Devotees, tourists can witness 18-day Mahabharata war formations in Kurukshetra

Nitish Sharma

Kurukshetra, November 4

Devotees and tourists, who visit Kurukshetra to see sites associated with Mahabharata, will be able to witness the war formations used by the Kauravas and Pandavas during the 18-day Mahabharata war. The site has been developed adjoining Brahma Sarovar.

Rajendra Rana, supervisor of Sri Krishna Museum Kurukshetra, who has worked on this project said, “Chakra vyuha is one of the most famous war formations because of Abhimanyu. There are 15 more formations used during the war about, which majority of people are not aware of. Though we get reference of 21 to 24 war formations in different Purans, during the 18-day Mahabharata war, 16 formations were used two to three times. On day one the Kauravas used Sarvatomukha Vyuha while in counter the Pandavas used Vajra Vyuha. Kauravas used the famous Chakra Vyuha on the 13th day of the war. Similarly, Sakta Vyuha, Makara Vyuha, Ardhachandra Vyuha and Garuda Vyuha were some of the other war formations used in the Mahabharata.”

Meanwhile, honorary secretary of the KDB Madan Mohan Chhabra said, “Every day Kauravas and Pandavas used different war formations. The project aims to educate people about the war formations used in Mahabharata. For every formation used, there is a counter-formation. Day-wise battle information has also been displayed along the formations so that tourists and devotees can understand it. Some minor touch-ups and repair work is to be done.” “The site will be ready for inauguration soon. Besides historians, help from some senior Army officials is also being taken on this project. A budget of Rs 60 lakh under Krishna Circuit has sanctioned for the project,” he said.