Longtime readers might remember that for much of 2024, I was writing about my experiences reading an unabridged translation of the Mahabharata, which is one of the two foundational Hindu epics.
Thank you both so much for this conversation. As a nominal Hindu who keeps trying to explore Hinduism through the Mahabharata (not yet the unabridged version, but I’m gearing up for it), and whose approach to the text is inherently Western, it’s been difficult to find others to share this interest with. My Indian friends and family tend to view Hinduism as something you either accept obediently from the pandit and don’t try to question or understand—or else reject entirely. I really, really resonate with what you’re saying about wanting a third way. “A realist Hinduism that can talk about political questions, empirical questions, society, ethics, and really the whole gamut of life”—this is my dream Hinduism.
Fascinating! While I've never read the Mahabharata, I DID watch the TV show, which was broadcast on Saturday afternoons c. 1989, over the course of about a year. I never missed an episode!
It was never about religion for me, but I was hooked by the sheer scope of the story. It was unlike anything I'd experienced before!
My father was a professor who studied Balinese puppetry and dance and so was intimately familiar with the Mahabharata. I grew up around some of those stories, particularly the Pandava brothers, but there's just so much to know....
Thank you both so much for this conversation. As a nominal Hindu who keeps trying to explore Hinduism through the Mahabharata (not yet the unabridged version, but I’m gearing up for it), and whose approach to the text is inherently Western, it’s been difficult to find others to share this interest with. My Indian friends and family tend to view Hinduism as something you either accept obediently from the pandit and don’t try to question or understand—or else reject entirely. I really, really resonate with what you’re saying about wanting a third way. “A realist Hinduism that can talk about political questions, empirical questions, society, ethics, and really the whole gamut of life”—this is my dream Hinduism.
Thank you! Great to know that there’s a meeting of minds in the search for a third way!
Fascinating! While I've never read the Mahabharata, I DID watch the TV show, which was broadcast on Saturday afternoons c. 1989, over the course of about a year. I never missed an episode!
It was never about religion for me, but I was hooked by the sheer scope of the story. It was unlike anything I'd experienced before!
My father was a professor who studied Balinese puppetry and dance and so was intimately familiar with the Mahabharata. I grew up around some of those stories, particularly the Pandava brothers, but there's just so much to know....
I've had an abridged translation on my shelf ever since college but have only read (a number of times) the opening pages...