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Glossary

Abhimanyu
Son of Arjuna and Subhadra who was married to Uttara, daughter of King Virata.
Acharya
Teacher or Guru.
Achuta
A synonym of Sri Krishna.
Adhiratha
Karna's foster-father.
Agastya
A great sage whose life-story the Pandavas learnt while on pilgrimage to holy places is wife Lopamudra was equally a great sage in her own right.
Agnihotra
A sacrifice to God Agni.
Airavata
Indra's elephant.
Ajatasatru
Having no enemy, friend of all born things, an epithet of Yudhishthira.
Akshayapatra
A wonderful vessel given to Yudhishthira by the Sun god which held a never-failing supply of food.
Alambasa
A Rakshasa friend of Duryodhana who had joined his forces but Satyaki compelled him to flee from the battlefield.
Amrit
Ambrosia, the food of the gods, which makes the partaker immortal.
Anga
Mlechchha kings, a Kaurava supporter.
Arani
An upper and a lower piece of wood used for producing fire by attrition.
Artha (Wealth)
one of the objects of human life, the others being Dharma, (righteous- ness), Kama (satisfaction of desires), Moksha (spiritual salvation).
Arundhati
Wife of sage Vasishtha.
Ashtavakra
A towering scholar while still in his teens.
Asita
A sage who held that gambling was ruinous and should be avoided by all wise people.
Asmaka
A Kaurava warrior who attacked Abhimanyu.
Astra
A missile charged with power by a holy incantation.
Aswamedha Yajna
A horse sacrifice.
Aswathama
Son of Dronacharya and last supreme commander of the Kaurava force.
Bahlika, Dasharna, Kalinga, Magadha, Matsya, Panchala, Salva
States the kings of which were friendly to the Pandavas.
Baladev
Balarama, elder brother of Sri Krishna.
Balarama
Elder brother of Sri Krishna.
Balarama
An avatar or incarnation of Adisesha the thousand-hooded serpent on which Lord Mahavishnu reclines in Vaikuntha.
Bakasura
A voracious, cruel and terribly strong Rakshasa or demon who lived in a cave near the city of Ekachakrapura whom Bhima killed to the great relief of the citizens.
Bhagadatta
King of Pragjyotisha, a Kaurava ally.
Bhagawan
Form of address to Gods and great rishis, example- Bhagawan Sri Krishna, Narada, Vyasa.
Bharata
Son of Kaikeyi and King Dashratha, stepbrother of Rama, who was exceptionally devoted to and loved Rama.
Bharadwaja
A rishi, father of Yavakrida.
Brahma
Creator of the universe.
Brahmastra
A divine weapon, irresistible, one given by Lord Brahma himself.
Brahmacharin
A religious student, unmarried, who lives with his spiritual guide, devoted to study and service.
Brahmacharya
Celibacy, chastity; the stage of life of Vedic study in which chastity and service are essential.
Brihadaswa
A great sage who visited the Pandavas in their forest hermitage and reminded them of King Nala of Nishadha who also lost his kingdom in the game of dice and who deserted his wife Damayanti because of a curse but ultimately regained both,
Brihadratha
Commander of three regiments reigned over Magadha and attained celebrity as a great hero, married the twin daughters of the Raja of Kasi. His two wives ate each half of a mango given by sage Kausika and begot half a child each. A Rakshasi recovered the two portions from a dustbin wherein they were thrown and when they accidentally came together, they became a chubby baby, which she presented to the king, saying it was his child, which later became known as Jarasandha.
Brihadyumna
A King, a disciple of sage Raibhya.
Brihannola
Name assumed by Arjuna while living at Virata's court in incognito.
Brihatbala
A daring warrior who charged at Abhimanyu caught in the Kaurava army's net.
Bhima
The second Pandava brother who excelled in physical prowess as he was born of the wind-god.
Bhishmaka
King of Vidarbha, father of Rukmini and Rukma.
