1. GANAPATI, THE SCRIBE :

1. GANAPATI, THE SCRIBE :

-------------------------------------

BHAGAVAN VYASA, the celebrated

compiler of the Vedas, was the son of the

great sage Parasara. It was he who gave to

the world the divine epic of the

Mahabharata.

Having conceived the Mahabharata he

thought of the means of giving the sacred

story to the world. He meditated on

Brahma, the Creator, who manifested

himself  before him. Vyasa saluted him

with bowed head and folded hands and

prayed:

"Lord, I have conceived an excellent

work, but cannot think of one who can

take it down to my dictation."

Brahma extolled Vyasa and said: "O sage,

invoke Ganapati and beg him to be your

amanuensis." Having said these words he

disappeared. The sage Vyasa meditated on

Ganapati who appeared before him. Vyasa

received him with due respect and sought

his aid.

"Lord Ganapati, I shall dictate the story of

the Mahabharata and I pray you to be

graciously pleased to write it down."

Ganapati replied: "Very well. I shall do as

you wish. But my pen must not stop while

I am writing. So you must dictate without

pause or hesitation. I can only write on

this condition?"

Vyasa agreed, guarding himself, however,

with a counter stipulation: "Be it so, but

you must first grasp the meaning of what I

dictate before you write it down."

Ganapati smiled and agreed to the

condition. Then the sage began to sing the

story of the Mahabharata. He would

occasionally compose some complex

stanzas which would make Ganapati

pause a while to get at the meaning and

Vyasa would avail himself of this interval

to compose many stanzas in his mind.

Thus the Mahabharata came to be written

by Ganapati to the dictation of Vyasa.

It was before the days of printing, when

the memory of the learned was the sole

repository of books. 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.

Finally Bhishma, the head of the family,

intervened to bring about mutual

understanding and peace between them.

Accordingly the Pandavas and the

Kauravas began to rule separately from

their respective capitals, Indraprastha and

Hastinapura.

Some time later, there was a game of dice

between the Kauravas and the Pandavas

according to the then prevailing Kshatriya

code of honor. Sakuni, who played on

behalf of the Kauravas, defeated

Yudhishthira. As a result, the Pandavas

had to be in exile for a period of thirteen

years. They left the kingdom and went to

the forest with their devoted wife

Draupadi.

According to the conditions of the game,

the Pandavas spent twelve years in the

forest and the thirteenth year incognito.

When they returned and demanded of

Duryodhana their paternal heritage, the

latter, who had in the meanwhile usurped

their kingdom, refused to return it. War

followed as a consequence.

The Pandavas defeated Duryodhana and

regained their patrimony. The Pandavas

ruled the kingdom for thirty-six years.

Afterwards, they transferred the crown to

their grandson, Parikshit, and repaired to

the forest with Draupadi, all clad humbly

in barks of trees.

This is the substance of the story of the

Mahabharata. In this ancient and

wonderful epic of our land there are many

illustrative tales and sublime teachings,

besides the narrative of the fortunes of the

Pandavas.

The Mahabharata is in fact a veritable

ocean containing countless pearls and

gems. It is, with the Ramayana, a living

fountain of the ethics and culture of our

Motherland.