Brothers and Sisters of Mahabharata

Satyavati and her brother were born out of fish and found by their father, the king of fishermen, Dusharaj. This made them Matsya Santan i.e. children of fishes. They were said to be actually the children of Chedi King Vasu and Apsara-turned-fish Adrika. The King however took away her brother as his heir and gave her away to the fisherman, making her selfish and hungry to be Queen. As Satyabati married the Emperor of Hastinapur with the desire to be Raajmata to the King, her future son, her brother was given a small kingdom in the west. It is in present-day Rajasthan in Alwar and Bharatpur. The Kingdom was called Matsya Kingdom. Its capital was named Viratnagari under the influential king Virat. This city is present-day Bairat in Rajasthan. Thus King Virat was Satyabati's grand-nephew and relative to the Pandavas who sought his help during exile. Grand-nephew or not is unclear but there was some relation as Virat was a descendant of her brother. If Virat is in fact Grand-nephew to Satyabati and thus a cousin to the Pandavas and Kauravas, then Abhimanyu, son of Pandava Arjun and Uttara, daughter of Virat were in fact, cousins. Distant relatives, they were yet married. Satyavati died at the hermitage shortly before the war.

Gandhari, The princess of Gandhar in present-day Afghanistan, was the only youngest sister among her brothers. She was forcefully married by Bheeshma to the blind prince Dhritarashtra. Her brother Shakuni, the Gandhar prince stayed with her at Hastinapur much against her will. Bheeshma had killed their family. He sought revenge through his nephews. He plotted to make the Kuru clan fight against each other and thus was in a constant conflict with Gandhari, who misunderstood his love for his sister.
Duhsala was the only Kuru prince among all her hundred and five-male brothers and cousins. She was pampered among all her brothers and cousins irrespective of the fact how much her brothers and cousins were at war. She was married to her eldest brother's friend, Jayadrata who was the king of Sindhu. She had a discontent marriage to the cruel king who was spared time and again by her cousins, The Pandavas because they loved her. Finally, when he killed Abhimanyu, Arjun killed him but Duhsala was not angry at her cousins. She knew his lust for their wife. Her son became king of Sindhu and was again spared by Arjun at a war for the sake of his love for his cousin-sister. Her unimportant feature in the epic proves her minority status among her brothers and in the palaces of both Hastinapur and Sindhu.

Subhadra was the only sister of Balarama and Krishna and she was very pampered as she was much younger than them, born after their parents were freed by Krishna. She stayed with them at Dwarka and was an intelligent lady. Her marriage was arranged to Duryodhan by Balarama who was impressed by his student but Krishna knew his sister secretly loved their cousin Arjun. Arjun's mother, Kunti and their father Vasudeva were first cousins. Against the whole Yadu clan, Krishna helped them escape and get married. They had the warrior prince Abhimanyu shortly after marriage but Subhadra had to return to Dwarka with her newborn when the Pandavas left for Exile. Balarama accepted his sister back and trained his nephew. She reunited with her cousins and husband after thirteen years on the occasion of Abhimanyu's marriage. She remained in the palace to look after her grandson Parikhit when the Pandavas left for the Himalayas.

Draupadi, The Princess Of Panchal, and the shared wife of the Pandavas were born out of the Agni with her brother Dhristadyumna. Drupad loved his son and heir more than the daughter he ever wanted but that did not sore the relationship among the siblings. They were close and respected and stood up for each other. When Draupadi left for Exile she left her children in the care of Dhristadumnya and Sikhandi, their elder cousin. Dhistadumnya was a brave warrior and remained undefeated. He killed Drona for which Arjun was angry at him but Draupadi Defended her brother. He was killed by Aswathama wrongly after the war along with his nephews.

Uttar and Uttara were twins born to King Virat and Queen Sudeshna of Viratnagari. Uttara was a graceful dancer and a strong person who got married to Abhimanyu at the age of thirteen or fourteen, Uttar was an ambitious warrior who wanted to be the greatest warrior king on earth and make his father proud. He died at the age of Fourteen in the Kurukshetra War trying to save Yudhisthir. They were taught dancing and archery by Arjun. Uttara and Uttar were close to each other in the very little part they play in the great epic, it is seen that Uttara deeply mourns her brother's demise.

The relationship between brothers and sisters as depicted in the Mahabharata was strange and unique in their own ways. They were married, enemies, friends or even completely unknown to one another. Yet these relationships yielded some kind of lessons in the epic. All their characters were bound by a sibling bond that stayed throughout even after the wars.

