The ancient Indian Sanskrit tradition produced no text more intriguing, or more persistently misunderstood or underappreciated, than the Mahabharata. Its intricacies have waylaid generations of scholars and ignited dozens of unresolved debates. In this text, Alf Hiltebitel offers a unique model for understanding the great epic. Employing a range of literary and narrative theories, he draws on historical and comparative research in an attempt to discern the spirit and techniques behind the epic's composition. The author focuses on the education of Yudhisthira, also known as the Dharma King, and shows how the relationship of this figure to others - especially his author-grandfather Vyasa and his wife Draupadi - provides a thread through the bewildering array of frames and stories embedded within stories. Hiltebeital also offers a revisionist theory regarding the dating and production of the original text and its relation to the Veda.

Book Information
ISBN 9780226340531
Author Alf Hiltebeitel
Format Hardback
Page Count 375
Imprint University of Chicago Press
Publisher The University of Chicago Press
Weight(grams) 624g