In the Hindu epic Mahabharata, Bhima is the second among the five Pandavas. The Mahabharata relates many events that portray the might of the hero Bhima. Bhima was born when Vayu, the wind god, granted a son to Kunti and Pandu. After the death of Pandu and Madri, Kunti with her sons stayed in Hastinapura. From his childhood, Bhima had a rivalry with his cousins Kauravas, especially Duryodhana. Duryodhana and his uncle, Shakuni, tried to kill Bhima multiple times. One was by poisoning and throwing Bhima into a river. Bhima was rescued by Nāgas and was given a drink which made him very strong and immune to all venom.
Yudhishthira also known as Dharmaraja, was the king of Indraprastha and later the King of Kuru Kingdom in the epic Mahabharata. He is the eldest among the five Pandavas, and is also one of the central characters of the epic.
Nakula was the fourth of the five Pandava brothers in the ancient Indian epic, the Mahabharata. He and his twin brother Sahadeva were the sons of Madri, one of the wives of the Pandava patriarch Pandu, and Ashvini Kumaras, the divine twin physicians of the gods, whom she invoked to beget her sons due to Pandu's inability to progenate. Nakula is described as the most handsome man of his lineage, and was renowned for his beauty, skill in swordsmanship and horse keeping.
Sahadeva was the youngest of the five Pandava brothers in the ancient Indian epic, the Mahabharata. He and his twin brother Nakula were the sons of Madri, one of the wives of the Pandava patriarch Pandu, and Ashvini Kumaras, the divine twin physicians of the gods, whom she invoked to beget her sons due to Pandu's inability to progenate. Kunti, Sahadeva's step-mother, loved him the most despite his birth to Madri. Sahadeva is renowned for his wisdom, knowledge of astrology, and skill in swordsmanship.
Daradas were an ancient people who lived north and north-west to the Kashmir Valley. This kingdom is identified to be the Gilgit region, in the Gilgit-Baltistan region along the river Sindhu or Indus. They are often spoken along with the Kambojas. The Pandava hero Arjuna had visited this country of Daradas during his northern military campaign to collect tribute for Yudhishthira's Rajasuya sacrifice.
Malla Kingdom was situated in the Gangatic plain between the Kosala and Videha. The epic Mahabharata speaks about a Malla conquered by the Pandava Bhima during his military campaign through the eastern kingdoms to collect tribute for King Yudhishthira's Rajasuya sacrifice.
Chedi was a kingdom which fell roughly in the Bundelkhand division of Madhya Pradesh regions to the south of river Yamuna along the river Ken. Its capital city was called Suktimati in Sanskrit.
Dasarna Kingdom was one of the many kingdoms ruled by Yadava kings in ancient central and western India. It lay to the south of the Chedi and Panchala kingdoms, in northern Madhya Pradesh. The Panchala prince Sikhandi married a princess from Dasarna. Sikhandi was alleged to be 'one of the neuter-gender'. This led to a dispute between the Dasarna king and the Panchala king Drupada.
Madra Kingdom was a kingdom grouped among the western kingdoms in the ancient Indian epic Mahabharata. Its capital was Sagala in the Madra region. The Kuru king Pandu's (Pāṇḍu) second wife was from Madra kingdom and was called Madri. The Pandava twins, Nakula and Sahadeva, were her sons. Madri's brother Shalya was the king of Madra. Though affectionate to the Pandavas, he was tricked to give support to Duryodhana and fought against the Pandavas during the Kurukshetra War. He was killed by Yudhishthira, the eldest Pandava. Other than the Madra kingdom with Sagala as its capital, it is believed that there was a Western Madra and a Northern Madra.
Gandhāra was an ancient Indian kingdom mentioned in the Indian epics Mahabharata and Ramayana. Gandhara prince Shakuni was the root of all the conspiracies of Duryodhana against the Pandavas, which finally resulted in the Kurukshetra War. Shakuni's sister was the wife of the Kuru king Dhritarashtra and was known as Gandhari after the area of Gandhāra. Puskalavati, Takshasila (Taxila) and Purushapura (Peshawar) were cities in this Gandhara kingdom. Takshasila was founded by Rama's brother Bharata. Bharata's descendants ruled this kingdom afterwards. During the epic's period, the kingdom was ruled by Shakuni's father Suvala, Shakuni and Shakuni's son. Arjuna defeated Shakuni's son during his post-war military campaign for Yudhishthira's Aswamedha Yajna.
Kasmira or Kashmira was a kingdom identified as the Kashmir Valley along the Jhelum River of modern Jammu and Kashmir. During the epic ages this was one among the territories of the Naga race. The Kasmiras were allies of the Kuru king Duryodhana.
Suhma Kingdom was an ancient kingdom during the Late Vedic period on the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent, which originated in the region of Bengal. The kingdom included present day districts of Midnapore and parts of Hoogly and Howrah of West Bengal. This kingdom was mentioned in the epic Mahabharata along with its neighbouring kingdom Prasuhma.
Andhra was a kingdom mentioned in the epics Ramayana and Mahabharata. It was a southern kingdom, currently identified as Indian state of Andhra Pradesh which got its name from.
Dravida is mentioned as one of the kingdoms in the southern part of present-day mainland India during the time of the Mahabharata.
Nishada is a tribe mentioned in ancient Indian literature. The ancient texts mention several kingdoms ruled by this tribe. In the Mahabharata, the Nishadas are described as hunters, fishermen, mountaineers or raiders that have the hills and the forests as their abode. Their origin is associated with a king called Vena who became a slave to wrath and malice, and became unrighteous. Sages killed him for his malice and wrongdoings. Ekalavya is stated to be an archer of a Nishada tribe in the text.
Kirata Kingdom in Sanskrit literature and Hindu mythology refers to any kingdom of the Kirati people, who were dwellers mostly in the Himalayas. They took part in the Kurukshetra War along with Parvatas (mountaineers) and other Himalayan tribes.
Bhagadatta was the son of Narakasura, and the king of Pragjyotisha in Hindu mythology. Bhagadatta was born from a limb of the asura called Bashkala. He was a renowned warrior, and was known to be a great friend of Indra. When Arjuna embarked on a conquest to help his brother Yudhishthira perform the rajasuya yajna, Bhagadatta was one of the first kings to be conquered by him.
Sabha Parva, also called the "Book of the Assembly Hall", is the second of eighteen books of Mahabharata. Sabha Parva traditionally has 10 parts and 81 chapters. The critical edition of Sabha Parva has 9 parts and 72 chapters.