The Queen of Mewar

There have been many versions, folktales and local stories in Rajputana on their Kings and Queens. None of these versions is, however, historical as history only mentions her as wife to Maharana Pratap, his consort and Queen Mother to Amar Singh. She was busy making a garland when Ratnawati rushed inside, hardly able to breathe. Concerned, the elder sister stopped her work and looked at her panting young sibling. " What is it? What's wrong?" "Jija maa sa is not letting me go to the haat mela alone. Please come with me, I need to buy some bangles." The spoiled younger one pleaded. " Wait, let me do my aarti first, then we can go." The reluctant Ratnawati sat down impatiently. In another room, their mother was helping their father get ready for the day. He was the Samant of Bijolia, the representative of the Rana of Mewar. Throughout the day he had to deal with administrative problems in Bijolia and give people justice, but today he had something...

The Queen Mother of Mewar

Let me start by saying, this is a representation of history and folklore in my own words, trying to show how great a soul this lady was. And let me start with a line here. “Naari Ki Balidaano Ko Sadev Bhulta Aya hai Itihas.” Yes, most women lay forgotten in the pages of history, only alive through the folklore and local tales that fail to reach the pages of books due to a lack of historical evidence. Their names don’t remain, but their haunting hand prints on the fort walls before Jauhar, their names on inscriptions as daughter, wife and mother, often make us wonder, who were they, how were they and how were their lives! Historically, the only thing we know about Maharani Jaivanta Bai Songara, princess of Jallore and queen of Mewar is that she was the first queen of Rana Udai Singh II, the mother of most probably her only son Maharana Pratap and daughter of ally of Rana Sanga, Akshay Raj of Jallore. Apart from that her entire life has no historical existence and is spun on ...

Teeja Saka Chittor Ra

23rd February 1568. The sun rose on the eastern horizon, not with the hope of a new day. But, with the horror of what was to follow. The first rays of the Sun God were met by the chants of “Jai Bhavani!” that echoed in the air of Chittorgarh. The Mewaris knew it was time. Four months back, when the Mughals camped at the base of the fort, a helpless Chittorgarh had watched. Rana Udai Singh had left with his closest aides to make the new city westwards, his capital. If rumours were to be believed, he had left behind a cavalry of 8000 soldiers, under Rao Jaimal of Merta and Rawat Patta of Kelwa to look over the fort. He had also left behind some of his lesser queens and infant princes, as an assurance to the people that Chittorgarh was invincible. Their safety and hope had lived in Kunwar Pratap. Truth be said, they had already taken the crown Prince as their King. Ever since Ranisa had left with him till he became the Senapati, he had time and again proved to be a better lead...

The Princess of Marwar

Historically we know nothing about Phool Bai Rathore except that she was the daughter of Ram Singh Rathore, granddaughter of Raja Maldeo Rathore and fifth wife of Maharana Pratap. There is no historical evidence of Akbar's alliance with her in particular however Maldeo did give his granddaughters in a marriage alliance with Mughals and other major dynasties. Phool Kanwar's cousin Maanwati Bai (Better known as Jodha Bai or Jagat Gossain) married Salim, Akbar's son and later emperor Jahangir. The Princess was in her chambers. The Mehrgarh Fort was in a quiet dark state and everyone feared what lay ahead. The men of the Rathore clan had gone to ally with the Mughal emperor Akbar. Rao Maldeo had decided that it was the only way to save Marwar's future. His second son Udai and youngest one Chandrasen supported his decision to save the country. But his heir and firstborn Ram Singh Rathore was a rebel. He was not going to bow down before the Mughals and lose his dignity. A...

Maharana Pratap: The Sun of Mewar

Many of you have read my fan fiction as well as historical representations of the life and times of Maharana Pratap Singh of Mewar. I provided small details of his life in many articles. But never have I ever made a separate historical post on him. It is very difficult to put together his life without the help of folklore because historical evidence is scarce. This one was requested and hence here it goes. Needless to say, this one is very special. This is a blend of history and folklore. Leave your love. ❤️ Background and Birth: The year was 1540. Mewar was under a cloud of uncertainty. Banbir, their ruler for four years now, was a very incompetent ruler who always spent his time in luxury, drinking and dancing with girls. The crown prince Udai Singh was rumoured to be killed by him. Chittorgarh was in darkness. Around March 1540, Mewar once again saw hope as some trusted generals along Mewar with Kunwar Udai Singh attacked Chittorgarh taking Banbir by surprise. He was soon to re...

