Writing Worth Reading
Writing Worth Reading
The Mahabharata is one of the world’s great myths, an epic poem. It’s eight times the length of the Bible, one of the great works of literature of mankind. I came to it via the Peter Brook film, and read the script subsequently, and it is every bit as good as it’s made out to be. A very rare thing. It has a sort of Shakespearian ambiguity; you feel as much for the baddies as for the goodies. No one is pure. The bad guys aren’t entirely bad, the good guys aren’t entirely good. It’s brilliantly done, and the most gripping story ever told.
You’ve recommended the Mahabharata.
It’s one of the world’s great myths, an epic poem. It’s eight times the length of the Bible, one of the great works of literature of mankind. I came to it via the Peter Brook film, and read the script subsequently, and it is every bit as good as it’s made out to be. A very rare thing. It has a sort of Shakespearian ambiguity; you feel as much for the baddies as for the goodies. No one is pure. The bad guys aren’t entirely bad, the good guys aren’t entirely good. It’s brilliantly done, and the most gripping story ever told.
I worked my way through – slowly – the 15-volume translation from the Sanskrit. It’s a great introduction to ancient India. This was Jean-Claude Carriere’s last great script – nothing he’s done subsequently comes anywhere near this. It’s an extraordinary, slim introduction to Indian mythology.
It really is worth going on Amazon and getting the DVD of the Peter Brook version. I watched it for the third time recently, all nine hours of it, and it’s not in the least had its brilliance diminished. It’s one of the greatest works of mythology translated into one of the greatest films, by one of the great masters of both screen-writing and direction.
And it’s also a good entry into Hindu thought and ancient India. It opens up a whole range of India which is usually closed to a Western audience, particularly to a casual reader.
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Travel writer and historian William Dalrymple wrote his first book, In Xanadu, at the age of 22. Since then he has published seven further books and been awarded a host of awards for his writing and broadcasting. He is a fellow of the Royal Asiatic Society and of the Royal Society of Literature.
