Mahābhārata
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The Mahābhārata (Devanāgarī: महाभारत) is one of the two major Sanskrit
epics of ancient India, the other being the Rāmāyaṇa. The epic is part
of the Hindu itihāsa (literally "history"), and forms an important part
of Hindu mythology.
It is of immense importance to culture in the Indian subcontinent,
and is a major text of Hinduism. Its discussion of human goals (artha or
purpose, kāma or pleasure, dharma or duty, and moksha or liberation)
takes place in a long-standing tradition, attempting to explain the
relationship of the individual to society and the world (the nature of
the 'Self') and the workings of karma.
The title may be translated as "the great tale of the Bhārata
dynasty". According to the Mahābhārata's own testimony it is extended
from a shorter version simply called Bhārata of 24,000 verses.
Traditionally, the authorship of the Mahābhārata is attributed to
Vyasa. There have been many attempts to unravel its historical growth
and composition layers. Its earliest layers probably date back to the
late Vedic period (ca. 8th c. BC) and it probably reached its final
form by the time the Gupta period began (ca. 4th c. CE).
With more than 74,000 verses, long prose passages, and about 1.8
million words in total, the Mahābhārata is one of the longest epic poems
in the world. It is roughly ten times the size of the Iliad and
Odyssey combined, roughly five times longer than Dante's Divine
Comedy, and about four times the size of the Ramayana. Including the
Harivaṃśa, the Mahabharata has a total length of more than 90,000
verses.
Scope
Besides its epic narrative of the Kurukshetra War and the fates of the
Kauravas and the Pandavas, the Mahabharata contains much philosophical
and devotional material, such as the Shrimad Bhagavad Gita (6.25-42), or
a discussion of the four "goals of life" or purusharthas (12.161). The
latter are enumerated as dharma (right action), artha (purpose), kama
(pleasure), and moksha (liberation).
The Mahabharata claims all-inclusiveness at the beginning of its
first parva ("book"): "What is found here, may be found elsewhere. What
is not found here, will not be found elsewhere." Among the principal
works and stories that are a part of the Mahabharata are the following
(often considered isolated as works in their own right):
the Bhagavad Gita in book 6 (Bhishmaparva): Krishna advises and
teaches Arjuna when he is ridden with doubt.
the story of Damayanti, sometimes called (Nala and Damayanti) in book 3
(Aranyakaparva), a love story.
An abbreviated version of the Ramayana, in book 3 (Aranyakaparva)
Rishyasringa, the horned boy and rishi, in book 3 (Aranyakaparva)
Textual history and structure
The epic is traditionally ascribed to Vyasa, who is also one of the
major dynastic characters within the epic. The first section of the
Mahabharata states that it was Ganesha who, at the request of Vyasa,
wrote down the text to Vyasa's dictation. Ganesha is said to have agreed
to write it only on condition that Vyasa never pause in his recitation.
Vyasa agreed, provided Ganesha took the time to understand what was said
before writing it down. The epic employs the story within a story
structure, otherwise known as frametales, popular in many Indian
religious and secular works. It is recited to the King Janamejaya who is
the great-grandson of Arjuna, by Vaisampayana, a disciple of Vyasa. The
recitation of Vaisampayana to Janamejaya is then recited again by a
professional story teller named Ugrasrava Sauti, many years later, to an
assemblage of sages.
It is usually thought that the full length of the Mahabharata has
accreted over a long period. The Mahabharata itself (1.1.61)
distinguishes a core portion of 24,000 verses, the Bharata proper, as
opposed to additional secondary material, while the Ashvalayana
Grhyasutra (3.4.4) makes a similar distinction. According to the
Adi-parva of the Mahabharata (shlokas 81, 101-102), the text was
originally 8,800 verses when it was composed by Vyasa and was known as
the Jaya (Victory), which later became 24,000 verses in the Bharata
recited by Vaisampayana, and finally over 90,000 verses in the
Mahabharata recited by Ugrasrava Sauti.
