The Curse or Karna

Hello Readers!
This blog is a response to a task given by Megha Ma'am as a part of our study Unit 'Curse or Karna' By T .P. Kailasam.

Tyagraj Paramasiva Iyer Kailasam (Kannada: ತ್ಯಾಗರಾಜ ಪರಮಶಿವ ಐಯ್ಯರ್ ಕೈಲಾಸಂ, 1884–1946), was an Indian playwright and prominent writer in the Kannada literature. Literary criticism in Kannada literature is said to have started for the first time by Kailasam in his works.

• The father of humorous plays and introduced simple and realistic sets for drama.Called "Kannadake obbane Kailasam" means "One and only Kailasam for Kannada". He was known for Wit and Satirical commentary on Society.

About the Text

The Karna Parva (Sanskrit: कर्ण पर्व), or the Book of Karna, is the eighth of eighteen books of the Indian Epic Mahabharata. Karna Parva traditionally has 96 chapters.The critical edition of Karna Parva has 69 chapters.

Karna Parva describes the appointment of Karna as the third commander-in-chief of the Kaurava alliance. The Parva recites how war begins to tire and frustrate everyone. This book describes how brutal war leads to horrifying behavior over the 16th and 17th day of the 18-day Kurukshetra War. Karna who is critically acclaimed as the hero of the Mahabharata is the greatest archers of all time equivalent to Parshurama and lord Rama himself.

Karna Parva includes a treatise by Aswatthama which focuses on the motive of the deeds of human life. The crowning incident of this Parva is the final confrontation between Karna and Arjuna, in which Karna is killed.

Curse or Karna is a text based on the life of a character named Karna from the great Epic Mahabharat

Written by Ved Vyas. It was published on 10th September, 1946 and re-published in 29th July, 1969.It had an impression of Sophocles in Five acts.It is based on a Tragic Character of Mahabharata."Even he used Classical themes, his purpose was Contemporary" - Dr. S Radhakrishnan, Vice President of India (1960).

Here are two questions and their answers according to my understanding 

6) Discuss the Various themes found in “The Curse”.

Beginning of Curse in Karna's life:  Kunti, the princess was given a boon by sage Durvasa that she could invoke a mantra and call any god and have a child. While still unmarried, she called Surya (sun god) and Karna was born.

Kunti, was ashamed of this “bastard” and didn’t know how to explain the birth. So she put the child in a basket on a river

One Chariot from Hastinapur got this floating child and he and his wife Radha accepted him as theire child and Karna grew up at their home.

Karna was brought up by a charioteer, a class much lower than the mighty Kshatriyas.

Three main Curse Karna got from his Tragic Fate:

1. Curse from his Guru, Parshuram as he learned archery from him by telling him that he is a Brahmin. Undaunted with a thirst for learning, he disguised himself as a brahmin to learn.

2. Curse of killing a cow by mistake:

Once when Karna was practicing his archery, he accidentally killed a cow. The cow belonged to a brahmin, who is enraged. He cursed Karna that he will also be killed by an arrow when he is the most helpless.

3. A Curse from mother Earth that he will die Because of Sand.

Once, a small girl was carrying a bowl of ghee to her mother and she accidentally spills it on the ground. She was very afraid that her mother would scold her for this. Karna decided to help her by invoking powerful incantations to squeeze ghee out of Earth itself.

This caused great pain to Mother Earth and she cursed Karna, that when he would be the most vulnerable, she would abandon him.

Thus, his chariot wheel could not be taken out of the mud it was stuck in.

• Karna got rejected by Draupadi as he was low born

 

• Karna got Cheated by Indra, father of Arjun as Indra begged Karna's Kavach and Kundals in disguise of a brahmin.

Karna was born with an impenetrable golden armor – a gift from his father – Surya. Indra – Arjuna’s father – knew that this armor would prevent Karna’s death, and so went in a disguise to ask for the armor.

The armor is not an armor that one puts on like clothes. The armor is attached to him and is a bodily part.

He nevertheless ripped out the armor and gave it away as we would rip out a chunk of flesh from our body.

• Kunti took Promise form Karna not to take her children and his brothers.

When the Kurukshetra war was almost at close, the Pandavas were reeling from the assault by Karna. Karna had defeated every Pandava brother except for Arjuna. One night after the battle, Kunti approached Karna and appealed to him to not kill any Pandavas. Karna agreed and said that Kunti will have all her 5 sons, and he said this in spite of knowing that Kunti is his mother. And this is in spite of Kunti knowing that Karna is her son. She would rather see the five brothers live rather than six.

• Arjun killed Karna when he was not having his Shastras.

1. Karna’s chariot wheel was stuck.
2. And all the curses followed.
3. He forgot the incantations to divine weapons.
4. And Arjuna killed him when he was the most vulnerable.

5) Karna - The voice of Subaltern.

• Subaltern study in the text:

Subaltern, a term refers to the populations that are socially, politically and geographically outside of the colony and of colonial homeland. A subaltern is someone with a low ranking in a social, political, or other hierarchy. It can also mean someone who has been marginalized or oppressed.Karna is a Tragic character with the tragic fate, illegimate, abandoned and lowborn.Marginalized by Gurus, warriors, ling and princess Draupadi.He was just able to speak- " A Brahmin's Curse".HIs identity was of marginalized people, he deserved to be at Centre.

Conclusion : That is how Karna is Marginalized and Unsung hero of Mahabharata. However he was more deserving, capable and loyal than Everyone in the Epic; he met many struggles throughout his life including rejections, curses and got abused overtimes in the epic.

Thank You.