Bhishma
The old grandsire to whose care were committed the five Pandavas by the rishis when the eldest Yudhishthira attained the age of sixteen for their proper upbringing including mastery of the Vedas, Vedanta and various arts especially those pertaining to the Kshatriyas. Later he intervened but without success to bring about peace and understanding between the Kauravas and the Pandavas who ruled separately from Hastinapura and Indraprastha respectively. He was the eighth child of King Santanu and Ganga. Appointed supreme commander of the Kaurava armies.
Bhojas
A branch of the Yadava clan belonging to Krishna's tribe.
Bhuminjaya
Another name of prince Uttara son of Virata who had proceeded to fight the Kaurava armies, with Brihannala as his charioteer.
Burisrwas
One of the powerful kings on the side of the Kauravas.
Bibhatsu
One of Arjuna's name meaning a hater of unworthy acts.
Chala
A Kaurava warrior.
Chandala
A person of a degraded caste, whose conduct was much below standard and whose cause pollution.
Charachitra
A son of King Dhritarashtra who perished in the war
Chavadi
Place of public assembly of the village. It is the property of the entire community. In it all public business is transacted, and it serves also as the village club the headquarters of the village police and guest house for travellers.
Chekitana
Head of one division of the Pandava army.
Chitra
A son of Dhritarashtra killed in the war.
Chitraksha
One of the many sons of King Dhritarashtra who fell in the war
Chitrasena
King of the Gandharvas who prevented the Kauravas from putting up their camp near the pond where he himself had encamped.
Chitrayudha
A Kaurava prince who laid down his life in the war.
Chitravarma
A brother of Duryodhana who was killed in the war
Chitrangada
Elder son of Santanu born of Matsyagandhi (Satyavati) who succeeded his father on the throne of Hastinapura.
Chitrasena
A Kaurava warrior.
Daruka
Sri Krishna's charioteer.
Dasaratha
King of Ayodhya and Rama's father.
Darshana
A country whose king attacked Bhagadatta's elephant in an effort to save Bhima.
Devadatta
Name of Arjuna's conch.
Devaki
Mother of Sri Krishna.
Devata
A sage who condemned the game of dice as an evil form of gambling and declared it unfit as entertainment for good people, as it usually offered scope for deceit and dishonesty.
Devavrata
The eighth child of Santanu and Ganga who in time mastered the art yielding arms and learned the Vedas and Vedanta as also the sciences known to Sukra was crowned Yuvaraja (heir apparent), but later vowed to celibacy and was known as Bhishma.
Devayani
The beautiful daughter of Sukracharaya, preceptor of the demons, who fell in love with Kacha, son of Brihaspati, preceptor of the Devas.
Devendra
King of the Gods.
Dharma
Righteous course of conduct.
Dharmagranthi
Assumed named of Nakula at Virata's court.
Dharmananda
The delighted of Dharma, a name of Yudhishthira, the son of Dharma or Yama.
Dharmavyadha
He possessed the secret of good life and lived in the city of Mithila. He was a meat-seller.
Dhananjaya
One of the names of Arjuna.
Dhanusaksha
A great sage whom Medhavi, son of sage Baladhi, once insulted. He took the form of a bull and butted at that mountain and broke it to pieces. Then Medhavi fell down dead.
Dhaumya
Preceptor of the Pandavas, who accompanied them during their exile to the Kurijangala forest, singing Sama hymns addressed to Yama, Lord of Death.
Dhrishtadyumna
Supreme commander of the Pandava forces eldest brother of Draupadi.
Dhrishtaketu
A kinsman of the Pandavas.
Dhritarashtra
Elder son of Vichitravirya and Ambika, born blind, father of Duryodhana.
Dharmaputra
The son of Yama, epithet of Yudhishthira.
Dhartarashtras
Sons of Dhritarashtra
Draupadi
Daughter of King Drupada, King of Panchala, who married all the five Pandavas though Arjuna had won her in the Swayamvara, because of the vow that they would share everything in common.
Drona
Son of a Brahmana named Bharadwaja; married a sister of Kripa and a son Aswathama was born to them; learnt military art from Parasurama, the maser. Later he became the instructor to of the Kaurava and Pandava princes in the use of arms.
