Parva 15 of 18 · 47 adhyayas
आश्रमवासिकपर्व
Book of the Hermitage
Āśramavāsika-parva
Setting: Hastinapura and the forest hermitages on the Ganga
Central figure: Dhritarashtra finding sannyasa at the end
Parva summary
After fifteen years, Dhritarashtra, Gandhari, Kunti and Vidura retire to the forest as vanaprastha. Vidura merges into Yudhishthira in the yogic teaching of the parva. Vyasa, through tapas, brings up the souls of the slain heroes from the Ganga for one night so that the widows may meet them. Two years later a forest fire — kindled, the elders accept, by Dhritarashtra's own homa-fire — consumes Dhritarashtra, Gandhari and Kunti, who refuse to flee. Sanjaya carries the news to Hastinapura.
Key episodes
- ●Retirement of Dhritarashtra and Gandhari
- ●Vidura merges into Yudhishthira
- ●Vyasa raises the slain from the Ganga for one night
- ●Forest fire consumes the elders
- ●Sanjaya departs to the Himalayas
- ●Yudhishthira mourns his second loss of kin
Central teaching
Even the broken can finish well. The forest receives those the palace could not heal.