Maya can be explained directly as a state of mind, or perhaps consciousness, but it also

appears through several other means. Maya was the divine architect who built the Palace
of Illusion or the Palace of Maya for the Pandavas. He was said to have architectural
abilities that are unfathomable by our modern standards. At the command of Krishna, he
set out to build the palace for King Yudhishthira. This wondrous marvel was constructed in
the capital of a kingdom ruled by the Pandavas, Indraprastha. The palace shone in great
splendour, and by its brilliance, seemed to darken even the bright rays of the sun.
At the center of the epic Mahabharata is a power conflict between two branches of the
Kuru clan, the Pandavas and the Kauravas. The Kauravas are invited to the capital,
Indraprastha, where the story of Duryodhana, the eldest Kaurava, and the Hall of Illusions
takes place. Duryodhana decides to inspect the royal palace where he is mesmerized by its
splendor and confused by its mysterious nature. This divine palace, created by the great
architect Maya, was said to have flowing lines and finishes that were almost
incomprehensible due to their reflective, illusory, and brilliant features. Duryodhana first
walked into a wall thinking it was a door, but he hastily brushed off the playful chuckles of
the Pandava women within the palace. One day, King Duryodhana in going around that
mansion, came upon a crystal surface. And the King, from ignorance, mistaking it for a pool
of water, drew up his clothes. And afterward finding out his mistake, the King wandered
about the mansion in great sorrow. This time the ladies' chuckles turned into light laughter,
causing his anger to swell within. Once more he attempted to brush off this mishap and
carry on. As he proceeded, the immense wealth and beauty were beginning to affect the
Kaurava's ego. Duryodhana became increasingly jealous of the Pandava fortunes. The king,
mistaking a lake of crystal water adorned with lotuses of crystal petals for land, fell into it
with all his clothes on. Concealing his emotions he even did not cast his looks on them. The
Hall of Illusions created by Maya has essentially fostered the age-old folly of man, his ego.
Through blindness to reality, Duryodhana has unleashed destruction and anguish upon
himself, his family, and countless others without even realizing it.