Table of Contents
The Temptation of Karna Questions and Answers
Essay Type Questions with Answers
Q. 1.How does Karna counter Kunti’s argument in the Temptation Scene?
Ans. Karna is passionate, always bristling, a great chariot warrior, familiar with all weapons, invincible, covered by an adamant breastplate. This is the description of Karna by Yudhishthira. The earrings are the emblems for Karna’s identity or life.
Kuntialways argues for the right path that Karna should take now that he is aware of his Ksatriya parentage and not follow the wrong “innocently”. Karna’s parentage has always been a burning issue in his life and now that it has come to light, he is unwilling to accept it. Kunti is both dramatic and eloquent in her persuasions and goes on to urge Karna to imagine what life would be if he joined his Pandava brothers. Much like Krisna, she paints the grand picture before Karna- Surrounded by your five brothers, you shall surely shine forth Karna, like Brahma surrounded by the Vedas and their Branches. Endowed with virtues, the eldest and the best among relations who are the best, your title will no longer be that of a son of Suta, you shall be a heroic Partha (103) Still, we may note that in the interaction between Kunti and Karna, Kunti describes her young days to Karna when she was both a woman and child suggesting that she was doubly gullible, innocent and curious as a young person and open to danger as a girl.
She wished to try the strength and power of a boon she received from a saint and in doing so obtained Karna from the Sun-god. Another interesting aspect of this section is the direct intervention of the gods. Krsna taken as god in human form is intervening to prevent war. Additionally, the sun-god talks directly to Karna corroborating Kunti’s tale and urging Karna to join the Pandavas and relinquish the side of Duryodhana. The gods thus, negotiate with humans and strive to change the course of events but in vain. Karna would not be moved to cowardice. Instead, he lets others know that he is bound by oath. In the next section we shall look at the class difference between the Sutas who were his foster parents and the Kshatriyas who were his real family.
Q. 2.Assess the character of Karna in the Temptation Scene.
Ans. Karna is passionate, always bristling, a great chariot warrior, familiar with all weapons, invincible, covered by an adamant breastplate. This is the description of Karna by Yudhishthira. The entire epic of the Mahabharata is imbibed withevents and situations that reflect Karna as a dignified character, one who is equally tragic in the hands of his unfortunate destiny and at the same enormously powerful in terms of his moral sense of of responsibility and loyalty and yet has always remained an invincible warrior till the time of his unjustified helpless catastrophe. The temptation of Karna episode is just another vivid section narrating the same song of his supremacy in a deeper level. In terms of his own life this episode bears maximumimportance since this is a juncture when his actual identity is revealed to him and he realises that the insult and negligence that he had to face in his life till death for being the son of a suta are all
unjustified because he had never deserved them; rather he is very much a Kshatriya and in fact the son of sun god himself.
But life plays such an ironical joke against him that even after knowing the truth which could have made him happy, he is rather sad and angry because of its sheer untimely happening. There is hardly any room for improvement in his life from here onwards. To be rash was a Kshatriya characteristic but the unwritten rule that one must never be small-minded was broken often by Karna… (126) It is this that makes Bhisma, and then Drona comment that Karna falls short of being the ideal warrior for lack of sound judgment. From the beginning of the epic, Karna has been described as significant to Duryodhana’s plan of ousting and killing the Pandavas. Ugrasravas the poet, the actual narrator of the Mahabharata has this to say of their relationship- Duryodhana is a great tree, filled with resentment, Karna is the trunk (1.1.65) The two characters are portrayed as inseparable and yet, Karna in his words projects a sense of the right and wrong. He is aware of the path he has chosen and continues to tread on it unlike Duryodhana who is blinded by wrong power and full of conceit
Q. 3. What idea of Karna’s moral judgement and unmoved loyalty is revealed in the Temptation of Karna episode?
Ans. Karna is passionate, always bristling, a great chariot warrior, familiar with all weapons, and invincible as well. This episode reveals to Karna the secret of his birth and parentage. It brings out the psychic states of Karna and the social milieu that he inhabits. There are several characters in this section.
Q. 4. Karna places more importance on his ‘bonds of love’ and refuses to be a ‘traitor’ to his word. Analyse the character of Karna as he emerges in The Temptation Scene. Show how he becomes a victim of caste system.
Ans. Karna is passionate, always bristling, a great chariot warrior, all weapons, invincible, covered by an adamant breastplate. This is the description of Karna by Yudhishthira. The earrings are the emblems for Karna’s identity or life. Indra, progenitor of Arjuna, appears before Karna in order to divest him of his signs of invulnerability so that Arjuna will triumph in the forthcoming duel. Family means nothing for him. He only had three important relationships in his life, enemies (Pandavas, Krishna, Draupadi), masters/slaves (sons, wives as slaves & Dhritarashtra/Duryodhana as the masters), comrades and friends (Duryodhana, Aswathamman, Vikarna, Dussasana, Bhishma and Shalya). The epic delineates the dignified character of Karna.
familiar with
As the narrative evolves, Kunti exhorts Karna to follow his Dharma and take up his Kshatriya identity. She tries to persuade him, reminding him of his duty as the first born Pandu. As Kevin M Grath notes in his essay Speaking of Truth-As usual in the Mahabharata, it is the royal women who are the ones to be cognizant in detail and eloquent in expression when matters of kingship arise. They function in this epic as a true mirror of princes.
