Age I · 266 stories
Ancient Origins
Creation, the churning of the ocean, the first sages and kings, and the ancestral legends the epic reaches back to whenever a teacher has a lesson to give.
Told in the Adi Parva
- Ancient BeginningsThe Line of the Moon, from Soma to Shantanu
- The Disciple in the FieldAruni dams a breach with his own body for his teacher
- Upamanyu उपमन्युThe Student in the Well
- Samudra ManthanThe Churning of the Ocean
- Garuda and the AmritaThe Great Bird's Quest
- The Serpent Who Bears the WorldShesha leaves his wicked kin and upholds the earth
- Half a Life for LoveRuru, Pramadvara, and the Snake
- The King and the Hermit GirlDushyanta and Shakuntala
- The King and the ApsaraPururavas and Urvashi
- The Moon and the Stolen BrideChandra, Tara, and the Lunar Dynasty
- The King Who Was BothChanged from man to woman, ancestor of a great line
- The Ancestors of the EpicsYayati, Devayani, and Sharmishtha
- The Secret of Reviving the DeadKacha, Devayani, and the Sanjivani
- The King Who Became a SageVishvamitra's Long Ascent
- The King Who Became a DemonKalmashapada and the Forbearance of Vasishtha
- Tapati and Samvarana तपती संवरणThe Daughter of the Sun
- The River and the IslandBirths of Satyavati and Vyasa
- Shantanu and the River GoddessThe Marriage That Began the Kuru Dynasty
- The Terrible Vow भीष्म प्रतिज्ञाTrue love is not possession but sacrifice.
- Bhishma's VowThe Terrible Oath of Devavrata
- The Abduction at KashiThe Svayamvara and the Tragedy of Amba
- The Niyoga of VyasaThe Birth of the Kurus
- The Sage on the StakeAni-Mandavya and the Birth of Vidura
- The Curse of the DeerPandu's Fatal Hunt and the End of a King
- How Ganesha Got His HeadThe Birth of the Lord of Beginnings
- The Demon Who Burned HimselfBhasmasura and the Dance of Mohini
- The Divine Child कृष्ण लीलाThe Divine descends whenever dharma declines and adharma rises.
- The Boy God of VrindavanKrishna's Childhood Among the Cowherds
- The Demons of Vrindavan व्रज असुर वधThe Hunt That Failed
- Brahma Steals the Calves ब्रह्म विमोहनThe Creator's Test
- The Sea God and the Wives at the Fire वरुण मोक्ष एवं यज्ञपत्नीTwo Small Mercies of Vrindavan
- The Slaying of Kamsa कंस वधThe Prophecy Fulfilled
- Krishna at Sandipani's Ashram सांदीपनि गुरुदक्षिणाThe Fee Paid to Death
- Karna's Birth & CurseThe Tragic Backstory of the Sun's Son
- The Sage and the Birds in the FireMandapala, Jarita, and the Khandava Blaze
- The Elephant and the TortoiseTwo brothers who could not divide a house
- The Pole Raised for a FriendA king who came down from his penance, and the festival he left behind
- The Age After the AxeHow the warrior caste came back, and how it was spoiled again
- The Apsara Sent to Break a SageMenaka's fear, and the child left on the Malini
- The Twins in the HeathIndra's dancer, a sage's dropped bow, and the children a king carried home
- The Widow at the FireA curse spoken before the flames took her, and the heir it forced
- The King Who Made Fire SickTwelve years of butter and the appetite it ruined
- Garuda's Pact and the Forked TonguesHow the snakes lost the nectar and got their split tongues
- The Weighing of the BharataThe gods put the epic in a balance against the four Vedas, and Sauti recites the eighteen books
- The Lineages of Gods and DemonsVaishampayana recites the descent of every creature from Brahma and the daughters of Daksha
- The Four Ways to Spend a LifeYayati, falling out of heaven, answers Ashtaka on the asramas and the road to Brahma
- Ganga Beyond the RiverThe mother who shaped Bhishma
- Kanva of the MaliniThe sage who raised Shakuntala
- The Fisher Queen's BurdenSatyavati's regency and renunciation
- Bharata, the All-TamerThe emperor who chose worth over blood
- The King Who Fought His NameChitrangada and the gandharva's duel
- The Curse of the Eight VasusHeaven's theft, earth's long sentence
- The Hanging FathersJaratkaru's debt to the dead
- Hastinapura, City of the ElephantThe capital that held the whole epic
- Kurukshetra Before the WarWhy the field was already holy
- Pandu's ConquestThe pale king who filled the treasury
- The Fire in the SeaRevenge the dead never asked for
- The Branch That LeftThe Kurus who moved away and died in the war anyway
- The Curse on FireWhy the flame eats everything it touches
- The Brother Who Should Have Been KingA lawful crown the rain refused to bless
- The Blind Sage on the RiverHow a king without sons got his heir
- The Teacher Who Came Too LateFlour stirred in water, and a mountain walked to
- The Arm on the Bird's ShoulderThe strongest flier in the worlds, taught his size
- The Wager Over the Horse's TailHow the serpents and the birds became enemies
- The Sacrifice That Was StoppedA son's fire, put out by the men it was lit for
- The Snake Who Was a SageA widower's war on an entire species
- The Thumb-Sized SagesA god's idle joke and the bird it created
- The Council of the SerpentsA doomed people debating how to survive
- The Teacher Who RememberedThe third disciple and what he refused to pass on
- Ganga, River of the KurusThe goddess who carries the dynasty
- Kashi, the City of Light in the EpicThree princesses and a long revenge
- Nagaloka, the Serpent Realm BelowThe jeweled underworld of the nagas
- Mahabhisha's GlanceOne unguarded look in Brahma's court sets a dynasty moving
- The Sons of the Dead KingKunti answers Pandu's plea for niyoga with the tale of a widow's unbroken faith
Told in the Sabha Parva
- The Theft of RukminiHow Krishna Won His Queen at the Edge of a Wedding
- The Slaying of NarakaKrishna, Satyabhama, and the Festival of Lights
- The Thousand-Armed KingUsha, Aniruddha, and the War of Banasura
- The God of Love RebornPradyumna, Shambara, and the Return to Dwaraka
- The King Who Slept in the CaveMucukunda, Krishna, and Kalayavana
- The Jewel of the SunKrishna, the Syamantaka, and Jambavan
- The Friend Who Brought RiceSudama and the Grace of Krishna
- The King Who Never LiedHarishchandra's Trial of Truth
Told in the Vana Parva
- The Wife Turned to StoneAhalya, Gautama, and the Touch of Rama
- The Child Who Leapt for the SunThe Birth and Boons of Hanuman
- The Warrior With the AxeParashurama, Jamadagni, and the Long Vengeance
- The Descent of the RiverBhagiratha and the Sons of Sagara
- The Sage Whose Blood Was SapShiva humbles Mankanaka's pride with a touch of his thumb
- The Sage and the PrincessChyavana, Sukanya, and the Ashvins
- The Knowledge Not EarnedYavakri and the Handfuls of Sand
- The Price of a Hundred SonsA king who would not let his priest suffer alone
- The Slayer of the Sand-DemonKuvalashva and the Demon Dhundhu
- The King Born of a KingMandhata, Whom Indra Suckled
- The Boy Bound for SacrificeFreed from the stake by prayer and a sage's compassion
- The King Who Hung Between WorldsTrishanku and the New Heaven
- The Birth of the War-GodSkanda and the Slaying of Taraka
- The Birth of the Wind-GodsDiti, Indra, and the Maruts
- The Sun's Wife and the ShadowSurya, Sanjna, and the Forging of the Weapons
- The Fish and the FloodManu and the Great Deluge
- The Sage Who Defeated DeathMarkandeya, Shiva, and the Conquest of Death
- The King Who Was ForgottenA search among the oldest beings for one who remembers
- The Chaste Wife and the Three GodsAnasuya and the Test of the Trimurti
- The Elephant and the CrocodileGajendra's Surrender
- The Boy Who Became the Pole StarDhruva's Penance
- Rudra's Share and the Sinking EarthTwo quarrels over what may be given away, on the Kalinga shore
- The Two Pots of RiceA mother and daughter exchange their bowls and exchange their sons
- The Muni Who Would Not Stay DeadA hunting accident, a vanished body, and an answer about fear
- The Horses of VamadevaA loan not returned, and two kings undone by the same refusal
- The Measure of a King's GivingThree short tests of what a gift is worth
- Who Falls From Heaven FirstNarada rides with four kings and ranks their generosity
- The Fire That ResignedTwo gods each insisting the other keep the office
- Devasena and the Husband Not Yet BornA rescue on the Manasa hills and a promise the gods had to invent someone to keep
- Swaha and the Six DisguisesThe wives who were punished for a child that was never theirs
- The Thunderbolt and the Seizers of ChildrenWhat came out of the wound, and the bargain that followed
- The Boons of Visrava's SonsThree brothers ask Brahma for different things
- The Five Lakes of BloodParashurama's oblation to the fathers at Samantapanchaka
- The Bow at the FrontierParashurama Tests Rama of Ayodhya and Loses His Energy
- The Feast Shibi CookedA brahmana demands the king's son as his meal, and Shibi obeys without changing colour
- The Gods Ask for RamaAgni pleads before Brahma, and the answer is a king's son and an army of monkeys and bears
- The Friend of DasarathaA vulture fights Ravana in the sky, and a headless Rakshasa points the way to Sugriva
- Nala's BridgeThe Ocean refuses to part and names a workman instead, and the monkey army walks to Lanka
- Sakamvari and the Ford of GoldThe goddess who fed the sages on herbs, and the tirtha where Vishnu knelt to Rudra
- Tarkshya Asks SaraswatiWhat a gift is worth, and the one merit a man with nothing can still earn
- The Children of AgniMarkandeya names the whole family of fires, from the daughters of Angiras to the rivers who mothered them
- How the Krittikas Took Abhijit's PlaceA star leaves the sky in envy of her elder sister, and the six Krittikas are raised into the empty station
- The Praise That Cost a SageAtri, Gautama, and a quarrel in a sacrificial hall
- Amaravati, City of IndraThe capital of heaven in the epic
- Badari, Hermitage of the Twin SagesWhere Nara and Narayana practice forever
- Lanka in the MahabharataRavana's island as the epic remembers it
Told in the Udyoga Parva
- The Princess Who Became Death अम्बा का प्रतिशोधAmba's story reveals how injustice, even unintentional injustice, creates cycles of suffering.
