The Most Important Fam in MB?

Okay, so I finally got permission from Neha to make this into a new thread! Thank You!

I have a thought to share. I think of this daily, but there's no one who shares my interests. However, now that I am here, I think it's a safe space to share and get it out of my system. (I have many thoughts to share and questions to ask, which I will in time)

If we take into consideration, the strongest and most important family in MB, I think it's Drupada's lineage. 

We may individually say that Arjun, Bhishma, etc are strongest, but combined, I think it's none other than:

Draupadi- the catalyst of change, the last straw leading to the re-establishment of Dharma.

Shikandini- without whom Bhisma and hence Kauravas would win the war. 

Dhrishtadyumna- without whom Drona and hence Kauravas would win the war. 

And of course Drupad- just by the virtue of being their father.

Hence, by might, Bhisma, Drona, Arjun, Karna, etc may have been at the top, however in front of Shikhandini and Dhrishtadyumna, and indirectly Draupadi, just by the virtue of their birth and them being who they are, their might fails them. 

Like, look at the implications that those 3 individuals bring with them! 

Phew! Okay done. I hope I have put my point across in a comprehensible manner.

What are your thoughts and what do you feel about it?

The Sṛñjaya royal family of Pañcāla certainly contributes a lot to the plot of Mahābhārata.

Hotravāhana Sṛñjaya - by introducing Ambā (his daughter's daughter) to Akṛtavraṇa and Rāma Jāmadagnya, he plays a minor part in making Bhīṣma famously invincible and promoting Ambā's quest for vengeance.

Drupada - by insulting Droṇa, he brings about the training of the Dhārtarāṣṭras and Pāṇḍavas, Karṇa, and other warriors.

Pṛṣatī - by telling Yāja to wait while she rinses out her mouth, she misses her chance to give birth to Dhṛṣṭadyumna and Kṛṣṇā. If they had needed years to grow up, the story could have been very different!

Śikhaṇḍin, Dhṛṣṭadyumna, and Kṛṣṇā - you already said.

Uttamaujas, Yudhāmanyu, Satyajit - dependable warriors who allowed Arjuna to focus on offense instead of defense.

Totally opening up this topic now ... Although the genealogies preserved in Mahābhārata are badly damaged and mutually contradictory, just the fact that so much information about Pañcāla royalty is there tells me that early authors wanted to preserve the history of a time when there really were five royal dynasties in Pañcāla, although the kingdom had become unified under Drupada's father Pṛṣata before the events of the epic story.

The five dynasties:

1. Mudgala - who is mentioned in Ṛg Veda 10.1021, along with his wife Indrasenā (Mudgalānī). Indrasenā is cited as a paragon of beauty and wifely devotion several times in Mahābhārata. Their son Vadhryaśva figures in the story of Agastya. Later traditions include Ahalyā among their descendants, and trace the ancestry of Kṛpa and Kṛpī to Ahalyā.

2. Sṛñjaya - other than his descendants noted above, this dynasty inspired the story of Somaka sacrificing his only son and obtaining a hundred sons.

3. Bṛhadiṣu - whose descendants the Nīpas were exterminated by the infamous Janamejaya

4. Yavīnara - whose descendants include Ugrāyudha who aspired to be a Cakravartin emperor and was killed by Bhīṣma.

5. Kṛmilāśva - possibly the dynasty of Kāmpilya, including the famous animal-interlocutor Brahmadatta and infamous Janamejaya.

After Droṇa takes northern Pañcāla as his share of Drupada's kingdom, I don't think there's any mention of either Droṇa or Aśvatthāman ruling the Ahicchatra territory or having their own army. Is there?

Originally posted by: BrhannadaArmour

Totally opening up this topic now ... Although the genealogies preserved in Mahābhārata are badly damaged and mutually contradictory, just the fact that so much information about Pañcāla royalty is there tells me that early authors wanted to preserve the history of a time when there really were five royal dynasties in Pañcāla, although the kingdom had become unified under Drupada's father Pṛṣata before the events of the epic story.

The five dynasties:

1. Mudgala - who is mentioned in Ṛg Veda 10.1021, along with his wife Indrasenā (Mudgalānī). Indrasenā is cited as a paragon of beauty and wifely devotion several times in Mahābhārata. Their son Vadhryaśva figures in the story of Agastya. Later traditions include Ahalyā among their descendants, and trace the ancestry of Kṛpa and Kṛpī to Ahalyā.

2. Sṛñjaya - other than his descendants noted above, this dynasty inspired the story of Somaka sacrificing his only son and obtaining a hundred sons.

3. Bṛhadiṣu - whose descendants the Nīpas were exterminated by the infamous Janamejaya

4. Yavīnara - whose descendants include Ugrāyudha who aspired to be a Cakravartin emperor and was killed by Bhīṣma.

5. Kṛmilāśva - possibly the dynasty of Kāmpilya, including the famous animal-interlocutor Brahmadatta and infamous Janamejaya.

After Droṇa takes northern Pañcāla as his share of Drupada's kingdom, I don't think there's any mention of either  or Aśvatthāman ruling the Ahicchatra territory or having their own army. Is there?

No. The only mention I guess is when they bring their sena to the Kurukshetra war. Other than that, there's no mention of Droṇa or Dhristadyumna or even Aśvatthāman ruling their respective kingdoms 🤔