Ways and Reasons for Thinking About The Mahabharata as a Whole

The completion of the Critical Edition of the Mahabharata 1 in 1966 constitutes a significant event in this epic's history. A long and venerable tradition of textual criticism assisted V. S. sukthankar in forging this edition-thus, at the very outset of this essay this scientific method is to be congratulated.' The significance of sukthankar's achievement is best illustrated in the following anecdote related to me by Prof. Dhadphale during the 14th World Sanskrit Conference: