When it comes to parental love, Dhritrashtra and Gandhari teach us that we should love our children with all our heart, but not blindly. The bond between Krishna and Draupadi is a prime example that a boy and girl can love each other as friends, and there’s nothing immoral about it. By reading about the life of Bhishma, we learn that it’s equally essential for us to love ourselves while loving our parents. Through the tales of Savitri and Satyavan and Nala and Damayanti, Mahabharata teaches us that love, if sincere in intent, endures all hardship and challenges. Even though modern society looks down on it today, the Mahabharata teaches us with the stories of Satyavati and Parasara and Urvashi and Arjuna, that sexual love is not demeaning and as crucial as emotional love. Ganga and Shantanu and Pururava and Urvashi teach us that love comes with heartbreak. While the 21st century is contesting same-sex love, the Mahabharata teaches us that love knows no gender.
