Apasmāra

When Dronacharya saw that his students had been sufficiently educated, he assembled the Kuru elders and informed them, the Kuru princes have now completed their education. I suggest there be a tournament of arms where they may display their prowess.Vidura made the necessary arrangements so that all will be able to witness the prowess of these mighty youths. Understanding the intentions of the King, Vidura left the palace and began making preparations for the tournament of arms. Drona chose a piece of land devoid of trees for holding the demonstration. He also chose an auspicious day and offered a sacrifice to God in the presence of a vast crowd. After this, skilled artisans built a large stage as per the specifications prescribed by the scriptures. They also built a large hall for the lady spectators. On the day of Tournament, the king accompanied by his ministers, Bhishma and Kripa arrived at the arena. Gandhari, Kunti, and the other royal ladies were also present. The public al

As stated earlier, Kunti, before her marriage to Pandu, had conceived a child by the Lord Surya, the sun god. Due to fear of her relatives, she placed the child in a basket and set it afloat on the river Ganges. The child was picked up by Adhiratha, a well known carpenter and charioteer and his wife Radha. He was given the name Karna. They raised the child very carefully for sixteen years. On Karna's sixteenth birthday, his father offered him a new chariot with horses. Not feeling a desire to drive the chariot, karna addressed his mother, expressing his desire to learn archery and fight. Radha then explained to her foster son Karna all that had happened on how she had found him at the bank of the Ganges wrapped in precious silk and floating in a basket. Hearing about his mysterious past, he was struck with wonder. After consulting with his mother and father, he took permission from them and left for the city of Hastinapura, desiring to find a martial guru. Karna's goal wa

As Training for Kuru princes continues.... One day Drona called for Yudhisthira and Duryodhana, and ordered them, to go among the citizens and find someone who has some faults. When you have found that person, bring him to me. Drona then requested Duryodhana to go among the citizens and find someone who is superior in quality to you. When you find that person, bring him to me. Both the students then left, and Drona returned to his quarters. At the end of the day Duryodhana returned to his teacher and informed him, O my teacher, I have searched the kingdom for a person who is superior in quality to me, but I have not found anyone. Having concluded my inspection, I have returned to your presence. Drona then dismissed Duryodhana. When the sun had set on the horizon, Yudhisthira arrived and offered obeisances to his martial teacher. Drona then inquired, Have you found someone of inferior quality? Yudhisthira replied, I have searched all day, but I could not find anyo

When Drona was teaching martial arts to the Kaurava princes, princes from many countries flocked to him. One of them was Ekalavya, son of Hiranyadhanus, King of the Nishadas. Since the Nishadas were of a mixed race, they were considered to be of a lower order in the social hierarchy. Therefore, Drona expressed his inability to accept Ekalavya as his student, in keeping with the conventions observed at that time. Drona refused to accept him. After bowing at Drona's feet, Ekalavya went back to the forest, made a clay image of Drona and began to worship it. He practiced with great zeal in front of this deity of Drona, and in due course all the science of weaponry became known to him. One day the Pandavas and the Kauravas set out for the forest on a hunting excursion.They took along a dog for helping them in hunting. The dog strayed away and came to the place where Ekalavya was stationed. Seeing his frightful sight, the dog began to bark. The Nishada prince, wanting to ex

Arjuna was devoted to his Guru . Though Drona taught everyone the same way, Arjuna  excelled all others in skill of Archery . Drona was convinced that none of his other disciples could match Arjuna. However, Drona  adopted a trick to teach his own son Aswadhama more than what he thought others. He would ask all his disciples to fetch water from the river. While he gave narrow-mouthed vessels to others, he would give a broad-mouthed vessel to Aswadhama so that he could fill it fast and return earlier than others. In that time, Drona would teach his son several superior methods of using weapons. Arjuna discovered this and got his narrow-mouthed vessel filled quickly by using the Varuna Astra (weapon) and managed to return at the same time as did Aswathama. He was thus able to receive the additional lessons that Drona gave his son. Arjuna soon became the favorite student of his Guru. Drona once secretly instructed his cook not to give food to Arjuna in the dark. However, one night w

Whenever Bhima was engaged in playing with the sons of Dhritarastra, his strength became apparent. Bhima proved superior in speed, striking objects, consuming food and scattering dust. Bhima would seize them by the hair, throw them down, and drag them along the ground. In his playful mood, Bhima would accidentally break their knees and shoulders. When the sons of Dhritarastra would climb a tree to gather fruits, Bhima would shake the tree until the fruits as well as Kauravas fell to the ground. He would play with them in childishness, but would never hurt them out of envy. It was obvious that Bhima could challenge all the one-hundred sons of Dhritarastra single-handedly, Duryodhana began to make deceitful plans to harm him. He thought, There is no person who can compare with Bhima's strength. He does not think twice of challenging my one-hundred brothers to combat and exterminate him. Duryodhana selected a beautiful place called Pramanakoti on the banks of th