastBhima's road for the rajasuya
  39. The Five Halls of the GodsNarada describes the assemblies of the world-guardians
  40. Mahishmati, City Guarded by FireThe Narmada capital of old power
  41. The Conquest of the WestNakula's road for the rajasuya
  42. The Conquest of the SouthSahadeva's road for the rajasuya

Where This Book Sits

The Sabha Parva is book 2 of the eighteen parvas. It follows the Adi Parva, the book of the beginning. The Vana Parva, the book of the forest, comes next.

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