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AKRRA: Krishna's uncle and a famous Vrishni. He was a commander of the Yadava
army and also acted as one of Krishna's advisors [SB C10-38 & 40]
ALAMBUSHA: A rkshasa who fought for Duryodhana in the Kurukshetra war. He was
Baka's brother, and bore enmity toward Bhma because Bhma slew his brother.
He killed Arjuna's son Iravan, and was himself killed by Bhma's son,
Ghatotkacha.
AMBA: The king of Ks''s eldest daughter. Bhshma abducted her from her
swayamyara to be his brother's bride. Having already committed herself to
Shalva, Bhshma released her. When Shalva rejected her as a wife because she
had been touched by another, she developed an intense hatred for Bhshma. She
worshipped S'iva and obtained a boon that she would kill Bhshma in her next
life. She was then reborn as Shikhandhi.
AMBLIK: The king of Ks''s youngest daughter. She was abducted by Bhshma
from her swayamvara and married Vichitravirya. Later she became Pndu's mother
AMBIK: Second daughter of the king of Ks', abducted from her swayamvara by
Bhshma. She married Vichitravirya and, after his death, became
Dhritarshthra's mother by union with Vysadeva.
ASHVINI KUMARAS: Twin gods who act as celestial physicians. They fathered
Nakula and Sahadeva through Madr. [SB: C2:1,5,6; C3:6]
AS'VATTHM: Son of Drona and Krip. When he was young, his father was
impoverished. Some of As'vatthm's friends, knowing that he had never tasted
milk, once gave him a cup of water mixed with flour and told him it was milk.
The boy drank it and danced in glee, saying "I have tasted milk!" His father
saw this and was cut to the quick. It was this incident that inspired him to
go to his old friend Drupada and beg. As'vatthm is said to be a partial
expansion of S'iva.
BABRUVAHANA: Son of Arjuna and Chitrangada, who became the ruler of Manipura.
BAHLIKA: Younger brother of Shantanu. He lived a long life and was an advisor
to Dhritarshthra. He became a commander in Duryodhana's army during the
Kurukshetra war. He was finally killed by Bhma.
BALARMA: Son of Vasudeva and Rohin. Said by the Vedas to be an eternal form
of the Supreme Lord who sometimes appears in the material world to enact
pastimes. More information about him can be found in the Bhgavata Purna
(S'rmad Bhgavatam-Canto 10).
BHARATA: A king in the dynasty of the moon-god (all kshatriyas are descendents
either of Candra, the moon-god, or Srya, the sun-god) who ruled the earth for
thousands of years. The earth planet has been named after him, and it was
common during the Mahbhrata era to call his descendents by his name. Bharata
was born from the union of King Dushyanta and the daughter of Kanva Rishi,
named Shakuntala. The story of their marriage and Bharata's birth is recounted
in the Mahbhrata's Adi Parva.
BHIMASENA: Pndu and Kunt's second son, sired by Vayu, the wind-god. After
the great war he was installed by Yudhisthhira as crown prince. A story is
told in the Skanda Purna that Bhma became a little proud after the war,
considering that it was by his own power that he had achieved success in the
war. All his brothers attributed their success to Krishna. Wanting to curb
Bhma's pride, Krishna took him on Garuda and traveled a long way to the
south, where they came to a great lake many miles wide. Krishna sent Bhma to
find the source of the lake. Bhma ran around its perimeter, but could not
discover its source. As he ran he encountered a number of powerful Asuras.
Bhma found himself unable to defeat them and he ran to Krishna for shelter.
Krishna lifted and threw the lake away and dispersed the Asura's (celestial
demon). He said to Bhma, "This lake was contained in Kumbhakarna's skull, the
Rakshasa killed by Rma in a previous age [see Ramakatha Rasavahini-2, Ch.
8b]. The warriors who attacked you were from a race of demons who fought with
Ravana against Rama." Bhma's pride was thus curbed.
of singing and
whom Arjuna and
Trigarta who
sons.
DEVAK: Krishna's mother and the wife of Vasudeva, a chief of the Vrishni
clan. Details of her life can be found in the Bhgavata Purna Canto 10,
Chapter 1 [see also: Bhagavatha Vahini, Ch. 44]
DHAUMYA: An ascetic rishi who became the Pndavas' guru and guide. The younger
brother of Devala, another famous rishi.
DHRISTADYUMNA: Son of Drupada, born from the sacrificial fire. Said in the
Vedas to be an expansion of the fire-god, Agni.
DHRITARSTRA: The blind son of Vysadeva, born of Ambik after the death of
her husband, Vichitravirya. He became king in Hastinapura after Pndu retired
to the forest. He was the father of the Kauravas. In the Bhgavata Purna it
is said that, after practicing yoga, he achieved liberation, merging into the
Supreme Brahman at the end of his life [SB : Canto 1, Ch. 13].
