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Division of Hastinapura: clean up

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	=== Division of Hastinapura ===		=== Division of Hastinapura ===
	After the [[lakshagraha]] incident, in which the Pandavas are apparently killed, Dhritarashtra mourns but is able to finally name Duryodhana as his heir. When the Pandavas are revealed to have survived, Duryodhana refuses to cede his title as heir when the obviously sour relations between the [[Kauravas]] and the [[Pandavas]] come to focus. On Bheeshma's advise, Dhritarashtra splits the country in two, giving Hastinapur to Duryodhana and [[Khandavprastha]] to Yudhishthira.<ref>{{Cite book\|last1=Valmiki\|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qj9bDwAAQBAJ&q=Dhritrashtra+khandavaprastha&pg=PT2606\|title=Delphi Collected Sanskrit Epics (Illustrated)\|last2=Vyasa\|date=2018-05-19\|publisher=Delphi Classics\|isbn=978-1-78656-128-2\|language=en}}</ref~~><ref name="Vyas 1992"/~~>		After the [[lakshagraha]] incident, in which the Pandavas are apparently killed, Dhritarashtra mourns but is able to finally name Duryodhana as his heir. When the Pandavas are revealed to have survived, Duryodhana refuses to cede his title as heir when the obviously sour relations between the [[Kauravas]] and the [[Pandavas]] come to focus. On Bheeshma's advise, Dhritarashtra splits the country in two, giving Hastinapur to Duryodhana and [[Khandavprastha]] to Yudhishthira.<ref name="Vyas 1992"/><ref>{{Cite book\|last1=Valmiki\|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qj9bDwAAQBAJ&q=Dhritrashtra+khandavaprastha&pg=PT2606\|title=Delphi Collected Sanskrit Epics (Illustrated)\|last2=Vyasa\|date=2018-05-19\|publisher=Delphi Classics\|isbn=978-1-78656-128-2\|language=en}}</ref>

	=== The game of dice ===		=== The game of dice ===

>Blablubbs: Reverted edits by GreaterGud (talk) to last version by Blablubbs. Block evasion: EditingGodguru

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Reverted edits by GreaterGud (talk) to last version by Blablubbs. Block evasion: EditingGodguru

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122.161.52.62: ISO 15919 translitration is more correct and wide as compared to IAST which does not include all devanagri letters.

2021-09-04T15:22:54Z

ISO 15919 translitration is more correct and wide as compared to IAST which does not include all devanagri letters.

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{{about|the figure in the Hindu epic Mahābhārata|the figure in Buddhist mythology|Dhṛtarāṣṭra}}
{{short description|Blind ruler of Kuru kingdom in Indian epic Mahabharata}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2015}}
{{Infobox character
| color = #FFC569
| info-hdr = Personal Information
| image = The blind king Dhrtarastra listens as the visionary narrator Sanjaya relates the events of the battle between the Kaurava and the Pandava clans.jpg
| caption = The blind king Dhritarashtra listens as the visionary narrator Sanjay relates the events of the battle between the Kaurav and the Pandav clans
| weapon = [[Gada (mace)]]
| affiliation = [[Kuru dynasty]]
| spouse = [[Gandhari (Mahabharata)|Gandhari]]
| family = '''Parents''' ''{{small|see [[Niyoga]]}}''{{bulleted list|[[Ved Vyas]] (Biological Father)|[[Ambika (Mahabharata)|Ambika]] (Mother)|[[Vichitravirya]] (Deceased Father)}}'''Half Brothers''' {{bulleted list|[[Vidura]] (from [[Characters in the Mahabharata#Ambika's maid|Parishrami]])|[[Pandu]] (from [[Ambalika]])}}
| children = '''Sons''' from Gandhari<br>[[Kauravas|100 sons]] including {{bulleted list||[[Duryodhana]]|[[Dushasana]]|[[Vikarna]]}}'''Daughter''' from Gandhari {{bulleted list|[[Dushala]]}}'''Sons''' from [[Characters in the Mahabharata#Gandhari's maid|Sugadha]]{{bulleted list|[[Yuyutsu]]}}
| relatives = '''Half-Cousins''' ''{{small|see [[Niyoga]]}}''{{bulleted list|[[Shuka]] (from Vatikā)}}
}}

'''Dhritarashtra''' ({{lang-sa|धृतराष्ट्र}}, [[ISO 15919|ISO-15919]]: Dhr̥tarāṣṭra) was a Kuru king who featured heavily in the [[Hindu]] epic ''[[Mahabharata]]'' as the interim King of the [[Kuru Kingdom]] with its capital at [[Hastinapur]]. He was born to [[Vichitravirya]]'s first wife [[Ambika (Mahabharata)|Ambika]]. Dhritarashtra was born blind.<ref>"Hinduism: An Alphabetical Guide", by Roshen Dalal, p. 230, publisher = Penguin Books India</ref> He fathered one hundred sons and one daughter, [[Dushala]], by his wife, [[Gandhari (Mahabharata)|Gandhari]] and a son, [[Yuyutsu]], by his wife's maid. These children, including the eldest son [[Duryodhana]], but not including Yuyutsu and Dushala, came to be known as the [[Kauravas]]. Gandhari, his wife, sacrificed her eyesight, as he was blind, by blindfolding herself; hence, she could not see.