Drupada
King of Panchala, father of Draupadi who became the wife of the Pandavas
Duhsasana
Duryodhana's brother who dragged Draupadi to the hall of assembly pulling her by her hair.
Durdhara
A son of Dhritarashtra killed by Bhima in the war.
Durjaya
A brother of Duryodhana who was sent to attack Bhima, to save Karna's life but lost his own.
Durmarsha
A son of Dhritarashtra killed by Bhima.
Durmata
A son of Dhritarashtra who got killed by Bhima.
Durmukha
A chariot-borne warrior on the Kaurava side.
Durvasa
A sage known for his anger who visited the Kauravas.
Durvishaha
A warrior fighting on the Kaurava side.
Dushkarma
A warrior belonging to the Kaurava side.
Dussaha
A son of Dhritarashtra killed by Bhima.
Dwaitayana
A forest where the Kaurava, cows were being bred and housed.
Ganapati
Amanuensis of Vvasa who agreed to write down without pause or hesitation the story of the Mahabharata dictated by Vyasa.
Gandhari
Dhritarashtra's wife and queen mother of the Kauravas.
Gandharvas
A class of celestial beings regarded as specialists in music.
Gandiva
Arjuna's most potent bow.
Gangadwara
A place where sage Agastya and his wife performed penance.
Ghalotkacha
Son of Bhima from demoness Hidimba.
Govinda
One of the epithets of Sri Krishna and Vishnu; it means a cowkeeper and refers to Krishna's occupation in Gokula, the colony of cowherds.
Guru
Revered preceptor, teacher.
Hamsa, Hidimbaka, Kamsa.
Allies of King Jarasandha; the last married the two daughters of Jarasandha. Also Krishna's step-uncle whom Krishna killed.
Halayudha
Plough-weaponed, an epithet of Balarama who wielded a plough as his weapon.
Hanuman
Wise and learned monkey devotee of Sri Rama, who possessed extraordinary powers of discrimination and wisdom and who searched and found Sita in her confinement in Lanka.
Hastinapura
Capital city of the Kauravas.
Hrishikesha
Krishna.
Ilvala
This demon and his brother Vatapi hated brahmanas implacably. Ilvala would invite a brahman to a feast at which he would serve the meat of the goat into which his brother had turned he. After the brahmin had partaken of the feast he would call his brother out who would rend his way back to life, tearing the belly of the guest.
Indra
King of the Gods.
Indrajit
Son of Ravana, King of Lanka, who conquered Indra, the Lord of Gods and who was killed by Rama's brother Lakshmana.
Indrasena
A kinsman of the Pandavas.
Indrakila
A mountain Arjuna passed on his way to the Himalayas to practise austerities to acquire powerful new weapons from Lord Mahadeva.
Iravan
Arjuna's son by a Naga wife who fell in the battle on the eighth day.
Janaka
King of Mithila, a great Rajarishi; father of Sita, wife of Sri Rama.
Janamejaya
A king who conducted a great sacrifice for the well being of the human race.
Janardana
A name of Krishna
Jarasandha
Mighty king of Magadha of whose prowess all Kshatriyas were afraid. Killed by Bhima in a thirteen-day nonstop
physical combat
with Sri Krishna and Arjuna as witnesses.
Jarita, Laputa
Female companions of a saranga bird, who was a rishi named Mandapala in his previous birth when he was refused admission to heaven be cause he was childless.
Jalasura
A demon killed by Bhima.
Jaya
A son of King Dhritarashtra who was killed by Bhima in the war
Jayadratha
A warrior on the side of Kauravas who closed the breach effected by Abhimanyu in the Chakravyuha military formation by Dronacharya and trapped him inside.
Jayatsena
A kinsman of the Pandavas.
Jayatsena
A warrior fighting on the side of Kauravas.
