Karna

Karna
Karna
A 19th century artist's imagination of Karna
Information
Children Vrishasena and Vrishaketu
Relatives Kunti and Surya (biological parents)
Adhiratha and Radha (adoptive parents)
Yudhishthira, Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula, Sahadeva (brothers)

Karna (Sanskrit: कर्ण, IAST transliteration: Karṇa), originally known as Vasusena, is one of the main antagonists in the Hindu epic Mahābhārata. The epic describes him as the king of Anga (present day Bhagalpur and Munger).

Karna was the son of Surya and Kunti, born to Kunti before her marriage with Pandu. Karna was the closest friend of Duryodhana and fought on his behalf, against the Pandavas (his brothers) in the Kurukshetra war. It is believed that Karna founded the city of Karnal, in present Haryana.[1]

Etymology

The name he became renowned for in the epic was "Karna", meaning the cutter/peeler of his own skin/natural armor. Lord Indra granted this name for Karna's act of donating his natural armor.

Story

Birth, education and curses

Surya, father of Karna, the Hindu Sun god.

As a young woman, Kunti, the princess of the Mathura Kingdom, had been granted a boon by the sage Durvasa to be able to invoke any deity to give her a child. Eager to test the power, while still unmarried, she called upon the solar deity Surya and was handed a son, Karna, wearing armour (Kavacha) and a pair of earrings (Kundala). Afraid of being an unwed mother and having an illegitimate son, Kunti placed the baby in a basket and set him afloat on a river. The child was found by Adhiratha, a charioteer of King Dhritarashtra of Hastinapur. Adhiratha and his wife Radha raised the boy as their own son and named him Vasusena. He also came to be known as Radheya, the son of Radha.

He became interested in the art of warfare and joined the gurukul of Dronacharya, an established teacher who taught the Kuru princes and there he befriended Duryodhana. When Karna approached From a for Brahmastra he refused to teach Karna as he realised that he would use it for evil purpose However, according to some versions of the tale, appreciating Karna's boldness, Drona told Adhiratha to call his son "Karna".[2] After being refused by Drona, Karna wanted to learn advanced archery skills and hence he decided to learn from Parashurama, Drona's own guru.

As Parashurama only taught Brahmins, Karna appeared before him as such and lied that he was a Brahmin. Parashurama accepted him and trained him to a point that he declared Karna to be equal to himself in the art of warfare and archery. But when he realised that he had been cheated, Parashurama accused Karna of stealing knowledge, and laid a curse upon his student that he would forget the knowledge required to wield the Brahmastra.

Upon Karna's pleading, the guru relented and modified his curse, so that Karna would only lose the knowledge when he needed it most while fighting against an equal warrior. This curse would come to haunt him in his final fight against Arjuna. Rewarding Karna's diligence, Parashurama gave him his personal celestial weapon Bhargavastra.[3] On the way back to Hastinapur, Karna killed a cow which belonged to a poor Brahmin.The Brahmin got angry and cursed him that he would die if and only if he became helpless in the same way that the Brahmin's innocent cow had died.[4]

Meeting Duryodhana

The coronation of Karna

To display the skills of the Kuru princes, their guru Dronacharya arranged a friendly tournament. His student Arjuna, third of the Pandava brothers, was a gifted archer. Karna arrived at this tournament, uninvited, and seeing Arjuna's feats, challenged him to a duel. Kripacharya refused Karna his duel, asking first for his clan and kingdom; for according to the rules of dueling, only a prince could challenge Arjuna to a duel. Due to his low standing, Karna was not allowed to fight Arjuna. He was further insulted by Bhima who compared him to a stray dog, for his mixed caste and lineage. This incident marked the beginning of a feud between Karna and the Pandavas.[5][6] Duryodhana, the eldest of the one hundred sons of the king Dhritarashtra, was envious of the martial prowess of his cousins, the Pandavas. He saw Karna as a chance to get on even terms with them, so he offered Karna the throne of the Kingdom of Anga immediately, thus making Karna a king and eligible to duel with Arjuna.[7] Neither of them knew that Karna was Kunti's eldest son. When Karna asked him what he could do to repay him, Duryodhana told him that all he wanted was his friendship.[8] Karna later married women belonging to the Suta caste, as per the wishes of his foster father Adiratha.

