Republic of the Philippines

PANGASINAN STATE UNIVERSITY

Bayambang Campus
Bayambang, Pangasinan
2nd Semester, AY 2023 – 2024

A Written Report in EL 112: Survey of Afro-Asian Literature

(Chapter 5: Hindu Literature)

Prepared by:
Catchillar, Stephanie L.
BSE-English II-2

Instructor:
Assoc. Prof. Salome M. Montemayor
I. Introduction
The Mahabharata is one of the longest texts in history and it is categorize
as one of the literature in Hindu literature and it is also an ancient Indian epic.
The Mahabharata revolves around in the main story of the war of the two
branches of a family called the Pandavas and Kauravas. The war is called
Kurukshetra War and it is about the battle for the throne of Hastinapura which
lasted for 18 days that resulted in the deaths of over 1.6 trillion people.

The author of the Mahabharata is not clearly known as many scholars

believed that Mahabharata began as an oral tradition and so has multiple
authors. Another tradition names the author as Vyasa, who appears in the poem
as a character himself. So thus, the author of Mahabharata is known to be
Vyasa.

II. Intended Learning Outcomes

At the end of this lesson, you should be able to;
a. recall the epic Mahabharata,
b. appreciate the epic by giving lessons, and
c. explain how the Mahabharata is told.

III. About the Author

Vyasa

Krishna Dvaipayana, better known as Vyasa or Veda

Vyasa, was a revered Hindu Sage portrayed in most
Hindu traditions. He is traditionally regarded as the author
of the epic Mahabharata. Vyasa is also regarded by many
Hindus as a partial incarnation of Vishnu.

IV. About the Epic

Full title: Mahabharata
• It was written in Ancient India and published between 300 B.C.E. and
300 C.E.
• The literary period when it was written was during Classical Sanskrit,
Vedic/ Post-Vedic Period.
• The setting of the epic was at the north of ancient India.
• The genre of Mahabharata is Religious Scripture and Epic Poem.
• The Mahabharata is one of the longest texts in history, ten times the
length of the Iliad and the Odyssey combined.
• One of the most popular adaptations of the Mahabharata is a television
show produced in India in the 1980s. It received renewed attention
during the COVID-19 pandemic after an Indian public broadcast
company re-aired episodes of the show.
• The poem references the Vedas, a set of four volumes (with several
subdivisions) that deal with philosophical and moral questions and are
the oldest surviving Sanskrit holy writings.
• Mahabharata has 18 main books (parvans) and hundreds of sub-books
(uparvans).
• 18 Main Books (parvans)
o Book 1 Adi Parva (Beginnings)
o Book 2 Sabha Parva (The Hall)
o Book 3 Vana Parva (The Forest)
o Book 4 Virata Parva (Virata)
o Book 5 Udyoga Parva (Perseverance)
o Book 6 Bhishma Parva (Bhishma)
o Book 7 Drona Parva (Drona)
o Book 8 Karna-Parva (Karna)
o Book 9 Shalya-Parva (Salya)
o Book 10 Sauptika-Parva (The Night-Raid)
o Book 11 Stri-Parva (The Women)
o Book 12 Santi Parva (Tranquility)
o Book 13 Anusasana Parva (Instruction)
o Book 14 Aswamedha Parva (The Horse Sacrifice)
o Book 15 Asramavasika Parva (The Hermitage)
o Book 16 Mausala-Parva (The Clubs)
o Book 17 Mahaprasthanika-Parva (The Great Journey)
o Book 18 Svargarohanika-Parva (The Ascent to Heaven)

The Mahabharata Manuscript

V. Questions
A) Warm-up Questions
1. Have you already heard the Mahabharata?

B) Focus Questions
1. What is the biggest gamble you made in your life?
2. What do you think the heaven looks like?

VI. Characters

Family Tree

Major Characters

The Pandavas

Pandu is the husband of Kunti and

Madri, and his descendants are
called the Pandavas.

• Father of Pandavas
 Yudhishthira is the eldest of the
five Pandava brothers.
His mother is Kunti, but his
biological father is the god Dharma.
As a result, Yudhishthira earns the
title “lord of dharma.”

Bhima is the second-oldest

Pandava brother, the biological
son of a wind god and Kunti. Bhima
is famous for being the most brash
and violent of all his brothers.

Arjuna is the third oldest of the

five Pandava brothers and
arguably the best warrior among
them, as well as the best archer in
the world. His biological father is
Indra, and he also has a strong
relationship with Krishna, showing
how Arjuna has found favor with the
gods.

Nakula and Sahadeva are the

youngest of the Pandava
brothers. They are twins, the
biological children of twin gods and
Pandu’s second wife Madri. Both
prove themselves to be skilled
swordsmen during the Kurukshetra
War, although their elder brothers
all play a more prominent role.

