The Great Golden Sacrifice of the Mahabharata

by Maggi Lidchi Grassi

  Bharadwaja

  An Angiras Mahayogi to whom many Vedic hymns are attributed. He was the illegitimate son of the sage Brihaspati and Mamata, wife of the sage Utathya.

  Bharata

  Son of Dushyanta (of the Puru dynasty) and Shakuntala.

  Bharatavarsha

  India

  Bhargava

  Brahmin arms master of Bheeshma, Drona and Karna.

  Bheema

  Literally, fearsome. Second of the Pandava brothers.

  Bheeshma

  Son of Shantanu by the river goddess Ganga. Called Greatfather in our story.

  Bhojas

  The Bhojas, Andakas and Vrishnis were the clans Krishna led from Mathur to Kushusthali; it was later renamed Dwaraka.

  Bhoorishravas

  A king of Kuruvamsa (the Kuru dynasty). Fought on the side of Duryodhana though he had been a friend of Pandu. His quarrel was with Satyaki.

  Bhur, bhuvah, Suvar

  Literally, the three worlds: the material world, the lifeworld and the mind-world.

  Brahmacharya

  Self-control, often meaning abstinence from sex. A Brahmachari is one who has renounced sensual pleasures.

  Brahmaloka

  The world of Brahma.

  Brahmashira-astra

  Another name for Shiva’s favourite weapon, the spear Pashupata, with which he killed the Daityas and with which he will destroy the universe at the end of the cosmic aeon.

  Brahmin, Brahmana

  The priestly caste in Hinduism. Brahmin is an anglicized version.

  Brihannala

  The name adopted by Arjuna, as a dancing teacher, when the Pandavas were in disguise in Panchala.

  Brihaspati

  Guru of the Devas.

  Chaitriya, Chaitra

  The last month of the Hindu year (March-April).

  Chaityaka

  A mountain, situated near Girivraja, the capital of Magadha.

  Chakora

  The Indian red-legged partridge which according to legend is supposed to be in love with moonlight and drinks moondrops.

  Chakra

  Literally, wheel. Krishna’s serrated weapon. Military formation in the shape of a circle.

  Chakravarthy

  Literally, emperor, universal sovereign.

  Champak

  Scented flower with cream petals and yellow centres.

  Chandan

  Sandalwood.

  Chedi

  Name of a country and its people. They occupied the banks of the Narmada.

  Chitrangada

  Daughter of King Chitravahana; wife of Arjuna in Manipura and mother of Babhruvahana.

  Chitrasena

  A chief of the Gandarvas who became Arjuna’s close friend and taught him music and dancing in Indra’s heaven.

  Chitravahana

  A king who ruled Manipura during Puranic times.

  Dakshina

  The fee paid to a teacher. Also the offering made to a Brahmin who conducts a sacrifice.

  Dantavaktra

  King of Karusha.

  Darshan

  Literally, seeing. An occasion when a spiritual person in India allows himself to be seen.

  Daruka

  Krishna’s charioteer.

  Deva

  God or deity. A celestial power; the deification or personification of natural forces and phenomena, each distinguished by name and by particular attributes.

  Devadatta

  Literally, given by a god. The name of Arjuna’s conch shell which came from a lake north of Kailasa. It originally belonged to Varuna, deity of the waters.

  Devaki

  Wife of Vasudeva; and mother of Krishna.

  Devavrata

  The name of the son of Shantanu before he made his awesome vow and became Bheesma.

  Dhananjaya

  He who has conquered wealth. One of Arjuna’s titles.

  Dharma

  Literally, stable, steady; to hold firm. Law of Truth. Code of good conduct, pattern of noble living, religious rules and observances.

  Dharmaraj

  A just or righteous king; appellation of Yudhishthira.

  Dhaumya

  Family priest of the Pandavas.

  Dhobiman

  Washerman

  Dhrishtadyumna

  Twin brother of Draupadi. As leader of the Pandava armies he killed Drona, who had slain his father Drupada.

  Dhritarashtra

  Literally, he who has taken possession of the nation. Brother of Pandu; and blind Ruler of Hastinapura.

  Dhruva

  Pole Star. A month in the Hindu calendar.

  Draupadi

  The beautiful dark-skinned daughter of King Drupada of Panchala, and wife of the five Pandava brothers.

  Dravida

  Collective name for the five tribes of southern India.

  Drona, Dronacharya

  Literally, bucket. The Brahmin Acharya, teacher of the Kauravas and Pandavas, is so called because he was born in a bucket.

  Drupada

  King of Panchala. Father of Draupadi and Dhrishtadyumna.

  Duhshala

  The only daughter of Dhritarashtra, wife of Jayadratha.

  Duhshasana

  Literally, hard-to-rule. The second of Dhritarashtra’s hundred sons.

  Durga

  Literally, hewho drives away evil. The goddess of the universe. Durga possesses many forms and aspects. Parvati, spouse of Shiva, is a form of Durga.

