The epic Mahabharatham is not a book on mere analysis of righteousness. It is more a historical chronicle

A friend quoted from various episodes in Mahabharatham and argued that if some character or other had acted in a different manner, the effects would have been different.. He was trying to indicate that even the righteous characters were acting not so righteously.. My take on it..

The dharmashastras are very categorical in this matter.. It is said in the same Mahabharatham that if a scholar and a member of the legislative body or a Royal court fails to explain what is right according to Dharma, he is considered to be a sinner and all the punishments and retributions would visit him.

The so called great characters or heroes in Mahabharatham often failed to live upto the level of Dharma expected of them That is all... Vyasa does not hide or try to mull over such wrong activities.

The epic Mahabharatham is not a book on mere analysis of righteousness. It is more a historical chronicle,

You need not presume that all that happened in Mahabharatham are right..

Even the characters including Krishna who are viewed as epitomes of virtue, have actually committed errors.. And the epic never tried to hide those faults..

Mahabharatham is actually a faithful chronicle of what happened.. It is an Itihasam.. meaning, Iti haa aasa.. such an epoch happened..

It gives details of the activities of many charecters and also sums up the results as they actually happened and the consequences thereof.

There is no attempt anywhere to justify anything that is wrong, even if the one who committed it is a hero..

And it is meaningless to raise a query as to what would have happened if Bheeshma or Drona or Krishna or Draupadi had acted differently at some stage..

The epic is just a record of what has actually happened..

No attempt at the hands of Vyasa either to whitewash any character or any incident.

That is honesty.

Will you ask what would have happened if Napoleon, Hitler, or Saddam Hussain were not born..

These incidents are concluded by history..

It is futile to speculate..

I cannot just ask myself what would have happened if my parents were not the ones who gave birth to me, or what would have happend if my father were alive today.. when he has passed away 33 years ago..

Fait accompli.. the concluded action.. is just incapable of being rewound..