As with the field of Homeric studies, research on the Mahabharata has
put an enormous effort into recognizing and dating various layers within
the text. The state of the text has been described by some early 20th
century Indologists as unstructured and chaotic. Hermann Oldenberg
(1922) supposed that the original poem must once have carried an immense
"tragic force", but dismissed the full text as a "horrible chaos."
The earliest known references to the Mahabharata and its core Bharata
date back to the Ashtadhyayi (sutra 6.2.38) of Pāṇini (fl. 4th century
BC), and in the Ashvalayana Grhyasutra (3.4.4). This may suggest that
the core 24,000 verses, known as the Bharata, as well as an early
version of the extended Mahabharata, were composed by the 4th century
BC. Parts of the Jaya's original 8,800 verses possibly may date back as
far as the 9th-8th century BC.
The Greek writer Dio Chrysostom (ca. 40-120) reported, "it is said
that Homer's poetry is sung even in India, where they have translated it
into their own speech and tongue. The result is that...the people of
India...are not unacquainted with the sufferings of Priam, the laments
and wailings of Andromache and Hecuba, and the valor of both Achilles
and Hector: so remarkable has been the spell of one man's poetry!"
Despite the passage's evident face-value meaning—that the Iliad had been
translated into Sanskrit—some scholars have supposed that the report
reflects the existence of a Mahabharata at this date, whose episodes Dio
or his sources syncretistically identify with the story of the Iliad.
Christian Lassen, in his Indische Alterthumskunde, supposed that the
reference is ultimately to Dhritarashtra's sorrows, the laments of
Gandhari and Draupadi, and the valor of Arjuna and Duryodhana or Karna.
This interpretation, endorsed in such standard references as Albrecht
Weber's History of Indian Literature, has often been repeated without
specific reference to what Dio's text says.
Later, the copper-plate inscription of the Maharaja Sharvanatha
(533-534) from Khoh (Satna District, Madhya Pradesh) describes the
Mahabharata as a "collection of 100,000 verses" (shatasahasri samhita).
The redaction of this large body of text was carried out after formal
principles, emphasizing the numbers 18 and 12. The addition of the
latest parts may be dated by the absence of the Anushasana-parva from MS
Spitzer, the oldest surviving Sanskrit philosophical manuscript dated to
the first century, that contains among other things a list of the books
in the Mahabharata. From this evidence, it is likely that the redaction
into 18 books took place in the first century. An alternative division
into 20 parvas appears to have co-existed for some time. The division
into 100 sub-parvas (mentioned in Mbh. 1.2.70) is older, and most parvas
are named after one of their constituent sub-parvas. The Harivamsa
consists of the final two of the 100 sub-parvas, and was considered an
appendix (khila) to the Mahabharata proper by the redactors of the 18
parvas.
The 18 parvas
The division into 18 parvas is as follows:
Parva title sub-parvas contents
1 Adi Parva (The Book of the Beginning) 1-19 How the Mahabharata came to
be narrated by Sauti to the assembled rishis at Naimisharanya. The
recital of the Mahabharata at the Sarpasatra of Janamejaya by
Vaishampayana at Takṣaśilā. The history of the Bharata race is told in
detail and the parva also traces history of the Bhrigu race. The birth
and early life of the Kuru princes. (adi means first)
2 Sabha Parva (The Book of the Assembly Hall) 20-28 Maya Danava erects
the palace and court (sabha), at Indraprastha. Life at the court,
Yudhishthira's Rajasuya Yajna, the game of dice, and the eventual exile
of the Pandavas.
3 Vana Parva also Aranyaka-parva, Aranya-parva (The Book of the Forest)
29-44 The twelve years of exile in the forest (aranya).
4 Virata Parva (The Book of Virata) 45-48 The year in incognito spent at
the court of Virata.
5 Udyoga Parva (The Book of the Effort) 49-59 Preparations for war and
efforts to bring about peace between the Kurus and the Pandavas which
eventually fail (udyoga means effort or work).
6 Bhishma Parva (The Book of Bhishma) 60-64 The first part of the great
battle, with Bhishma as commander for the Kauravas and his fall on the
bed of arrows.
