Himalayas - Moutain ranges.

The Himalayas, also Himalaya,  is a mountain range in Asia separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau.

The Himalayan range is home to the planet's highest peaks, including the highest, Mount Everest. The Himalayas include over a hundred mountains exceeding 7,200 metres (23,600 ft) in elevation. By contrast, the highest peak outside Asia – Aconcagua, in the Andes – is 6,961 metres (22,838 ft) tall. The Himalayas have profoundly shaped the cultures of South Asia. Many Himalayan peaks are sacred in both Buddhism and Hinduism.

Besides the Greater Himalayas of these high peaks there are parallel lower ranges. The first foothills, reaching about a thousand meters along the northern edge of the plains, are called the Sivalik Hills or Sub-Himalayan Range. Further north is a higher range reaching two to three thousand meters known as the Lower Himalayan or Mahabharat Range.

The Himalayas abut or cross five countries: Bhutan, India, Nepal, China, and Pakistan, with the first three countries having sovereignty over most of the range. The Himalayas are bordered on the northwest by the Karakoram and Hindu Kush ranges, on the north by the Tibetan Plateau, and on the south by the Indo-Gangetic Plain.

Three of the world's major rivers, the Indus, the Ganges and the Tsangpo-Brahmaputra, all rise near Mount Kailash and cross and encircle the Himalayas. Their combined drainage basin is home to some 600 million people.

Lifted by the collision of the Indian tectonic plate with the Eurasian Plate, the Himalayan range runs, west-northwest to east-southeast, in an arc 2,400 kilometres (1,500 mi) long. Its western anchor, Nanga Parbat, lies just south of the northernmost bend of Indus river, its eastern anchor, Namcha Barwa, just west of the great bend of the Tsangpo river. The range varies in width from 400 kilometres (250 mi) in the west to 150 kilometres (93 mi) in the east.

Ecology

 The flora and fauna of the Himalayas vary with climate, rainfall, altitude, and soils. The climate ranges from tropical at the base of the mountains to permanent ice and snow at the highest elevations. Owing to the mountains' latitude near the Tropic of Cancer, the permanent snow line is among the highest in the world at typically around 5,500 metres (18,000 ft).In contrast, equatorial mountains in New Guinea, the Rwenzoris and Colombia have a snow line some 900 metres (2,950 ft) lower. The amount of yearly rainfall increases from west to east along the southern front of the range. This diversity of altitude, rainfall and soil conditions combined with the very high snow line supports a variety of distinct plant and animal communities. For example the extremes of high altitude (low atmospheric pressure) combined with extreme cold allow extremophile organisms to survive.

The unique floral and faunal wealth of the Himalayas is undergoing structural and compositional changes due to climate change. The increase in temperature may shift various species to higher elevations. The oak forest is being invaded by pine forests in the Garhwal Himalayan region. There are reports of early flowering and fruiting in some tree species, especially rhododendron, apple and Myrica esculenta. The highest known tree species in the Himalayas is Juniperus tibetica located at 4,900 metres (16,080 ft) in Southeastern Tibet.

Geology

The 6,000 km plus journey of the India landmass (Indian Plate) before its collision with Asia (Eurasian Plate) about 40 to 50 million years ago

Geology of the Himalaya

The Himalaya are among the youngest mountain ranges on the planet and consist mostly of uplifted sedimentary and metamorphic rock. According to the modern theory of plate tectonics, their formation is a result of a continental collision or orogeny along the convergent boundary between the Indo-Australian Plate and the Eurasian Plate. The Arakan Yoma highlands in Myanmar and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands in the Bay of Bengal were also formed as a result of this collision.

During the Upper Cretaceous, about 70 million years ago, the north-moving Indo-Australian Plate was moving at about 15 cm per year. About 50 million years ago, this fast moving Indo-Australian plate had completely closed the Tethys Ocean, the existence of which has been determined by sedimentary rocks settled on the ocean floor, and the volcanoes that fringed its edges. Since both plates were composed of low density continental crust, they were thrust faulted and folded into mountain ranges rather than subducting into the mantle along an oceanic trench. An often-cited fact used to illustrate this process is that the summit of Mount Everest is made of marine limestone from this ancient ocean.

Today, the Indo-Australian plate continues to be driven horizontally below the Tibetan plateau, which forces the plateau to continue to move upwards. The Indo-Australian plate is still moving at 67 mm per year, and over the next 10 million years it will travel about 1,500 km into Asia. About 20 mm per year of the India-Asia convergence is absorbed by thrusting along the Himalaya southern front. This leads to the Himalayas rising by about 5 mm per year, making them geologically active. The movement of the Indian plate into the Asian plate also makes this region seismically active, leading to earthquakes from time to time.

During the last ice age, there was a connected ice stream of glaciers between Kangchenjunga in the east and Nanga Parbat in the west. In the west, the glaciers joined with the ice stream network in the Karakoram, and in the north, joined with the former Tibetan inland ice. To the south, outflow glaciers came to an end below an elevation of 1,000–2,000 metres (3,300–6,600 ft). While the current valley glaciers of the Himalaya reach at most 20 to 32 kilometres (12 to 20 mi) in length, several of the main valley glaciers were 60 to 112 kilometres (37 to 70 mi) long during the ice age.The glacier snowline (the altitude where accumulation and ablation of a glacier are balanced) was about 1,400–1,660 metres (4,600–5,450 ft) lower than it is today. Thus, the climate was at least 7.0 to 8.3 °C (12.6 to 14.9 °F) colder than it is today.

The Himalayan range encompasses about 15,000 glaciers, which store about 12,000 km3 (3000 cubic miles) of fresh water. Its glaciers include the Gangotri and Yamunotri (Uttarakhand) and Khumbu glaciers (Mount Everest region), and Zemu (Sikkim).

The higher regions of the Himalayas are snowbound throughout the year, in spite of their proximity to the tropics, and they form the sources of several large perennial rivers, most of which combine into two large river systems:

    The western rivers combine into the Indus Basin, of which the Indus River is the largest. The Indus begins in Tibet at the confluence of Sengge and Gar rivers and flows southwest through India and then through Pakistan to the Arabian Sea. It is fed by the Jhelum, the Chenab, the Ravi, the Beas, and the Sutlej rivers, among others.
    Most of the other\Himalayan rivers drain the Ganges-Brahmaputra Basin. Its main rivers are the Ganges, the Brahmaputra and the Yamuna, as well as other tributaries. The Brahmaputra originates as the Yarlung Tsangpo River in western Tibet, and flows east through Tibet and west through the plains of Assam. The Ganges and the Brahmaputra meet in Bangladesh, and drain into the Bay of Bengal through the world's largest river delta,the Sunderbans.

The easternmost Himalayan rivers feed the Ayeyarwady River, which originates in eastern Tibet and flows south through Myanmar to drain into the Andaman Sea.

The Salween, Mekong, Yangtze and Huang He (Yellow River) all originate from parts of the Tibetan plateau that are geologically distinct from the Himalaya mountains, and are therefore not considered true Himalayan rivers. Some geologists refer to all the rivers collectively as the circum-Himalayan rivers. In recent years, scientists have monitored a notable increase in the rate of glacier retreat across the region as a result of global climate change. For example, Glacial lakes have been forming rapidly on the surface of the debris-covered glaciers in the Bhutan Himalaya during the last few decades. Although the effect of this will not be known for many years, it potentially could mean disaster for the hundreds of millions of people who rely on the glaciers to feed the rivers of northern India during the dry seasons. Some of the lakes present a danger of a glacial lake outburst flood. The Tsho Rolpa glacier lake in the Rolwaling Valley is rated as the most dangerous in Nepal.

 

The Himalayan region is dotted with hundreds of lakes. Most lakes are found at altitudes of less than 5,000 m, with the size of the lakes diminishing with altitude. Tilicho lake in Nepal in the Annapurna massif is one of the highest lakes in the world. Pangong Tso, which is spread across the border between India and China, and Yamdrok Tso, located in central Tibet, are amongst the largest with surface areas of 700 km², and 638 km², respectively. Other notable lakes include Gurudogmar lake, in North Sikkim, and Tsongmo lake, near the Indo-China border in Sikkim.

The mountain lakes are known to geographers as tarns if they are caused by glacial activity. Tarns are found mostly in the upper reaches of the Himalaya, above 5,500 metres.

Impact on climate

The Himalayas have a profound effect on the climate of the Indian subcontinent and the Tibetan plateau. They prevent frigid, dry Arctic winds blowing south into the subcontinent, which keeps South Asia much warmer than corresponding temperate regions in the other continents. It also forms a barrier for the monsoon winds, keeping them from traveling northwards, and causing heavy rainfall in the Terai region. The Himalayas are also believed to play an important part in the formation of Central Asian deserts, such as the Taklamakan and Gobi.

  In Hinduism, the Himalaya have also been personified as the god Himavat, the God of snow, who is mentioned in the Mahabharata. He is father of Ganga and Saraswati, who became rivers, and Parvati, who married Shiva.

Several places in the Himalaya are of religious significance in Hinduism, Jainism, Sikhism, and Buddhism. A notable example of a religious site is Paro Taktsang, where Padmasambhava is said to have founded Buddhism in Bhutan.

A number of Tibetan Buddhist sites are situated in the Himalaya, including the residence of the Dalai Lama. There were over 6,000 monasteries in Tibet. The Tibetan Muslims had their own mosques in Lhasa and Shigatse.

 

   

Paro Taktsang - Buddhist Monastery

Paro Taktsang


Also known as the “Tiger’s Nest”


Paro Taktsang (spa phro stag tshang / spa gro stag tshang) is the popular name of Taktsang Palphug Monastery (also known as the Tiger's Nest), a prominent Himalayan Buddhist sacred site and temple complex, located in the cliffside of the upper Paro valley, in Bhutan. A temple complex was first built in 1692, around the Taktsang Senge Samdup (stag tshang seng ge bsam grub) cave where Guru Padmasambhava is said to have meditated for three years, three months, three weeks, three days and three hours in the 8th century. Padmasambhava is credited with introducing Buddhism to Bhutan and is the tutelary deity of the country. Today, Paro Taktsang is the best known of the thirteen taktsang or "tiger lair" caves in which he meditated.

The Guru mTshan-brgyad Lhakhang, the temple devoted to Padmasambhava (also known as Gu-ru mTshan-brgyad Lhakhang, "the Temple of the Guru with Eight Names") is an elegant structure built around the cave in 1692 by Gyalse Tenzin Rabgye; and has become the cultural icon of Bhutan. A popular festival, known as the Tsechu, held in honor of Padmasambhava, is celebrated in the Paro valley sometime during March or April.

