Mahabharatha
The Mahabharata is a great epic poem in Indian history and considered to be the longest epic in the world. It is believed that the saintVed Vyasa composed the Mahabharata but he did not have a suitable person to write it down.
- About Mahabharata
- VIDEOS: The Heroes Of Mahabharata - Bhima
- VIDEOS: The Heroes Of Mahabharata - Arjuna's Aim
- VIDEOS: The Bhagavad Gita
The Heroes Of Mahabharata - Bhima
The Heroes Of Mahabharata - Arjuna's Aim
The Bhagavad Gita
About Mahabharata
Lord Ganapathi offered to write the Mahabharata down for Ved Vyasa, provided the saint narrated the whole story without pausing in between. The saint agreed to this condition but also stipulated that Lord Ganesha should understand what was said before writing it down. During the narration, Saint Veda Vyasa would compose some difficult verses, which would cause Lord Ganesha to pause before writing them down. This gave the saint the break he needed. The original version of the Mahabharata was composed in Sanskrit in the form of a poem. The Mahabharata is the longest epic in the world and contains about 1,00,000 verses in all over a span of 18 parvas or chapters.
The Mahabharata beautifully illustrates the rivalry among two sets of paternal cousins, the five Pandavas and the 100 Kauravas, and the mighty Kurukshetra war. The war lasted for eighteen days and was a war for righteousness. The most important part of the Mahabharata is the Bhagavath Gita. This comprises the teachings imparted by Lord Krishna to Arjuna just before the war. It stresses on the importance of righteousness. Lord Krishna also makes Arjuna understand that the human soul does not die and only the body dies to take birth again based on the karma.
The different characters in the Mahabharata represent different virtues. The blind Dhritarashtra represents ignorance. Yudhishthira represents Dharma or justice, Duryodhana represents injustice or Adharma and Draupadi represents Maya or illusion. Bhishma represents dispassion, Dussasana represents evil quality and Sakuni represents jealousy and treachery. Arjuna stands for the individual soul and Lord Krishna is the Supreme Soul. The Mahabharata also speaks of the virtues of a loyal friend. This is about Karna's loyalty to Duryodhana.
The Mahabharata aims to spread the message of truth (Satya) and righteousness (Dharma). This great epic instills a moral awakening in the readers and urges them to follow the paths of Satya and Dharma. It motivates them strongly to do good deeds and practise Dharma. It also cultivates dispassion by realising the illusions of this universe and forgoing material pleasures. This is the key way to attain eternal bliss and immortality. It induces people to do what Yudhishthira did and avoid what Duryodhana did.
Now a days, the stories of the Mahabharata have been translated into most Indian languages. Prose versions of the great epic are also available.
Children's books publishers such as Amar Chitra Katha have published stories from the Mahabharata. These stories are simple and easy for a young child to read and understand. These books also have beautiful illustrations that make the reading more lively. Some television channels have also telecast the Mahabharata as a serial.
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