Mahabharata

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The Mahabharata, that is, the great Bharata, is one of the two most important ancient epics of India, the other being the Ramayana. The Mahabharata was compiled in Ancient India. One of the Indian sages (rishi) named Vyasa is believed to have composed the work. The legend states that god Ganesh wrote the Mahabharata while Vyasa dictated the same. It is possibly one of the longest work of its kind in the world. The epic contain about 110,000 couplets in eighteen sections. There is also a 19th section named Harivamsha. The Bhagavadgita, a dialogue between Krishna and Arjuna, is a part of the Mahabharata.

Sage Vyasa taught this epic to his son Suka and his students Vaisampayana and others. King Janamejaya, son of Parikshit, and the grandson of the heroes of the epic, performed a great sacrifice (yagna). The epic was retold by Vaisampayana to Janamejaya at the advice of Vyasa. Later on, an other sage Suta retold the Mahabharata similar to Vaisampayana to Janamejaya, to Saunaka and others, during a sacrifice performed by Saunaka in Naimisaranya, which is near Sitapur in Uttar Pradesh.

The Mahabharata in its eighteen sections deals with a number of topics. These topics cover a number of aspects of Hinduism, Hindu mythology, ethics, and the Hindu way of life. One more section is called Harvamsha.

Noted below are few words about the eighteen sections of the Mahabharata. In Mahabharata, these sections are called parvan. A parvan means a book. The names of all parvas or books of the Mahabharata are noted below:

Parva	Title	Contents
1	Adi-parva	Introduction, birth and upbringing of the princes.
2	Sabha-parva	Life at the court, the game of dice, and the exile of the Pandavas. Maya Danava erects the palace and court (sabha), at Indraprastha.
3	Aranyaka-parva (also Vanaparva, Aranyaparva)	The twelve years in exile in the forest (aranya).
4	Virata-parva	The year in exile spent at the court of Virata.
5	Udyoga-parva	Preparations for war.
6	Bhishma-parva	The first part of the great battle, with Bhishma as commander for the Kauravas.
7	Drona-parva	The battle continues, with Drona as commander.
8	Karna-parva	The battle again, with Karna as commander.
9	Shalya-parva	The last part of the battle, with Shalya as commander.
10	Sauptika-parva	How Ashvattama and the remaining Kauravas killed the Pandava army in their sleep (Sauptika).
11	Stri-parva	Gandhari and the other women (stri) lament the dead.
12	Shanti-parva	The crowning of Yudhisthira, and his instructions from Bhishma
13	Anusasana-parva	The final instructions (anusasana) from Bhishma.
14	Ashvamedhika-parva	The royal ceremony of the ashvamedha conducted by Yudhisthira.
15	Ashramavasika-parva	Dhritarashtra, Gandhari and Kunti leave for an ashram, and eventual death in the forest.
16	Mausala-parva	The infighting between the Yadavas with maces (mausala).
17	Mahaprasthanika-parva	The first part of the path to death (mahaprasthana "great journey") of Yudhisthira and his brothers.
18	Svargarohana-parva	The Pandavas return to the spiritual world (svarga).
19	Harivamsha	Life of Krishna.

[change] A Summary of Mahabharata

Mahabharata mainly tells the story of Pandavas, the 5 sons of King Pandu and Kauravas, the 100 sons of King Dhritarashtra. King Pandu and King Dritarashtra were brothers, so Pandavas (the heroes of the epic) and Kauravas were cousins. King Dritarashtra ruled the Kingdom of Hastinapura with the help of his brother Pandu. Because of a curse, Pandu goes to the forest with his wives and there with the grace of five Gods, he begets his five children, from his two wives, Kunti and Madri. Because they are the sons of Pandu, they are known as Pandavas.

After the death of Pandu, Pandavas come back to Hastinapura and live there. However, Kauravas do not like Pandavas because Pandavas are superior to them in education and strength. On one occasion, Kauravas invite Pandavas to a game of dice, and using foul play they win the share of Pandava's and kingdom and sends Pandavas to spend time in forests for 12 years and hide incognito (means without anybody identifying them) for one year. After many hardships, Pandavas finish this punishment and ask back Kauravas for their share of the kingdom. But Duryodhana, the eldest of Kauravas, does not give Pandavas their share of kingdom. Hence Pandavas declare a war on Kauravas and after the war that lasts for 18 days, finally wins back the entire kingdom of Hastinapura.

[change] The Pandavas

Kunti wants to fulfill her maternal expectations, but she has no man. She recollects the moment when her first son Karna was conceived from an arcane mantra one sage had given her once. Surya, the Sun God, appeared to her then. Thus, Kunti remembers her secret mantra and gives birth to the five sons, which are referred to as the Pandavas.

Yudhisthira's father was god Yama; Bhima's father was Vayu, Arjuna's father was Indra. Then it was Madri who gave birth to two other sons - the twins, whose fathers were Ashwins (divine twins). Madri's sons are Nakula and Sahadeva. These all are the five Panadavas.