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38. Mahabharata.
“Have a hundred jars filled up with ghee.
Now, sprinkle the flesh with water.” Instantly,
The hideous ball split into a hundred pieces —
Embryos, the size of a finger joint —
And one extra. Vyasa took each one,
Placed it in a jar, and left instructions
About the tending of the embryos,
And when the vessels should be broken open.
…
More months of waiting. In the room of jars,
A dozen nurses tended the embryos
That slowly grew inside the glowing vessels.
One day, Gandhari woke to a loud commotion.
The first baby had been born from his jar
And was brought to her. Her hands encountered
A large, muscular infant, her first-born son.
The Mahabharata is an enormous Sanskrit epic of ancient India. It tells of
a great war between two sides of a family, and of how the various participants
in the war struggle to follow dharma—that is, roughly, how to do what they are
meant to do in life. Suzanne and Chris focus on two sections in particular:
Book 1, which tells of origins and complicated genealogy of the Bharatas, and
Book 6, which includes the Bhagavad Gita, a prolonged conversation that takes
place on the precipice of battle. Although they are only able to scratch the
surface on this remarkable collection of tales, they are enthusiastic about
what they’ve discovered so far.
Show Notes.
The Mahabharata, trans. Carole Satyamurti.
[Bookshop.]
William Buck’s translation.
Our episode on the Iliad.
J. Robert Oppenheimer on the
Mahabharata.
Luther Obrock’s article “Mahabharata Brahmins, Kings, and the South Asian
Social
World”
provides a helpful overview.
This overview of the Mahabharata family
tree might also be helpful for
newcomers.
A bonus episode with someone more familiar with the Mahabharata is coming
soon!
Next time: Poetry by Andrew Marvell and John
Donne. [PDF]
If you’re enjoying the show and you’re able to, please considersupporting the
Spouter-Inn on Patreon
In memoriam Bobby Akbari, beloved research assistant [on the right]
View all episodes
By Suzanne Conklin Akbari and Chris Piuma
4.8
3030 ratings
“Have a hundred jars filled up with ghee.
Now, sprinkle the flesh with water.” Instantly,
The hideous ball split into a hundred pieces —
Embryos, the size of a finger joint —
And one extra. Vyasa took each one,
Placed it in a jar, and left instructions
About the tending of the embryos,
And when the vessels should be broken open.
…
More months of waiting. In the room of jars,
A dozen nurses tended the embryos
That slowly grew inside the glowing vessels.
One day, Gandhari woke to a loud commotion.
The first baby had been born from his jar
And was brought to her. Her hands encountered
A large, muscular infant, her first-born son.
The Mahabharata is an enormous Sanskrit epic of ancient India. It tells of
a great war between two sides of a family, and of how the various participants
in the war struggle to follow dharma—that is, roughly, how to do what they are
meant to do in life. Suzanne and Chris focus on two sections in particular:
Book 1, which tells of origins and complicated genealogy of the Bharatas, and
Book 6, which includes the Bhagavad Gita, a prolonged conversation that takes
place on the precipice of battle. Although they are only able to scratch the
surface on this remarkable collection of tales, they are enthusiastic about
what they’ve discovered so far.
Show Notes.
The Mahabharata, trans. Carole Satyamurti.
[Bookshop.]
William Buck’s translation.
Our episode on the Iliad.
J. Robert Oppenheimer on the
Mahabharata.
Luther Obrock’s article “Mahabharata Brahmins, Kings, and the South Asian
Social
World”
provides a helpful overview.
This overview of the Mahabharata family
tree might also be helpful for
newcomers.
A bonus episode with someone more familiar with the Mahabharata is coming
soon!
Next time: Poetry by Andrew Marvell and John
Donne. [PDF]
If you’re enjoying the show and you’re able to, please considersupporting the
Spouter-Inn on Patreon
In memoriam Bobby Akbari, beloved research assistant [on the right]
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