The Navroz Incident

This popular folklore has been recreated from Col, James Todd's Annals and Antiquities of Rajasthan. Names I have added, from my own historical research. This one is especially for Garima to thank her for the books and love! Yet another Veer Gatha from the dessert! Ps. This is folklore with no evidence of history, please remember that Bikaner, lying in the western part of the Thar, was a small yet independent state ruled by a clan of Marwari Rathores until Raja Kalyanmal surrendered to Akbar's Rajput Policies in 1571. His fourth son Prithviraj Rathore, being a great warrior and poet was respected as one of the "Nine Gems" in Emperor Akbar's court. Prithviraj, was the son of Kalyanmal's first wife and queen Rani Songaribai Rainawati, a cousin of Maharani Jaiwanta Bai of Mewar. Hence he was cousin to the valiant Pratap Singh of Mewar. He was also married to one of Rana Udai Singh of Mewar's daughters from his other wives, sister to Kunwar Pratap, Baisa Ja...

Symphony of Love

A week was enough for the master to be pleased enough with the new student to tell the Sultan that she was ready for her first performance. The Sultan was extremely pleased and rewarded him with a gold chain. As the master bowed to leave, the guards announced the arrival of the chief queen. Sultan Baz Bahadur sat upright. She was his first bride, a childhood alliance his father had forced upon him when he did not even know what marriages implied. Now he only saw her face when she had complaints about the inner palace and its inhabitants. Honestly, he expected her there since Roopmati arrived. His queen did not like changes especially if those changes were threatening to her position. The Chief Queen arrived with her maids, dismissed them at the threshold and came up to her husband to bow and greet him. “What brings you here?” Baz Bahadur asked, with a lingering smile on his lips. The queen could hear the hint of taunt in his voice. She forced a smile. Her marriage to this reckles...

The Warrior Bride

Kelwa/Kailwa is a small village situated around two hours away from Chittorgarh and an hour from Lake Pichola. It was mainly inhabited by the Rathores and ruled by the Chundawat clan, who were once the rulers of Mewar. One chief of Kelwa, was Rawat Sihaji Singh Chundawat. He was a very close ally of Rana Sanga. His son Jaga Singhji too died fighting for Rana Udai Singhji in one war with the Afghans in 1555 AD. Kelwa’s heir was the minor child of Jaga Singhji and his widow Sajjan Bai Songara Chauhan. Being from the clan of the Chauhan Rajputs, she was a warrior at heart. From the early age of about four, her only son was brought up under his uncle Naga Singhji, to fight for his motherland and serve it like all other Mewaris. Fatta (Patta), as fondly called by everyone was a deft warrior even before he reached his teens. His name and bravery spread across the land, to Rana Udai Singh’s ears in Chittorgarh. He was also the nephew to Ranaji’s close aide Rawat Chundawatji. Upon the order of...

Kalbhoj: The Legend of Bappa Rawal

The Historical fiction is woven mainly from folklore from James Todd's semi-historical book. However, a very vague historical presence is found in Bhojraj the first king of Mewar. The year was 713AD. The Maurya decedents, Moris ruled over the Chitrakut area of west Rajasthan. The areas around Chitrakoot were ruled by many small Chieftains. One of them was Rawal Mahendra II a Guhilot descendent. (The decendent of Guha and Nagaditya) As most power struggles suggest, one of his ministers betrayed and killed him and made himself Rawal. Once, Kalbhoj was in the forests near Nagda close to the borders of the Solanki ruler, looking after his herds. The youngest Solankhini princess was out in the forest playing with her Sakhis. They were making failed attempts to make a Jhula on a banyan tree. Kalbhoj was watching them try when one of the Sakhis spotted him. Witty and charming he always grabbed everyone's attention. Mahendra II had two wives, his first being a Paramara princess from Mt...

Chittorgarh: The First Jauhar

Jauhar is the process a Rajutani welcomes, by jumping into the fire altar, invoking the Gods, and choosing death over dishonour when their men lose battles and the enemies come for a siege. It is the most honourable death a Rajputani can have and unlike Sati, it is not forced upon them or compulsory. Jauhar Gate The Chittorgarh Fort once had the palace of Rana Ratan Singh near the location of the Vijay Stambh and his Jal Mahal at the end of the fort near the main Pol. When Allauddin Khilji invaded Chittor everything was destroyed but later, kings who came, rebuild the Jal Mahal and reestablished the Jauhar Sthal in honour of Queen Padmavati, or Padmini. Rawal Ratan Singh ruled Mewar when Allauddin Khilji was the Sultan of Delhi. He was a peace-loving man who spend most of his time indulging in the music and poems of his courtiers. One such Courtier was Raghav Chetan who worked as a spy for Khilji. Jal Mahal Entrance Ratan Singh had 15 queens and 19 sons the chief one being his 15t...

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