  Durgadasa

  Servant of Durga.

  Durvasa

  Literally, ill-dressed. An irritable sage.

  Duryodhana

  Literally, difficult to conquer. Eldest son of Dhritarashtra.

  Dvaitavana

  A forest in which the Pandavas lived for part of their exile.

  Dwaraka

  Literally, many-gated. The capital of Krishna’s kingdom.

  Ekalavya

  He was abandoned in infancy but was found and raised by members of a Nishada tribe and later became their king.

  Ekarishi

  The Sole Seer, an appellation of Pushan. God of the sun and protector of journeys.

  Eldest

  Yudhishthira, eldest of the Pandava brothers.

  Gada

  Krishna’s younger brother. The weapon of Bheema, the mace.

  Gajaroha

  Elephant-driver.

  Ganapati

  The elephant-god Ganesh.

  Gandhamadana

  Literally, emitting intoxicating fragrance. The name of one of the four mountains enclosing the central region of the world.

  Gandhara

  A stretch of land in ancient Bharata, a kingdom on the west of the Indus. The Gandharitis of Herodotus, or modern Afghanistan.

  Gandhari

  Princess of Gandhara, wife of the blind king Dhritarashtra.

  Gandharvas

  Heavenly musicians. Chitrasena, a Gandharva taught Arjuna music and dancing when he was in Indra’s kingdom. They became good friends.

  Gandiva

  Arjuna’s bow given by Soma to Varuna who passed it on to Agni, who in turn presented it to Arjuna.

  Ganga

  Hinduism’s holiest river, often personified as a goddess.

  Garuda

  A mythical bird, vehicle of Vishnu.

  Gayatri

  Mantra. The most sacred verse in the Vedas.

  Ghat

  Steps or passage leading down to a river. The burning ghat is where cremations are usually held.

  Ghatotkacha

  Son of Bheema and Hidimbi, sister of the Rakshasa Hidimba.

  Ghee

  Clarified butter poured as an oblation in sacrifices.

  Gokula

  The pastoral district on the river Yamuna where Krishna passed his boyhood.

  Ghora Angirasa

  Krishna’s guru.

  Gopas

  Cowherds.

  Govardhana

  A mountain in Vrindavan wher
e Krishna stopped the sacrifice of cows to Lord Indra and instead instituted the sacrifice to the sacred Govardhana mountain itself.

  Govinda

  Herdsman, an epithet of Krishna.

  Goyuta

  A measure of distance, according to some it is half a yojana or four miles.

  Greatfather

  Bheeshma.

  Gurudeva

  A guide or teacher, especially one who performs the initiations (diksha) of students. ‘Deva’ is added to guru as a sign of respect.

  Hanuman

  The ‘monkey’ god of the Ramayana. He is the son of Vayu the wind god, and is hence able to fly. In the Mahabharata he is the brother of Bheema (mythically also the son of Vayu).

  Hardikyavarman

  Young son of Kritavarman. Became ruler of Martikkiavarta according to Krishna’s instructions.

  Hastina, Hastinapura

  Elephant City. The capital of the Kauravas; its ruins have been identified about sixty miles northeast of Delhi.

  Hidimba

  A demon whom Bheema defeated in the forest after their escape from the Lac Palace.

  Hidimbi

  Hidimba’s sister by whom Bheema fathered a son, Ghatotkacha.

  Himavat

  The Himalayas.

  Hiranyadhanusha

  A king of a forest tribe. Ekalavya, the great archer, became his adopted son.

  Homa

  The sacred fire.

  Hotravahana

  A saintly king, the grandfather of Amba.

  Hotri

  The priest of the sacrifice, he who calls and brings down the gods and gives them the offering.

  Indra

  God of heaven. Lord of the Hindu pantheon.

  Indradhanush

  Eldest’s elephant.

  Indragopa

  An insect of red colour.

  Indraloka

  Indra’s domain, sphere or world, to which, after death, all Kshatriya heroes go.

  Indraprastha

  The capital of the Pandavas; the name is still used for a section of Delhi.

  Jambavati

  Daughter of Jambavat, presumed to be of an aboriginal tribe, wife of Krishna.

  Jarasandha

  Literally, assembled by Jara. The tyrant king of Magadha, so named because he was born in two halves to the two wives of Brihadratha.

  Jaya, Jayanta, Vijaya, Jayatsena, Jayadbala

  All names suggesting victory. Code names of the Pandavas for emergency situations when they were in disguise in Panchala.

  Jayadratha

  King of Sindhu, and husband of Duhshala, Duryodhana’s only sister.

  Jayatsena

  King of Magadha, son of Jarasandha. One of the sons of Dritharashtra. Also a Kosala warrior on the side of Duryodhana.

  Jhillin

  A courtier in Indraprastha during the exile of the Pandavas, according to our story.

  Jimuta

  Famous wrestler killed by Bheema at the court of Virata.

  Jishnu

  Literally, victorious, triumphant. An epithet of Indra and of Indra’s son Arjuna.

