Mahabharata Criticism - An annotated bibliography by Pradip Bhattacharya

Bengali

1. Dr Atul Sur: Mahabharat O Sindhu Sabhyata (Ujjwal Sahitya Mandir, 1988).
   The eminent historian deals with Mahabharata and the Indus Civilization, Mahbharata as national history, How far the descriptions in Mahabharata are true (answering four key questions raised by Rajshekhar Basu in his introduction to the Bengali condensation of the epic), Kurukshetra war and the Pandavas in Bengal, Whether Yudhishthira's bodily ascent to Svarga is true, Indus Civilization and Bengalis.
2. Dr Sukumari Bhattacharya: Ramayana & Mahabharata Anupatik Janapriyata
   (Camp, 1996). A study in their comparative popularity and its reasons.
   
3. Amalesh Bhattacharya: Mahabharater Katha
   (Aryabharati/Srinvantu, 1985).
   A brilliantly illuminating journey through the intricacies of the epic full of revealing insights.
4. Buddhadeb Bose: Mahabharater Katha
   (1974) Englished by Prof. Sujit Mukherjee as The Book of Yudhishthir (Sangam Books, Hyderabad, 1986).
   The first serious attempt to establish Yudhishthira as the protagonist of the epic, which A. Hiltebeitel pursues in his Rethinking the Mahabharata: The education of Yudhishthira (University of Chicago Press, 2001)
5. Jahnavi Kumar Chakravarti: Pitrikanya
   (DM Library, 1981).
   Possibly the only novel on Satyavati, portraying her as Acchoda reborn.
6. Rajyeswar Mitra: Mahabharat Chinta
   Interesting essays on different aspects of the epic.
7. Dr Nrisingha Prasad Bhaduri: Mahabharatey Bharatyuddha O Krishna (Ananda, 1991).
   Written in inimitable style, packing in tremendous erudition in colloquial Bengali, providing a host of new insights on the war and Krishna's role (e.g. the North-Western powers ganging up against the South-Eastern in Bharatavarsha).
8. Dr Nrisingha Prasad Bhaduri: Krishna, Kunti, Kaunteya
   (Ananda, 1998)
   A gripping survey of Draupadi, Kunti and her sons (including Karna) with startling revelations reached by working out the implications of statements we usually overlook in the epic narrative.
9. Dr. Sukumar Sen: Bharat Kathar Granthimochan (Ananda 1981) The eminent linguist unravels several complicated knots in the epic narrative.
10. Birendra Kumar Ray: Mahabharater Charitra (Malda, 1985)
    Analyses the epic characters with remarkable thoroughness.
11. Birendra Kumar Ray: : Mahabharater Krishna (Malda, 1989)
    Pursues Bankimchandra Chatterjee's line of approach in studying Krishna to produce an extremely rewarding study.
12. Birendra Mitra: Danikentattva O Mahabharater Svargadebata; Kurukshetrey Debshibir; Ramayaney Debshibir
    (Nath Publishing).
    A very interesting extrapolation of Erich von Daniken's Chariot of the Gods to both epics. He was working on expanding this to Harivamsa.
13. Madhu Chattopadhyay: Mahabharatey Janmakatha
    (Sahityasri, 1991)
    Examines the birth accounts of Vashishtha, Parashara, Aurva, Matsyagandha, Vyasa, Bhishma, Drona, Karna, Pandavas, Duryodhana, Draupadi and what they reveal about social conditions of those times.