== Etymology and historicity ==
''Dhṛtarāṣṭra'' means "He who supports/bears the nation"<ref>{{cite book|last1=Apte|first1=Vaman Shivaram|title=A practical Sianskrit-English Dictionary|date=1957|publisher=Prasad Prakashan|location=Poona|url=http://dsalsrv02.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/philologic/getobject.pl?c.3:1:1060.apte |chapter=धृतराष्ट्र}}</ref>

A historical [[Kuru Kingdom|Kuru King]] named Dhritarashtra Vaichitravirya is mentioned in the ''[[Kāṭhaka]] Saṃhitā'' of the [[Yajurveda]] ({{circa}} 1200–900 BCE) as a descendant of the [[Rigveda|Rigvedic]]-era King [[Sudas]] of the [[Bharatas (tribe)|Bharatas]]. His cattle was reportedly destroyed as a result of the conflict with the [[Kóryos#Indian tradition|''vrātya'']] ascetics; however, this Vedic mention does not provide corroboration for the accuracy of the Mahabharata's account of his reign. Dhritarashtra did not accept the vratyas into his territory, and with the aid of rituals, the vratyas destroyed his cattle. The group of vratyas were led by Vaka Dālbhi of [[Panchala]].<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Witzel |first=Michael |year=1995 |title=Early Sanskritization: Origin and Development of the Kuru state |journal=EJVS |volume=1 |issue=4 |url=http://www.ejvs.laurasianacademy.com/ejvs0104/ejvs0104article.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070611142934/http://www.ejvs.laurasianacademy.com/ejvs0104/ejvs0104article.pdf |archive-date=11 June 2007 |pages=17, footnote 115}}</ref><ref>Michael Witzel (1990), [http://www.people.fas.harvard.edu/~witzel/vamsa.pdf "On Indian Historical Writing"], p.9 of PDF</ref>

== Birth and early life ==
With [[Vichitravirya]] having died of sickness, [[Bhishma]] unable to take the throne because of his vow, and [[Bahlika (Mahabharata)|Bahlika]]'s line unwilling to leave the Bahlika Kingdom, there was a succession crisis in [[Hastinapur]]. [[Satyavati]] invites her son [[Vyasa]] to impregnate the queens [[Ambika (Mahabharata)|Ambika]] and [[Ambalika]] under the [[Niyoga]] practice. When Vyasa went to impregnate Ambika, his scary appearance frightened her, so she closed her eyes during their union; hence, her son was born blind.<ref>{{cite book|title=The Sacred books of the Hindus|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=12kSkNpBx-sC|publisher=Genesis Publications|page=94|year=2007|isbn = 9788130705439}}</ref>

Dhritarashtra, along with his younger half-brother [[Pandu]] is trained in the military arts by Bhishma and [[Kripacharya]]. Hindered by his handicap, Dhritarashtra is unable to wield weapons, but has the strength of one hundred thousand elephants due to boon given by [[Vyasa]], and is said to be so strong that he can crush iron with his bare hands.<ref name=" Ganguli">Ganguli, Kisari Mohan. The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa Translated into English Prose by Kisari Mohan Ganguli. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Web.</ref>

When it came time to nominate an heir, [[Vidura]] suggested that Pandu would be a better fit because he was not blind. Though bitter at the result, Dhritarashtra willingly conceded the crown, though this act would flower into the protectiveness he would have over his crown later in life.<ref>Kalyāṇakara, Bā Ha. Dhr̥tarāshṭra. Nāgapūra: Ākāṅkshā Prakāśana, 2007.</ref> Dhritarashtra marries [[Gandhari (Mahabharata)|Gandhari]] of Hastinapur's weakened and lowly vassal [[Gandhara|Gandhar]]; Gandhari covers her eyes with cloth in order to better understand her husband's blindness.<ref>Suri, Chander Kanta. The Life and times of Shakuni. Delhi: for All, 1992. Print</ref> He and Gandhari had one hundred sons, called the [[Kauravas]] and one daughter [[Dushala]]. He also had a son named [[Yuyutsu]] with a concubine.

