Bhishma

Bhishma is a son of the river spirit Ganga, an elder in the Kuru lineage, and one of the

most formidable commanders of the Kaurava army. Although he allies himself with

Duryodhana, he… read analysis of Bhishma

Aśvatthaman

Aśvatthaman is a warrior Brahmin and the son of Drona. He becomes one of the last

commanders of the Kaurava army and is most famous for his deadly night raid against

the Pandava army… read analysis of Aśvatthaman

Drona

Drona is a warrior Brahmin who instructs both the Kauravas and the Pandavas in the

ways of war. He is also the father of Aśvatthaman. During the Kurukshetra war, he sides

with Duryodhana, despite… read analysis of Drona

Karna
Karna is the son of Kunti and a sun god, but his birth is kept secret and he is not

considered one of the Pandavas, despite sharing a mother with some of them. He

earns… read analysis of Karna

Draupadi

Draupadi is a princess who is the daughter of Drupada and who eventually becomes the

co-wife of all five Pandava brothers. She is a famously dignified and loyal wife, and one

of the inciting incidents… read analysis of Draupadi

Janamejaya

Within Ugraśravas’s retelling of the Mahabharata, the king Janamejaya listens to

Vaiśampayana tell the story of the Kurukshetra War. He is particularly interested in the

tale because it describes his ancestors (with Arjuna… read analysis of Janamejaya

Abhimanyu

Abhimanyu is the son of Arjuna and Subhadra. Despite his youth, he is a powerful

warrior, although during the Kurukshetra War, a group led by Drona manages to

surround Abhimanyu and kill him. His… read analysis of Abhimanyu

Samjaya
Samjaya is the narrator for many of the scenes from the Kurukshetra battle, and he

describes what happened each day to his blind king, Dhritarashtra. He constantly

reminds Dhritarashtra that the Kaurava losses on… read analysis of Samjaya

Ugraśravas

Ugraśravas is the narrator for the frame story in the Mahabharata, telling all of the

events to Śaunaka, although he is mostly just reporting information that originally comes

from Vaiśampayana. He is… read analysis of Ugraśravas

Vidura

Vidura is a half-brother to Dhritarashtra and one of his most prominent advisers. Known

for his wisdom, Vidura favors the Pandavas and tries to persuade Dhritarashtra not to

go to war against them, but Dhritarashtra… read analysis of Vidura

Pandu

Pandu is the husband of Kunti and Madri, and his descendants are called the

Pandavas. Technically, Pandu is not the biological father of any of his children due to a

curse that he received… read analysis of Pandu

Śakuni
Śakuni is an advisor to Duryodhana, helping him come up with and carry out his plan to

rob the Pandavas of their kingdom by exploiting Yudhishthira’s gambling addiction.

Śakuni represents the dangers of… read analysis of Śakuni

Ghatotkaca

Ghatotkaca is the half-Rakshasa son of Bhima and the sister of a Rakshasa named

Hidimba. He is a bald giant who slays many warriors on the battlefield, sometimes using

the power of illusions… read analysis of Ghatotkaca

Sikhandin

Sikhandin is the child of Drupada, originally female and named Sikhandini but

eventually transforming into a new body and taking on a new male identity with the

name Sikhandin. Sikhandin plays a role in… read analysis of Sikhandin

Amba, Ambika, and Ambalika

Amba, Ambika, and Ambalika are three sisters that Bhishma kidnaps and forces to have

children with Vyasa (since he himself is celibate). Amba closes her eyes during sex,

giving birth to the blind Dhritarashtra… read analysis of Amba, Ambika, and Ambalika

Ganga
Ganga is a strikingly beautiful seer who is actually the goddess of the Ganges River in

mortal form. When Pratipa encounters her one day, he is overcome by her beauty but

ultimately decides that to… read analysis of Ganga

Uttara

Uttara is Virata's son. When the Pandavas are living in Virata's city, Duryodhana mounts

an attack. Because Virata has been drawn away from the city, Uttara is in charge, so he

rushes into battle… read analysis of Uttara

Minor Characters

Kunti

Kunti is the mother of the five Pandavas and Karna. She raises the Pandava brothers

after the death of her husband and their father, king Pandu, although, due to a curse on

Pandu, he is not the biological father of any of Kunti’s children.

Gandhari

Gandhari is the wife of Dhritarashtra and the mother of his 100 sons, including

Duryodhana. In order to be more like her blind husband, she voluntarily wears a

blindfold.