Fight with Jarasandha

Karna helped Duryodhana to forcefully abduct and marry the Princess Bhanumati of Kalinga. Duryodhana abducted Bhanumati from her Swayamvara ceremony in a chariot and Karna fought her suitors. Numerous legendary rulers such as Bhishmaka, Vakra, Kapotaroman, Nila, Rukmi, Sringa, Asoka and Satadhanwan were defeated by Karna. Jarasandha, the king of Magadha later challenged Karna to a one-on-one fight. The two fought and Karna defeated Jarasandha by trying to tear him apart. Jarasandha gifted the city of Malini to Karna as a token of appreciation. The victory over Jarasandha made Karna famous. Later, following his accession to the throne of Malini, Karna took an oath that anyone who approached him with a request, when he worshiped the sun, would not leave empty-handed.[9]

Hostilities with the Pandavas

Upon prodding by his uncle Shakuni and Karna, Duryodhana goes forward with a plot to kill the Pandavas through treachery, apparently succeeding. With the assistance of Karna, Duryodhana plotted many evil plans against the Pandavas .[10]

Karna was a suitor for Draupadi at her Swayamvara. Like many other contenders Karna also failed to lift the bow, string it and got defeated in the task. Following the failure of the other princes, Arjuna stepped into the ring and successfully hit the target, winning Draupadi's hand. The assembled kings in the Swayamvara argued that a Brahmin was ineligible and attacked the disguised Arjuna. Arjuna defeated Karna. Karna praised the skill of the Brahmin and compared it with the skill of Drona and Bhishma.Later Arjuna threatened to kill Karna which made Karna flew from battle field. [11][12][13]

After Shakuni won a pachisi game of dice by trickery, Draupadi, now queen to all five Pandavas, was dragged into the court by Dushasana. Karna ordered Dushasana to remove the jewelry and cloth of Draupadi. He also called her- a whore. Arjuna took an oath to kill Karna.

Fight with Chitrasena

Duryodhana planned to humiliate the Pandavas by showing them the luxuries enjoyed by all Kauravas and Karna. So as per the advice of Karna, all of them had set to the forest where the Pandavas lived. During this journey, Karna abducted two women for Duryodhana not knowing that she was a Gandharva. Then Gandharvas attacked the entire Kauravas and Karna, who tried to flee after being defeated. However, he could not as Gandharvas captured them all. Knowing this, Yudhishtira asked Arjuna to free them since it would be Hastinapur that would be insulted. Arjuna followed his eldest brother’s order and defeated Chitrasena easily. Chitrasena agreed to his defeat and granted Arjuna Sammohanaastra. [14][15][16][17][18]

Virata war

Upon hearing of the death of Keechaka, Duryodhana surmised that the Pandavas were hiding in Matsya. Hence, Karna and Shakuni plotted to steal the cattles of Virata. A host of Kaurava warriors attack Virata, presumably to steal their cattle, but in reality, desiring to pierce the Pandavas' veil of anonymity. Full of bravado, Virata's son Uttar attempted to take on the army by himself while the rest of the Matsya army, including rest of Pandavas, had been lured away to fight Susharma and the Trigartas. As suggested by Draupadi, Uttar took Brihannala with him as his charioteer. When he saw the Kaurava army, Uttar lost his nerve and attempted to flee. There, Arjuna revealed his identity and those of his brothers'. Switching places with Uttar, Arjuna took up the Gandiva and Devadatta. Eager to defend the land that had given him refuge, Arjuna engaged the legion of Kaurava warriors. Many warriors including Bhishma, Drona, Kripa, Karna and Ashwatthama attacked Arjuna altogether but he defeated all of them multiple times. During the war, Arjuna killed Sangramjit- the foster brother of Karna. Instead of taking revenge, Karna fought a heroic fight in order to save his life from Arjuna. Karna tried to fly away but he could not since Arjuna invoked Sammohanaastra which made entire army fell asleep.

Prelude to War

The Pandava elder brother Yudhisthira always considered Karna as the foremost warrior in the world and worried about this fact in the prelude to the war.[19]

Indra realized that Karna could not be slain as long as he had his Kavach and Kundal. He approached Karna as a poor Brahmin during Karna's sun-worship. Surya warned Karna of Indra's intentions, but the warrior thanked Surya and explained that he was bound by his word and could not send anyone from his door empty-handed. Actually, Karna was aware of the fact that he could not kill Arjuna with the armour and needed some special weapon to do it. When Indra approached Karna and asked for his Kavach and Kundal as alms, Karna revealed that he knew the Brahmin's true identity and asked for a divine weapon in exchange of his armour. Indra became happy and took his normal form. Cutting the armor and earrings off his body, Karna handed them to Indra. Indra granted the boon as Vasavi Shakti, with the stipulation that Karna could only use the weapon once. In some versions of the story, Indra gives Karna the name "Karna" for this act.[20]