- The Eight Hundred HorsesGalava, Madhavi, and the Impossible Fee
- The Fall of YayatiThe King Who Spent His Heaven
- The Slaying of VritraDadhichi's Bones and Indra's Sin
- The Three-Headed PriestIndra's suspicion, the birth of Vritra, and the sin that followed
- The Cow at the Bottom of the WorldSurabhi, the four cows of the quarters, and the cities beneath Patala
- Garuda's Map of the WorldThe four directions described from a bird's back
- The Ascetic Who Would Not Be CarriedA thought Garuda never spoke aloud costs him his wings
- Twenty-Three Days on the SaraswatiBhishma fights his own preceptor and neither man can win
- Madhavi Chooses the ForestAt her own swayamvara she passes over every king and takes the woods for a husband
Told in the Drona Parva
- The Maiden Named DeathHow Death came into the world, weeping and without sin
- The Boon Somadatta Asked ForA wrestling match at Devaki's self-choice, and the son born a generation later to answer it
- How Drona Won the Narayana WeaponAshwatthama 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 CarVyasa tells Arjuna whose lance was breaking the ranks in front of him
Told in the Shalya Parva
- The Sage in the WellAbandoned by his brothers, he made a sacrifice from the pit
- The River With Seven NamesWherever she was called, she came
- The Head That Would Not Let GoWhy the ford on the Sarasvati is called Kapalamochana
- The Pupil Who Could Not LearnYears in a teacher's house, and nothing to show for them
- The Kingdom Poured on the FireA sage is mocked with dead cattle and burns a realm with them
- The Head That Followed IndraA treaty kept to the letter and broken in every other way
- The Anointing of the War GodEvery god brings a gift to a six-day-old commander
- The Lords of the Waters and the TreasuresBalarama walks the Sarasvati past the fords where Varuna, Kubera, Indra and Surya won what they hold
- Saraswati, the Vanishing RiverThe river of sages that hides in the sand
- The Boy Who Kept the VedasA twelve-year famine strips the Vedas from sixty thousand sages - except one boy fed by a river
- The Maiden Who Cooked the JujubesBadarapachana Tirtha - The Fire She Fed With Herself
- The Old Maiden's BargainAn ascetic's lifetime of tapas cannot buy her heaven until she takes a husband for one night
Told in the Shanti Parva
- The Bird That Sent the Boys HomeIndra in golden feathers argues young renouncers back to their fathers
- The Queen's Answer to the Beggar KingJanaka shaves his head, and his wife takes his renunciation apart
- The Princes the Earth HidWhat was left of the Kshatriyas after the axe
- The Age Before KingsHow men who protected one another stopped, and what had to be written
- Mandhatri Asks to See GodThe emperor got an answer instead of a vision
- The Day the Rod VanishedWhat happened to the world when Chastisement disappeared
- The Two Who Argued Over a DebtDesire and Wrath come to court in rags
- Prahlada in ChainsIndra asks a bound enemy why he does not grieve
- Bali in the Nooses of VarunaThe prisoner who would not be mocked, and the god who let him be
- Fortune Changes SidesWhy Sri deserted the asuras, told on a bank of the Ganga
- The Deer Who Asked to Be KilledA poor brahmana's sacrifice and the neighbour who begged for the knife
- The Four Shares of a SinWho agreed to carry a quarter of Indra's guilt, and what it cost them
- The Sweat That Became FeverA drop from Shiva's forehead, and the disease scattered through the world
- The Sage Inside the GodHow Usanas robbed Kuvera and came out as Shukra
- The Yajus Taken From the SunA goddess entering a man's mouth, and the fee split in two
- The Son Struck From the Fire SticksA hundred years of penance, a parrot on a branch, and a child born of friction
- Three Doors and Fifty WomenThe son of Vyasa is made to walk, and then made to wait
- The Guest Nobody Could SeeBrihaspati throws down the ladle at a sacrifice where no animal was killed
- Three Balls of MudThe Boar invents the rite for the dead, and has no one above him to offer it to
- The Horse-Headed Voice in the DeepHow the Vedas were sung back out of the hands of thieves
- The Rishi Born From a WordVyasa tells his disciples who he was before he was Vyasa
- The Gods and the SalavrikasVyasa answers Yudhishthira's guilt with the war heaven fought for thirty-two thousand years
- The Curses of the RishisKrishna names the marks that Brahmanas left on gods, seas and mountains
- The Gold Mountain in the Ocean of MilkBrahma tells Rudra of the one Purusha whom neither of them can see
- The Boy Who Would Not BowPrahlada and the Man-Lion
- The Three StepsVamana and the Generosity of Bali
- The Honest MerchantTuladhara and the Proud Ascetic
- The King Who Became a DeerJada Bharata and the Snare of Attachment
- The King Who Fed the WorldRantideva's Last Water
- The First KingVena, Prithu, and the Milking of the Earth
- The Devotee and the Sage's WrathAmbarisha and the Discus of the Lord
- The Sacrifice of SatiDaksha's Pride and the Wrath of Shiva
- The Procession of IndrasIndra's Pride and the Vastness of Time
- The Boar Who Lifted the EarthVaraha and the Rescue of the Drowned Earth
- The Son Who DelayedChirakari and the Wisdom of Not Acting in Haste
- The Dove and the HunterThe Pigeon Who Honored Its Enemy
- The Gatekeepers Who Became DemonsThe Curse of the Kumaras and the Three Births
- The Twin SagesNara, Narayana, and the Eternal Companionship
- The Demons Born of SleepMadhusudana and the Dawn of Creation
- The King Who Chose HellVipashchit and the Compassion That Emptied a Hell
- The Sage of Twenty-Four TeachersDattatreya and the Wisdom of the World
- The Son Who Flew to FreedomShuka, Vyasa, and the Inward Renunciation
- The Woman Who Out-Argued a KingSulabha, Janaka, and the Inward Freedom
- That Thou ArtUddalaka teaches his proud son the one Self
- The Boy Who Told the TruthSatyakama Jabala, of no known family, wins wisdom by honesty
- The Sage Who Knew the SelfYajnavalkya, Gargi, and Maitreyi at Mithila
- The Brothers and the Stolen FruitStrict justice and willing acceptance between two sage brothers
- The Ungrateful GuestThe noble crane and the benefactor's murderer
- The Sinner Who Called the NameA fallen brahmin saved at death by the holy name
- The King Who Lost His SonGrief turned to the knowledge of the deathless soul
- The Bird and the KingHow a single vengeance ended a long friendship
- The Cat and the MouseTwo enemies who saved one another, and the wisdom of the weak
- The Sage Who Forgot HimselfNarada lives a whole life in an instant of illusion
- The Son Who Taught His MotherKapila, an avatar born as a son, teaches Devahuti liberation
- The King Who Had One HourLiberation won in a single hour of life
- The City of Nine GatesNarada's allegory of the soul in the body
- The King Who Lived in the EyesA quarrel of king and priest, and the origin of blinking
- The King Consoled in GriefA brahmana lifts a grieving king with the truth
- The Camel Who Would Not MoveA boon of ease that fed sloth to ruin
- The Vulture and the JackalTwo voices over a dead child: hope and acceptance
- The Tree That Defied the WindA proud silk-cotton tree humbled by its own fear
- The Yogi of Many WorldsThe true goal of yoga is peace, not powers
- The Sage Who Tested the GodsBhrigu finds the greatest is greatest in forbearance
- The King Who Declared War on HimselfAlarka finds the only enemy worth conquering
- The Song of BodhyaSix teachers and no preceptor
- Manu Answers the Teacher of the GodsA dialogue on what the senses can and cannot reach
- The Song of ParasharaVyasa's father on birth, work and the fruit of acts
- What Left PrahladaIndra begs the one thing worth taking
- The Birth of the SwordNakula asks which weapon came first
- The Parrot and the Poisoned TreeA bird that would not leave a dying host
- The White IslandNarada and three sages at the edge of the world
- The Word That Meant Two ThingsKing Vasu judges what aja means, and falls out of the sky
- Utathya Instructs the EmperorThe brahmana who told Mandhata what a crown is for
- Vamadeva and the King of KosalaThe counsel a young king asked for and got
- Vasishtha and Karala JanakaThe count of what a person is made of
Told in the Anushasana Parva
- The Three Born of the FireBhrigu, Angiras and Kavi rise from a libation, and three gods claim them
- Upamanyu's PenanceThe 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 YearsA rishi meditates for a hundred centuries, sees Mahadeva, and hymns him as the end of all five roads
- Bhrigu in Agastya's HairHow an unseen sage cursed the mortal king of heaven into a snake
- The Three Sages Who Saved the GodsAgastya burns the Danavas, Vashishtha brings down the Sarayu, and Atri becomes the moon and the sun
- How Vishnu Got the DiscusUpamanyu tells Krishna where Sudarsana came from, and Krishna climbs Himavat to ask Mahadeva for a son
- The Devotees of MahadevaKapila, Valmiki, Gritsamada and others tell Yudhishthira what a lifetime's devotion to Mahadeva bought them.
- The Brahmanas and the KapasThe gods lose heaven and earth, and men on the ground win them back
- The Child Who Stopped Indra's ArmA boy on Uma's lap holds the thunderbolt in the air
- The Boy Who Questioned DeathNachiketa at the House of Yama
- The Old Woman, the Snake, and DeathGautami and the Truth of Karma
- The King Who Became a LizardNriga's long penance for one careless wrong
- The Guardian of the TrustVipula guards his teacher's wife from Indra, and learns that nothing stays hidden
- The King Who Became a MotherHaving been both father and mother, he chose a mother's love
- The Price of a SageChyavana caught in the fishermen's net
- The Sage Who Shot at the SunHow the umbrella and the sandals came into the world
- The Test in the NorthAshtavakra goes for a bride and is stopped by a woman
- The Sage Who Drank the SeaUtathya, Bhadra, and the day Varuna came up on foot
- The King Who Was Made a BrahmanaVitahavya, the Haihaya, and a word that changed a birth
- Why Gold Is the Highest GiftThe metal born with the war god
- The Two Bowls of RiceHow a mother's swap made a brahmana of one line and a warrior of the other
- The Man Who Was Not Allowed InA Sudra's hermitage, a sage's kindness, and two lives turned inside out
- The Cow Born of NectarDaksha's gift, Mahadeva's third eye, and why cattle wear many colours
- Four Faces and a Blue ThroatUma asks her husband to account for himself
- The Wind Answers the Thousand-Armed KingKartavirya boasts, and an invisible voice begins to argue
Told in the Ashvamedhika Parva
- The Naked Priest of VaranasiHow a king outbid Indra for a brother nobody wanted
- Where the Kingdom EndsA sentence of exile that its author could not locate
- The Eight Who Questioned BrahmaThe ladder from the Unmanifest down to a body
- The Earrings of MadayantiA pupil grown old, and a bargain with a man-eating king
- The Rain Agastya Did Not NeedTwelve years of drought against one sage's seeds
Age II · 22 stories
The Dvapara Age
Krishna is born at Mathura, grows up among the cowherds of Vrindavan, and founds Dwaraka as the Dvapara age draws toward its close.
