Whenever we like a composition, say a song or a poem, we want to know the name of its creator. The Mahabharata is one of the most popular compositions in the world. It has been called the longest poem ever written. It has 1,00,000 shlokas or 2,00,000 lines of text, 10 times the Greek epics Odyssey and Iliad combined, and four times the Ramayana.
It is not just for length but for its wide cast of characters and long and complex storylines that the Mahabharata is admired. The epilogue to the epic famously states, ‘Whatever is here, may be found elsewhere; what is not, cannot be found anywhere else.’ Surely, it is worth knowing who created such an incredible work of literature.
A popular story says that Rishi Veda Vyasa, the son of Rishi Parashar and Satyavati, who had lived through the events of the Kuru dynasty, thought of penning down the story for future generations. He wanted Sri Ganesha as a scribe, but he had a condition—Vyasa would have to dictate the entire epic without a pause. Vyasa agreed, but put a counter condition—Ganesha would have to understand each verse before writing it down. Whenever Vyasa needed time to compose further verses, he would recite a complicated one to gain time. It is also said that while writing, Ganesha’s feather pen broke.
So as not to break the flow of Vyasa’s thoughts, Ganesha broke one of his tusks and used it as a pen. Such was the passion and dedication with which the epic was written. Some scholars believe that Veda Vyasa was not a single person, but rather the title of a chain of rishis who wrote several texts, including Mahabharata.
The poem that Vyasa originally composed was not the version of Mahabharata that we read today. It had 8,800 shlokas and was known as Jaya. On popular request, Veda Vyasa taught it to his disciple Vaisampayana, who must have added more details and enhanced the text because when he narrated it at Janamejaya’s snake sacrifice, it had 24,000 verses. This version was called Bharata. A charioteer and bard called Ugrashrava, son of Suta Lomaharshana was present at the snake sacrifice. He heard the story and memorised it.
When Ugrashrava visited a 12-year-long sacrifice organised by Kulapati Shaunak in Naimisharanya, he was requested by the assembled sages to tell the wonderful story of the Bharatas during the breaks in the sacrifice. Lo and behold, when Ugrashrava narrated the story, it had the present size of 1,00,000 verses. This was called the Mahabharata. Apart from Veda Vyasa and Sri Ganesha, let us also recognise the role of Vaisampayana and Ugrashrava in giving the present shape to Mahabharata.