The Mahabharata is a complex literary and aesthetic work, spanning 18 major books filled with narrative action and contemplation. In addition to being an important source book of Indic culture—having influenced sculpture, painting, music, literature, drama and dance all over Asia—the philosophical and narrative arc of the Mahabharata presents a sophisticated and thorough analysis of the human condition. This certificate program systematically covers the text of the Sanskrit epic in translation.

Designed for individuals seeking a deeper knowledge of Indic tradition, it provides a bridge between an everyday cultural knowledge of characters and events in the epic and a learned appreciation of the text’s literary and philosophical project. Ritual, iconographic, literary and art-historical insights complement the philosophical appreciation of the epic.