A wonderfully readable abridgement with interspersed commentary, written in a style on a par with the finest English writers and an excellent book to start with.

Based on the Critical Edition, this is a scholarly, though occasionally quirky and wooden, translation for the more advanced student. Includes a full Introduction, Plot Summaries, Notes, full Index.

Van Buitenen's third and final volume. Although, like the others, not perfect - is anything? - it's a great pity that this fine scholar's impressive edition of the MB ended without being completed.

The best available edition for the student of Sanskrit; gives a complete grammatical description of every single Sanskrit word in this important episode and much else besides.

A hugely popular modernized re-telling of the Ramayana story written in contemporary style, and with all the color and excitement of a modern thriller.

A bilingual 'spiritualized' reworking of the Ramayana. Try also to find Swami Tapasyananda's 'Sundara Kandam,' a bilingual edition of the most popular Part of the standard Ramayana.

An earlier but still useful, readable, and easy to consult reference that will help you keep track of all those exotic names.

Try also to find another fine scholarly treatment: V. S. Sukthankar's 'On the Meaning of the Mahabharata' (Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 2nd Edition, 1988).