The Mahabharata of Veda Vyasa is the longest recorded epic in the world. With almost 100,000 verses, it is many times as long as the Iliad and the Odyssey combines and has deeply influenced every aspect of the Indian ethos for some 4,000 years. The main theme of the epic is the Great War in Kurukshetra, but it seems with smaller stories, and other stories within these, all woven together with a genius that defies comparison. As its heart, it contains...