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The Battle of Bana and Krishna

Post author By Kayva Gokhale
Post date February 1, 2023
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By Srinidhi Murthy

Bana, an asura king who had received a boon from Lord Shiva, was confident that no warrior could defeat him on a battlefield. His illusion shattered when he was unable to match Krishna’s powers, even with Shiva by his side. Read on to know why Krishna and Shiva fought on opposite sides for an asura king.

Bana’s curse

Bana was an ardent devotee of Lord Shiva. With his thousand arms, he played various musical instruments for Shiva, as he danced the Tandava. Pleased with his devotion, Shiva assured him of his protection in any battle. After gaining Shiva’s favour, Bana became vain and arrogant. One day, he complained to Shiva that even without his thousand arms, there was no warrior equal to him, except the Lord himself. Shiva was livid upon hearing these arrogant words. To put an end to Bana’s pride, Shiva cursed him. He declared that a warrior equal to him would humiliate Bana in the future. This curse did not shock or upset Bana much to Shiva’s surprise. Instead, the asura king said that he would gladly accept this curse and would be waiting to meet his peer in a battle.

Script: Kamala Chandrakant; Illustration: Pratap Mulick

Usha’s dream

A few days after this incident, Usha, Bana’s daughter, confided to her close companion, Chitralekha, that a dark-blue-skinned prince wearing yellow garments often visited her in her dreams but disappeared quickly. Intrigued, Usha wanted to find out the identity of this prince and expressed her wish to meet him. Chitralekha was gifted with yogic powers and great artistic skills. To help the princess, she started painting portraits of all the gods, gandharvas and yakshas. When she showed Usha the portraits of Krishna and his son, Pradyumna, the princess said that the man in her dreams closely resembled the two of them. Chitralekha then painted the portrait of Aniruddha, son of Pradyumna and grandson of Krishna. Much to her delight, Usha immediately recognised Aniruddha as the prince from her dreams. Chitralekha promised Usha that she would bring Aniruddha to her as soon as possible. Then with her yogic powers, she conveyed herself to Dwaraka and found Aniruddha sleeping in his chambers. Chitralekha feared that the prince would resist coming with her if he was awake. Instead, she transported the sleeping Aniruddha to Usha’s chambers in Bana’s palace.

The secret wedding

Usha was delighted to see Aniruddha and thanked Chitralekha for her help. As soon as Chitralekha left, Aniruddha woke up from his sleep and was shocked to find a beautiful maiden in front of him. Usha greeted Aniruddha with a smile. She explained her dream to the perplexed prince and added that he had been brought to her chambers as her honoured guest due to her love for him. Usha also told him that since he had been brought to her kingdom in secrecy, he was free to leave her if he wanted to return to Dwaraka. However, Aniruddha was impressed by Usha’s beauty and grace. He reciprocated her love and decided to marry her and a secret wedding soon took place.

After their wedding, Usha and Aniruddha spent their days happily in the princess’ chamber. The guards outside Usha’s chambers became suspicious as they noticed that the princess hardly ever stepped out of her chamber. Upon investigating, they found out about Aniruddha and his secret marriage to Usha and immediately rushed to Bana. The asura king was furious when he heard about his daughter’s secret marriage. Burning with anger, he immediately rushed towards her chamber with a few guards. He ordered his guards to arrest Aniruddha and a fight ensued. The asura guards were no match for the prince and he soon slew them all with a mace. However, before Aniruddha could escape, Bana grabbed hold of him with his thousand arms. He then imprisoned Aniruddha by tying him up with serpents from head to toe.

Battle of the gods

Meanwhile, back in Dwarka, Aniruddha’s family had become worried over his four-month-long disappearance. To relieve them from their worry, Sage Narada visited Krishna’s palace and told him about the whereabouts of Aniruddha. Krishna immediately set out towards Bana’s kingdom, with Pradyumna, Satyaki and hundreds of warriors, to rescue Aniruddha. Upon finding out that Krishna meant to attack him, Bana too began his preparations for war. When Krishna reached, Bana greeted him with an equally huge army and soon a fierce battle ensued between them. As Shiva had promised his protection to Bana, he too arrived on the battlefield with his son, Kartikeya, to aid the asura. All the celestials, the sages, the gandharvas, yakshas and apsaras came in their chariots to watch the battle between Shiva and Krishna.

