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Mahabharata

Mahabharata

3 9.9
A very long sacred poem from ancient India about a war between royal cousins and important in Hindu tradition
  • proper noun
  • /mɑːhɑːˈbɑːrətə/
  • Literature
: Mahabharata
  • Then there's some discussion of one of the Hindu national epics, the Mahabharata, and how non violence can play out in this as well.
  • the Mahabharata epic
  • Mahabharata and the Ramayana

Then there's some discussion of one of the Hindu national epics, the Mahabharata, and how non violence can play out in this as well.

Examples

  • The more detailed description of Krishna's life can be found in the most famous epic work, the Mahabharata.

    Blog text (32)
  • The Bhagavad Gita is more of an extra chapter of the Mahabharata (an epic) and not a book like the Bible.

    Blog text (23)
  • But now I remembered the story from the Mahabharata that I read in childhood.

    Fiction book (1992)
  • The Mahabharata says, "Of all the world's wonders, which is the most wonderful?

    Academic text (1998)
  • In the Indian epic Mahabharata, Yudhisthira goes looking for his missing brothers, who went searching for water.

    Blog text (13)
  • The Mahabharata, Ramayana, and all other scriptures have to be understood from the context they were expressed and written in.

    Blog text (1)
  • The Ramayana and the Mahabharata together form the basis of Hindu mythology and its guiding principles.

    Blog text (32)
  • It is believed that the Pandavas, after the Mahabharata war, constructed the Yogmaya temple, dedicated to Krishna's sister.

    Blog text (14)
  • Mothers were respected above fathers, as is stated in the Mahabharata: "The teacher (akarya) is ten times more venerable than a sub-teacher (upadhyaya), the father a hundred times more than the teacher, but the mother a thousand times more than the father."

    Academic text (2004)
  • The Ramayana and the Mahabharata together form the basis of Hindu mythology and its guiding principles.

Synonyms

Mahabharatam
vsMahabharata
  • Literature
1 9.9

A long ancient Indian story in Sanskrit about the fight between two royal families, the Pandavas and the Kauravas

emphasizes its sacred status and role in religious tradition
Mahabharatum
vsMahabharata
  • Literature
9.9

An ancient Sanskrit epic poem from India that tells the story of two rival families, the Pandavas and the Kauravas

highlights its importance within Hindu tradition rather than a brief label

Surface Forms

Etymology

Mahabharata comes from the Sanskrit parts maha- meaning 'great' and Bharata, the name of a king and the royal family at the center of the story. So Mahabharata literally means 'the great story of the Bharatas', which fits this very long sacred poem about a family struggle.