Told in the Harivamsa
- The Flight to DwarakaThe City Built in the Sea
- The City of DoorsDwaraka Described
- Hamsa and DimbhakaThe Two Who Could Not Be Killed
- The Second Theft of the SyamantakaShatadhanva's Ride
- The Eight Queens of DwarakaThe Marriages of Krishna
- The Demon of a Thousand IllusionsThe Fall of Nikumbha
- The Actor Spies of DwarakaPradyumna and Prabhavati
- The False VasudevaPaundraka, the King Who Dressed as God
- The Parijata TreeSatyabhama and the Flower of Heaven
- Samba and the Dragged CityBalarama's Plough at the Walls of Hastinapura
- The Ape at the GatesBalarama and Dvivida
- Balarama and the YamunaThe River Dragged by the Plough
- The Hunter Called Old AgeWho Jara Was
- Devaki and the Six Who Came BeforeA mother's arms filled for one evening
- Yashoda's Second FarewellThe mother of the heart at Syamantapanchaka
- Mathura, Cradle of KrishnaThe city of the prison and the festival
- Eklavya, King of the NishadasWhat the excluded do with their exclusion
Age III · 10 stories
Birth of Heroes
The Kuru line takes its shape: Shantanu and Ganga, the terrible vow that makes Devavrata into Bhishma, and the births of Karna, the Pandavas and the Kauravas.
Told in the Adi Parva
- The Birth of the PrincesChildren of the Gods and the Iron Womb
- The Curse That Killed a KingPandu's Arrow, Kindama's Curse, and the Birth of the Pandavas
- The Fire-Born and the Woman Who Became a ManDrupada's Children, Drona's Old Feud, and Amba's Vow Across Lives
- Kunti's SwayamvaraThe princess no king asked for chooses Pandu in a hall of monarchs
- Madri, the Second QueenThe overshadowed wife who chose the fire
- The Birth of DuryodhanaA doom announced and ignored
- The Hundred PardonsThe birth and boon of Shishupala
- The Moon's SonThe sixteen-year loan of Abhimanyu
- The Boy Who Invented MarriageThe argument Pandu made on the mountain
Age IV · 13 stories
Childhood
Growing up at Hastinapura under Kripa and Drona, and the rivalry that begins on the training ground.
Told in the Adi Parva
- A Royal Childhood at HastinapuraPandavas, Kauravas, and the Lessons of Drona
- Drona and Drupada द्रोण द्रुपदThe Broken Friendship
- The Bird's Head and the Crocodile द्रोण परीक्षाDrona's Tests of Arjuna
- The Price of Excellence एकलव्य का बलिदानEklavya's story is deeply troubling - it reveals how caste discrimination denied a brilliant student his potential.
- The Tournament of ChampionsThe Rise of Arjuna and the Arrival of Karna
- Escape from the Flames लाक्षागृह पलायनThe lac house episode teaches that evil, no matter how carefully planned, cannot triumph over righteousness.
- The Ascetics at the GateThe morning five orphans were handed to Hastinapura
- Kunti Knows Her SonThe mother who recognised Karna in the arena and stayed silent
- The Charioteer's SonAdhiratha, the father Karna chose
- Hidimbi, Queen of the ForestThe wife left behind who kept faith
- Pritha, the Given DaughterThe girlhood that forged Kunti
- The Poisoned PrinceBhima at Pramanakoti and the naga realm
- The Stranger at the WellHow the Kuru princes got their teacher
Age V · 17 stories
Marriage and Alliances
The house of lac, Draupadi won at her swayamvara, and the alliances that turn five exiled princes into a power.
Told in the Adi Parva
- Chitraratha at the Ganga चैत्ररथThe Gandharva at the Night Ford
- The House of Lac and the DemonsThe Pandavas' First Exile
- Bhima and Hidimbi हिडिम्ब वधThe Birth of Ghatotkacha
- Bakasura of Ekachakra बक वधThe Debt of Bread
- Draupadi's SwayamvaraThe Choosing of Her Husband
- The Impossible Challenge द्रौपदी स्वयंवरDestiny works in mysterious ways.
- The Brothers and the ApsaraSunda, Upasunda, and the Making of Tilottama
- Ulupi, the Serpent QueenArjuna's Bride Beneath the Ganga
- Chitrangada of ManipuraThe Bride Whose Son Stayed Home
- The Watch Under the BanianOne brother awake while the rest of the Kurus sleep on bare ground
- The Priest of DrupadaThe envoy, the guarded answer, and the weapons laid out to catch a king's sons
- Vidura's Embassy to PanchalaThe envoy sent to bring the Pandavas home from Drupada's court
- Kunti's BlessingA mother-in-law names seven wives, a throne nobody owns yet, and a son not yet born
- The Blindfold of GandhariA vow read as devotion and as protest
- The Five IndrasThe hidden design behind one bride, five husbands
- Gandhara, Land Beyond the IndusThe kingdom that sent a queen and a gambler
- Madra, Kingdom of Shalya and MadriThe uncle's land between two loyalties
Age VI · 35 stories
Rise of the Pandavas
Indraprastha, the hall of illusions and the Rajasuya sacrifice: the Pandavas at the height of their fortune.
Told in the Adi Parva
- When Gods Made War खांडव दहनSometimes destruction is necessary for creation.
- The Heir ApparentA crown promised, a second fee demanded, and the conquests that frightened a blind king
- The Cattle and the Closed DoorA rule kept by breaking it, and a pardon refused
- The Bow Out of the WaterWhat Varuna kept until two men needed it
- The Boons After the BurningIndra comes down onto the ashes of Khandava and offers Arjuna and Krishna each a boon no man can obtain
- The King Who Only BreathedKarna answers Drona with the tale of a minister who took everything but the throne
- Kanika's CounselThe advisor a frightened king wanted
- The Five Fords of the ApsarasAbandoned pools and what was waiting in them
- Half a KingdomOne sitting of the Kuru court decides everything
- The Chariot at RaivatakaAn abduction the bride's own brother advised
- Panchala, Kingdom of the Fire-BornThe divided realm that married the Pandavas
- Anga, the Kingdom Karna Was GivenA crown thrown like a challenge
Told in the Sabha Parva
- The Imperial SacrificeIndraprastha, Jarasandha, and the Rajasuya Yagna
- The Palace of IllusionsMayasura's Masterpiece and the Laughter That Started a War
- The Fall of JarasandhaBhima's Fourteen-Day Duel at Girivraja
- The Imperial Ceremony राजसूय यज्ञThe Rajasuya story contains a profound teaching about divine patience and justice.
- The Lake Called BinduWhere Maya found Bhima's club and Arjuna's conch
- The Hundred Questions of NaradaA sage audits an emperor before he lets him boast
- The Fire That Loved a PrincessWhy no army could take Mahishmati
- The Vow of the Soft TongueVyasa's warning, and the promise Yudhishthira made instead
- Krishna Takes Leave of IndraprasthaThe farewell on the road to Dwaraka, and the promise to return
- Nakula, the BeautifulThe overshadowed twin's own account
- Sahadeva, the Silent SeerKnowledge that could not save
- Indraprastha, the City the Pandavas BuiltFrom burned forest to imperial capital
- The Uncle Who StayedShakuni of Gandhara, without the legends
- Magadha and the Fortress of GirivrajaThe empire of Jarasandha
- Chedi, Kingdom of the Sky-Going KingFrom Uparichara Vasu to Shishupala
- The Conquest of the NorthArjuna's road for the rajasuya
- The Conquest of the EastBhima's road for the rajasuya
- The Five Halls of the GodsNarada describes the assemblies of the world-guardians
- Mahishmati, City Guarded by FireThe Narmada capital of old power
- The Conquest of the WestNakula's road for the rajasuya
- The Conquest of the SouthSahadeva's road for the rajasuya
Age VII · 13 stories
The Dice Game and Fall
A game of dice, Draupadi dragged into the assembly hall, and the second throw that sends the brothers into exile.
Told in the Sabha Parva
- The Dice GameThe Game That Changed Everything
- The Fateful Game द्यूत क्रीडाAddiction blinds even the wisest of men.
- The Infinite Sari द्रौपदी वस्त्र हरणIn our darkest hour, when all worldly help fails, surrender to the Divine is our last and most powerful refuge.
- Vikarna, the Kaurava Who SpokeOne Voice in the Dice Hall
- The Fall of Dharma धर्म का पतनThe Fall of Dharma teaches the most terrifying lesson of the Mahabharata: that evil does not triumph through its own strength alone.
- What the Blind King Was ToldDuryodhana's inventory of the rajasuya, and the quarrel it started
- The Honey-Gatherer on the CliffVidura's last warnings, and the answer he got
- The Second ThrowOne cast of the dice for thirteen years
- The Road Out of HastinapuraWhat Vidura read in the way they walked
- The Errand Vidura Did Not WantCarrying the invitation to the dice game he had begged the king not to send
- The Kingdom Given BackDhritarashtra releases the Pandavas and returns everything they lost
- The Vows Sworn Before ExileFour brothers name their killings on the way out of the dice hall
Age VIII · 101 stories
The Exile
Twelve years in the forest and a thirteenth in disguise, with the tales the sages tell the Pandavas along the way.
Told in the Vana Parva
- Adventures in the ForestTwelve Years of Pandava Exile
- Thirteen Years of Fire त्रयोदश वर्ष - वनवास एवं अज्ञातवासThe exile teaches that suffering, accepted with dignity and used as a forge, transforms weakness into strength.