The battle raged on. Krishna fought with Shiva, while Pradyumna and Satyaki fought with Kartikeya and Bana respectively. Krishna destroyed Shiva’s hordes with ease and Pradyumna defeated Kartikeya after a tough battle. Sensing defeat, Bana left Satyaki to battle directly with Krishna himself. He aimed thousands of arrows at Krishna but Krishna destroyed them with his disc. Krishna then cut off all of Bana’s arms except four, to humble him. Before he could kill the asura, however, Shiva intervened and asked Krishna to spare Bana. Not only did Krishna spare Bana, but he also granted the asura immortality and everlasting youth. Accepting his defeat, Bana released Aniruddha and accepted his marriage to Usha. In the end, Krishna, Pradyumna and Satyaki returned to Dwaraka with the happy couple.

Trishanku and Vishwamitra

Post author By Kayva Gokhale
Post date December 23, 2022
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By Srinidhi Murthy

Trishanku, a king of the Ikshvaku race, wished to ascend to heaven in his mortal body. When his teacher, Sage Vasishtha refused to help him, he sought the assistance of his teacher’s rival, Sage Vishwamitra. Read more to know how Vishwamitra fulfilled the king’s wish, after enduring some obstacles from the devas.

Trishanku’s wish

Trishanku was a king belonging to the Ikshvaku dynasty. One day, he decided that he wished to enter heaven while still in his mortal body. He approached his teacher, Sage Vasishtha for help. The sage disapproved of the king’s idea as it was against the natural process. However, Trishanku was determined. He then sought the help of Vasishtha’s sons. The sage’s sons too were furious upon hearing the king’s words and refused to help him. They felt that the king had insulted their father by approaching them with a request that their father had refused and cursed him to become a Chandala (an outcaste).

Script: Kamala Chandrakant; Illustration: Ram Waeerkar

Meeting with Vishwamitra

The curse transformed Trishanku’s appearance and he no longer looked like a king. Still adamant, he approached Sage Vishwamitra, Vasishtha’s rival, to fulfil his desire. As expected by the king, Vishwamitra comforted the distressed king and agreed to help him. He summoned his sons and asked them to prepare for a pious sacrifice. He also ordered his disciples to invite all the learned sages to his hermitage for the sacrifice. After a few days, his disciples returned, informing him that all but Vasishtha’s sons, had accepted the invitation.

Major mishap

Finally, the day of the sacrifice arrived and Vishwamitra officiated as its chief priest. After the completion of the sacrifice, Vishwamitra requested the devas to accept the offering and lead Trishanku to heaven in his own body. None of the devas appeared even after a long wait. The sage was enraged. He turned to the king and declared that he would help Trishanku ascend to heaven without any help from the devas. As soon as Vishwamitra said those words, the king began to ascend towards heaven. However, when he reached heaven, Indra and the other devas barred his entry, stating that the king had been cursed by his teacher’s sons. Thus, he could have no place in heaven. The devas also declared that Trishanku should fall to the depths of the earth. Confused and shocked, Trishanku began falling down and begged to Vishwamitra to save him. Using his divine powers, Vishwamitra halted the king’s fall mid-air.

A new heaven

Determined to fulfil his promise to Trishanku, Vishwamitra began creating a new heaven around the king. He also created seven planets, the Saptarishis and twenty-seven stars, around the king and decided to make Trishanku the king of the devas. When the devas found out, they were perturbed. They immediately appeared before the sage and pleaded with him, asking him to change his decision. They also told the sage that Trishanku could not be allowed to enter heaven as he was cursed by his teacher’s sons.

However, Vishwamitra was firm in his decision. He told Indra that he could remain the sole king of heaven if he allowed Trishanku to stay suspended in heaven, along with all the newly-created planets. The devas agreed to this solution and Trishanku finally realised his dream of ascending to heaven.

Sage Durvasa’s Curse on Bhanumati

Post author By Kayva Gokhale
Post date November 18, 2022
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By Srinidhi Murthy

Sage Durvasa was known for his irritable nature and bad temper. Overwhelmed with anger, he once cursed Bhanumati, Krishna’s granddaughter, to be kidnapped by her enemy. When she was indeed kidnapped by an asura named Nikumbha, it was the joint efforts of Krishna, Pradyumna and Arjuna that saved the princess.