DRONA (DRONCRYA): The Kurus' martial teacher. The sage Bharadvaja once
caught sight of the Apsara Ghrtachi and, as a result, semen fell from his
body, which he caught in a pot. Drona was later born from that pot. He was
taught by Agnivesha and Parasurama. Said to be an expansion of Brihaspati, the
celestial seer and preceptor of the gods.
DURVASA: A powerful rishi famous for his quick temper. The Purnas and
Mahbhrata contain many stories about Durvasa. He is particularly famous for
having granted Kunt the boon that she could summon any god to do her will,
which resulted in the births of the Pndavas from five principal deities. He
is said to be an expansion of S'iva.
DUSHASHANA: Duryodhana's eldest brother and one of his inner circle of close
advisors. He grievously offended Draupad and the Pndavas, and as a result
Bhma vowed to kill him and drink his blood. He did so during the great war.
GANGA: A goddess who appears in this world as the river Ganges. She was
Bhshma's mother. Her origin is described in various Vedic texts, including
Bhgavata Purna (see SB, Canto 5, Ch. 17) and Ramayana [Ramakatha Vahini].
The river water descends from the spiritual world after touching Lord Vishnu's
foot and is thus considered sacred.
GHATOTKACHA: The son of Bhma and the Rakshashi Hidimbi. He became a leader of
the Rakshasas and assisted the Pndavas in the Kurukshetra war. Karna killed
him with Indra's celestial Shakti weapon.
INDRA: King of the gods, also known as Purandara and Shakra. The Vedas contain
numerous stories about this deity, who became Arjuna's father.
KAMSA: Maternal uncle of Krishna who usurped the throne from his father,
Ugrasena. He was killed by Krishna [SB C10-44]. Details of his life are found
in the Bhgavata Purna. [Bhagavata Vahini: 35,38,39,43,44]
KARNA: Firstborn son of the Pndavas' mother Kunt from her union with the
sun-god [SB Canto 9, Chapter 24 verses 32 to 36]. He became the chief support
and best friend of Duryodhana, who made him king of Anga. He was killed by
Arjuna at Kurukshetra and went to the sun planet. Other names of Karna include
Vasusena, Vaikarthana and Radheya.
KRIPA (KRIPACHARYA): Son of the sage Saradvan, who was once practicing
asceticism in the forest when he saw the Apsara Janapadi. He passed semen,
which fell into a clump of reeds, and a boy and girl were born from it. They
were named Kripa and Kripi. They were found and brought to Shantanu, who was
later told of their origin by Saradvan. Kripa was taught Dhanurveda, the
martial arts, by his father, and he became one of the Kurus' martial teachers.
He survived the Kurukshetra war and counseled the Pndavas when they ruled the
world. Later, they appointed him preceptor of their grandson, Parkchit.
KRISHNA: Said by the Vedas to be God, the Supreme Person, who is the origin of
all other incarnations of the Godhead such as Vishnu and Nryana. The
KUNT: The Pndavas' mother. She was the sister of Vasudeva, Krishna's father.
Her own father, Surasena, had given her as a baby to his close friend King
Kuntibhoja, who had no children. She was named Prith at birth, but became
better known as Kunt after being raised by Kuntibhoja. [See SB, Canto 1, Ch.
8]
KURU: Ancient king and founder of the Kuru dynasty. Due to his performance of
sacrifice and asceticism at the site, the place known as Kurukshetra, named
after Kuru, is considered sacred.
KUVERA (VAISHRAVANA): God of riches and one of the four universal protectors
or Lokapalas. Known as the celestial treasurer.
MAHBHRATA: Epic of the battle of the aristocrats in the Vedic culture during
the pastimes of Krishna, out of which the Gt has been taken.
MARKENDEYA: An ancient rishi said to have lived through thousands of ages. The
Mahbhrata contains many stories about him.
NAKULA: One of the twin sons of Pndu and Madri, begotten by the twin Ashvini
gods. He was a maharatha (a warrior capable of contending with ten thousand
other warriors) warrior renowned for his expertise with a sword. He conquered
the western regions of Bharata, before Yudhisthhira's Rajasuya sacrifice.
Along with Draupad, he married a princess of Chedi named Karenumati.
NRADA: A celestial sage also known as Devarshi, or the rishi among the gods
[see for example: SB - Canto 1 : Ch. 4] He is famous as a devotee of Krishna
and frequently assists Him in His pastimes on earth. The Vedas contain
innumerable references to Nrada's activities and teachings.
