The Ashramvasika Parva () ("Book of the Hermitage") is the fifteenth of the eighteen ''parvas'' (books) of the Indian epic ''

Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; , , ) is one of the two major Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epics of ancient India revered as Smriti texts in Hinduism, the other being the ''Ramayana, Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the events and aftermath of the Kuru ...

''. It traditionally has 3 parts and 39 chapters.Ganguli, K.M. (1883-1896)
Asramavasika Parva
in ''The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa'' (12 Volumes). CalcuttaDutt, M.N. (1905) ''The Mahabharata (Volume 15): Ashramavasika Parva''. Calcutta: Elysium Press The

critical edition Textual criticism is a branch of textual scholarship, philology, and literary criticism that is concerned with the identification of textual variants, or different versions, of either manuscripts (mss) or of printed books. Such texts may range i ...

has 3 parts and 47 chapters. The ''Ashramvasika Parva'' describes the fifteen years of prosperity under Yudhishthira following the

great war World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. The five Pandavas live in amity with the survivors of their uncle's family, with Yudhishthira scrupulously consulting Dhritarashtra on matters of governance. Draupadi becomes friends with Gandhari, Vyasa and other sages visit the kingdom with their fables and wisdom. The parva recites the next two years when Dhritarashtra and Gandhari take ''

sannyasa ''Sannyasa'' (), sometimes spelled ''sanyasa'', is the fourth stage within the Hinduism, Hindu system of four life stages known as ''ashrama (stage), ashramas'', the first three being ''brahmacharya'' (celibate student), ''Gṛhastha, grihast ...

'' and live a hermit's life in a forest.John Murdoch (1898), The Mahabharata - An English Abridgment, Christian Literature Society for India, London, pages 125-128

Structure and chapters

The Ashramvasika Parva traditionally has 3 ''upa-parvas'' (parts, little books) and 39 ''adhyayas'' (chapters). The following are the sub-parvas: # Ashramavasa Parva – describes the fifteen-year reign by Yudhishthira after the great war, followed by the departure of Kunti, Dhritarashtra and Gandhari to Vyasa's hermitage for ''sannyasa''. It also mentions Vidura and his death. # Putradarsana Parva – recites the visit of Pandavas to meet Kunti, Dhritarashtra and Gandhari at the hermitage. In the forest on the request of Gandhari, Kunti & other women, sage Vyasa with his powers, resurrect the dead warriors of Kurukshetra war for one night. # Naradagamana Parva – describes the death of Kunti, Dhritarashtra and Gandhari. Narada visits to console those in grief. Yudhishthira performs cremation rites for all of them. The parva describes the 15-year rule by

Pandavas The Pandavas (Sanskrit: पाण्डव, aɳɖɐʋᵊ IAST: Pāṇḍava) is a group name referring to the five legendary brothers, Yudhishtira, Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula, and Sahadeva, who are central figures of the Hindu epic ''Mahabhara ...

with

Yudhishthira Yudhishthira (Sanskrit: युधिष्ठिर, ud̪ʱiʂʈʰiɾᵊ IAST: ''Yudhiṣṭhira''), also known as Dharmaputra, is the eldest among the five Pandavas, and is also one of the central characters of the ancient Indian epic ''Ma ...

as the king. Yudhishthira commanded his brothers to cause no grief to Dhritarashtra and Gandhari, who had lost all their hundred sons. Bhima alone however could not forgive the evil that his cousins had done, and his servitors disregarded Dhritarashtra's wishes. Once, the angry Vrikodara harshly reminded the old man how he had dispatched all his mighty sons to the other worlds. Hearing these words, Dhritarashtra gave way to cheerlessness and sorrow. After fifteen years Dhritarashtra and his wife sought the king's permission to take ''sannyasa'' (renunciation of domestic life for moksha). Yudhishthira initially disagreed but was persuaded otherwise by Vyasa. Before leaving for the forest Dhritarashtra dispatched Vidura to the king, asking for the means to perform a ''

śrāddha Śrāddha (Sanskrit: श्राद्ध), is a ritual that some Hindus perform to pay homage to their pitṛs (dead ancestors). They believe that the ritual would provide peace to the ancestors in their afterlife. It is performed on the death an ...

