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Reading Notes: PDE Mahabharata, Part A

In this blog post, you will read my notes from Mahabharata from the public domain edition. This is part A notes.


  • Author of Mahabharata = Vyasa
    • Satyavati = mother of Vyasa
    • Brahma (a god) told Vyasa, Ganesha would be his scribe 
  • Devavrata = son of King Shantanu and goddess Ganga
    • possesses powers of the 8 gods, the Vasus 
    • Satyavati (Vyasa's mother) becomes new love of King Shantanu after Ganga leaves him
  • Devavrata take an oath so his father, the king can marry Satyavati so that makes Vyasa and Devavrata brothers
    • The oath is what gives him the nickname "Bhishma"
  • Bhishma fights a battle to capture the 3 daughters of king Kashi to become brides of Bhishma's blood brother (son of Satyavati and his father king Shantanu)
    • Brother's name = Vichitravirya
    • Two of the women (Ambika and Ambalika) become Vichitravirya's wives. The other woman Amba will become important later to Bhishma
    • Vichitravirya dies before he can have sons so there is no heir
  • Satyavati asks her son Vyasa to help
  • Kunti = wife of king Pandu
    • Like Satyavati had a son years before she was married to king Pandu
  • King Pandu also has an encounter with a deer and kills it-- the deer was an avatar for a rishi's son
    • He becomes cursed
    • King Pandu has sons (The Pandavas) 
  • The Kauravas = sons of Dhritarashtra 
    • The Kauravas and the Pandavas will have a feud
  • Pandu dies from the curse and Kunti has to raise 5 sons of Pandu
  • Duryodhana (Kaurava) hates the strongest Pandava son. Bhima and tries to kill him
    • Pandava encounter supernatural beings and Bhima goes to the underworld king and becomes supernaturally strong
  • Drona is the guru of the Pandavas and Kauravas
    • Pandavas (Yudhishthria, Bhima, Arjuna) do well with training
    • Ekalavya = aboriginal boy who wants to become a helper of Drona
  • Pandavas and Kauravas are trained now and they will show what they have learned in a tournament 
    • Kunti's oldest son Karna shows up at the tournament 
    • Instead of payment, Drona wants the boys to seek revenge on a friend who mistreated him
  • Duryodhana (Kauravas) wants to finally get rid of Pandavas and their mother Kunti



    Bibliography:
    The Mahabharata, A Summary by John Mandeville Macfie
    Indian Myth and Legend by Donald A. Mackenzie
    Mahabharata translated by K. M. Ganguli
    The Five Brothers by Elizabeth Seeger

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