Mahabharata: Volume 3 will be published in April 2011.
Acknowledgements
Carving time out from one’s regular schedule and work engagements to embark on such a mammoth work of translation has been difficult. The past tense should not be used, since only 20 per cent of the road has yet been traversed. Sometimes, I wish I had been born in nineteenth-century Bengal, with a benefactor funding me for doing nothing but this. But alas, the days of gentlemen of leisure are long over. The time could not be carved out from professional engagements, barring of course assorted television channels, who must have wondered why I have been so reluctant to head for their studios in the evenings. It was ascribed to health, interpreted as adverse health. It was certainly health, but not in an adverse sense. Reading the Mahabharata is good for one’s mental health and is an activity to be recommended, without any statutory warnings. The time was stolen in the evenings and over weekends. The cost was therefore borne by one’s immediate family, and to a lesser extent by friends. Socializing was reduced, since every dinner meant one less chapter done. The family has first claim on the debt, though I am sure it also has claim on whatever merits are due. At least Suparna does, and these volumes are therefore dedicated to her. I suspect Sirius has no claim on the merits, though he has been remarkably patient at the times when he has been curled up near my feet and I have been translating away. There is some allegory there about a dog keeping company when the Mahabharata is being read and translated.
Most people have thought I was mad, even if they never quite said that. Among those who believed and thought it was worthwhile, beyond immediate family, are M. Veerappa Moily, Ashok Desai, Pratap Bhanu Mehta and Laveesh Bhandari. And my sons, Nihshanka and Vidroha. The various reviewers of the first volume have also been extremely kind. Incidentally, I wouldn’t have been able to do it without Vaman Shivram Apte. When he compiled the student’s Sanskrit dictionary more than a hundred years ago in Pune, I am certain he had no idea that it would be used so comprehensively to translate the Mahabharata.
Penguin also believed. My initial hesitation about being able to deliver was brushed aside by R. Sivapriya, who pushed me after the series had been commissioned by V. Karthika. And then Sumitra Srinivasan became the editor, followed by Paloma Dutta. The enthusiasm of these ladies was so infectious that everything just snowballed and Paloma ensured that the final product of the second volume was much more readable than what I had initially produced.
When I first embarked on what was also a personal voyage of sorts, the end was never in sight and seemed to stretch to infinity. Now that 20 per cent is over (and 10 per cent more is in the pipeline), the horizon can be seen. And all the people mentioned above have had a role to play in this journey.
1 Brahmana is a text and also the word used for the highest caste.
2 A class of religious and philosophical texts that are composed in the forest, or are meant to be studied when one retires to the forest.
3 The six Vedangas are shiksha (articulation and pronunciation), chhanda (prosody), vyakarana (grammar), nirukta (etymology), jyotisha (astronomy) and kalpa (rituals).
4 Religion, duty.
5 Wealth. But in general, any object of the senses.
6 Desire.
7 Release from the cycle of rebirth.
9 Krishna or Krishnaa is another name for Droupadi.
1 Droupadi.
2 Depending on the context, dharma is translated as law, virtue or religion. None of these captures the exact nuance of dharma holding things up and dharma has therefore been retained in the translation.
3 Divine sage.
4 Narada was Brahma’s son, born from Brahma’s mind. He was a messenger of the gods, travelling back and forth between the world of men and the world of the gods. He also had a tendency to create dissension and conflict.
5 Arghya, offerings made to those who are revered, including guests.
6 Sage.
7 Panchala was Drupada’s kingdom.
8 Demon. Asura or demon is used as the antithesis of sura or god.
9 Svarga (heaven), prithivi (earth) and patala (the nether world).
10 Actually, the Pandavas haven’t been told that Tilottama was an apsara. An apsara is a celestial maiden. Apsaras are sometimes described as Indra’s servants and sometimes as wives of the gandharvas. They are also dancers and a bit like celestial courtesans.
