The Shalya Parva () ("Book of Shalya") is the ninth 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 ...

''. Shalya Parva traditionally has 4 parts and 65 chapters.Ganguli, K.M. (1883-1896)
Shalya Parva
in ''The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa'' (12 Volumes). CalcuttaDutt, M.N. (1901) ''The Mahabharata (Volume 9): Shalya 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 ...

of Shalya Parva has 4 parts and 64 chapters. Shalya Parva describes the appointment of

Shalya Shalya (, lit. '' Pike'') is a character in the ''Mahabharata'', one of two Sanskrit epics of Ancient India. He was a powerful king from the Bahlika clan, ruling over the Madra kingdom in the Northwest region of the Indian subcontinent. Altho ...

as the fourth commander-in-chief of the Kaurava alliance, on the 18th day of the

Kurukshetra War The Kurukshetra War (), also called the Mahabharata War, is a war described in the Hindu Indian epic poetry, epic poem ''Mahabharata'', arising from a dynastic struggle between two groups of cousins, the Kauravas and the Pandavas, for the thr ...

. The parva recites Salya's death, how

Duryodhana Duryodhana (, Help:IPA/Sanskrit, ̪ʊɾjoːd̪ʱən̪ᵊ ), also known as Suyodhana, is the primary antagonist in the Hindu epic ''Mahabharata.'' He is the eldest of the Kaurava, Kauravas, the hundred sons of King Dhritarashtra and Queen Gan ...

becomes mortally wounded and out of the entire Kaurava army, only 3 survive. Shalya Parva also describes how

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 ...

and

Krishna Krishna (; Sanskrit language, Sanskrit: कृष्ण, ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme God (Hinduism), Supreme God in his own right. He is the god of protection, c ...

are victorious in the war, but lament the enormous toll of the 18-day war on human lives on both sides. The book mentions the anger and hatred among survivors on the

Kaurava ''Kaurava'' is a Sanskrit term which refers to descendants of Kuru, a legendary king of India who is the ancestor of many of the characters of the epic ''Mahabharata''. Usually, the term is used for the 100 sons of King Dhritarashtra and his ...

s side, particularly

, Aswatthama,

Kritavarman Kritavarma (, ) is a warrior from the Yaduvamsha in Hindu mythology. He appears as a minor character in the Mahabharata, fighting in the Kurukshetra war for the Kauravas ''Kaurava'' is a Sanskrit term which refers to descendants of Kuru, a l ...

and

Kripa Kripa (, ), also known as Kripacharya (, ), is a figure in Hindu mythology. 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 a ...

.John Murdoch (1898) ''The Mahabharata - An English Abridgment''. London: Christian Literature Society for India, pp 96-101

Structure and chapters

The Shalya Parva traditionally has 4 ''upa-parvas'' (parts, little books) and 65 ''adhyayas'' (chapters). The following are the sub-parvas: : 1. Shalya-vadha Parva : 2. Shalya Parva : 3. Hrada-praveca Parva : 4. Gadayuddha Parva After three commanders-in-chief of the Kauravas army are slain,

is appointed the leader. He too is killed, as is

Shakuni Shakuni (, , ) is one of the antagonists of the Hindu epic ''Mahabharata''. He was the prince of the kingdom of Gandhara when introduced, later becoming its king after the death of his father, Subala. He was the brother of Gandhari (Mahabharata), ...

. Millions more soldiers die on the last day of war.

, in anguish, leaves the battlefield and goes to a lake.

Bhima Bhima (, ), also known as Bhimasena (, ), is a hero and one of the most prominent characters in the Hindu epic ''Mahabharata''. As the second of the five Pandava brothers, Bhima was born to Kunti—the wife of King Pandu—fathered by Vayu, the ...

meets him there and challenges him to a battle. Bhima mortally wounds

by crushing his thighs, and later, Duryodhana dies. Out of 11

Akshauhini An ''akshauhini'' ( ''akṣauhiṇī'') is described in the Mahabharata (Adi Parva 2.15-23) as a battle formation consisting of 21,870 chariots (Sanskrit ''ratha''); 21,870 elephants (Sanskrit ''gaja''); 65,610 horses (Sanskrit ''turaga'') and 109 ...

s of the Kauravas, the only survivors are mortally injured Duryodhana along with Aswatthama, Kritavarman and Kripa.Bibek Debroy (2013), The Mahabharata, Volume 7, Penguin, , Section 74 - Shalya Parva From Pandavas army, all five brothers, Krishna, 2000 chariots, 700 elephants, 5,000 horsemen and 10,000 foot soldiers survive. Shalya parva describes the war as over with a heavy toll on human lives, Pandavas are victorious, yet a desire for revenge is brewing in Duryodhana, Aswatthama, Kritavarman and Kripa.

English translations

Shalya Parva was composed in Sanskrit. Several translations of the book in English are available. Two translations from 19th century, now in public domain, are those by Kisari Mohan Ganguli and Manmatha Nath Dutt. The translations vary with each translator's interpretations. Clay Sanskrit Library has published a 15 volume set of the Mahabharata which includes Shalya Parva. This translation is modern, by multiple authors and uses an old manuscript of the epic. The translation does not remove verses and chapters now widely believed to be spurious and smuggled into the epic in 1st or 2nd millennium AD. Debroy, in 2011, notes that updated critical edition of Shalya Parva, after removing verses and chapters generally accepted so far as spurious and inserted into the original, has 4 parts, 64 ''adhyayas'' (chapters) and 3,541 ''shlokas'' (verses).Bibek Debroy, The Mahabharata : Volume 3, , Penguin Books, page xxiii - xxiv of Introduction Debroy has published a translated version of the critical edition of Shalya Parva in Volume 7 of his series. The entire parva has been "transcreated" and translated in verse by the poet Dr.

Purushottama Lal Purushottama Lal (28 August 1929 – 3 November 2010), commonly known as P. Lal, was an Indian poet, author, translator, professor and publisher. He was the founder of publishing firm Writers Workshop in Calcutta, established in 1958. Life an ...

published by

Writers Workshop Writing workshop may refer to: *Writing circle, a group of like-minded writers supporting each others' work * Writers workshop (activity), a workshop format for critiquing and revising work **Authors' conference or writers' conference, a type of c ...

Quotes and teachings

Shalya-vadha Parva, Chapter 1: Gadayuddha Parva, Chapter 32: Gadayuddha Parva, Chapter 60:

References

External links

Translation
by

Kisari Mohan Ganguli Kisari Mohan Ganguli (also K. M. Ganguli) was an Indian translator known for being the first to provide a complete translation of the Sanskrit epic Mahabharata in English. His translation was published as ''The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana V ...

.
Shalya Parva
Translation by Manmatha Nath Dutt
Le Mahabharata
Translation in French, by H. Fauche (Paris, 1868)
Shalya Parva in Sanskrit
by Vyasadeva and commentary by Nilakantha (Editor: Kinjawadekar, 1929) {{Mahabharata Parvas in the Mahabharata Kurukshetra War

Structure and chapters

English translations

Quotes and teachings

See also

References

External links