PanduIn the Hindu epic Mahabharata, Pandu (Pāṇḍu) was a king of the Kuru Kingdom. He was the foster-father of the five Pandava brothers, who were the boons bestowed upon his wife Kunti by a number of deities, owing to his inability to bear children following sage Kindama's curse. He belonged to the Kuru Dynasty. When Vichitravirya died due to sickness, Bhishma was unable to ascend the throne because of his vow, and Bahlika's line was unwilling to leave the Bahlika Kingdom. There ensued a succession crisis in Hastinapura.
KripaKripa (Kṛpa), also known as Kripacharya (Kṛpācārya), is a figure in Hindu History. According to the epic Mahabharata, he was a council member of Kuru Kingdom and a teacher of the Pandava and Kaurava princes. Born to warrior-sage Sharadvan and nymph Janapadi in an extraordinary manner, Kripa and his sister Kripi were adopted by King Shantanu of Kuru Kingdom. Kripa was trained by his birth father and became a great archer like him. Later in the epic, he fought on the Kauravas's side against the Pandavas in the Kurukshetra war and was among the few survivors of the war.
UpapandavasIn the Hindu epic Mahabharata, the Upapandavas (, उपपाण्डव, lit. junior Pandavas), also known as Pandavaputras (, पाण्डवपुत्र, lit. sons of Pandavas), Draupadeyas or Panchakumaras (, पञ्चकुमार, lit. five sons) are the five sons of Queen Draupadi from each of the five Pandavas. They are Prativindhya, Sutasoma, Shrutakarma, Shatanika and Shrutasena. They were Atirathis, as mentioned by Bhishma, and fought the Kurukshetra war on the side of the Pandavas and slew many enemy warriors.
SvargaSvarga (स्वर्गं), also known as Indraloka and Svargaloka, is the celestial abode of the devas in Hinduism. Svarga is one of the seven higher lokas (esoteric planes) in Hindu cosmology. Svarga is often translated as heaven, though it is regarded to be dissimilar to the concept of the Abrahamic Heaven. Svarga is a set of celestial worlds located on and above Mount Meru, where those who had led righteous lives by adhering to the scriptures delight in pleasures, before their next birth on earth.
Bhagavad GitaThe Bhagavad Gita (ˌbʌɡəvəd_ˈɡiːtɑː; भगवद्गीता), often referred to as the Gita (), is a 700-verse Hindu scripture, which is part of the epic Mahabharata. It forms the chapters 23–40 of book 6 of the Mahabharata called the Bhishma Parva. The work is dated to the second half of the first millennium BCE. Typical of the Hindu synthesis, it is considered one of the holy scriptures of Hinduism. The Bhagavad Gita is set in a narrative framework of dialogue between the Pandava prince Arjuna and his charioteer guide Krishna, an avatar of lord Vishnu.
RakshasaRākshasas (राक्षस, raːkʂɐsɐ ; rakkhasa; preservers) are a race of usually malevolent beings prominently featured in Hindu mythology. They reside on Earth but possess supernatural powers, which they usually use for evil acts such as disrupting Vedic sacrifices or eating humans. They are offered a distinction from yakshas, their cousins who are depicted to be forces of destruction. The term is also used to describe asuras, a class of power-seeking beings that oppose the benevolent devas.
BharadvajaBharadvaja (भरद्वाज, IAST: Bharadvāja; also spelled Bharadwaja) was one of the revered Vedic sages (maharishi) in Ancient India. He was a renowned scholar, economist, grammarian and physician. He is one of the Saptarishis (seven great sages or Maharṣis). His contributions to ancient Indian literature, specifically the Rigveda, provide significant insight into ancient Indian society. He and his family of students were the authors of the sixth book of the Rigveda.
HastinapurHastinapur is a city in the Meerut district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Hastinapura, described in Hindu texts such as the Mahabharata and the Puranas as the capital of the Kuru Kingdom, is also mentioned in ancient Jain texts. Hastinapur is located on the right bank of the Ganga river. In Sanskrit, Hastinapura translates to 'the City of Elephants' from Hastina (elephant) and pura (city). Its history dates back to the period of Mahabharata. It is said that the city was named after King Hasti.
PañcālaPanchala (पञ्चाल, IAST: ) was an ancient kingdom of northern India, located in the Ganges-Yamuna Doab of the Upper Gangetic plain. During Late Vedic times (c. 1100–500 BCE), it was one of the most powerful states of ancient India, closely allied with the Kuru Kingdom. By the c. 5th century BCE, it had become an oligarchic confederacy, considered one of the solasa (sixteen) mahajanapadas (major states) of the Indian subcontinent. After being absorbed into the Mauryan Empire (322–185 BCE), Panchala regained its independence until it was annexed by the Gupta Empire in the 4th century CE.
AshvinsThe Ashvins (Aśvin), also known as the Ashvini Kumaras and Asvinau, are Hindu twin gods associated with medicine, health, dawn, and the sciences. In the Rigveda, they are described as youthful divine twin horsemen, travelling in a chariot drawn by horses that are never weary, and portrayed as guardian deities that safeguard and rescue people by aiding them in various situations. There are varying accounts, but Ashvins are generally mentioned as the sons of the sun god Surya and his wife Sanjna.
