Half-brother of the Pandavas. Valiant but unfortunate eldest son of Kunti by the Sun deity. Ally of the Kauravas in the war with Pandavas. (Glossary for the Vahinis)
Karna, a great hero of the Mahabharata war was searching for a Guru who can teach him the intricacies of the warfare and the methods by which he could win over Arjuna. He knew that there was no other Guru except Parashurama for this purpose. He also knew that Parashurama was a bitter enemy of Kshatriya class and he would not teach any other person except a Brahmin, the Astras and Shastras (weapons directed by chanting mantras). However, he was determined to learn these techniques somehow.
He therefore approached Parashurama, disguised as a Brahmin. He could draw his attention and win his favour with his humility and obedience also his sharp intellect. Parashurama recognised Karna’s intense yearning and eligibility to learn the techniques of Astras and Shastras and finally agreed to teach him. Under his tutelage, he taught the techniques of directing several Astras and Shastras to Karna. Karna during that period could demonstrate his total faith in the Guru and win his confidence.
One day, Parashurama put his head on the lap of Karna and slept for some time. He was enjoying deep sleep, in the meanwhile a hornet got under the thigh of Karna and started boring the thigh, causing severe pain and loss of blood. But, Karna silently suffered the pain lest he may cause disturbance to his Guru. After sometime, the blood flowed under the head of Parashurama wetting that part of the body. He woke up and enquired Karna with great surprise, ‘Tell me who are you? Surely, you are not a Brahmin. It is only a Kshatriya who can bear such huge loss of blood.’Swami! Pardon me I told a lie so that I may become your disciple and learn knowledge from you.’ Parashurama became very angry. He cursed Karna, ‘The knowledge you have gained by speaking untruth will not be useful to you when required.’ (Beacons of Divine Wisdom Part 2, pp. 93-94)
If one commits a wrong unwittingly, he is guilty of committing a mistake. But if he commits it deliberately, he is committing a sin. This is the difference between a mistake and a sin. In this context, it may be pointed out that Karna is a great example of one who cherished gratitude for the good done to him. He was not only a great donor who gave away whatever was sought from him. His loyalty to his master was unbounded. He was ever ready to lay down his life for his master.
The ruler of Panchala announced that his daughter Draupadi would be given in marriage to any bowman who could bring down an overhanging fish-yantra by looking at its reflection in water.
Rulers from many countries had assembled there. Draupadi was no ordinary woman. She emanated from a blaze of fire. Who was worthy of her hand in marriage? Those taking part in the wedding contest had to abide by one of two conditions. Either he should be a ruler or a Kshatriya. Karna was a great warrior. He had come to take part in the contest. Unfortunately, he was not the ruler of any state and he was a charioteer s son, not a Kshatriya. For these reasons, he was asked to withdraw from the contest. He felt depressed that in spite of all his other accomplishments he could not take part in the contest. As he was walking back, Duryodhana got up with the feeling, ‘There is no one equal in prowess to Karna excepting Arjuna. With Karna on my side I can always deal with the Pandavas.’ He came to Karna s help at that moment. In that assemblage, he made Karna, King of Angadesa.
(Coronationof Karna)
For that one act of magnanimity, by which he was made a ruler, Karna pledged himself to serve Duryodhana by shedding the last drop of blood for him. Later on, the Kauravas and Pandavas had gathered their forces for war. Krishna had tried his best to prevent the Armageddon as he knew the infinite calamities war brought in its train. He went as an envoy of the Pandavas to plead for a peaceful settlement with the Kauravas. Arjuna told Krishna that it was futile to parley with the wicked Kauravas and that they should get ready for battle.
A mother s love is unbounded
A day before the battle was to begin, Kunti, the mother of the Pandavas, realised what was impending. She was the mother of Karna also. Karna was her first-born who was the child of a boon from the Sun-God. She was aware of his extraordinary powers and sought an opportunity to meet him. There may be bad sons, but there is no bad mother. A mother s love is unbounded.
One day, Karna was performing Sandhyavandanam in the morning after taking a bath in the river. Getting news of this from her maids, Kunti went to the river bank. Karna was in meditation. Kunti stood behind him. As she stood, she was overwhelmed by grief at seeing him after a long time. She was also stricken with sorrow at the prospect of her near and dear ones dying in the impending battle.