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Durvasa’s curse

Bhanumati was the daughter of Bhanu, who was Satyabhama and Krishna’s son. One morning, Krishna arrived at Raivataka for a grand sacrifice along with his wives, children and kinsmen. The sacrifice was held to celebrate, Rukmini and Krishna’s son, Pradyumna’s life events. He had destroyed Vajranabha, a terrible asura, and had got married to Prabhavati, Vajranabha’s daughter. While the elders in her family were busy with the sacrifice, young Bhanumati decided to explore the woods and play with her friends. As she ran into the woods, she failed to see Sage Durvasa arriving towards her and bumped into him. He was furious as Bhanumati, though only a child, almost made him lose his balance. In anger, he cursed the child that she would be kidnapped by her traditional foes.

Narada’s intervention

Script: Kamala Chandrakant; Illustration: H.S. Chavan and Ranjana

Sage Narada, who was passing by, witnessed the whole event. He chastised Durvasa for cursing a child. Durvasa immediately regretted his harsh words. To reduce the curse’s impact, the sage declared that Bhanumati would remain unharmed even after being kidnapped and would later marry a worthy man. Bhanumati and her friends were frightened by this incident and decided not to mention it to their elders, so as to not worry them. Soon Krishna and his family returned to Dwaraka after the sacrifice, unaware of all that had transpired.

Bhanumati’s abduction

Years went by and when Bhanumati was ready to get married, Bhanu planned to conduct a swayamvara to find her a worthy husband. Meanwhile, Vajranabha’s brother, Nikumbha was waiting for a perfect moment to take revenge on the Yadavas for his brother’s death, in his capital Shatpura. An opportunity soon presented itself when Nikumbha’s spies came rushing to convey their big news to him. They told him that Krishna and the Yadavas had gone for a long cruise leaving Dwaraka under the care of Ugrasena, the aged king of Mathura, and Vasudeva, Krishna’s father. The spies also added that young maidens from the family remained in Dwaraka. Nikumbha was overjoyed. Without wasting a moment, he flew to Dwaraka where he planned to kidnap Bhanumati and then defeat the Yadavas when they came to his city to rescue the princess. Bhanumati and her companions were in the garden of the secluded inner apartments of Krishna’s palace, laughing and playing. Suddenly, Nikumbha arrived and snatched Bhanumati. The asura was a powerful sorcerer. He made her and himself invisible and flew to Shatpura, much to the agony of Bhanumati’s companions. Hearing the commotion, Ugrasena and Vasudeva arrived at the place and learnt about Bhanumati’s kidnapping.

Trio to the rescue

Ugrasena and Vasudeva immediately rushed to Krishna and informed him about Bhanumati’s abduction by Nikumbha. Krishna turned to Pradyumna and Arjuna, the third Pandava, who was also accompanying them, to rescue Bhanumati. Krishna thought of Garuda, who immediately appeared before him, to take them to Shatpura. Meanwhile, Nikumbha made himself visible again and was planning to reach his city before the Yadavas could figure out his whereabouts. However, to his dismay, the asura saw Krishna and Arjuna following him on Garuda, while Pradyumna pursued him in a flying chariot. When Nikumbha tried to use Bhanumati as a shield, the terrified princess fainted. Arjuna began to use arrows to attack the asura without harming Bhanumati. Nikumbha, using his magic powers, suddenly disappeared with Bhanumati, in front of their eyes. However, Pradyumna had learnt the technique of exposing the invisible from his wife Mayavati. He exposed Nikumbha in front of Krishna and Arjuna. Vulnerable to attack, Nikumbha turned into a yellow vulture and reached Mount Gokarna. He dropped Bhanumati on the mountain and flew to Shatpura. Pradyumna carried the unconscious Bhanumati into his chariot, while Krishna and Arjuna chased Nikumbha.

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The final battle

Nikumbha entered a cave which led to his city and blocked the inner entrance. Krishna and Arjuna waited all night outside the cave with the hope that the asura might come back. Next morning, Pradyumna joined them after delivering Bhanumati safely to her father, Bhanu. When he learnt that Nikumbha had hid himself inside the cave, he began to taunt the asura to come outside. His plan worked. The asura, seething with fury, made himself invisible and charged out of the cave roaring to destroy the Yadavas. Arjuna showered arrows in the direction of the voice but Nikumbha struck him with his mace. Soon, Pradyumna was hurt too. Burning with anger, Krishna used his powerful discus on Nikumbha. Terrified, the asura disappeared again. When Pradyumna and Arjuna gained consciousness, they saw that the sky was filled with numerous Nikumbhas. The trio also split themselves into numerous forms and a new battle ensued.