History
Background and legends

According to the legend related to this Taktsang (which in Tibetan language is spelt  (stag tshang) which literally means "Tiger's lair", it is believed that Padmasambhava (Guru Rinpoche) flew to this location from Tibet on the back of a tigress from Khenpajong. This place was consecrated to tame the Tiger demon.


An alternative legend holds that a former wife of an emperor, known as Yeshe Tsogyal, willingly became a disciple of Guru Rinpoche (Padmasambahva) in Tibet. She transformed herself into a tigress and carried the Guru on her back from Tibet to the present location of the Taktsang in Bhutan. In one of the caves here, the Guru then performed meditation and emerged in eight incarnated forms (manifestations) and the place became holy. Subsequently, the place came to be known as the “Tiger's Nest”.


The popular legend of the Taktsang monastery is further embellished with the story of Tenzin Rabgye, who built the temple here in 1692. It has been mentioned by authors that the 8th century guru Padmasmabhava had reincarnated again in the form of Tenzin Rabgye. The corroborative proofs mooted are: that Tenzin Rabgye was seen (by his friends) concurrently inside and outside his cave; even a small quantity of food was adequate to feed all visitors; no one was injured during worship (in spite of the approach track to the monastery being dangerous and slippery); and the people of the Paro valley saw in the sky various animal forms and religious symbols including a shower of flowers that appeared and also vanished in the air without touching the earth.
Establishment as a meditation site

As noted earlier, the monastery was built around the Taktsang Senge Samdup (stag tshang seng ge bsam grub) cave, where custom holds that the Indian Guru Padmasambahva meditated in the 8th century. He flew to this place from Tibet on the back of Yeshe Tsogyal, whom he transformed into a flying tigress for the purpose and landed at the cliff, which he "anointed" as the place for building a monastery. He established Buddhism and the Nyingmapa school of Mahayana Buddhism in Bhutan, and has been considered the “protector saint of Bhutan”. Later, Padmasmbahva visited Bumthang district to subdue a powerful deity offended by a local king. Padmasambhava's body imprint is stated to be imprinted on the wall of a cave near Kurje Lhakhang temple. In 853, Langchen Pelkyi Singye came to the cave to meditate and gave his name of Pelphug to the cave, "Pelkyi's cave". After he died later in Nepal, his body was said to have been miraculously returned to the monastery by the grace of the deity Dorje Legpa; it is now said to be sealed in a chorten in a room to the left at the top of the entrance stairway. The chorten was restored in 1982-83 and again in 2004.


From the 11th century, many Tibetan saints and eminent figures came to Taktsang to meditate, including Milarepa (1040–1123), Pha Dampa Sangye (died 1117), the Tibetan yogini Machig Labdrön (1055–1145) and Thangton Gyelpo (1385–1464). In the latter part of the 12th century, the Lapa School was established in Paro. Between 12th and 17th centuries, many Lamas who came from Tibet established their monasteries in Bhutan. The first sanctuary to be built in the area dates to the 14th century when Sonam Gyeltshen, a Nyingmapa lama of the Kathogpa branch came from Tibet. The paintings he brought can still be faintly discerned on a rock above the principal building although there is no trace of the original one. The Taktsang Ugyen Tsemo complex, which was rebuilt after a fire in 1958 is said to date back to 1408. Taktsang remained under the authority of the Kathogpa lamas for centuries until the mid 17th century.
17th century to present: The modern monastery


In the 17th century the well-known Tertön Pema Lingpa of Bumthang, who founded many monasteries in various parts of Bhutan, was also instrumental in creating religious and secular dance forms from his conception of the 'Zandog Pelri' (the Copper Colored mountain), which was the abode of the Guru Padmasambahva (which is the same place as the Paro Taktsang or Tiger's nest). This dance is performed in Paro as the Tsche festival. But it was during the time of Ngawang Namgyal of the Drukpa subsect, who fled Tibet to escape persecution by the opposing sect of the Gelugpa order (which dominated Tibet under the Dalai Lamas), that an administrative mechanism was established in Bhutan.

In due time, he established himself in Bhutan as a 'model of rulership' and was known as the "Shabdrung" with full authority. He wanted to establish an edifice at the Taktsang Pel Phuk site. It was during a Tibetan invasion of Bhutan in 1644-46 that Shabdrung and his Tibetan Nyingmapa teacher gTer-ston Rig-’dzin sNying-po had invoked Padmasambhava and the protective deities at Taktsang to give them success over the invaders. He performed the bka’ brgyad dgongs ’dus rituals associated with the celebrations of Tshechu. Bhutan won the war against Tibet However, Shabdrung was not able to build a temple at Takstsang to celebrate the event, even though he very much wanted to do so.

The wish of Shabdrung to build a temple here, however, was fulfilled during the 4th Druk Desi Tenzin Rabgye (1638–96), the first, and only successor of Shabdrung Ngawang Namgyel (Zhabs-drung Ngag-dbang rNam-rgyal), "a distant cousin from a collateral line descending from the 15th century ‘crazy saint’ Drukpa Kunley". During his visit to the sacred cave of Taktsang Pel Phuk during the Tshechu season of 1692 he laid the foundation for building the temple dedicated to Guru Rinpoche called the ‘Temple of the Guru with Eight Names’ (’gu ru mtshan brgyad lha-khang). It was a decision taken by Tenzin Rabgye while standing at the cave overlooking the Paro valley. At this time, he was leading the Tshechu festival of religious dances. At that time the only temples reported to be in existence, at higher elevations, were the Zangdo Pelri (Zongs mdog dPalri) and Oxygen Tsemo (Urgyan rTse-mo).
Destruction due to fire

On April 19, 1998, a fire broke out in the main building of the monastery complex, which contained valuable paintings, artifacts and statues. The fire is believed to have been caused by electrical short-circuiting or flickering butter lamps lighting the hanging tapestries. A monk also died during the fire. The restoration works were undertaken at an estimated cost of 135 million ngultrum. The Government of Bhutan and the then King of Bhutan, Jigme Singye Wangchuck, oversaw the restoration of the damaged monastery and its contents in 2005.
Geography


The monastery is located 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) to the north of Paro and hangs on a precipitous cliff at 3,120 metres (10,240 ft), about 900 metres (3,000 ft) above the Paro valley, on the right side of the Paro Chu (‘chu’ Bhutanese means ”river or water”). The rock slopes are very steep (almost vertical) and the monastery buildings are built into the rock face. Though it looks formidable, the monastery complex has access from several directions, such as the northwest path through the forest, from the south along the path used by devotees, and from the north (access over the rocky plateau, which is called the “Hundred Thousand Fairies” known as Bumda (hBum-brag). A mule track leading to it passes through pine forest that is colorfully festooned with moss and prayer flags. On many days, clouds shroud the monastery and give an eerie feeling of remoteness.


On the approach path to the monastery, there is a Lakhang (village level monastery) and a temple of Urgyan Tsemo ("U-rgyan rTse-mo") which, like the main monastery, is located on a rocky plateau with a precipitous projection of several hundred feet over the valley. From this location, the monastery’s buildings are on the opposite ravine, which is known by the name “Copper-Colored Mountain Paradise of Padmasambhava”. This is the view point for visitors and there is a cafeteria to provide refreshments. The trek beyond this point is very scenic with the sound of the water fall breaking the silence. Along the trek route blue pine trees, prayer flags and kiosks selling paraphernalia for worship (such as prayer wheels, temple bells and skulls) are seen. The route is scattered with number of temples. On this path, a large water fall, which drops by 60 metres (200 ft) into a sacred pool, is forded over by a bridge. The track terminates at the main monastery where colorful paintings are displayed. Guru Rinpoche's cave where he meditated is also seen. This cave is opened for public viewing only once a year.

Exterior


The monastery buildings consist of four main temples and residential shelters ideally designed by adapting to the rock (granite) ledges, the caves and the rocky terrain. Out of the eight caves, four are comparatively easy to access. The cave where Padmasmabhava first entered, riding the Tiger, is known as 'Tholu Phuk' and the original cave where he resided and did meditation is known as the 'Pel Phuk'. He directed the spiritually enlightened monks to build the monastery here. The monastery is so precariously perched that it is said: "it clings to the side of the mountain like a gecko". The main cave is entered through a narrow passage. The dark cave houses a dozen images of Bodhisattvas and butter lamps flicker in front of these idols. An elegant image of Chenrezig (Avalokitesvara) is also deified here. In an adjoining small cell, the sacred scripture is placed; the importance of this scripture is that it has been scripted with gold dust and the crushed bone powder of a divine Lama. It is also said that the monks who practice Vajrayana Buddhism (the formal State Religion of Bhutan) at this cave monastery live here for three years and seldom go down to the Paro valley.

All the buildings are interconnected through steps and stairways made in rocks. There are a few rickety wooden bridges along the paths and stairways also to cross over. The temple at the highest level has a frieze of Buddha. Each building has a balcony, which provides lovely views of the scenic Paro valley down below. The Monasteries have ancient history of occupation by monks, as hermitages.
Other structures within the precincts


Taktshang Zangdo Pari is the place where Padmasmbahava’s wife, known as the “Fairy of Wisdom”, Yeshe Tshogyal (Ye-shes mtsho-rgyal), the founder of the Mon, a convent, by the same name as Taktshang and also two other convents. The present caretaker of the place is said to be an old nun supported by a young trainee.

Another important place near the shrine is the Urgyan Tsemo, the “Peak of Urgyan” which has a small Mani Lakhang. The prayer wheel, turned by an old monk, resounds with chimes that are heard every day at 4 am. Above the Urgyan is the holy cave temple known as 'Phaphug Lakhang' (dPal-phug IHa-khang), which is the main shrine of the Taktshang. It is also the residence of the Head Lama, Karma Thupden Chokyi Nyenci.
Paintings


The “Copper-Colored Mountain Paradise of Padmasambahva” (Zangdopari) is vividly displayed in a heart shape on every thangkha and also painted on the walls of the monastery as a constant reminder of the legend. The paintings are set on a pedestal that represents the realm of the King of Nagas amidst Dakinis (mKha-hgro-ma), and the pinnacle in the painting denotes the domain of Brahma. The paintings also depict Klu (Naga) demigods with a human head and the body of a serpent, which are said to reside in lakes (said to denote that they are guarding the hidden treasures). Allegorically, they mean to represent the spiritual holy writings. The paintings also show what is termed as “Walkers in the Sky” (mKha-hgro-ma).