7 Drona Parva (The Book of Drona) 65-72 The battle continues, with Drona
as commander. This is the major book of the war. Most of the great
warriors on both sides are dead by the end of this book.
8 Karna Parva (The Book of Karna) 73 The battle again, with Karna as
commander.
9 Shalya Parva (The Book of Shalya) 74-77 The last day of the battle,
with Shalya as commander. Also told in detail is the pilgrimage of
Balarama to the fords of the river Saraswati and the mace fight between
Bheema and Duryodhana which ends the war, since Bheema kills Duryodhana
by smashing him on the thighs with a mace.
10 Sauptika Parva (The Book of the Sleeping Warriors) 78-80 Ashvattama,
Kripa and Kritavarma kill the remaining Pandava army in their sleep.
Only 7 warriors remain on the Pandava side and 3 on the Kaurava side.
11 Stri-parva (The Book of the Women) 81-85 Gandhari, Kunti and the
women (stri) of the Kurus and Pandavas lament the dead.
12 Shanti-parva (The Book of Peace) 86-88 The crowning of Yudhisthira as
king of Hastinapura, and instructions from Bhishma for the newly
anointed king on society, economics and politics. This is the longest
book of the Mahabharata (shanti means peace).
13 Anushasana-parva (The Book of the Instructions) 89-90 The final
instructions (anushasana) from Bhishma.
14 Ashvamedhika-parva (The Book of the Horse Sacrifice) 91-92 The
royal ceremony of the Ashvamedha (Horse sacrifice) conducted by
Yudhisthira. The world conquest by Arjuna. The Anugita is told by
Krishna to Arjuna.
15 Ashramavasika-parva (The Book of the Hermitage) 93-95 The eventual
deaths of Dhritarashtra, Gandhari and Kunti in a forest fire when they
are living in a hermitage in the Himalayas. Vidura predeceases them and
Sanjaya on Dhritarashtra's bidding goes to live in the higher Himalayas.
16 Mausala-parva (The Book of the Clubs) 96 The infighting between the
Yadavas with maces (mausala) and the eventual destruction of the
Yadavas.
17 Mahaprasthanika-parva (The Book of the Great Journey) 97 The great
journey of Yudhisthira and his brothers across the whole country and
finally their ascent of the great Himalayas where each Pandava falls
except for Yudhisthira.
18 Svargarohana-parva (The Book of the Ascent to Heaven) 98
Yudhisthira's final test and the return of the Pandavas to the spiritual
world (svarga).
khila Harivamsa-parva (The Book of the Genealogy of Hari) 99-100 Life of
Krishna which is not covered in the 18 parvas of the Mahabharata.
The Adi-parva includes the snake sacrifice (sarpasattra) of
Janamejaya, explaining its motivation, detailing why all snakes in
existence were intended to be destroyed, and why in spite of this, there
are still snakes in existence. This sarpasattra material was often
considered an independent tale added to a version of the Mahabharata by
"thematic attraction" (Minkowski 1991), and considered to have
particularly close connection to Vedic (Brahmana) literature, in
particular the Panchavimsha Brahmana which describes the Sarpasattra as
originally performed by snakes, among which are snakes named
Dhrtarashtra and Janamejaya, two main characters of the Mahabharata's
sarpasattra, and Takshaka, the name of a snake also in the Mahabharata.
The Shatapatha Brahmana gives an account of an Ashvamedha performed by
Janamejaya Parikshita.
According to what one character says at Mbh. 1.1.50, there were three
versions of the epic, beginning with Manu (1.1.27), Astika (1.3,
sub-parva 5) or Vasu (1.57), respectively. These versions would
correspond to the addition of one and then another 'frame' settings of
dialogues. The Vasu version would omit the frame settings and begin with
the account of the birth of Vyasa. The Astika version would add the
Sarpasattra and Ashvamedha material from Brahmanical literature,
introduce the name Mahabharata, and identify Vyasa as the work's author.
The redactors of these additions were probably Pancharatrin scholars who
according to Oberlies (1998) likely retained control over the text until
its final redaction. Mention of the Huna in the Bhishma-parva however
appears to imply that this parva may have been edited around the 4th
century.