When Krishna approached Duryodhana with the peace treaty, Karna advised the latter not to accept it. He also Karna, plotted to capture and arrest Krishna, but failed. Before returning back, Krishna revealed to Karna that he was the eldest son of Kunti, and therefore, technically, the eldest Pandava. Krishna implored him to change sides and assured him that Yudhishthira would give the crown of Indraprastha to him; even Duryodhana would happily see his friend receive the crown. Shaken from this discovery, Karna still refused these offers as he could not forget the hatred towards the Pandavas. In addition, Karna was elated to learn that his true father was none other than Surya.[21]

Krishna went to Kunti and asked her to emotionally blackmail Karna by revealing the truth of his birth. According to Krishna, once Karna knew his real identity it would emotionally weaken him and Kunti could manipulate him. Krishna told the woman that it was up to her to make a decision to choose between Karna and her five other sons. As the war approached, Kunti met Karna and in desperation to keep her children alive asked him to join the Pandavas. Kunti revealed the truth about her son's birth. Surya Deva also validated her words and Karna was emotionally distraught. His hatred for the Pandavas had weakened.[22][23] But still could not dispose of his jealousy towards Arjuna. Karna rejected Kunti's offer again. Knowing that Karna will fight against Arjuna with a motive to kill, Kunti extracted a promise from Karna that he would not kill any of the Pandavas except for Arjuna.[24] Karna then requested that his mother keep their relationship a secret until the end of the war, as Pandavas will not fight against their own brother in the Dharma Yuddha if she revealed the truth to them, due to dharma against fighting a brother/father figure. After the end of the war she is supposed to reveal his birth identity to everyone and also promised that at the war's end she would still have five sons, the fifth one be either Arjuna or Karna himself.[25]

Kurukshetra war

Sitting out

Bhishma is appointed as the commander-in-chief of the Kaurava army. Giving as a reason that Karna had humiliated Draupadi and disrespected their shared guru, Parashurama, Bhishma refused to take him in to the Kaurava army. In the tale of Rathi's and Atirathi's, Bhishma called Karna Artha Rathi (half a Rathi) warrior since Karna had a bad habit of flying away from the battlefield upon being defeated. Karna did this when he flew away from Arjuna after the Draupadi Swayamvara war and Virat war. Duryodhana wanted Karna to fight in the war from the beginning, but Karna, out of his ego could not digest Bhishma's words. He called Bhishma a wretch and decided not to fight as long as Bhishma was in the battlefield. Knowing Karna's situation on the Kurukshtra war that he would not fight until Bhishma was present, Lord Krishna requested Karna to stay with him and the Pandavas in their camp and insisted that he may join Kaurava's side whenever Bhishma had been slain. But Karna dismissed Lord Krishna's appeal explaining that he had dedicated his life to fight for his friend Duryodhana and would not do anything that is unpleasant to him.[26] Only after Bhishma fell on the eleventh day did Karna enter the war.

Joining the battle

There is a popular folklore which is false that on the morning of 11th day of battle, Surya offered his invincible chariot and his charioteer Aruṇa to Karna, just like Lord Indra gave his chariot to Arjuna. The chariot of Surya was as brilliant as the sun, yoked with seven horses of different colors[27][28] and only a person with divine vision could look into it. Confident in his own skills, Karna rejected this offer, saying he did not want to be remembered as a person who depended upon others strength to gain victory, indirectly referring to Arjuna who depended upon Lord Krishna. Drona took the commander-in-chief position. His nine sons also entered the battlefield with their father, Karna.