The holy hill is drawn in the backdrop with four faces painted with different colors – the east face is in crystal white color, the south face is yellow, the west is in red color and the north has green color. The palace has four sides and eight corners with its lower and upper tiers adorned with jewels. The courtyard with four enclosures is said to represent four kinds of conduct. The walls are built with bricks, balconies have been bejewelled with religious symbols. The ambience is shown in the form of wishing trees, fountains of the water of life, rain bows in five colors with cloud formations and light emanating from lotus flowers. The palace is also shown with a throne with eight corners fully and curiously bejewelled. Padmasmbahva is shown sitting on a pure stalk of lotus emitting divine energy appearing “divine, charitable, powerful, or fierce”.

Further detailing depicted on the four faces and eight corners, are five kinds of Buddhas suppressing the vicious demons (performing four pious deeds) and placed on thrones that are mounted over the stooping demons. The demons and Khadoms are depicted adorned and seated on four petalled and four faced thrones “adorned with necromantic attributes” enjoying a good time; the Khadoms are seen on the four-sided courtyard of the palace and also on all side walls.

The scene is further embellished around the Guru Rinpoche (Padmashambahava) image and also in the palace, with gods and goddesses in the heavens, with gate keepers at the four gates with an army of messengers and servants; all trying to crush the demons to dust. The supporting staff shown are said to represent the Himalayan tribes of pre-Buddhist periods.

Dattatreya :on occasion of Datta Jayanti.

Dattatreya is a Hindu deity encompassing the trinity of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva, collectively known as Trimurti. The name Dattatreya can be divided into two words - "Datta" (meaning given) and "Atreya" referring to the sage Atri, his physical father.
Various Hindu sects worship him differently. In the Nath tradition, Dattatreya is recognized as an Avatar or incarnation of Shiva and as the Adi-Guru (First Teacher) of the Adinath Sampradaya of the Nathas. Although Dattatreya was at first a "Lord of Yoga" exhibiting distinctly Tantric traits, he was adapted and assimilated into the more devotional (Sanskrit: bhakti) Vaishnavite cults; while still worshiped by millions of Hindus, he is approached more as a benevolent god than as a teacher of the highest essence of Indian thought. However, spiritual seekers pray to this Supreme Teacher for knowledge of the Absolute Truth. Dattatreya is credited as the author of the Tripura Rahasya given to Parasurama, a treatise on Advaita Vedanta. He is specially worshipped on his birthday, Datta Jayanti.

Life

Birth
Dattatreya was born to the sage Atri, who had been promised by Parameshvara (the Almighty), that He, Parameshvara, would be incarnated as his son.Some Hindu sects familiar with the trinity also attribute Dattatreya's incarnation as of all the three- Vishnu, Shiva and Brahma, indirectly meaning to be all powerful and above all. This is just one of the many legends related to the birth of Lord Dattatreya. Others suggest a more mystical origin of Dattatreya. Some of the sources claim that he was born in Kashmir jungles near the sacred Amarnath.
The same concept is echoed in an episode in the Dattatreya Purana. When Lord Dattatreya, the combined incarnation of the Trinity, was a child of five years, many old sages spotted His greatness and started insisting Him to show them the path of Yoga. The child Datta wanted to test them. He disappeared into a pond and remained there for one hundred years. Some of the sages waited for Him on the banks of the pond while the infant Datta was in a state of complete Samadhi for hundred years. Even after coming out of the pond he continued to test the sages. Dattatreya, who was 105 years old then, brought out His Yogic energy through His Brahma Randhra (an astral orifice found in the center of the skull, through which Yogis can leave the body), and gave it the form of a woman. Because the energy came out from Him, He was its natural owner. He declared her to be His consort. In order to test the sages, she drank wine and started dancing.
She was born as a youthful woman. Seeing her drink wine, some of the sages called her Madhumati. Others called her 'Nadee' because looking at her dance which resembled the dancing movements of a flooded river. Still others realized that she was none other than the Yogic Energy of Lord and prayed to Him. Some others went away.
Then Lord Dattatreya came out of Samadhi. She now appeared as an ascetic. Lord Dattatreya named her as Anagha. Those who called her as Madhumati and Nadee had identified her as one who possessed sin. But in reality she was sinless. Therefore Dattatreya had named her as Anagha (Sinless, Pure). Those who had recognized her to be the energy of Dattatreya, obtained the true vision of the Lord and could transcend all sorrows. In other words, because of her their sorrows (Agha or sin and sorrow) disappeared. This was another reason why Dattatreya named her as Anagha (one who removes sorrows).
Etymologically, the word Agha means that which comes to the experience of the doer (kartaaram anghaati iti agham. Aghi gatow). He who thinks that he is the doer, will experience pain and pleasure. According to vedantic view, even the worldly pleasure, is in fact pain. Thus, one who thinks oneself to be the doer is always suffering. That energy which removes the feeling of doership is Anagha.
Travels
Dattatreya left home at an early age to wander naked in search of the Absolute. He seems to have spent most of his life wandering in the area between and including North Karnataka, through Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh, and into Gujarat as far as the Narmada River. He attained realization at a town, now known as Ganagapura in Karnataka. The original footprints of Datta are believed to be located on the lonely peak at Girnar. The Tripura-rahasya refers to the disciple Parasurama finding Dattatreya meditating on Gandhamadana mountain.Lord Dattatreya did tapas for 12,000 years in mount girnar.
As an avatar
In The Pathless Path to Immortality, Shri Gurudev Mahendranath writes:
Shri Dattatreya was a dropout of an earlier age than the period when Veda and Tantra merged to become one simple cult. It was men like Dattatreya who helped to make this possible. Three of his close disciples were kings, one an Asura and the other two both belonging to the warrior caste. Dattatreya himself was regarded as an avatar of Maheshwara (Shiva) but later was claimed by Vaishnavites as the avatar of Vishnu. Not such a sectarian claim as it appears; Hindus regard Shiva and Vishnu as the same or as manifestations of the Absolute taking form.
Indeed, the Dattatreya Upanisad, which opens proclaiming Dattatreya's identity with Vishnu, ends with the mantra Om Namah Shivaya, identifying Datta with Shiva. In the last portion of the third chapter, Mahesvara (Shiva) alone is said to pervade reality and shine in every heart of man. He alone is in front, behind, to the left, to the right, below, above, everywhere the center. Finally, Mahesvara is identified with Dattatreya, depicting the latter as an Avatar of Shiva.
Guru Gobind Singh writes in the Dasam Granth that Dattatreya (Datt Muni, Datt Dev etc.) was an incarnation of Rudra (The Supreme Power). He has written the whole story of Dattatreya's life.
Appearance



The appearance of Shri Dattatreya in pictures varies according to traditional beliefs. The most commonly trusted form is the one described as below
(I bow to the son of Atri, who has six hands and whose lowest two hands have maalaa and kamandalu, middle pair of hands hold damaru and trishool and top two hands have holy Shankh and Chakra) Other depictions, however, show other weapons like 'Gada' in the hands of Dattatreya sometimes. http://www.dallashanuman.org/emailimages/dec10/dattaAnagha.jpg
The nectar of the honey-bee

Rigopoulos (1998: p.xii) conveys the motif of the '"honey bee" Yogin' (as an aside, the literary point of origin of this motif may be the Nad-Bindu Upanishad of the Rig Veda) common to nondual Dharmic Traditions and champions Dattatreya as the archetypal model of inclusionism and syncretism by implication:
Furthermore, the unfolding of the Dattatreya icon illustrates the development of Yoga as a synthetic and inclusive body of ideologies and practices. Although fundamentally a jñana-murti, Dattatreya is a "honey bee" Yogin: one whose character and teachings are developed by gathering varieties of Yoga's flowers. For all religious groups whose propensity it is to include ideas, practices, and teaching from the ocean of traditions, Dattatreya is truly a paradigm.
Dogs
Werness (2004: p. 138) ventures the semiology of the four dogs each of a different colour oft-depicted in Dattatreya iconography as holding the valence of the four Vedas:
Pre-Vedic Indian dogs were regarded as auspicious symbols, and later deities assumed dog forms, became associated with dogs, and were linked with the glory and fidelity of warriors. Four different-coloured dogs accompanied the Dattatreya, who represented the four Vedas...
There is other symbolism attachable here. Dogs also held the cultural significance of 'dog eaters' (Sanskrit: candala), those who existed beyond the confines of Varnashrama Dharma. Dogs are both wild and tame, and symbols of fidelity and devotion (Sanskrit: bhakti).
Origins

Dattatreya is one of the oldest deities. The first reference of this deity is found in epics like Mahabharata and Ramayana. In Mahanubhav panth Dattatreya is worshipped as the Supreme Lord who wanders on the earth taking different forms. Even today He is believed to appear before yogya purush(men who have cleansed themselves and are worthy of moksha).
In the Dattatreya Upanishad which is a part of the Atharva Veda, he is described as being able to appear in the form of a child, madman, or demon in order to help his devotees achieve moksha, liberation from the bonds of worldly existence.
The single head for Dattatreya can be explained if one sees the Tantric traditions which prevailed in India about 1000 years back. It was Gorakshanath who changed/removed the aghori traditions and made the Nath sampradaya in the acceptable civil form of today. Dattatreya must have been a very powerful sage existing before this time and over the centuries sometime he was defined to the form of Dattatreya. The three heads have come definitely later in the last 900 years or so.
Avatars

According to the book "Shridattareya Shodashavatar Charitanee" by Shri Vasudevananda Saraswati, Dattatreya is supposed to have taken 16 Avatars. The names and their birthdate (as per the Lunar calendar) are given in brackets.
Yogiraaj (Kaartik Shu.15)
Atrivarad (Kaartik Kru.1)
Dattatreya (Kaartik Kru.2)
Kaalaagnishaman (Maargashirsha Shu.14)
Yogijanvallabh (Maargashirsha Shu.15)
Lilaavishambhar (Paush Shu.15)
Siddharaaj (Maagh Shu.15)
Dnyaasaagar (Faalgun Shu.10)
Vishambhar (Chaitra Shu.15)
Maayaamukta (Vaishaakh Shu.15)
Maayaamukta (Jyeshtha Shu.13)
Aadiguru (Aashaadh Shu.15)
Shivarup (Shraavan Shu.8)
Devdev (Bhaadrapad Shu.14)
Digambar (Aashwin Shu.15)
Krishnashyaamkamalnayan (Kaartik Shu.12)
In the Dasopanta tradition, all 16 are worshiped and Dasopanta is considered as the 17th avatara.
In the Datta Sampradaya the first avatar is Shripad Shri Vallabh and the second is Narasimha Saraswati. Akkalkot Swami Samarth, Shri Vasudevanand Saraswati (Tembe Swami, Sawantwadi) Manik Prabhu, Krishna Saraswati, Shirdi Sai Baba (Shirdi, Maharashtra), Gajanan Maharaj (Shegaon) and Pujya Sri Ganapathi Sachchidananda Swamiji are also considered as avatars of Dattatreya.
The Upanishads Avadhutopanishad and Jaabaaldarshanopanishad mention that this philosophy was put forward by Dattatreya.
Avadhuta Gita