English

1. Justice Sisir Kumar Sen ICS: Quest for the origin of Bharata Samhita and the Mahabharata Story
   (Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Bombay, 1995).
   Originally published in Bengali in brief 1983. He walks the path pioneered by Bankimchandra Chattopadhyay and subjects the epic to detailed examination for determining the original core bereft of supernatural accretions of later times.
2. R.N. Dandekar (ed): The Mahabharata Revisited
   (Sahitya Akademi, New Delhi, 1990).
   Being proceedings of an international seminar on the epic held in February 1987 with extremely useful studies and a superb valedictory address by Padma Sri P. Lal.
3. D.C. Sircar (ed): The Bharata War and Puranic Genealogies
   (Calcutta University, 1969). Being proceedings of a seminar held in 1965 in the Department of Ancient Indian History and Culture in the Calcutta University, containing valuable papers on the epic war and archaeology and on puranic dynasties.
4. B.K. Matilal (ed): Moral Dilemmas in Mahabharata
   (Motilal Banarsidass, Delhi, 1989)
   A highly philosophical examination of moral issues faced by characters in the epic and how, if at all, these are resolved.
5. Sri Aurobindo: On the Mahabharata
   (Sri Aurobindo Ashram, Pondicherry, 1991)
   Contains detailed analyses of authorship of the epic and translations from the Sabha, Virata and Udyoga Parvas.
6. R.C. Katz: Arjuna in the Mahabharata
   (Motilal Banarsidass, Delhi, 1989)
   A comprehensive survey of the role of Arjuna in the epic at three levels: hero, human weakness, devotee.
7. V.S. Sukthankar: On the Meaning of the Mahabharata
   (Asiatic Society of Bombay, 1957).
   A seminal work on the epic by the chief editor of its critical text and an outstanding example of higher criticism that goes behind the appearance to probe the underlying reality.
8. S.P. Narang (ed): Modern Evaluation of the Mahabharata
   (Prof. R.K. Sharma felicitation volume), Nag Publishers, Delhi, 1995.
   43 scholarly essays, many valuable, by Indian and foreign scholars.
9. Arvind Sharma: Essays on the Mahabharata
   (E.J. Brill, Leiden, 1991)
   An extremely important collection of scholarly studies on various aspects of the epic.
10. M.V. Subramanian ICS: The Mahabharata Story: Vyasa and Variations
    (Higginbothams, Madras, 1967).
    A wonderfully concise yet thorough study of every episode of the original epic and the variations found in Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, Andhra versions and the plays of Bhasa, Venisamhara, Sisupalavadham, Kiratarjuniyam. He ends with the disappearance of Ashvatthama, following Villi's Tamil and Kumara Vyasa^Òs Kannada retellings.
11. A.K. Ganesan, IRAS: Valmiki's Ramayana and Vyasa's Mahabharata: joint and comparative study
    (Higginbothams, Madras, 1981).
    He examines characters, themes of both epics side by side and their implications for society.
12. B.M. Sullivan: Seer of the Fifth Veda
    (Motilal Banarsidass, 1999, originally from Leiden 1990 as Krsna Dvaipayana Vyasa^×a new interpretation).
    An excellent study focusing on the composer of the epic and the roles he plays in it.
13. M.M. Thakur: Thus Spake Bhishma
    (Motilal Banarsidass, 1992)
    Narrates the life of Bhishma as if spoken by him.
14. Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay: Krishna Charitra
    (English translation by Pradip Bhattacharya from the M.P. Birla Foundation, Calcutta, 1991)
    The first proper study of Krishna, published in 1894 in Bengali. He concentrates on removing all the supernatural gobbledygook that has obscured the heroic figure from the common reader and establishes the Krishna of the Mahabharata War as the role model for the youth of the country.
15. A. Hiltebeitel: The Cult of Draupadi
    , 2 vols., (University of Chicago Press)
    A study unique in its depth of the South Indian cult of Draupadi still in existence and what it reveals about the epic characters and narrative and the local assimilation including a Muslim guardian for Draupadi^Òs temples.
16. A. Hiltebeitel: Rethinking India's oral and classical epics: Draupadi among Rajputs, Muslims and Dalits (University of Chicago Press, 1999).
    Provides fascinating revelations about how the epic story is turned into folk ballads by the low-caste and Muslim people of Rajasthan.
17. A. Hiltebeitel: The ritual of battle:Krishna in the Mahabharata
    (Cornell Univ Press, 1976).
    An exceedingly competent examination of the epic war and Krishna's role. However, he does not have the benefit of Bankimchandra's examination as it was Englished only in 1991.
18. R.P. Goldman: Gods, priests and warriors: the Bhrgus of the Mahabharata
    (Columbia Univ. Press, 1977)
    Taking off from V.S. Sukthankar's seminal study of the Bhargavisation of the epic text, the translator and editor of the critical text of the Ramayana provides fascinating insights about the Bharagava priests in the epic.
19. Nicholas Sutton: Religious Doctrines in the Mahabharata
    (Motilal Banarsidass, Delhi, 2000)
    Analyses various doctrinal answers to ontological questions, showing the rich diversity of religious thought in the epic existing in tension, allowing exploration.
20. Padma Sri P. Lal (ed): Vyasa's Mahabharata: Creative Insights, 2 vols (Writers Workshop, Calcutta, 1992, 1985)
    Nearly 1200 pages of engrossing poetry, fiction, critiques, criticism and book reviews on the epic.
21. Pradip Bhattacharya: A Long Critique on the Mahabharata TV Film Script
    Writers Workshop, Calcutta (1991)
    Detailed commentary on the English translation of Rahi Masoom Reza's remarkably insightful TV Film script that ran for 93 weeks on BBC with subtitles.
22. Pradip Bhattacharya: A Long Critique on Shivaji's Sawant's Mrityunjay: the Death of Karna

Fiction

1. Shashi Tharoor: The Great Indian Novel
   (Penguin)
   review by R.P. Goldman who also reviews the Peter Brook film on the epic. read the review here
2. Kanak Kanti De: Three Mahabharata Verse Plays
   English translations of Buddhadeb Bose's Bengali poetic dramas on the epic that provide new character interpretations.
3. Shyamashree Lal: English transcreations of Rabindranath Tagore's long poems Bidaya Abhishaap (Kacha and Devayani) and Gandharir Abedan (Gandhari's Plea)
   
4. Pradip Bhattacharya: Transcreation of significant passages from the classic play Chakravyuha
   by Manoranjan Bhattacharya
5. Shashi Deshpande: The Stone Woman and other stories
   (Writers Workshop, Calcutta, 2000)
   Fascinating stories featuring Amba, Draupadi, Duryodhana, Kunti, Nahusha's queen, Sita and Lakshmi, some in the autobiographical mode.