The Mahabharata

[Shivani Devi]

Namaste and greetings to all.

Either I am very observant, or events are very synchronous...or both.

My mother wanted to go to the Salvation Army charity store yesterday and I was looking through the DVDs while I was waiting for her and I saw one..

It was Peter Brook's direction of the Mahabharata in English...I saw this when it first came out in 1989 on SBS TV and enjoyed it immensely.

I looked inside the DVD case which was supposed to contain two disks, but only one was inside (so I put it back)....then I remembered a few months ago, I noticed the full, unabridged version on YouTube and I flagged it with a "must watch later" because it was over 5 hours in length, but I never got around to doing so..even last night, I could only watch the first episode, which ran for like 80 minutes...but I shall watch the remainder over Christmas.

https://youtu.be/yhqkRGISQr8

I read the Mahabharata twice, growing up and this serves as a really nice "refresher" for me, and also I am able to concentrate less on the story and more on the acting and direction.. which was very nicely done...no special effects, no money spent on this..so basic, so simple..but that's where its whole charm is. Enjoy.

Aum Namah Shivaya

[Still_Waters]

Originally Posted by Shivani Devi

Namaste and greetings to all.

Either I am very observant, or events are very synchronous...or both.

My mother wanted to go to the Salvation Army charity store yesterday and I was looking through the DVDs while I was waiting for her and I saw one..

It was Peter Brook's direction of the Mahabharata in English...I saw this when it first came out in 1989 on SBS TV and enjoyed it immensely.

I looked inside the DVD case which was supposed to contain two disks, but only one was inside (so I put it back)....then I remembered a few months ago, I noticed the full, unabridged version on YouTube and I flagged it with a "must watch later" because it was over 5 hours in length, but I never got around to doing so..even last night, I could only watch the first episode, which ran for like 80 minutes...but I shall watch the remainder over Christmas.

https://youtu.be/yhqkRGISQr8

I read the Mahabharata twice, growing up and this serves as a really nice "refresher" for me, and also I am able to concentrate less on the story and more on the acting and direction.. which was very nicely done...no special effects, no money spent on this..so basic, so simple..but that's where its whole charm is. Enjoy.

Aum Namah Shivaya

I want to thank you so much for posting the Peter Brooks video on the Mahabharata. I personally saw the live production at the BAM (Brooklyn Academy of Music) many years ago and loved it. I too have read the Mahabharata. It is truly awesome.

As soon as I saw the video that you posted, I immediately went to the end to see once again something that was once very troubling but which now is perfectly clear. "This is your last illusion". (Awesomely thought-provoking and a catalyst for going beyond thoughts.)

[Miss Hepburn]

What? A 5 hr video in English? Whoa. Thank you, thank you.

[Still_Waters]

Originally Posted by Miss Hepburn

What? A 5 hr video in English? Whoa. Thank you, thank you.

The performance was done in three parts at the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) in New York City. One could choose from various viewing options such as consecutive days, the same day on consecutive weeks, or one very long day with breaks for lunch and dinner. I saw the whole performance in one day. While the Indian television series is a tad better, it is extremely lengthy. Peter Brooks did a magnificent job in capturing the essence in a 5 hour spectacular. There is so much to learn from the Mahabharata --- some of it is obvious while other parts, such as the concluding scene, are quite thought-provoking but quite illuminating when understood.

I'd be very interested in hearing your comments on this classic epic.

[Shivani Devi]

Thank you both for replying, and I do understand, Miss H. Many people would be just too busy to devote half an hour a day over a week to watch something like this, when there are more interesting things on television...I get that too..but I appreciate the appreciation.

To Still Waters- what an amazing thing to have seen Iive! You have indeed been fortunate to witness such things. The closest I ever got to that, was the Javanese ballet or the Wayang Kulit puppet shows performing it...which is why I basically had to learn Javanese and Sanskrit...So I could understand what everybody was saying.

Ah, the days before TV... When people would go visit ballets, puppet shows, plays, storytellers...get involved in the action...and each generation has its own heroes and villains of the piece...The eternal struggle between "good" vs "evil" until the eventual realisation hits that it is only the dramatization of duality anyway.

Aum Namah Shivaya

[ajay00]

Which is your favorite incident(s) in the Mahabharatha, Shivani !


Krishna and Arjuna had a great friendship between them, and had a lot of fun together!

I really enjoyed reading such incidents in the epic where they went for adventures in the forests together , partied in the woods with their loved ones, or gossipping with each other in mirth.

They knew how to have a good time as well.

They were masters of Yoga, and at the same time enjoyed the world without being attached to any sensory pleasure.

In the bhagavatham, I enjoyed Krishna's playful antics with the Gopis in the forests, especially the time he dressed up as a girl.

[Shivani Devi]

Originally Posted by ajay00

Which is your favorite incident(s) in the Mahabharatha, Shivani !


Krishna and Arjuna had a great friendship between them, and had a lot of fun together!