According to the International Nath Order of the Nath Sampradaya, the "Avadhuta Gita is a distillation of the sublime realization sung by Dattatreya and transcribed by two of his disciples, Swami and Kartika." Swami Vivekananda (1863–1902) held it in high esteem. Originally a work of seven chapters, some of the ideas in this Gita are however common to both Shaivite and Buddhist Tantras, and Vaishnava Agamas.
Dattatreya traditions

Following are the various traditions of Dattatreya described in brief. The traditions are mainly from Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, and were first written in Gujarati, Marathi, Kannada and Telugu. Guru Gita by BAPU (prabhakar Motiwale, Indore)
Puranic tradition
The ancient disciples of Dattatreya have been described above. Among these, Karatavirya Sahasrajun is often seen as his favourite. The other ones are, traditionally, Alarka (alias Madalasa-garbharatna), King Aayu from Somavansha, King Yadu (son of Yayaati and Devayaani) of Yadavs (Krishna's dynasty) and Shri Parashurama alias Bhargava. There is one more by the name of Saankruti, who is mentioned in the Avadhutopanishad and Jabalopanishad.
Mahanubhav tradition
Mahanubhav Panth, propagated by Sri Chakradhar Swami, considers Dattatreya to be their Adi Guru (the original Guru). Sri Chakradhar Swami disclosed to His disciples that Dattatreya, like Him, was an incarnation of Supreme Lord, Parmeshwar. They worship Dattatreya as single headed with two arms. According to their belief, his avatar is chaturyugi i.e. it remains in all four yugas, viz. Satyug, Tretayug, Dwaparyug, Kaliyug. He still wanders in different bodies, like those of an avadhut, baagh (tiger), hunter, or sage. Srimad Bhagwatam's tenth volume mentions Dattatreya's discourse as given to king Yadu in the tretayug. On seeing Dattatreya disguised in avadhut form, king Yadu got instantly attracted towards Him and begged to bestow him with secrets to attain Moksha. Dattatreya Prabhu gave him Brahmjnaan and went away into the wilderness. The same was shared by Krishna with prince Uddhav in dwaparyug and is scripted in Eleventh Canto of the Srimad Bhagwatam. This story is associated with the origin of the nam, Uddhav Geeta, given by the Mahanubhav followers. Even today, many followers visit places in Maharashtra where Sri Dattatreya is believed to have gone. Sri Datt jayanti usually falls in December and that is time of the year Maharashtra attracts many disciples.
Shri Gurucharitra tradition
This tradition follows from Shripad Shrivallabha and Shri Narasimha Saraswati. Several very famous Datta-avatars are from this tradition. Such traditionally include Shri Janardanswami, Eknath, Dasopant, Niranjan Raghunath, Narayan Maharaj Jalwankar, Manik Prabhu, Swami Samarth, Sai Baba of Shirdi, Gajanan Maharaj of Shegoan, Shri Vasudevananda Saraswati et al. The disciples of Shri Narasimha Saraswati were Trivikrambharati from Kumasi, Sayamdev, Nagnath, Devrao Gangadhar and Saraswati Gangadhar from Kadaganchi. There are two major traditions started by Shri Swami Samarth of Akkalkot and Shri Vasudevananda Saraswati alias Tembe Swami, and they are described in their respective articles.
Sakalmat Sampradaya tradition
The meaning of sakalmat is that all faiths are accepted (Sakala means All and mata means opinion, but here we have to take the meaning as faith). This is a form of Datta-sampradaya which is called Rajyogi or Royal type. Shri Chaitanya Dev is the main worshipped god here and this sampradaya views gold, pearls, diamonds, expensive clothes and music, art, etc. as part of tradition. Here poor and rich are considered as the same. Thus all the materialistic items are viewed at par with nothing. The philosophy of this tradition is that there is no resistance to any kind of religious faiths in the world. All faiths are believed to give the ultimate godliness to its followers. This tradition was started by Shri Manik Prabhu of Humanabad. Hindus, Muslims and people of all castes are allowed here. Some disciples of this tradition are Bapacharya, Narayan Dikshit, Chimnya Bramhachari and Gopalbua.
Avadhut Panth tradition
The Avadhut panth or sect was started by Shri Pantmaharaj Balekundrikar of Balekundri near Belgaum. More information on the Avadhut philosophy and tradition is described in the article on Avadhut. The main disciples of this tradition are Govindaraoji, Gopalraoji, Shankarraoji, Vamanrao and Narasimharao. These are all called "Panta-bandhu"s ('Panta-brothers'). This sampradaya is spread across Balekundri, Daddi, Belgaum, Akol, Kochari, Nerali, Dharwad, Gokak and Hubali. Param pujya BAPU ji maharaj in Chaitanya Ashram, shri Datta shakti pithh, Indore, Madhya Pradesh gives teaching of the awadhoot sect.
In Maharastra
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Ek Mukhi Dattatreya Temple at Vengurla is a very old Lord Dattatreya Temple, almost 800 years old. This Temple is located near Vengurla Town. The Idol of this Temple was brought from Narsimavadi from the relatives of Gavaskar (Sunil Gavaskar). This Idol is very beautiful.
A one headed with four hands Dattatreya is in another ancient temple situated at Kolhapur City. This Temple is in the premises of Lord Vithhala Temple near Mirajkar Tikatti. In Nashik at Talegaon (Anjeneri) Pujya Bhaumaharaj Swarge did his Gurumaharajs Rangavdhoot (Nareshwer) holy task of spreading message of paraspro dev bhavo & swase swase dattanamsmaratman all over Maharashtra.
Ek Mukhi Datta of Narayanpur pune is also a famous temple in the Pune region. Narayanpur is situated at the bottom of the famous Purandar fort. Narayanpur is the village of Sant Changdev. It is also famous for Lord Datta's Temple. This temple is popular amongst the pilgrims and many people visit and pray during the season. A tree of "Audumbar" here is very old and is worshiped by pilgrims. There is also an old temple of Narayaneshwar. This temple and 3 sculptures in the temple are very pretty. These sculptures are said to be of 'Yadav' era. Narayanpur must be seen by both - the pilgrims as well as the nature lovers - because of 2 temples, "Lord Datta" and "Narayaneshwar", and the beauty of the Purandar valley.
There is a beautiful temple of Lord Dattatreya in Devgad (deogad)  of Ahmednagar district. Many people visit this temple to take blessings of Lord Dattatreya and Kisangiri Maharaj. For more information, you can visit Deogad.com
There is an old temple of Shree Datta in Vakola, Mumbai which was built in the year 1924 at the behest of a North Indian Sadhu, who declared that the place is a gupt-sthana of Lord Datta. For more information please visit http://www.shreegurudevdattamandirvakola.com/history.html.
In Gujarat
Shri Vamanbua Vaidya from Baroda is from the tradition of Shri Kalavit Swami. His philosophical tradition has been furthered by Saswadkar, and Pattankar. The temple of Narasimha Saraswati in Baroda continues this tradition of Dattatreya devotion. The main Dattatreya devotees who spread the Datta-panth in Gujarat were Pandurang Maharaj of Naareshwar or Shri Rang Avadhut. Shri Rang Avadhut's Disciple was Shri Bal Avadhut Of Gamakshetra, Matar, Dist. Kheda, GUJARAT
Maharshi Punitachariji Maharaj is a devotee of Bhagvan Dattatreya who resides in Gujarat at the Girnar Sadhana Ashram, Junadadh. He claims to have experienced a divine vision of Bhagvan Dattatreya on 15 November 1975. He recommends spontaneous meditation (sahaj dhyan) and the mantra 'Hari om tatsat jai gurudatta' to his followers, the latter purportedly given by Bhagvan Dattatreya.
Gujarati bhajans like Dattabavani and the book Gurulilamrut written by Rang Avadhoot maharaaj at Nareshwar on Narmada are quite famous. Dr. H. S. Joshi has written the book Origin and Development of Dattatreya Worship in India.
In M.P and all western India PP Nana Maharaj Taranekar ji Indore, who was a grihastha, a house holder and Enlightened soul, spread the message of Dutta, useful to common man and family needs in these parts of India and abroad. The 'Karuna Tripadee' mandals all around reinforce the need for daily prayers of Dutta's message to all.
Shri Dattpith Sansthan Pathri
There is a beautiful temple of lord Dattatreya, amidst the serene and quiet natural surroundings of Vanki river, at the village Pathari, 7 km from Valsad city (dist valsad) Gujarat, and 3 km from the Dharampur road highway.
Param pujya ansuyamataji hailing from maharastrian Brahmin family, along with her son and disciple gurudas swamiji walked the whole of India twice. They did “shri datt upasana” in the jungles for many years. Lord Dattatreya gave them darshan on being pleased with their “bhakti” and showed them this place and told them to build datt pith and to settle there.
This datt pith lies on a 7 acre land near Vanki river. It is called the “vishram sthala” as it is 700 km from Siddhkshetra Gangapur and 700 km from Pathri to Girnar (datt prabhu’s paduka). The inauguration and pran prathistha of the temple was done by the shankracharya of Larvir Peeth and the yagna was performed by the vidvan Brahmins of Gangapur. Website - http://shridattpithsansthanpathri.wordpress.com
In Andhra Pradesh
The first avatara of Dattatreya, Shri Shripad Shrivallabha, was from Pithapuram in Andhra Pradesh. According to an article by Prof. N. Venkatarao there are several connections of the Dattatreya tradition with others in Maharashtra. For example, Maatapur, or Mahur, which is now located in Maharashtra, was once part of the Telangana region. The head of Mahur temple is called Dattatreya Yogi.
Around 1550 CE, Dattatreya Yogi taught the Dattatreya philosophy to his disciple Das Gosavi in Marathi. Das Gosavi then taught this philosophy to his two Telugu disciples Gopalbhatt and Sarvaved who studied and translated Das Gosavi's book of Vedantavyavaharsangraha into Telugu language. According to Prof. R. C. Dhere, Dattatreya Yogi and Das Gosavi are the original gurus in the Telugu Dattatreya tradition. Prof. Rao states that Dattatreya Shatakamu was written by Paramanandateertha who is equally important in his contributions to the Telugu tradition of Dattatreya. He was a proponent of Advaita philosophy and dedicated his two epics, Anubhavadarpanamu and Shivadnyanamanjari to Shri Dattatreya. His famous Vivekachintamani book was translated into Kannada by Nijashivagunayogi and Lingayat saint Shanatalingaswami translated this into Marathi.

        ||Good wishes on the occasion of Dattareya Jayanthi||
       

Arjuna :Story from Mahabharata.