- The Ghosha YatraDuryodhana Goes to Mock the Exiles and Is Saved by Them
- Draupadi's Trials in ExileThe Sari, the Sage, and a Question to a Queen
- The Divine ArsenalArjuna's Ascent to Indraloka
- The Pilgrimage of the FordsLomasa Leads the Pandavas
- The Meeting of BrothersThe Lesson in Humility
- Draupadi and Satyabhama द्रौपदी सत्यभामा संवादThe Secret That Is No Secret
- Nala and DamayantiThe King Who Lost Everything at Dice and Won It Back
- Savitri and the Lord of DeathThe Wife Who Argued Yama Into Defeat
- The Story of RamaThe Tale Markandeya Told in the Forest
- The Sage Who Drank the OceanAgastya, Lopamudra, and the Demon Vatapi
- The Hawk and the DoveKing Shibi's Sacrifice
- The Hermit Who Brought the RainRishyasringa and the Drought of Anga
- The Child on the Cosmic WatersMarkandeya's Vision of the World's End
- The Turning of the AgesMarkandeya on the Four Yugas and the End of the Kali Age
- The Frog PrincessMarkandeya's Tale of Sushobhana
- The Righteous ButcherThe Wisdom of the Vyadha
- The Sage of Eight BendsAshtavakra and the Court of Janaka
- The Gleaner Who Refused HeavenMudgala and the Test of Durvasa
- The Abduction of DraupadiJayadratha's Crime and the Five Tufts of Shame
- The Python's QuestionsThe Curse of Nahusha
- The Questions of the YakshaThe Test of the Lake of Death
- The Ones Who Would Not Turn BackThe city walks out with its kings, and a sage answers the weeping
- The Cow Who Wept for the Weaker CalfIndra learns why a mother's love is not divided equally
- The Curse on Duryodhana's ThighA sage asks politely once, and is answered with a scratched foot
- The Promise Made in the Kamyaka WoodsThe allies arrive, and Draupadi asks Krishna what her friendship is worth
- The Court of Sages at the Dvaita LakeAn exile that filled up with brahmanas instead of soldiers
- When Forgiveness Is Not a VirtueAn angry queen quotes an asura grandfather at a patient king
- The Queen Who Put God on TrialA bird on a string, and a child breaking its toys
- The Blind King Counts the OddsA father adds up his enemies and hears whose fault it was
- Damayanti Alone in the ForestHalf a garment, a hunter, and a road out through strangers
- The Mountain That Answers SpeechWhere a sage's temper made silence the price of passage
- The Council at PrabhasaThe Yadavas find the exiles on the shore and argue about ending the exile by force
- The Sage at the LimitA skeleton ascetic marks the line mortals may not cross
- The Map of the WorldsA priest naming the four quarters of the cosmos from a mountain shoulder
- The Weapons That Must Not Be ShownA demonstration the three worlds could not survive
- The Road to Yama's CountryWhat each gift becomes on the walk after death
- The Golden PloughThe sacrifice a king held because the one he wanted was forbidden him
- The Arrow From Behind the TreeA wife who read the omens, and a king who would not listen
- The Grove of Ashoka TreesA captive refuses, and a rakshasi tells her dream
- The Bird With the Burnt WingsA search that ended at a cliff, and the brother of Jatayu
- The Sleeper WokenRavana spends his brothers one after another
- The Testimony of the ElementsWhat Rama said when she was brought back to him
- The Warning in the DreamA father begs his son to live, and the son chooses to be remembered
- The Mole and the CharioteerHow Damayanti Was Found in Chedi and Nala in Ayodhya
- Indra Comes to GandhamadanaMatali brings Arjuna home from heaven, and the king of the gods follows him down
- Dhaumya, the Quiet PriestThe greatness of those who only serve
- The Terrible GuestDurvasa and the single grain of rice
- The Night Among the DanavasDespair flattered into destiny
- Karna's Conquest of the WorldGreatness spent on an unworthy debt
- The Curse of UrvashiRestraint turned into a shield
- Bhima at Kubera's LakeViolence as an instrument of release
- Chitrasena, Friend in Two WorldsThe arts master of heaven
- Ghatotkacha Between Two WorldsThe half-blood's uncounted service
- The Copper Vessel of the SunHow the exile was fed for twelve years
- The Brother Who Was BlamedA slander answered by raising the dead
- The Argument in the ForestA vow kept, or a vow used as an excuse
- The Dream of the DeerSubjects who could not petition, and did
- The Four Quarters of the Sacred LandA priest reciting the map of Bharatavarsha
- The Ford of the FathersWhat a son is for, learned before Kurukshetra
- The Brahmin Who Was a DemonThe guest who asked for nothing for months
- The Boon Bought With a HeadA small favour saved for one day of the war
- The Rakshasa at the Gate of KamyakaThe first danger of the twelve years
- The War Beneath the SeaThe fee Indra charged for the divine weapons
- The King of FordsWhere the Ganga and the Yamuna meet
- Pushkara, the First FordThe lake that undercuts its own promises
- Why the Moon WanesA household injustice repaid in the sky
- The Children Sent AwayWhat exile costs in other people's growing up
- The Counselor Sent AwayThrown out of the court, and back the same week
- Dvaitavana, the Lake of QuestionsThe exile forest of hermits and reckonings
- Gandhamadana, Mountain of FragranceThe Himalayan ascent of the exile
- Kamyaka, the Forest of the ExilesFirst refuge of the twelve years
Told in the Virata Parva
- The Year of Masks विराट पर्वThe Virata Parva shows that even the mightiest must sometimes hide and endure.
- The Year of DisguiseThe Pandavas Hidden at Virata's Court
- The Slaying of KichakaThe Midnight Encounter in the Dance Hall
- The Southern Cattle RaidSusharma Strikes at Matsya
- The Northern Cattle RaidBrihannala Turns the Chariot
- The Wedding at UpaplavyaAbhimanyu and Uttaraa
- What Dhaumya Told Them About KingsThe rules for living inside another man's palace
- The Goddess on the Road to MatsyaA king with nothing left prays walking
- The Hands Marked With CornsA night in the kitchen, and everything she had not said
- The Pyre and the Uprooted TreeA hundred and five kinsmen and one bound woman
- Where a Good King Must Be LivingThe Kuru court tries to find five men by their weather
- The Ten Names of ArjunaA frightened prince demands proof at the burning ground
- The Quarrel Before the CattleAshwatthama tells Duryodhana what his kingdom is made of
- The Day Karna RanThe boast in the dice hall, answered at last
- The Grandsire Under the Golden PalmCelestial weapons, and Indra dropping flowers
- The Sleep Weapon and the Robes for the DollsSix great warriors disarmed, and a promise kept to some girls
- Five Men on the ThronesThe morning the servants stopped pretending
- The Lineage of GandivaBrihannala names five sets of weapons and the six who held the great bow
- Sudeshna of MatsyaThe queen between her brother and her maid
- Matsya, the Kingdom of the FishThe realm that hid five kings and a queen
- Ballava in the KitchensBhima's year in disguise
- Brihannala, the Dancer in the Guarded QuartersArjuna's year in disguise
- The Twins in the Stables and the PensNakula and Sahadeva's year in disguise
- Kanka, the King Who Dealt the DiceYudhishthira's year in disguise
- Sairandhri, the Queen in ServiceDraupadi's year in disguise
- The Corpse in the Shami TreeHow the weapons slept for a year
Age IX · 305 stories
The Great War
The embassies that fail, the Gita spoken between the armies, the eighteen days at Kurukshetra told day by day, and the night raid that ends it.
Told in the Udyoga Parva
- Vidura Niti विदुर नीतिThe Sleepless King
- The Sanatsujatiya सनत्सुजातीयThere Is No Death
- The Messenger of PeaceThe Divine Revelation in Hastinapura
- The Secret of the SunA Mother's Plea, A Warrior's Promise
- Vidula's FireThe Mother Who Would Not Let Her Son Kneel
- Uluka's Embassy उलूक दूतागमनThe Last Words Before the War
- Matali's SearchThe Charioteer of Heaven Finds a Groom
- The Head That Watched the WarBarbarika and the Three Arrows
- The Eve of BattleLast Embassies Before Kurukshetra
- The Choice at DwarakaTen crore soldiers on one side of the bed, one unarmed man on the other
- The Net and the Mountain HoneyTwo birds who quarrelled in flight, and a cliff nobody came down from
- How a Charioteer Came to Know GodThe blind king asks why the sight was given to a suta
- The Braid in Her HandDraupadi answers Bhima's peace with her own hair
- What Kunti Sent Instead of ComfortA mother counts her sons aloud, then tells them to fight
- The Meal He Chose to EatA king's banquet refused, a servant's supper accepted
- The Choosing of the GeneralissimoFive brothers name five different men, and Krishna names the sixth
- The Cities of TentsTwo capitals raised on Kurukshetra before a single arrow
- The Consecration of the GrandsireBhishma takes command on two conditions, and the sky rains blood
- The Question of DaysEach commander prices the enemy army in mornings
- The Tree and the ForestKrishna answers Sanjaya at Upaplavya and decides to go to the Kurus himself
- Arjuna's Message to the KurusSanjaya recites the message in open court, and names every man who will die
- The March to KurukshetraDuryodhana walks out on the last counsel and orders the host to move that same day
- The Cat Who Played the HermitDuryodhana's last message to Yudhishthira is a fable about a holy man who ate his worshippers
- The Sacrifice of BattleDuryodhana makes the coming war his own rite, and his father disowns him for it
- Poverty Is a Person's DeathYudhishthira tells Krishna why a ruined man loses his shame, and still asks for peace
- The Kings Who Were Passed OverDhritarashtra reads his son the family's own record of elder sons who never got the throne
- Sanjaya's EmbassyThe honest voice of a dishonest court
- Rukmi, Whom Nobody WantedThe pride that made a man useless
- The Offer on the ChariotKrishna reveals the secret to Karna
- The King Who Challenged Two HermitsDambhodbhava, and a handful of grass blades
- The Mortal Who Sat on Indra's ThroneA tale for a king who has suffered long
- The Day Bhima Asked for PeaceKrishna goads the one brother who never flinched
- The First EnvoyDrupada's old priest carries the claim to Hastinapura
- The Race for AlliesHow eighteen armies were bought before a shot was fired
- The Reckoning of the WarriorsBhishma prices every man on the field, and Karna walks out
- Kekaya and the Five PrincesExiles who fought for exiles
- Prahlada's JudgmentWithin Vidura's night counsel, an asura king rules the truth against his own son
Told in the Bhishma Parva
- The Song of God भगवद्गीताThe Bhagavad Gita teaches that we must perform our duty without attachment to results.
