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Duryodhana Facts – History - Important Incidents In The Life Of Duryodhana – Top Quotes Of Duryodhana

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Duryodhana was the eldest of the Kauravas. He is the chief antagonist in the epic Mahabharata. He was a great warrior and loyal friend but jealous of the prosperity of the Pandavas.


Duryodhana Facts

  • Duryodhana was born to Dhritarashtra and Gandhari as a lump of cold flesh which, on advice of Sage Vyasa, was broken into 101 pieces and incubated in jars filled with ghee. The flesh transformed into hundred and one Kaurava children after a year, the eldest of whom was named Duryodhana.
  • He was taught by royal teacher Drona. He also learned mace warfare under Balarama.
  • Duryodhana grew up fearing that they would have to share their inheritance with their cousins, the Pandavas.
  • Conspired with his brothers to poison and drown Bhima. Made the heinous attempt to kill all Pandavas in the house of lac.
  • Married Bhanumati, the princess of the kingdom of Pragjyotisha, and remained loyal to her, never coveting other women.
  • He befriended Karna, who was insulted by Pandavas for his lowly origins. Karna had demonstrated better prowess than Arjuna. Duryodhana announced in the assembly of Kshatriyas that Karna was Kshatriya by merit. He appointed Karna as the king of Anga. With Karna by his side, Duryodhana felt powerful.
  • Duryodhana was extremely jealous when Pandavas transformed the forest of Khandavaprastha into the beautiful city of Indraprastha.
  • He felt humiliated when he fell into a pond in Indraprastha and Draupadi calling him the blind son of blind parents. Duryodhana swore that he would take revenge one day.
  • Organized a gambling match on the advice of his uncle Shakuni. In the gambling match, Yudhistira lost everything.
  • He humiliated Draupadi who was lost by Yudhistira in the gambling match. He ordered her to be dragged into the assembly and asked her to sit on his lap. He also ordered Dushasana to disrobe Draupadi.
  • He was able to banish Pandavas to the forest for thirteen years after they lost in the game of dice.
  • After 13 years of exile when Pandavas demanded their kingdom back he refused to give it back.
  • He even spurned Krishna’s peace negotiations, knowing that it would lead to war.
  • When asked to be choose between Krishna’s army and Krishna himself, Duryodhana chose the Narayani army of Krishna.
  • He appointed several powerful commanders in the Kurukshetra war including Bhishma, Drona, Karna and Shalva. Over eighteen days of war, he lost all his commanders as well as 99 of his brothers and his uncle Shakuni.
  • His mother Gandhari tried to make his body invulnerable by her gaze. But Krishna tricked him and asked not to go naked before his mother. When Gandhari opened her eyes, she saw his loins and thighs covered in banana leaf. This portion remained vulnerable to attack.
  • He fought the final battle of Kurukshetra with Bhima but was defeated after a fatal hit on his thigh.
  • His death brought an end to the eighteen day Kurukshetra battle.

Top Quotes Of Duryodhana

I am an evil man…. Iam miserable on seeing the blazing prosperity of Kunti’s son. (Duryodhana to Vidura, Sabha Parva)

Just before his death, Duryodhana told the Pandavas “I have lived a life fitting for a prince in the palace, and today, I am dying the death of a warrior. You, on the contrary, have spent your life in the forest, and now you shall rule on a throne made of corpses.”

When Ashwatthama, came to inform to him that he had killed Draupadi’s five sons, Duryodhana lamented, “Have we stooped to killing children? I may have lost the battle but nobody has emerged victorious here.”