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What does duty demand when the people you must fight are your own family?
In Romesh Chunder Dutt’s verse epic Maha-bharata, the Pandavas and Kauravas share a royal house but clash over its inheritance. Yudhishthira seeks justice, Bhima brings immense strength, and Arjuna excels in battle. Against them, Duryodhana resists their claims. Their rivalry turns kingship into a painful struggle over loyalty, honour, and the right to rule.
A game of dice carries the conflict into the royal hall, where Yudhishthira’s gambling exposes his brothers and Draupadi to humiliation and exile. Away from power, patience and resolve face fresh tests. As the question of return draws near, pride and distrust threaten negotiation. Dharma—right conduct and duty—becomes hard to judge when promises and responsibilities pull in different directions.
What you’ll discover
- A family divided Follow a shared inheritance as it becomes a bitter contest over justice and power.
- The royal hall Enter the dice game where one man’s choices place his whole family at risk.
- Draupadi at the centre Meet the woman whose honour stands at the heart of the royal conflict.
- Warriors with divided loyalties Encounter Bhishma, Drona, and Karna, whose personal debts complicate the sides they serve.
- An epic in verse Move through court life, marriage, exile, and battle, where public skill sharpens private rivalry.
Who will love it
Readers drawn to family rivalries, heroic battles, and difficult moral choices will find much to care about in Dutt’s verse epic.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
Who’s who
- YudhishthiraThe eldest Pandava seeks to act justly, but his gambling exposes his family to humiliation and exile.
- ArjunaA leading Pandava warrior faces enemies who are also relatives and teachers.
- DraupadiThe wife of the five Pandavas stands at the centre of the royal family’s conflict over honour and justice.
- DuryodhanaThe leading Kaurava resists the Pandavas’ claims and drives the rivalry toward war.
- KrishnaThe Pandavas’ divine ally offers counsel and plays a central role in diplomacy and war.
- DharmaDharma means right conduct and duty, which become difficult to judge when obligations conflict.
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- Large print hardcover
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Mahābhārata
What does duty demand when the people you must fight are your own family?
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From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1 of 5
The Pandavas and the Kauravas belong to the same royal house, but their shared inheritance becomes a source of conflict. The five Pandava brothers have different strengths: Yudhishthira values justice, Bhima has immense physical power, and Arjuna excels as a warrior. Their cousins, led by Duryodhana, resent their standing and success. What begins as competition within a family gradually threatens the whole kingdom.
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What is Romesh Chunder Dutt’s Maha-bharata about?
It is a verse telling of the Indian epic’s central family conflict. The Pandavas and Kauravas compete for royal power, and a disastrous dice game, exile, and failed peace efforts lead toward war. Duty and loyalty matter as much as military strength.
Is Dutt’s Maha-bharata the whole ancient epic?
Dutt presents a shorter verse account centred on the main royal struggle and its great episodes. The ancient Mahabharata is much larger, containing many additional stories, religious teachings, and discussions of conduct beyond the conflict between the Pandavas and Kauravas.
What does dharma mean in Maha-bharata?
Dharma means duty, right conduct, and the order that supports a just life. In Maha-bharata, these do not always point toward one clear action. A warrior’s duty, a relative’s loyalty, and a ruler’s responsibility can make conflicting demands.
The author
Romesh Chunder Dutt
1848–1909 · Indian historian and novelist
Romesh Chunder Dutt (1848–1909) was an Indian historian, economist, writer, and civil servant. He was born in Calcutta, studied in London, and worked in India. He wrote in Bengali and English. His English verse translation of the Mahabharata appeared in 1898. He also wrote economic histories of India. He died in Baroda.
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