'' for the deceased Kurus. While Yudhishthira and Arjuna accepted the request, Bhima was enraged. Following the performance of the rites, Dhritarashtra, Gandhari, and Kunti left for the forest.

Sanjaya Sanjaya (Sanskrit: सञ्जय, meaning "victory") or Sanjaya Gavalgana is a figure from the ancient Indian Hindu epic ''Mahābhārata''. Sanjaya is the advisor of the blind king Dhritarashtra, the ruler of the Kuru kingdom and the fathe ...

and

Vidura Vidura (), plays a key role in the Hindu epic ''Mahabharata''. He is described as the prime minister of the Kuru kingdom and is the paternal uncle of both the Pandavas and the Kauravas. Legend Mandavya's Curse The rishi Mandavya cursed Yam ...

joined them in Vyasa's hermitage. One year later the Pandavas went to meet with them. On seeking Vidura, Yudhishthira found him performing rigorous ''tapasya'' deep in the forest; without his uttering a word, energy left Vidura's body and entered that of Yudhishthira, after which Vidura fell dead. When he tried to cremate the corpse an invisible voice prevented the king from doing so. Vyasa then told him how Vidura was an incarnation of Dharma, the god of righteousness, born in the mortal world through the curse of Mandavya. Vyasa understanding the sorrow of Dhritarashtra, Gandhari, and Kunti offered them a glimpse of their sons and relatives who died at Kurukshetra. The spirits of the slain then rose from the waters of the Bhagirathi, with Vyasa offering the blind Dhritarashtra celestial vision for beholding those heroes. The five Pandavas met Karna, Abhimanyu, and the sons of Draupadi. After some time that large ghostly host disappeared and went to their respective regions. On hearing the story the sceptical Janamejaya asked Vyasa to prove the veracity of the tale, upon which Vyasa summoned Parikshit. The Pandavas, at Dhritarashtra's own request, then returned to Hastinapura. Two years later,

Narada Narada (, ), or Narada Muni, is a sage-divinity, famous in Hinduism, Hindu traditions as a travelling musician and storyteller, who carries news and enlightening wisdom. He is one of the Manasputra, mind-created children of Brahma, the creator ...

informed Yudhishthira that Dhritarashtra, Gandhari, and Kunti had willingly perished in a forest-fire, after ordering Sanjaya to escape. Narada consoled the grieving Pandavas by telling that their aged relatives had found peace in the abodes of the gods. Yudhishthira then performed their śhraddha.

Jaimini's Shasramukharavanacaritam

Shasramukharavanacaritam claims to be part of the Asramavasika parva of the Jaiminiya ''

''. It begins with Janmejaya's queries following the return of

Sita Sita (; ), also known as Siya, Jānaki and Maithili, is a Hindu goddess and the female protagonist of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. Sita is the consort of Rama, the avatar of god Vishnu, and is regarded as an avatar of goddess Lakshmi. She is t ...

and her sons to

Rama Rama (; , , ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the seventh and one of the most popular avatars of Vishnu. In Rama-centric Hindu traditions, he is considered the Supreme Being. Also considered as the ideal man (''maryāda' ...

. Here Sita proceeds to kill the thousand-headed

Ravana According to the Mahakavya, Hindu epic, ''Ramayana'', Ravana was a kingJustin W. Henry, ''Ravana's Kingdom: The Ramayana and Sri Lankan History from Below'', Oxford University Press, p.3 of the island of Lanka, in which he is the chief antag ...

who had defeated all gods and Rama.

English translations

Ashramvasik Parva was composed in Sanskrit. Several translations of the book in English are available. Two translations from the 19th century, now in the public domain, are those by Kisari Mohan Ganguli and Manmatha Nath Dutt. The translations vary with each translator's interpretations. Debroy, in 2011, notesBibek Debroy, ''The Mahabharata: Volume 3'', , Penguin Books, pp. xxiii - xxiv of Introduction that updated critical edition of Ashramvasik Parva, after removing about 30% of verses generally accepted so far as spurious and inserted into the original, has 3 parts, 47 ''adhyayas'' (chapters) and 1,061 ''shlokas'' (verses). The entire parva has been "transcreated" and translated in verse by the poet Dr. Purushottama Lal published by Writers Workshop.

Quotes and teachings

Ashramvasika parva, Chapter 5: Putradarsana parva, Chapter 34:

References

External links