Unfortunately, Nikumbha managed to capture Arjuna. Krishna and Pradyumna saw Arjuna being carried away by the asura. Krishna used his discus to cut the asura’s head off while Pradyumna received Arjuna in his chariot as he slipped from Nikumbha’s grasp. After defeating Nikumbha, the three heroes received a grand welcome in Dwaraka. Later, Narada arrived in Dwaraka and told the family about Durvasa’s curse and blessing. As per Narada’s suggestion, Bhanumati was wedded to Sahadeva, the fifth Pandava prince in a joyous ceremony.

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Story of the Ashoka Tree

The Ashoka tree plays an important role in the Ramayana. It is the tree under which Sita spends her days after being abducted by Ravana. It is also the tree under which she meets Hanuman, bringing her news of Rama’s rescue. Here is an interesting legend behind the Ashoka tree.

Sashoka was a feared cannibal. He would roam the jungles everyday and attack any travellers he found and eat them. One day, he spotted a hut near the edge of the forest. Outside it, there was a sage meditating. Surprised by how still the sage sat, Sashoka went up to him. He asked the sage how he was so calm and said that he wanted to give up his restless life and become like the sage. To this the sage replied that he himself had taken many lifetimes to attain such a state. He blessed Sashoka and said that in his next life he would be born as a tree in Ravana’s garden. When Ravana would abduct Sita and keep her captive there, Hanuman would visit her and her grief would disappear. Then Sashoka would be liberated from his grief and be known as Ashoka, the remover of sorrow.

Who were the first humans created by Brahma?

Post author By Kayva Gokhale
Post date October 31, 2022
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According to the Matsya Purana, Svayambhuva Manu and his wife, Shatarupa, are said to be the first humans created by Brahma. They were formed out of two sides of Brahma and are the ancestors of all human beings. They had five children. Sati and Dhruva were their grandchildren. Here is a look at their family tree.

Shikhandi: The Reincarnation of Amba

Post author By Kayva Gokhale
Post date October 31, 2022
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By Srinidhi Murthy

The story of Amba, the princess of Kashi, continued even after her death. She was reborn as King Drupada’s daughter to avenge the humiliation she bore in her previous birth. The connection between her two lives was a garland given by Lord Kartikeya. Read more to find out how Kartikeya’s garland helped the princess fulfill her mission.

Chaos at the swayamvara

Amba was the daughter of the king of Kashi. She wished to marry Shalva, the king of Saubha. When a swayamvara was arranged for Amba and her sisters, Ambika and Ambalika, the princess was delighted as she had already chosen Shalva as her husband. To the surprise of everyone, on the day of the swayamvara, Bheeshma, the chief of the Kurus, entered the hall. He announced that he was going to take the three brides with him to Hastinapura for his brother, Vichitravirya. He challenged the suitors to defeat him in a battle if they had any objections. The enraged suitors attacked Bheeshma but he defeated all of them. When Shalva tried to stop Bheeshma on his way to Hastinapura, the Kuru chief defeated the king with ease.

Amba’s vow

The three Kashi princesses received a warm welcome in Hastinapura. Ambika and Ambalika agreed to marry Vichitravirya but Amba expressed her wish to marry Shalva to Bheeshma. Bheeshma permitted Amba to go back to Shalva as he never wanted to keep her in Hastinapura against her will.

Script: Sanjana Kapur; Illustration: Durgesh Velhal

But to Amba’s shock, Shalva refused to marry her and asked her to return to Bheeshma. Amba was heartbroken as she became uncertain of her future. When she returned to Hastinapura, Vichitravirya refused to marry her as the princess had chosen Shalva as her husband. Hence, the princess asked Bheeshma to wed her as she was left with no other choice. Bheeshma told her that he had taken a vow to not marry anyone ever and thus refused to marry her. Amba was filled with rage and held Bheeshma responsible for her humiliation. She took a vow that one day, she would be the cause for his end.

Kartikeya’s garland

In the following days, Amba performed severe austerities to invoke Lord Kartikeya. Pleased with her penance, Kartikeya appeared before her with a garland of lotuses. He told Amba that the warrior who wears the garland would become the cause of Bheeshma’s end. Amba took the garland with her and reached out to many warriors and kings. However, all of them refused because they feared Bheeshma. Amba finally reached the court of Drupada, the king of Panchala. When he refused to wear the garland, Amba hung the garland on the palace gates and left Drupada’s city in anger.