- The Bhagavad GitaThe Song of God
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 1: Arjuna's DespairArjuna Vishada Yoga - The Yoga of Arjuna's Dejection
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 2: The Yoga of KnowledgeSankhya Yoga - The Deathless Self and the Steady Sage
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 3: The Yoga of ActionKarma Yoga - Acting Without Attachment
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 4: Knowledge and Renunciation of ActionJnana Karma Sanyasa Yoga - The Descent of the Divine
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 5: The Yoga of RenunciationKarma Sanyasa Yoga - Renunciation and Action Are One
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 6: The Yoga of MeditationDhyana Yoga - The Discipline of the Still Mind
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 7: Knowledge and RealizationJnana Vijnana Yoga - The Two Natures of God
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 8: The Imperishable BrahmanAkshara Brahma Yoga - The Hour of Death
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 9: The Royal SecretRaja Vidya Raja Guhya Yoga - The Sovereign Knowledge
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 10: Divine GloriesVibhuti Yoga - The Splendors of the Infinite
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 11: The Universal FormVishvarupa Darshana Yoga - The Vision of the Cosmic Form
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 12: The Yoga of DevotionBhakti Yoga - The Path of Love
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 13: The Field and Its KnowerKshetra Kshetrajna Vibhaga Yoga - Matter and Spirit
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 14: The Three GunasGunatraya Vibhaga Yoga - The Three Strands of Nature
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 15: The Supreme PersonPurushottama Yoga - The Tree of the World and Its Root
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 16: Divine and Demonic NaturesDaivasura Sampad Vibhaga Yoga - The Two Destinies
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 17: The Three Kinds of FaithShraddhatraya Vibhaga Yoga - Faith, Food, Sacrifice, and Charity
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 18: Liberation Through RenunciationMoksha Sanyasa Yoga - The Final Teaching
- Yuyutsu Crosses the FieldThe One Son of Dhritarashtra Who Chose Dharma
- Sanjaya's Divine EyeHow the War Was Told
- The Science of FormationsWhat a Vyuha Is
- The Rules of the WarThe Covenant and Its Breaking
- The Eighteen Days अष्टादश दिवसीय युद्धWar spares no one - neither the righteous nor the wicked.
- Eighteen Days of Destruction अष्टादश दिवसीय महायुद्धThe Kurukshetra War teaches that there is no such thing as a 'clean' war.
- Kurukshetra Day 1: The Conches SoundThe First Royal Dead
- Kurukshetra Day 2: The Pandavas RallyThe Krauncha Array
- Kurukshetra Day 3: The Garuda and the CrescentKrishna's Patience Fails
- Kurukshetra Day 4: Bhima UnboundEight Brothers Fall in a Day
- Kurukshetra Day 5: The Grandsire's HarvestThe Makara Array
- Kurukshetra Day 6: Into the FormationBhima Cut Off
- Kurukshetra Day 7: Mandala and VajraThe Day of a Hundred Duels
- The Serpent Prince's SacrificeIravan, Son of Ulupi, and the Price of Victory
- Kurukshetra Day 9: Krishna Takes Up the WhipThe Vow Almost Broken
- The Fall of Bhishma and the EarringsIndra's Gift, the Grandsire's Bed of Arrows
- The Signs Before the WarWhat Vyasa saw in the sky, the cattle and the birth-rooms
- The Hymn Before the ConchesKrishna sends Arjuna down from the chariot to praise the goddess
- The Walk Across the FieldThe king who laid down his armour before the first arrow
- Shveta Against the GrandsireThe Matsya prince who broke Bhishma's bow again and again
- The Grandsire Names the GodDuryodhana asks why he keeps losing and gets a theology instead
- Kurukshetra Day 8: The Rakshasa's HourIravan falls and Ghatotkacha answers for him
- The Son of RishyasringaAlambusha, the illusion-fighter the Kauravas kept for the Pandava sons
- The Pillow of ArrowsBoth armies lay down their weapons for one evening
- Karna at the Grandsire's FeetThe forgiveness that came too late to change anything
- The Herb in the Grandsire's HandA wounded Duryodhana asks Bhishma for reassurance and is given honesty, a pledge, and medicine
- Omens and the Ten Kings Around BhimaDrona reads the signs of Bhishma's last day and sends his son to fight
- The Grandsire Chooses His HourBhishma remembers Santanu's boon and refuses to die in the wrong season
- The Ten Kinsmen Against the Ten SonsDay four: Dhrishtadyumna kills two princes, ten Pandavas duel ten Kauravas, and Bhima goes into the elephants on foot
- The Sixth Day After NoonBhima and Duryodhana wound each other twice, Sanjaya tells the blind king whose fault the war is, and Satanika kills Dushkarna
- Six Duels on the Seventh DayShikhandi with a broken sword, Duryodhana on foot, and a mace that missed
- The Three ColumnsAt midday on the eighth day the Pandava army splits into three attacking bodies, Arjuna's son Iravan is killed, and Bhishma sends thirteen warriors to pull Duryodhana out of the fire.
- Ghatotkacha and the Javelin of BhagadattaDuryodhana asks to kill a Rakshasa, and a Rakshasa breaks a javelin across his thigh
- The Shield Around BhishmaNinth day: Satyaki trades darts with the grandsire, Abhimanyu unhorses Chitrasena, and Duryodhana orders a wall of men built round Bhishma
- The Wall Before BhishmaEvery Kaurava champion is given one Pandava to stop on the tenth day
- The Last Push on the Tenth DayTenth 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 FellBoth armies stop the war for a night, and Arjuna gives the grandsire the only pillow he will accept.
- The Pairings of the Fifth DayArjuna goes at the grandsire, and the field breaks into nine duels
- The Fire-Born GeneralDhrishtadyumna's command of the great war
- Shikhandi's WarThe life after the purpose
- The Ape on the BannerThe roar above, the hand on the reins
- The Price of ShelterVirata, the old king who gave everything
- Kalinga, the Coast of WarriorsElephants between the hills and the sea
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 1, Verses 1-27: The Field and the ArmiesWhat Arjuna sees before he breaks
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 1, Verses 28-47: The Bow SlipsGrief argued into a philosophy of refusal
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 2, Verses 1-38: The Teaching BeginsWhy the imperishable self cannot be killed
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 2, Verses 39-53: Act Without the FruitSkill in action and the end of anxious wanting
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 2, Verses 54-72: The Steady in WisdomThe portrait of a mind that no longer swings
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 3, Verses 17-43: Loka-sangraha and the Enemy WithinWorking for the world, and naming desire the foe
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 3, Verses 1-16: No One Can Be StillAction as sacrifice and the turning wheel
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 4, Verses 16-42: Action in InactionThe many sacrifices and the fire of knowledge
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 4, Verses 1-15: The Descent of the TeachingLineage, avatara, and the birth that is not birth
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 5, Verses 15-29: Equal Vision, Inner JoySame sight for brahmin and dog, and peace as friend
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 5, Verses 1-14: Renunciation or ActionThe lotus leaf and the nine-gated city
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 6, Verses 1-23: The Seat and the LampHow to actually sit, eat, sleep and steady the mind
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 6, Verses 24-47: The Restless Mind and the Fallen YogiPractice, dispassion, and no good effort wasted
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 7, Verses 15-30: Four Who Come, and Why Most Do NotKinds of devotion and the veil of yoga-maya
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 7, Verses 1-14: The Two NaturesPearls on a thread and the crossing of maya
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 8, Verses 15-28: Cosmic Time and the Two PathsDays of Brahma, bright road and dark
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 8, Verses 1-14: Seven Questions and the Hour of DeathYou become what you remember
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 9, Verses 1-19: The Sovereign SecretIn me and not in me: the great paradox
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 9, Verses 20-34: Leaf, Flower, Fruit, WaterThe offering anyone can make and the promise none lose
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 10, Verses 19-42: The Catalogue of GloriesWherever there is splendour, a spark of one fragment
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 10, Verses 1-18: The Source of AllThe lamp of knowledge and Arjuna's hunger to hear
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 11, Verses 15-34: I Am TimeThe mouths of the god and the instrument's task
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 11, Verses 1-14: The Divine EyeThe request, the gift, and a thousand suns
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 11, Verses 35-55: Bear With Me as a FriendThe hymn, the apology, and the return of the gentle form
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 12, Verses 13-20: He Who Is Dear to MeThe portrait of the devotee, sung as a litany
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 12, Verses 1-12: Personal or UnmanifestA ladder with a rung for everyone
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 13, Verses 19-35: Prakriti, Purusha, and the WitnessSeeing the imperishable in the perishing
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 13, Verses 1-18: Field and Knower of the FieldBody as field, humility as knowledge
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 14, Verses 14-27: Crossing the GunasThe one who watches the qualities operate
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 14, Verses 1-13: The Three GunasRopes of gold, fire and lead
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 15, Verses 12-20: PurushottamaThe light in the sun, the fire in the belly, the memory in the heart
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 15, Verses 1-11: The Inverted TreeCut it with the axe of non-attachment
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 16, Verses 10-24: The Three GatesThe inner monologue of appetite, and how it closes
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 16, Verses 1-9: Two EstatesFearlessness first, and the world without a Lord
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 17, Verses 15-28: Speech, Mind, and GivingAusterity that heals, gifts that cost nothing back
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 17, Verses 1-14: As His Faith Is, So Is HeFaith, food and the sacrifices we choose
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 18, Verses 1-40: Renunciation Rightly UnderstoodTyaga, the five factors, and the great threefold table
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 18, Verses 41-66: Your Own Work, and the Final RefugePrakriti will compel you, so choose freely and surrender
- Bhagavad Gita Chapter 18, Verses 67-78: Delusion Gone, I Will Do Your WordTransmission, Arjuna's answer, and Sanjaya's last verse
Told in the Drona Parva
- Kurukshetra Day 11: The Teacher Takes CommandDrona's Vow to Take the King Alive
- The Oath of the DoomedSusharma and the Samsaptakas - the Army That Swore to Die
- The Elephant King of the EastBhagadatta, Supratika, and the Missile Krishna Took on His Chest
- Abhimanyu and the WheelThe boy who could enter the formation but not leave it
- The Valiant Son अभिमन्यु वीरगतिAbhimanyu's story teaches us that true courage is not the absence of fear, but action in the face of certain death.
