A Study on Mahabharata as the greatest example of Shruti Parampara

Abstract

Mahabharata can be seen as the strongest and widest expression of the Shruti Parampara of the Indian Knowledge System. Shruti is a sacred form of Bhartiya knowledge system that is heard and memorised. Shruti Parampara is the living chain of teachers and students that keeps this knowledge alive. Mahabharata is not a story of a war, but as a big teaching ground where ideas from the Vedas, about the world and about dharma, are turned into stories, life talks, and clear lessons to learn. Central to this transformative process is the Shrimad Bhagwat Gita and Shri Krishan and Arjun Dialogues which is the heart of Mahabharata and a foundation of shruti Parampara.

Through this paper it is an effort to look how Mahabharata is passed on from generations through guru–shishya tradition, chanting, and oral storytelling. It shows how repetition, set phrases, questions–answers, and frame stories help people remember and share huge philosophical wisdom without mistake. In this way, the Mahabharata works like a “people’s Shruti”: it brings Vedic wisdom down to the level of everyday life so that common people can hear it, remember it, and learn lessons and values.

The research will try to argue how Mahabharata focus on listening, memory, and live performance can guide modern education system and media. In a time when people depend on digital devices for memory and have short attention spans, the Mahabharata as the greatest expression of Shruti Parampara offers a rooted model for deep listening, value education, and meaningful communication.

Key Words: Mahabharat, Shruti Parampara, Indian Knowledge System, Guru–shishya tradition, Oral transmission, Memory and recitation, Vedic wisdom