Indra
Indra is the king of the gods in Hinduism. He rules over a heaven where all the virtuous

characters go at the end of the story, and he is the biological father of the Pandava

brother Arjuna.

Nakula and Sahadeva

Nakula and Sahadeva are the youngest of the Pandava brothers. They are twins, the

biological children of twin gods and Pandu’s second wife Madri. Both prove themselves

to be skilled swordsmen during the Kurukshetra War, although their elder brothers all

play a more prominent role.

Brahma

A creator figure, Brahma is one of the supreme gods in Hinduism. While he is

associated with learning and knowledge, he also created some of the most powerful

celestial weapons.

Vishnu

Vishnu is one of the supreme gods of Hinduism. He often takes the form of a mortal

avatar, and he spends the majority of the Mahabharata as Krishna.

Śiva

– Śiva is one of the supreme gods of Hinduism and often associated with destruction.

Aśvatthaman prays to Śiva before his night raid and is able to kill almost an entire army

by taking them by surprise.

Bharata
Bharata is the son of Duhshanta and Śakuntula. He founds the famous Bharata lineage,

which includes both the Kauravas and the Pandavas and which gives the Mahabharata

its name.

Vasu

Vasu is an ancient king and huntsman who accidentally impregnates a river spirit that

gives birth to twins, one of whom is Satyavati.

Parikshit

Parikshit is a Kuru king and the father of Janamejaya. As a newborn, he gets killed by

Brahma’s Head, but Krishna revives him.

Rama Jamadagnya

Rama Jamadagnya is a warrior Brahmin who kills all of the Kshatriya warriors 21 times

because he believes it will restore balance to the universe.

Madri

Madri is the second wife of Pandu and mother of Karna and also the twins Nakula and

Sahadeva. After Pandu dies from touching her (due to a curse), she kills herself and

leaves her children with Kunti.

Śaunaka

Śaunaka is the chief of a group of seers in the Naimisha Forest, and he listens to

Ugraśravas’s re-telling of the Mahabharata.

Kripa is a Brahmin seer who assists Aśvatthaman on the night raid by guarding the

entrance to the Pandava camp and killing people who tried to escape.

Takshka

Takshka is a deadly snake king who kills Parikshit, motivating Janamejaya to hold the

snake sacrifice.

Śakuntula

Śakuntula is a beautiful woman who attracts the attention of King Duhshanta when he

sees her in the forest. She is devastated when he seemingly forgets about her after

marrying her, but eventually they get back together and have a son name Bharata, who

founds the Bharata lineage.

Śamtanu

Śamtanu is an important ancestor of the Pandavas and Kauravas who marries

Satyavati and gives birth to Bhishma as well as to eight sons with Ganga, whom she

immediately drowns because they are a group of deities called the Vasus who need to

return to their immortal forms.

Virata

Virata is the king of the city where the Pandavas spend their 13th year of exile in

disguise in his court (following their gambling loss to Duryodhana).

– Jayadratha is an ally of Duryodhana who plays an important role in the death of

Abhimanyu in battle, motivating Arjuna (Abhimanyu’s father) to decapitate Jayadratha in

revenge.

Dhrishtadyumna

– Dhrishtadyumna kills Drona while he mistakenly believes that his son, Aśvatthaman,

is dead. Later, Aśvatthaman gets revenge on Dhrishtadyumna by ritualistically killing

him without a weapon so that he is denied the glory of dying in battle.

Satyaki

Satyaki is an ally of Yudhishthira who ends up being one of the few survivors of the

Kurukshetra war. He dies of a curse many years after the war that causes his allies to

turn against each other.

Kali

Kali is the personification of evil and bad luck, whose name is associated with the Kali

Age, a period of decline that begins after the events of the Mahabharata.

Uttanka

Uttanka is a great ascetic seer who is most famous for being one of the few people to

see Krishna’s true form while out in the desert.

Narada
Narada is a distinguished seer who tells stories with important moral lessons to

Yudhishthira.

Duhshanta

Duhshanta is the king who falls in love with Śakuntula after seeing her in the forest.

Their son is Bharata, head of the Bharata lineage.

Paraśara

Paraśara is a great seer who becomes the father of Vyasa.

Satyavati

Satyavati is the daughter of Vasu and the mother of Vyasa. (She is different from the

Satyavati who marries Śamtanu.)

Drupada

Drupada is the father of Draupadi and an ally of the Pandavas. He gets killed in battle

by Karna.