Historical context
Regardless of the historicity of the Kurukshetra War in particular,
the general setting of the epic certainly does have a historical
precedent in Iron Age (Vedic) India, where the Kuru kingdom was the
center of political power during roughly 1200 to 800 BC. A dynastic
conflict of the period could have been the inspiration for the Jaya, the
core on which the Mahabharata corpus was built, with a climactic battle
eventually coming to be viewed as an epochal event.
Pauranic literature presents genealogical lists associated with the
Mahabharata narrative. The evidence of the Puranas is of two kinds. Of
the first kind, there is the direct statement that there were 1015 (or
1050) years between the birth of Parikshita (Arjuna's grandson) and the
accession of Mahapadma Nanda, commonly dated to 382 B.C., which would
yield an estimate of about 1400 B.C. for the Bharata battle.
However, this would imply improbably long reigns on average for the
kings listed in the genealogies. Of the second kind are analyses of
parallel genealogies in the Puranas between the times of Adhisimakrishna
(Parikshita's great-grandson) and Mahapadma Nanda. Pargiter accordingly
estimated 26 generations by averaging 10 different dynastic lists and,
assuming 18 years for the average duration of a reign, arrived at an
estimate of 850 B.C. for Adhisimakrishna, and thus approximately 950
B.C. for the Bharata battle.
B. B. Lal used the same approach with a more conservative assumption
of the average reign to estimate a date of 836 B.C., and correlated this
with archaeological evidence from Painted Grey Ware sites, the
association being strong between PGW artifacts and places mentioned in
the epic.
Attempts to date the events using methods of archaeoastronomy have
produced, depending on which passages are chosen and how they are
interpreted, estimates ranging from the late 4th to the mid 2nd
millennium B.C. The late 4th millennium date has a precedent in the
calculation of the Kaliyuga epoch, based on planetary conjunctions, by
Aryabhata (6th century). His date of February 18th 3102 B.C. has become
widespread in Indian tradition (for example, the Aihole inscription of
Pulikeshi II, dated to Saka 556 = 634 A.D., claims that 3735 years have
elapsed since the Bharata battle.) Another traditional school of
astronomers and historians, represented by Vriddha-Garga, Varahamihira
(author of the Brhatsamhita) and Kalhana (author of the Rajatarangini),
place the Bharata war 653 years after the Kaliyuga epoch, corresponding
to 2449 B.C.
Synopsis
The core story of the work is that of a dynastic struggle for the throne
of Hastinapura, the kingdom ruled by the Kuru clan. The two collateral
branches of the family that participate in the struggle are the Kaurava
and the Pandava. Although the Kaurava is the senior branch of the
family, Duryodhana, the eldest Kaurava, is younger than Yudhisthira, the
eldest Pandava. Both Duryodhana and Yudhisthira claim to the first in
line to inherit the throne.
The struggle culminates in the great battle of Kurukshetra, in which
the Pandavas are ultimately victorious. The battle produces complex
conflicts of kinship and friendship, instances of family loyalty and
duty taking precedence over what is right, as well as the converse.
The Mahabharata itself ends with the death of Krishna, and the
subsequent end of his dynasty, and ascent of the Pandava brothers to
heaven. It also marks the beginning of the Hindu age of Kali (Kali
Yuga), the fourth and final age of mankind, where the great values and
noble ideas have crumbled, and man is heading toward the complete
dissolution of right action, morality and virtue.
The Older generations
Janamejaya's ancestor Shantanu, the king of Hastinapura has a
short-lived marriage with the goddess Ganga and has a son, Devavrata
(later to be called Bhishma), who becomes the heir apparent.
Many years later, when the king goes hunting, he sees Satyavati, the
daughter of a fisherman and asks her father for her hand. Her father
refuses to consent to the marriage unless Shantanu promises to make any
future son of Satyavati the king upon his death. To solve the king's
dilemma, Devavrata agrees not to take the throne. As the fisherman is
not sure about the prince's children honouring the promise, Devavrata
also takes a vow of lifelong celibacy to guarantee his father's promise.
