In the

Hindu epic Mahākāvya (lit. great kāvya, court epic), also known as ''sargabandha'', is a genre of Indian epic poetry in Classical Sanskrit. The genre is characterised by ornate and elaborate descriptions of scenery, love, battles and so on — in short, eve ...

Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the ''Ramayana, Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the s ...

'', Ahilawati (Ahilāvati), also known as Mauravi (Mourvi, Maurvi) and Kamkanthika, was the wife of Ghatotkacha. According to a legend, Ahilawati or Mauravi was the daughter of Mura, the general of the demon

Narakasura Naraka, also known as Narakasura (), is an asura king in Hindu mythology. In Assamese tradition, he is regarded as the legendary progenitor of all three dynasties of Pragjyotisha-Kamarupa, and the founding ruler of the legendary Bhauma dyna ...

. The God

Krishna Krishna (; sa, कृष्ण ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme god in his own right. He is the god of protection, compassion, tenderness, and love; and is one ...

, along with his wife

Satyabhama Satyabhama, also known as Satrajiti, is a Hindu goddess and the third queen-consort of the Hindu god Krishna. Satyabhama is described as the incarnation of Bhudevi, the goddess and the personification of the earth. She aided Krishna in defeat ...

, set forth to defeat Narakasura. First, Mauravi fought with Satyabhama. After Krishna killed Narakasura, he killed Maurvi's father, Mura. Mauravi decided to avenge her father's death. However, after realising the divinity of Krishna, she surrendered. Krishna consoled her by promising her that soon she would soon get married. As per a folktale, Ahilawati was a ''

Nāga The Nagas (IAST: ''nāga''; Devanāgarī: नाग) are a divine, or semi-divine, race of half-human, half-serpent beings that reside in the netherworld (Patala), and can occasionally take human or part-human form, or are so depicted in art. ...

Kanyā'' (Snake-maiden). She was the daughter of

Vasuki Vasuki (IAST: ) is the second king of the nagas in Hinduism. He is described as having a gem called ''Nagamani'' (serpent's ornament) on his head. Adishesha, the first king of the serpents and the mount of Narayana, is his elder brother, and ...

, the sacred serpent of the god

Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...

. As per the tale, Ahilavati had been cursed by Shiva's wife

Parvati Parvati ( sa, पार्वती, ), Uma ( sa, उमा, ) or Gauri ( sa, गौरी, ) is the Hindu goddess of power, energy, nourishment, harmony, love, beauty, devotion, and motherhood. She is a physical representation of Mahadevi i ...

for offering stale flowers to Shiva. The curse was that she would get a mortified man as her husband. It is said that Bhima was poisoned by Shakuni and Duryodhana and thrown in a river, after which he wafted and reached Ahilyavati's kingdom. Owing to the curse, Ahilyavati soon recognised him as

Vayu Vayu (, sa, वायु, ), also known as Vata and Pavana, is the Hindu god of the winds as well as the divine massenger of the gods. In the '' Vedic scriptures'', Vayu is an important deity and is closely associated with Indra, the king of ...

's son and asked her father to furnish life to him, failing which she would burn herself alive in Bhima's pyre. Vasuki gave him the elixir obtained from Shiva, after which Bhima came back to life. It is said that Mauravi (Ahilawati) took a vow that she would only marry the man who can defeat her in intelligence and in a battle. In order to fulfil this vow, Mauravi killed many men. Upon the recommendation of Krishna, Bhima's son Ghatotkacha was asked to marry Mauravi. He defeated her in both of these tasks and married her. After this, her vow was fulfilled. According to tradition-specific legends, she bore a son called

Barbarika Barbarika (''Barbarīka)'' or Khatu Shyam, is a Hindu deity, particularly worshipped in western India. According to the ''Skanda Purana'', Barbarika was the son of Ghatotkacha (Son of Bhima) and Princess Maurvi, daughter of Daitya Moora, thou ...

, who is believed to have been present at the Kurukshetra War.

References

Characters in Hindu mythology {{Hindu-myth-stub