Chitrasena is the king of the Gandharvas. He lives in Amaravati with his fellow Gandharvas and Apsaras. In the Mahabharata, Chitrasena taught Arjuna dancing and singing when he came to live in Indra‘s palace for a while. He is a Gandharva, so a son of Arishta and Kashyapa. Chitrasena is also known as Angaparna. Chitrasena if really skillful in dancing and singing.
Family
- Father: Kashyapa
- Mother: Arishta
- Brothers: Other Gandharvas
- Wife: An Apsara
Teaching Arjuna
The Pandavas had been forced to go into 12 years of exile and 1 year of incognito. Indra foresaw that Arjuna would be a eunuch in their exile year and that he will teach princess Uttara of Virata singing and dancing. After Arjuna obtained the Pashupashastra, Indra invited Arjuna to Amaravati. Indra knew Arjuna had to know singing and dancing to teach it, so Indra told Chitrasena to teach Arjuna. Arjuna was a quick learner and Chitrasena was able to teach him a lot. Chitrasena and Arjuna became good friends.
When Urvashi cursed Arjuna that he would have to be a eunuch for the rest of his life, Chitrasena tried to convince Urvashi to reduce her curse to one year. He told Urvashi the story of the Pandavas and about Arjuna’s bravery. Finally, Urvashi listened and lessened her curse to a year only.
Fight with Duryodhana
Duryodhana decided to tease the Pandavas on how rich he was and how poor they were. He came to the forest where they were living and set up a camp, right in front of their hut. He brought along tons of wealth to show off. One day, Duryodhana went to bathe in a nearby pond.
But Chitrasena and some other Gandharvas were already over there. Chitrasena didn’t let Duryodhana bathe in the pond, which angered him. He started showing off and insulting Chitrasena. Thus, a fight started. The Gandharvas easily captured Duryodhana.
At that time, Arjuna arrived at the pond. He defeated the Gandharvas and requested Chitrasena to free Duryodhana. Chitrasena listened to Arjuna. Arjuna then introduced Chitrasena to the other Pandavas.