The Mahabharata: A Shortened Modern Prose Version of the Indian Epic - Softcover

Narayan, R. K.; Doniger, Wendy

Softcover

ISBN 10: 022605165X ISBN 13: 9780226051659

Verlag: University of Chicago Press, 2016

Inhaltsangabe

The Mahabharata tells a story of such violence and tragedy that many people in India refuse to keep the full text in their homes, fearing that if they do, they will invite a disastrous fate upon their house. Covering everything from creation to destruction, this ancient poem remains an indelible part of Hindu culture and a landmark in ancient literature.

Centuries of listeners and readers have been drawn to The Mahabharata, which began as disparate oral ballads and grew into a sprawling epic. The modern version is famously long, and at more than 1.8 million words—seven times the combined lengths of the Iliad and Odyssey—it can be incredibly daunting.

Contemporary readers have a much more accessible entry point to this important work, thanks to R. K. Narayan’s masterful translation and abridgement of the poem. Now with a new foreword by Wendy Doniger, as well as a concise character and place guide and a family tree, The Mahabharata is ready for a new generation of readers. As Wendy Doniger explains in the foreword, “Narayan tells the stories so well because they’re all his stories.” He grew up hearing them, internalizing their mythology, which gave him an innate ability to choose the right passages and their best translations.

In this elegant translation, Narayan ably distills a tale that is both traditional and constantly changing. He draws from both scholarly analysis and creative interpretation and vividly fuses the spiritual with the secular. Through this balance he has produced a translation that is not only clear, but graceful, one that stands as its own story as much as an adaptation of a larger work.

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R. K. Narayan (1906–2001) was one of the most prominent Indian novelists of the twentieth century. His works include Mr. Sampath—The Printer of Malgudi, Swami and Friends, Waiting for Mahatma, and Gods, Demons, and Others, all published by the University of Chicago Press.

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The Mahabharata

A Shortened Modern Prose Version of the Indian Epic

By R. K. Narayan

The University of Chicago Press

Copyright © 2013 University of Chicago
All rights reserved.

ISBN: 978-0-226-05165-9

Contents

Foreword by Wendy Doniger, 
Introduction, 
List of Characters and Places of Action in the Story, 
Generation Tree, 
1. The Eighth Baby, 
2. Enter—the Players, 
3. House of Joy—and Ashes, 
4. Bride for Five, 
5. Uncle's Gift, 
6. City of Splendour, 
7. Stakes Unmatched, 
8. Wanderings, 
9. Hundred Questions, 
10. Servitude, 
11. Warning Shots, 
12. War or Peace?, 
13. Action, 
14. Hesitant Hero, 
15. Delirium of Destruction, 
16. Victory and Sorrow, 
17. Epilogue, 
Notes, 
Glossary, 

CHAPTER 1

The Eighth Baby

SANTANU WAS THE RULER of an ancient kingdom with its capital at Hastinapura. One day while out hunting, he came upon a lovely maiden by the river and fell in love with her. He announced himself and asked, "Will you be my wife?" Being equally attracted to him, she said, "Yes, but listen carefully to what I say now. When I am married, I must be absolutely free to do what I like. At no stage should you ever question my action. I'll stay as your wife only as long as you observe this rule." Santanu accepted the condition wholeheartedly and they were married.

In due course, she brought forth a baby, and as soon as it could be lifted, drowned it in the river. Santanu was shocked and bewildered, but could ask no questions. The next child was also promptly drowned, and then another and another. As soon as it was born, she carried off every child to the river and returned to the palace with a smile of satisfaction. Her husband never referred to this monstrous habit of hers for fear that she might leave, since in all other respects she proved a splendid wife.

When the eighth child came and she got ready to dispose of it, he followed her. Unable to control himself any more, he cried, "This is too horrible. Stop it!"

She replied calmly, "Yes, I will spare this child, but the moment has come for us to part."

"Oh, tell me why, before you go."

So she explained, "Know me now as Ganga, the deity of this river. I took human form only in order to give birth to these eight babies, as ordained. I married you because you were the only one worthy of fathering them. The children are the eight vasus. In their past life, for the sin of stealing Sage Vasishta's rare cow, Nandini, they were cursed to be born on earth. On appealing, seven of them were permitted to leave their physical bodies soon after birth and return to heaven. However, the eighth member among them, who had arranged the whole expedition to satisfy the whims of his wife, and who had actually stolen the cow—the one I am holding now—is to continue his existence on earth as a man of brilliant accomplishments, but condemned to a life of celibacy."