Jnana
Knowledge of the eternal and real
Kacha
Grandson of sage Angiras and son of Brihaspati, who went to seek knowledge under Sukracharya as a brahmacharin. Devayani, the preceptor's lovely daughter, fell in love with him. The Asuras (demons) suspecting him of wanting to steal the secret of reviving the dead, killed him a number of times. But due to Devayani's love for him, her father brought him back to life every time he was killed. Ultimately the secret was learnt by the devas who then succeeded in defeating the asuras.
Kagola
A disciple of the great sage and teacher of Vedanta, Uddalaka.
Kambojas
Enemies of the Kauravas whom Karna had defeated
Kamsa
Maternal Uncle of Sri Krishna and son of Ugrasena, also son-in-law of Jarasandha, whom Sri Krishna killed.
Kanika
Minister of Sakuni.
Kanka
Assumed name of Yudhishthira at Virata's court.
Kausikam
A sage who learnt from Dharmavyadha the secret of Dharma, of performing one's duty.
Karna
A matchless warrior, son of the Sun god and Kunti. Disciple of Parasurama. Also son of Radha, his foster-mother, and was known as Radheya.
Kartavirya
A great warrior who defeated Ravana, King of Lanka.
Kartikeya
Commander of the armies of the devas.
Kekaya
A brave warrior on the Pandava side into whose chariot Bhima got during the fighting on the sixth day.
Kesava
One of the names of Sri Krishna.
Ketama
Another chief whose head was cut off by Drona.
Khandavaprastha
The ancient capital from where the ancestors of Pandavas, Nahusha and Yayati ruled. The Pandavas rebuilt the ruined city and erected palaces and forts and renamed it Indraprastha.
Kichaka
Sudeshna's brother, commander-in-chief of Virata's army, who made advances to Sairandhri (Draupadi). He was invited to meet her at night at the ladies dancing hall and was met instead by Valala (Bhima) dressed up as a female who killed him (Kichaka).
Kripacharya
Aswathama's uncle who advocated a combined assault on Arjuna in battle as against Karna's boast that he could take him on single-handed.
Krishna-Dwaipayana
Sage Vyasa.
Krauncha
Curlew-heron.
Krauncha-Vyuha
military formation on a pattern supposed to resemble a heron with outstretched beak and spreading wings. In ancient Indian practice, armies were arrayed for battle in formations of definite patterns, each of which had a name such as Chakra, or Kurma or Krauncha, or Makara according to a real or fancied resemblance.
Kritavarma
A notable Yadava warrior fighting on the side of Kaurava forces.
Kshatradharma
A great warrior on the side of Pandavas.
Kuchasthala
A city where Krishna stayed the night on his way to the court of Dhritarashtra.
Kumbhakarna
Brother of Ravana, King of Lanka, who was asleep most of the time because of the curse of Brahma.
Kundinapura
Capital of Vidarbha.
Kunti
She was the daughter of Sura and was known as Pritha. She was given in adoption to the king's childless cousin Kuntibhoja and was named Kunti after her adoptive father. Sage Durvasa, whom she had served while he was a guest at her father's house, gave her a divine mantra which when repeated would give her a son from any god whom she would call upon. Out of childish curiosity, she invoked the Sun god by repeating the Mantra and then she gave birth to a son born with divine armor and earrings. Ashamed, she placed the child in a sealed box and set it afloat on a river. The box was picked up by a childless charioteer and brought up as his own and became known as Karna. Later, Kunti chose Pandu as her husband at a Swayamvara.
Kunti-Madri
Queens of King Pandu who gave birth to three and two sons known as the Pandavas in the forest where he spent many years for having committed some sin. The sons were known as Yudhishthira, Bhima. Arjuna, Nakula, and Sahadeva.
Kurma
Tortoise.
Lakshmana
Younger step-brother of Rama and son of Sumitra and King Dasaratha. Duryodhana's gallant young son also bore this name.
Lomasa
A brahmana sage who advised the Pandavas to reduce their retinue while repairing to the forest. Those unable to bear the hardships of exile were free to go to the court of Dhritarashtra or Drupada, king of Panchala. He accompanied Yudhishthira on his wanderings.
Lopamudra
Daughter of the king of Vidarbha who married the sage Agastya.
