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Similar Adi Parva, Virata Parva, Udyoga Parva, Vana Parva, Sauptika Parva | ||
Sampurna mahabharatam sabha parvam part 2 3 pravachanam by sri mylavarapu srinivasa rao garu
Sabha Parva, also called the "Book of the Assembly Hall", is the second of eighteen books of Mahabharata. Sabha Parva has 10 sub-books and 81 chapters. The critical edition of Sabha Parva has 9 sub-books and 72 chapters.
Contents
- Sampurna mahabharatam sabha parvam part 2 3 pravachanam by sri mylavarapu srinivasa rao garu
- Structure and chapters
- English Translations
- Quotations and teachings
- References
Sabha Parva starts with the description of the palace and assembly hall (sabha) built by Maya, at Indraprastha. Chapter 5 of the book outlines over a hundred principles of governance and administration necessary for a kingdom and its citizens to be prosperous, virtuous and happy. The middle sub-books describe life at the court, Yudhishthira's Rajasuya Yajna that leads to the expansion of the Pandava brothers' empire. The last two sub-books describe the one vice and addiction of the virtuous king Yudhishthira - gambling. Shakuni, encouraged by evil Dhritarashtra, mocks Yudhishthira and tempts him into a game of dice. Yudhishthira bets everything and loses the game, leading to the eventual exile of the Pandavas.
The book also details the principle of evil and crime against humanity, of why individuals who themselves have not been harmed must act regardless when society at large suffers systematic crime and injustice - this theory is outlined in the story of Magadha, Chapters 20 through 24, where the trio of Krishna, Arujna and Bheem slay Jarasandha.
Structure and chapters
Sabha Parva has 10 sub-parvas (sub-books, little books), and a total of 81 chapters (sections). The following are the sub-parvas:
1. Sabhakriya Parva (Chapters 1-4) 2. Lokapala Sabhakhayana Parva (Chapters 5-13) 3. Rajasuyarambha Parva (Chapters 14-19) 4. Jarasandha-vadha Parva (Chapters 20-24) 5. Digvijaya Parva (Chapters 25-31) 6. Rajasuyika Parva (Chapters 32-34) 7. Arghyaharana Parva (Chapters 35-38) 8. Shishupala-vadha Parva (Chapters 39-44) 9. Dyuta Parva (Chapters 45-73) 10. Anudyuta Parva (Chapters 74-81)English Translations
Several translations of the Sanskrit book Sabha Parva in English are available. Two translations from 19th century, now in public domain, are those by Kisari Mohan Ganguli and Manmatha Nath Dutt. The translations are not consistent in parts, and vary with each translator's interpretations. For example:
Chapter 5, Verses 2-9 from Sabha Parva in Sanskrit:
Translation by Manmatha Nath Dutt:
Translation by Kisari Mohan Ganguli:
There came, O Bharata, unto that assembly the celestial Rishi Narada, conversant with the Vedas and Upanishadas, worshipped by the celestials acquainted with histories and Puranas, well-versed in all that occurred in ancient kalpas (cycles), conversant with Nyaya (logic) and the truth of moral science, possessing a complete knowledge of the six Angas (viz., pronunciation, grammar, prosody, explanation of basic terms, description of religious rites, and astronomy). He was a perfect master in reconciling contradictory texts and differentiating in applying general principles to particular cases, as also in interpreting contraries by reference to differences in situation, eloquent, resolute, intelligent, possessed of powerful memory. He was acquainted with the science of morals and politics, learned, proficient in distinguishing inferior things from superior ones, skilled in drawing inference from evidence, competent to judge of the correctness or incorrectness of syllogistic statements consisting of five propositions. He was capable of answering successively Vrihaspati himself while arguing, with definite conclusions properly framed about religion, wealth, pleasure and salvation, of great soul and beholding this whole universe, above, below, and around, as if it were present before his eyes. He was master of both the Samkhya and Yoga systems of philosophy, ever desirous of humbling the celestials and Asuras by fomenting quarrels among them, conversant with the sciences of war and treaty, proficient in drawing conclusions by judging of things not within direct ken, as also in the six sciences of treaty, war, military campaigns, maintenance of posts against the enemy and stratagems by ambuscades and reserves. He was a thorough master of every branch of learning, fond of war and music, incapable of being repulsed by any science or any course, of action, and possessed of these and numberless other accomplishments. The Rishi, having wandered over the different worlds, came into that Sabha.
The total number of original verses depend on which Sanskrit source is used, and these do not equal the total number of translated verses in each chapter, in both Ganguli and Dutt translations. Mahabharata, like many ancient Sanskrit texts, was transmitted across generations verbally, a practice that was a source of corruption of its text, deletion of verses, as well as the addition of extraneous verses over time. The structure, prose, meter and style of translations vary within chapters between the translating authors.
Clay Sanskrit Library has published a 15 volume set of the Mahabharata which includes a translation of Sabha Parva by Paul Wilmot. This translation is modern and uses an old manuscript of the Epic. The translation does not remove verses and chapters now widely believed to be spurious and smuggled into the Epic in 1st or 2nd millennium AD.
J. A. B. van Buitenen published an annotated edition of Sabha Parva, reflecting the verses common in multiple versions of the Mahabharata. Buitenen suggests Sabha Parva had less corruption, deletion and addition of extraneous verses over time than Adi Parva. Debroy, in his 2011 overview of Mahabharata, notes that updated critical edition of Sabha Parva, with spurious and corrupted text removed, has 9 sub-books, 72 adhyayas (chapters) and 2,387 shlokas (verses). Debroy's translation of the critical edition of Sabha Parva appears in Volume 2 of his series. Sabha Parva is considered one of pivotable books among the eighteen books, the gambling and exile episode is often dramatized in modern productions of the Mahabharata.
Quotations and teachings
Lokapala Sabhakhyana Parva, Chapter 5:
Rajshuyarambha Parva, Chapter 15:
Men of immature understanding begin an act without having an eye to what may happen in future.
Jarasandhabadha Parva, Chapter 22:
Whatever actions are performed by a man under whatever circumstances, he gets the fruits of those actions under whatever circumstances they may be performed. We are desirous of helping all distressed people.
Rajsuyika Parva, Chapter 33: