The Vana Parva, also known as the "Book of the Forest", is the third of eighteen parvas in the Indian epic Mahabharata . [1] Vana Parva traditionally has 21 parts and 324 chapters. [2] [3] The critical edition of Vana Parva is the longest of the 18 books in the epic, [4] containing 16 parts and 299 chapters. [5] [6]
The parva is a chronicle of the twelve-year journey of the Pandavas in a forest, where they learn life lessons and build character. [7]
Vana Parva contains discourses on virtues and ethics; myths of Arjuna, Yudhishthara, and Bhima; and the tales of "Nahusha the Snake and Yudhishthira" and "Ushinara and the Hawk". It also includes the love stories of "Nala and Damayanti" and "Savitri and Satyavan". [1] [7]
This book traditionally has 21 sub-parvas (parts) and 324 [8] chapters. [3] [9] The following are the sub-parvas: [10]
Several translations of the Sanskrit book Vana Parva in English are available. Two translations from 19th century, now in public domain, are by Kisari Mohan Ganguli [9] and Manmatha Nath Dutt. [3] The translations vary with each translator's interpretations. Compare:
The original Sanskrit:
क्षमा धर्मः क्षमा यज्ञः क्षमा वेदाः क्षमा श्रुतम |
यस ताम एवं विजानाति स सर्वं क्षन्तुम अर्हति ||
क्षमा ब्रह्म क्षमा सत्यं क्षमा भूतं च भावि च |
क्षमा तपः क्षमा शौचं क्षमया चॊद्धृतं जगत ||
Kisari Mohan Ganguli's translation:
Forgiveness is virtue; forgiveness is sacrifice, forgiveness is the Vedas, forgiveness is the Shruti. He that knoweth this is capable of forgiving everything. Forgiveness is Brahma; forgiveness is truth; forgiveness is stored ascetic merit; forgiveness protecteth the ascetic merit of the future; forgiveness is asceticism; forgiveness is holiness; and by forgiveness is it that the universe is held together.
and Manmatha Nath Dutt's translation:
Forgiveness is virtue, forgiveness is sacrifice, forgiveness is the Vedas, forgiveness is Sruti,
he who knows all this is capable of forgiving all.
Forgiveness is Brahma, forgiveness is truth, forgiveness is accumulated and future (ascetic) merit,
forgiveness is the devout penance, forgiveness is purity, and by forgiveness is the universe sustained.
J. A. B. van Buitenen completed an annotated edition of Vana Parva, based on the critically edited and least corrupted version of Mahabharata known in 1975. [1] In 2011, Debroy notes that the updated critical edition of Vana Parva, with spurious and corrupted text removed, has 16 parts, 299 adhyayas (chapters) and 10,239 shlokas (verses). [22] Debroy published a translated version of a critical edition of Vana Parva in Volume 2 and 3 of his series. [23]
Clay Sanskrit Library has published a 15 volume set of the Mahabharata which includes a translation of Vana Parva by William Johnson. 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. [24]
The entire parva has been "transcreated" and translated in verse by the poet Dr. Purushottama Lal published by Writers Workshop.
The Kirata sub-parva of Aranya Parva has inspired several major poems and expanded works, such as the Kirātārjunīya by Bhāravi. [25]
The Mahābhārata is one of the two major Smriti texts and Sanskrit epics of ancient India revered in Hinduism, the other being the Rāmāyaṇa. It narrates the events and aftermath of the Kurukshetra War, a war of succession between two groups of princely cousins, the Kauravas and the Pāṇḍavas.
In the Hindu epic Mahabharata, Bhima is the second among the five Pandavas. The Mahabharata relates many events that portray the might of the hero Bhima. Bhima was born when Vayu, the wind god, granted a son to Kunti and Pandu. After the death of Pandu and Madri, Kunti with her sons stayed in Hastinapura. From his childhood, Bhima had a rivalry with his cousins Kauravas, especially Duryodhana. Duryodhana and his uncle, Shakuni, tried to kill Bhima multiple times. One was by poisoning and throwing Bhima into a river. Bhima was rescued by Nāgas and was given a drink which made him very strong and immune to all venom.
