The Mahabharata Secret

''The Mahabharata Secret'' is the debut novel by Indian author Christopher C. Doyle and was released on 21 October 2013 by Om Books. The story follows Vijay and his friends, as they try to decipher a series of clues which would lead them to a devastating Secret hidden by a brotherhood known as the Nine Men. Doyle had initially started writing a story for his daughter, which gradually expanded into the book. The author was primarily inspired by the Indian epic ''Mahabharata'', believing its events to be based on scientific facts. The book was followed by Doyle's second novel, '' The Mahabharata Quest: The Alexander Secret'', which is the first book in a planned trilogy of sequels.

Doyle believes in the possibility of the existence of a secret history which was probably not recorded in antiquity. While researching he also came across legends prevalent about King Ashoka and linked the story with him. Following its release, ''The Mahabharata Secret'' was a commercial success, which enabled the author to get signed for further thriller novels based on the subject matter and was also nominated for the 2014 Crossword Book Award.

Plot synopsis

In 244 BC, Indian emperor Ashoka finds a hilly cave with an astonishing secret. Believing it could destroy the world, he creates a secret brotherhood of Nine Men, who would guard the cave's contents through the centuries. He also removed the Vimana Parva chapter of the Indian epic, ''Mahabharata'', from its written transcripts.

In present day, Vikram Singh, an Indian nuclear scientist, is murdered at his fort in Jaungarh. Before his death he sent four cryptic emails to his nephew Vijay, who with his business partner Colin, childhood friend Radha and her father, linguist Dr. Shukla, start analyzing it. They are aided by Bheem Singh, current owner of Rajvirgarh fort and Greg White, an archaeologist mentioned in Vikram's emails. The group deduce that the emails refer to the Nine Men and their secret, which can be revealed by using a metal disc, a key, a ball of rock and a riddle. Their mission is interrupted by a man called Farooq, a Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) militant. The group find that the metal disc and the key together point to the Edicts of Ashoka. They travel to Bairat and find a hidden library of the Nine, but are imprisoned inside by Farooq and his men. The group find an alternate route and the ball of rock.

In the meantime, Intelligence Bureau (IB) official Imran Kidwai gets information about Farooq and starts investigating. Vijay and his friends travel to the Barabar Caves in Bihar after interpreting a clue in Bairat. Inside the caves they unearth another such ball with inscriptions on it. However, Vijay and Radha are kidnapped by Farooq. Imran suspects Bheem Singh and investigates in his basement, but gets caught. Bheem explains that the Vimana Parva of the ''Mahabharata'' spoke about ancient arsenal which could be made invisible by covering them with an undisclosed element, thus making them fatal. This was what the Nine tried to protect. Imran understands that Bheem was allied with Farooq and were trying to discover the secret location of the weapons. In an ensuing conflict, Bheem's attack on Imran backfires and he himself is killed.

Farooq had given 48 hours time to Vijay's friends to decipher the meaning of the final clue in the ball. They unearth the final secret to be at Hazaribagh, atop a hill called Marang Buru. Farooq and his men escape with Vijay on being notified of Imran's advance, leaving Radha behind. As the whole group reaches Marang Buru, there it is revealed that Greg was actually an assassin employed by Farooq called Murphy, impersonating the real Greg White. On Farooq's insistence, Vijay and Colin enter the hill and through numerous chambers reach the secret vault of the Nine. There they discover the giant artillery, including the nuclear weapons. Farooq and his henchmen start collecting the weapons, unaware that Imran and Indian commandos had surrounded them. Colin, Shukla and Vijay are rescued and reunite with Radha, with Imran driving them away from Hazaribagh. A mistimed grenade blasts the secret cavern, destroying the hillside and killing off Farooq and the others, thereby wiping out the Nine's secret.

A few days later, Vijay re-reads his uncle's e-mails and finds another clue, directing him to the vicinity of Jaungarh fort. There he finds a secret chamber containing the documents belonging to the Nine, as well as important texts, scriptures and ancient artifacts. A letter from his uncle reveals him as the last member of the Nine, and a request for Vijay to accept the guardianship of the documents. Vijay accepts and becomes a member of the Nine Men.

Development

Author Christopher C. Doyle had studied Business Management from Indian Institute of Management Calcutta and runs a firm for training CEO and CXOs. However, he always had a childhood weakness for fantasy novels, being inspired by authors like Jules Verne, H. G. Wells

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