Bride of the Forest - THE UNTOLD STORY OF YAYATI'S DAUGHTER


Book Description

Description The myth of Drishadvati appears in the Mahabharata as the 'story of the salvation of kings by a maiden.' While tales of surrogacy abound in the Indian epics, this is the first known example of a womb-on-rent. This strange story-of a girl whose fertility was bartered repeatedly in exchange for priceless horses-has intrigued modern scholars, playwrights and authors for its cultural significance. While earlier adaptations have cast its theme as the exploitation of a helpless woman, Bride of the Forest presents it as the story of girl who is surprisingly radical in her ultimate rejection of patriarchy. Staying true to the original myths and springing entirely from the world of the Mahabharata, the novel brings to life several other characters: Garuda, the divine bird who flies Lord Vishnu around the world: the proud kings of Ayodhya, Pratisthan and Kashi; the arrogant queen, Devayani, and her duplicitous maid-whose stories reveal an intricate tapestry of human and divine relationships. Intertwined in the tales of traditional rivalries is the age-old war between the asuras and the devas that gave rise to the perennial male quest for immortality, transmuted into the human desire for sons that lies at the root of commercial surrogacy even today. However, it is the story of Drishadvati, her sacrifice and her nobility, that will enchant the reader.




Yayati


Book Description

Shalivahana was a commoner who became king, a rare event in ancient India. He grew up as a poor widow's son, in a poor potter's family. A holy man is said to have foretold that he would be king one day. As a youth Salivahana broke-up the gangs that robbed




Stories from the Bhagavatam


Book Description

First Ebook Edition - March 2016




Yayati


Book Description

Yayati, Girish Karnard's first play, was written in 1960 and won the Mysore State Award in 1962. It is based on an episode in the Mahabharata, where Yayati, one of the ancestors of the Pandavas, is given the curse of premature old age by his father-in-law, Shukracharya, who is incensed by Yayati's infidelity. Yayati could redeem this curse only if someone was willing to exchange his youth with him. It is his son, Pooru, who finally offers to do this for his father. The play examines the moment of crisis that Pooru's decision sparks, and the dilemma it presents for Yayati, Pooru, and Pooru's young wife.




Yuganta


Book Description

Irawati Karve studies the humanity of the Mahabharata`s great figures, with all their virtues and their equally numerous faults. Sought out by an inquirer like her, whose view of life is secular, scientific, anthropological in the widest sense, yet appreciative of literary values, social problems of the past and present alike, and human needs and responses in her own time and in antiquity as she identifies them... Seen through her eyes the Mahabharata is more than a work which Hindus look upon as divinely inspired, and venerate. It becomes a record of complex humanity and a mirror to all the faces which we ourselves wear.




The MahaBharata


Book Description

Ancient India, like ancient Greece boasts of two great Epics. One of them, the Maha-bharata, relates to a great war in which all the warlike races of Northern India took a share, and may therefore be compared to the Iliad. The great war which is the subject of this Epic is believed to have been fought in the thirteenth or fourteenth century before Christ. The war thus became the centre of a cycle of legends, songs, and poems in ancient India, the vast mass of legends and poetry, accumulated during centuries, was cast in a narrative form and formed the Epic of the Great Bharata nation, and therefore called the Maha-bharata. The real facts of the war had been obliterated by age, legendary heroes had become the principal actors, and, as is invariably the case in India, the thread of a high moral purpose, of the triumph of virtue and the subjugation of vice, was woven into the fabric of the great Epic.




The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa Adi Parva


Book Description

The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa Translated into English Prose Adi Parva by Kisari Mohan Ganguli SECTION I Om! Having bowed down to Narayana and Nara, the most exalted male being, and also to the goddess Saraswati, must the word Jaya be uttered. Ugrasrava, the son of Lomaharshana, surnamed Sauti, well-versed in the Puranas, bending with humility, one day approached the great sages of rigid vows, sitting at their ease, who had attended the twelve years' sacrifice of Saunaka, surnamed Kulapati, in the forest of Naimisha. Those ascetics, wishing to hear his wonderful narrations, presently began to address him who had thus arrived at that recluse abode of the inhabitants of the forest of Naimisha. We are delighted to publish this classic book as part of our extensive Classic Library collection. Many of the books in our collection have been out of print for decades, and therefore have not been accessible to the general public. The aim of our publishing program is to facilitate rapid access to this vast reservoir of literature, and our view is that this is a significant literary work, which deserves to be brought back into print after many decades. The contents of the vast majority of titles in the Classic Library have been scanned from the original works. To ensure a high quality product, each title has been meticulously hand curated by our staff. Our philosophy has been guided by a desire to provide the reader with a book that is as close as possible to ownership of the original work. We hope that you will enjoy this wonderful classic work, and that for you it becomes an enriching experience.




Legacy


Book Description

Narayana Murthy, Chanda Kochhar, Kishore Biyani, Zia Mody, K.V. Kamath, Ajay Piramal, Amit Chandra, Ganesh Natrajan, Renuka Ramnath, P.P. Chhabria, Pradeep Bhargava, Deep Anand, Capt. Gopinath, Mallika Sarabhai, Shaheen Mistri, Sanjeev Kapoor, Jatin Das, and Prakash Padukone They say a daughter may outgrow your lap, but she will never outgrow your heart. In Legacy, noted journalist and author Sudha Menon brings forth a rare collection of personal and evocative letters from parents to their daughters. Through their fearless approach to life, love, and overcoming obstacles, these icons from the world of business, arts, films, food, and sports share with us their experience and wisdom as they pass them on to their daughters. Deeply moving and thought provoking, Legacy is a remarkable collection of life lessons that will delight and inspire at the same time.




Love Stories from the Mahabharata


Book Description

Erotic in style and content, this collection unearths the forgotten and lesser known tales of love from the great epic. The narrative is sensuous and often sensual in detail, pulsating with the blood and throb of bodies that breath in unison, in a world particularized by its own mores. Parikshit and Sushobhana, Agni and Svaha, Agastya and Lopamudra, and many more lovelorn couples take the reader on a journey through the crosscurrents of physical desire and psychic union.




Paltan Tales


Book Description

A collection of thirteen stories about life beyond cantonment limits. Tales that describe the pride, honour, self-respect, discipline and sense of duty of the men in uniform, and the anguish, frustration, and quiet resignation of their loved ones. Deeply felt, touchingly told, by someone who knows.