== Reign ==
[[File: Sri Santsujata and King Dritarastra.jpg|thumbnail|left|Sage Sanatsujata teaches [[Sanatsujatiya|Atma vidya]] to King Dhṛtarāṣṭra]]
After the incident with [[Kindama|Rishi Kindama]], Pandu retired to the forest. Hence, Dhritarashtra became the de facto king. Through the blessings of [[Vyasa]], he and Gandhari have one hundred sons and a daughter, with his oldest son, [[Duryodhana]], becoming his heir. Upon Duryodhana's birth, ill omens appeared; many sages and consultants advised Dhritarashtra and Gandhari to abandon the baby. But they refused to do so; Duryodhana grows up with a princely education and his parents thought that he will be a great heir.

However, when Pandu dies, Kunti and her sons come to Hastinapur, living alongside Dhritarashtra's children. [[Yudhishthira]], Pandu's eldest son, is older than Duryodhana. Given that Pandu was the king and that Yudhishthira is [[divine filiation|born of the god]] [[Dharma]], he has a strong claim to the throne. A succession crisis begins; though recognizing Yudhishthira's merits, Dhritarashtra favours his own son, blind to his faults. Upon much pressure from the Brahmin council, [[Vidura]], and [[Bhishma]], Dhritarashtra reluctantly names Yudhishthira as his heir.<ref name="Vyas 1992">{{Cite book|last=Vyas|first=Ramnarayan|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fmYAdJHqd3cC&q=crowning+of+Yudhishthira&pg=PA29|title=Nature of Indian Culture|date=1992|publisher=Concept Publishing Company|isbn=978-81-7022-388-7|language=en}}</ref>

=== Division of Hastinapura ===
After the [[lakshagraha]] incident, in which the Pandavas are apparently killed, Dhritarashtra mourns but is able to finally name Duryodhana as his heir. When the Pandavas are revealed to have survived, Duryodhana refuses to cede his title as heir when the obviously sour relations between the [[Kauravas]] and the [[Pandavas]] come to focus. On Bheeshma's advise, Dhritarashtra splits the country in two, giving Hastinapur to Duryodhana and [[Khandavprastha]] to Yudhishthira.<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Valmiki|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qj9bDwAAQBAJ&q=Dhritrashtra+khandavaprastha&pg=PT2606|title=Delphi Collected Sanskrit Epics (Illustrated)|last2=Vyasa|date=2018-05-19|publisher=Delphi Classics|isbn=978-1-78656-128-2|language=en}}</ref><ref name="Vyas 1992"/>

=== The game of dice ===
[[File: Disrobing of Draupadi.jpg|thumb|Draupadi disrobed in Dhritarashtra's assembly. Dhritarashtra seated in the centre.]]

[[Shakuni]], [[Gandhari (character)|Gandhari]]'s brother, was a master of dice as he could control them. He along with his nephew [[Duryodhana]] conspired in a game of dice and invited the Pandavas to gamble. The Pandavas eventually lost their kingdom, wealth, and prestige and were exiled for thirteen years. [[Draupadi]], the wife of the Pandavas, was humiliated in court after [[Dushasana]] tried to disrobe her. The helpless blind king only intervened after counselling with Gandhari when Draupadi was going to curse the [[Kuru Kingdom|Kuru]] dynasty. Though individuals like [[Vikarna]] and [[Vidura]] objected to the wrongdoing of Duryodhana, most of the spectators were helpless due to their obligations to [[Hastinapur]]; Dhritarashtra could have spoken out but did not.

== The Kurukshetra War==
[[File: Krishna Pleads with Dhritarashtra to Avoid War.jpg|thumb|Krishna requests Dhritarashtra to avoid war.]]
Lord [[Krishna]] as a peace emissary of Pandavas travelled to Hastinapura persuading Kauravas to avoid bloodshed of their own kin. However, Duryodhana conspired to arrest him which resulted in a failure of the mission. After Krishna's peace mission failed and the war seemed inevitable, [[Vyasa]] approached Dhritarashtra and offered to grant him a divine vision so that Dhritarashtra could see the war. However, not willing to see his kin slaughtered, Dhritarashtra asked that the boon be given to [[Sanjaya]] his charioteer. Sanjaya dutifully narrates the war to his liege, reporting how [[Bhima]] killed all his children. Sanjaya would console the blind king while challenging the king with his own viewpoints and morals. When Lord Krishna displayed his Vishvarupa (Universal Form) to [[Arjuna]] on the battlefield of [[Kurukshetra]], Dhritarashtra regretted not possessing the divine sight.<ref name="Ganguli"/>

