The Mahabharata - a good english translation

Tomi

Can anyone suggest a good translation of the Mahabharata?
I have about a month and a half before my next trip to India, and I would like to start reading it now; my interest is mostly literary and cultural, not religious.
I might want to take it with me on the trip, so the complete, annotated, hard-bound version might be a bit heavy.
Also, are there any issues with my being seen reading it in public? I'm not sure of the proper etiquette and don't enjoy being the victim of exclusionism (which I never experienced in my first trip to India), like when I tried to get into a Muslim cemetery in Morocco and everybody within sight dropped whatever they were doing to keep me from entering.

Lily

Many years ago I read C Rajagopalachari's Mahabharata (in English).
If you read it in public be prepared to listen to a lot of stories about it from people around you!

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Lily

Layman

Tomi, I second Lily - Rajaji ( Chakravarthy Rajagopalachari)'s Mahabharatha (and Ramayana) are the best ones in English, and inexpensive too.
Reading it in public may at best arouse people's curiosity and invite friendly discussions. If you want to avoid it, you could wrap the covers in paper :-)

erosadventure

Rajagopalachari's by Bharata Vidya Bhavan is a good introduction (BTW, their Bombay retail store was a disappointment after seeing their catalogue. Maybe I was just in a branch?) I enjoyed that version and it is portable. But if the abridged version versus the full is anything like translations of Valmiki Ramayana try to get your hands on a religiously motivated rather than literary motivated translation. For all the slogging through it when a text has the original Sanskrit, Roman transliteration, and English translation it allows you to read the kavi's (poet's) words and get a deeper appreciation. If you are mystically inclined you can chant the verse.

Having said that my favorite since I am no longer an adherent of Hinduism is actually the modern French movie version. I particularly liked the portrayal of the sage Vyasa and the scene of the dying warrior (Bhimasena?) on his bed of arrows. It had a much more humanistic interpretation, not that such is authentic to the Indian tradtion. But it was certainly more palatable to western tastes. It gave me a whole new appreciation for Indian literature.

If you are like myself and liked the Odessey but were bored with the Iliad, try the Ramayana. Far superior literature IMAO and not so long winded. Also love story vesus war story. I know because I have read (in translation) Puranas such as Shiva Purana and Linga Purana in the Motilal Banarsidas series. The Mahabharata is like an encyclopediaand wanders all over the place. If I want an encyclopedia I read Walker's 'Hindu World'.

Why do you expect problems reading MHB in public? It's not like you are going to be reading anything controversial, it's more cultural than strictly speaking religious (though it does contain the Vaishanava classic the Bhagavad Gita).

I'm a cynic. The MHB is in verse. Hindu fundamentalists take it for face value, and as historical fact. Since when did beggars and hookers speak in a priestly language (Sanskrit) and in rhyming verse?

Tomi

Thanks for all the advice, guys, and you all agree too, which makes it easier for me. I'm off tomorrow to buy my copy of Rajagopalachari.
I did like the Odyssey better, though... so I'll look into the Ramayana as well.
Inviting friendly discussions and stories from locals sounds great!

abracax

Go to the local video shop and see if they've got the 3-tape (disc) set of Peter Brook's english version of Carriere's plays (on PBS Video as I recall). Rajaji's "translation" is OK for beginners, but highly ideosyncratic. For a more traditional interpretation, look for the Amar Chitra Katha box set in comic book form (14 volumes plus the Bhagavad Gita special). I kid you not, it's the best version available in English. As for authoratative texts, since the story was passed down by word of mouth for generation (and is still being passed down that way), there is no canonical version. And all Indians do not take it literally, by the way. I learned more about religion and human consciousness from talking to an 80-year old grandmother about Vivekananda's interpretation of the Mahabharata than you would from a thousand Christian bishops and Sigmund Freud combined.

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He travels fastest who pays for a cab.

sachamassagonna

Greetingz Gods & Goddesses...

the translation by J.A. Vanbuitenen is fantastic!!! It is not so long-winded and tries to capture essence. Unfortunately, he did not translate the entire Mahabharata but managed to publish 3 volumes. The First Volume has a very in depth and informative introduction...very scholarly, but gives you insight into what are the more current views and perceptions...it is exhaustive...lots of footnotes, endnotes, personalities mentioned within the Epic are listed at the back...the three volumes can be found in a paperback format but there are quite big still...on the other hand his translation of the Bhagavad-Gita is superb...again there is a incredible foreword and lots of footnotes and endnotes...it is my favourite rendering of the Immortal 'Song Celestial'...it emphasis the fact that it was a teaching and though the verses are annotated there is a continuity that most pleasing for the eyes...there are no digressive explainations after each sloka and it is a straight transliteration...however, explainations can be nice somethymes...like the S. Radhakrishnan translation of the Gita is quite amazing too.

Van Buitenen books can be found here:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/se...100867-5490415

Hope your trip is blissful!!!
India is such a strange dream to behold...

http://www.geocities.com/sachamassagonna

IainC

In India, you can buy Penguin copies of Mahabharata, Ramayana, Rig Veda and Upanisads (abridged), all for about Rs200. They are a good read in themselves but are also a good introduction to some of the translations listed above.