The Mahabharata, an ancient and vast Sanskrit poem, is a remarkable collection of epics, legends, romances, theology, and ethical and metaphysical doctrine. The core of this great work is the epic struggle between five heroic brothers, the Pandavas, and their one hundred contentious cousins for rule of the land. This is the third volume of van Buitenen's acclaimed translation of the definitive Poona edition of the text. Book 4, The Book of Virata, begins as a burlesque, but the mood soon darkens amid molestation, raids, and Arjuna's battle with the principal heroes of the enemy. Book 5, The Book of the Effort, relates the attempts of the Pandavas to negotiate the return of their patrimony. They are refused so much as a "pinprick of land," and both parties finally march to battle.
FREE Two-Day Shipping for Students. Learn more |
Book Description
Special Offers and Product Promotions
- Buy $50 in qualifying physical textbooks, get $5 in Amazon MP3 Credit. Here's how (restrictions apply)
Frequently Bought Together
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
the tragedy,
By
This review is from: The Mahabharata, Volume 3: Book 4: The Book of the Virata; Book 5: The Book of the Effort (Paperback)
The tragedy of J.A. B. van Buitenen's most excellent translation is his passing in 1979 that prevented the translation from being completed. Therefore, I warn those who read the first 2200 pages (the first three volumes) that they will have to seek out another translation (such as that by P.Lal, which, in my opinion is not of the caliber of van Buitenen's) if they wish to complete the epic tale. The only complete translation in English of The Mahabharata that I know of is that of Kisari Mohan Ganguli, published by the New Delhi publishing house Munshiram Manoharlal.
An interesting note is that James L. Fitzgerald has continued with van Buitenen's translation, although he began with Vol. 7 (van Buitenen completed the first three volumes) rather than the next volume, 4, and anticipates it will be a 10 volume set. My guess is Fitzgerald began with the most interesting volumes so if he died without completing the project someone else would have to pick up the less interesting parts.
0 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Van Buitenen Mahabharata Vol 3,
This review is from: The Mahabharata, Volume 3: Book 4: The Book of the Virata; Book 5: The Book of the Effort (Paperback)
This ancient Indian epic is still interesting today. It provides knowledge not just of it's own story, and inserted stories, but of myth that all India has known about for centuries. I can't wait to get the
other volumes, some of which are still being translated at the U. of Chicago.It is even more interesting than the Iliad and Odyssey, and interesting to compare to them.
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
|
|
Inside This Book
(learn more)
First Sentence:
"The instants are joined together," remarks Bhisma sagely, "and so are the hours, days, fortnights, months, lunar houses, planets, seasons, and years: thus the wheel of time revolves with the divisions of time." Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
tigerlike man, yogins behold, tigerlike men, cow teller, bull among brahmins, baronial law, brahmin murder, chariot duel, unsullied deeds, flawless limbs, bull among men, eight brahmins, bridegroom choice, tiger among men, brahmin seers, spared bloodshed, divine missiles, superb bow, enemy heroes, sacred fords, royal seers, rutting elephant, endowed with all virtues, dicing game, sámi tree Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
The Book of the Effort, King Dharma, King Viráta, The Cattle Raid, King Dhrtarástra, The Book of Viráta, King Drupada, Diademed One, Bhisma Sámtanava, Sakuni Saubala, Fire God, Sacker of Cities, The Victory of Indra, City of the Elephant, Dhrtarástra's Vigil, God of the Hundred Sacrifices, Karna Vaikartana, King Bhárata, King Hiranyavarman, King Virata, King Yayáti, Krpa Sáradvata, King Salva, King Silva, The Embassy of Samjaya New!
Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
"The instants are joined together," remarks Bhisma sagely, "and so are the hours, days, fortnights, months, lunar houses, planets, seasons, and years: thus the wheel of time revolves with the divisions of time." Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
tigerlike man, yogins behold, tigerlike men, cow teller, bull among brahmins, baronial law, brahmin murder, chariot duel, unsullied deeds, flawless limbs, bull among men, eight brahmins, bridegroom choice, tiger among men, brahmin seers, spared bloodshed, divine missiles, superb bow, enemy heroes, sacred fords, royal seers, rutting elephant, endowed with all virtues, dicing game, sámi tree Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
The Book of the Effort, King Dharma, King Viráta, The Cattle Raid, King Dhrtarástra, The Book of Viráta, King Drupada, Diademed One, Bhisma Sámtanava, Sakuni Saubala, Fire God, Sacker of Cities, The Victory of Indra, City of the Elephant, Dhrtarástra's Vigil, God of the Hundred Sacrifices, Karna Vaikartana, King Bhárata, King Hiranyavarman, King Virata, King Yayáti, Krpa Sáradvata, King Salva, King Silva, The Embassy of Samjaya New!
Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Citations (learn more)
This book cites 5
books:
- History Of India by Romesh Chunder Dutt on page 364, and page 363
- Cambridge History of India, Volume 1: Ancient India (v. 1) by E.J. Rapson on page 364
- The Oxford History of India by V. A. Smith on page 363
- Sanskrit Grammar (Dover Language Guides) by William Dwight Whitney in Back Matter
- Vedic Mythology by Arthur Anthony Macdonell on page 359
Books on Related Topics
(learn more)
|
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
So You'd Like to...
|
|
