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Mahabharata -Rajagopalachari
Ganapati The Scribe Bhagwan Vyasa
Vyasa first taught the
great epic to his son, the sage Suka. Later,
he expounded it to many other disciples.
Were it not so, the book might have been
lost to future generations.
Tradition has it that Narada told the story
of the Mahabharata to the devas while
Suka taught it to the Gandharvas, the
Rakshasas and the Yakshas. It is well
known that the virtuous and learned
Vaisampayana, one of the chief disciples
of Vyasa, revealed the epic for the benefit
of humanity. Janamejaya, the son of the great King
Parikshit, conducted a great sacrifice in
the course of which Vaisampayana
narrated the story at the request of the
former. Afterwards, this story, as told by
Vaisampayana, was recited by Suta in the
forest of Naimisa to an assembly of sages
under the lead of the Rishi Saunaka.
Suta addressed the assembly: "I had the
good fortune to hear the story of the
Mahabharata composed by Vyasa to teach
humanity dharma and the other ends of
life. I should like to narrate it to you." At
these words the ascetics eagerly gathered
round him. Suta continued: "I heard the main story of
the Mahabharata and the episodic tales
contained therein told by Vaisampayana at
the sacrifice conducted by King
Janamejaya. Afterwards, I made an
extensive pilgrimage to various sacred
places and also visited the battlefield
where the great battle described in the
epic was fought. I have now come here to
meet you all." He then proceeded to tell
the whole story of the Mahabharata in the
grand assembly.
After the death of the great King Santanu,
Chitrangada became King of Hastinapura
and he was succeeded by Vichitravirya.
The latter had two sons, Dhritarashtra and
Pandu. The elder of the two being born
blind, Pandu, the younger brother,
ascended the throne. In the course of his
reign, Pandu committed a certain offence
and had to resort to the forest with his two
wives where he spent many years in
penance. During their stay in the forest, the two wives of Pandu, Kunti and Madri gave birth to five sons who became well known as the five Pandavas. Pandu passed away while they were still living in the forest. The sages brought up the five Pandavas during their early years. When Yudhishthira, the eldest, attained the age of sixteen the rishis led them all back to Hastinapura and entrusted them to the old grandsire Bhishma. In a short time the Pandavas gained mastery over the Vedas and the Vedanta as well as over the various arts, especially pertaining to the Kshatriyas. The Kauravas, the sons of the blind Dhritarashtra, became jealous of the Pandavas and tried to injure them in various ways. |
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