Mahabharata: The Greatest Spiritual Epic of All Time
by Krishna Dharma
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Book Summary Information
Author: Krishna DharmaEdition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 1999-08-15
ISBN: 1887089179
Number of pages: 944
Publisher: Torchlight Publishing
Book Reviews of Mahabharata: The Greatest Spiritual Epic of All Time
Book Review: A good read
Summary: 4 Stars
This is definitely a good read for those wanting their first taste of the Mahabharata, although Ramesh Menon's 2 volume effort is far better.Krishna Dharma has left out most of the erotica and discussions on philosophy,governance and the paths to self growth.
Indians had been comfortable (until English Missionaries came) with sex as an essential element of life with its multiple dimensions of emotional and psychological outcomes.This is brought out in great detail in the Mahabharata with Freudian pageantry.Draupadi represents the ultimate in womanhood and sexual desire in the male world.She has 5 husbands and each represents a womanly desire deep within her for male company...sister,daughter,friend and mother for 4 of her husbands.However,it is only with Arjuna her true love, that she enjoys the ultimate Man-Woman relationship which is described in detail in their lovemaking and orgasmic fulfillment.I got this from the 18 volume Bengali/Sanskrit version which my Grandmother gave me.Draupadi achieves sexual orgasm only with Arjuna.Figure that out!The sexual tension between her and Karna,the sixth but unacknowlegded brother, is another story.
Bhishma's dialogue on governance with Yudhistira after the battle, is the essence of statesmanship and represents the ideal qualities of leadership from every country on earth through the ages.There is Daniel Goleman's Emotional Intelligence,Howard Gardner's Leadership ideas and many present day Business School concepts of Group Dynamics and organisational Structures for the State and Nation.
The special relationship between Arjuna and Krishna represent the Jeevatma and Paramatma concept where the Consciousness tries to connect with the Supra-consciousness that governs the Universe.The interplay of thoughts,words and actions between these two first cousins and best friends born on the same day, is the pivot on which the Mahabharata turns.
Good and Evil are mixed up as there is always the Gray.Duryodhana has his problems but he also rules well and is a good king.He is a loyal friend to those close to him.His courage is never in doubt.The Pandavas rise and acquire the sin of arrogance which leads to their fall through the dice game where Yudhistira loses everything he stakes.And yet after mastering the art/mantra of dice,he plays daily in the 13th year of exile and wins every hand because there are no stakes involved!
The killing of Drona through a wee bit of treachery shocks a very "Christian" Arjuna with strict black and white lines of what are good and evil.It is Krishna who takes him through the very Indian concept of Space-Time related Truth and the example of Kaushika who always spoke the Truth and still went to hell.
The Mahabharata is still relevant today, not because its an exciting yarn, but because through the lives of its many characters it challenges our ideas of right and wrong.It is also prescriptive of how we can grow and evolve through the challenges that life throws at us.
Ramesh Menon's fast paced 2 volumes create some of these questions in the readers minds.Krishna Dharma's version creates fewer but it is still a very very good read and a wonderful introduction to the 2500 year epic.
Summary of Mahabharata: The Greatest Spiritual Epic of All Time
One of the oldest and most cherished of all Indian classics, filled with deep spiritual wisdom, it is the story of five heroic brothers who were destined to rule a vast kingdom.Classics Books
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