Karna (Chaulukya dynasty)

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Find spot Provenance (from the French ''provenir'', 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody or location of a historical object. The term was originally mostly used in relation to works of art but is now used in similar senses i ...

s of inscriptions issued during the reign of Karna I" width="400" height="400" zoom="5" longitude="72.73" latitude="22.73"> Karna (r. c. 1064–1092 CE) was an Indian king from the

Chaulukya The Chaulukya dynasty (), also Solanki dynasty, was a dynasty that ruled parts of what are now Gujarat and Rajasthan in north-western India, between and . Their capital was located at Anahilavada (modern Patan). At times, their rule extende ...

(Solanki) dynasty of

Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...

. He ruled the present-day Gujarat and surrounding areas, from his capital

Anahilapataka Patan () is the administrative seat of Patan District in the Indian state of Gujarat and is an administered municipality. It was the capital of Gujarat's Chavda and Chaulukya dynasties in medieval times, and is also known as Anhilpur-Patan ...

(modern Patan). Karna succeeded his father

Bhima I Bhima I (r. c. 1022–1064 CE) was a Chaulukya king who ruled parts of present-day Gujarat, India. The early years of his reign saw an invasion from the Ghaznavid ruler Mahmud, who sacked the Somnath temple. Bhima left his capital and too ...

, who had invaded the

Paramara The Paramara dynasty ( IAST: Paramāra) was an Indian dynasty that ruled Malwa and surrounding areas in west-central India between 9th and 14th centuries. They belonged to the Parmara clan of the Rajputs. The dynasty was established in either ...

kingdom of

Malwa Malwa is a historical region of west-central India occupying a plateau of volcanic origin. Geologically, the Malwa Plateau generally refers to the volcanic upland north of the Vindhya Range. Politically and administratively, it is also sy ...

at the time of

Bhoja Bhoja (reigned c. 1010–1055 CE) was an Indian king from the Paramara dynasty. His kingdom was centered around the Malwa region in central India, where his capital Dhara-nagara (modern Dhar) was located. Bhoja fought wars with nearly all ...

's death. Karna was forced to retreat from Malwa by Bhoja's brother Udayaditya. He annexed Lata to the Chaulukya territory by defeating a

Kalachuri The Kalachuris (IAST: Kalacuri), also known as Kalachuris of Mahishmati, were an Indian dynasty that ruled in west-central India between 6th and 7th centuries. They are also known as the Haihayas or as the Early Kalachuris to distinguish them ...

general, but lost it within a few years. He also suffered a defeat against the

Chahamanas of Naddula The Chahamanas of Naddula, also known as the Chauhans of Nadol, were an Indian dynasty. They ruled the Marwar area around their capital Naddula (present-day Nadol in Rajasthan) between 10th and 12th centuries. They belonged to the Chahamana (C ...

, who raided the Chaulukya capital during his reign. Karna is credited with defeating a

Bhil Bhil or Bheel is an ethnic group in western India. They speak the Bhil languages, a subgroup of the Western Zone of the Indo-Aryan languages. As of 2013, Bhils were the largest tribal group in India. Bhils are listed as tribal people of ...

chief of Ashapalli, and laying the foundation of the Karnavati city, identified with the modern

Ahmedabad Ahmedabad ( ; Gujarati: Amdavad ) is the most populous city in the Indian state of Gujarat. It is the administrative headquarters of the Ahmedabad district and the seat of the Gujarat High Court. Ahmedabad's population of 5,570,585 (per ...

in western

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

. Karna married Mayanalladevi, who was the mother of his son and successor

Jayasimha Siddharaja Jayasiṃha ( ), who assumed the title Siddharāja (), was an Indian king who ruled western parts of India. He was a member of the Chaulukya (also called Solanki) dynasty. Jayasimha's capital was located at Anahilapataka (modern Patan) in pres ...

Early life

Karna was born to the Chaulukya monarch

and Queen Udayamati. According to the 12th century Jain chronicler

Hemachandra Hemachandra was a 12th century () Indian Jain saint, scholar, poet, mathematician, philosopher, yogi, grammarian, law theorist, historian, lexicographer, rhetorician, logician, and prosodist. Noted as a prodigy by his contemporaries, he gain ...