Lord Narayana
Refuge of men; Mahavishnu.
Madhava
One of the names of Krishna. It means the Lord of Lakshmi.
Madhusudana
Another name of Krishna, the slayer of the asura Madhu.
Mahavishnu
Lord of the Universe who took human birth in order to wrest his kingdom from Emperor Bali for the salvation of the world. Lord Vishnu also took birth as Rama, son of Dasaratha, to kill Ravana, King of Lanka.
Mahendra
A King who had attained heaven.
Maitreya
A sage who visited the court of Dhritarashtra, expressed sorrow at the Pandava's plight, advised Duryodhana not to injure the Pandavas for his own good.
Mantra
An incantation with words of power.
Manasarovar
A sacred lake in the Himalayas
Mandavya
A sage wrongly punished by the king by being impaled as the chief of robbers who had clandestinely hidden their stolen goods in a corner of his hermitage when he was in deep contemplation. Lord Dharma gave him this punishment for having tortured birds and bees in his childhood. At this Mandavya cursed Dharma who was born as Vidura, the wise, to the servant maid of Ambalika, wife of King Vichitravirya, who offered her to Sage Vyasa in place of Ambalika.
Maricha
A character in the Ramayan, uncle of Ravana who transformed him self into a golden deer at the behest of Ravana to entice Sita.
Markandeya
A sage who told Yudhishthira the story of a brahmana, Kausika.
Marutta
A king of the Ikshwaku dynasty whose sacrifice was performed by Samvarta in defiance of Indra and Brihaspati.
Matali
Charioteer of Indra who took Arjuna to the kingdom of gods.
Medhavi
Son of Sage Baladhi who desired that his son should live as long as a certain mountain lasted.
Meru
An ancient mountain. Becoming jealous of Meru, the Vindya began to grow very high obstructing the sun, the moon and the planets. Agastya whom the Vindhya mountain respected asked it to stop growing until he crossed it on his way to the south and returned to the north again. But he did not return at all, having settled in the south.
Nahusha
A mighty king who was made king of the gods because Indra had disappeared due to his killing Vritra through sin and deceit.
Nakula
Fourth brother of the Pandavas.
Nala
King of Nishadha who lost his kingdom in a game of dice and deserted his wife Damayanti because of a curse.
Nandini
Vasishtha's divinely beautiful cow.
Nara
Arjuna or Dhananjaya.
Narada
The sage who suddenly appeared before Dhritarashtra and Vidura as the latter was describing the departure of the Pandavas to the forest and uttered a prophecy that after fourteen years the Kauravas would be extinct as a result of Duryodhana's crimes and vanished as suddenly.
Narayana
Sri Krishna or Krishna; Vishnu.
Narayanas
Krishna's kinsmen.
Narayanasrama
A charming forest where the Pandavas had halted during their wanderings.
Nishadha
A country where Indra, Lord of the gods had lived once disguised as a brahmana.
Nishada
An aboriginal hunter
orfisherman
a man of low or degraded tribe in general; an outcaste.
Panchajanya
Name of Krishna's conch.
Palasa
Butea frondosa, "flame of the forest".
Panchali
Another name of Draupadi Queen of the Pandavas and daughter of King Drupada.
Panchalya
A son of King Drupada who died in the war.
Pandu
Second son of Vichitravirya and Ambalika who succeeded to the throne of Hastinapura on his father's death, as his elder brother Dhritarashtra was born blind, father of the Pandavas.
Parasara
A great sage, father of Veda Vvasa.
Paravasu
Son of Raibhva and elder brother of Arvavasu whose wife was violated by Yavakrida, who was killed with a spear by a fiend for his sin.
Parikshit
Son of Abhimanyu and grandson of the Pandavas who was crowned king after the holocaust claimed the Kauravas and the Pandavas.
Partha
Arjuna.
Parvati
Consort of Siva. Rukmini prayed to her for saving her from the cruel Sisupala king of Chedi, as she had set her heart on marrying Krishna.
Paurava
A Kaurava hero.
Phalguna
Arjuna.
