Mahabharata vs Ramayana: The Similarities

Ramayana and Mahabharata are amongst the key epics that have shaped our ethos. From vivid tales of devotion to ideal relationships. From cruel conspiracies to stories on convictions. From “Maya” to “Moksha”, these epics are full of interesting stories, lessons, and “masalas” of all kinds.  

There is love, hate, devotion, duty, lust, dharma and adharma. From flying air vehicles to monkey armies, from “Ashtras” to “Shastras”, from family to foes, both Mahabharata and Ramayana are powerful tales with different versions giving a reflection of our societies and different events that continue to influence our lives until today.

Here are some of the key similarities between Mahabharata and Ramayana:

1.  Devotion and Duty Are Supreme

Be it Pitamaha Bhisma in Mahabharata or Karna as Duryodhana’s friend or Vibhisana or Lakshmana in the Ramayana, apart from few handful, every characters were devoted to their “Dharma”.  

While their idea of “Dharma” might differ with some choosing to define it as “Righteousness”, and others prioritizing it as their “duty”, characters ranging from Karna, Arjun and Yudhishthira to Kumbakarna, Lakshmana and Hanuman all were devoted to their roles.

In Mahabharata, Bhisma was devoted to Hastinapur, Karna to his friend Duryodhana, Arjun to Shree Krishna and Yudhishthira to “righteousness”.

Similarly, in Ramayana, Lord Ram was a devoted son, Mata Sita a devoted wife, Lakshmana a devoted brother, Kumbakarna a devoted patriot to Lanka, and Vibhisana devoted to Narayana in the form of Lord Shree Ram.

2.  Everyone Needs Motivation be it Hanuman or Arjun

When Hanuman had to embark on the challenging voyage to cross the Indian Ocean in quest of Mata Sita, he was unsure about his strengths.

Jambavan, the King of Bears, had to remind him about his enormous abilities and how he as a child had even engulfed the sun into his mouth.

In the same manner, when the battle of Kurukshettra was about to begin, Arjun was in a dilemma filled with insecurities and confusions. Shree Krishna had to reveal his “Visha Awatar” and guide him in the form of Bhagwat Geeta to provide him with clarity and conviction.

Whether it was the best archer Arjuna or Bajrang Bali Shree Hanuman, everyone needed a dose of motivation be it in the Dwapar Yuga or Treta Yuga.

Mahabharata and Ramayana both articulate the idea that motivation is vital to ignite and inspire one to visualize their goal and achieve their untapped potential.

3.    Problems are Part and Parcel of Life

When Lord Vishnu took form of Shree Rama in Ramayana, he too had to encounter all sorts of hurdles in life. He had to spend 14 years in the forest, Ravana abducted his wife and even after that challenges kept springing on his pathway.

Similarly, Arjun, the prince of Mahabharata, a mighty warrior, who had the Lord Himself as his guide also had to encounter numerous difficulties both across his personal and professional life.

He became a victim of misunderstanding, which led to a rift between him and his son. He had to usher the arrows on death on his cousins and teacher. He lost his son, Abhimanyu in the battle. Aswathama heinously killed his other sons at night. He had to bear the pain of killing Karna, one of the Kuntiye when his chariot wheel was stuck.

Karna, the bravest warrior of Mahabharata had to bear bitterness and injustices throughout his life.

Mata Seeta, the incarnation of Lakshmi herself, had to go through the “Agni Pariksha”.

Kish Dashratha the mighty one has to die in the pain of being separated from his son.

Every character be it Ramayana or Mahabharata had to experience their own share of pain.

4.  Everyone Has a Role

Rama was a great warrior but the “Ram Setu” would not have been possible if he didn’t have the support of the monkeys.

Without the bear king Jambavan, Hanuman would not have realized his strength.

It was Shreekandi, a transgender in Mahabharata, who struck the great guru Dhronacharya.

Jatayu, the King of Vultures, told Ram and Lakshmana that Ravana had abducted Seeta and they should head south.

Eklavya, the mighty warrior was an Adivasi.

There were Rakshasa, monkeys, bears, trans genders, vultures, who had their roles in Ramayana.

In Mahabharata too, big or small, but Srikandini, Duryodhana, Barbarika or Chitrangana all had their own special roles.

5.   Mind Your Advisers

Manthara and Mama Sakuni. Ramayana and Mahabharata are incomplete without these characters.

They had no powers. They were no queens and kings. But they shaped the events and caused massive havoc through their advice or even ill-advice.

One of the biggest similarities between Ramayana and Mahabharata was that the seeds of pain were sowed at home. That too by members of the family.

The plant of bitterness planted by Queen Kaikeyi (Ramayana), and Duryodhana(Mahabharata) is what grew into the tree of poison.

But the seeds of these bitterness were planted by two advisors: Queen Kaikeyi got entrapped in the evil advice of her maid Manthara, while Duryodhana burned himself in bitterness bereted by his Mama Sakuni.

Mahabharata and Ramayana have different versions of their own. They took place over a span of thousands of years. However, the stories in one manner or the other do remind us about the core ideas of life: devotion and duty, realities of worldly life like sorrows and challenges, and different tools and roles are vital to navigate through them.