The Kauravas

Dhritarashtra is the head of the

Kauravas, and he has 100 sons
with his wife Gandhari, with
Duryodhanabeing the eldest and
 most notable. Dhritarashtra is born
blind.
• Father of Kauravas

Duryodhana is one of the 100

sons of the king Dhritarashtra.
He is the main antagonist of the
Mahabharata, instigating and
leading a war against five of his
cousins: Yudhishthira, Arjuna,
Bhima, Nakula, and Sahadeva.

VII. Plot Summary

Ugrasravas the Suta begins telling a story to some Brahmin seers led by
Saunaka. He says it’s called the Mahabharata and that it’s full of heroes and
seers performing amazing feats. Ugrasravas heard that a great seer named
Vyasa first compiled the Mahabharata, and he begins narrating the story of what
Vyasa’s assistant, Vaisampayana, told to Janamejaya while Janamejaya was
in the middle of conducting a snake sacrifice.

Vaisampayana begins telling the story of the Kuru lineage, of which Janamejaya
himself is a member. Some of the most important members of this lineage are
the Pandavas, a group of five brothers who each achieve fame in their own
way: Yudhishthira, Arjuna, Bhima, and the twins Nakula and Sahadeva. Another
major branch of the family is called the Kauravas, and it includes Dhritarashtra,
who has 100 sons, the eldest and most notable of whom is Duryodhana.

A rivalry between the Pandavas and the Kauravas begins early in life, with
Duryodhana at one point scheming to try to kill his cousins. Later, with the help
of an advisor named Sakuni, Duryodhana gets the idea that since he can’t
defeat the Pandavas in battle, he’ll steal the Pandava kingdom for himself by
tricking Yudhishthira into a gambling match. Many of Dhritarashtra’s other
advisors, like Vidura, tell him that it isn’t wise to let Duryodhana go through with
this plan, but Dhritarashtra allows him to do so anyways.

Yudhishthira loses the gambling competition and has to give away everything,
including his own freedom, his entire kingdom of Hastinapura, and his wife
Draupadi (whom he shares with the other four Pandava brothers). Eventually,
Duryodhana agrees to release the Pandavas and Draupadi from bondage, but
they have to go into exile for 12 years and then spend a 13th year in disguise
in a city.

After the end of the Pandava exile, tensions between them and the Kauravas
flare up again, as the Pandavas resent the loss of their kingdom and the way
that Duryodhana treated their wife, Draupadi, as a slave. Meanwhile, the
Kauravas keep encroaching on Pandava territory. Ultimately, the Kauravas and
the Pandavas fight a massive war for the succession of the Kuru lineage that
results in the deaths of over 1.6 trillion people. During preparations for the war,
Arjuna secures the help of Krishna, a strong and virtuous incarnation of the god
Vishnu, who, despite vowing not to fight, seems to assure victory for whichever
side he’s on. Krishna agrees to be Arjuna’s charioteer.

The actual fighting, which lasts 18 days, involves great heroes on each side
performing amazing feats of military prowess, sometimes using powerful
celestial weapons and killing many nameless soldiers and some famous heroes
as well. Duryodhana heads the Pandava forces, appointing a series of
commanders that inevitably fall in battle to the Pandavas. Meanwhile,
Yudhishthira leads the Pandavas and their allies with a steady hand. At the end
of each day, the messenger Samajaya recounts what happened to the blind
king Dhritarashtra, who laments the many losses his army suffers each day.
Perhaps the most significant portion of the battle is the Bhagavadgita, a section
of the poem where Arjuna has doubts about whether or not it’s right to fight, and
Krishna gives a famous speech that touches on many topics of morality and
spirituality. Arjuna ultimately goes on to become perhaps the fiercest warrior on
the battlefield with his trusty bow and with Krishna driving his chariot.

Near the end of the war, when the Pandavas have defeated almost all of their
enemies, Asvatthaman (son of the dead Kaurava commander Drona) prays to
Siva and conducts a deadly night raid that kills most of the remaining Pandava
army while the five brothers are away. Still, even this is not enough to change
the outcome of the war, and the Pandavas take back their kingdom in
Hastinapura, where Yudhishthira is reinstalled as king.

After the war, the survivors continue to live out the rest of their lives, with
Dhritarashtra reconciling with the Pandavas before ultimately dying in a
hermitage. To commemorate the occasion of regaining his kingdom,
Yudhishthira conducts a horse ceremony, allowing a horse to roam across his
entire kingdom under Arjuna’s protection before finally sacrificing it.
 Eventually, it comes time for the Pandavas and Draupadi to go on one last
journey. As they walk, they each fall down dead, one by one. Yudhishthira, the
last one standing, is allowed to enter the heaven of the god Indra while keeping
his mortal body. When Yudhishthira arrives, he’s shocked to find Duryodhana
on a throne and his old allies all being tortured. He fears he’s dreaming until, at
last, Indra appears, dispelling the illusion and telling him that it’s a king’s fate to
go to hell before reaching heaven and that in fact, he and his allies are allowed
to live in heaven for their good deeds on earth.

