First Published : Aug 2010

Genre: Non Fiction, Mythology, Religion

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Introduction

Mahabharata is an extremely familiar tale in India and is a very important text in Hinduism (along with Ramayana). There are many short stories, poems, movies and series created to bring this epic to life. I believe almost everyone in India would know of it. My earliest memory of Mahabharata is the scene from the TV series in the 90’s where Bhishma makes his Akhand Pratigya. That series was an epic adaptation and nothing, in my humble opinion, ever came close to it after that. 

How is Jaya different?

To be honest, I am ill-equipped to answer that. But within the first few pages, the author provides a lot of context even before the actual story is started. And he has done a good job keeping things as simple as it can be, providing relevant background information to a new reader. 

I really liked the story telling aspect of the book and the titbits of explanation given throughout. The Mahabharata is an epic tale that has layers upon layers of details and the cycle of karma and dharma (duty). The book provides an overview of all the major events that eventually lead up to the Kurukshetra war and all that happens during the war and the people involved in it. The author breaks it into smaller chapters, which makes it a little easier to grasp the story. But there is a lot to digest and a lot of characters and interconnections. This makes it overwhelming at times.

The author does not put a lot of emphasis on the mystical/ mythological aspect. We can be silent observers of all that is happening within the great epic. There are also a lot of footnotes on different local versions of the same stories which is informative.

Some memorable lines

One must accept that one’s life is the result of past karmas but that one has the power to choose one’s response to every situation.

Duryodhana’s last words –

I may have lost but no one has actually won.

A small excerpt from the Bhagavad Gita translation 

Accept that nothing happens without a reason. Accept that all experiences have a purpose. That fate does not favour one over the other (Kauravas vs Pandavas) and the finite human mind cannot fathom the infinite occurrences in the universe.

The point is not to win or lose the war, the point is not to kill enemies or acquire their land; it is to establish dharma and in doing so discover the soul.

My one single confusion

Karna’s death makes me sad everytime. I remember crying then during the TV series and I cried reading it here. He is that one person in the entire epic whom, from the bottom of my heart, I wished had a different ending till the very end – no matter the cycle of karma and dharma. Maybe I will have to ask some of my friends to explain, because I was as confused as poor Janamejaya and the explanation provided in the story did not help.🫥

My Final Thoughts 

For me Mahabharata is nostalgia. It is not just an epic but a memory filled with Sunday morning family time, sitting with my brother and eating chana after coming home from Church. I did not understand the meaning behind all of what I was seeing then so I am definitely glad to have given it a try now.

Jaya is definitely a good introduction for someone who wants to just get an idea about the Mahabharata but isn’t looking at it as a crash course on Hinduism.