Prabhasa
The Vasu who seized Vasishtha's divine cow.
Pradyumna
Sri Krishna's son.
Pratikhami
Duryodhana's charioteer.
Pritha
Mother of Karna, Kunti before her marriage.
Pundarikaksha
Krishna, the lotus-eyed one.
Purochana
An architect who built a beautiful wax palace named "Sivam" in Varanavata.
Purumitra
A Kaurava warrior
Pitamaha
Literally grandfather, which however carried no imputation of senile infirmity but denotes the status of the pater familias.
Ptirushottama
An epithet of Sri Krishna. It is one of the names of Vishnu and means the Supreme Being.
Raibhya
A sage whose hermitage was situated on the banks of the Ganga. The Pandavas during their wanderings visited it. This ghat was very holy. Bharata, son of Dasaratha bathed here. Indra was cleansed of his sin of killing Vritra unfairly by bathing in this ghat. Sanatkumar became one with God. Aditi, mother of the gods, prayed here to be blessed with a son.
Radheya
Son of Radha, a name of Karna, who as a foundling was brought up as a son by Radha, the wife of the Charioteer Adhiratha.
Rajasuya
A sacrifice performed by a king to be entitled to assume the title of "Emperor".
Ravana
King of Lanka who abducted Sita, the beautiful wife of Ramachandra.
Rishabha
The second note of the Indian gamut (Shadja, rishabha, gandhara, madhyama, panchama, daivata, nishada - sa, ri, ga, ma, pa, dha, ni.)
Rishyasringa
Son of sage Vibhandaka, who had grown up seeing no mortal except his father. The king of Anga, which was afflicted with a dire famine, to bring rain and plenty, invited him.
Romapada
King of Anga which was once visited by a great drought.
Rudra
One of the names of Siva.
Rudra dance
Siva's cosmic dance of destruction.
Rukma
Heir apparent to the throne of Vidarbha. When defeated by Balarama and Krishna he established a new city Bhojakata, ashamed to return to Kundinapura, the capital of Vidarbha, and ruled over it.
Sachidevi
Wife of Indra, king of the gods on whom Nahusha's evil eye fell. She was also known as Indrani.
Sahadeva
Youngest of the Pandava princes who offered the first honors to Krishna at the Rajasuya sacrifices.
Saibya
A ruler friendly to the Pandavas.
Sairandhri
A maid servant or female attendant employed in royal female apartments.
Sakuni
He played dice on behalf of the Kauravas and succeeded in defeating the Pandavas by a stratagem. As a result the latter had to go and live in the forest for thirteen years. According to the conditions of the game, the thirteenth and last year of exile was to be spent incognito. If discovered by anyone they were again to repair to the forests for a like term. He was considered to be the evil genius, who beguiled Duryodhana to take to evil ways.
Salva
Friend of Sisupala, who besieged Dwaraka Sri Krishna's kingdom to avenge Sisupala's death at the latter's hand.
Salya
Ruler of Madradesa and brother of Madri and uncle of the Pandavas who because of having received hospitality from Duryodhana went over to his side.
Samsaptaka
One who has taken a vow to conquer or die, and never to retreat. The Samsaptakas were suicide-squads, vowed to some desperate deed of daring.
Samvarta
Brihaspati's younger brother, a person of great learning.
Samba
A Yadava youngster dressed as a woman who gave birth to a mace, as foretold by rishis.
Sanga
Son of Virata. When king Virata was wounded, he had to get into Sanga's chariot, having lost his chariot, horses and charioteer
Sanjaya
The narrator who tells blind Dhritarashtra the progress of the war from day to day. He told the king that a victim of adverse fate would first become perverted and loses his sense of right and wrong. Time would destroy his reason and drive him to his own destruction.
Sankula Yuddha
A melee, confused fight, a soldiers battle as distinguished from the combats of heroes.
Shanta
Wife of sage Rishyasringa.
Santanu
King of Hastinapura, father of Bhishma.
Sanyasin
One who has renounced the world and its concerns.
Sarasana
One of the Kaurava brothers who died in the war.