No one dared to touch the garland for years. Meanwhile, when all her attempts to defeat Bheeshma failed, Amba performed a penance to please Lord Shiva. Shiva appeared before her and told her that she would become the cause of Bheeshma’s end in her next birth.

Princess reborn

Amba could not wait to be reborn. Hence, she built a fire and walked into it. Soon, she was reborn as Drupada’s daughter. Years passed. The princess grew up into a beautiful maiden. Due to Shiva’s boon, she also remembered every detail from her previous birth. One day, the princess saw the garland when she was walking through the palace gardens. Since no one had worn it in a long time, the princess wore the garland herself. Drupada was furious when he learned about the incident. Since he didn’t want the enmity of Bheeshma, the king banished his daughter from Panchala. The princess obeyed her father’s orders and went deep into the forest.

Shikhandi birth

The princess performed severe penance in the forest. One day, a Yaksha named Sthunakarna saw the princess and asked her the reason for her presence in the forest. The Panchala princess narrated her story to the Yaksha. Moved by her story, he agreed to help her. Sthunakarna asked her to exchange her sex with him as it would be easier for her to fulfill her revenge as a man. The princess turned into a man and came to be known as Shikhandi. Later, in the Kurukshetra war, Arjuna, following the advice of Krishna, rode with Shikhandi on the tenth day of the battle. As the Kuru chief declared that he would not attack someone who was born as a woman, Shikhandi and Arjuna shot arrows at Bheeshma, which led to his fall. With Bheeshma’s death, Shikhandi avenged Amba’s humiliation in her previous life and fulfilled his mission.

Panchajanya

The word Panchajanya has many mentions in the Puranas. Here are some of them –

1. The conch of Krishna is called Panchajanya.

2. Panchajanya is a forest near Mount Raivataka, a mountain mentioned in the Mahabharata.

3. Panchajanya is a fire born from the parts of five sages. It is also called Tapa.

Swayamvara Stories

By Srinidhi Murthy

In ancient India, a swayamvara was a practice that allowed a young maiden to choose her husband from a group of eligible suitors. There are many instances of swayamvara taking place in Indian mythology and some of these were monumental events that had far-reaching effects. Here are some such memorable swayamvara stories from mythology.

Damayanti

Nala was the generous and noble king of Nishada. He wished to marry Damayanti, the daughter of king Bheema of Kundanpur, after hearing about her from Sage Narada. One day, Nala saw a beautiful lake full of graceful swans. A small swan with golden plumes instantly caught his attention. He caught the swan by its leg and the bird cried out in pain. Nala assured the bird that he wouldn’t kill him, and that he wished to keep the swan in his palace.

Script: Abid Surti; Illustration: Souren Roy

One day soon after, the swan saw Nala weeping. When questioned by the swan, Nala told him about his wish to marry Damayanti. The swan promised the king his help and left, with the intention of returning within a week. The swan flew away and reached the royal gardens of Kundanpur. There, the bird chanted Nala’s name in front of Damayanti. Damayanti was intrigued and asked him about the identity of Nala. The swan told her all about Nala and his excellent character. Impressed, Damayanti decided that she would only marry Nala. As promised, the swan came back to Nala and told him about what had transpired. Nala was so delighted with the news that he set the swan free and sent him back to the lake. Soon, a swayamvara was arranged for Damayanti and Nala was invited to the event. On the day of swayamvara, princes from various kingdoms had gathered in a hall, but Damayanti had eyes only for Nala. She immediately put the garland around his neck, declaring her choice. After their wedding, Nala brought Damayanti to his palace, much to the joy of his subjects.

Amba, Ambika and Ambalika

Amba, Ambika and Ambalika were the daughters of the king of Kashi. The king decided to organise a swayamvara for his three daughters and invited all the eligible suitors to participate. With the permission of his stepmother Satyavati, Bheeshma, the chief of the Kurus, reached the swayamvara hall, on behalf of his brother, King Vichitraveerya of Hastinapura. He announced in the hall that he was going to take the three maidens with him to wed them to his brother and that he was ready to combat any king who would try to stop him.

