Yudhiṣṭhira, Salvation, and Selfless Action in the Sanskrit Mahābhārata

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How does the Sanskrit Mahābhārata act as a religious text? What is the relation between this text’s ideas of salvation and its main character King Yudhiṣṭhira? This book shows that Yudhiṣṭhira serves as a medium for the organization of diverse soteriological ideas. Examining this character’s narrative trajectory of struggles and redemptions, this book shows he is intimately associated with mokṣa (liberation from rebirth). Importantly, Yudhiṣṭhira serves to redefine mokṣa as selfless action performed as part of a person’s inherited duty (svadharma), action done for the sake of dharma alone.
Copyright Year:
2026
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Published
ISBN:
978-90-04-75984-8
Publication:
29 Apr 2026
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Published
ISBN:
978-90-04-74950-4
Publication:
28 May 2026
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Paloma Muñoz Gómez, Ph.D. (2020) University of Queensland, is an Adjunct Professor at National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University. Her research investigates ideas of moral behavior, personal salvation, emotions and other mental states in Sanskrit religious narratives.
Acknowledgements
Abbreviations

Introduction
 1 Book Structure
 2 The Mahābhārata’s story and its framing mythologies

Part 1



1 The Study of the Mahābhārata, Yudhiṣṭhira, and Soteriology
 1 Introduction
 2 Perspectives on the Mahābhārata
 3 Yudhiṣṭhira in scholarly literature
 4 Soteriology and Yudhiṣṭhira
 5 Conclusion

2 The Problem of Moká¹£a: World Renunciation and Ritual
 1 Introduction
 2 The renouncer
 3 Framing the Mahābhārata: Mokṣa as an umbrella term
 4 Conclusion

3 Karman and Transmigration: The Mahābhārata’s Emphasis on Normative Conduct
 1 Introduction
 2 The doctrine of karman
 3 Narratives on karman in the Mahābhārata
 4 Conclusion

4 The Mahābhārata’s Soteriologies and Yudhiṣṭhira
 1 Introduction
 2 Soteriologies in the Mahābhārata
 3 Heavenly realms
 4 A state beyond impermanence
 5 Heavenly ascent and mokṣa
 6 Living liberation
 7 A single path or two paths? Salvation for householders
 8 On karmayoga and foregoing selfish desire
 9 Conclusion

Part 2



5 Royal and Householder Roles as Religious Vocations
 1 Introduction
 2 Yudhiṣṭhira’s early life
 3 Royal and householder ideologies: Yudhiṣṭhira’s roles
 4 Yudhiṣṭhira as king: rājasūya
 5 Motivations to sacrifice: Yudhiṣṭhira and Duryodhana
 6 Conclusion

6 The Dice Game: Yudhiṣṭhira’s Flawed Understanding of Renunciation
 1 Introduction
 2 The role of the dice game in the narrative
 3 The dice sequence
 4 Draupadī’s question: kingship and mastery of the self
 5 Abandoning the self, renunciation, and learning
 6 Conclusion

7 Forest Teachings: Svadharma and the Soteriology of Moká¹£a
 1 Introduction
 2 Forest teaching: Śaunaka
 3 The invisible fruits of dharma
 4 The pativratā and the righteous butcher
 5 Negotiations in the lead-up to the war: five villages
 6 Conclusion

8 The Trivarga Plus Mokṣa: Yudhiṣṭhira’s Blend
 1 Introduction
 2 Dialogues of the Pāṇḍavas
 3 The Dharma King’s characterisation in the light of the Ṣaḍgītā
 4 The Ṣaḍgītā and other solutions to the problem of mokṣa
 5 Conclusion

9 Yudhiṣṭhira’s Royal Role: Supporting Others and the Cosmos through Dharma
 1 Introduction
 2 Reasons to rule: the welfare of the cosmos
 3 A tree made of dharma
 4 Desire for duty: the aśvamedha
 5 Householder and king: soteriological dependence
 6 Conclusion

10 Yudhiṣṭhira’s Ascent to Heaven
 1 Introduction
 2 The Great Departure and the Ascent to Heaven
 3 The Mahābhārata’s narrative open-endedness
 4 Self-sacrifice as soteriological advantage
 5 On some virtues leading to the devayāna
 6 Karman: decentring mokṣa
 7 Conclusion

Concluding Remarks

Bibliography
The book will appeal to readers interested in early Hinduism, the Mahābhārata, religious studies, epic narratives, character and literature studies, as well as philosophers working on Indian traditions, ethics, and action.
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