Mahabharata Story for Kids in Short with Moral Lessons

Mahabharata is a major Hindu Mythological Sanskrit epic. This great epic narrates the great war between the Kauravas and Pandavas. 

Lord Krishna and Arjun on their Chariot in the War of Mahabharat

It is a philosophical and devotional story that has many inspiring characters and chapters. Keep reading to know the Mahabharat story in short.

Mahabharata Story in Short for Kids

The story of this great Hindu mythology starts with King Shantanu of the Kuru dynasty, who ruled Hastinapur. He married Goddess Ganga and had a son called Bhishma who is one of the most prominent characters of Mahabharata. Ganga left the king and his son to fulfil her holy duties.

Shantanu married Satyavati after Ganga left him. He had two sons with her. Vichitravirya, who was his eldest son from Satyavati became the king after Shantanu. He had three sons named Dhritarashtra, Pandu, and Vidur.

Dhritarashtra was his eldest son but he was blind so Pandu became the king. Dhritarashtra was married to the princess of Gandhar named Gandhari. He had a hundred sons and a daughter with her. His hundred sons were called the Kauravas.

Pandu married Kunti and Madri. He had five sons with the blessings of five different Gods. His sons were called Pandavs. Their names were Yudhishthira, Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula and Sahadeva. It was unknown to everyone that Kunti was already an unwed mother to a son named Karna.

Five Pandavas

Pandu and his wife Madri died in the forest. Kunti returned to the kingdom with her five sons but Kauravas, and Pandavas never got along. Kauravs always tried to kill Pandavs but failed every time.

One of their conspiracies was successful, after which the Pandavas and their mother had to go into hiding in forests. Arjun married princess Draupadi during this period.

Arjun and Draupadi

After that when they came back to Hastinapur, they were again exiled to the forest for thirteen years because Yudhishthir lost everything to the Kauravas in a game of dice.

When they returned after their exile, the eldest son of Dhritarashtra, Duryodhana refused to give back the kingdom to Pandavas.

Pandavas wanted their kingdom back and the stage was set for the greatest battle, despite efforts by Lord Krishna to bring peace. There was a great conversation between Arjun and Krishna related to “Dharma” and "Karma", which is mentioned in Bhagwat Geeta. The war went on for 18 days.

At the end of the war, the Pandavas defeated the Kauravas. Yudhishthir was crowned the King.

Moral of The Mahabharata

The great Hindu epic Mahabharata teaches us the lesson that good is always victorious against evil. The moral of Mahabharata is to live in the right and truthful way. We should always fight for our rights as Pandavas fought for the rights and privileges that the Kauravs had taken from them by false means.

Conclusion

Mahabharata has a number of chapters that teach us valuable lessons about ethics and morality to kids. It is important for kids to read mythological stories as it provides life lessons.