Mahabharatha

What is the story about? Garutmantha or Garuda is the trusted devotee and the vehicle of Lord Vishnu. The story discusses the birth of Garutmantha and his expeditions. ‘Madhu Vidya’ (the art of inhaling Sun’s rays as substitute for food, spiritual quotient of darbha grass, and incubation of children in ghee pots etc are certain highlights of this story. 1 Background of the Story Saunaka was happy to hear the story of क्षीर सागर मथनं- kṣīra sāgara mathanaṃ and the birth of the divine horse Uchhaisrva in the process of churning of the ocean. He also heard Vinatha becoming the dasi of Kadruva and the birth of Anura. He was inquisitive to know as to how Vinatha got extricated from the bondage of Kadru. Saunaka started narrating the story. ...

What is the story about? Deva-Asura sangrama or the war between the gods and demons is a very popular story that we come across in many Puranas and Itihasas. The story is the subject matter of many folk songs, ballads and of late, films. The churning of the ocean and resultant war appeals to all types of readers from children to highly learned intellectuals. The symbolism behind the story is for the consumption of intellectuals and the story, per se, is for children. 1 ...

What is the story about? The effects of anger and jealousy are the subject matter of this story. Anger results in delusion and fails the intellect of any person. The story discusses dāsī system (slavery) prevalent in ancient societies and tries to compare this system that was prevalent in Bharath vis-à-vis the West. The prevalence of the practice of preserving eggs in ghee pots for incubation is an ingenuous scientific technique unique to Indian society; and this aspect is also covered in the current story. 1 ...

(This is an interesting episode in Maha Bharata discussing tenets of ‘pātivratya - code of conduct for women; and the nature of democratic debates for solving common problems. The necessity of perpetuating a family lineage and the importance of following dharma in the face of adversities etc are also the themes that run through the story) The Background of the Story On hearing the death of his father in the hands of Takshaka, a serpent king, Janamejaya had taken a decision to punish the whole race of serpents. ...

About the Story 1 Anger Management is the basic requisite for a human to become humane. Anger leads to delusion and destroys discriminating intellect. The story of Parīkṣit epitomizes the importance of anger management in day today life. Background of the story Uttanka suffered a lot in the hands of the serpent, Takshaka. He wanted to take revenge against the whole race of serpents. He reached Janamejaya, the king of Hastinapura and said that the latter’s father was killed by Takshaka. He asked him to take revenge against the serpents.) ...

About the Story This is a famous story from Mahabharatha (Adi Parva), the verses of which are quoted very often by scholastic community to distinguish a satvic and rajasic personalities. Anger management is the hallmark of satva personality. This story also talks of the importance of devotion that is given in certain nitya/ naimittika karmas by our scriptures. Background of the story (Saunaka, after hearing the story of Ruru & Pramadvara, asked Ugrasavasa, ‘Why did Janamejaya perform the Sarpayāga? Ugrasravasa started narrating the story to Saunaka and his disciples) ...

The story is taken from Chapter 8 to 11 of Adi Parva of Mahabharatha written by sage Veda Vyasa. Background to the present story Ugrasravasa was narrating the story of Bhrigu Vamsa to Saunaka and his ten thousand disciples. In that we have read the story of Maharshi Chyavana’s birth. Chyavana’s son was Pramathi who was married to an apsarasa by name Ghṛtāci. They had a son by name Ruru. ...

Mahabharata, as we know, was recited first by Vaiśaṃpāyana in the court of Janamejaya. Ugrasravasa, son of a sūta was present in the court and he had understood the entire story. He wanted to narrate the story in greater detail to greater congregations, and so, he reached the illustrious Naimisaranya where he found more than ten thousand rishis who were the disciples of Saunaka. Ugrasravasa was very pious and humble, and he expressed his intentions to the rishis. The rishis were eager to listen to Mahabharata, but Saunaka wanted to hear the story of Bhrigu vamsa from Ugrasravasa before listening to Mahabharat. Ugrasravasa obliged to the request of Vaiśaṃpāyana, and he started narrating the story. ...

The Gurukul education was a prominent system in ancient Bharat (India) and it was there till the nineteenth century when the Macaulay Minute was formulated in 1835. The story under consideration revolves around Gurukul education 1 prevalent in Mahabharat times. Once upon a time there lived a rishi, Ayodha Dhaumya in an āśrama surrounded by a thick forest. Upamanyu, Aruni & Veda were his three disciples. It was Gurukul system of learning, and all the students were learning language, grammar, mathematics, Vedic texts, Itihasas and a whole lot of yoga, pranayama, and meditation techniques under the benevolent patronage of the teacher. ...

(Vedavyasa Mahabharatam – the story, the ethics, morals & the traditions) Very interestingly, the first and the last story of Mahabharata is that of a dog. The king of Hastinapura, Janamejaya (Arjuna’s son is Abhimanyu, Abhimanyu’s son is Parikshit, and his son is Janamejaya) was performing a satra yāgaṃ assisted by his three brothers- Sruthasena, Ugrasena and Bhimasena. Satra yāgaṃ was supposed to benefit the humanity at large and the king was interested in it. ...