Shantanu has two sons by Satyavati, Chitrangada and Vichitravirya. Upon
Shantanu's death, Chitrangada becomes king. He lived a very short
uneventful life and dies. Vichitravirya, the younger son, rules
Hastinapura. In order to arrange the marriage of the young
Vichitravirya, Bhishma goes to Kāśī for a swayamvara of the three
princesses Amba, Ambika and Ambalika. He abducts them on account of his
strength, rather than their will. Ambika and Ambalika consent to be
married to Vichtravirya. Amba informs Bhishma she wished to marry
Shalvaraj (king of Shalva) whom Bhishma defeated at their swayamvar.
Bhishma lets her leave but Shalvaraj refuses to marry her, smarting at
his humiliation under Bhishma. Amba then returns to marry Vichtravirya
but he refuses. Finally, she asks Bhishma to marry her but he proclaims
he cannot marry her because of his vow of celibacy. Amba then becomes
enraged and becomes Bhishma's bitter enemy, holding him responsible for
her plight. Later she is reborn to King Drupada as Shikhandi (or
Shikhandini) and causes Bhishma's fall with help of Arjuna in the battle
of Kurukshetra.
The Pandava and Kaurava princes
When Vichitravirya dies young without any heirs, Satyavati asks her
first son Vyasa to father children on the widows. The elder, Ambika,
shuts her eyes when she sees him and her son Dhritarashtra is born
blind. Ambalika turns pale and bloodless, and her son Pandu is born pale
(the term Pandu may also mean 'jaundiced' ). Vyasa fathers a third
son Vidura, by a serving maid.
Dhritarashtra marries Gandhari, a princess from Gandhara, who
blindfolds herself when she finds she has been married to a blind man.
Pandu takes the throne because of Dhritarashtra's blindness. Pandu
marries twice, to Kunti and Madri. Pandu is however cursed by sage
Kindama that if he engages in a sexual act, he will die. He then retires
to the forest along with his two wives, and his brother rules
thereafter, despite his blindness.
Pandu's older queen Kunti however, asks the gods Dharma, Vayu, and
Indra for sons, by using a boon granted by Durvasa. She gives birth to
three sons Yudhishtira, Bhima, and Arjuna through these gods. Kunti
shares her boon with the younger queen Madri, who bears the twins Nakula
and Sahadeva through the Ashwini twins. However Pandu and Madri, indulge
in sex and Pandu dies. Madri dies on his funeral pyre out of remorse.
Kunti raises the five brothers, who are from then usually referred to as
the Pandava brothers.
Dhritarashtra has a hundred sons through Gandhari, all born after the
birth of Yudhishtira. These are the Kaurava brothers, the eldest being
Duryodhana, and the second Dushasana. The rivalry and enmity between
them and the Pandava brothers, from their youth and into manhood leads
to the Kurukshetra war.
Lākṣagṛha (The House of Lac)
Duryodhana plots to get rid of the Pandavas. He has a palace built of
flammable materials (mostly Lac), and arranges for them to stay there,
with the intention of setting it alight. However, the Pandavas are
warned by their uncle, Vidura, who sends them a miner to dig a tunnel.
They are able to escape to safety and go into hiding, but after leaving
others behind, whose bodies are mistaken for them. The Pandavas and
Kunti go into hiding.
Marriage to Draupadi
During the course of their hiding the Pandavas learn of a swayamvara
which is taking place for the hand of the Pāñcāla princess Draupadī. The
Pandavas enter the competition in disguise as Brahmins. The task is to
string a mighty steel bow and shoot a target on the ceiling, which is
the eye of a moving artificial fish, while looking at its reflection in
oil below. Most of the princes fail, many being unable to lift the bow.
Arjuna succeeds however. The Pandavas return home and inform their
mother that Arjuna has won a competition and to look at what they have
brought back. Without looking, Kunti asks them to share whatever it is
Arjuna has won among themselves. Thus Draupadi ends up being the wife of
all five brothers.
Indraprastha
After the wedding, the Pandava brothers are invited back to Hastinapura.
