23-June-2018: Picking this up again as research for my second novel in which my aim will be to take readers to historical India, to a world of royal opulence and hedonism, treachery, heartbreak and love against the odds. And yes, it will be a gay fantasy, only with handsome brown heroes. :)


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Highly recommended for lovers of epic mythology and warfare, where the gods fight with men, warriors are granted divine weapons, and queens embody strength, majesty and grace to inspire love and respect and, in some cases, fear. Anyone who enjoyed the Iliad and is interested in reading about different cultures will likely enjoy this epic, set against the panorama of Indian royalty and mythology.

The Mahabharata is a sweeping tale of political intrigue, heroism and feats of supernatural ability. Add in beauty, love, divinity, nobility, and flawed characters pitted against each other in devastating conflict (both psychological and physical) and you get the ultimate triumph of good over evil. It covers just about every human emotion and act one can imagine. It even has LGBTQ themes (Shikhandi who's a badass trans prince(ss) warrior, Ardhanarishvara, who's a hermaphrodite formed from the joining of Shiva and Vishnu).

Seemingly banal events are often allegorical. E.g. Princess Draupadi ends up being married to all 5 Pandava brothers because their mother told Draupadi's original (and only) husband, Arjuna, to share his winnings with his brothers, not knowing it was a wife he had won. Easy-peasy polyandry, right? Not really :) We learn that this happened because Draupadi had asked Lord Shiva for a boon--to be married to the perfect man. However, as there is no ONE perfect man, she had to be married to 5 different men who each exemplified different virtues: justice & morality, strength, dedication, love & beauty, and intelligence.

It's an utterly brilliant tale and the Amar Chitra Katha illustrated, hardbound trilogy is one of the easiest and most entertaining versions of this epic to consume. And it's a great introduction to a rich and vibrant eastern mythology. Highly recommended, even though I said that already. ( )