The Mahabharata is one of the two great epic tales of Hindu culture. Just as the Iliad and the Odyssey of Homer were used by Greek dramatists, the Mahabharata and the second great Sanskrit epic, the Ramayana, serve as sources for Sanskrit drama.

The Mahabharata is the epic tale of rival cousins: the Kauravas and the Pandavas. It is narrated by Sanjay, who has a "third eye" with which he can see battle scenes at a distance of many miles. Now, there were 101 Kauravas brothers and 5 Pandavas brothers. The eldest Kaurava, Duryodhana, invited the Pandavas to a game of dice. The eldest Pandava wagered everything: jewels, throne, kingdom, his four brothers and even their common wife, Draupadi; and, of course, lost. In order to reclaim their losses, the Pandavas are obliged to undergo a 12 year exile and another year when they are "unrecognized" at home. The 5 Pandavas submit to the conditions and after 13 very unpleasant years, they go to Duryodhana to claim their share of the kingdom. Duryodhana arrogantly refuses to discuss the subject. (Hybris?) Lord Krishna (deus ex machina?) intervenes, but is ignored by the Kauravas with the eventual result that he sides with the Pandavas in a "mighty war of justice "which annihilates everybody.