THE RAMAYANA

AND
MAHABHARATA
Stories, Differences, Similarities, and
Significance
 The Ramayana and the Mahabharata are two of
India's greatest epics that have influenced the
Hindu way of thinking and belief system. The two
epics are believed to be partially based on
historical events and are considered to be
"itihasa" in Sanskrit, which means historical texts.
What's the story of the
Ramayana and the
Mahabharata?
 Both Ramayana and
Mahabharata are epics written in
the form of poems and took
place in ancient Hindu kingdoms
on the Indian subcontinent.
THE ESSENCE OF THE
STORY
THE RAMAYANA
 The word Ramayana literally means the journey of Rama.
 It is a story of the triumph of good over evil that is shown through the victory of Rama who
defeated the demon Ravana who had abducted his wife.
 Rama is perceived as the ideal man in Hindu culture. He is portrayed as loyal, dutiful,
righteous, courageous, wise, strong, and even handsome.
 Rama was born as the eldest of the sons of the King of the Kosala Kingdom. However, due to
turmoil in family relationships, he was exiled for fourteen years.
 As a dutiful son, he willingly went on exile with his wife, Sita, and his younger brother,
Lakshmana.
 During the exile, Sita was abducted by Ravana, the demon king of Lanka (present-day Sri Lanka). In his search
for Sita, Rama befriended Hanuman, a monkey-human god, who was a great help to the prince.
 Finally, they were able to defeat Ravana through a fierce battle and save Sita. However, this was not the end of the story as Sita
had to prove her chastity by walking through fire before Rama was willing to take her back. Fortunately, with the help of the gods,
she was able to do so and remained unharmed.
THE MAHABHARATA
 Mahabharata is essentially the story of the rivalry between two bands of brothers in the Hastinapura
Kingdom, which culminates in a great battle.
 Pandavas are the five sons of Pandu, the rightful king of the Hastinapura Kingdom.
 His eldest two sons were Yudhistira and Arjuna.
 On the other hand, the Kauravas are the one hundred sons of Dhritarashtra, who is Pandu's blind elder
brother.
 The eldest of the Kauravas is Duryodhana, who is the main antagonist in the story.
 Duryodhana lives against dharma (moral order) and is portrayed as greedy, jealous, and evil.
 In the story, Duryodhana invited the Pandavas to a game of dice where the Yudhistira staked everything
and lost.
 Consequently, the Pandavas then had to go on exile for a total of thirteen years, during which they
prepared themselves for war.
 At the end of their exile, the Pandavas and the Kauravas gathered their allies and went to war against
each other.
1. PRESENCE OF HINDU
GODS SIMILARITIES
BETWEEN
2. SIMILAR THEOF
THEME
DUTYRAMAYANA AND
MAHABHARATA
3. SIMILAR PLOT
1. DIFFERENT AUTHOR
DIFFERENCES
BETWEEN THE
2. DIFFERENT LENGTH
RAMAYANA AND
MAHABHARATA
3. DIFFERENT
PHILOSOPHIES
1. THEY ARE STILL VERY POPULAR
IN INDIA AND EVEN IN SOME
THE SIGNIFICANCE
SOUTHEAST ASIAN COUNTRIES.
2. CAN BE SEEN DURING VARIOUS
OF THE RAMAYANA
FESTIVALS IN INDIA.
AND MAHABHARATA
3. CAN ALSO BE WATCHED DURING
THE MAHABHARATA FESTIVAL
WHICH TAKES PLACE IN DECEMBER.