The Mahabharata

CONTENTS Preface ix Contributors xi Introduction xvii PART I The Mahabharata: A Challenging Itihasa 1 1. Interpreting the Mahabharata Madhav M. Deshpande 3 2. Born Old: Story, Smrti and the Composition of the Sanskrit Mahabharata Barbara Gombach 19 3. Kapila in the Mahabharata Knut A. Jacobsen 35 4. Ramopakhyana: The Story of Rama in the Mahabharata A Web-based and printed reader for Sanskrit students Peter M. Scharf 49 PART II Dharma Interpreted 61 5. The Mahabhatrata's Simultaneous Affirmation and Critique of the Universal Validity of Dharma Greg Bailey 63 6. A Magadha Tale and Some Reflections on the Many-sidedness of the Mahabharata Gerald James Larson 79 7. What is Dharma? Ethical Tensions within the Mahabharata Nick Sutton 91 8. Destiny and Human Initiative in the Mahabharata Julian F. Woods 103 PART III Bhisma, Karna, Dharmaputra: Three Characters, Different Viewing Lenses 115 9. Karna's Choice: Courage and Character in the Face of an Ethical Dilemma Aditya Adarkar 117 10. Karna and the Mahabharata: An Ethical Reflection Christopher Key Chapple 131 11. The Ethical Foundations of Bhisma's Promises and Dilemmas Gautam Chatterjee 145 12. Bhisma and the Vratya Question Edeltraud Harzer 163 13. Dharmaputra in the Context of the Rajadharma and Apaddharma of the Santiparvan T.S. Rukmani 179 PART IV Ethics Has Many Faces 195 14. Duryodhana's Pride and Perception: The Dynamics of Distrust in the Moment of Counsel at the Kaurava Court Lisa W. Crothers 197 15. Ethical Discourse in Udyogaparvan Patricia M. Greer 211 16. Heaven's Riddles or the Hell Trick: Theodicy and Narrative Strategies in the Mahabharata Emily T. Hudson 225 17. The Episode of the Mausalaparvan Benjamin Preciado-Solis 239 PART V The Mahabharata: New Perspectives 245 18. Planetarium Software and the Date of the Mahabharata War B.N. Narahari Achar 247 19. Voices from Hinduism's Past: Kunti and Gandhari's Victory Over Infertility Swasti Bhattacharyya 265 20. The Critic of Ritual as Ritual Reviler in the Asvamedhikaparvan Tamar C. Reich 281 21. The Living Legend of Raja Duryodhana: Socio-Historical Constructions on Mahabharata in Himalayan Society Atul Saklani and Rajpal Singh Negi 293 Bibliography 309