  Kailasha

  A Himalayan mountain, the abode of Shiva and, in some legends, of Kubera, god of wealth.

  Kali

  The terrible form of the Divine Mother who blesses through chastising.

  Kalikuta

  The virulent poison that emerged during the churning of the primeval Ocean. It was fed to Bheema by Duryodhana.

  Kalinga

  Name of a country lying to the South of Odra or Orissa and extending to the mouth of the Godavari.

  Kaliyuga

  Literally, the age of Kali. The Kaliyuga is the fourth age of the world, when darkness, falsehood and disorder reign. Also known as the age of iron.

  Kamarupa

  Area on the West coast.

  Kambojas

  A clan.

  Kamyaka

  One of the forests where the Pandavas lived during their twelve years of exile.

  Kampala Kampilya

  An ancient town in South Panchala; the capital city of King Virata.

  Kamsa

  The tyrannical king of Mathura who was killed by Krishna, his nephew.

  Kanika

  A crafty Brahmin minister of Dhritarashtra.

  Kanka

  The name adopted by Yudhishthira when he spent his thirteenth year in exile at the court of Virata.

  Karaputa

  A container, a large vessel.

  Karma

  The Hindu theory of birth and rebirth, developed in philosophical terms on the basis of cause and effect.

  Karna

  Son of Kunti, by the sun god Surya, before her marriage to Pandu. He was abandoned by Kunti and brought up by Adhiratha the charioteer and his wife Radha.

  Kartika

  Month of the Hindu calendar.

  Kashi

  One of the seven sacred cities of India, and the earliest name of the city of Varanasi (Banaras).

  Kartaveerya

  The patronymic name of Arjuna. A son of Kritaveerya. An ancestor of the Pandavas.

  Kashyapa

  Literally, tortoise. A Vedic sage in the Mahabharata.

  Kaurava

  Descendants of Kuru.

  Kaustubha

  The jewel of Krishna which emerged from the primeval churning of the Ocean Samudramanthana.

  Keechaka

  Brother-in-law of the king of Virata; he was rolled into a lump of flesh by Bheema for making immoral advances towards Draupadi.

  Kekayas

  The people of Kekaya situated in the north between Sindh and Madra.

  Kera-raja

  Ruler of Kerala.

  Keradesh

  Present day Kerala, on the southwest coast of India.

  Khandava

  Indra’s forest in Kurukshetra which was burnt by Agni with the help of Krishna and Arjuna.

  Khandavaprastha

  The ruined city which Krishna rebuilt and renamed Indraprastha.

  Kokila

  Koel. The Indian cuckoo.

  Kosala

  One of the kingdoms of eastern India.

  Kravyad

  Corpse-burning fire.

  Kripacharya

  A son of Rishi Sharadvad by a nymph; and the brother of Kripi, Drona’s wife.

  Kripi

  Tradition ascribes her paternity to the Rishi Sharadvat; sister of Kripa; later she became the wife of Drona and mother of Ashwatthama.

  Krishna

  Literally, the Dark One. Son of Devaki and Vasudeva. Since his father Vasudeva was the brother of Kunti, wife of Pandu, Krishna is a first cousin of Yudhishthira, Beema and Arjuna.

  Kritavarman

  Krishna,s cousin and Satyaki’s brother who chose to fight on the side of Duryodhana. One of the three Kuru warriors who was with Ashwattama when he massacred the sleeping sons of Draupadi in their camp at night. He was killed in the drunken brawl in Dwaraka by Satyaki.

  Kshatriya

  The second, warrior or ruling caste of Hinduism.

  Kumkum

  Literally, saffron. From Sanskrit: kumkuma. Decorative red spot applied in feminine make-up in the centre of the forehead.

  Kunti

  Mother of Karna during her maidenhood; and mother of Yudhishthira, Bheema and Arjuna. Krishna’s father’s sister.

  Kuntibhoja

  King of Kuntiraj; adoptive father of Kunti. He fought on the side of Yudhishthira.

  Kuru

  Prince of the lunar race; ancestor of Dhritarashtra and Pandu; hence the race called the Kaurava race.

  Kurujangala

  A region in ancient North India of which Hastinapura was the capital.

  Kurukshetra

  Area to the south of the river Saraswati and north of Drishadvati; site of the Kaurava-Pandava war.

  Kusha

  A special kind of grass (Poa cynosuroides) used in sacred rituals.

  Kushasthali

  Renamed Dwaraka, it is
the city to which Krishna led his

  clans when they left Mathur to escape the frequent attacks of Jarasandha.

  Lakshmi

  The goddess of good fortune, prosperity and beauty.

  Latavesta

  A mountain situated on the southern side of Dwaraka.

  Leela

  Play, game; the cosmic play.

  Madra

  An ancient kingdom of Bharata situated near the river Jhelum. Madri, the wife of Pandu, was Princess of Madra. Her brother Shalya was King of Madra and was tricked into fighting for Duryodhana against his nephews.

  Madri