Dharma in the Mahabharata Essay

Amongst the enormous corpus of Hindu literature, Mahabharata stands out as a text of great magnitude, originally comprising of 100,000 Sanskrit shlokas, say about 2 million words. ‘Vedvyasya’, the author of Mahabharata has weaved a plethora of characters in this great Hindu epic, through which he takes the reader through every conceivable human emotion and situation, thus making it possible to identify with it even today. It even boasts, ‘What is here is found elsewhere. What is not here is nowhere else’ (Das 2010, Prelude, Pg.xxxi). Mahabharata is a narrative text with its core concern revolving around dharma. Like any other story, Mahabharata also comprises of protagonists and antagonists. Pandavas can be seen as good, Kauravas as bad and…

cultures, women are often inferior to men in some ways, they are to devote themselves to men, serve them, treat them as superior and follow any order of men. In South Asia, many people follow the religion of Hinduism. It is a religion that also carries a cultural significance that contains several tradition and literature that become important sources to understand the development of Hinduism. One of the most important pieces of literature is the Mahābhārata, one of the sanskrit epic poems that…

Mahabharata is one of the two major works of ancient India which is a narrative of the Kurukshetra war which takes place between Pandavas and Kaurvas. But it is not only an epic which depicts hatred, jealousy and the lust for power but also deals with concepts of purusarthas and moksha. It provides the opportunity to find out about the history of India while today it is also considered as a guide for many Hindu believers and provides them with a way of life in the form of dharma. But even in the…

structure to plain text than one might think. Mahabharata is the longest epic in the world written around 300 BC, it was narrated by Rishi Vyasa and written by the Hindu God Ganesh and many other authors over centuries. It contains accounts of Bhagavada Gita, the story of Damyanti, some part of Ramayana and the Rishyasaringa. It is also referred to as the longest poem ever written.…

Why are the Epics effective means of transmitting dharmic values? The Ramayana and Mahabharata Epics are literature devised in a time period when Hindus needed guidance. The Epics provided a source of conduct for humans that followed dharmic values. Dharma is the cosmic order of the way things should be done. Dharma is a person’s duty in life to follow and it is often in conflict with karma. The Epics were written in a manner that illustrated the social groups’ interests of that time (Rodrigues,…

leaves because this specific truth is at variance with the eternal truth or the universal norm. Vikarna’s sudden protest highlights that no matter how much truth is sought to be suppressed but it will emerge and often from the most unexpected sources. A morally intolerable event succeeds in courageously uncovering the truth because that truth is within all of us; that truth is life’s unmitigated truth. It demands that we have to live this truth under the most unfavourable circumstances and…

• To develop an understanding of the three paths of Yoga – Karma yoga, Bhakti Yoga and Jnana Yoga – that leads progressively to inner change and transformation of consciousness. • To study the Bhagavad Gita to reveal the internalized psychological identities of various characters of the Mahabharata. Method: The present study is an attempt to explore the evolution and transformation of self from the perspective of the Bhagavad Gita. It is being designed as a theoretical work to study the…

(Truth (God) is One, sages know it differently). Some people may worship Bhagavad Geeta, some may believe in Ramayana and some in Mahabharata. Hinduism has a diverse body of cultural and philosophical practices and it consists of traditions and beliefs. The highly regarded belief and traditions of the religion are Karma, Dharma, Samsara and Moksha. Karma is the results of the action which is performed by the human. As you sow, so shall you reap is a common phrase in life which briefly sums up…

212 In the Mahabharata, this concept was dissociated from heaven and earth. According to Moghe, the concept of witness in the epic is associated with punya and papa (good deed and sin). There lies the benefit for telling truth in the form of heaven and hell for telling lies. In the Mahabharata, 11.61.76, 213 it is pointed that he is called a witness who has directly heard (the conversation or) speech between the concerned persons) and kept in mind and who speaks the truth. It is further said…

guide to how to live and honor Dharma. And it is one of the holy books of Hinduism. It was written in sanskrit. It gives the glimpse of Indian civilization and hinduism based on religion and, warfare. The Bhagavad Gita is an overview of family rivalry and conflict over territory (Hastinapur). It has teachings said to be given by Lord Krishna (Hindus believe to be the eight incarnations of god Vishnu in human form.) In the book, Krishna is talking to Arjuna, who was an archer and 3rd of the…