Duryodhana, also known as Suyodhana, is the primary antagonist in the Hindu epic Mahabharata. He was the eldest of the Kauravas, the hundred sons of the king Dhritarashtra and his queen Gandhari.
Yudhishthira also known as Dharmaraja, was the king of Indraprastha and later the King of Kuru Kingdom in the epic Mahabharata. He is the eldest among the five Pandavas, and is also one of the central characters of the epic.
Shakuni is one of the antagonists of the Hindu epic Mahabharata. He was the prince of the kingdom of Gandhara when introduced, later becoming its king after the death of his father, Subala. He was the brother of Gandhari and the maternal uncle of the Kauravas.
The Kurukshetra War, also called the Mahabharata War, is a war described in the Hindu epic poem Mahabharata, arising from a dynastic struggle between two groups of cousins, the Kauravas and the Pandavas, for the throne of Hastinapura. The war is used as the context for the dialogues of the Bhagavad Gita.
The Adi Parva or The Book of the Beginning is the first of eighteen books of the Mahabharata. "Ādi" in Sanskrit means "first".
Sabha Parva, also called the "Book of the Assembly Hall", is the second of eighteen books of Mahabharata. Sabha Parva traditionally has 10 parts and 81 chapters. The critical edition of Sabha Parva has 9 parts and 72 chapters.
Virata Parva, also known as the “Book of Virata”, is the fourth of eighteen books of the Indian epic Mahabharata. Virata Parva traditionally has 4 parts and 72 chapters. The critical edition of Virata Parva has 4 parts and 67 chapters.
The Udyoga Parva, or the Book of Effort, is the fifth of eighteen books of the Indian epic Mahābhārata. Udyoga Parva traditionally has 10 parts and 199 chapters. The critical edition of Sabha Parva has 12 parts and 197 chapters.
The Bhishma Parva, or the Book of Bhishma, is the sixth of eighteen books of the Indian epic Mahabharata. It has 4 sub-books and 124 chapters.
The Shalya Parva, or the Book of Shalya, is the ninth of eighteen books of the Indian epic Mahabharata. Shalya Parva traditionally has 4 parts and 65 chapters. The critical edition of Shalya Parva has 4 parts and 64 chapters.
The Drona Parva, or the Book of Drona, is the seventh of eighteen books of the Indian epic Mahabharata. Drona Parva traditionally has 8 parts and 204 chapters. The critical edition of Drona Parva has 8 parts and 173 chapters.
The Karna Parva, or the Book of Karna, is the eighth of eighteen books of the Indian Epic Mahabharata. Karna Parva traditionally has 96 chapters. The critical edition of Karna Parv has 69 chapters
Mahaprasthanika Parva, or the "Book of the Great Journey", is the seventeenth of eighteen books of the Indian epic Mahabharata. It traditionally has three chapters, as does the critical edition. It is the shortest book in the epic.
The Sauptika Parva, or the "Book of the Sleepers," is the tenth of eighteen books of the Indian Epic Mahabharata. Sauptika Parva traditionally has 2 parts and 18 chapters, as does the critical edition.
The Shanti Parva is the twelfth of eighteen books of the Indian Epic Mahabharata. It traditionally has 3 parts and 365 chapters. The critical edition has 3 parts and 353 chapters. It is the longest book among the eighteen books of the epic.
Ashramvasika Parva, or the "Book of the Hermitage", is the fifteenth of the eighteen books of the Indian epic Mahabharata. It traditionally has 3 parts and 39 chapters. The critical edition has 3 parts and 47 chapters.
The Stri Parva, or the "Book of the Women," is the eleventh of eighteen books of the Indian epic Mahabharata. It traditionally has 4 parts and 27 chapters, as does the critical edition.