11 Kunti.
12 Hiranyakashipu was the son of Kashyapa and Diti and his son was Prahlada. Vishnu killed him in his narasimha incarnation.
13 The daityas are the sons of Diti and were demons. Danavas are the sons of Danu and are also demons. Daitya, danava and asura are usually used synonymously, though the etymology is distinct.
14 Delusion.
15 Demon.
16 Koumuda is the month of Kartika and koumudi is a festival that is observed on the full moon day in Kartika (sometimes the full moon day in the month of Ashvina), when everything is illuminated.
17 Magha is one of the twenty-seven lunar mansions or nakshatras, specifically, the tenth. Nakshatra can be translated as star, but not all nakshatras are stars. Sometimes, they are constellations. For instance, Magha is actually a constellation with five stars.
18 The critical edition has dharma. Some other editions have varma or armour, in which case, the army would have been clad in armour. Given the context, varma is more appropriate.
19 Bards.
20 Heaven needs explanation, the word used in Sanskrit is trivishtapa. More accurately, the word should be translated as Indra’s world. There were thirty (or thirty-three) gods. Even more accurately, trivishtapa should be translated as the world of the thirty.
21 Yakshas are a semi-divine species and companions of Kubera, the god of treasure.
22 Rakshas or rakshasas are demons and evil spirits, but a distinct species from daityas. Rakshas are also guardians or protectors and that sense is more relevant in this context.
23 Serpants. Throughout the translation, we have used serpents for nagas and snakes for sarpas. Nagas are not quite snakes. They are semi-divine, can assume human forms and live in specific regions. All these traits are uncharacteristic of snakes.
24 A mleccha is a barbarian, meaning that mlecchas do not speak Sanskrit and are not aryas.
25 Royal sages.
26 Garuda.
27 Siddhi means accomplishment. Siddhas are semi-divine species who have attained these superhuman accomplishments or faculties.
28 Rishis who know the nature of the brahman, the supreme being.
29 Literally, great god. Shiva.
30 The god of fire.
31 The god of wind.
32 The moon-god Chandra.
33 The sun-god Aditya.
34 Parameshthi is an epithet for various gods—Brahma, Shiva, Vishnu and Agni. Since Brahma, Shiva and Agni have been separately mentioned, here it probably means Vishnu.
35 Budha is someone who is wise, it is also a name for Mercury.
36 Hermits.
37 60,000 sages who were the sizes of thumbs. They preceded the sun’s chariot.
38 This must be a class of sages, but the meaning is unclear. Perhaps it means those who were descended from Marichi, one of Brahma’s mental sons, that is, a son born through Brahma’s mental powers.
39 Great sages.
40 The architect among the gods.
41 Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth and prosperity.
42 Tila means a small particle, while uttama means best or excellent. The best of the small bits had been used in creating Tilottama.
43 Brahma.
44 Mahadeva or Shiva.
45 Shiva.
46 Shiva’s.
47 Bala was a demon and Indra killed him. Thus, Indra is the slayer of Bala.
48 Brahma.
49 Semi-divine species, musicians of the gods.
50 Tall tree.
51 That is, first in grasping Tilottama’s hand.
52 The word aditya has four different me
anings. First, Aditya is the sun-god. Second, all the sons of Aditi are known as adityas. Hence, aditya is a term for gods in general. Third, Aditya is also sometimes used as an epithet for Vishnu. Fourth, there are twelve manifestations of the sun-god, known collectively as adityas. These shine together when the universe is destroyed. In this context, either the fourth or the second meaning is indicated, probably the fourth.
53 Brahmacharya is the first of the four stages (ashramas) of life, the other three being garhasthya (householder stage), vanaprastha (retirement to the forest) and sannyasa (renunciation). One who is in the brahmacharya stage is a brahmachari. Brahmacharya is usually translated as celibacy, though anyone who follows the path of the brahman is a brahmachari.