PNDAVAS: The five sons of King Pndu and Queen Kunt: Arjuna, Sahadeva,
Nakula, Bhma en Yudhisthhira.
SAHADEVA: The youngest Pndava. One of the two twin sons of Madri fathered by
the Ashvini gods. He conquered southern Bharata before Yudhisthhira's Rajasuya
sacrifice. Famous for his perceptive powers and intelligence, he was appointed
as Yudhisthhira's personal advisor after the Kurukshetra war. Besides being
married to Draupad, he married a princess of Madra named Vijaya.
SATYAKI: A Vrishni hero who became Arjuna's martial disciple. He was a close
friend of Krishna. A powerful mahratha, he fought for the Pndavas at
Kurukshetra, surviving both the war and subsequent massacre of sleeping
soldiers by As'vatthm. He died at Prabhasa during the fratricidal battle
among the Yadus.
SHAKUNI: Son of King Suvala and brother of Gandhari. Acted as close confidant
and mentor to Duryodhana. Although a powerful kshatriya, he preferred cunning
and underhanded methods to open combat. Said to be an expansion of the deity
presiding over the Dvapara age (third in the cycle of four ages), he was slain
at Kurukshetra by Sahadeva.
SHALVA: King of Saubha. He fought Bhshma for Amba's hand after Bhshma
kidnapped her from her swayamvara. Due to his strong friendship with
Sishupala, whom Krishna killed, he became Krishna's enemy. He attacked Dwrak
in the huge airplane he had received from S'iva. Said to be an incarnation of
the Asura Ajaka, Krishna killed him [SB C10-76&77]
SHALYA: Ruler of Madra and brother of Pndu's second wife Madri. Although the
Pndavas' friend, and having a particular friendship with Yudhisthhira, he was
tricked by Duryodhana into fighting for the Kauravas at Kurukshetra. Said to
be an incarnation of the Daitya Samhlada, Yudhisthhira killed him in the war.
SHANTANU: Great grandfather of the Pndavas and Kauravas, and Bhshma's father
from his union with Ganga. After retirement, he went to Mount Archika in the
Himalayas and practiced asceticism, finally attaining liberation. It is said
in the Bhgavata Purna that his elder brother, Devapi, still lives on earth
in a place called Kalapa, awaiting the commencement of the next Satya-yuga
(golden age) when he will become king.
S'IS'UPLA: King of Chedi and an avowed enemy of Krishna. The Bhgavata Purna
describes his previous existence as Jaya, a gatekeeper in the spiritual
Vaikunthha world. Due to a curse, he and his brother Vijaya had to take birth
in the material world for three lives as demons (his other two incarnations
were Hiranyksa [SB: C2:7, C3: 13,14,17,18,19,20; C5:18; C6:6] and Rvana [Ramakatha Rasavahini, Chapter 10]). Krishna killed him at Yudhisthhira's
Rajasuya sacrifice [SB C10-74]
S'RMAD BHGAVATAM: (Bhgavad Purna), 'The Story of the Fortunate One'. The
Krishna-'Bible', spoken by S'ukadeva Gosvm, the son of Vysadeva, who laid
down the story of Krishna. This book of approx. 18.000 verses describes the
importance of bhakti-yoga as everything and for everybody and also the whole
life of Lord Krishna and other avatra's of Vishnu. Contains brief the purpose
of the Vedic scriptures. (Legend, 18 very old books about the history of this
planet and other planets).
ULUP: Daughter of the Naga king Kauravya, who became Arjuna's wife. They had
a son named Iravan, who was killed at Kurukshetra. She married Arjuna during
his one year exile from Indraprastha, only spending one day with him after
their wedding. She was reunited with him in Hastinapura after the war.
UTTARA: A princess of Virata whom Arjuna taught dancing during his final year
of exile. She married Abhimanyu and their son was named Parkchit.
VIRATA: King of Matsya, where the Pndavas spent their final year in exile. He
joined with the Pndavas in the Kurukshetra war, bringing an akshauhini
divison of warriors. Drona killed him in the battle. He was said to be an
expansion of the celestial Maruts.
YADU: Ancient king and founder of the Yadu dynasty, in which Krishna appeared.
Details of Yadu's birth and life are given in the original text of the
Mahbhrata and also the Bhgavata Purna.
Yudhisthhira: Eldest Pndava, born from the union of Kunt and the god Dharma.
He performed a Rajasuya sacrifice which established him as world emperor. [SB,
C10-74] Famous for his adherence to virtue and truth, he is also known as
Dharmaraja, as well as Ajatashatru, which means "one who has no enemies."
After the war he ruled the world for thirty-six years and was succeeded by
Parkchit. [SB: C1:7,8,9,10,12,13,14,15,17; C3:1,2,3,]