Mahābhuta—(mahā-great + bhuta-element) the five great material elements: earth, water, fire, air and ether.Prabhupada ›Glossary›-M-›Mahabhuta-(maha-great + Mahabhuta-(maha-great + bhuta-element) the five great material elements: earth, water, fire, air and ether. Link to this page: https://prabhupadabooks.com/glossary/m/mahabhuta-maha-great-bhuta-element-the-five-great-material-e Previous: Mahabharata-an ancient, Sanskrit, epic history of Bharata, or India composed by Krsna Dvaipayana Vyasadeva, the literary incarnation of Godhead, in 100,000 verses. The essence of all Vedic philosophy, the Bhagavad-gita, is a part of this great work. Maha-bharata is a history of the earth from its creation to the great Kuruksetra war fought between the Kuru and Pandava factions of the Kaurava dynasty, which took place about five thousand years ago. The battle was waged to determine who would be the emperor of the world: the saintly Yudhisthira, a Vaisnava king, or the evil-minded Duryodhana, the son of Dhrtarastra. Next: Mahadeva-Lord Siva-the guna-avatara who is the superintendent of the mode of ignorance (tamoguna) and who takes charge of destroying the universe at the time of annihilation. He disguised himself as a Kirata and fought with Arjuna over a boar. Lord Siva was pleased with Arjuna and gave him a benediction of the Pasupati astra by which he could kill Jayadratha. He also gave a benediction to Asvatthama that he could kill the remaining soldiers on the side of the Pandavas while they were sleeping in their tents. He is also considered the greatest Vaisnava, or devotee, of Lord Krsna. He is confused by some with the Supreme Lord.