Arjuna


Arjuna  is the third of the Pandavas, the sons and princes of Pandu, who, with Krishna,Mahabharata. In his role in the Mahabharata, Arjuna is a key part of the Bhagavad Gita, which is perhaps the best known sacred Hindu text in the West.

Arjuna was considered the finest archer and a peerless warrior by many notable figures in the Mahabharata, such as Bhishma, Dronacharya, Krishna, Vidura, Sage Narada and Dhritarashtra. According to his rival Karna, only Shiva would not fear the sight of Arjuna bearing down on him. He played a key role in ensuring the defeat of the Kauravas in the Kurukshetra War. He was considered to be an undefeated hero, claimed to have never tasted defeat until losing the dice game to his cousins. Arjuna was an avatar of Nara, who along with the avatar of Narayana, Krishna, established Dharma in the Dvapara Yuga.

He was the student of Drona. He also learned archery with Kirants of Nepal in a disguise as Kirants were renown archers of that time.

His grandson, Parikshit, ends up being the sole heir to Hastinapur. Married multiple times, Arjuna married Draupadi, Subhadra, Uloopi, and Chitrangada. His children included Strutakirti, Abhimanyu, Babruvahana, and Iravan.


Etymology and other names

The Mahabharata refers to Arjuna by twelve different names.

In the story, these names are conveyed to the reader when Prince Uttar of Matsya asks Arjuna to prove his identity. The names and their meanings are as follow:.

    Arjun - one of taintless fame and glow like silver
    Phalgun - one born on the star of Phalguna
    Jishnu - conqueror of enemies
    Kiriti - one who wears the celestial diadem, Kiriti, presented by Indra
    Swetavahana - one with white horses mounted to his chariot
    Vibhatsu - one who always fights wars in a fair manner
    Vijaya - victorious warrior
    Paarth or Paartha - son of Pritha or Kunti. Incidentally his father is the Lord of Heavens, Indra.
    Savyasachi - skillful in using both arms, ambidextrous
    Dhananjay - one who conquers bows (dhanush) referring to his skills as an archer
    Gudakesh - One who has conquered sleep (gudaka "sleep")
    Kapi Dhwaj - Having flag of Kapi (Monkey) in his chariot (Arjuna's flag displayed an image of Hanuman from a previous encounter)
    Parantap - one who concentrates the most, destroyer of enemies from his concentration

Birth and early years
Pandu Shoots the Ascetic Kindama

Once, a Brahmin sage named Kindama and his wife were making love in the forest when Arjuna's father Pandu accidentally shot at them, mistaking them for a deer. Before dying, Kindama cursed the king to die when he engages in sex. Due to this curse, Pandu was unable to father children. As an additional penance for the murder, as well as his own declining health, Pandu abdicated the throne of Hastinapura and retired to the forest. His blind brother Dhritarashtra, the original heir, took over the reins of the kingdom.

After Pandu's disability, the Pandavas were conceived in an unusual way. His mother, Kunti, had in her youth been granted the power to invoke the Devas by SageDurvasa. Each Deva, when invoked, would impregnate her with a child. Urged by Pandu to use her boons, Kunti gave birth to Arjuna by invoking the Lord of Heaven, Indra. According to popular legend, no other birth in the Mahabharata except Krishna's was celebrated by the devas, sages and apsaras. Arjuna was the third Pandava, after Yudhishthira and Bhima. Younger to him were Pandu's twin sons begotten of Madri, Nakula and Sahadeva. Like Arjuna, all of them were devakin.

After the death of Pandu (and Madri's subsequent suicide), the Pandavas and their mother returned to Hastinapur. With Duryodhana's status as the Kuru heir now contested, there was a lot of fighting between the Pandavas and the Kauravas. Along with his brothers, Arjuna was trained in religion, science, administration and military arts by the Kuru-guru Kripacharya and "Grandsire" Bhisma.

One day, when the princes were playing a game, they lost their ball in a well. When the rest of the children gave up the ball as being lost, Arjuna stayed behind trying to get it. A stranger came by and extracted the ball for him using divine weapons. When Arjuna related the story to Bhishma, Bhishma realized that the stranger was none other than Dronacharya. Bhisma tracked down the sage and asked him to become the Kuru princes' teacher. Seeking asylum from Panchal, Drona agreed.

Tutelage under Drona

Under Drona's tutelage, the Kauravas and the Pandavas, along with the princes of Hastinapur's allies and vassals, learned weaponry. Arjuna became Drona's favorite and most accomplished pupil; specifically, he became a master in using the bow and the arrow. In a famous incident, Drona deemed that out of all his students, even his own son Ashwatthama, none but Arjuna had the steadfast focus to shoot the eye of a bird on a tree; he was proven right.

In two other incidents, the reader sees how Arjuna's destiny is shaped. Arjuna was the only one with the skill and fortitude to save his teacher from an attack from a crocodile. In reality, the attack was a ruse Drona used to test his students. In another story, Arjuna, noticing Bhima eating in the dark, trained himself to shoot accurately without visualizing his target. Impressed by Arjuna, Drona promised his pupil that he would make Arjuna the greatest archer that ever lived or ever would live. Drona adhered to this vow so strongly, that when he discovered a Kirant prince Ekalavya of superior archery skill, Drona tricked him into cutting off the thumb of his hand(needed to string the bow).

As part of his gurudakshina, Arjuna and his brothers, with no other soldiers, attacked Panchal and captured King Drupada, with Arjuna making the arrest himself. Drona requested this in order to settle an old grudge he had with Drupada. Secretly, Drupada was greatly impressed by Arjuna and wished for him to marry his daughter, Draupadi.

At the end of their training, the Kuru princes displayed their talents to their elders in an arena. There, Arjuna stole the show, using divine weapons to great effect. However, before he can be crowned as the victor of the tournament, he gets challenged by Karna. Due to his low birth, Karna was not allowed to compete and gets insulted by the Pandavas for being a sutaputra; this started the beginning of a feud between Karna and Arjuna that lasted until the end of the story.

As the Pandavas and Kauravas grew older, a crown prince had to be named. Yudhishthira won the nomination over Duryodhana. Angered, Duryodhana plotted with his uncle Shakuni, who masterminded a plan to kill the Pandavas. The Kauravas have a house of wax built; they desired to send the Pandavas vacationing to the wax house, under some pretense, before setting the house on fire. Alerted of the scheme by Vidura, the Pandavas evaded the trap. Arjuna and Bhima wanted to declare war, but Yudhisthira cooled them down. Under his orders, Arjuna, Kunti, and the Pandavas faked their deaths and went into hiding.

Marriage to Draupadi


Still in hiding, the Pandavas disguised themselves as brahmins and attended the Swayamvara of Panchala princess Draupadi. Out of all of the great kings and other Kaurava princes, Arjuna was the only one able to pass the established challenge: lift, string, and fire Pinakin to pierce the eye of a golden fish whilst only looking at its reflection. This test demanded concentration, sense of timing, and precision of an archer. Drupada had designed this test with Arjuna in mind.

In some versions of the story, Arjuna is forbidden by Kunti to attend the Swayamvara. Kunti's reasoning is that Yudhishthira or Duryodhana would be the only acceptable candidates for Draupadi's hand; anyone else, not set to inherit the throne, would be an insult to Panchal. She allows Bhima to attend because he is Yudhishthira's heir and could win Draupadi for his brother without controversy. When Arjuna disobeys her anyways, as he is firing the arrow, he swears to God that if wins Draupadi's hand, he would never disobey his mother's commands.

When the brothers returned with Draupadi, Arjuna joked to his mother that they had brought alms. Dismissingly and without looking, Kunti, per habit, asked him to share it with his brothers. Holding his mother's orders as a divine command(or in some cases, because of Arjuna's promise to God), Arjuna unquestionably agreed, and even refused to back down when his brothers and Kunti attempted to talk him down. Draupadi had to marry all five of the Pandavas. Her five sons, one each from a Pandava brother are known as the Upapandavas. Srutakirti was the son of Arjuna.

The brothers followed Narada's advice on a sharing arrangement with regard to Draupadi: each brother would have exclusive rights over her for a year, after which the mantle will shift to the next brother. Moreover, any brother intruding on the privacy of the couple would have to go on a twelve year Tirtha-yatra.

At this point in the Mahabhartha, the Pandavas revealed that they were alive. With both Duryodhana and Yudhishthira being crown princes, tension were high. Under Bhisma's advice, the kingdom was split, with the Kauravas getting Hastinapur and the Pandavas getting Khandavaprastha. With Khandavaprastha being very underdeveloped and having infertile soil, requiring tilling, the Pandavas set to work rebuilding the land. Their second-cousins Krishna and Balarama gave them aid.

Burning of Khandava Vana

In some versions of the story, this was the first time Arjuna meets Krishna. In any case, Khandavaprastha was where Arjuna and Krishna's friendship is truly forged. Once when roaming in the Khandava Vana, Arjuna and Krishna met the god of fire, Agni. Agni was in great hunger and needed to burn down the entire Khandava Vana to quench his hunger. But Takshaka, the serpent-king lived in the same forest and was a friend of Indra's. So the latter brought down heavy rains to thwart Agni's plans to burn the woods. Agni requested Krishna and Arjuna to help him realize his goal.

The three of them then invoked Varuna, the God of the oceans, who blessed Arjuna with the Gandiva – the moon bow created by Brahma. In this way, Arjuna came into possession of his famous bow. Agni also gave Arjuna an incandescent chariot with four horses yoked, and bearing a flag that would one-day be occupied by Hanuman. Arjuna also obtained his famous conch.

With Krishna using the Sudarshana Chakra granted to him by Vyasa(or in some versions, Agni), Arjuna and Krishna waged a successful battle against Indra and helped Agni burn down the entire Khandava Vana including all its demons and evil spirits. Indra's anger was metered by his pride in his son.
Saving Mayasura

Srikrishna offer to build a palace, to mayasura

In their demolition of Khandava Krishna and Arjuna had saved one demon, Mayasura. Owing Arjuna a boon, Mayasura told that he would build a palace for Yudhishtra. As Mayasura was a great architect of the Asuras, he soon constructed the Maya assembly hall – a gigantic palace for the Pandavas, filled with ancient books, artifacts, and jewels. Thus, Khandavaprastha was renamed Indraprastha.