Q.5.How did Vasudeva Krishna plead Karna to join the side of Pandavas?
Ans. Vasudeva Krishna in Vyasa’s The Mahabharata in the section The Temptation of Karna (Book V. The Book of Effort – Udyog Parva) worked as a clever diplomat and went to Karna, Kunti’s first born, to make him agree to join the Pandavas side. As the story goes, unmarried Kunti, daughter of Shurasena and the foster daughter of Kuntibhoja, gained a boon from Rishi Durvasa after pleasing him with her hospitality. Durvasa gave her a mantra by invoking which she conceived with the blessing of the Sun and thus Karna was born. So Karna was the first son of Kunti. In fear of society, she abandoned Karna by floating him in the river. Adhirath found the child and Adhirath suta and his wife Radha reared him up.
At the juncture of Kurukshetra battle, Krishna went to bring Karna but failed, despite his strong pleadin 5. At first Krishna praised Karna highly as Brahmin-serving, Veda-knowing, Scripture-knowing and lawful. Krishna cites instances from the scriptures that the son born to a woman before her marriage is as much counted the son of her wedded husband as the son bears in marriage”. By this injunction, he can be called to be the son of Pandu. Krishna offers Karna the kingship of the empire and tries to cheer him up by saying that the Parthas are his relatives from the side of his father and the Vrisnis are relatives from the side of his mother.
He assures Karna that all Pandavas will consider him to be the first Pandava and worship his feet when he becomes their king. The sons of Draupadi, Abhimanyu, the son of Subhadra would hold hid feet reverently. All kings and aides of Pandavas and all Andhaka Vrisnis will get hold of his feet. For his coronation ceremony all baronesses and daughters of kings would bring golden, silver and earthly vessels, would bring herbs, seeds, gems and shrubs etc. Krishna also allures Karna that he would become the husband of Draupadi even.
Krishna assures him that all Veda-knowing Brahmins would ordain him to the sacred office of the kingdom. The five brothers, the Draupadeyas, the Panchalas, the Cedis and even Krishna himself coronate him to be the king and lord of the land whereas Yudhisthira would only be happy to be his “Young King”. Yudhisthira would always be behind him in his chariot to hold the white fan.
Krishna continues that powerful Bhima would hold umbrella over his head, Arjuna would drive his chariot with white horses and Abhimanyu, Nakula, Sahadeva and the five Draupedeyas would always be ready to serve him.
Krishna continues that the Panchalas would always observe his banner and Shikhnadi and Krishna himself would always comply with him. Among his escort would be the Andhaka Vi`snis, the Dasarhas and Dasarnas. Among such gifts, Krishna bids Karna to make merriment and accept the offer. While the Talacaras, Cucupas and Venupas, bards and mistrel would sing his appreciation, the Pandavas would declare the victory of Vasusena.
Krishna concludes his pleading by saying that Karna would, if he accepts the proposal, shine like the moon amongst the star (the Parthas). At this, the foes of Pandavas would tremble in fear and their friends would find joy. At conclusion, Krishna talks about the brotherhood between Karna and the Pandavas.
Q. 6. Comment on the character of Karna as revealed from his Krishna.
Ans. Karna is one of th, greatest creations of Vyasa in The Mahabharataof Karna as revealed in the section The Temptation of Karna (Book V. The Book of Effort – Udyog Parva) is a heroic and logical one. Karna, the rejected, dejected first-born of Kunti, was floated in the river water as if as a “still-born” and was reared up by Adhirath suta and his wife Radha whom Karna regards as his true parents. Karna knows that his death is inevitable but he does not change side when Krishna pleads him. On the eve of Kurukshetra battle, when Kunti arrives on the banks of Ganges to solicit him join the Pandavas as the first Pandava, he refuses but promises his mother that he won’t kill any other Pandava except Arjuna. That is a proof of his magnanimity and devotion to his original mother Kunti.
In our present discussion, when Krishna pleads Karna to join the Pandavas and become their King, Karna proves himself to be an upholder of Dharma or Law. He knows very well that if he goes to the side of Yudhisthira, he would become the king and enjoy all sorts of boons and blessings on earth that are possible, but as Duryodhana recognised him during his time of crisis by inferring the title of “Angaraj” on him and by calling him a friend, he would not be disloyal to him and would not be greedy. Therefore, Karna logically counters the reasons provided by Krishna.
