Alan (on December semi-hiatus) Teder’s Reviews > The Mahabharata: A Shortened Modern Prose Version of the Indian Epic > Status Update

Animals live upon animals, the stronger upon the weaker. The cat devours the mouse, the dog devours the cat, the dog is eaten by the leopard, and all things again are devoured by Death. Even ascetics can never support their lives without killing creatures. In water, on earth and vegetables there are many lives which are minute and invisible, but they are killed when the ascetic takes his nourishment.

You are selfish in pampering your own feelings. A life of renunciation should be adopted only by kings who are incurably diseased or suffering from defeat. If renunciation and passivity are the greatest of virtues, then mountains and trees should be the most virtuous in creation, for mountains and trees always lead a life of aloofness and do not cross anyone’s path.

Krishna replied, “Your greed and hatred without reason have brought you and all your supporters to this pass. Remember, for your own good, how you won at the dice game. Don’t talk of my trickery, without which you and your friends would still be burdening the earth. I have put an end to it and see nothing wrong in stopping a war which was itself unnecessary. Now at least let your last minutes be spent in repentance.”

The God declared, “I am death, I am destruction. These men who stand before you are already slain through their own karma, you will be only an instrument of their destruction.” “O Great God,” said Arjuna, “my weakness has passed. I have no more doubts in my mind.” And he lifted his bow, ready to face the battle. Krishna then resumed his mortal appearance.

Krishna turned to Sanjaya. "Yudhistira has displayed all these years nothing but forbearance, while Dhritarashtra’s sons have displayed nothing but covetousness, and now it is time to act and seek proper remedies. The entire universe and all nature functions and keeps life growing only by a proper balance of action and reaction. Otherwise, creation will collapse."

"Who is really happy?”
“One who has scanty means but is free from debt; he is truly a happy man.”
“What is the greatest wonder?”
“Day after day and hour after hour, people die and corpses are carried along, yet the onlookers never realise that they are also to die one day, but think they will live for ever. This is the greatest wonder of the world.”

At the beginning creatures were born hungry. In order to help, the Sun tilted himself half the year northward and the other half southward and absorbed the vapours. The moon converted the vapours into clouds and sent down the rain, and created the plant world, which nourishes life, at the same time providing for the six kinds of taste. It is the Sun’s energy that supports life.

In that assembly, unobserved, was a person who was to play a vital role in The Mahabharata later. It was Krishna, the King of Dwaraka, actually the eighth incarnation of the god Vishnu, who took his birth in the Yadava clan. He had incarnated as a human being as he had explained: “For protecting the virtuous For the destruction of evil, and For establishing righteousness I am born from age to age.”

Seeing the 4 and 1/2 hour stage adaptation tomorrow at Canadian Stage 🍁