Arjuna's Tirtha-yatra and Indraprastha

During an incident where dacoits are attacking some farmers, Arjuna was forced to violate Yudhishthira and Draupadi's privacy, as he had left the Gandiva in their room. Despite the understanding of all and being forgiven by both Yudhishthira and Draupadi, Arjuna accepted the punishment agreed with Narada and set off on a twelve-year tirtha-yatra.

Ulupi meets Arjuna

Arjuna started his pilgrimage by visiting the source of river Ganga. It was here that he accidentally met the Naga princess, Uloopi. She was deeply infatuated by him and the couple were drawn into days of passionate love-making (in some stories Uloopi hits Arjuna with love potions). Before departing, Ulupi granted him the boon of invincibility in water bodies. Iravan was Arjuna's son with Ulupi.

However, Arjuna was reluctant to marry Uloopi, as because of all the magic Uloopi had used to keep him in the netherworld, Arjuna would remember none of what had happened. After he learns of her pregnancy, he consents to the marriage.

Chitrangadaa at Manipura

Arjuna visited other Tirthas in India, including Kalinga and the ashrams of the Saptarishis, Agastya, Vasishta and Bhrigu. Finally he reached the palace of Manipur. Here he met king Chitravahana's daughter, Chitrangadaa. He fell in love with her and requested the king for his daughter's hand in marriage. Upon discovering Arjuna's true identity, the king readily agreed. Since Chitrangadaa was his oldest child and Manipur practiced equal primogeniture, which Hastinapur did not practice, the king sought a promise from Arjuna that Chitrangadaa and any of her and Arjuna's children would remain in Manipur as Chitravahana's heirs. Arjuna agreed, and later spent time in the palace until the birth of his son, Babruvahana.



Arjuna moved to other Tirthas, including the southern regions in Kerala. Finally he reached Dwarka, the place where his cousin Krishna resided. Arjuna had, in his childhood, heard about Krishna's beautiful sister, Subhadra. Krishna, wishing to further tie their families, knew of Arjuna's visit and devised a plan to arrange their meet. Accordingly, Arjuna disguised himself as a “yati” and stayed at Subhadra's palace. Soon, the couple managed to fall in love. Because Balarama had already promised Subhadra to his favorite disciple, Duryodhana, Arjuna had to steal Subhadra way. Per Krishna's suggestion, Subhadra was Arjuna's charioteer, proving to all who witnessed that Subhadra was departing of her own free will.

They spent a year together in Dwarka. Later, they moved to a small ashram in Pushkara where they stayed for another year, before moving to Indraprastha after Arjuna's penance had ended. After a few years Abhimanyu was born to Arjuna and Subhadra.

Conquest for Rajasuya

Possible route taken by Arjuna for the Rajasuya sacrifice.

Arjuna was sent north by Yudhisthira to subjugate kingdoms for the Rajasuya Yagya, so that he could be crowned Emperor of Indraprastha. The Mahabharata mentions several kingdoms to the east of Indraprastha which were conquered (or otherwise peacefully bent-the-knee) by Arjuna. Some of them are:

    Bhagadatta of Pragjyotisha
    Vrihanta, the king of Uluka
    Modapura, Vamadeva, Sudaman, Susankula, the Northern Ulukas, and the kings of those countries and peoples
    Devaprastha, the city of Senavindu
    Viswagaswa of Puru's race
    Seven tribes called Utsava-sanketa
    Kshatriyas of Kashmir and also king Lohita along with ten minor chiefs
    Trigartas, the Daravas, the Kokonadas, and various other Kshatriyas
    town of Avisari
    Rochamana ruling in Uraga
    Singhapura adi
    Regions Suhma and Sumala
    Valhikas
    Daradas along with the Kambojas
    Robber tribes that dwelt in the north-eastern regions
    Lohas, the eastern Kambojas, and northern Rishikas
    country of the Limpurushas ruled by Durmaputra
    Harataka
    Various lakes and tanks sacred to the Rishis
    regions ruled by the Gandharvas that lay around the Harataka territories. Here the conqueror took, as tribute from the country, numerous excellent horses called Tittiri, Kalmasha, Manduka.
    North Harivarsha
    city of Sakraprastha

Exile

After Yudhisthira succumbed to Shakuni's challenge in the game of dice, the Pandavas were forced to be in exile for 13 years, which included one year in anonymity.
Penance for Pashupatastra
Kiratarjuniya

Indra had promised Arjuna to give him all his weapons sensing an impending war with the Kauravas, on the condition that he would receive the Pashupatastra from Lord Shiva. Following the advice of Sage Vyasa to go on a meditation or "tapasya" to attain this divine weapon, Arjuna left his brothers for a penance.

Arjuna traveled for a while before reaching the mountain [[Indra keeladri, Vijayawada]]. Here he sat in meditation in the name of Lord Shiva. Shiva appeared soon enough in the guise of a hunter, who challenged Arjuna to a fight. While being thoroughly dominated by Shiva, Arjuna became confused as to how an ordinary hunter could best a warrior like himself. He prays to Shiva for strength, and then sees the offerings he made to Shiva around the hunter's neck. Shiva was very pleased with the bravery and prowess of the prince. Consequently, Shiva transformed himself to show his real avatar and blessed Arjuna with the Pashupatastra. Other Devas like Kubera, Yama, Varuna and Indra followed suit and blessed each of their potent weapons to Arjuna. Indra also invited his son to his palace in heaven. Arjuna was amazed at the splendor of his father's palace at Amaravathi. Dancers like Urvashi, Tilottama, Rambha and Menaka entertained him. There was a huge banquet serving different varieties of heavenly dishes. Arjuna learnt song and dance from the Gandharva, Chitrasena. Indra himself taught him to wield the divine weapons and also gifted him with his own Vajra.

Urvashi's curse

Indra noted the passionate glances exchanged between Arjuna and Urvashi during his stay. However, Arjuna refuses her advances, alleging that he had heard of her relationship with his ancestor Pururava, and hence she had the status of a mother, equal in respect to Kunti. Urvashi, annoyed at this, cursed him that he would become a eunuch who would have to live among women, singing and dancing. On Indra's request, and regretting her anger, Urvashi reduced her curse to a period of one year of Arjuna's choice. In some versions of the story, Urvashi curses Arjuna with womanhood, but always reduces the curse to a year's length.

Trial with Devastras : Slaying Rakshasas at heaven
Arjuna gets the opportunity to test his skills with the divine weapons at Indra's palace itself. Arjuna was taken to the palace of the Nivatakavachas, a tribe of Rakshasas who had a magnificent palace under the oceans. Arjuna used the mohini-astra and the madhava-astra to demolish these asuras.

He was also taken to Hiranyapuri, a palace in the sky created by a witch Puloma and his asura tribe of the Kaalakeyas. Here Arjuna uses the Pashupatastra and annihilates the demons.

Meeting Hanuman

Continuing his quest, Arjuna visits the site of Rama Setu in Dhanushkodi. There, he openly questions why, if Rama had been such a great archer, he hadn't simply built the bridge out of arrows. Hearing this, Hanuman gets angry and challenges Arjuna to prove his superiority by building such a bridge, which Hanuman would try to destroy. Tensions escalate until Arjuna pledges to defeat Hanuman or kill himself, going so far as to frivolously use divine weapons to build the bridge, while Hanuman uses his god-given strength and ability to increase his size to destroy Arjuna's bridge. Eventually, Krishna intervenes, criticizing Arjuna for his excessive pride and Hanuman for allowing his love of Rama to overcome his pacifism. Regaining his sense, Hanuman pledges to reside in Arjuna's standard(flag) during the Kurukshetra war.

Along with his brothers, Arjuna spent his last year of exile in the kingdom of Virata, Hastinapura. This is the place where Urvashi's curse is implemented and Arjuna becomes a eunuch called Brihannala (within themselves Pandavas called him Vijaya). At the palace, he teaches song and dance, qualities he had learnt from Chitrasena, to the King Virata's daughter, Uttara. Later, Arjuna arranges for Uttara to become his daughter-in-law by marrying his son Abhimanyu to her. At the same time, he prevents Subhadra from marrying Abhimanyu to Balarama's daughter Vatsala, as the Kurus find cousin-cousin marriages taboo.

Hearing about the death of Kichaka, Duryodhana surmises that the Pandavas were hiding in Matsya. 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 attempts to take on the army by himself while the rest of the Matsya army has been lured away to fight Susharma and the Trigartas. Per Draupadi's suggestion, Uttar takes Brihannala with him, as his charioteer. When he sees the Kaurava army, Uttar loses his nerve and attempts to flee. There, Arjuna reveals his identity and those of his brothers'. Switching places with Uttar, Arjuna takes up the Gandiva and Devadatta. Eager to defend the land that had given him refuge, Arjuna single-handedly defeats this legion of Kaurava warriors, putting them to sleep using divine weapons. He takes their scarves to present to Uttara as a gift.

Kurukshetra War And Bhagavad Gita
A statue of Arjuna and Lord Krishna, with Krishna as the sarathi or charioteer
Main article: Bhagavad Gita

As the battle draws close, Arjuna is overcome with self-doubt about the righteousness of the war against his own kith and kin. He is aggrieved at the thought of having to fight with his dear teacher, Drona and the fatherlike Bhishma. It was then that Krishna took charge and explained the necessity and inevitability of the war to Arjuna. This conversation is a key part of the Mahabharata known as Bhagavadgita, and is considered as a holy scripture of Hinduism.

Arjuna plays the role of the reader in the Bhagavad Gita. As Krishna dispenses the advice, Arjuna asks the questions.

The Bhagavad Gita primarily takes the form of a philosophical dialogue between Arjuna and Krishna.
Battles fought at Kurukshetra
Defeat of Jayadratha

Arjuna was a key Pandava warrior and played a huge role in the Kurukshetra war. His flag bore the symbol of Hanuman.