The Kuru family elders and relatives negotiate and broker a split of the
kingdom, with the Pandavas obtaining a new territory. Yudhishtira has a
new capital built for this territory at Indraprastha. Neither the
Pandava nor Kaurava sides are happy with the arrangement however.
Shortly after this, Arjuna elopes with and then marries Krishna's
sister, Subhadra. Yudhishtira wishes to establish his position as king;
he seeks Krishna's advice. Krishna advises him, and after due
preparation and the elimination of some opposition, Yudhishthira carries
out the rājasūya yagna ceremony; he is thus recognised as pre-eminent
among kings.
The Pandavas have a new palace built for them, by Maya the Danava.
They invite their Kaurava cousins to Indraprastha. Duryodhana walks
round the palace, and mistakes a glossy floor for water, and will not
step in. After being told of his error, he then sees a pond, and assumes
it is not water and falls in. Draupadi laughs at him and calls him blind
son of a blind father. He then decides to avenge his humiliation.
The dice game
Shakuni, Duryodhana's uncle, now arranges a dice game, playing against
Yudhishtira with loaded dice. Yudhishtira loses all his wealth, then his
kingdom. He then even gambles his brothers, himself, and finally his
wife into servitude. The jubilant Kauravas insult the Pandavas in their
helpless state and even try to disrobe Draupadi in front of the entire
court, but her honour is saved by Krishna who miraculously creates
lengths of cloth to replace the ones being removed.
Dhritarashtra, Bhishma, and the other elders are aghast at the
situation, but Duryodhana is adamant that there is no place for two
crown princes in Hastinapura. Against his wishes Dhritarashtra orders
for another dice game. The Pandavas are required to go into exile for 12
years, and in the 13th year must remain hidden. If discovered by the
Kauravas, they will be forced into exile for another 12 years.
Exile and return
The Pandavas spend thirteen years in exile; many adventures occur during
this time. They also prepare alliances for a possible future conflict.
They spend their final year in disguise in the court of Virata, and are
discovered at or after the end of the year.
At the end of their exile, they try to negotiate a return to
Indraprastha. However, this fails, as Duryodhana objects that they were
discovered while in hiding, and that no return of their kingdom was
agreed. War becomes inevitable.
The battle at Kurukshetra
The two sides summon vast armies
to their help, and line up at Kurukshetra for a war. The Kingdoms of
Panchala, Dwaraka, Kasi, Kekaya, Magadha, Matsya, Chedi, Pandya and the
Yadus of Mathura and some other clans like the Parama Kambojas were
allied with the Pandavas. The allies of the Kauravas included the kings
of Pragjyotisha, Anga, Kekaya, Sindhudesa (including Sindhus, Sauviras
and Sivis), Mahishmati, Avanti in Madhyadesa, Madra, Gandhara, Bahlikas,
Kambojas and many others. Prior to war being declared, Balarama, had
expressed his unhappiness at the developing conflict, and left to go on
pilgrimage, thus he does not take part in the battle itself. Krishna
takes part in a non-combatant role, as charioteer for Arjuna.
Before the battle, Arjuna, seeing himself facing his great
grandfather Bhishma and his teacher Drona on the other side, has doubts
about the battle and he fails to lift his Gāndeeva bow. Krishna wakes
him up to his call of duty in the famous Bhagavad Gita section of the
epic.
Though initially sticking to chivalrous notions of warfare, both
sides soon adopt dishonourable tactics. At the end of the 18-day battle,
only the Pandavas, Satyaki, Kripa, Ashwathama, Kritavarma, Yuyutsu and
Krishna survive.
The end of the Pandavas
After "seeing" the carnage, Gandhari who had lost all her sons, curses
Krishna to be a witness to a similar annihilation of his family, for
though divine and capable of stopping the war, he had not done so.
Krishna accepts the curse, which bears fruit 36 years later.