After these explanations Ganga said, "I'll take this child with me now, but restore him to you later."

His desperate questions, "Oh, when? Where?" were ignored as she vanished with the child into the river.

Years later, once again at the same spot, the King was accosted by Ganga and presented with their son, now grown into a youth. She said, "I have brought him up with care. Now he can go with you. He is named Devavratha. He has mastered all the Vedas under Sage Vasishta himself; he will be a great warrior, an expert in the use of astras, and endowed with rare mental and spiritual qualities. Take him home." At this, she vanished.

King Santanu returned to the palace a very happy man, and installed the youth as the heir apparent.

Four years later, King Santanu, following a deer while hunting, came upon a beautiful maiden in the woods and was once again love-stricken. "Who are you? Why are you here?" he asked.

She answered, "I am the daughter of a fisherman. I help my father to ferry pilgrims across the river."

The King sought her father and asked, "Will you permit us to marry?" He agreed readily but added, "On the condition that the son born to her will be your successor." The King could not accept this and returned to the palace frustrated.

In the days that followed, the young Prince Devavratha, noticing his father's melancholic state, enquired, "What's troubling your mind?"

The King replied, "I am worried about the future, or rather the future of our dynasty. You are my only son. If any mishap befalls you, our dynasty will come to an end. The scriptures say that having an only son is like having no son. You are at all times engaged in the exercise of arms and you will be a great warrior, but how can one prophesy a warrior's end?"

The Prince was bewildered by his father's statement and sought an explanation, privately, from their minister. The minister explained that the King desired to marry the fisherman's daughter, but that he felt unable to accept the man's condition. Devavratha visited the fisherman at his hut and assured him that when the time came, his daughter's issue would succeed to the throne. The fisherman, being too far-sighted, had a further misgiving, and asked, "Who will be my grandson's successor?"

"Well, naturally, his son," said Devavratha. "Perhaps you fear that if I marry, my sons will be rivals to your daughter's progeny. I hereby promise that I'll live and die a bachelor. This is a firm vow."

The fisherman was pleased. Devavratha—who from that time came to be known as Bhishma, meaning "one of firm vow"—addressed the girl, "Now get into the chariot, please. You will be my mother henceforth."

Satyavathi, the daughter of the fisherman, bore the King two sons, Chitrangada and Vichitravirya. Chitrangada succeeded Santanu, but he was killed in a battle with a gandharva king. His brother, Vichitravirya, who was still young, was installed as his successor, with Bhishma acting as a regent at the request of Satyavathi herself.

Bhishma, anxious not to let the family become extinct, waited for a chance to find a bride for his ward. When the ruler of Kasi announced a swayamwara for his three daughters named Amba, Ambika, and Ambalika, he presented himself at that court, where many princes from far and near had assembled to catch the eye of the beauties. At a crucial moment, Bhishma rose and announced, "Of the several forms of choosing a bride, as the sages have mentioned, the noblest is that in which a maiden is acquired by force from amidst a valiant gathering such as this." Thus saying, he seized the three girls before anyone could understand what was happening and, pushing them into his chariot, sped away, pursued by the outraged princes and the father of the girls. He fought his pursuers off and arrived at Hastinapura with the girls intended for his half-brother, Vichitravirya.

When the date for their wedding was settled, the eldest of the sisters, called Amba, said, "I cannot marry your brother, as my heart is already set on the King of Salwa and I cannot consider anyone else."

Bhishma admitted her objection and sent her away to Salwa as she desired. Ambika and Ambalika were married to Vichitravirya and they lived a happy life for seven years, when Vichitravirya contracted a wasting disease and died without issue.

At this, Satyavathi pleaded with Bhishma, "Under certain circumstances, one could perpetuate one's line through the widows of one's brother. The shastras permit it. Please save these girls from ending their...

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: University of Chicago Press
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2016
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN 10: 022605165X
• ISBN 13: 9780226051659
• Einband: Taschenbuch
• Anzahl der Seiten: 212
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: Nicht verfügbar
• Verantwortliche Person: Nicht verfügbar