Mahabharat Chapter 1 - Ganapathi the scribe

Written by Mandodhari
Sunday, 10 August 2008 05:03

Click here to read all stories from Mahabharata

Rishi Ved Vyasa wrote the Mahabharata. He was the son of Rishi Parshar. Vyasa also wrote
the Vedas.Mahabharat is written in Sanskrit in poetry form. When Vyasa conceived
Mahabharata, he knew he needed a good scribe to take down his dictations.

He asked Lord Brahma who would be the ideal scribe for Mahabharata? It is an epic and the
scribe should be up to the task of matching Vyasa’s creations. Brahma suggested that only
Ganapathi was up to this task. There is no one superior to him in intellect.

Ved Vyasa approached Ganapathi with his request to be his scribe for the epic composition of
Mahabharata. Ganapathi did not appreciate very much being asked to be a scribe. But he did
not want to offend Brahma by saying no. So he put forward a condition. “I will be your scribe,
and I will take down your dictations. You say you want a scribe of superior intellect who can
take down your dicatations non stop, so be it. My pen must not stop; you must not pause while
dictating.” Rishi Vyasa thought long and hard. He knew it was impossible for anyone to

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Mahabharat Chapter 1 - Ganapathi the scribe

Written by Mandodhari
Sunday, 10 August 2008 05:03

compose the epic non stop. So he countered Ganapathi’s offer. “I will not let your pen to stop
from writing. However, I have a condition too. You must grasp the meaning of what I dictate
before you write it down.”

Both Ganesha and Vyasa agreed to each other’s conditions. Vyasa began to sing Mahabharata
and Ganesha began to scribe. Occassionaly Vyasa would compose some very complex
stanzas forcing Ganesha to pause to think and grasp the meaning, giving Vyasa just enough
time to compose the next stanzas in his head.

This was before the age of printing when everyone wrote on bark of trees with a feather for pen.
The only way pass things from generation to the next were through memorizing. Vyasa taught
the epic to his son Rishi Shuka and to his other disciples. Shuka taught it to the gandharvas,
rakshasas and yakshas. Vyasa’s disciple Vaisampayana revealed it to the masses for the
benefit of the humanity. King Janamejaya, son of King Parikshit, held a big Yagna. During this
Yagna, he asked Vaisampayana to reveal Mahabharata to the masses.

Vyasa composed Mahabharata to teach humanity dharma and other ends of life.

“After the death of King Shantanu, his son Chitrangada became the King. He was succeeded by
Vichitravirya. Vichitravirya had two sons Dhritarashtra and Pandu. Dhritsrashtra was the older
one but was blind and so Pandu ascended the throne. He later committed an offense and had
to go to the forest for penance with his two wives Kunti and Madri.

During their stay in the forest, the two wives of Pandu, Kunti and Madri gave birth to five sons
who became well known as the five Pandavas or Panch Pandava. Pandu passed away while
they were still living in the forest. The sages brought up the five Pandavas during their early

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Mahabharat Chapter 1 - Ganapathi the scribe

Written by Mandodhari
Sunday, 10 August 2008 05:03

years.

When Yudhishthira, the eldest, attained the age of sixteen the rishis led them all back to
Hastinapura and entrusted them to the old grandsire Bhishma. In a short time the Pandavas
gained mastery over the Vedas and the Vedanta as well as over the various arts, especially
pertaining to the Kshatriyas. The Kauravas, the sons of the blind Dhritarashtra, became jealous
of the Pandavas and tried to injure them in various ways.

Finally Bhishma, the head of the family, intervened to bring about mutual understanding and
peace between them. Accordingly the Pandavas and the Kauravas began to rule separately
from their respective capitals, Indraprastha and Hastinapura.

Some time later, there was a game of dice between the Kauravas and the Pandavas. Sakuni,
who played on behalf of the Kauravas, defeated Yudhishthira. As a result, the Pandavas had to
be in exile for a period of thirteen years. They left the kingdom and went to the forest with their
devoted wife Draupadi.

According to the conditions of the game, the Pandavas spent twelve years in the forest and the
thirteenth year incognito.

When they returned and demanded of Duryodhana their kingdom, the latter, who had in the
meanwhile usurped their kingdom, refused to return it. War followed as a consequence.

The Pandavas defeated Duryodhana and ruled the kingdom for thirty-six years. Afterwards, they
transferred the crown to their grandson, Parikshit, and retreated to the forest with Draupadi.

This is the substance of the story of the Mahabharata. Besides the tale of Pandavas, the epic
contains tales and sublime teachings. It has countless treasures of pearls and gems of wisdom.
It is the history, culture and religion of India.

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Mahabharat Chapter 1 - Ganapathi the scribe

Written by Mandodhari
Sunday, 10 August 2008 05:03

Click here to read all stories from Mahabharata

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