The Pandavas who had ruled their kingdom meanwhile, decide to
renounce everything. Clad in skins and rags they retire to the Himalaya
and climb towards heaven in their bodily form. A stray dog travels with
them. One by one the brothers and Draupadi fall on their way. As each
one stumbles, Yudhishitra gives the rest the reason for their fall
(Draupadi was partial to Arjuna, Nakula and Sahadeva were vain and proud
of their looks, Bhima and Arjuna were proud of their strength and
archery skills, respectively). Only the virtuous Yudhisthira who had
tried everything to prevent the carnage and the dog remain. The dog
reveals himself to be the god Yama (also known as Yama Dharmaraja), and
then takes him to the underworld where he sees his siblings and wife.
After explaining the nature of the test, Yama takes Yudhishtira back to
heaven and explains that it was necessary to expose him to the
underworld for the one lie he had said during his entire life. Yama then
assures him that his siblings and wife would join him in heaven after
they had been exposed to the underworld for measures of time according
to their vices.
Arjuna's grandson Parikshita rules after them and dies bitten by a
snake. His furious son, Janamejaya, decides to perform a snake sacrifice
(sarpasttra) in order to destroy the snakes. It is at this sacrifice
that the tale of his ancestors is narrated to him.
Versions, translations, and derivative works
Many regional versions of the work developed over time, mostly differing
only in minor details, or with verses or subsidiary stories being added.
These include some versions from outside the Indian subcontinent, such
as the Kakawin Bharatayuddha from Java. The plays of the Tamil street
theatre, terukkuttu, use themes from the Tamil language versions of
Mahabharata, focusing on Draupadi.[23]
Critical Edition
Between 1919 and 1966, scholars at the Bhandarkar Oriental Research
Institute, Pune, compared the various manuscripts of the epic from India
and abroad and produced the Critical Edition of the Mahabharata, on
13,000 pages in 19 volumes, followed by the Harivamsha in another two
volumes and six index volumes. This is the text that is usually used in
current Mahabharata studies for reference.[24] This work is sometimes
called the 'Pune' or 'Poona' edition of the Mahabharata.
Modern interpretations
The eminent Hindi poet, also hailed as
Rashtrakavi Ramdhari Singh 'Dinkar' has written epic-poetry on various
themes of Mahabharata like Kurukshetra, Rashmirathi and many others
which are known for their elegance and musical rhythm.
The Kannada novelist S.L. Bhyrappa wrote a novel in Kannada (now
translated to most Indian languages and English) titled Parva, giving a
new interpretation to the story of Mahabharata. He tried to understand
the social and ethical practices in these regions and correlate them
with the story of Mahabharata.
In the late 1980s, the Mahabharata TV series was televised and
shown on India's national television (Doordarshan). The series was
written by Dr. Rahi Masoom Reza and directed by B. R. Chopra and his son
Ravi Chopra. The concept was by Pt. Narendra Sharma.
Many film versions of the epic exist, dating from 1920..
In the West, a well known presentation of the epic is Peter Brook's
nine hour play premiered in Avignon in 1985 and its five hour movie
version The Mahabharata (1989).
Among literary reinterpretations of the Mahabharata the most famous
is arguably Sashi Tharoor's major work entitled "The Great Indian
Novel", an involved literary, philosophical, and political novel which
superimposes the major moments of post-Independence India in the 20th
century onto the driving events of the Mahabharata epic. An acclaimed
book, "The Great Indian Novel" also contemporized well-known characters
of the epic into equally well-known politicians of the modern era (e.g.
Indira Gandhi as the villainous Duryodhana).
Mahabharata was also reinterpreted by Shyam Benegal in Kalyug. Kalyug
is a modern-day replaying of the Mahabharata, with the Pandava
industrial family being locked in a titanic battle with their Kaurava
rivals. But the times are different from the original Mahabharat's, and
external forces impinge on feudal values causing disconcerting results.
Western interpretations of the Mahabharata include William Buck's
Mahabharata and Elizabeth Seeger's Five Sons of King Pandu.
"Mahabharta" is also reinterpreted by "Narendra Kohli" an acclaimed
Indian writer, in quite a realistic fashion. The book is in eight parts
& tries to take a view on events in a matter-of-fact way.