I really enjoyed reading such incidents in the epic where they went for adventures in the forests together , partied in the woods with their loved ones, or gossipping with each other in mirth.

They knew how to have a good time as well.

They were masters of Yoga, and at the same time enjoyed the world without being attached to any sensory pleasure.

In the bhagavatham, I enjoyed Krishna's playful antics with the Gopis in the forests, especially the time he dressed up as a girl.

Namaste.

I have a few favourite incidents... like the "Ashwotthama Saga" between Yudhisthira, Krishna and Drona...testing Yudhisthira's firm resolve to Dharma through the use of subterfuge...but I guess Yudhisthira had to lie to later rescue the other Pandava brothers from Patala.

I also enjoyed the tale about Shikhandi...One woman's scorn against Bhishma's rejection carried over into an immediate rebirth as a male to fight in the war.

I also like the salvation of Duryodhana and the way he attained Moksha on his deathbed...It made me almost feel sorry for him in that he could have attained it much earlier in his life if he had only made that decision..

Aum Namah Shivaya

[Still_Waters]

Originally Posted by Shivani Devi

Thank you both for replying, and I do understand, Miss H. Many people would be just too busy to devote half an hour a day over a week to watch something like this, when there are more interesting things on television...I get that too..but I appreciate the appreciation.

To Still Waters- what an amazing thing to have seen Iive! You have indeed been fortunate to witness such things. The closest I ever got to that, was the Javanese ballet or the Wayang Kulit puppet shows performing it...which is why I basically had to learn Javanese and Sanskrit...So I could understand what everybody was saying.

Ah, the days before TV... When people would go visit ballets, puppet shows, plays, storytellers...get involved in the action...and each generation has its own heroes and villains of the piece...The eternal struggle between "good" vs "evil" until the eventual realisation hits that it is only the dramatization of duality anyway.

Aum Namah Shivaya

The Peter Brooks epic performance of the Mahabharata was absolutely awesome and the breaks to eat were equally awesome as it gave us theater-goers the opportunity to discuss what we had just witnessed before going back for more. I wouldn't have missed that performance at the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) for anything.

[Still_Waters]

Originally Posted by Shivani Devi

Namaste.

I have a few favourite incidents... like the "Ashwotthama Saga" between Yudhisthira, Krishna and Drona...testing Yudhisthira's firm resolve to Dharma through the use of subterfuge...but I guess Yudhisthira had to lie to later rescue the other Pandava brothers from Patala.

I also enjoyed the tale about Shikhandi...One woman's scorn against Bhishma's rejection carried over into an immediate rebirth as a male to fight in the war.

I also like the salvation of Duryodhana and the way he attained Moksha on his deathbed...It made me almost feel sorry for him in that he could have attained it much earlier in his life if he had only made that decision..

Aum Namah Shivaya

You raise an interesting point about the "Ashwatthama Saga". That particular incident triggered a very deep meditation for me many years ago. Since Yudisthira was a man of Truth, he could not have been a very good "liar" and hence it perplexed me that Drona would not see through the subterfuge. It was only then that I recalled something that Drona had said earlier in the epic to the effect that, if a man of Truth ever told a falsehood, that would be the day that he would no longer want to live in this world. My sense is that Drona saw through the subterfuge and was not deceived by it but chose to lay down his life at that point since he no longer had a desire to live in the world.

My sense is that Krishna sensed how this would play out and similarly felt that an adept like Drona would not be deceived by Yudisthira's uncomfortable "lie" which must have been most unconvincing. In any case, Krishna's direction had the desired effect but, in my opinion, not for the superficial obvious interpretation that Drona really believed that his son was dead.

An added point of interest is the modern day story of Tapasviji Maharaj, the guru who mastered the Kaya Kalpa and reportedly lived to be 185 years old. In the biography about him, it is said that Tapaviji actually met Aswatthama, one of the immortals who was wandering through a forest region during Tapasviji's lifetime, and heard from his very lips the story of the Mahabharata and the Bhaghavad Gita. That book may be of interest to you and here is the link.

https://www.amazon.com/Maharaj-Biogr.../dp/091392217X

[Still_Waters]

Originally Posted by Shivani Devi

Namaste.

I have a few favourite incidents... like the "Ashwotthama Saga" between Yudhisthira, Krishna and Drona...testing Yudhisthira's firm resolve to Dharma through the use of subterfuge...but I guess Yudhisthira had to lie to later rescue the other Pandava brothers from Patala.

I also enjoyed the tale about Shikhandi...One woman's scorn against Bhishma's rejection carried over into an immediate rebirth as a male to fight in the war.

I also like the salvation of Duryodhana and the way he attained Moksha on his deathbed...It made me almost feel sorry for him in that he could have attained it much earlier in his life if he had only made that decision..

Aum Namah Shivaya

I'd be interested in hearing your interpretation of the concluding scene in the Peter Brooks version of the Mahabharata --- specifically the reference to "This is your last illusion".