Today I am reading a shorter version of the Mahabharata. The
title of this book is “The Indian Heroes” and it is by C. A. Kincaid. So far I
am really enjoying this version of the book. I like it because sometimes I
would get lost in the sea of characters in the longer versions. This version is
helping me piece together the longer version I read earlier together a little
better. I am now getting a better understanding of the book. Some of the
stories I did not get to explore a little more in my first pass through the
Mahabharata are the story when Yudhishthira gambled away all of his belongings.
I can’t believe that he would do this so willingly. It seems like a common quality
among a lot of characters in these epics is pride. They will never refuse a
challenge no matter how risky it is. Another instance where pride is the
downfall of someone is when Bhima defeats King Jarasandha in a wrestling match. King Jarasandha could have
easily refused to fight and kept his kingdom but he had to risk everything. This
would be an interesting aspect of the Mahabharata to explore. A story that I
noticed that was different was the riddles of the lake story. In this version a
snake actually takes Bhima hostage and Yudhishthira has to answer riddles to
free him. This would also be an interesting story to rewrite because a lot of
detail was not provided.
This is an image of Bhima beating Jarasandha in a wrestling match.
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