| Virata | |
|---|---|
 A lithograph of Virata in his court by Ravi Varma Press, 1920 | |
| Information | |
| Family | Shatanika,VishalakshaSuryadatta (brothers) |
| Spouse | Sudeshna |
| Children | Shankha,Uttara (sons) andUttarā (daughter) |
Virata (Sanskrit:विराट, IASTvirāṭa) was the king of theMatsya Kingdom, in whose court thePandavas spent a year in concealment during their exile. Virata was married to QueenSudeshna and was the father of PrinceUttara and PrincessUttarā, who marriedAbhimanyu, the son ofArjuna. Abhimanyu and Uttara's sonParikshit succeededYudhishthira on the throne ofHastinapura, after the war ofMahabharata. He is the titular character of theVirata Parva, the fourth book of the epic Mahabharata[1]
Virata married his commander-in-chiefKichaka's elder sisterSudeshna. Though himself a strong warrior, he was intimidated by Kichaka's might. He was unable to stop Kichaka when he was insultingDraupadi in disguise of Sairandhri. AfterBhima killed Kichaka, Virata became independent. WhenTrigarta kingSusharma attacked him on Duryodhana's order from another direction, he fought with him bravely, but when Susharma was about to kill him, Virata was saved by Bhima. His daughterUttarā was married toArjuna's sonAbhimanyu whose sonParikshit succeededYudhishthira's throne.
He supportedPandavas in the war. Virata was nominated one of the seven commander, commandeering over anAkshauhini of the Pandavas army.Sahadeva preferred Virata to be the commander-in-chief of their army, butYudhishthira andArjuna preferredDhrishtadyumna, and Virata's nomination was outvoted.
On the first day, his son Uttara was killed byShalya. On the second day, an enraged Virata killed Shalya's son Madranjaya as revenge for Uttara. During the war, he fought Bhishma several times. On the seventh day, he confronted Drona but his horses, charioteer, banner and chariot were quickly destroyed by Drona. Then, he ran towards his son Shankha's chariot. Together, they managed to stop Drona's onslaught and wounded him. An enraged Drona shot a poisonous arrow at Shankha, killing him instantly and forcing Virata to withdraw.
During the 15th day, he was killed by Dronacharya in a fierce battle, he was killed by Drona's javelin.
In a different version, he was killed during aKaurava attack in theKurukshetra War along with his sons.
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