Script: Kamala Chandrakant; Illustration: Subba Rao

Many kings stood up in anger to fight against Bheeshma but were defeated. He took the princesses with him and turned his chariot towards Hastinapura. Suddenly he was stopped by Shalva, the king of Saubha, who challenged him to single combat. However, Shalva was no match for Bheeshma. Bheeshma slayed Shalva’s steeds and charioteer but spared his life. Soon, he brought the three princesses to Hastinapur and the wedding date was fixed. Before the ceremony, however, Amba, the eldest of the sisters, revealed that she had already chosen Shalva as her husband, even before her swayamvara. Bheeshma allowed Amba to return to Shalva and Vichitraveerya married Ambika and Ambalika in a grand wedding ceremony.

Kunti

Pritha was the first-born child of Shoora, a Yadava king. Shoora had promised to give his first-born to the childless Kuntibhoja, the son of his paternal aunt. So, Pritha was adopted by Kuntibhoja and came to be known as Kunti in her new home. Kunti grew up to be a beautiful maiden. Hence, Kuntibhoja decided to arrange a swayamvara for her. He invited several kings and princes so that his daughter could choose her husband among them. Kunti looked at the assembled suitors and she chose Pandu, the king of Hastinapura, who looked resplendent in his royal attire. The wedding took place with full splendour and Pandu returned to Hastinapura with his wife and many gifts, presented by Kuntibhoja.

Draupadi

Draupadi was the daughter of king Drupada of Panchala. She emerged as a maiden, from the sacrificial fire with her twin brother, Dhrishtadyumna. Drupada decided to arrange a swayamvara for Draupadi, but with a contest. Drupada had always wanted Arjuna to wed his daughter. However, at the time, it was believed that Arjuna, with his four brothers and mother, had perished in a fire at Varanavata. Hence, Drupada decided to create an archery contest which could only be won by an ace archer like Arjuna. Unknown to others, the Pandavas and their mother, Kunti, was living in disguise as Brahmanas. Hearing of the swayamvara, they all arrived at Panchala.

On the day, Dhrishtadyumna announced that in order to win Draupadi’s hand, the suitors would have to string an enormous bow and then shoot five arrows simultaneously onto the eye of a revolving fish, through a revolving ring. Many kings, including Duryodhana, Karna, Shishupala and Jarasandha came to Panchala to participate in the swayamvara. The Pandavas were also in the hall, in their disguise. One by one, the suitors came, tried and failed. When Karna strung the bow and took aim, Draupadi refused to let him participate because he belonged to the Suta caste. It was then that Arjuna confidently stepped forward and his arrow found its mark. Full of joy, Draupadi garlanded Arjuna and this swayamvara changed the course of history for the entire Kuru clan.

Script: Kamala Chandrakant; Illustration: TMP Nedungadi

Lakshmana

Lakshmana was the daughter of king Brihatsena. While she was courted by many prosperous kings, she was determined to marry Krishna and expressed her wish to her father. Brihatsena was happy with Lakshmana’s choice as he had great regard for Krishna and his prowess as an archer. However, the king was worried about the wrath of other kings who also wanted to marry Lakshmana. To avoid this, Brihatsena came up with the idea to hold a swayamvara with a contest. He told Lakshmana that only Krishna could emerge victorious in the contest and claim her hand, without offending other kings.

Script: Editorial Team; Illustration: Ram Waeerkar

Invitations were sent to all eligible suitors including Krishna. When they all assembled for the contest, Brihatsena explained the rules to them. He said that the suitors had to attempt to shoot down the fish in a revolving machine, only by looking at its reflection in the water below. The contest turned out to be extremely difficult and many failed to even lift the bow. Some of them found it impossible to string it and those who successfully strung it, failed to shoot straight. Then Krishna came and lifted the bow with ease. He strung it with a smile and looked at the reflection, took aim and let go of the arrow. The aim was perfect and the fish came down in pieces. Lakshmana stepped forward happily and garlanded him. After taking leave of Brihatsena, Krishna and Lakshmana reached Dwaraka, where Rukmini and Satyabhama received them with joy.

Ketuman

The word Ketuman has many references in the Puranas. Here are some of them:

Ketuman is another name for a demon or Asura called Ketu, who was the son of Sage Kashyapa and his wife, Danu.
Sudatta, the wife of Krishna, lived in a palace called Ketuman in Dwaraka.
According to the Bhagvat Purana, Ketuman was the name of the son of Dhanvantari, who rose from the churning of the ocean and gave Ayurveda to the world.

Bheema

Bheema is one of the most important characters of the Mahabharata, the son of Kunti and Pandu through Vayu, he is also blessed with incredible physical strength. Here is a look at his ancestry and descendants.