When tidings reached the demon-king that his legions had been swept aside by Vibhīṣaṇa’s counsel and prowess, he summoned his war-ministers and marched forth, the tread of his hosts shaking the earth. Under the fierce design of Śukrācārya, the demons advanced in a storm of fury, pressing hard upon the simian ranks. But Śrī Rāma,…
Sugriva, with Rāma and Lakshmana beside him, waited in charged stillness for tidings that might bear the weight of destiny. At length, a band of vānaras descended before them, bowed with folded hands, and cried, “O Sugrīva, once Vāli’s charge and now yours—Madhuvana, the grove of honey, is thrown open and laid waste. Its richest…
Markandeya spoke in calm precision, his voice flowing like a slow river through the centuries, recounting how the turning of destiny stirred the lives of men and beasts alike, and how from each tide of fortune arose lessons for ages to come. When Vali fell in battle, the valiant Sugreeva was anointed as Lord of…
Markandeya, the sage of divine sight, narrated unto Dharmaraja the tale of Rama, the virtuous scion of Raghu, who bore hardships greater than any born of man. When the deceitful Maricha, mortally wounded by Rama’s arrow, uttered in dying agony a false cry in the voice of Rama himself, the cry reached Sita’s tender ears….
In many lands, the monkey-warriors are born by the favour of the gods, vast of limb, solidity of rock, hearts of diamond; some glitter like the noonday sun, their habits becoming their nature; they move as if lords of doom at the world’s ending, skilled in the arts of battle, their might equalling that of…
After being subdued and spared by the Pandavas, Jayadratha withdrew, his life preserved only for the sake of kinship with the Kuru house. Yet, blinded by pride and folly, he mistook mercy for insult, and in that mistaken fire, vengeance took root within him. He wandered to the sacred confluence of the Ganga, where the…
The forest murmured ill news as the Pandavas rode together. Yudhisthira, whose soul is the law itself, drew their attention to the tokens of dread: birds that called from the sunward quarter, beasts making strange, frantic cries and fleeing in all directions, an old fox howling and scuttling off — signs, he warned, of dishonour…
The sons of Kunti, wandering princes who had forsaken the comforts of court, had left Draupadi under the shelter of the hermitage of Trunabindu, where Sage Dhoumya tended her with the gentleness of one who knows the laws of Dharma; the forest itself, populous with ashrams of sages perfected in wisdom, breathed sweet perfumes from…
Vedavyasa, the sage of divine insight, once spoke to Dharmaja on the sacred law of charity. “Charity,” he said, “is to be given in its due time, at the proper place, and to one who is worthy to receive it.” To illustrate this, he narrated the story of the venerable sage Mudgala, whose humble gifts…
In the court of Hastinapura, Duryodhana, son of Dhritarashtra, sat upon his throne in full conceit of his strength and fortune. Around him stood Karna the son of a charioteer, the crafty Shakuni of Gandhara, his brother Dussasana, and a host of ministers who rejoiced in his arrogance. In that hour came Bhishma, the grandsire…