54 The goddess of learning, also a river.
55 Sarasvati is often depicted with elephants anointing her.
56 The Pandavas were also descended from Kuru.
57 The four pursuits in life are dharma (righteous conduct), artha (riches), kama (desire) and moksha (salvation).
58 Arjuna’s name.
59 Arjuna.
60 Yudhishthira.
61 One without enemies, Yudhishthira’s name.
62 Arjuna’s name. Savyasachi means someone who is left-handed.
63 Arjuna’s name.
64 The six vedangas are shiksha (articulation and pronunciation), chhanda (prosody), vyakarana (grammar), nirukta (etymology), jyotisha (astronomy) and kalpa (rituals).
65 Indra.
66 Gods of the wind.
67 Sacrifices to Agni. Agnihotra means maintenance of the sacred fire and offering oblations to it.
68 Coincidentally, Kouravya means a descendant of Kuru, as does Kourava.
69 Agni.
70 Kunti’s son, that is, Arjuna.
71 Ananga. Ananga means one without a body and there is a story where the god of love lost his body because he managed to annoy Shiva.
72 Yudhishthira.
73 The vajra is Indra’s weapon and Arjuna was Indra’s son.
74 Mahadeva is Uma’s consort.
75 A putrika is a daughter who is regarded as a son. After marriage, she lives in her father’s household. Her son is regarded as her father’s son and becomes the heir.
76 Place of pilgrimage.
77 Kubera.
78 The word used is lokapala, which translates as protector or preserver of the worlds. In this context, it might mean either Brahma or Vishnu. There are also eight lokapalas who are regarded as guardians of the eight directions. But that is clearly not meant.
79 The enemy of Madhu, Krishna’s name. Vishnu had killed a demon named Madhu.
80 Arjuna’s name. The name literally means fearsome or terrible.
81 Krishna.
82 Ancient sages, whose names invariably occur together. Narayana is also Vishnu’s name and nara also means man. Narayana is equated with Krishna and Nara with Arjuna.
83 Krishna’s name, since Krishna belonged to the lineage of the Vrishnis.
84 Krishna’s name. Strictly speaking, Vishnu’s name.
85 Musical instrument, lute.
1 Hala means plough and Haladhara is the wielder of the plough, that is, Balarama. Revati is Balarama’s wife.
2 A gandharva is a celestial musician. But here, it probably means musicians in general.
3 Rukmini was married to Krishna and their son is Pradyumna.
4 Pritha’s son, Arjuna.
5 Though we have written it as Vasudeva, Krishna is actually Vaasudeva, because he is Vasudeva’s son. Bhadra or Subhadra is Vasudeva’s daughter and is therefore Vaasudeva Krishna’s sister.
6 Though Krishna and Subhadra had Vasudeva as their common father, their mothers were different. Sarana and Subhadra had the same mother too.
7 Krishna.
8 A ceremony where a bride chooses her husband from assembled suitors.
9 That is, Yudhishthira.
10 Arjuna.
11 Yudhishthira’s sanction.
12 The names of the two horses.
13 Presiding officer for want of a better word. Sabha is an assembly hall and the word used in the text is sabhapala, meaning controller or presiding officer of the assembly hall.
14 A maharatha is in general a mighty warrior. More specifically, a maharatha is skilled in the use of all weapons and can take on ten thousand warriors single-handedly.
15 Jishnu is one of Arjuna’s names and means the victorious one.
16 Vanamali is usually a name for Krishna. But here it means Baladeva or Balarama.
17 Halayudha is Baladeva’s name and means one whose weapon is a plough.
18 Baladeva’s name.
19 Krishna’s name, meaning the one without decay.
20 Krishna’s name.
21 Krishna’s name.
1 Arjuna’s name.
2 That is, increased the honour.
3 Partha means Pritha’s (Kunti’s) son, but is usually used for Arjuna.
4 Satvata actually means a follower or worshipper of Krishna. Here it means the Yadavas.
5 Period of exile.
6 Yudhishthira.
7 That is, out of jealousy.
8 Droupadi.
9 Madhava is one of Krishna’s names.
10 Pundarika is a lotus, usually the white lotus. Pundarikaksha means one with lotus eyes and is Vishnu’s name, used here for Krishna.
