The Pearl in Mahabaratha

Some books and some movies can hold timeless wisdom for every stage of life and for me and many others and one such book is Mahabaratha and one such movie is “Karnan”. The last time I watched the movie was probably when I was in my early teens on Doordarshan. What fascinated me the most then was the way how a war was orchestrated and how arrows were fired back and forth more than the war of words between kith and kin and the games played by Krishna. Twenty years later at a different stage in my life, what was a watermark “essence of friendship, life and living” then now appeared in focus.

We live in an era where we celebrate a day for every relationships (Father’s day, Mother’s day, women’s day, Friendship day, etc.), we take pride in boosting our friendship counter on FACEBOOK and followers on TWITTER, but in real-life how many of us have a Karna or a Duryodhana besides us? Have we have diluted role of friendship or desecrated the grammar of friendship?

Birth of friendship

Call it discrimination or protection of varnashrama system, in those days’ ones profession was based on the traditional profession in the family and without knowing ones parents it was difficult for one to get accepted into a profession or switch. Doesn’t it look like Michael Porter’s Five Forces Model in Business Management and so Bollywoodish?

Karna was Kunti’s son fathered by Surya (god of light who dispels darkness), but the entire world was kept in dark about his lineage. Though Karna was naturally blessed with talents to excel in archery and using armory and weaponry for combat and warfare, people like Kripacharya and Dronacharya questioned his caste and birth and refused to allow him to compete with Arjuna and rest of the Pandavas. Only a Kshatriya can compete with the Kshatriya was put forward for an argument.

Engaging in competitions and warfare to prove ones might is Kshatriya dharma and disqualifying a naturally innate and adept warrior was Karna’s sore point. How could he ignore the Kshatriya instinct in him? Watching the Lion in Karna wiggle like a worm from the insult, Duryodhana from the Kaurava’s side came to his rescue. Though he didn’t solve Karna’s identity crisis, but he bequeathed him with a kingdom and made him eligible to compete with Arjuna in front of the same audience where he was insulted and rejected.

Karna shared no relationship with his biological mother, who gave him away at birth, and he neither had any brothers from his foster parents to enjoy their warm and love. His relationship with Duryodhana was the only relationship Karna could count on apart from his foster parents. Duryodhana made him a King, helped me get married and stayed besides him all through Karna’s prime years. The spirit of Kshatriya in Karna was identified, respected, restored, and honored by Duryodhana. While the same Duryodhana was not willing give away even five houses to Pandavas after they lost in the game of dice. And Karna reciprocated with gratitude when he had to go to the field to fight against Pandavas and he even took his only son to fight for Kauravas. What an ode to friendship!

Ploy of Krishna

Krishna was very much aware of Karna strengths and Pandavas and Krishna would stand no match and a chance to victory if they were to engage in a fight.

He starts the ploy by sending Indra to seek Karna’s kavacham (vest) and Kundalam (ear drops) which had the power to make him invincible.

Then he send a bee to sting Karna while he is with Parasurama (to learn the finer aspects of archery), thereby exposing Karna’s kshatriya lineage (given by Duryodhana) and begetting Parasurama’s curse.

At a later point he reminds Kunti of her first son and convinces her to go and see Karna and seek two boons to save her other five sons.

On the war field, he breached the “rules of combat” by asking Arjuna to kill Karna’s child on the pretext of protecting dharma. May be Krishna was jealous to see Karna’s deep vein gratitude towards a friend? What is wrong in showing your gratitude to your friend who has given you a life that a mother and five brothers couldn’t give you? Didn’t Krishna bequeath wealth on his childhood friend Kuchela?

He breached it the second time by asking Arjuna to use the moment and get Karna when he had turned his back and was trying to get the chariot wheel from the pit. Krishna knew Arjuna and he could not stand Karna’s might and fury otherwise.

And finally a few minutes before Karna’s demise, he appears as an old man and seeking all of Karna’s punya. What a sucker!

Karna the pearl!

An oyster mothers a pearl, but never claims ownership and such is the tale of Karna. From a mother who gave him away on the day of birth and let him face slew of insults all his life from Pandavas, Kripacharya, Droncharya and his father-in-law, Karna didn’t let anyone take away the qualities of a noble soul. What could be more admired than sacrificing your son’s life as a mark as gratitude towards Duryodhana. He was the most betrayed character in Mahabaratha yet he remained a pearl in the epic.

Karna knew everything that was happening around him. Infact his guru Parashurama appeared in his dream and told him about the defeat of Kauravas and his curse, but nevertheless Karna stood by his friend, Duryodhana.

Karna never used any dishonest means to win the war like Krishna or Arjuna. During his battle with Arjuna, when a blow from one of Karna's arrows  renderes Arjuna unconscious, the cobra king Ashwasen creeps out of hiding from Karna's chariot and asks Karna if he may use his poison against Arjuna, because Arjuna had burnt his forest to the ground. Karna refused. He said he will not use a snake against any human, because it would be treachery towards humanity.

Should we live like Karna or should we die like Karna can be a very interesting debate.

He gave away everything that could make him invincible from his vest, kundalam, boons to his mother, and finally in his death bed even gave away his punya from earlier births, but held on to his friendship with Duryodhana.

He was never worried about death and puts his chest out readies to face the judgment, while almighty Krishna felt ashamed and comes around to seek forgiveness for his deeds. Karna gave all his life and in the end he forgives almighty for his deeds. Even Dharma devata tears to see her son, Karna collapse. That is the power of dharma, even god is not excluded. What an honor at death!

If not a birth like him, a life and death like him would be the greatest boon.