Kunti reveals that Karna was her son
Unable to bear the grief, she wailed aloud. Karna emerged suddenly from his meditation. He saw Kuntidevi before him. He did not know that she was his mother, though he knew she was the mother of the Pandavas. He asked her, ‘Mother! Why are you in such great sorrow? I am Karna the son of Radha. I offer my salutations to you. Please let me know the cause of your grief.’ Kunti replied, ‘Dear child, you are not the son of Radha. You are my son. You were born to me as a boon from the Sun-God. To avoid public ignominy, I left you on the Ganga. I am a great sinner. I pitilessly abandoned you on the Ganga though you were a new-born babe. For selfish reasons, to safeguard my name, I abandoned you in this manner. You are my eldest son. The Pandavas are your brothers and Dharmaraja is your younger brother. Dear son, give me one promise. If all of you were united, you could rule the entire world. You could become the emperor. All the Pandavas will obey and follow your footsteps like a shadow. I give you my word. Do not bear any enmity towards the Pandavas in the impending battle. Consider them in your heart as your brothers. Ponder over the sorrow that afflicts your mother.’ When Karna heard these words, he was caught in a whirl and his mind was in confusion. ‘I had heard now and then about the secret of my origin, but never before from the mouth of my mother. The Pandavas are indeed my brothers. I am Kuntidevi s son. But at this juncture, am I to abide by my mother s words? Or am I to show my gratitude to my master?’ Karna debated thus within himself.
Karna s refusal to betray his master
He told Kunti: ‘Whether he was a wicked or an unrighteous person, it was Duryodhana who gave me a position of honour and raised me to my present state. I cannot betray my master. But, because you are my Mother, I will give you one promise declared Karna. ‘Promise to the mother is one thing; loyalty to the master is a different thing. The former is in the nature of a fight. The latter is a responsibility. They are like the two wheels of a chariot or the two wings of a bird.
They go together. Mother, I give you this promise. When the occasion arises, I shall spare Dharmaraja,Bhima, Nakula and Sahadeva. I will not harm them. But I will not spare Arjuna. If in this battle I lose my life, the five Pandavas will be your sons. In case Arjuna dies, you will still have five sons. I will take the place of Arjuna among the Pandavas. In any case, there will be no diminution in the number of your five sons. This is my plighted word.’ Saying this, Karna caught hold of his mother s feet and said, ‘Mother! The other day, in the court of Drupada, Duryodhana saved my honour. I know he is a wicked man. I also know that the Pandavas are the very embodiment of Dharma. But I will be worse than a cruel animal in the forest if I forget the good done to me by Duryodhana. I have to show my gratitude to my master. In this respect, there can be no change in my attitude,’ declared Karna.
No atonement for betraying the Divine
Later, Karna gave away even the earrings given to him by the Sun-God. And he offered to Indra the armour he was wearing. He even laid down his life for his master. But he did not give up the gratitude he owed to Duryodhana. It must be remembered that there is a means of atoning for the killing of a Brahmin or a cow or an infant. But there is no way of atoning for betraying the preceptor or the Divine. If you turn ungrateful you will be worse than a wild beast. Kunti then declared: ‘I shall be happy if you remain a man with such high ideals. Let me tell you there is no one who can slay Arjuna. You bear animosity towards Arjuna. I am content with your promise. It is enough if you spare Dharmaraja, Bhima, Nakula and Sahadeva.’ In this context, observe how much gratitude existed among the Pandavas. Dharmaraja, Bhima and Arjuna were the sons of Kunti. Nakula and Sahadeva were the sons of Madri (the second wife of Pandu). When Madri was about to commit Sati on her husband s funeral pyre, Dharmaraja gave her a promise. He said, ‘Mother! You are about to give up your life for the sake of my father. I shall look after your sons with even greater concern than for my uterine brothers. Whatever differences may arise between us, I shall treat them as my own brothers.’ He gave this pledge to Madri.
Gratitude is a great virtue
Gratitude is a great virtue. When the power of gratitude is realised, it will be seen that it can give benefits much more than anyone can imagine. If out of narrow-mindedness, men become ungrateful, they will suffer grievously. If such is the case in regard to purely human relationships, how much more rewarding gratitude can be when it is offered to God?
Dear Students! This is a period of innocence and inexperience in your life. You are filled with desires. You tend to be selfish and self-centred. But even so, you can make your lives sacred and meaningful by carrying out the injunctions of the Divine. If you adhere to this one rule, you will redeem your lives and promote the welfare of your families and your society. Karna stands out as the supreme exemplar of gratitude. He demonstrated what it means to be
grateful to one who has helped you, even if he happens to be a wicked person. (SSS Vol.25, pp. 64-67)
It would be good to remember the supreme sacrificing spirit of Karna. Although because of his association with some evil minded men, his name got tainted, no one can equal the spirit of sacrifice of Karna. The great Mahabharata war came to a close on the seventeenth day with the fall of Karna. The Pandavas were celebrating their great victory over Karna. The Kauravas felt utterly hopeless as Karna was their greatest warrior. The Pandavas rejoiced in the fall of their most powerful opponent. But, Krishna was sitting apart and appeared to be immersed in sadness. Arjuna went to him and asked why he was feeling sad on a day when they should be rejoicing over their victory Krishna told him that Bharat had lost its most heroic warrior that day. The hero who had brought glory and good name to Bharat had fallen. ‘I feel immensely sad because the country is losing such a great hero.’
