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When Kunti offered to send Bhima to Bakasura, the Brahmin family initially refused, worried about sending someone else’s son to die for them.
But Kunti assured them that her son was capable and had the strength of a hundred elephants, and off went Bhima with a massive cartload of rice, curd, ghee, meat, and wine.
On the way, Bhima sat under a tree and began eating the food. When Bakasura arrived, he found Bhima eating the food that was brought for him. Enraged, Bakasura attacked Bhima, and a fierce hand-to-hand combat took place in the forest.
Bhima and Bakasura used trees as weapons and fought with terrifying strength.
Eventually, Bhima overpowered and killed Bakasura by smashing him, then dragged the corpse to the gates of Ekachakra and returned home quietly.
The next morning, when the people of Ekachakra noticed Bakasura lifeless, they rejoiced as the terror was over.
The Brahmin family were stunned and grateful. They realized Bhima had done something but remained silent, as Kunti had asked them not to tell anyone.
The Pandavas continued living in disguise in the Brahmin’s house.

The Pandavas, along with their mother, took shelter in the house of a poor Brahmin who lived with his wife, son, and daughter. They begged for alms, which were shared equally among them. However, Kunti kept aside Bhima’s share separately due to his large appetite. The Pandavas also secretly trained themselves in warfare skills during the night.

One night, Kunti overheard the Brahmin family’s lamenting and asked the reason for their sorrow. The Brahmin told Kunti about a dreadful man-eating Rakshasa named Bakasura.

He had ordered the villagers to send a cart of food along with one member from each household once per week. It was now the Brahmin family’s turn, and they were preparing to sacrifice one of their members.

Kunti intervened and volunteered to send Bhima to face Bakasura. Despite their protests, Kunti insisted as she wished to repay the Poor Brahmin’s kindness.

The next day, Bhima, carried the cart of food to the forest where Bakasura lived. On his way to the cave, Bhima ate the entire food which was kept for the demon.

Bhima’s son was named Ghatotkacha (pot-headed) because the shape of his bald head resembled a ghata (earthen pot).

After his birth, Bhima departed from the forest and returned to his family, while Ghatotkacha remained with his mother, Hidimba, in the forest, growing in strength and acquiring various skills in warfare.

As the Pandavas were about to leave, Veda Vyasa appeared before them and advised them to remain incognito, as the Kauravas believed them to be dead. To maintain their secrecy, the Pandavas and Kunti disguised themselves as Brahmins.  

Vyasa advised them to go to the town of Ekachakra, where they can safely stay in disguise and recover their strength. Before departing, he told the Pandavas that he would come again at the right time to guide them further.

The Pandavas, along with their mother, set off southward and soon reached Ekachakra. There, they took shelter in the house of a poor Brahmin, begged for alms during the day, and secretly practiced their martial skills.

Hidimba was furious and lunged forward to kill Bhima. A gruesome duel began between Bhima and Hidimba. He was a strong and fearsome Rakshasa, but Bhima overpowered him, being the son of Vayu.

Amidst the fight, the other Pandavas and Kunti woke up and tried to assist Bhima, but Yudhishthira told them that Bhima was strong enough to defeat Hidimba.

Finally, Bhima killed Hidimba by smashing him into the ground with immense force.

After Hidimba’s death, Hidimbi approached Kunti and confessed that she was in love with Bhima and wanted to marry him.

At first, Bhima was reluctant, but married Hidimbi after Yudhishthira and Kunti’s permission, upon the condition that he would return to them, after giving her a son.

Bhima stayed in the forest for a short period, and Hidimbi gave birth to a son named Ghatotkacha.

Ghatotkacha grew rapidly (as Rakshasas do) and promised Bhima that he would come to their aid whenever the Pandavas needed him.

After Ghatotkacha’s birth, Bhima returned to his family, residing in the nearby area.

The Pandavas and Kunti slept under the banyan tree in the forest on the banks of the River Ganga, while Bhima stayed awake to guard them.

Hidimba, a Rakshasa (demon), devoured humans and always looked for humans near the forest. While looking for prey, he caught the scent of human flesh and asked his sister, Hidimbi, to bring one or more for their meal.

Hidimbi, obeying her brother, went in search of the prey but was enchanted and fell in love upon seeing Bhima, who was muscular and strong.

Hidimbi took the form of a beautiful maiden and approached Bhima, informing him about her brother’s plan. She told Bhima that she had fallen in love with him and promised him protection if he fled with her.

Bhima denied, as he did not want to leave his brothers and mother, and told her that he would face her brother instead and defeat him.

Furious at his sister’s betrayal, Hidimba arrived at the spot.