[[File:The_mourning_of_Dhritarashtra.jpg|thumb|Dhritrashtra mourns the death of his sons.]]
Dhritarashtra was confident that Bhishma, [[Drona]], [[Karna]] and other invincible warriors would make the [[Kaurava]] camp victorious. He rejoiced whenever the tide of war turned against the Pandavas. However, the results of the war-devastated him. All of his sons and grandsons were killed in the carnage. Dhritarashtra's only daughter [[Duhsala]] was widowed. [[Yuyutsu]] had defected to Pandava's side at the onset of war and was the only son of Dhritrashtra who had managed to survive the Kurukshetra War.<ref>[http://www.storypick.com/yuyutsu-moral-kaurava/ Yuyutsu was one of the 11 who managed to survive the war].</ref>

=== Crushing of Bhima's metal statue ===
Dhritarashtra was furious with [[Bhima]] for mercilessly slaying all his sons, especially [[Duryodhana]]. After the war ended, the victorious Pandavas arrived at Hastinapur for the formal transfer of power. The Pandavas go to embrace their uncle and give their respects. Dhritarashtra hugged [[Yudhishthira]] heartily. When Dhritarashtra turned to Bhima, Lord Krishna sensed the danger and asked Bhima to move Duryodhana's iron statue of Bhima (used by the prince for training) in his place. Dhritarashtra crushed the statue into pieces and then broke down crying, his anger leaving him. Broken and defeated, Dhritarashtra apologized for his folly and wholeheartedly embraced Bhima and the other Pandavas.<ref>[[Bhima|During the Kurukshetra War]]</ref>

== Later years and death ==
[[File:Death of gandhari, dhritarastra and kunti and escape of vidhura from fire.jpg|left|thumb|Death of gandhari, dhritarastra and kunti and escape of vidhura from fire]][[File: Kunti Gandhari Dhrtarashtra.jpg|thumb|Kunti leading Dhritarashtra and Gandhari as she goes to the forest in exile]]
After the great war of ''[[Mahabharata]]'', the grief-stricken blind king along with his wife [[Gandhari (character)|Gandhari]], sister-in-law [[Kunti]], and half brother [[Vidura]] left [[Hastinapur]] for [[penance]]. It is believed that all of them (except Vidura who predeceased him) perished in a forest fire and attained [[Moksha]].<ref>[http://mahabharata-resources.org/mbtn/MBTN_4_harshala.pdf Dhritarashtra, Gandhari and Kunti proceed to the forest]</ref>

==Assessment==
Throughout his reign as King of Hastinapur, Dhritarashtra was torn between the principles of [[dharma]] and his love for his son Duryodhana and often ended up endorsing his son's actions merely out of fatherly love.<ref>{{Cite web|title=12_chapter 6'|url=https://drive.google.com/file/d/1G9ZxOEksx_s68Ift_xUquiW0FJ0DZGKE/view?usp=drivesdk&usp=embed_facebook|access-date=2020-09-29|website=Google Docs}}</ref>

Dhritarashtra is physically strong yet mentally weak, who is easily manipulated by his brother in law, Shakuni.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Nanda|first=Rishi Nanda, Mehak Mahajan|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=h1DPDwAAQBAJ&q=was+dhritarashtra+strong&pg=PT130|title=Break Your Leadership Chakravyuh: Stories and Learnings from Indian Mythology|date=2020-02-10|publisher=Notion Press|isbn=978-1-64678-700-5|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Guha|first=Soma|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9OdrQGX1QA8C&q=Dhritarashtra+manipulated+by+Shakuni&pg=PA188|title=Mahabharata: The Game Vol - 1|date=2007|publisher=Scholastic India|isbn=978-81-7655-816-7|language=en}}</ref> Dhritarashtra appears in ''[[Mahābhārata]]'' sections that have been circulated as separate scriptures, most notably the ''[[Bhagavad Gita]]'', whose dialogue was narrated to him.
{{Contains special characters|Indic}}

== See also ==
{{Commons category|Dhritarashtra}}
*[[Gandhari (character)]]
*[[Kauravas]]
*[[Duryodhana]]

== References ==
{{reflist}}

{{Mahābhārata}}
{{HinduMythology}}

[[Category:Mythological kings]]
[[Category:Blind royalty and nobility]]
[[Category:Characters in the Mahabharata]]
[[Category:Ancient Indian monarchs]]
[[Category:Vedic period]]
[[Category:People related to Krishna]]

Dhritarashtra - Revision history

BarneyMoh54: revise

CleanupBot: /* Division of Hastinapura */clean up

>Blablubbs: Reverted edits by GreaterGud (talk) to last version by Blablubbs. Block evasion: EditingGodguru

122.161.52.62: ISO 15919 translitration is more correct and wide as compared to IAST which does not include all devanagri letters.