The frame story ends with Ugrasravas repeating that the Mahabharata is a tale
about victory and that just hearing it or telling it brings good luck. He offers a
hymn that people can say every morning to try to get closer to perfection.

VIII. Focus Topic

Book 3: Vana Parva (The Forest)

Also known as Aranyaka-parva, Aranya-parva or The Book of the Forest. It is
the twelve years of exile in the forest of the Pandavas.
• In this book, the exile of the Pandavas in the forest started.
• Many stories are told in this book and the first story is about Nala who is
a distinguished king. According to the seer, hearing the story of Nala will
give the listeners good luck.
• The Pandavas decided to go on a pilgrimage and during their pilgrimage,
they heard and learned different stories.
• In this book, it tells the experience of the Pandavas while completing
their 12 years of exile in the forest. In the 13th year of their exile, the
Pandavas remained unrecognizable.

Book 18: Svargarohanika-Parva (The Ascent to Heaven)

Also known as The Book of the Ascent to Heaven. It is Yudhisthira’s final test
and the return of the Pandavas to the spiritual world.
• In this book, it tells what Yudhisthira saw and discovered when he first
entered Indra's heaven.
Indra explains that all kings must-see hell at some point and that
good kings must go to hell before going to heaven, while bad
kings do the reverse.
• Vaisampayana explained first how a person has to leave heaven and be
incarnated before ending the story of the Kauravas and the Pandavas.
• Ugrasravas concludes his story by saying what did Janamejaya do after
listening to Vaisampayana's narration.
IX. Topics Tackled in the Mahabharata
• Dharma (Sanskrit word that embodies several concepts, including
“duty,” “justice,” or even “fate.” )
The characters in the Mahabharata have their own individual dharma,
and each of them struggles to live out their destiny and avoid doing
things that are “adharma” (against dharma). For instance,
Yudhishthira is a king who earns the title “lord of dharma” on account
of his wise judgment, and yet he loses the gambling competition and
has to give away everything, including his own freedom, his entire
kingdom of Hastinapura, and his wife Draupadi along with his
Pandava brothers.

• Pursuing Enlightenment
The Mahabharata is not just an epic poem but also a holy text in
Hinduism, and so religious enlightenment plays a large role in it. The
enlightenment in the Mahabharata involves searching for wisdom
from a variety of sources. For instance, the pilgrimage of the
Pandavas, where they heard many stories that gave lessons, advice,
and blessings.

• Heroism and Warfare

The Mahabharata also revolves around the Kurukshetra War of the
the Pandavas and the Kauravas, who battles for the throne of
Hastinapura.

• Grief, Loss, and Mourning

Due to the Kurukshetra War, the Mahabharata is full of death, and it
also deals with the grief of survivors feel in the wake of death. For
instants, Dhritarashtra, who loses 100 sons as well as many other
trusted relatives, warriors, and advisors. At the end of each day of
battle, the blind king Dhritarashtra laments to hear how many brave
fighters died in battle that day.

• Stories and Storytelling

The Mahabharata is a long story that contains many smaller stories.
For instance, Ugrasravas narrates the Mahabharata to Saunaka
which Ugrasravas heard that a great seer named Vyasa first
compiled the Mahabharata, and he begins narrating the story of what
Vyasa’s assistant, Vaisampayana, told to Janamejaya while
Janamejaya was in the middle of conducting a snake sacrifice.
X. Link for Unabridged Text

The complete Mahabharata in English translation can be read here:

https://library.bjp.org/jspui/handle/123456789/851

XI. Reference

Encyclopædia Britannica. (n.d.). Mahabharata: manuscript folio. Encyclopædia

Britannica.
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Mahabharata#/media/1/357806/95475

Ganguli, K. M. (1970, January 1). The complete Mahabharata in English.

Library. https://library.bjp.org/jspui/handle/123456789/851

LitCharts. (n.d.). Mahabharata. https://www.litcharts.com/lit/mahabharata

Mahabharata manuscript. ROOTS. (n.d.). https://www.roots.gov.sg/Collection-

Landing/listing/1143136

UsefulCharts. (2020, October 3). Mahabharata family tree. YouTube.

https://youtu.be/-vg-5zkw6H4?si=YuW179LOo8Kf5OQR

Wikimedia Foundation. (n.d.) Vyasa. Wikipedia.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vyasa