Sarmishtha
Princes and daughter of king Vrishaparva who got angry with Devayani and slapped and pushed her into a dry well.
Satanika
Virata's son whose bead was severed by Drona.
Satyajit
A Panchala prince, a hero who stood by Yudhishthira to prevent his being taken prisoner by Drona, while Arjuna was away answering a challenge by the Samsaptakas (the Trigartas).
Satyaki
A Yadava warrior, friend of Krishna and the Pandavas who advocated collecting their forces and defeating the unrighteous Duryodhana.
Satyavati
A fisherman's daughter who possessed uncommon beauty and emanated a divinely sweet fragrance and king Santanu became enamored of her, married her and made her his queen.
Satyavrata
Warrior on the Kaurava side.
Saugandhika
A plant that produced a very beautiful and fragrant flower that Bhima went to get for Draupadi.
Savyasachin
Ambidexter, one who can use both hands with equal facility and effect. A name of Arjuna who could use his bow with the same skill with either hands.
Sikhandin
A girl turned man, warrior on the Pandava side who restored order among scattered, subdued soldiers, Drupada's son.
Simhanada
A lion-note or roar; a deep roar of defiance or triumph which warriors were wont to utter to inspire confidence in their friends, of terror in their enemies.
Saindhava
Jayadratha.
Sini
One of the suitors to Devaki’s hand. A kinsman of the Kauravas.
Sisupala
King of Chedi. Died at the hands of Krishna at the time of Dharmaputra's Rajasuya sacrifice.
Somadutta
One of the suitors to Devaki's hand. A kinsman of the Kauravas.
Subahu
King of Kulinda in the Himalayas, ally of the Kauravas.
Subhadra
Wife of Arjuna, sister of Sri Krishna and mother of Abhimanyu.
Sudakshina
A warrior on the Kaurava side.
Sudarsana
A warrior on the Kaurava army.
Sudeshna
Queen of King Virata whom Sairandhri (Draupadi) served.
Sugriva
Monkey-king, friend of Sri Rama, and brother of mighty Vali whom Sri Rama killed.
Sujata
Daughter of Sage Uddalaka and wife of Kagola, his disciple who had virtue and devotion but not much of erudition, mother of Ashtavakra.
Suka
A sage, son of Vyasa, who related the Srimad Bhagavata to King Parikshit, grandson of Arjuna.
Sumitra
Abhimanyu's charioteer.
Supratika
Name of King Bhagadatta's elephant.
Susarma
King of Trigarta, a supporter of the Kauravas who backed the proposal to invade Matsya, Virata's country.
Suvarna
A soldier on the Kaurava side.
Sri Rama
Also knew as Rama, Ramachandra or Sri Rama. Hanumana tells Bhima how he was deeply thrilled when he happened to touch Rama's body. This king of Ayodhya was banished to the forest for fourteen years, killed Ravana the king of Lanka who abducted his wife, Sita.
Srinjayas
Pandava supporters.
Srutayu, Astutayu
Two brothers fighting on the Kaurava side attacked Arjuna but were killed.
Srutayudha
A Kaurava warrior whose mace hurled at Krishna rebounded fiercely, killing Srutayudha himself. Her mother Parnasa had obtained that gift from Varuna who had specified that the mace should not be used against one who does not fight, else it would kill the person who hurls it.
Swarga
The heaven of Indra where mortals after death enjoy the results of their good deeds on earth.
Sveta
A son of King Virata who fell in battle to Bhishma's arrow.
Tantripala
Assumed name of Sahadeva at Virata's court.
Uddalaka
A great sage and teacher of Vedanta.
Umadevi
Wife of Siva.
Unchhavritti
The life of a mendicant, begging his food.
Upachitra
One of King Dhritarashtra's sons who perished in the war.
Upaplavya
A place in Matsya Kingdom, where the Pandavas settled after their exile of thirteen years.
Urvasi
An apsara in Indra's court, whose amorous overtures Arjuna declined.
Vaisampayana
Chief disciple of sage Vyasa who revealed the epic for the benefit humanity.