On hearing these words, Arjuna looked at Krishna with a feeling of amused surprise. He said: ‘Krishna! To ensure the victory of the Pandavas you chose the role of charioteer. Because of that, Pandavas won their victory. Instead of rejoicing over this victory, why are you feeling sad over the fall of our enemy?’ On Karna s greatness as warrior and donor, Krishna replied: ‘Karna is the very embodiment of sacrifice. Sacrifice is a synonym for Karna. In the entire world you cannot find one other man equal in the spirit of sacrifice to Karna. In weal or woe, triumph or defeat he could not forget the quality of sacrifice. Have you got that spirit of sacrifice? No.’ Krishna then asked Arjuna to follow Him. Darkness had enveloped the battlefield. Krishna was proceeding with Arjuna. In his sweet voice, Krishna was exclaiming: ‘Karna! Karna!’ Karna was gasping for breath in his last moments. He cried: ‘Who is calling me? I am here.’ Following the direction from which the words came, Krishna went near Karna.
Before approaching Karna, Krishna assumed the form of an indigent Brahmin. Karna asked him, ‘Who are you, Sir?’ Karna was nearing his last breath. Even at that moment, without any hesitation or faltering in his voice, He put that question to the stranger Krishna, as the Brahmin replied: ‘For a long time I have been hearing about your reputation as a charitable person. You have acquired fame as Dana. Karna (Karna the great giver). Today, not knowing about your plight, I came to ask you for a gift. You must give me a donation.’ ‘Certainly, I shall give you whatever you want,’ replied Karna. ‘I have to perform the marriage of my son. I want a small quantity of gold,’ said Krishna. ‘Oh what a pity! Please go to my wife, she will give you as much gold as you need,’ said Karna.
The ‘Brahmin’ broke into laughter He said: ‘For the sake of a little gold have I to go all the way to Hastinapura? If you say, you are nor in a position to give me what I ask I shall leave you.’ Karna opened his mouth, showed the gold fillings in his teeth and said: ‘I shall give this to you. You can take them.’ Assuming a tone of revulsion, Krishna said: ‘What is it you suggest? Do you expect me to break your teeth and rake the gold from them? How can I do such a wicked deed? I am a Brahmin. Karna offers his heart itself to Krishna. Immediately, Karna picked up a stone nearly, knocked out his teeth and offered them to the ‘Brahmin’. Krishna in his guise as ‘Brahmin’ wanted to test Karna further: ‘What? Are you giving me as gift teeth dripping with blood? I cannot accept this. I am leaving,’ He said. Karna pleaded: ‘Swami, please wait for a moment.’ Even while He was unable to move, Karna took our his arrow and aimed it at the sky. Immediately rain dropped from the clouds. Cleaning the teeth with the rain water, Karna offered the teeth with both his hands. Krishna then revealed his original form. Karna asked: ‘Who are you, Sir?’ Krishna said: ‘I am Krishna. I admire your spirit of sacrifice. In any circumstance you have never given up your spirit of sacrifice. Ask me what you want.’ Beholding Krishna s beauteous form, Karna said with folded hands- ‘Krishna! Apad bandhava (reliever of troubles)! Loka-rakshaka (protector of the world)! Oh Lord, who holds the universe in yore palm, what can I seek from you? At riffs moment of my passing, I am fortunate to close my eyes gazing at your Divine form. This is my greatest blessing. This is boon enough for me. To have the vision of the Lord before one s passing is the goal of human existence. You came to me and blessed me with your form. This is enough for me. I offer my salutations to you,’
Arjuna was observing the whole scene. Krishna turned to him and said: ‘Are you prepared for this kind of sacrifice?’ Arjuna bowed his head in silence. The Lord praised the greatness of the quality of sacrifice in man. Of all kinds of sacrifice, the greatest is the sacrifice made for God.
‘Oh Lord! That heart which you gave unto me, I am offering to you. What else can I bring to offer at your lotus feet? I prostrate before you. Please accept my offering.’ This was the prayer addressed by Karna to Krishna. (SSS Vol.30, pp. 7-9)