Killing Abhimanyu

To trap Yudhishtira, Drona formed Chakravyuha on the 13th day of the war. At the same time Arjuna was diverted to the other side of the battlefield. But out of their expectations Abhimanyu entered the Chakravyuha. As soon as Abhimanyu entered the formation, Jayadrath, the ruler of Sindh, blocked the other Pandavas, so that Abhimanyu was left alone. Drona gave places to the warriors with Duryodhana placed at the centre protected by Dushasana and Drona himself. Other warriors were arranged in subsequent forward rows. Inside the Chakravyuha, the trapped Abhimanyu went on a killing rampage, intent on carrying out the original strategy by himself and killing tens of thousands of Kaurava soldiers, including Duryodhana's son Lakshmana. Abhimanyu defeated the mighty warriors of Kauravas side including Drona, Kripa and Karna. Karna, along with his foster brothers, came forward to slay Abhimanyu but Abhimanyu killed all of Karna's brothers. Karna became angry on seeing his foster brothers' deaths and attacked Abhimanyu. Abhimanyu defeated Karna easily but refused to slay Karna because he knew that his father, Arjuna, had taken an oath to kill him. It is said that Karna then flew away from Abhimanyu to save his own life.[29][30]In this way Abhimanyu defeated all the warriors. Duryodhana became so threatened that he could break Chakravyuha easily. Hence, a strategy was formed and a joint attack on Abhimanyu followed. On Duryodhana's advice, Karna broke Abhimanyu's bow from behind since it was impossible to face an armed Abhimanyu. [31] Kripa killed his two chariot-drivers, and Kritavarma killed his horses; Abhimanyu took up a sword and a shield but these weapons were cut off by Drona and Ashwatthama (though in other versions of the story, the perpetrators change while the acts remain the same). Abhimanyu then took up a chariot-wheel and started fighting with it, but Kripa cut the wheel. Many warriors attacked the sixteen year old Abhimanyu when he was unarmed. Abhimanyu's body was pierced by dozens of arrows but he faced all of the Kaurava warriors and still managed to kill many enemy soldiers. Abhimanyu attacked the son of Dushasana with a mace. They fought on with the son of Dushasana gaining the upper hand in battle because Abhimanyu was very injured and exhausted. Soon both of them lost their senses. The son of Dushasana regained his sense first and Abhimanyu who just regained his sense was hit by the son of Dushasana under his mace which lead the liberation of the soul of Abhimanyu. It is said that Abhimanyu was hit by the son of Dushasana on his head from behind, an area which hitting in duel was prohibited. In this way, Abhimanyu was killed unfairly by numerous warriors including Karna, Duryodhana, Drona, Shakuni, Dushasana, Kritavarma, Shalya, Kripacharya and Ashwatthama.

Killing Ghatotkacha

Uncharacteristically, the battle on the fourteenth day extended into the dark hours. Taking advantage of that was Ghatotkacha, Bhima’s half-Asura son, as Asuras gained extraordinary power at night. Ghatotkacha destroyed the Kaurava force and also injured Dronacharya. Seeing the desperate situation, Karna used his Vasava Shakti as he could no longer withstand against Ghatotkacha, and killed him.

Karna Parva

Yudhishthira wrestling with Karna

Karna Parva, the eighth book of the Mahābhārata, describes the sixteenth and seventeenth days of the Kurukshetra war. A concern for the Kaurava forces is the perceived favour Arjuna has because of the skills of his charioteer, Krishna. To balance this, Duryodhana requests that the talented Shalya, the king of Madra and the Pandavas' maternal uncle, be Karna's charioteer. Though disconcerted over serving as a charioteer of Karna who was a charioteer's son, Shalya agreed to the task. Prior to the war's start, when tricked on to the Kauravas' side, Shalya promised Yudhishthira that he would demoralize and frustrate Karna.

Sixteenth Day

As he promised to Kunti, Karna aimed to kill only Arjuna. On the sixteenth day, he fought with all the Pandavas except for Arjuna, defeated them all in direct combat and spared each one of them after insulting them with harsh words. After the terrible death of Dushasana, he ordered his charioteer Shalya to move towards Arjuna, Karna decided to finish him off once and for all. Karna then moved to kill Arjuna. He armed his Nagastra, the same celestial weapon that was used by Indrajit against Rama and Lakshmana in the Ramayana. Intervening, Shalya instructs him to aim at Arjuna's chest. Frustrated with Shalya's constant insults, Karna believes that his advice must be bad, and instead aims at Arjuna's head. Krishna saved Arjuna from certain death by lowering their chariot wheels into the earth; the arrow strikes Arjuna's helmet instead of his head. Before this incident, Krishna promised Arjuna that he would not apply any illusion. Arjuna stopped attacking and started looking for Krishna for the act the god did to save Arjuna's life. Taking advantage, Karna cut the string of Arjuna’s Gandiva twice but Arjuna retied it.

Seventeenth Day

On the seventeenth day of the war, Karna defeated Yudhishthira in duel. Later in the day, when the Kaurava troops were hard-pressed by their opponents, Karna used Bhargavastra against the Pandava army. As a result, heavy casualties were inflicted on the army.[32] Arjuna was unable to counter this weapon, Lord Hanuman on the flag saved Arjuna from this destructive weapon. The two foes, Karna and Arjuna, faced each other once more. As the battle intensified, Arjuna pushed back Karna's chariot ten steps backward every time by the energy of the arrows, but Karna was able to push Arjuna's chariot two steps backward. When questioned by Arjuna, Krishna said it was impossible for any human ever to push his chariot backwards because the chariot of Arjuna contained both Hanuman and Krishna, thus holding the entire weight. Being pushed back by Arjuna, Karna began coming forward but then Karna's chariot wheel became trapped in the mud as a result of the curse he had received previously from the goddess Earth.[33] He still defended himself, but at the crucial moment, forgot the incantations to invoke Brahmastra, a result of Parashurama's curse. Karna got down from his chariot to free the wheel and asked Arjuna to pause, reminding him of the etiquette of war. But Krishna spurred Arjuna to attack Karna reminding him the way Karna killed Abhimanyu by stabbing from behind- which are against the rules of the war. Being spurred by Krishna, Arjuna used Anjalikastra to kill Karna, which cut off his head, leading to his death. [34]

Arjuna kills Karna

It is said that, Duryodhana never shed a single tear for any of his brothers who were killed on the battlefield, but when his beloved friend Karna was slain, he was inconsolable.