Some of the crucial battles fought by Arjuna are as follows:

    Death of Bhagadatta: On the thirteenth day when Abhimanyu was slayed. Arjuna was busy fighting Bhagaddata the king of Pragjyotisha who came with a thousand elephants and attacked him. During the battle Bhagaddata shot a irresistible arrow Vaishnavastra which could kill Arjun but he was saved by Krishnas timely intervation. Which fell on Krishna nd formed a garland. Bhagadatta was later killed by an arrow shot by Arjun
    Defeat of Bhisma: Throughout the first nine-days of battle, Arjuna was unable to defeat Bhisma. At times, the most he was able to do was drive Bhisma's chariot away. This was partially due to his own reluctance to fight his grandsire, as well as Bhisma's terrific skill. As Krishna became frustrated with Arjuna, he took up arms against Bhishma himself, at least twice. Not wanting history to blame Arjuna for forcing Krishna to break his vow of non-aggression, Arjuna managed to talk Krishna down and fought with renewed vigor. On the tenth day of the war, after asking Bhishma himself how to best defeat him, Arjuna took Shikhandi in his chariot. As Bhishma would not raise weapons against a woman, Arjuna was able to attack Bhisma unimpeded. Tears flowing from his eyes, Arjuna pierced Bhishma's entire body with arrows, eventually forcing Bhisma to fall down with Arjuna's arrows acting as a bed. Per Bhishma's request, he provided a pillow of arrows for his head, as well as water by piercing the earth and allowing Ganga to nourish her son.

    Killing of the Trigartas: Attempting to distract him so that Dronacharya could capture Yudhishthira, Susharma and the Trigarthas challenged Arjuna to a fight to the death. On the twelfth and thirteenth days of battle, Arjuna killed them to a man.

    Defeat of Jayadratha: Arjuna held Jayadratha responsible for Abhimanyu's death on the thirteenth day of the war. He vowed to kill him the very next day before sunset, failing which he would kill himself by jumping in a pyre. The Kauravas hid Jayadratha from Arjuna, knowing that Arjuna's death would result in a Kaurava victory. However, Krishna created an artificial eclipse by using his Sudarshana Chakra to hide the sun, forcing Kauravas to believe the day was over and Arjuna's death was imminent. Wishing to mock Arjuna, Jayadratha went to the head of the army in joy, even as the sun emerged from the eclipse. Arjuna promptly used one of his most powerful weapons, Vayavastra (wind weapon) to slaughter Jayadratha. This was difficult because Jayadratha had a boon from his father that whoever would be responsible for his head falling to the ground would have his own head blown up. That is why Arjuna used the Vayavastra to carry the decapitated head of Jayadratha to his father, who was awaken from his meditation by the sudden landing of a decapitated head on his body and since he ended up dropping it to the ground, he had his head blown up.



    Defeat of Karna: Karna and Arjuna were sworn enemies in the epic, each having taken an oath to kill the other in the battle. On the seventeenth day of battle the two foes faced each other once more. This battle between Arjuna and Karna is perhaps the most cataclysmic and awesome of the great epic. Krishna anticipated a likely battle to the death between Karna and Arjuna. The warriors on the battlefield and the Devas in heaven watched the battle in speechless amazement and terrified admiration of the strength and skill of these greatest of warriors. The epic states that initially, the battle was even between the two foes, but then Karna's chariot wheel became stuck in the mud. Further, owing to a curse Karna received from his guru Parasurama, Karna forgot the mantra to invoke the Brahmastra. The epic stated that Arjuna, always righteous, hesitated to attack his foe at this juncture. Reminding Arjuna of all the atrocities that Karna committed against the Pandavas, such as his instigation and participation of their wife Draupadi's public humiliation and disrobing and his participation in the treacherous and cowardly killing of Arjuna's son Abhimanyu, Krishna commanded Arjuna to attack. Krishna reminded Arjuna that Karna sided with adharma and had no right at this point in his life to hide behind the rules of engagement. Arjuna decapitated Karna using the Anjalika weapon. Later, when it was revealed that Karna was actually Arjuna's older brother, Arjuna's Gandiva slipped from his grasp for the first time. Arjuna became haunted by Karna's killing, and took it upon himself to treat Vrishasena, Karna's only remaining son, with great care.

Conquest for Ashvamedha

After the conclusion of the war, the Pandavas take charge of Hastinapura, the undivided realm of their ancestors. Yudhishira appointed Arjuna as the in-charge for the army and security forces of Hastinapura.

Yudhisthira decided to hold the Ashvamedha Yagna, or "horse sacrifice", to grant them the title of Chakravarti ("Emperor"). Arjuna led the armed forces which followed the horse around its random wanderings. He received the submission of many kings, either without or following an armed confrontation. He was thus instrumental in the expansion of the Pandava domains. Some of the campaigns are as under:

    Uttarapatha, including those of Pragjyotisha, Uluka, Modapura, Vamadeva, Sudaman, Susankula, Northern Uluka, Puru kingdom of Viswagaswa, Utsava-Sanketa, Lohita, Trigarta, Darava, Abhisara, Kokonada, Ursa, Simhapura, Suhma, Sumala, Balhika, Darada, Kamboja.
    Transoxiana region (Sakadvipa or Scythia), the Lohas, Parama Kambojas, Northern Rishikas (or Parama Rishikas), Limpurushas, Haratakas, Gandharvas and the Uttarakurus.
    Trigarta: Ketuvarman and Dhritavarman
    King Vajradatta, son of Bhagadatta
    Saindhava
    Manipura and death by Babruvahana:

Arjuna is killed by his son Babhruvahana in battle - a composite Razmnama illustration circle

    Arjuna went to Manipura, where the king was Babruvahana, his own son with Chitrangadaa. Seeing his father Babruvahana came all the way to receive Arjuna. Arjuna was very upset that Babruvahana did not respect the duties worthy of a King and did not ask for war. He cursed his son as a coward and asked him to prepare for war. In the fight between father and son Babruvahana killed Arjuna, but Ulupi, the snake-princess used the Mritasanjivani, a boon from Ganga Devi to bring Arjuna back to life. It is later stated that the defeat was because of Arjuna's using Shikhandi to plot Bhishma's death.

    Magadha, Rajagriha and King Meghasandhi
    Chedi and other kingdoms
    Kasi, Anga, Kosala, Kirata and Tanga kingdoms. Arjuna accepted due honors from respective rulers.
    Dakarna
    Nishada: Arjuna was able to defeat the Nishada King, the son of Eklavya.
    Andhra people led by Mahishaksha, tribes of Kolwa hills
    Saurashtra, Gokarn city and Prabhaska
    Dwarvati and Vrishni race
    Punjab
    Gandhara

Death

Upon the onset of the Kali yuga and the departure of Lord Krishna, Arjuna and other Pandavas retired, leaving the throne to their only descendant to survive the war of Kurukshetra, Arjuna's grandson Parikshita. Giving up all their belongings and ties, the Pandavas, accompanied by a dog, made their final journey of pilgrimage to the Himalayas. It is also to be noted that the listener of the Mahabharata is Janamejaya, Parkishita's son.

Except for Yudhishthira, all of the Pandavas grow weak and die before reaching heaven (only Yudhishthira is allowed to keep his mortal body). When Bhima asks Yudhishthira why Arjuna isn't permitted the same, the reason given is Arjuna's extreme pride in his skills as an archer and his vain belief that no one would ever be a better archer than him. Also, Draupadi falls because while she claimed to love all the Pandavas equally, she had a soft spot for Arjuna.

Character of Arjuna:

The character of Arjuna is described as one whose mind is spotless and clean of all impurities. Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita refers to Arjuna as Anagha, which means pure of heart or sinless. Arjuna's nobility is manifested in his magnanimity in victory and compassion towards adversaries. He bears all the injustice of the Kauravas with stoicism and yet hesitates to kill them just before the war.

As Nara of Nara Narayana (an avatar of Vishnu), Arjuna embodies Kshatriya manhood. Krishna being Narayana of the Nara Narayana avatar, symbolizes the atman, and hence the two are inseparable. Arjuna was chosen by Krishna to be his dearest friend and disciple. In the great epic, on several occasions, Krishna reveals his great and eternal love for Arjuna. Krishna states that no one in the world is dearer to him than Arjuna and that there is nothing in the world that he wouldn't give his friend. In the epic, when Arjuna takes a vow to either kill Jayadratha before sunset or else immolate himself, Krishna remarks to his charioteer, Daruka, that neither his wives nor friends nor kinsmen nor relatives nor any other is dearer to him than Arjuna. He further states that he is unable to live in a world deprived of Arjuna for even a moment. Krishna refers to Arjuna as Purusharshva, which translates to best of men.

Drunkers live long!

 A contentious new study is suggesting people who drink regularly live longer than those who completely abstain from drinking.

Research published in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research found those who did not consume any alcohol appeared to have a higher mortality rate, regardless of whether they were former heavy drinkers or not, than those who drank heavily.

Instead, "moderate" drinking, defined as one to three drinks per day, was associated with the lowest mortality rate.

A team led by Charles Holahan, a psychologist at the University of Texas followed 1,824 participants over two decades. They conceded the gender ratio of participants was disproportionate as sixty-three per cent of participants were male. All of the individuals were aged between 55 and 65.

Sixty-nine per cent of the participants who abstained from drinking alcohol died during the 20 year observation period, in comparison to 60 per cent of the heavy drinkers. Only 41 per cent of moderate drinkers died within this time frame.

These results came even after the team controlled variables such as socio-demographic factors, health and social-behavioural factors.

The authors noted: "A model controlling for former problem drinking status, existing health problems, and key socio-demographic and social-behavioral factors, as well as for age and gender, substantially reduced the mortality effect for abstainers compared to moderate drinkers.

"However, even after adjusting for all covariates, abstainers and heavy drinkers continued to show increased mortality risks of 51 per cent and 45 per cent, respectively, compared to moderate drinkers".

They concluded: "Even after taking account of traditional and non-traditional co-variates, moderate alcohol consumption continued to show a beneficial effect in predicting mortality risk".

Karna -The story from Mahabharata.

Karna  or Radheya is one of the central characters in the Hindu epic Mahabharata, from ancient India. He was the King of Anga (present day Bhagalpur and Munger). Karna was one of the greatest warriors whose martial exploits are recorded in the Mahabharata, an admiration expressed by Krishna and Bhishma within the body of this work.

Karna was the son of Surya (a solar deity) and Kunti. He was 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 famous Kurukshetra war. Karna fought against misfortune throughout his life and kept his word under all circumstances. Many admire him for his courage and generosity. It is believed that Karna founded the city of Karnal.

Mahabharata

The story of Karna is told in the Mahabharata, one of the Sanskrit epics from the Indian subcontinent. The work is written in Classical Sanskrit and its development dates to a period broadly contemporary with the classical age of ancient Greece and Rome, c. 400 BC–400 AD. Like the poetry of Homer, however, this epic is attributed to a figure about whom little is known – Vyasa, via his scribe Ganesha – and is a record of material that was already in existence as an oral tradition before it was set down in writing. Its ultimate origins may date to the eighth or ninth century BC. Within Mahabharata, which follows the story within a story style of narration, the account of Karna's birth has been narrated four times.
Story


As a young woman Kunti, the princess of the Kunti Kingdom, had been granted a boon by 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 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.

