The Mahabharata

By: Vyasa, John D. Smith - translator

Narrated by: Shaheen Khan, Sagar Arya

Brought to you by Penguin.

This Penguin Classic is performed by Shaheen Khan. This definitive recording includes an introduction by J. D. Smith, read by Sagar Arya.

The Mahabharata is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India. It is of immense importance to the culture of the Indian subcontinent, and is a major text of Hinduism. Its discussion of human goals (artha or 'purpose', kama or 'pleasure', dharma or 'duty', and moksha or 'liberation') takes place in a long-standing tradition, attempting to explain the relationship of the individual to society and the world (the nature of the 'Self') and the workings of karma.

© J.D. Smith 2009 (P) Penguin Audio 2021

well done

A wondeful english version of an awesome story predating human need of speech, much less lanbuage differation

amazing work and one of the best productions

lot of work is gone in into this work. firstly, John Smith did a great translation of the raw script without distorting the facts for public pandering or institutions and next the 40+hours of reading is amazing, this took the book to more readers and listeners who are entangled in the busy life.

A great story

The translator abridged everything in a way that kept the story moving which is important for a modern reader to enjoy ancient classics, especially stories of this length. Everything flowed really well. The narrator is professional and has a soothing voice with subtle emotions.
A couple of notes for first time reader. the actual story begins Book 1 around part 57. Also Book 16 is part of Book 15 so he isn't skipping it, it just isn't in the table of contents. The Bhagavad Gita is in Book 6, but that isnt marked in table of contents. A good idea to take notes as there are a massive number of characters who are important to the story beyond the central 5 and Duryodhana. At the same time, some characters aren't as important in my opinion but receive equal treatment in the war. Don't worry about it.
Weakness in story: During the war, there are common situations where Pandavas seem to be in danger, but don't really use wit or strategy to overcome it. They just rely on mystic weapons or just escape and come back with no lasting wounds. It happens frequently and lowers the stakes when you realize there's no actual danger

Great story, great production, boring translation.

I been debating about this version or Krishna Dharma's version for audible since the Bibek Debroy is incomplete. Krishna Dharma's Ramayana has been one of my favorite books since it came out in the early 2000s I think. But his Mahabharata I could never get too far due to its complexity so I feel I wanted to tackle it on audible.

After reading some of Ramesh Menon masterpiece I knew I was getting shorted on Krishna Dharma in regard to details of the story but after listening to this version it was very detailed but put together in a very boring fashion and none of the beginning scenes were intense or dramatic compare to other versions.

The narrator was great but she basically had to read a text book. The Krishna Dharma though lacking in content focused on a real story. So I rather stomach through the bad production value of that one which I feel is tolerable than listening to this high production value textbook.

Wonderfully Told Epic Tale

First of all, Shaheen Khan is a wonderful reader/narrator! Being of Indian heritage (I suspect), her pronunciation of the Indian names is beautiful and her English is also splendid, making this a fantastic tale to listen to- I felt like a child being told a fairytale, looking forward to each opportunity to listen to it. Her reading is also very soothing, unlike some obnoxious readers showing off their pronunciation and accent. I listened to every word of this giant epic, and really enjoyed it because of her beautiful reading—5 stars!
I first became familiar with the Mahabharata watching 94 episodes producing in India with English subtitles, but wanted to delve deeper. This was my first time “reading” the book. Smith’s translation seemed very good and somewhat modernized. He kept it moving without getting stuck in to many uneventful details.