The Mahabharata is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India and is attributed to the sage Vyasa. It recounts the story of a dynastic struggle between two groups of cousins for the kingdom of Kuru. The epic explores philosophical and spiritual ideas including dharma and moksha through the lives and actions of its characters. After attempts to make peace fail, a great 18 day battle ensues between the Pandava and Kaurava cousins in which many are killed, concluding the epic.

1. Mahabharata
Veda Vyasa

2. • The Mahabharata is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of
ancient India.
• the authorship of the Mahabharata is attributed to the great
sage Veda Vyasa (Krsna Dvaipaya)
• Longest epic of the world
• one hundred thousand verses, long prose passages, or about
1.8 million words in total
• roughly ten times the length of the Iliad and Odyssey
combined or about four times the length of the Ramayana.
• called Mahabharata due to the immense size and its dealing
with the story of the people of the race descended from
the ancient emperor Bharata

3. • Shantanu, king of Hastinapura, was married to the
beautiful Ganga, who was the river goddess in disguise.
• Bhishma… 8th son left
• Shantanu married again with Satyavati, mother of Vyasa
• Bhishma abducted 3 sisters, Amba, Ambika, and
Ambalika.
• Amba then vowed that one day she would kill him.
• Satyavati… ask Vyasa to give childern to two princesses
Ambika and Ambalika.
• first child would be born blind, Dhritarashtra… 2nd
child will be pale-skinned, Pandu

4. • Pandu shoots a gazelle of a brahmin, so he
cursed him…
• Kunti… Yudhisthira, Bhima and Arjuna
• Madri… Nakula and Sahaveda (Pandavas)
• After Pandu died, Dhritarashtra has become
king, despite his blindness.
• Gives birth to a ball of flesh,… became a parent
of 100 sons. (Kauravas)
• Duryodhana… first son of Kauravas brings hate

5. • Because of jealous, Duryodhana planned to kill the
Pandavas…
• Pandavas escaped… then lived in forest.
• Pandavas attend swayamvara of Draupadi… Arjuna
wins Draupadi as “prize”
• Kunti tells Arjuna to share his prize to his brothers
without seeing first Draupadi. Then, five brothers
married Draupadi.
• As tension between families mounts, Krishna makes his
appearance to intervene.

6. • To avert war, Krishna advice King Dhritarashtra to
give the half of the kingdom to Pandavas…
Yudhisthira accepts.
• Indraprastha… new kingdom lead by Yudhisthira…
Duryodhana felt jealous.
• Pandavas lost to a dice game then they lost
everything, including Draupadi.
• Duryodhana uncovers Draupadi, but Krishna
rescue her.
• She swears that one day she will be
avenged.

7. • Pandavas are condemned to spend 12 years of exile in
forest and a 13th year in an unknown place to disguise.
• Arjuna aims to the highest mountains to look for
celestial weapons… Shiva gave him.
• Meanwhile Duryodhana has launched an attack on
Virata's kingdom. Then lost to Arjuna.
• Duryodhana refuses to give his cousins back their
kingdom
• Krishna offers Arjuna first choice: either he can have all
of Krishna’s armies, or he can have Krishna
alone..Arjuna chooses Krishna. When Arjuna asks him
to drive his chariot, Krishna accepts.

8. • Krishna pleads with Dhritarashtra one last time to
restore to the Pandavas their rightful kingdom.
• Convinced by Duryodhana, not to. “I can sacrifice my life,
my wealth, my kingdom, my everything, but I can never live in
peace with the Pandavas.”
• Then begins the war at Kuru’s Field when Duryodhana
refuse to give back the Pandavas Kingdom.
• They set some rules but eventually broken.
• Arjuna thinks before he acts. Arjuna hesitates before
such killing, wanting to retreat from life and
responsibility (tension between dharma and moksha).

9. • Krishna then reveals his divine, universal nature to Arjuna
in a magnificent vision of a multitude of gods, stretching
out to infinity.
• Resolved now to perform his duty to his lord, Arjuna leads
his troops into battle.
• On the first day, Bhisma leads the Kuaravas army to enter
the battle and he wins the war.
• No one cannot fight with Bhisma, because he was blessed
with the power to choose his time of death.
• Sikhandi was put into war. Bhisma refuse to fight a woman.
Then killed by Bhisma.
• Sikhandi is the reincarnation of Amba, who cursed Bhisma.

10. • Bhima kills most of the 100 Kauravas, who were
demons incarnate.
• The war lasted for 18 days.
• Duryodhana choose to fight with Bhima. Bhima stikes
his legs. Duryudhana died.
• Krishna reveals that the gods allowed this war to relieve
Earth of her great burden. Duryodhana was the
incarnation of Kali, lord of the 4th age.
• Bhisma lay down in the bed of arrows.
• Bhishma tells Yudhishthira, “If one fights against trickery,
one should oppose him with trickery. But if one fights lawfully,
one should check him with dharma.”

11. • Krishna Vasudeva departed from this earth thirty-six
years after the war.
• Pandavas also leave this world… the Great Journey
• Yudhisthira and his dog arrives at entrance of paradise.
• Draupadi and his brothers died along the way.
• The gate keeper tells Yudhisthira to leave his dog if he
wants to enter the paradise.
• He refuses to leave aa creature so faithful, and is
permitted to enter, for this was a test, the dog was the
god Dharma in disguise.

12. • In paradise, Yudhisthira saw his enemies are there,
smiling and contented.
• He decides to stay with his loved ones, Draupadi in hell,
rather than enjoy the delights of heaven with his
enemies.
• This too was a test, the “final illusion.”
• They are all permitted to enter paradise.

13. Thank You! :)