Cremation

Following the war's end, Tarpan vidhi were performed for the fallen. Kunti then requested that her sons perform the rites for Karna and revealed the truth of his birth. The brothers were shocked to find that they had committed fratricide. Yudhishthira in particular was furious with his mother, and laid a curse upon all women that they should never thereafter be able to keep a secret.[35] In some versions right after the death of Karna, Kunti revealed the truth to her sons and the world, just as she had promised. Yudhishthira went to Duryodhana and told that being the second eldest brother, only he owned the right to cremate Karna. Duryodhana protested and Krishna verified that Duryodhana had the highest right over Karna. Hence, Karna’s final ceremony was performed by Duryodhana, reducing the Pandavas to mere spectators of the event.[36] Karna's wife Vrushali committed sati on Karna's pyre after his death. A play is staged in South India known as Kattaikkuttu which is based on the events that occurred in Karna's life on the day of his death.

Later, Arjuna built the Aranmula Parthasarathy Temple during his conquest for Ashvamedha in South India.[37] Legend has it that Arjuna built this temple to expiate for the sin of having killed Karna against the Dharma of killing an unarmed enemy. The temple is dedicated to Parthasarathy (Lord Krishna's role as Arjuna's charioteer in the war).

Ascension to svarga

The Mahabharata mentions that after his death in the Kurukshetra war, Karna's soul ascended to Suryalok (the abode of his father, the Sun god), and along with his sons and attained the state of a god.

The Superior Son

There are various folklore of later origin revolving around Karna, that do not appear in Ved Vyasa's epic. One such folklore says, "as Karna lays dying on the battlefield, his father Surya and Arjuna's father Indra fall into a debate as to who among their sons is superior. They decide to test Karna's generosity and appear before him as Brahmins asking for alms. Karna says that at this point he had nothing to give them while one of the Brahmins remarks that he has some gold in his teeth. Realizing this, Karna promptly takes a stone and breaks his teeth, handing them over to the Brahmins, thus proving his superiority."[38]

Parasurama's command

In some versions, during the night of 15th day of battle, Karna had a dream in which he envisioned his guru, Parashurama, and asked him to reverse the curse. Parashurama revealed that he had known all along Karna was a Kshatriya, but because he was a worthy student he had instructed him regardless. The avatar explained to Karna that the Brahmastra had to fail him when he needed it most. If he killed Arjuna, Duryodhana would be king instead of Yudhishthira and chaos would ensue. Parashurama asked Karna to accept his curse and asked him to die at the hands of Arjuna, so that the world might live in peace. Karna accepted his guru's words.[39][40]

Previous Birth Story

Karna, in his previous birth was known as King Dambodbhava who by his misdeeds was called a demon. Sahasra Kavacha meditated for years and paid austerities to Lord Surya and asked for a boon as thus: that he should naturally have a thousand armors attached to his body. To kill him one would have to meditate for 1,000 years and fight with him for yet another 1,000 years, by which he would lose just one piece of armor at a time. Thus, he would have to lose all his armors before he could be killed. In any case there was also a clause that stated that if anyone breaks an armor he or she would die, so once Nara had to be brought back to life by Narayana. Around the same time yet another demon was creating havoc all over the world in the name of Hiranyakashyap. To destroy that demon Lord took the avatar of Narasimha. After killing Hiranyakashyap, Lord Narasimha's head took the form of Narayana and the body took the form of Nara as a greater plan of vanquishing the thousand armored Demon Sahasrakavacha. Nara and Narayana took turns for fighting and meditating; while one mediated the other fought the duel with the Demon, thus destroyed all, but one armor. The Demon knew his end was near and he pleaded to the Surya for help, who intervened and helped him. Lord Surya had promised Sahasra Kavacha protection and refused to hand him over to Nara and Narayana. At this time, there was Pralaya on Earth due to the change of the Yuga because of which the Demon escapes death. But by his yogic power the all-pervading Lord Narayana had declared that he would incarnate as Krishna and the Demon was to be destroyed by Nara in the Dwapara Yuga who would be born as Arjuna, and the wicked Dambobhava alias Sahasrakavacha as Karna. In Dwapara Yuga, an "amsa" of Lord Surya and Dambodbhava was reborn as Karna with Kavacha. It is probably why Karna was said to have had both good and bad qualities. He was the greatest donor and one of the best warriors but at the same time he also possessed bad qualities like following adharma, scolding Draupadi. [41][42][43][44]