Vaishnava
A sacrifice performed by Duryodhana in the forest. Yayati, Mandhata, Bharata and others also performed it.
Vaishnava mantra
An invocation which endows a missile with some of the irresistible power of Vishnu.
Vajrayudha
The weapon with which Indra killed Visvarupa on suspicion because his mother belonged to the asura tribe of daityas.
Valala
Assumed name of Bhima when, he worked as a cook at Virata's court.
Vali
Monkey-king, brother of Sugriva.
Vanaprastha
The third stage of the dvija's life, when he is required to relinquish worldly responsibilities to his heirs and retires to the woods with his wife for an anchorite's life.
Vandi
Court poet of Mithila who on being defeated by Sage Ashtavakra in debate drowned himself in the ocean and went to the abode of Varuna.
Varanavata
A forest in which the Pandavas were asked to stay in a waxhouse which was to be set on fire at midnight in order to kill the Pandavas while they were asleep.
Vasishtha
A sage who had cursed the eight Vasus to be born in the world of men as sons of Ganga and Santanu. Ganga threw her seven children in to the river with a smiling face.
Vasudhana
Another warrior who perished in the battle on the Twelfth Day.
Vasudeva
An epithet of Krishna. It means both son of Vasudeva and the supreme spirit that pervades the universe.
Vedavyasa
Vyasa, author of the Mahabharata.
Vichitravirya
Younger son of Santanu who succeeded King Chitrangada on the throne of Hastinapura. He had two sons, Dhritarashtra and Pandu.
Vikarna
A son of Dhritarashtra who declared the staking of Draupadi illegal, as Yudhishthira himself was a slave and had lost all his rights. Therefore the Kauravas had not won Draupadi legally, he held
Vinda, Anuvinda
Two brothers kings of Avanti, great soldiers whom were on the Kaurava side, they suffered defeat at the hands of Yudhamanyu
Virata
King of Matsya, the country which was suggested by Bhima to live in incognito during the thirteenth year of their exile.
Visoka
Bhima's charioteer.
Visvarupa
Name of Twashta's son who became the preceptor of the gods, Brihaspati having left when insulted by Indra.
Vivimsati
A Kaurava hero.
Viswarupa
All-pervading, all-including form. See the description in the Bhagavad Gita chapter eleven.
Vriddhakshatra
King of the Sindhus, father of Jayadratha into whose lap his son Jayadratha's head was caused to fall by Arjuna after cutting off Jayadratha's head.
Vrika
A Panchala prince who fell in battle.
Vrisha, Achala
Sakuni's brothers.
Vrishnis, Kekayas
Tribals who were devoted to the Pandavas, who with Sri Krishna visited the Pandavas in their exile.
Vrishasena
A warrior on the Kaurava side.
Vritra
Son of Twashta who was defeated by Indra's weapons Vajrayudha. He was born out of his father's sacrificial flames and became Indra's mortal enemy.
Vrikodara
Wolf-bellied, an epithet of Bhima, denoting his slimness of waist and insatiable hunger.
Vyasa
Compiler of the Vedas, son of sage Parasara.
Vyuha
Battle arrays.
Yama
God of death. God of dharma, whose son was Yudhishthira. It is he whose questions Yudhishthira answered correctly whereupon his dead brothers were brought back to life on the banks of the enchanted pool.
Yajna
A sacrifice.
Yaksha
A class of demi-gods, subjects of Kubera, the god of wealth.
Yavakrida
Son of Sage Bharadwaja who was bent upon mastering the Vedas.
Yayati
Emperor of the Bharata race who rescued Devayani from the well into which she had been thrown by Sarmishtha. He later married both Devayani and Sarmishtha. One of the ancestors of the Pandavas who became prematurely old due to Sukracharya's curse.
Yudhamanyu
A prince supporting the Pandavas.
Yuyudhana
Another name of Satyaki.
Yuyutsu
A noble son of Dhritarashtra who bent his head in shame and sorrow when Yudhishthira lost Draupadi. He also disapproved of the unfair way in which Abhimanyu was killed.