Record #00493Culture & Entertainment archive
World's Longest Epic Poem
The Mahabharata, an ancient Sanskrit epic of India, contains approximately 100,000 verses in 18 books in its received tradition and is frequently described as one of the world's longest epics. Counts vary by edition.
ARCHIVE VISUAL / 01
NOT TO SCALE
Overview
Archive NoteThe narrative centres on the conflict between the Pandavas and Kauravas and includes the Bhagavad Gita alongside extensive material on ethics, governance and human duties.
The epic developed through oral performance and manuscript transmission over centuries. Princeton's guide gives nearly 100,000 verses in 18 books, while Oxford scholarship treats it as a varied narrative tradition, not one immutable text.
Record history
1 Milestones- about 100,000 versesMahabharataCurrent Record
Sources
Evidence & ReferencesVerification basis and limitations
Evidence-backedCredible sources support core facts; the comparison scope or corroboration remains incomplete.
Basis: corroborating reliable secondary materials
Princeton documents almost 100,000 Sanskrit verses in 18 books; Oxford scholarly references call the work one of the world's longest epics. Claims about the single longest poem differ by genre and text definition, so developing is retained.
- Ranking confidence
- Uncertain
Comparison boundaries still under review
Verse counts vary across Sanskrit recensions and critical editions; metrics across genres and languages are not fully standardized. The 100,000 figure is an approximate received-text scale.
- Verification assessment
- 2026-11-10
- Last editorial review
- 2026-11-10
Current Entry identifies the current entry in this archive; it does not establish that the record is still held today.
The record value on this page is organized from the public sources above. Measurement methods may differ; JiLuDB follows the unified method described for each entry.
Public feedbackFound a data issue?If a fact has changed, the data is incorrect, or you know a more authoritative source, submit feedback.Submit feedback
Help keep the archive accurate
If a fact has changed, a value is incorrect, or you know a more authoritative source, leave a note. Feedback enters an administrator review workflow and never edits a record directly.