A theory on reading scriptures.

[Eric11235]

Vannakam,

As I have read the Ramayana, Mahabharata, and am working on the Bhagavata Puranam, I have noticed something interesting.

While at first it may appear that these texts are separate unto themselves even in classification (as puranas and itihasas respectively) I find that in an odd way they have an interconnection.

This is that the three cover three of the four yugas in some capacity.

Reading the Ramayana, which takes place thousands of years before the Mahabharata, one can see almost Ideal characters such as Rama, Sita, Lakshman, Hanuman etc. In the Treta Yuga where things are only slightly diminished from the Krita it would logically follow that their character is informed in part by the age in which they live

Then we have the Mahabharata, which most assuredly takes place in the Dvapara Yuga. More corruption has entered, but none of the characters are truly morally bankrupt, it ends at the beginning of the kali.

Finally, in the bhagavata puranam (at least in canto 1) we have the world firmly entrenched in the Kali yuga under the rule of Emeperor Parikshit. It should also be noted that all these histories are in one way or another related by ancestry.

From another perspective the lengths conform roughly to the three act structure narrative in terms of length (1/4 the first, 1/2 the second and 1/3 the third)

So I believe if read in the order of Ramayana, Mahabharata and Bhagavata Puranam we have a continuous narrative starting in the treta and ending in the kali.


If anyone has any thoughts I'd be happy to hear them

Namaste

[philosoraptor]

The Bhagavatam actually describes events that occur not only in all four yugas but also in previous yuga-cycles including events in other Manvantaras. I think the impression of a chronological arrangement is probably unintentional. Bear in mind that a good bit of Treta Yuga history and Dvapara Yuga history (after Rama-Lila and before Krishna-Lila, respectively) are basically unaccounted for. For ancient Vedic rishis, chronological arrangement has never been a priority, as historical episodes are often invoked when in the course of a discussion they serve to illustrate a specific point.