Nala and Damayanti Stories from the Mahabharata

This volume of Pancharatna – Five Sparkling Jewels – brings together five Amar Chitra Kathas titles – all based on the Mahabharata, the great epic of India. The story of Nala and Damayanti is one of the episodes narrated in the Mahabharata. Yudhishthira, after losing his all in a game of dice, had to retire to the jungle, along with his brothers. A Rishi told him the story of Nala and Damayanti there. The story of Savitri and Satyavan is one of the many stories told by the sage Markandeya to the Pandavas, in exile. Yudhishthira, the eldest Pandava, is depressed by having to witness the trials and tribulations of their common wife, Draupadi, whose devotion to her husbands only brought her suffering. Markandeya tells him that regardless of what they may have to suffer, chaste and devoted wives will ultimately triumph to their loves ones and themselves. Kacha is the son of Brihaspati, preceptor to the Devas. The story of Kacha and Devayani centers around the battle for supremacy between the Asuras and the Devas. The story of King Shibi has inspired many Indians, down the ages, to protect those who seek refuge. In the story of Indra and Shachi retold from the Mahabharata , we trace the fluctuating fortunes of Indra in his battle with the evil forces seeking to oust him. We see how the devotion of his wife leaves him unscathed through his tribulations.