After a year of staying in the Palace of Lakshagriha, the Pandavas and their mother escaped through a tunnel, but were presumed to be dead by everyone, as the bodies of a Nishadha woman and her children were found in the burnt palace.

In Hastinapur, Dhritarashtra mourned their death, but secretly rejoiced, as Duryodhana would be crowned as the prince.

The Pandavas realised that Duryodhana and Shakuni would not stop at one failed attempt. They knew that going back to Hastinapur and presenting themselves in front of Dhritarashtra would expose them to more danger.

After escaping from the palace, the tunnel exit was located in a dense forest on the banks of the River Ganga. Bhima carried his mother Kunti and all his four other brothers, as everyone was tired from exhaustion. This highlights Bhima’s immense strength and his love for his brothers and mother.

The Pandavas, after travelling through the night, were tired and rested under a banyan tree near the banks of the Ganga.

The brothers fell asleep, while Bhima stayed awake, guarding his brothers and his mother, Kunti.

Duryodhana’s plan was to burn the palace in flames and kill the five Pandavas along with their mother in Varanavata.

Vidura had secretly constructed a tunnel with the help of a few trusted workers underneath the palace in order to help the Pandavas, and had warned the Pandavas, who were cautious of their surroundings.

A Nishadha woman and her five sons had resided with the Pandavas in the Lakshagriha Palace.
Purochana was assigned the job to burn the palace in flames, but Bhima had set it on fire before he could.

The Pandavas, along with their mother Kunti, who was carried by Bhima, escaped through the tunnel, while Purochana died being caught in the fire.

But the Nishadha woman and her sons were caught in the fire, and their death was totally unintended.

The residents of Varanavata assumed the bodies of the Nishadha woman and her five sons to be those of the five Pandavas and Kunti.

This assumption helped the Pandavas and Kunti to live incognito as wanderers.

Once, Dhritarashtra assigned a few public duties to the Pandavas, and they fulfilled their responsibilities with great devotion, gaining immense popularity among the subjects. Duryodhana, jealous of the Pandavas’ popularity, convinced Dhritarashtra that the Pandavas were a threat to the Kauravas.

Later, Duryodhana, along with Shakuni, hatched a plan to kill the Pandavas.

Purochana, an architect who supported Duryodhana, built a palace, Lakshagriha, in Varanavata, and the palace was made of highly flammable materials like ghee, oil, lacquer, etc.

Dhritarashtra convinced the Pandavas to go to Varanavata along with their mother, Kunti. And Yudhishthira, obeying Dhritarashtra’s order, departed to Varanavata along with his brothers and Mother, Kunti.

Vidura, sensing danger, warned the Pandavas and informed them about a tunnel that had been secretly built under the palace. The Pandavas pretended to be unaware and enjoyed their stay but remained cautious and alert throughout.

Amba, reborn as Shikhandini, the daughter of Drupada, was born to fulfil her revenge against Bhishma.

Her birth prophesied that she would live her life as a woman for a period of time and would later turn into a man. Drupada thus raised Shikhandini as Shikhandi, a boy, and she was wedded to the daughter of Hiranyavarman.

Soon, Shikhandi’s wife realised that Shikhandi was not a man. King Hiranyavarman, angered by how Drupada had deceived them, waged a war against Drupada.

Saddened by her parents’ problems, Shikhandini built a funeral pyre to commit suicide in the forest. A Yaksha named Stunakarna came across her and enquired about her.

After hearing Shikhandini’s plight, Stunakarna offered to exchange genders for a period of time, and they exchanged their gender.

Shikhandini became a man, and Stunakarna became a Sthuni, a woman.

On the same day, Kubera paid a visit, and noticing that Stunakarna had changed his gender, cursed him that he would remain a woman.

After Stunakarna begged for mercy, Kubera, reducing the potency of the curse, said that Stunakarna would be able to return to manhood after the death of Shikhandini.

Ekalavya, the son of the Nishadha chief, offered his right thumb to Dronacharya as Guru Dakshina and as a result, he harboured hatred towards the Yadavas and other allies of the Pandavas.

Despite Ekalavya’s disability, he was brave and was also strong enough to defeat the Pandavas.

Krishna, foreseeing a danger, had to kill Ekalavya in order to protect Dharma, as he would have joined hands with the Kauravas in the future, which could have eventually led to the defeat of the Pandavas.

To prevent this, Krishna killed Ekalavya, and praised him for his bravery and archery skills, despite his disability.

Some folklores mention that Ekalavya was given a boon to be reborn as Dhrishtadyumna, the son of Drupada, who would become the cause of Dronacharya’s death.

However, the story of Ekalavya’s rebirth has not been mentioned in the Mahabharata written by Sage Veda Vyasa, and have mostly been passed down through folk traditions.