Karna became interested in the art of warfare and approached Dronacharya, an established teacher who taught the Kuru princes. But he refused to take Karna as his student, since Karna was not a Kshatriya. After being refused by Dronacharya, Karna with his brother Shona's help started his own's education and appointed the sun god as his guru. But, Karna wanted to learn advanced skills of archery and hence he decided to learn from Parashurama, Dronacharya's own guru.

As Parshurama only taught to Brahmins, Karna appeared before him as a Brahmin. Parashurama accepted him and trained him to such a point that he declared Karna to be equal to himself in the art of warfare and archery. On a day towards the end of his training Karna happened to offer Parashurama his lap so his guru could rest his head and nap. But while Parashurama was asleep, a bee stung Karna's thigh and despite the pain, Karna did not move, so as not to disturb his guru's sleep. With blood oozing from his wound, Parashurama woke up at once deduced that Karna was not a Brahmin. Parashurama, who had sworn to teach Brahmins only, laid curse upon Karna that he would forget all the knowledge required to wield the divine weapon Brahmastra, at the moment of his greatest need. Upon Karna's pleading, Parshurama gifted him the celestial weapon called Bhargavastra, along with his personal bow called Vijaya, for being such a diligent student.

Karna was also cursed by a Brahmin for killing his cow while practising his skills with bow and arrows. The Brahmin got angry and cursed him that he would become helpless in the same way the innocent cow had become, by his chariot wheels getting stuck in the ground. Folklore from Andhra Pradesh further relates that Karna once encountered a child who was crying over her pot of spilt ghee. On asking her the reason for her dismay, she stated that she feared that her stepmother would be angry over her carelessness. Refusing to take new ghee from Karna, the child insisted that she wanted the same ghee. Taking pity on her, Karna took the soil mixed with ghee in his fist and squeezed it with all his might, so that the ghee dripped back into the pot. During this process, Karna heard the agonized voice of a woman. When he opened his fist, he realized that the voice was that of Bhoomidevi, the Earth goddess. She furiously chastised Karna for inflicting enormous pain on Mother Earth for the sake of a mere child and cursed him that at a very crucial moment in battle, his chariot wheel would be trapped as tightly as he had held that fistful of soil.
Friendship with Duryodhana and the coronation of Karna

To display the skills of the Kuru princes, guru Dronacharya arranged a friendly tournament. His student Arjuna, third of the Pandava brothers, was shown to be a particularly gifted archer. Karna arrived at this tournament uninvited and surpassing 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 duelling, only a prince could challenge Arjuna to a duel. Duryodhana, the eldest of the one-hundred sons of the king Dhritarashtra, knew that his cousins Pandavas were better at warfare. Seeing Karna as a chance to get on even terms with them he immediately offered Karna the throne of the kingdom of Anga, making him a king and hence eligible to fight a duel with Arjuna. When Karna asked him what he could do to repay him, Duryodhana told him that all he wanted was his friendship.

Karna was a loyal and true comrade to Duryodhana. He helped him to marry the princess of Chitragandha. Following his accession to the throne of Anga, Karna took an oath that anyone who approached him with a request, when he worshipped the sun, would not leave empty-handed. Later after Pandavas were in exile, Karna took up the task of establishing Duryodhana as the Emperor. He commanded army that marched to different parts of the country to subjugate kings and made them swear allegiance to Duryodhana, the king of Hastinapur or else die in battle. In this military adventure, Karna waged wars and reduced to submission numerous kingdoms including those of the Kambojas, the Shakas, the Kekayas, the Avantyas, the Gandharas, the Madarakas, the Trigartas, the Tanganas, the Panchalas, the Videhas, the Suhmas, the Angas, the Vangas, the Nishadas, the Kalingas, the Vatsa, the Ashmakas, the Rishikas and numerous others including mlecchas and the forest tribes.
 
Hostilities with Pandavas

Karna was a suitor for Draupadi at her swayamvara, or her choosing of a marriage partner. Unlike most other contenders, he was easily able to wield and string the bow, but Draupadi refused to allow him to take part rejecting him for being a "suta-putra" - son of a charioteer. The Pandavas were also present in the swayamvara, disguised as Brahmins. Following the failure of the other princes, Arjuna stepped into the ring and successfully hit the target, winning Draupadi's hand. When Arjuna's identity was later revealed, Karna's feelings of hostile rivalry with him further intensified.

After Shakuni won a game of dice by trickery, Draupadi, now queen to all five sons of King Pandu, including Arjuna, was dragged into the court by Dushasana. Duryodhana and his brothers attempted to strip her. Karna insulted Draupadi by saying that a woman with more than four husbands is nothing but a whore and that the Pandavas were all like sesame seeds removed from the kernel and she should now find some other husbands. On the spot, Bhima, another of the Pandava brothers, vowed that he would personally slaughter Duryodhana and his brothers in battle. Arjuna subsequently swore to kill Karna.
 
Prelude to war

Following failed peace negotiations with Duryodhana, Krishna is driven back to the Pandavas by Karna. Krishna then revealed to Karna that he is the eldest son of Kunti, and therefore, technically, the eldest Pandava. Krishna implored him to change sides and assures him that Yudhisthira would give the crown of Indraprastha to him. Shaken from the discovery, Karna still refuses this offer over Duryodhana's friendship. Krishna is saddened, but appreciating Karna's sense of loyalty, accepted his decision, promising Karna that his lineage would remain a secret. In addition, Karna was elated to learn that his true father was none other than Surya.

Indra, the king of the (Devas) and the father of Arjuna, realized that Karna would be invincible in battle and unable to be killed as long as he had his kavach and kundal. He approaches Karna as a poor Brahmin during Karna's sun-worship. Surya warned Karna of Indra's intentions, but Karna thanked Surya and explained that he was bound by his word and could not send anyone from his door empty-handed. When Indra approaches, Karna reveals that he knew the Brahmin's true identity but assured that he would never turn anyone away. Cutting the armor and earrings off his body, Karna handed them to Indra. For Karna's generosity Indra decided to reward him and Karna asked for Indra's powerful weapon, the Vasavi shakti. Indra granted the boon, with the stipulation that Karna could only use the weapon once.

As war approached, Kunti met Karna and in desperation to keep her children alive asked Karna to join the Pandavas. But Karna denies the offer again. Knowing that Arjuna was under the divine aegis of Krishna he would be invincible. Karna requested his mother to keep their relationship a secret and promised that at the end of war she would still have five sons.
 

Death of Karna

Bhishma was appointed as the commander-in-chief of the Kaurava army. But giving the reason that Karna had humiliated Draupadi and disrespected his guru Parshuram, Bhishma refused to take him in the Kaurava army. He secretly knew of Karna’s lineage and hence did not want him to fight his own brother. Only after Bhishma fell on the eleventh day did Karna enter the war. Dronacharya took the commander-in-chief position on twelfth day and the thirteenth day ended with Abhimanyu’s (Arjun’s son) death in the specially organized Chakravyuha/Padmavyuha formation.

Uncharacteristically, the battle on fourteenth day extended into the dark hours. Taking advantage of that, Krishna introduced Ghatotkacha, Bhima’s half-Asura son, as asuras gained extraordinary power at night time. Ghatotkacha’s destroyed the Kaurava force and also injured Dronacharya. Seeing the desperate situation, Karna used his Vasava Shakti, that was the boon from Indra, against Ghatotkacha, thus killing him. Krishna however was pleased with the fact that the powerful weapon could not be used against Arjuna in future as Karna had only one chance to use it.
Karna Parva

Karna Parva, the eighth book of the Mahabharata, describes sixteenth and seventeenth days of the Kurukshetra war where post Dronachary’s death Karna took over as the commander-in-chief. Anticipating a likely battle to the death between Karna and Arjura, Krishna warned Arjuna calling Karna to be the foremost of the heroes.
As promised to Kunti, Karna aimed on only killing Arjuna. On the sixteenth day, he fought with all the Pandava brother but Arjuna and spared each one of them. After defeating them, he ordered his charioteer Shalya to get towards Arjuna. He used Nagastra to kill Arjuna, which Krishna saved him by lowering his chariot in the earth. Karna and Arjun waged a rough war against each other, both surviving at the end of the day.

On the seventeenth day, Karna and Arjuna resumed their war where Karna cut the string of Arjuna’s bow many a times. After the long struggle, with no one winning, the situation changed when Karna’s chariot wheel sank into the loose ground. He still defended himself but also forgot all the incantations at the crucial moment, as was cursed by Parshurama. Karna got down from his chariot to free the wheel and asked Arjuna to pause reminding him of etiquettes. But Krishna in turn reminded Arjuna of all the rules that Kauravas and Karna had broken in the war and before. Enraged with recollection of all the incidences, of Abhimanyu’s death, laksha-griha conspiracy, Draupadi’s insult; Arjuna used the Anjalika weapon slaying Karna at the end.

As Karna lay dying on the battlefield, his father Surya and Arjuna's father Indra fell into a debate as to who among their son's was superior and decided to test Karna's generosity and appeared before him as Brahmins asking for alms. Karna said that at this point he had nothing to give them while one of the Brahmins remark that he has some gold in his teeth which could be of use to them. Karna on realizing this promptly took a stone and broke his teeth handing them over to the Brahmins and thus proving his superiority. In other versions of the epic, the Brahmin is said to be Krishna who asks for Karna's punya or merit and when Karna does so he is rewarded by sighting of Krishna's Vishwaroopa. 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.

Following the end of the war, Tarpan vidhi were performed for all the fallen. Kunti then requested her sons to perform the rites for Karna and revealed the truth of his birth. The brothers were shocked to find that they had committed fratricide. Yudhishtira, 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.[citation needed
Karna's family

Karna was married to Vrushali and Supriya. He had nine sons; Vrishasena, Vrishaketu, Chitrasena, Satyasena, Sushena, Shatrunjaya, Dvipata, Banasena and Prasena and all of these took part in the Kurukshetra war. Prasena was slain by Satyaki, Shatrunjaya, Vrishasena and Dvipata by Arjuna, Banasena by Bhima, Chitrasena, Satyasena and Sushena by Nakula. Vrishakethu was his only son who survived the war. Karna's eldest wife Vrushali went sati after Karna's death.

After the war when Pandavas were made aware of Karna's lineage, Vrishakethu was offered to be the King of Indraprasth, being the son of their eldest brother. He was under the patronage of Arjuna and took part in various battles that preceded the Ashvamedh yagna.

Within the various Hindu mythologies, Karna draws resemblance with various other characters. The attributed author of Mahabharata, 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.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. 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.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 character Achilles on various occasions as they both have powers but lack status.