Mahabharata - Book Review

Mahabharata – the second largest epic poem in the world, the national epic of India, marks the transition of one phase to another. The epic poem consists of 1,00,000 stanzas, which is roughly 12 times the size of Bible, was composed by the great sage Veda Vyas around 2500 to 3000 years ago.

Comparable to the Iliad of Greece, Mahabharata is of immense importance of Hinduism. The Bhagwat Gita, which is the religious book of the Hindus, is contained within Mahabharata. Along with Ramayana, Mahabharata is the pillar of Hinduism.

Also known as Bharata, the story recites the exploits the last human incarnation of Lord Vishnu, Shri Krishna and the beginning of Kali Yuga. The story is about the descendants of King Bharata (also called Kurus), son of King Dushyanta and Shakuntala.

The story culminates in the 18 day Mahabharata war, held at Kurukshetra, fought between cousins, The Pandavas and The Kauravas. The Pandava army consisting of the 5 Pandava brothers, Lord Sri Krishna, and kingdoms loyal to the eldest brother Yudhistira fought against the Kaurava army, consisting of the 100 Kaurava brothers, grandsire Bheeshma, guru Drona and Kripacharya and various other mighty warriors.

Inspite of being the weaker army, the Pandava’s win the battle owing to their adherence to Dharma. They were cheated out of their rightful kingdom by the Kauravas, were banished to the forests for 13 long years and were denied their rights after the end of the 13th year.

Every character in the story conveys a moral to the reader. It is said that the Mahabharata shows the path that should be lead by a human being to attain nirvana.

C. Rajagopalachari, the first governor general of India, fondly known as Rajaji was a great statesman and scholar. His adaptations of various epics are must reads for the present generation who are ignorant about mythology. His adaptations of Ramayana and Mahabharata are well acclaimed.

Two weeks ago, while I was on one of my regular book buying spree in Higginbotham’s, my eyes fell on C. Rajagopalachari’s Mahabharata. I know most of the stories in Mahabharata, from bedtime stories from my dad, from comic books as well as the television serial. Still, I had this urge of going through the story again, to read about Arjuna – my favourite character in Mahabharata – and about the Mahabharata war.

In the book, Rajaji had in his own words, brought out the morals behind Mahabharata. He has drawn parallels with the behaviour of current people, with the current method of warfare and the attitude of people and its consequences.

Rajaji has compared the chariots of old times with armored cars of the present times and elephants with tanks. He stresses on avoiding anger to prevent disaster, he stresses on following the path of righteousness to attain the highest honors in the present and subsequent births.

The book is a must read, if you have no clue about Mahabharata. The way various storied are interweaved, the description of the war are really good.

There were a few things which I found missing in the book. The entire Kishna Leela, which includes stories of Krishna’s birth, his childhood at Brindawan and the killing of his uncle Kamsa is missing. Also the recitation of Gita has been skipped. I do not complain about the skipping of Gita, but Krishna Leela is indeed a delight to read.

Other things which I found missing are the stories regarding Shishupal’s birth, Draupadi’s vow regarding tying her hair after Dushaasan dragged her by her hair and brought her to the place where the game of dice was being played, The Pandavas going into the Kaurava camp after the battle on 9th day to seek the blessings of Bheeshma and to ask him how he could be defeated in battle.

Other than the above points, most of the stories within Mahabharata was covered.

A good read for anyone interested in mythology or stories. An online version of Mahabharata can be accessed here.

Sources: Wikipedia
W M Blake Fabrications