Reading Notes: Mahabharata - Karmic Revolution Part A

This video series was an exciting visual re-telling of the Mahabharata! I loved that the images were drawn in real time as the story was being told, which made it a much more dynamic viewing experience.

Introduction
-Provides an excellent description of the overarching themes in the Mahabharata and makes it an easier text to approach
-Breaks down the characters and dichotomies involved
       -Kings and queens
       -Heroes and villains
-Alludes to the climactic finale: "A great all consuming war that swallowed the subcontinent"
-I appreciate that there is an acknowledgement of the many storytellers who have penned their versions

Narration
-Hearing the story told with an accent from the region was a very different experience from how I read it in my head
-I felt more integrated within the setting of the story through the voice of the narrator and its connection with the culture

Karma
-I love the idea that everything that happens in the Mahabharata is both the result and the cause of other events that takes place
-This idea makes the story seem as if it has no definite beginning and no definite end; a reader could start anywhere within the narrative and come full circle back to that point

Story Idea

-I was not previously familiar with the idea that Ganesha was the author of the Mahabharata, and I think it would be interesting to write a version of this epic in which Ganesha has an active voice as the narrator, perhaps breaking the fourth wall sometimes 

-This way, Ganesha is both author of the story and a character within the story, adding an additional dimension to the many layers already written in

Some believe that Ganesha, the God of beginnings, wrote the Mahabharata. Source: Wikimedia Commons

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Bibliography: "The Mahabharata." Video Series. Epified. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrWYQjLLbXch4II3e8ke0S-6u7JpPSCmJ