An Indian Hindu Epic - The Mahabharata

The term Mahabharata means the story of the dynasty of Bharat, which is a part of the history of India. It is a touching tale of how sibling rivalry can bring about the onset of a war. The Mahabharata has five sons of a King called Pandu and the hundred sons of King Dhritarashtra, who represented the Kauravas fighting on the battlefield of Kurukshetra. It is actually a real sad tale about brothers fighting with one another, father against father in order to see their sons win and students against teachers too. The Mahabharata has several characters that are interwoven in the story as it unfolds and each of them is in depth with a lot of complexity to them. The Mahabharata has several characters that have great morals and principles and are an example to the others around them. Actually, the Mahabharata was the end of the era of this and later on there was the start of the Kalyug wherein people were driven by selfishness and greed. It is one story that has to plot that never allows the audience to shift their interest from even for a second.

The Mahabharata has several innovative ideas that have been used in this tale of great saga and drama. There are several characters that one will find in the epic of the Mahabharata and that is one more reason that the reader will never be bored. There is the character of Lord Krishna, who is actually considered to be the incarnation of Lord Vishnu and then Bhisma, who had promised his grandfather that he would serve his kingdom of Hastinapur well enough. However, ultimately he was a silent spectator to the war that unfolded right in front of his eyes.

The Mahabharata is a tale of the most amazing of truths and characters that encompass deeply imbibed principles and moral values that defeat selfishness and treachery and make this world a better place.

The Mahabharata is quite unique in several of the instances if you read it carefully. All the characters that have been depicted in it are such that one would like to hold them as role models. There is Lord Krishna as the reincarnation of Vishnu, Arjuna as the greatest archer of Hastinapur, who stands by and watches his fall from power helplessly. Then, there is also Karna the son of Kunti, who had laid down the weapons right at the beginning of the war and was still helping captive in the enemy camp. There was also Yudhister, who always spoke the truth and yet was forced to lie in the Great War. Duryodhan was the son of the blind king who was so very ambitious that he was known to be the main cause of the troubles brewing based on his never dying grandiose ambitions. Dronacharya was the best teacher of those times, and although he hated war of any kind he too was drawn into the Mahabharata because of his favorite student Arjuna. Therefore, there were several different characters that were interwoven into the main plot. Each of these characters had their strengths and weaknesses and lived up to them in the epic tale as it unfolded. This is one of the most spectacular and amazing of tales that one can ever hear or witness.

There is never a single moment in the entire saga that one can sit back and expect the plot to be known. At every turn there is a twist in the tale and the least bit that one had expected to come one’s way. The game of dice that was ultimately played leaves the reader on tenterhooks and the banishing of the brothers to the forests for 13 years and the last year one of the anonymity so that no one would know of their whereabouts. Then there is the unknown cause of the fire in the wax house and the escaping of the five brothers. Finally, the giving up of arms by Arjuna who was absolutely devastated by the outcome and the coming of the Bhagwad Gita miraculously on the ground in the middle of the battle field by none other than lord Krishna.

If you look at both the epics of the Ramayana and the Mahabharata closely you will notice that both of these epics are culturally conscious and depict the epitome of the Hindu religion. The Mahabharata has a great pull and attraction for the common man and the philosophers and the ascetics alike. The Mahabharata continues to remain one epic that has withstood the test of time and remains a favorite amongst scores of people.

If you want to look at a sage and epic that are timeless and are appropriate for all ages and eras then the Mahabharata will certainly not disappoint you by any means. It was written by Sage Bed Byasa as one of the longest poems to have been ever written. The sage himself plays a part in the epic. The Mahabharata consists of eighteen chapters.

Once you start reading it, you will certainly not be able to put it down until you finish it.