- The Golden Son of SrinjayaThe Prince Who Could Be Given Back
- The Sun That SetArjuna's sunset vow and Krishna's hidden sun
- The Severed ArmTwo breaches of the code in a single combat
- The Guards of the WheelsYudhamanyu and Uttamaujas
- The Spear Meant for ArjunaThe Death of Ghatotkacha
- The Weapon That Could Not Be FacedAshvatthama's irresistible astra, undone by submission
- The Fall of the GuruThe Half-Lie of the Dharma King
- Arjuna's Vow and the Fall of DronaJayadratha, the Night Battle of Ghatotkacha, and the Lie That Killed a Teacher
- The Guard Drona Had To KillSatyajit of Panchala, and the promise Arjuna left behind him
- The Banners and the BowsSanjaya names every standard on the field
- The Gandhara Brothers and the War of IllusionsShakuni turns his sorcery on Arjuna
- The Night the Sindhu King Asked to LeaveJayadratha wants his horses saddled, and Drona tells him the truth
- The Women in the TentSubhadra, Draupadi and Uttaraa on the night Abhimanyu died
- What Krishna Told His CharioteerThe night Krishna decided to break his own vow
- The Cart, the Lotus and the NeedleDrona builds an array forty-eight miles deep to hide one man
- The Blessing at the GateArjuna asks his teacher's leave to break his teacher's line
- The Mace That Turned BackVaruna's gift to a river's son, and the one rule he forgot
- The Armour of MantrasThe one day Duryodhana stood in front of Arjuna and did not fall
- The Lake and the Hall of ArrowsKrishna unyokes the horses in the middle of the battle
- Kurukshetra Day 14: The Longest DaySunset Vow, False Dusk, and a Battle That Would Not Stop at Nightfall
- The Order Yudhishthira GaveA king overrules the guard his brother posted
- The King Counts His ArmyEvery soldier paid, examined and willing, and still losing
- The Grandson of Shini Crosses the OceanOne chariot sent through the whole Kaurava host
- The Second Man SentBhima's crossing and the roar agreed on beforehand
- The Bow Tip and the BoastKarna keeps his word to Kunti and pays for it in insults
- The Arrows He Did Not Want to ShootArjuna, Kripa, and a lesson in arms turned back on its teacher
- One Man Against an Army of the NightAshwatthama burns a full akshauhini of Ghatotkacha's rakshasas
- The Oath of a Bereaved FatherThe house of Bahlika ends in a single night
- Three Men and a Drawn SwordKarna boasts, Kripa answers, and Ashwatthama draws on his own side
- The Night They Lit the FieldDuryodhana's order that turned a battlefield into a lamp-lit hall
- What Krishna Had Already DoneArjuna asks, and gets a list he did not expect
- The Dart That Was Never ThrownA blind king asks the only question that mattered
- Kurukshetra Day 15: The Day the Teacher DiedFrom the Dawn Prayers to the Half-Truth at Noon
- Held Back by Bhima's ArmsSatyaki and Dhrishtadyumna nearly finish the war for the Kauravas
- The Weapon That Would Not Burn ThemAshwatthama's fire, and why it left two men standing
- The One Who Walked Ahead of the ChariotArjuna finally asks who has been winning his battles
- The Sword That Broke on the ShieldAbhimanyu strips a king of everything, and Jayadratha comes down off his car to stop him
- The Two MacesBhima sends Abhimanyu aside and meets the king of Madra blow for blow until both men fall
- The Guard at the WheelKumara of Panchala checks Drona in front of Yudhishthira's chariot, and pays for it
- The Elephant Corps and the King of AngaBhima breaks Duryodhana's elephant division and beheads the Anga king in mid-fall
- The Sword on Drona's YokeDhrishtadyumna leaps onto his enemy's chariot to kill him, and Satyaki cuts the arrow that would have killed him first
- The King on FootDrona breaks Yudhishthira's bow, dart, mace and car, and the king escapes on Sahadeva's chariot
- The Dice That Turned Into ArrowsDrona rebukes the fleeing Dushasana, and then wakes with a sword over his neck
- The King Who Went In AloneDuryodhana charges the whole Pandava army by himself, and Yudhishthira cuts his bow
- The Stake on the TableDrona tells Duryodhana that the dice in the sabha were arrows, and that Jayadratha is what they are playing for
- The Brahma Weapon AnsweredDrona empties the celestial arsenal at Yudhishthira on the fourteenth night, and the king matches him astra for astra
- The King They Thought Was DeadBhima's mace crushes Duryodhana's chariot, and both armies believe the Kuru king killed
- The Fourth Son Karna Let GoKarna disarms Sahadeva in the night battle and sends him away alive
- Seven Bows Against OneDhrishtadyumna rides at Drona in the night battle and answers seven champions with three arrows apiece
- The King Put Off His ChariotSatyaki kills Duryodhana's horses and driver, cuts his bow at the handle, and the king escapes on Kritavarma's car
- The Two Who RememberedDuryodhana and Satyaki meet on the fifteenth day and talk about their childhood before they fight
- Sword and Shield Against the PreceptorDhrishtadyumna, stripped of car and bow, dances the twenty-one motions to reach Drona
- The Telling in the RoutAshwatthama rides back through a fleeing army to ask what happened, and Kripa has to tell him how Drona was killed
- Karna Takes the FieldThe vow that kept him out of ten days of war, and the grief that brought him into it
- The Consecration of DronaKarna names the Preceptor commander, and Drona names the man he cannot kill
- The Silent CampArjuna comes back at dusk from the samsaptakas and learns that Abhimanyu is dead
- 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 him
- The Mouth of the GarudaDrona draws his host as a bird and comes for Yudhishthira on the twelfth morning
- The King of the Fire CityAshwatthama kills Nila of Mahishmati, and Arjuna kills three of Karna's brothers in his sight
- The Field at DuskSanjaya describes the evening of the thirteenth day, and the army that won walks home through it
- The Blind King Is AnsweredDhritarashtra laments the night after Abhimanyu's death, and his own messenger tells him whose fault it is
- The Road to JayadrathaArjuna 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 AvantiTwo kings see Arjuna's horses tire, and one of them walks up to Krishna with a mace
- Four Duels on the Fourteenth DayKshemadhurti, Viradhanwan, Niramitra and Vyaghradatta go down before Drona's division
- The Stones and the Golden KingSatyaki kills Sudarsana on the road to Arjuna, and cuts the mountaineers' stones out of the air
- What Drupada Said About DuryodhanaFive kings die in front of Drona in one afternoon, and Drupada names the man who is not on the field
- The Field Krishna Showed HimArjuna is driven at a walk over the ground he has won, and Yudhishthira answers with a hymn
- Bhima's Harvest on the Fourteenth EveningDrona 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 DayAshwatthama 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 WheelYudhishthira orders his whole army against Drona, and never gets past Kritavarma
- Duels by TorchlightSix single combats fought by lamplight on the road to Drona's car
- Karna by Night Against the PanchalasThe armies throw down their torches, and the Suta's son scatters Dhrishtadyumna and all of Panchala in the dark
- The Whole Host Against DronaYudhishthira sends every man he has at the preceptor, and the fifteenth morning breaks into duels
- 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 dust
- Bhima Carried From the FieldAshwatthama's afternoon after the Narayana weapon, and the shaft that took Bhima's charioteer
- Portents Before the Fourteenth DayThe night the sky and the rivers answered Arjuna's vow, and the morning ritual of a king
- The Shape of GhatotkachaSanjaya describes the rakshasa's body, chariot and host as he charges Karna at midnight
- Satyaki of the VrishnisLoyalty that outran judgment
- The Fall of VikarnaThe good man on the wrong side
- The Rakshasa Who Came for a DebtAlayudha, and the night that belonged to the man-eaters
- The Commander AccusedDuryodhana tells Drona to his face that he is sparing them
- The Fifteenth MorningDrona alone, and the old kings who tried to stop him
- The Journey to the MountainKrishna and Arjuna go north in the night before the vow
- The Night the Armies SleptA truce called for the moon on the fourteenth night
- Kamboja of the Swift HorsesThe cavalry kingdom of the far northwest
- Pragjyotisha, City of the Eastern LightFortress of Naraka and Bhagadatta
- Sindhu, the River Kingdom of JayadrathaThe land the only daughter married into
Told in the Karna Parva
- Kurukshetra Day 16: The Sun-Born CommanderKarna Keeps His Word to Kunti
- Karna and ShalyaThe War of Words on the Chariot
- The Blood VowBhima fulfills the oath sworn over Draupadi's hair
- The Gandiva QuarrelArjuna Nearly Kills His King
- The Death of KarnaThe chariot wheel, the curses, and the fall of the sun
- The Fallen Sun कर्ण गाथाKarna's life is the greatest tragedy of the Mahabharata.