Paying proper tribute to Lord Krishna Madhusudana, Karna begins his counter logic by stating Krishna to be omniscient and even then trying to negotiate with him. Karna knows very well that the destruction of Kurus headed by Duryodhana is only a matter of time, as he too believes that “Yatha dharmastatha jay”, where there is dharma or law or truth, there the victory prevails. He tells Krishna that it is useless to persuade him to join the Pandavas. He seems to be a believer in astrology as he predicts the stations and movements of various planets and stars in the sky like Saturn, Rohini, Mars, Jyestha, Anuradha, Chitra, Rahu, and meteors. With the help of the movements of the stars he predicts the downfall of his friend Duryodhana. He also mentions the ominous sounds and gestures of various animals like the elephants and horses. He notices “sign of defeat in the elephants, horses and men in the army of Duryodhana. He observes that while the birds like peacocks, flower birds, wild geese, cranes, chatakas etc. pursue Yudhisthira, birds like vultures, crows, badas, kites, ghouls, and animals like jackals and insects like mosquitoes accompany Duryodhana. In spite knowing all these, Karna won’t change side.
any Whereas the Pandavas sound the war-drums, the Dhartarastras do not sound war-drum. The wails of Duryodhana’s camp show signs of defeat and ‘flesh and blood’ is raining. Various ominous signs are seen such as a Gandharva city with canals, a black mace obstructing the sun, a lonely jackal yelping. Black-necked birds hover terribly in the dusk. Duryodhana does not pay heed to the gurus and elders. The cast side is red, the south side is black, the west side is muddy and all the horizons are firecoloured. All these suggest that the defeat of Duryodhana is inevitable.
Apart from this, Karna narrates his dream where he saw that Yudhisthira goes to heaven with his brothers and enjoys there. Karna talks of Bhimasena and predicts that Bhimasena would destroy the whole range of Kurus and their aides. Karna asserts his conviction that where there is law there is victory. As long as there are Arjuna as the warrior with the Gandiva, Nakula, Sahadeva, Satyaki, and above all, Krishna, as the charioteer, the army of Yudhisthira becomes invincible. The army of Duryodhana has also great warriors like Asvathaman, Kripa, Kritavarman Satvata, Bhisma and Drona, they would be defeated and would go the house of Yama. Karna is definite about it. But he won’t change side.
Karna dies not agree to join the Pandavas. So he tells Krishna that possibly they would meet again if somehow they (Karna and others) get rid of death in the battlefield. But if they die they can certainly ‘meet in heaven’. But he won’t change side, even if offered the kingship.
Q.7. Write a note on the significance of the temptation scene of Karna in relation to the plot of the Mahabharata.
Ans. Karna is one of the central characters in The Mahabharata by Vyasa. It must be said the incidents of Mahabharata would be incomplete without the intervention of Karna. If we talk about his birth, then he was gifted to Kunti by Sun God when she uttered a boon in curiosity got by sage Durbhasa in the name of Sun God. The rise of Karna was the result of it. As it was shameful to Kunti of being a pre-marital mother, she overflowed him. Then he was adopted by a couple, Suta Adhirath and Radha.
After many years before happening the great ‘Kurukshetra’ war between the Kouravas and the Pandavas, Lord Krishna praised Karna and told him the truth about his birth. Krishna tempts Karna of all favours if he takes side of Pandavas in war. As he was the eldest brother among the Pandavas, they will obey him, give him the respect, he will get kingdom along with Droupadi, even Krishna will follow him if he does so. Te most touching or valuable thing is he may get the love of his real mother which he had not got for once from his birth if he rejects to support the Kouravas.
By saying these words, Krishna stopped and Karna presented his opinions before him. Karna replies Krishna that no reaches of the world can tempt him. Firstly, the time when Kunti should have to think about him, she overflowed him in the flow of river only thinking about her own. As Radha loves Karna beyond her own son, millk had been started to flow from her breast automatically for feeding Karna as he was to young to eat anything.
Secondly, he said that he cannot cheat Duryodhana who gave him refuge when everyone rejected him only for being a Suta and made him the king of Anga. Though Duryodhana did this for his own profit as Karna was as best as Arjuna. Duryodhana thinks that Karna will take their side. At this time, Karna cannot do betrayal with Duryodhana. If he takes the side of the Pandavas, Yudhisthira will not accept his kingdom at any cost rather they will force him to accept the vast kingdom and he Duryodhana.
Karna knows everything who will win and what will happen ultimately in the war. So, Karna tells Krishna if he will take side of the Pandavas, the oncoming incidents will not be taken place properly what should have been happen. Thus, the temptation scene has been presented as one of the most significant parts in The Mahabharata.
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The Temptation of Karna Questions and Answers
The Temptation of Karna