Family

Mahabharata does not name Karna's wives specifically, though they are mentioned multiple times collectively in the epic. Because of this anonymity, various later writers had built up stories about Karna's wives, weaving in their own imagination. Shivaji Sawant in his book Mrityunjay, names them Vrushali and Supriya. Kashiram Das in his 15th century retelling had named Karna's wife Padmavati. In Tamil stories, she is known as Ponnurvi, Uruvi and Kanchana. He had nine sons: Vrishasena, Vrishaketu, Chitrasena, Satyasena, Sushena, Shatrunjaya, Dvipata, Banasena, and Prasena; eight of them took part in the Kurukshetra war. Prasena was killed by Satyaki. Shatrunjaya, Vrishasena, and Dvipata were slain by Arjuna. Bhima killed Banasena; Nakula killed Chitrasena, Satyasena, and Sushena.[45][46] Vrishaketu was his only son who survived the war. After the war when Pandavas were made aware of Karna's lineage, Vrishaketu was under the patronage of Arjuna and took part in various battles that preceded the Ashvamedha yagna.

Themes and analysis

Within the various Hindu legends, Karna draws resemblance with various other characters. The attributed author of Mahabharata, the sage Vyasa, is also noted to be born from an unwed union of Satyavati and sage Parashara, just the way Karna is born before Kunti's marriage.[47] Philologist Georges Dumézil also compares him with his father Surya in the sense that he too has two mothers, Kunti and Radha, just the way Surya in Vedas has two mothers, the night and the dawn.[48] German indologist Georg von Simson, notes the similarities in the names of Karna and of the Kumbhakarna, the demon brother of the main antagonist Ravana of the epic Ramayana. He also notes that both Karna and Kumbhakarna did not take part in the great wars of their respective epics at the start.[49] Scholars internationally have also drawn parallels with various European mythologies. Karna's kawach (armour) has been compared with that of Achilles's Styx-coated body and with Irish warrior Ferdiad's horny skin that could not be pierced. He has been compared to the Greek mythological character Achilles on various occasions as they both have powers but lack status.[50]

Secondary literature and media

Literature

Rabindranath Tagore wrote a poem, "Karna Kunti Sangbad" based on the meeting of Karna and Kunti before the war. Karna also has been topic of various contemporary literary works. The marathi books of Radheya (1973) authored by Ranjit Desai and Mrityunjay (1967) authored by Shivaji Sawant bring forth a fictionalized account of Karna's private and personal life.[51] Sawant also received Moortidevi Award, instituted by Bharatiya Jnanpith, for his work[52] and was translated into nine languages.[53] Ramdhari Singh Dinkar in 1978 published an epic poem Rashmirathi (translation: One who rides the Chariot of light, 1952) which narrates Karna's life.[54] The poem has later also been adapted as a play.[55]

In the Japanese light novel Fate/Apocrypha Karna makes an appearance as one of the "Servants" being the "Lancer of Red".

Film and theater

YearNameChannelPlayed by
1964KarnanN/ASivaji Ganesan
1977Daana Veera Soora KarnaN/AN. T. Rama Rao
1977KurukshetramN/AKrishnam Raju
1988MahabharatDD NationalHarendra Paintal/Pankaj Dheer[61]
1989The MahabharataN/ALou Bihler/Jeffrey Kissoon
1993KrishnaDD MetroGovind Khatri
2013MahabharatSTAR PlusGananay Shukla/Vidyut Xavier/Aham Sharma[62]
2015–2016Suryaputra KarnSony Entertainment TelevisionVishesh Bansal/Vasant Bhatt/Gautam Rode

