Home›Sources›The MahabharataSourcesThe MahabharataCitation FormatsGeneral ReferenceGeneral Reference Citation TextDivinity Atlas. "The Mahabharata." Accessed August 30, 2026. https://www.divinityatlas.com/sources/the-mahabharata.Copy General ReferenceAPA StyleAPA Style Citation TextDivinity Atlas. (n.d.). The Mahabharata. Retrieved August 30, 2026, from https://www.divinityatlas.com/sources/the-mahabharataCopy APA StyleBibTeXBibTeX Citation Text@misc{divinityatlas-the-mahabharata, author = {Divinity Atlas}, title = {The Mahabharata}, year = {2026}, url = {https://www.divinityatlas.com/sources/the-mahabharata}, note = {Accessed August 30, 2026} }Copy BibTeXThe Mahabharata is attributed to Vyasa within the tradition, though its actual composition spans centuries, from roughly 300 BCE to 300 CE by conventional scholarly estimate, reaching something like its final form around the fourth century CE through three identifiable redactional layers traditionally named Jaya, Bharata and Mahabharata. This atlas leaves the publication year blank deliberately given that layered, centuries-long composition history rather than assigning one false date. As the tradition's primary epic text it is authoritative for what the epic itself narrates, not for the historical accuracy of the events it describes. Use it to establish what a specific passage says and which redactional layer a scholar has identified it with.FactsCross-Tradition ConnectionsClaims Backed By This Source (440 claims)Comments (0)Reader Challenges (0 open reader challenges)FactsCitationAuthorWell-attestedVyasa (attributed)PublisherWell-attestedBharata PressIssued serially in 100 parts, Calcutta, 1883 to 1896, under the patronage of Pratap Chandra Roy.Publication YearWell-attested1883URLWell-attestedhttps://archive.org/details/TheMahabharataOfKrishna-dwaipayanaVyasaSource TypeWell-attestedprimary-textAssessmentReliability TierWell-attested1The Mahabharata, attributed within the tradition to Vyasa though its actual composition spans centuries, the tradition's primary epic text cited for what a specific passage narrates rather than for the historical accuracy of the events it describes.NotesWell-attestedPublicationYear left NULL. Bulk composed c. 300 BCE to 300 CE, reaching final form by about the fourth century CE, through three redactional layers conventionally named Jaya, Bharata and Mahabharata.Cross-Tradition ConnectionsAssociated WithVyasa, Figures Well-attested This source names Vyasa directly: "The Mahabharata is attributed to Vyasa within the tradition, though its actual composition spans centuries, from roughly 300 BCE to 300 CE by conventional scholarly estimate, reaching something like..."Source The MahabharataVyasa (attributed)tier 1Claims Backed By This Source (440 claims)This source backs 440 claims across the atlas. As facts: 313 well-attested. As cited relationships: 53 holds. Plus 74 entities citing it as a general reference with no single fact or relationship attached.Disposition By TopicScripture Portions, 168 claims: 93 well-attested, 39 holds, 36 general references.Figures, 109 claims: 95 well-attested, 1 holds, 13 general references.Articles, 74 claims: 69 well-attested, 2 holds, 3 general references.Deities, 20 claims: 14 well-attested, 2 holds, 4 general references.Mythical Creatures, 12 claims: 6 well-attested, 6 general references.Realms, 10 claims: 8 well-attested, 1 holds, 1 general references.Myths & Sacred Narratives, 9 claims: 7 well-attested, 1 holds, 1 general references.Sources, 9 claims: 8 well-attested, 1 holds.Hymns & Liturgical Texts, 7 claims: 2 well-attested, 3 holds, 2 general references.Sacred Objects & Ritual Items, 7 claims: 4 well-attested, 2 holds, 1 general references.Religious Events, 6 claims: 3 well-attested, 1 holds, 2 general references.Scriptures & Texts, 5 claims: 4 well-attested, 1 general references.Grahas (Planets), 2 claims: 2 general references.Yugas (World Ages), 2 claims: 2 general references.Well-attested313ArticlesA Book Built From Older BooksA Boy Trapped in a Spiral He Was Only Half TaughtA Curse Fulfilled at a Drunken PartyA Curse That Waits Two Books to LandA Dog Turns Out to Be the Final TestA Family Tree That Becomes a FuseA Horse Sent Wandering to Prove a Kingdom's ReachA New King