- Kurukshetra Day 17: The Earth Takes the WheelKarna's Last Morning to Karna's Last Hour
- The Word Brought to HastinapuraSanjaya rides through the night with the news of Karna
- Arjuna Against the Preceptor's SonThe duel Ashvatthama could not win twice
- Pandya of the Malaya HillsThe southern king who thought himself Bhishma's equal
- The King Against the KingYudhishthira brings Duryodhana down and Bhima stops the blow
- The Calf and the WheelKarna tells his charioteer the curse that will kill him
- Karna Spares the KingThe armour cut away, and a hand laid on Yudhishthira's shoulder
- The Brothers Bhima CountedDuryodhana's kin fall in handfuls on the seventeenth day
- The Bhargava WeaponKarna spends his teacher's last gift on the Pancalas
- Ashvatthama Asks for PeaceA hand on Duryodhana's wrist while the gods watch
- The Field After the Sun FellShalya counts the dead and the Kauravas walk away
- A Thousand Lamps Around KarnaYudhishthira rises from his bed to look at his enemy
- The Duel the Gods ApplaudedAshwatthama and Bhima fight to a standstill and are carried off senseless by their own drivers
- Sahadeva Against DushasanaThe quiet twin puts one arrow through the man Bhima had sworn to kill
- The Old Preceptor and the Slayer of DronaKripa freezes Dhrishtadyumna until his own driver turns the car and runs
- The King Names the PairsYudhishthira assigns each Pandava his enemy as Karna's array comes on
- The Son Bhima BeheadedBhima cuts down Karna's son Satyasena while Karna fights his way toward Yudhishthira
- Ashwatthama Breaks the King's GuardA roof of arrows over Yudhishthira, and the insult the king threw back
- The Elephant Standard Comes DownDhrishtadyumna leaves Duryodhana without horses, driver, weapons or banner at noon on the seventeenth day
- Ashwatthama at Dhrishtadyumna's ThroatThe vow he very nearly kept on the seventeenth day
- The Night After DronaThe sleepless camp, four men in a tent, and the thread tied round Karna's wrists
- The First Duels of the Sixteenth DayBhima kills a king off an elephant, Satyaki kills two brothers, and Draupadi's sons kill two more
- Dandadhara of MagadhaTwo brothers on elephants, and the field Krishna made Arjuna look at
- The Kings of the East FallSatyaki, Sahadeva and Nakula break the elephant corps of the eastern kings
- Sutasoma and the Broken ScimitarYuyutsu and Uluka trade blows, and Bhima's son fights Shakuni on foot with half a sword
- Karna and Satyaki ClashOne Vrishni holds the Kaurava army, and the sixteenth day ends in dust
- The Price on Arjuna's HeadKarna offers everything he owns to any man who will point out Arjuna
- The Prince Who Went In for ShikhandiKripa strips Shikhandi on the seventeenth day, and a young ally buys him a way out with his life
- The Gates of Heaven Stand OpenDuryodhana tells his kings that dying well is winning, and Krishna drives Arjuna through what that costs
- Satyaki Unhorses ShakuniThe seventeenth day breaks into single combats, and the gambler of Gandhara is carried off the field by his son
- Arjuna Rides Out for KarnaThe 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 KarnaAn army ordered to tire one man before Karna kills him
- The Vows Before the Final DuelKarna, Shalya, Krishna and Arjuna each say what they will do when the other man dies
- Karna's Tales of the MadrakasThe abducted woman's curse, the rakshasa's ranking of dirt, and a driver who cannot get off the chariot
- Vrishasena, Heir of AngaWar's arithmetic visits the children
- The Serpent in the ArrowA grudge that waited a generation for one shot
Told in the Shalya Parva
- The King of MadraA good man bound by a rash promise to the wrong side
- The Fall of ShakuniSahadeva Keeps His Vow
- Balarama's PilgrimageForty-Two Days on the Sarasvati While the World Burned
- Duryodhana's Last StandShalya, the Twins, and a King in a Lake
- The Fourth CommanderA nephew's water poured on an uncle's head at the foot of Himavat
- The Sons of the Sun Go DownNakula's one great hour, and the end of Karna's line
- Shalya Alone Against FiveThe last commander's one unanswerable morning
- The King on the Mountain of FleshOne elephant breaks an army, and two men bring it down
- Where the Carnage Did Not CeaseArjuna counts every point at which the war should have stopped
- The Last of the HundredBhima closes a thirteen-year account in a single afternoon
- The Oath Comes DueSusharman, his forty-three sons, and the last of the sworn men
- The Men Who Carried the MeatA king's hiding place sold for a purse
- The Duel on the Southern BankTwo pupils of one teacher settle a war with clubs
- The Verdict at the Fallen KingBalarama's plough, Duryodhana's indictment, and the flowers that fell from the sky
- The Errand Before the GriefKrishna drives to Hastinapura to reach a mother before her curse does
- Duryodhana Rises from the LakeTaunted in the water, the last Kaurava comes up armed and asks for one man at a time
- The Last Words of DuryodhanaBroken-thighed on the field, the Kuru king laments his dead, sends his last words home, and names a general with a dying man's hand.
- The Eighteenth MorningChekitana takes a lance, Suratha takes a single arrow, and Duryodhana is carried off his own field by bolting horses
- The Seven HundredShalya's followers charge against orders, and Duryodhana's army breaks twice before he turns it round
- The Afternoon of the Eighteenth DaySatyaki takes Kritavarma's car again, Duryodhana holds the field alone, and the last elephants fall
- The Flight of the Royal LadiesThe last of the eleven armies dies, Duryodhana walks into a lake, and the Kaurava camp runs for Hastinapura
- The Plunder of the Kaurava CampThe victors ride into Duryodhana's empty tents, and Arjuna's chariot turns to ash
- The Muster of the Eighteenth DayAn oath never to fight alone, and the count of what was left of both armies
- The Teacher of MacesBalarama between his two pupils
- The Dice King's SonFathers' games, sons' funerals
- Kripa's Last ArgumentThe evening Karna fell, somebody finally says stop
Told in the Sauptika Parva
- The Five Sons of DraupadiThe Upapandavas
- Kripa, the Man Who Survived EverythingThe Teacher Who Outlived the Age
- The Gem on Ashwatthama's HeadDraupadi sits down to starve until the stone is brought to her
- The Duel of the Brahmashira WeaponsAshwatthama and Arjuna loose the world-ending astra at Vyasa's hermitage
- Kritavarma's RoadSmall compromises on the way to atrocity
Age X · 191 stories
Aftermath
The lament of the women, Bhishma teaching from the bed of arrows, the horse sacrifice, the fall of Dwaraka and the last journey into the mountains.
Told in the Adi Parva
- The Epic ComposedVyasa at Badarikashrama, Astika at the Snake Sacrifice, and the Story First Told
- Utanka and the EarringsThe Origin of the Snake Sacrifice
- Astika Saves the SnakesThe End of the Sarpa Satra
- The Seven Days of ParikshitA good king's lapse and a good death
- The Physician Who Turned BackThe man who could have saved the king
- The Dog at the SacrificeThe curse that began a dynasty's last chapter
- Naimisha, the Forest Where the Epic Is ToldThe audience hall of the Mahabharata
- Takshashila, City of the Serpent SacrificeWhere the epic was first heard
Told in the Stri Parva
- The Aftermath of WarThe Night Massacre, the Women's Lament, and a Curse on Krishna
- The Lament of the WomenStri Parva - The Field of Widows
- Gandhari's CurseThirty-Six Years Hence
- The Man in the WellVidura's Parable of the Soul
- The Queen Asks Her QuestionsGandhari puts the victors on trial, and Vyasa stands in the way
- The Queens Who Came a Long WayWhat the Kuru quarrel cost the kingdoms that were only allies
- The Count of the DeadKrishna's blunt answer, and a king who could see where they had gone
- Gandhari Shows Krishna the FieldWith the sight Vyasa gave her, the blindfolded queen walks Krishna through the dead of Kurukshetra
- What Gandhari SawThe blind queen, given sight for one afternoon, walks Kurukshetra naming the dead of both armies
- The Secret of the GodsVyasa tells the blind king why the war was ordained before his eldest son was born
- The Iron EmbraceDhritarashtra's grief given a body
- The Burning Ghats of KurukshetraThe rites that closed the war
Told in the Shanti Parva
- The Sixteen KingsThe Consolation of Yudhishthira
- Charvaka the False Brahmin चार्वाक वधThe Curse at the Coronation
- Bhishma on the Bed of ArrowsFifty-Eight Days of Teaching, and a King Crowned at His Feet
- The Dharma of KingsRajadharma - Bhishma on the Art of Rule
- The Sage and the Dog's HaunchApaddharma - Law in the Time of Ruin
- The Song of MankiThe Rope of Desire
- Pingala's NightThe Courtesan Who Found Peace
- The Python's WayThe Vow of What Comes Unsought
- Bhrigu and BharadvajaThe Sage's Questions About Everything
- The Song of VritraThe Serenity of the Defeated
- Bali and IndraThe Emperor in the Empty House
- Namuchi in ChainsThe Prisoner Who Slept at Ease
- Panchashikha and the KingLiberation Without Leaving the Throne
- The ReciterThe Brahmin Who Refused Heaven
- The Song of AshmanJanaka's Question About Grief
- The Song of SampakaThe Freedom of the Poor Brahmin
- The Song of HaritaThe Discipline of the Renunciate
- The Song of VichakhnuThe King Who Pitied the Sacrifice
- The Cloud's GiftKundadhara and the Poor Man
- Muchukunda and the Lord of TreasureThe King Who Refused a Borrowed Victory
- Indra Questions ShambaraHow an Asura Stood First Among His Kin
- Ushanas the BrightHow Shukra Became the Teacher of the Asuras
- The Jackal and the SageThe Worth of a Human Birth
- The Golden SwanWhat the Sadhyas Learned From a Bird
- Kapila and the CowThe Debate of the Two Roads
- The Victory Nobody WantedFive brothers, a wife and a sage argue a king back onto his throne
- The Crowning of YudhishthiraA king anointed by the man he could not save
- The Weapon Not Made of SteelKrishna tells Narada what his own kinsmen do to him
- What the Brothers Wanted MostAn evening argument about virtue, wealth and desire
- The Sins That Need ExpiationVyasa reads Yudhishthira the whole catalogue of acts that make a man liable, and then the exceptions
- The Night Janaka Opened the SkyBefore the battle with Pratardana, the king of Mithila shows his army heaven and hell
- What Is Owed to Mother, Father and TeacherAsked which duty matters most of all, Bhishma names three people and calls them the three sacred fires
- The Root of All AccomplishmentBhishma teaches that the world, the Vedas and the rank of the gods were all bought with penance
- The Rules of an Ordinary DayBhishma sets out the whole practice of good conduct, from the morning ablution to the last word spoken to an elder
- The Vow of BrahmacharyaBhishma on the rules of abstention, and the duct called Manovaha
- The Cheerful AsceticNarada asks Samanga why he is never sorry, and gets an answer about acts and their fruits
- Arishtanemi and King SagaraA sage tells a reigning king when to let go of his house, and the king keeps his throne
- The Road of WorksBrahman and the first Rishis stand a thousand years on the shore, and sacrifice is founded
- Krishna's Gift to the Dying GrandsireThe Boon That Took Away Pain, Hunger and Thirst So Bhishma Could Speak