Notes

  1. ↑ "Karnal". District of Karnal. Retrieved 26 November 2013.
  2. ↑ Mahabharata: The Philosophy of Humanity. Srimath Swami Chidbhavananda. Taponavam Series 90. Seventh Edition, 1999.
  3. ↑ "Curse and blessing of Parashurama". The Mahabharata. 1896. Retrieved June 9, 2015.
  4. ↑ James L. Fitzgerald (2003). The Mahabharata, Volume 7: Book 11: The Book of the Women Book 12: The Book of Peace. University of Chicago Press. p. 173. ISBN 0-226-25250-7.
  5. ↑ THE MAHABHARATA, BOOK1, ADI PARVA: SAMBHAVA PARVA, translated by KM Ganguli :......"Vaisampayana said, 'After this, with his sheet loosely hanging down, Adhiratha entered the lists, perspiring and trembling, and supporting himself on a staff. Seeing him, Karna left his bow and impelled by filial regard bowed down his head still wet with the water of inauguration. And then the charioteer addressed Karna crowned with success as his son. And the charioteer embraced Karna and from excess of affection bedewed his head with tears, that head still wet with the water sprinkled over it on account of the coronation as king of Anga. Seeing the charioteer, the Pandava Bhimasena took Karna for a charioteer's son, and said by way of ridicule, 'O son of a charioteer, thou dost not deserve death in fight at the hands of Partha. As befits thy race take thou anon the whip. And, O worst of mortals, surely thou art not worthy to sway the kingdom of Anga, even as a dog doth not deserve the butter placed before the sacrificial fire.' Karna, thus addressed, with slightly quivering lips fetched a deep sigh, looked at the God of the day in the skies.".......
  6. ↑ Ganguli, KM. THE MAHABHARTA, BOOK1, ADI PARVA, SAMBHA PAVA CONTINUED. Retrieved 4 January 2015.
  7. ↑ http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/m01/m01139.htm
  8. ↑ Text Archive, Internet Sacred. "Mahabharat : Adi Parva-Sambhava Parva; SECTION CXXXVIII". Internet Sacred Text Archive. Evinity Publishing INC.
  9. ↑ K M Ganguly(1883-1896) Karna defeating Jarasandha and becoming king of malini October 2003,Retrieved 2015-04-08
  10. ↑ Bowker, John (2000). "The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions". Oxford Reference. Oxford: Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/acref/9780192800947.001.0001. (Subscription required (help)). (subscription or UK public library membership required)
  11. ↑ http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/m01/m01191.htm
  12. ↑ "Failure of Karna in Draupadi syamwara".
  13. ↑ "The Mahabharata in Sanskrit: Book 1: Chapter 179". www.sacred-texts.com. Retrieved 2018-01-19.
  14. ↑ http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/m03/m03239.htm
  15. ↑ https://hinduism.stackexchange.com/questions/8358/why-did-karna-flee-from-battle-with-chitrasena-gandharvas
  16. ↑ https://www.quora.com/Karna-could-not-protect-Duryodhana-from-Gandharvas-while-Arjun-could-do-Is-it-because-Arjuna-was-superior-to-Karna-or-is-there-some-other-story-behind-it
  17. ↑ "Arjuna killed 1 million Gandharvas in single shot".
  18. ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arjuna#Fight_with_Chitrasena
  19. ↑ K M Ganguly(1883-1896 The Mahabharatha Book 3: Vana Parva SECTION XXXVI Yudishtira explains the might of Karna to Bhima,October 2003,Retrieved 2015-03-08
  20. ↑ Sayantan Gupta (2014). The Karna Pages. Authorspress. p. 400. ISBN 978-81-7273-922-5.
  21. ↑ http://www.pushti-marg.net/bhagwat/Mahabharata/Krushna-Karna.htm
  22. ↑ Hiltebeitel Alf (2005). Mahabaratha. MacMillan.
  23. ↑ Witzel Michael (1995). "Early Sanskritization: Origin and Development of the Kuru state" (PDF). EJVS. 1 (4). Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 June 2007.
  24. ↑ "Kunti-Karna meeting".
  25. ↑ Phillip B. Zarrilli;Kattaikkuttu: The Flexibility of a South Indian Theatre Tradition, and: Karna's Death: A Play by Pukalentirrulavar (review);Asian Theatre Journal, Volume 20, Number 1, Spring 2003, pp. 100-102
  26. ↑ Lord Krishna request Karna to sit with Pandavas http://sacred-texts.com/hin/m06/m06043.htm
  27. ↑ Surya-Siddhant [12.12-29]
  28. ↑ Rig Veda 1.35,1.164.1-5
  29. ↑ https://www.wisdomlib.org/hinduism/book/mahabharata/d/doc118444.html
  30. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0nw7yZkx0M&t=442s
  31. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0nw7yZkx0M&t=442s
  32. ↑ K M Ganguly(1883-1896)The Mahabharatha Book 8: Karna Parva 64. Karna invoking Bhargavastra, January 2016
  33. ↑ http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/m08/m08090.htm
  34. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8SFTd_AbNIk
  35. ↑ "The Mahabharata, Book 12: SANTI PARVA: Section VI". Sacred-texts.com.
  36. ↑ "Argument over the cremation of Karna". Retrieved June 14, 2015.
  37. ↑ David Abram; Nick Edwards (2004). The Rough Guide to South India. Rough Guides. p. 348. ISBN 1-84353-103-8.
  38. ↑ http://www.saigan.com/kattaikkuttu05/gp22.html
  39. ↑ Mehrotra NC (1999). Shahjahanpur Etihasik Evam Sanskritik Dharohar'. Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh: Pratiman Prakashan 30 Kucha Ray Ganga Prasad.
  40. ↑ Parkhe B (1975). Ramayashogatha.
  41. ↑ http://vipasana-vidushika.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-legend-of-krishna-nara-narayana.html
  42. ↑ http://hindumythologyforgennext.blogspot.com/2012/09/karnas-karma.html
  43. ↑ http://storibuzz.in/the-story-of-sahasra-kavacha/
  44. ↑ https://hinduism.stackexchange.com/questions/6909/which-purana-talks-about-sahasrakavacha-the-past-life-of-karna/8125
  45. ↑ http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/m08/m08082.htm
  46. ↑ http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/m08/m08048.htm
  47. ↑ Brockington 1998, p. 23.
  48. ↑ Brockington 1998, p. 70.
  49. ↑ Brockington 1998, p. 71.
  50. ↑ McGrath 2004, p. 4.
  51. ↑ Indian Literature, Issues 225-227. Sahitya Akademi. 2005. p. 132.
  52. ↑ "Moortidevi Awards for two writers". New Delhi: Times of India. 24 February 2003. Retrieved 25 November 2013.
  53. ↑ Date, Vidyadhar (23 September 2002). "Shivaji Sawant's historical novels are a separate class". Mumbai: Times of India. Retrieved 25 November 2013.
  54. ↑ Ambika Chaudhary. "'Dinkar's portrayal of Karna changed my way of looking at public affairs'". Tehelka. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  55. ↑ Chaturvedi, Devika (14 December 2010). "'Rashmirathi' takes audienc to another plane of thoughts". Daily News and Analysis. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  56. ↑ "Vote! The Best Shashi Kapoor Film". rediff.com. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
  57. ↑ R, Narendran. "Vintage Movie Review: A Review on Thalapathi". Behindwoods.com. Behindwoods.com. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
  58. ↑ Steve Wright page at bbc.co.uk
  59. ↑ "Ajay Devgan had doubts about his role in 'Raajneeti'". New Delhi: The Economic Times. 4 June 2010. Retrieved 17 July 2013.
  60. ↑ "Mohanlal's new obsession". rediff.com. 13 Mar 2001. Retrieved 3 Dec 2011.
  61. ↑ Olivera, Roshni K. (30 July 2010). "It's a scary scenario: Pankaj Dheer". Times of India. Retrieved 17 July 2013.
  62. ↑ River, Trending. "13th Indian Telly Awards 2014- Nominees & Winners List Gallery". Retrieved 15 October 2014.