Who Does Not Want the ThroneA Prayer That Escaped Its Own ChapterA Quiet Book Before the Ending Turns Dark AgainA Reckoning Disguised as a WalkA Rigged Game That Ends a Kingdom's PeaceA Ritual of Legitimacy After a War of DoubtA Story Told to Comfort a KingA Victory the Text Refuses to Call CleanA War Book That Became a Scripture on Its OwnAmba, and the Enemy the Vow CreatedAn Ending That Refuses a Simple MoralBirth, Rank, and the Modern RereadingClosing the Dice Thread: Shakuni and UlukaEighteen Books, of Which the War Is a MinorityFive Fathers, and a Marriage the Epic Has to DefendFollowing Death ItselfFrom Jaya to a Hundred Thousand VersesGandhari on the Field, and the Curse She LaysHeaven, Hell, and the Last TestHidimbi and the Son Who Was Born GrownLobha among the Six EnemiesMatsarya, the Sixth EnemyNamed and Unnamed among a Hundred BrothersPride in Beauty on the Last RoadRakshasa, Shapeshifters in the Forests of the RamayanaThe Argument She Wins against DeathThe Banyan Vow, and a Modern EpicThe Book That Holds the Frame StoryThe Book That Makes the War a ChoiceThe Books Delivered from a Bed of ArrowsThe Case He Makes for HimselfThe Eagle Who Raided HeavenThe Epic's Encyclopedia of Political PhilosophyThe Epic's Most Sympathetic AntagonistThe Last Attempt to Avoid a WarThe Last Commander, and the Last DuelThe Last Teaching Before a Long-Delayed DeathThe Mace, the Two Oaths, and a Foul BlowThe Old King Finally Leaves the PalaceThe One Untruth, and What It CostThe Question the Assembly Could Not AnswerThe Rival Arjuna Was Always Meant to MeetThe Scene That Defines the Whole Epic's Moral ArgumentShowing 1 to 50 of 111 entities carrying this claim. NextHolds53ArticlesRakshasa, Shapeshifters in the Forests of the RamayanaYaksha, a Riddling Guardian at the Edge of the ForestDeitiesThe VasusFiguresArjunaHymns & Liturgical TextsShiva SahasranamaMyths & Sacred NarrativesThe Kurukshetra WarRealmsSvargaReligious EventsThe Falling of the Amrita at the Four TirthasSacred Objects & Ritual ItemsAmritaScripture PortionsAdi ParvaAnushasana ParvaAshramavasika ParvaAshvamedhika ParvaBhishma ParvaDrona ParvaKarna ParvaMahaprasthanika ParvaMausala ParvaSabha ParvaSauptika ParvaShalya ParvaShanti ParvaStri ParvaSvargarohana ParvaThe Yoga of ActionThe Yoga of AnalysisThe Yoga of Arjuna's DespondencyThe Yoga of DevotionThe Yoga of Divine ManifestationsThe Yoga of Knowledge and DiscernmentThe Yoga of Knowledge and the Renunciation of ActionThe Yoga of Liberation by RenunciationThe Yoga of MeditationThe Yoga of Royal Knowledge and Royal SecretThe Yoga of the Division Between Divine and Demonic NaturesThe Yoga of the Division of the Three GunasThe Yoga of the Field and the Knower of the FieldThe Yoga of the Imperishable AbsoluteThe Yoga of the Renunciation of ActionThe Yoga of the Supreme PersonThe Yoga of the Threefold FaithThe Yoga of the Vision of the Universal FormUdyoga ParvaVana ParvaVirata ParvaSourcesThe MahabharataGeneral References74ArticlesHorus, Mithras and Krishna Against Their Own SourcesRakshasa, Shapeshifters in the Forests of the RamayanaYaksha, a Riddling Guardian at the Edge of the ForestDeitiesGangaKartikeyaShukraThe VasusFiguresArjunaBhimaBhishmaDraupadiDuryodhanaKarnaNakulaSahadevaSavitriThe KauravasThe PandavasVyasaYudhishthiraGrahas (Planets)KetuRahuHymns & Liturgical TextsShiva SahasranamaVishnu SahasranamaMythical CreaturesGandharvaGarudaNagaRakshasaYakshaMyths & Sacred NarrativesThe Kurukshetra WarRealmsSvargaReligious EventsThe Falling of the Amrita at the Four TirthasThe Recovery of Satyavan by SavitriSacred Objects & Ritual ItemsAmritaScripture PortionsAdi ParvaAnushasana ParvaAshramavasika ParvaAshvamedhika ParvaBhishma ParvaDrona ParvaKarna ParvaMahaprasthanika ParvaMausala ParvaSabha ParvaSauptika ParvaShalya ParvaShanti ParvaStri ParvaSvargarohana ParvaThe Yoga of ActionShowing 1 to 50 of 73 entities carrying this claim. NextComments (0)No comments yet. Be the first to share a thought.Sign in to join the discussion.Reader Challenges (0 open reader challenges)No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.Sign in to dispute this or suggest a correction.View At A Past YearThe atlas records no dated fact of its own for this entry, so there is no other year to choose.Show This Year