- The Fowler's CryBrihaspati teaches Indra how to subdue an enemy without fighting him
- The King Who Was Left AloneVyasa tells Yudhishthira of Hayagriva, who fought robbers after his army was gone and won heaven at his post
- The Sudra Who Gave a Hundred ThousandBhishma sets out the duties of the four orders, and names the servant whose sacrifice is still remembered
- The Oath to Conquer or DieBhishma on marching, arraying and swearing in an army, and the men a soldier may never strike
- The Practices That Overcome DifficultyBhishma on when a truthful man may lie, and the long list of habits that carry a person through
- Kamandaka and the Sinning KingA king who repents asks a rishi by what acts a sin is destroyed
- The Debt Penance Could Not PayYama climbs the Paripatra hills, and Gotama asks him what is owed to a mother and a father
- The Legs of the SnakeBhishma on how to live through a lawless season, and why slander must never be heard
- The Marks of a True FriendBhishma lists the men a king may bind himself to, and the men he must keep at a distance
- The Tribes Beyond the PaleBhishma names the peoples of the borders and dates them to the ending of the first age
- On Dreams and SleepBhishma explains where dreams come from and who stays awake in dreamless sleep
- Narada as Krishna Praised HimUgrasena asks why everyone speaks well of one sage, and Krishna answers him item by item
- The Road to EmancipationBhishma names, one by one, the tool that lifts each weight
- The Fourth Portion of VishnuSanatkumara tells the defeated Vritra what holds up the universe, and Bhishma tells Yudhishthira who Krishna is
- Galava Asks What Is BeneficialNarada answers a student who cannot tell which scripture to obey
- Does Consciousness SurviveYudhishthira asks whether anyone is left awake in the emancipate state, and Bhishma answers out of the Sankhya of Kapila
- The Signs of Approaching DeathYajnavalkya tells the king of Mithila which door the soul leaves by, and how a man learns that his year has begun
- The Seven WindsVyasa halts a recitation on the Himavat and names the winds that move the worlds
- The Thousand Doors to HeavenA guest who cannot answer counts the ways men have got in, then names one serpent worth asking
- The Wife Who Cooled a Naga's AngerPadmanabha would not go out to a waiting guest, until his wife named the ends of Ravana and Kartavirya
- The Robber Who Kept the RulesKayavya, the Nishada who plundered by law
- The Sage Who Carried a CrowKalakavrikshiya, and counsel for a king with nothing left
- The Prince Who Argued Against the RodSatyavan and his father on whether men should be killed
- The Sage Who Grew ThinTanu, King Viradyumna, and the body that hope wears down
- The Son Who Would Not WaitMedhavin tells his father the days are being eaten
- The Ocean and the ReedWhy the rivers bring down the great trees and spare the slender one
- The Tiger's Honest MinisterHow a court disposes of the one man it needs
- The Worm That Ran From the CartVyasa asks what such a life has to lose
- Ambarisha and His GeneralA tale of sacrifice remade, told to ease a king's war-grief
- The King Who AtonedJanamejaya, Indrota Shaunaka, and the Long Road Back
- The Sage with the Ape's FaceNarada, Parvata, and a Vow Between Friends
- The Naga Who Pulls the SunA seeker's wait by the Gomati, and what he learned from it
- The Hermit and the DogBhishma on royal appointments, and the creature a kind man made out of his own pity
- The King the Demon Could Not EatA rajadharma parable Bhishma tells Yudhishthira
- The Three FishesBhishma on the pond that shrank, and the only kind of failure a king is never forgiven
Told in the Anushasana Parva
- Narada Questions the ApsaraPanchachuda is made to name the faults of women, and traces them back to their maker
- Righteousness, the Only FriendBrihaspati comes down from the sky to tell Yudhishthira what follows a man past death
- The Savitri Mantra of SalutationsBhishma gives Yudhishthira the roll of names to be said at dawn
- The Names That Cleanse SinAsked what destroys sin, Bhishma answers with a litany of gods, rivers, mountains, sages and kings
- The Guest Who SmiledVyasa and Maitreya argue over gift, penance and knowledge at Baranasi
- The Jackal and the ApeTwo friends meet again in a burning ground and account for their bodies
- The Ten Sins of Body, Speech and MindBhishma answers the plainest question with a list of ten things not to do
- What Sends a Man to Heaven or HellBhishma on gifts, the Sraddha, and the two lists of deeds
- The Brahmanas Who Deserve WorshipNarada tells Krishna whom he bows to, and Bhishma tells a king what it costs to forget
- Why Men Cling to WomenYudhishthira asks the question that Panchachuda's answer left standing
- The Five Forms of MarriageBhishma on how a daughter is given, what a dower does not buy, and the honour owed to women
- The Kinds of Sons and Their SharesBhishma divides a dead man's property, names the children of crossed orders, and settles who a son belongs to
- Gifts Under the Lunar MansionsNarada tells Devaki what to give under each star, and the gods ask Brahman for ground to stand on
- The Wrong Man Before YamaA crow-faced messenger seizes the neighbour instead of Sarmin, and Yama sends him home with a rule of life
- The Sraddhas Under the ConstellationsYama's calendar of offerings to the fathers, and the king who won the earth by it
- Flowers, Incense, and LampsThe goddess Earth tells Krishna what a household owes each day, and Shukra tells Bali which flowers belong to which beings
- Rules for a Long LifeBhishma sets out the conduct of an ordinary day, and how brothers should hold together
- The Fourfold Religion of CompassionBhishma on abstaining from meat, and the kings who kept the vow
- The Mysteries of Religion, Part OneThe deities, the Pitris and the Rishis each give up a duty whose reason is secret
- The Mysteries of Religion, Part TwoLomasa, Arundhati, the night-wanderers and the elephants of the quarters give up the last of their secrets
- Whose Food May Be EatenBhishma on the tables a man may sit at, and the expiations for the rest
- Whom One Should WorshipYudhishthira asks whom a man should bow to, and Bhishma answers with the brahmanas
- The Foundations of RighteousnessBhishma is asked whether the eye or the scripture decides, and answers with three foundations and a long list of small rules
- The Thousand Names of VishnuVishnu Sahasranama - Bhishma's Last Gift
- The Thousand Names of ShivaShiva Sahasranama - Krishna's Own Teaching
- The Dharma of GiftsDanadharma - What Giving Actually Is
- Destiny and EffortThe Seed and the Field
- The Guest at the DoorSudarshana's Vow of Hospitality
- Uma Questions ShivaThe Goddess and the Great God on Dharma
- Upamanyu and the Ocean of MilkThe Boy Who Cried for Milk
- The Gift of CowsWhy the Cow Is the First of Gifts
- Where Fortune DwellsLakshmi Among the Cows
- Chyavana Tests the KingTwenty-One Days of Stillness
- Baka Dalbhya and the King of HeavenThe Long-Lived Sage's Ledger
- The Dharma of FastingWhat Hunger Teaches
- The Feeding of the FathersHow the Shraddha Began
- Matanga's AusterityThe Man Who Asked to Change His Birth
- The Merit of the FordsWhy the Waters Wash
- When Fire Hid From the WorldHow the fire god hid from the gods, and the three small creatures who gave him away
- The Theft of the Lotus StalksSeven Sages, a King's Gold, and an Oath That Blessed the Thief
- The Hand That Rose From the GrassBhishma's own memory of Shantanu's shraddha at the gate of Ganga
- The Man Who Remembered His BirthsA chandala brushing milk from his skin
- The Elephant the Sage Called SonGautama argues his way through every heaven for a stolen calf
- Why Are You Pale and LeanA man-eater asks a question instead of eating
- The Departure of BhishmaThe sun turns north, and the grandsire lets go
Told in the Ashvamedhika Parva
- The Horse SacrificeArjuna Follows a Wandering Horse, and Dies at His Own Son's Hand
- The Anugita अनुगीताThe Gita After the Gita
- Uttanka's CloudsThe Sage Who Nearly Cursed God
- The Revival of Parikshit परीक्षित जन्मThe Act of Truth
- The Last Son of KarnaVrishaketu, the Boy the Pandavas Raised in Their Brother's Place
- The Mongoose and the SacrificeThe Gift That Outweighed an Empire's Rite
- The Battle No One Else Can FightKrishna names the enemies still living in Yudhishthira's flesh
- The Fires Inside the BodyA wife asks what her husband's stillness is worth
- The News Krishna Held BackA grandfather is spared until his daughter refuses it
- The Horse Goes SouthEkalavya's son, and the day Dwaraka grabbed the bridle
- The Sacrifice of Profuse GoldYudhishthira gives away the earth and is given it back
- The Adhwaryu and the YatiA wandering ascetic stops at a sacrifice and asks the priest who gave the goat his consent
- Arjuna's Hymn at PartingOn the road to Hastinapur, Arjuna praises Krishna and gives him leave to go home
- The Kings Who Gave LawfullyIndra refuses the Rishis, a king answers for convenience, and the names of those who reached heaven by honest gifts
- Subhadra of DwarakaSister, wife, and guardian of the line
- Uttaraa, Mother of the Last HeirA girl's widowhood and a dynasty's thread
- Dussala, the Only SisterWhat women inherit from men's wars
- Ulupi's Long DesignThe wife who arranged her husband's death to save him
- The Perfected One at the DoorA brahmana asks what the soul is walking through
- The Horse Among Old EnemiesArjuna's year of merciful battles
- The Gold of King MaruttaHow the ruined victors paid for the ashvamedha
Told in the Ashramavasika Parva
- The Forest RetreatBook 15 - How the Blind King Walked Into the Woods to Die
- The Wordy DartsFifteen Years of Bhima's Unforgiveness
- The King Asks Leave of His PeopleAn Assembly Absolves the Man Who Ruined It
- The Gift SacrificeTen Days of Giving for the Enemy Dead
- Satayupa and the Forest KingsNarada Names the Rulers Who Chose the Woods
- The Court Comes to the ForestAn Army Marches Out to Visit Two Old Ascetics
- The Night the Dead ReturnedVyasa Calls the Fallen Out of the Ganga
- Vyasa Brings Back ParikshitA Son Bathes His Dead Father at the Snake Sacrifice
- The Fire That Was Not UnholyYudhishthira Accuses Agni of Ingratitude
- Kunti's Last FireRenunciation after the victory
- The Last WitnessSanjaya after the divine eye
- Vidura, Dharma in a Servant's HouseThe clean conscience of Hastinapura
Told in the Mausala Parva
- The Iron MacesBook 16 - The Curse That Destroyed Krishna's People
- The Omens of DwarakaA City Watches Its Own Death Approach
- Balarama Returns to the SeaThe Serpent Leaves by the Mouth It Came From
- The Death of VasudevaKrishna's Father Outlives Everyone
- Arjuna Empties DwarakaOne bowman escorts a dead city inland, and the sea walks behind him
- Uddhava Takes His LeaveThe one Yadava who left Prabhasa before the grass turned to iron
- When the Gandiva FailedArjuna's last, lost escort
- Prabhasa, Where the Sea Meets the EndThe shore tirtha of the Yadavas
Told in the Svargarohana Parva
- The Ascent to HeavenBook 18 - The Last Illusion, and the End of the Story
- The Return of the PortionsWho everybody turned out to have been
- 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 Indra