The Sauptikaparvan of the Mahabharata: The Massacre at Night (Oxford World's Classics)

The Sauptikaparvan of the Mahabharata The Massacre at Night A new verse translation by W. J. Johnson OXFORD

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OXFORD WORLD S CLASSICS

THE SAUPTIKAPARVAN OF THE MAHABHARATA THE SAUPTIKAPARVAN is the tenth book of the great Indian epic, the Mahabharata; it provides a conflux of the entire work's narrative and mythic streams in an account of the cataclysmic events that mark the end of the war. Attributed to the mythical seer Vyasa, the Sanskrit Mahabharata acquired its present encyclopaedic form over a period of perhaps 900 years (г.500 ВСЕ to 400 CE) as part of a fluid tradition of oral composition on the Indian subcontinent. Even in its present form, however, the epic undoubtedly contains and reflects much earlier material, some of it perhaps Indo-European in origin. Over the centuries it has been widely recast in Indian vernacular languages, and retold in countless dramatic performances, visual representations, and music. In this way it has come to have culturally talismanic significance—a status which is reflected in its assessment of itself: 'What is here may be found elsewhere, what is not here is nowhere at all.' W. J. JOHNSON was educated at the University of Sussex and Wolfson College, Oxford. He is now Senior Lecturer in Religious Studies at the University of Wales, Cardiff. His publications include a new translation of The Bhagavad Gita (Oxford, 1994) for Oxford World's Classics, and Harmless Souls (Delhi, 1995), a study of karma and religious change in early Jainism.

OXFORD WORLD'S CLASSICS For over ioo years Oxford World's Classics have brought readers closer to the world's great literature. Now with over joo titles—from the 4,000-year-old myths of Mesopotamia to the twentieth century's greatest novels—the series makes available lesser-known as well as celebrated writing. The pocket-sized hardbacks of the early years contained introductions by Virginia Woolf, T. S. Eliot, Graham Greene, and other literary figures which enriched the experience of reading. Today the series is recognized for its fine scholarship and reliability in texts that span world literature, drama and poetry, religion, philosophy and politics. Each edition includes perceptive commentary and essential background information to meet the changing needs of readers.

OXFORD WORLD'S CLASSICS

The Sauptikaparvan of the Mahabharata The Massacre at Night Translated with an Introduction and Notes by

W.J.JOHNSON

Oxford New York

OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS 1998

Oxford University Press, Great Clarendon Street, Oxford 0x2 6 D P Oxford New York Athens Auckland Bangkok Bogota Buenos Aires Calcutta Cape Town Chennai Dar es Salaam Delhi Florence Hong Kong Istanbul Karachi Kuala Lumpur Madrid Melbourne Mexico City Mumbat Nairobi Pans Sao Paulo Singapore Taipei Tokyo Toronto Warsaw and associated companies in Berlin Ibadan Oxford is a registered trade mark of Oxford University Press © W. J. Johnson ii){)K First published as an Oxford World's Classics paperback HJIJH Reissued 200H All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior permission in writing of Oxford University Press. Within the UK, exceptions are allowed in respect of any fair dealing for the purpose of research or private study, or criticism or review, as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, KJHH, or in the case of reprographic reproduction in accordance with the terms of the licences issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency. Enquiries concerning reproduction outside these terms and in other countries should be sent to the Rights Department, Oxford University Press, at the address above. This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise circulated without the publisher's prior consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data Data available Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Mahabharata. Sauptikaparvan. English The Sauptikaparvan of the Mahabharata : the massacre at night/ translated with an introduction and notes by W. J. Johnson. (Oxford world's classics) I. Johnson, W. J. II. Title. III. Series : Oxford world's classics (Oxford University Press) BLi 13H.242.S2HE5

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