11 Balarama.
12 Nakula and Sahadeva.
13 Purandara is Indra’s name and means the sacker of cities.
14 A more literal translation is that he smelt Krishna’s head. This is a sign of affection displayed towards those who are younger, Krishna being younger than Yudhishthira.
15 Bhima was also older than Krishna.
16 This means those who were younger or inferior to Yudhishthira.
17 Of riches.
18 Shakra is another name for Indra. Hence, Shakraprastha means Indraprastha.
19 Jayanta is Indra’s son. Indra’s wife is Shachi. Since she is Pouloma’s daughter, she is also known as Poulomi.
20 Abhi means extreme and manyu means anger.
21 An unrivalled warrior, whose valour is unlimited, greater than a maharatha.
22 Kind of tree used in sacrifices, said to contain fire in its womb.
23 In the sense that all the Pandavas were indirectly his fathers.
24 Arjuna’s name, meaning the terrible or fearful one.
25 Indra.
26 Daughter of Panchala, Droupadi.
27 Bhima.
28 Prati means like or resembling.
29 Soma is the name of a plant and its juice and soma sacrifices are sacrifices at which soma juice is offered.
30 He should therefore be thus named, the word suta meaning son.
31 He should therefore be thus named, shruta means heard and karma means deed. Kiriti is one of Arjuna’s names.
32 This connection is not clear.
33 The family priest.
1 Bhishma. Shantanu was Bhishma’s father.
2 Meaning good deeds.
3 Yudhishthira.
4 The king became like a fourth objective to be attained.
5 Varnas.
6 The goddess of wealth.
7 Literally, the lord of all beings. But more generally, the lord of creation. Though usually applied to Brahma, the term is also used for Vishnu and for ten lords of the world created by Brahma. In this context, the reference is to Brahma.
8 Since pura means a city, Purandara is the destroyer of cities and is Indra’s name.
9 Descendant of the Vrishni lineage, that is, Krishna.
10 Arjuna and Krishna respectively.
11 Though rarely used, Krishna is also one of Arjuna’s names.
12 The twin physicians of the gods.
13 That is, the morning sun.
14 Shakra is one of Indra’s names.
15 Prevent them from running away.
16 Indra’s name. Shatakratu means the performer of a hundred sacrifices.
18 A lokapala is a protector (pala) of a loka or a world. The number of lokas is sometimes three, sometimes seven and sometimes fourteen. Here, the reference is to the three worlds of heaven, earth and the nether regions and the waters have been added as a fourth world.
19 The name of the bow.
20 Vishnu’s weapon, usually translated in English as a discus, though disc is more appropriate. It is a circular weapon, hurled like a missile.
21 Bhoumana is Vishvakarma’s name. Vishvakarma is the architect of the gods. The Sanskrit text of the critical edition actually says Bhouvana, though many regional versions say Bhoumana. Bhoumana and Bhouvana are synonymous.
22 A vimana is a celestial chariot and those who are virtuous get to ride on vimanas.
23 Vishnu’s club.
24 The sense is that no hole to escape could be found between the two chariots.
25 The eight cardinal points, plus above and below.
26 Indra has one thousand eyes.
27 Indra. Indra slew a demon named Vritra.
28 Harivahana is Indra’s name, because Hari is the name of Indra’s horse. The word hari means tawny, so that was probably the horse’s colour.
29 Of chariots.
30 Indra slew a demon named Namuchi.
31 The word used is bhalla. The word is used for an arrow, as well as for a missile that is like a small spear.
32 Phalguna or Phalguni is Arjuna’s name. He was thus named because he was born when the nakshatra Phalguni was in the ascendant.
Mahabharata Vol. 2 (Penguin Translated Texts) Page 47
