Stories of the Mahabharatha - Dr P J Joseph

"Mahabharatha" is the greatest Indian Epic, which is the longest and the best of all the epics ever written anywhere in the world. It appeals not just to the people of one nation, or of one race, or of one religion, but it may be of interest to people of all nations, of all climes and of all times. It consists of 1000,00 four line stanzas equal to about eight times as much as Odyssey and Iliad, the Greek epics put together. No other poet in the world could sustain the height of their imaginative flight at a stretch so long as, the author of the Mahabharatha. Here is a summarised version of this long epic written in simple language, for the benefit of the children. Mahabharatha is a conglomeration of epic and didactic discourses written in nineteen books. It deals with not only war; but it also gives accounts on cosmology, theology and discourses on philosophy, law, religion and the norms of war. About the Mahabharatha it is said that what is found there may be found elsewhere; but what is not found there, you may not find anywhere else. All the possible ramifications of human thoughts, feelings and actions are dealt with in this voluminous book. But this book is a humble attempt to re-render the stories related to the main theme of the poem. What is left out is more than what is included so that the attention of the readers may not be diverted from the main theme.