Reading Diary B Week 5: PDE Mahabharata

This week I am reading the Public Domain Edition of the Mahabharata! It is a lot like the Ramayana, but the stories are different. I am definitely getting a “vibe” similar to the Ramayana in these stories.

Vidura guess the plot of Duryodhana. He warned his mothers and brothers about the King and Duryodhana’s plan and so the Pandavas dug a path under the palace and into the forest outside. When the passage was finished being dug, the palace was set on fire. A poor women and her five children came that night to beg for food and were killed in the fire. She was a low-caste woman and their bodies that were burned were thought to be the Pandavas and their mother. The King and Duryodhana rejoiced because they thought they had killed the Pandavas.

Bhima Kills Hidimba

Bhima and the Monster

The Pandavas went south. Bhima, with celestial powers, was able to carry all of the Pandavas safely to a new place. Bhima fought rakshasa Hidimba. He was a very large and stocky rakshsas. The sister of Hidimba transformed into a beautiful women and quickly fell in love with Bhima. The women told Bhima of Hidimba’s plan to kill them. The Hidimba went forth to kill everyone, but Bhima did not fear him. The fight was like elephants because it was so fierce. Bhima broke the rakshasa’s back. Bhima had won and Hidimba ask Bhima’s mother to allow Bhima to wed her. As so they wed. The women made Bhima very happy. She became a mother to Bhima’s child. Their son’s name was Ghatotkacha. The queen and her sons, minus Bhima, traveled south. They entered a town that was protected by a beast and the beast needed tribute every night including rice, ox and two people. Bhima appeared and decided to fight the beast that wanted to kill the towns peoples. Bhima made it to the cave and started eating his food, this infuriate Baka and Bhima then rid the forest of the monster.

There was a competition to strike a bow and hot the eye of a golden fish to win a beautiful bride. Many people were there to try to win the beauty, but it was Arjuna that won the bride after hitting the golden fish! Arjuna and his brothers went to the palace to collect his bride. Draupadi was to be shared by all five brothers as the wife of the brothers. Draupadi became the bride of all brothers. Krishna and others gave gold and jewels to the Pandava brothers for their marriage.

When Duryodhana found out that the Pandrava brothers were still alive and had married the beautiful women he became very jealous. The Pandrava brothers with their new wife and their mother traveled to a new country set up for them. The gathered the people who were subject to them and they created a great city called Indraprastha. The brothers set a pact that if one of the brothers were with their wife then the other brother could not come into the room with them. Arjuna accidentally walked in while his wife was with one of her other husbands/ his brother. He was exiled for 12 years for breaking the pact. Arjuna decided to swim in a river plagued by man eating alligators, he was attacked midway through the river and he wrestled it to the river bank. The alligator tuned into a woman and she explained why she was there. Her name was Ulupi. She was cursed by a magic person and transformed into an alligator only to be saved when a warrior dragged them ashore. Prince Arjuna went to a raja. His daughter was wed to Arjuna and they had a son.

Khrishna and his sister visited the Pandrava’s. Agni wanted to consume a forest and ask Arjuna and Khrishnas help and they agreed if he would give them celestial weapon. When they burned the forest only 6 animals survived. Maya was grateful to Arjuna for saving him for the forest fire. he promised to build a palace for the Pandavas! Duryodhana was made fun of by the Pandravas in the Maya’s palace. The Pandravas were becoming more and more powerful.

Jarasandha was a king of a foreign capital. Krishna, Arjuda and Bhima killed the king when he refused to release the rhajas that he had captured in battle. Duryodhana became very very very jealous. He used a gambler to hold a great festival with the Pandava brothers and their wife and mother. The king ordered the festival and the brothers came. They all competed in a gambling match and lost everything because the game was fixed. Duryodhana forced The brothers wife to become a house maiden, which was objected! Queen Drupadi is very mad about the unfair slavery! She prayed for help, but she herd no response. She prayed again to Krishna. He herd her and multiplied her clothing so that she would not be naked. Bhima became angered by the situation and looked at Karna very upset. He looked at his brother and blamed him for what had happened to the family. Duryodhana mocked the Pandava at loosing everything. Unable to restrain his anger they vowed to never reach heaven if they do not defeat Duryodhana. A powerful maharajah, kind to drupadi, was given three wishes. She asked for her husbands to be set free and he granted the wish. The captors were angry because the pandava brothers would kill them. Instead, the captors again set up a game to trap the pandava brothers. They were exiled for twelve year and another year following that.