Bibliography

  • Bowles, Adam, 2006. Mahābhārata: Karna. Published by NYU Press. ISBN 0-8147-9981-7.
  • Brockington, J. L. (1998). The Sanskrit Epics. BRILL. ISBN 90-04-10260-4. Retrieved 25 November 2013.
  • Buitenen, Johannes Adrianus Bernardus, 1978. The Mahābhārata. 3 volumes (translation / publication incomplete due to his death). University of Chicago Press.
  • Kamala Chandrakant (2009). Karna. Amar Chitra Katha. ISBN 81-89999-49-4.
  • Desai, Ranjit. Radheya. ISBN 81-7766-746-7
  • Dinkar, Ramdhari Singh. The Sun Charioteer: a poetic rendering of Karna's life, his dharma, his friendship and tragedies. Rashmirathi; रश्मिरथी / रामधारी सिंह "दिनकर (in Hindi)
  • McGrath, Kevin (2004). The Sanskrit Hero: Karna in Epic Mahābhārata. BRILL. ISBN 90-04-13729-7. Retrieved 25 November 2013.
  • Sawant, Shivaji. Mrityunjaya, the death conqueror: the story of Karna. ISBN 81-7189-002-4
  • Subramaniam, Kamala, Smt. The Mahabharata. Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan Press.
  • Winternitz, Maurice (1996). A History of Indian Literature, Volume 1. Motilal Banarsidass Publication. ISBN 81-208-0264-0. Retrieved 25 November 2013.

Further reading

  • Kisari Mohan Ganguly (2008). The Mahabharata, Book 8 of 18: Karna Parva (English translation). Forgotten Books. ISBN 1-60506-618-4.
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