Vedic Science International Multidisciplinary Peer-reviewed Journal 

The articles below are the official digital versions of peer-reviewed papers from the print edition of the Vedic Science Journal.

Article  Information

Journal: Vedic Science
Volume: 28 | Issue: 3 | Year: 2026
Pages: 99–114
DOI:  https://doi.org/10.66718/vsj.v28.i3.09    
Received: 28 July, 2026
Accepted:  2 Sept., 2026
Published: 30 Sept., 2026

The Mahabharata as Archive of Indian Knowledge Traditions: Ethics, Ecology and Governance as Foundations for Viksit Bharat

Dr. Ritambhara Misra, Associate Professor,  Ram Lal Anand College, University of Delhi

Abstract

The Mahabharata is a vast civilizational archive preserving Indian Knowledge Systems (IKS) specially as it relates to the domains of ethics, ecology, and governance, and should be utilised as such. The Mahabharata is perhaps the greatest Indian Itihasa text, which encapsulates history embedded with philosophical insight, which becomes apparent once we study the many-layered discourses on moral reasoning, political responsibility, and environmental consciousness that it has to offer. This paper draws upon selected episodes from the Sabha Parva, Udyoga Parva, Shanti Parva, and Anushasana Parva, with qualitative, interpretive, and textual analytical methodology to explore and demonstrate how the epic encodes ancient knowledge traditions.

The concept of Dharma Sankat in particular highlights the knowledge of context as being imperative to lived ethics, and eschews any broad-brush prescriptive morality that can only stay theoretical. Instances such as the ethical dilemmas faced by Yudhishthira, Draupadi’s interrogation in the royal assembly and Bhishma’s words on Rajdharma show us again and again that moral deliberation is less about absolute rights and wrongs and more about appropriately meeting the current situation. At the same time there is an abundance of ecological wisdom in the Mahabharata that comes to us not as preachy edicts but through its subtle but constant reverence for Prakriti, forests, rivers and all life. Thirdly, Vidur Neeti is one of the great ancient lessons on Governance. Lastly, the Shanti Parva discourses upon the principles of justice, welfare, and accountability, and envisions rule as protective stewardship aligned with Lokasangraha i.e the good of the people.

One of the benefits of bringing these examples and their lessons into the contemporary discourse on sustainability, ethical leadership, and governance is that in the Mahabharata we can find an organically Indic intellectual foundation that is also supremely relevant to the modern vision of a Viksit Bharat. Of course this can be taken too overzealously, so the paper also addresses methodological challenges including ideological appropriation, selective interpretation and the need for finding actionable insights for the modern day. Ultimately, the Mahabharata emerges as a living repository of civilizational wisdom capable of informing India’s pursuit of holistic development—material, ethical, and ecological.

Keywords

Mahabharata, Viksit Bharat, Indian Knowledge Systems (IKS), Dharma, Prakriti, Ethics, Governance

References

Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute. (1933–1966). The Mahabharata: For the first time critically edited.

Fitzgerald, J. L. (2003). The many voices of the Mahabharata. Journal of the American Oriental Society, 123(4), 803–818.

Ganguly, K. M. (Trans.). (2004). The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa (Vols. 1–12). Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers.

Hiltebeitel, A. (2001). Rethinking the Mahabharata: A reader’s guide to the education of the dharma king. University of Chicago Press.

Ministry of Education, Government of India. (2020). National Education Policy 2020. Government of India.

Prasad, B. N., & Ramachandran, S. K. (2022). Indian knowledge systems. McGraw Hill.

Sukthankar, V. S. (1933). Prolegomena

How to cite this article

Misra, R. (2026). The Mahabharata as Archive of Indian Knowledge Traditions: Ethics, Ecology and Governance as Foundations for Viksit Bharat. Vedic Science, 2026 (3), 99-114. ISSN: 0975-0312 (Print). DOI: https://doi.org/10.66718/vsj.v28.i3.09