INDIAN mythology consists of tales of gods, the devas and the asuras. However, there are only two famous epics for the Hindus. They are the The Mahabarath and Ramayana.
The Mahabharata is a book written by the poet Vyasa. It is the epic tale of a quarrel between the Pandavas and the Kauravas that culminated in a fight.
Ramayana Sanskrit epic by Valmiki, based on the story of Rama, son of King Dasharatha of Ayodhya. The epic is divided into seven episodes or parts.
Learn more: The Mahabharata and the Ramayana are the ancient epic poems written in Sanskrit and till date have been a cannon in Hindu religion. The Puranas is a colossal collection of verse style of the many gods and goddesses followed by the religion.
Kalidasa is one of the famous poets documented of the centuries gone by and has written two epics himself, the Raghuvansha (i.e. the dynasty of Raghu) and Kumarasambhava (i.e. the birth of Kumar Kartikeya). The language used here was the classical Sanskrit. The main language in princely state of India being Sanskrit, most of it was documented in this language. This language too had three periods in its life the Classical Sanskrit, the Vedic Sanskrit and the Shrauta Sutras. Hence an in-depth study of the language is needed for those who want to delve into the epics of India.
The Mahabharata is an epic written by poet Vyasa. It is about the life and the battles between the Pandavas and the Kauravas. The Ramayana was written by Valmiki on the life of Lord Rama. The epic is divided into 7 series right from the birth to the travels of Lord Rama and his wins over evil. The main message from these two great epics lie broadly on righteousness, good conduct, dharma, fearlessness, dedication and duty i.e. the good qualities one should base their life upon.
The Kannada epic stories revolve around Jain tradition. Adikavi Pampa (902 – 975 CE) is the most well known poet in Kannada literature. He has written the Pampa Bharata, Adipurana, and translated the Mahabharata in Kannada making it available for the common man.
Other important books in Indian literature and religion include the Bhagavad Gita and the Upanishads. The Gita is a dialogue between Lord Krishna and Arjuna, the warrior prince. It entails the deeds one has to accomplish on earth. It says that everyone has to give gratitude to the almighty and give some contribution to earth through his or her good deeds. However painful they may be, if you are assigned to a particular job, then you must complete it to enjoy the rewards when one passes away.
