Reading Notes– Mahabharata B

(Image: Gambling Match Source: Livemint)

Reading Notes: I enjoyed reading the set up to the Mahabharata conflict. While there were a lot of characters introduced in part A, they were distinctive enough for me to remember at least their names and side of the family. I have a couple of stories I'm considering with the Mahabharata conflict as its source material: the cricket game and an analysis of ancient Indian succession).

After reading about the house of fire, I'm pretty sure that the Kuavaras are the bad ones (maybe not all of them, but Dhritarashtra and Duryodhana are pretty evil guys for trying to burn the Pandavas alive). 

The Pandava brothers in the forest are pretty reminiscent of Rama and his brother's exile. It might be fun to write a story where both pairs run into each other in the forest. 

Was it incredibly taboo that Bhima fell in love with Hidimbi? It seems like Kunti was convinced pretty easily. Most of the rakshasas I've read about have been unsavory, so it's nice to see a relatively good one finally. 

We have a lot more kids being born, and their names all start with D! This story's cast is getting a little difficult to follow. 

The one wife five husbands scenario is ripe for parody, especially since the husbands are royalty. I could try to write a sitcom-esque story about their dynamic. 

Arjuna's gone into exile now– I should write a story about all the different exiles throughout the epics! Aren't nagas snake people, how would that work? These epics are full of interesting romances– the one between Arjuna and Chitra is another to add to the list!

Arjuna is really playing the field, Krishna's sister? I'm surprised he didn't try to marry Maya.  

Weird to see Duryodhana laughed at for basically getting pranked after already reading about how he burned some folks alive. 

The gambling match is a great scene that would be a lot of fun to write a story about. It's very dramatic, and I'm planning on delving into the rules of the game a bit more!

http://ouocblog.blogspot.com/search/label/PDE%20Mahabharata