, Bhima had three sons: Mularaja, Kshemaraja, and Karna. Mularaja died during Bhima's lifetime. Kshemaraja, the elder surviving son, renounced his rights to the throne, and retired to Dadhisthali as an ascetic. Bhima then placed Karna on the throne and retired. After becoming the king, Karna sent Kshemaraja's son Devaprasada to Dadisthali to take care of his father. The veracity of Hemachandra is doubtful, and is not corroborated by any historical evidence. The 14th century chronicler Merutunga states that Bhima's three sons were Mularaja, Karna and Haripala. Of these, Haripala was born of a concubine named Bakuladevi. According to historian A. K. Majumdar, Merutunga's account appears to be more satisfactory, since voluntary rejections of thrones were very rare. Karna may have banished his half-brother and nephew to eliminate any rival claimants to the throne. Hemachandra was a royal courtier of Karna's son

as well Kumarapala (a descendant of Kshemaraja/Haripala). Therefore, he probably invented a fictional narrative to avoid mentioning Bhima's illegitimate son as an ancestor of his patron. This theory is corroborated by the fact that Jayasimha Siddharaja hated Kumarapala. Karna bore the title Trailokyamalla.

Military career

Paramaras of Malwa

Karna was a contemporary of his

namesake Karna (also known as Lakshmi-Karna). Karna's father

had formed an alliance with the Lakshmi-Karna to defeat the

s of

. The Paramara king

died as the alliance attacked Malwa, and a war of succession broke out between the Paramara relatives Jayasimha I and Udayaditya. Lakshmi-Karna seems to have occupied Malwa for sometime, but he soon suffered a series defeats against other neighbouring kings, and Bhima broke away from him. Udayaditya ultimately ascended the Paramara throne in Malwa. The Chaulukya inscriptions and chronicles claim that Karna defeated the new Paramara king. An inscription from Kumarapala's reign states that Karna defeated the Malwa monarch at the Sudakupa pass. The Gujarat chronicler Arisimha claims that Karna brought a statue of Nilakantha to Gujarat as a result of his victory against the Malwa ruler. Another Gujarat poet Someshvara claims that Karna overran Malwa, and the Paramara priest magically invoked an evil spirit to defeat him. However, Karna's priest Ama (who was an ancestor of Someshvara), turned this evil spirit against the Paramara priest, who was killed as a result. The non-Chaulukya records, on the other hand, suggest that Udayaditya defeated Karna. According to the Paramara inscriptions, Udayaditya defeated three kings to ascend the Paramara throne. One of these three kings was Karna, who is identified with the Chaulukya king.

Chahamana Chauhan, historically ''Chahamana'', is a clan name historically associated with the various ruling Rajput families during the Medieval India in Rajasthan. Subclans Khichi, Hada, Songara, Bhadauria, Devda etc. are the branches or subclan ...

chronicle ''

Prithviraja Vijaya ''Prithviraja Vijaya'' (IAST: Pṛthvīrāja Vijaya, "Prithviraja's Victory") is an eulogistic Sanskrit epic poem on the life of the Indian Chahamana king Prithviraja III (better known as Prithviraj Chauhan in the vernacular folk legends). It is ...

'' states that the Chahamana king Vigraharaja III gave a horse named Saranga to Udayaditya, with whose help Udayaditya defeated Karna.The

Jainad Jainad or Jainath is a mandal in Adilabad district in the state of Telangana in India. Jainad is well known for ancient Shri Laxmi Narayana Swamy Temple. Demographics According to Indian census The decennial Census of India has been conducte ...

inscription of Udayaditya's son Jagaddeva also mentions that he subdued Karna, and made the wives of the Gurjara warriors cry. These evidences indicate that the Paramara claims of victory over Karna pertain to the Chaulukya Karna (and not the Kalachuri Karna). These opposing claims indicate that Karna defeated Udayaditya at first, but then Udayaditya was able to defeat him and ascend the throne of Malwa with Chahamana support. Udayaditya's son Jagaddeva seems to have accompanied his father in the battle against Karna.

Kalachuris of Tripuri

After the death of the

king

, the

Kalachuris of Tripuri The Kalachuris of Tripuri (IAST: ), also known the Kalachuris of Chedi, ruled parts of central India during 7th to 13th centuries. They are also known as the Later Kalachuris to distinguish them from their earlier namesakes, especially the Kala ...

briefly occupied

. The Kalachuri general Vapullaka also conquered the Lata region (present-day south Gujarat), which was located between the Chaulukya and the Paramara kingdoms. By 1074 CE, Lata was under Chaulukya control, as attested by one of Karna's

Navsari Navsari is the ninth biggest city in the state of Gujarat in India. It is the administrative headquarters of Navsari District. Navsari is situated between Surat & Mumbai. Navsari is a twin city of Surat. It is located 37 km south of Sura ...

inscription. Thus, it appears that Karna expelled the Kalachuris from Lata, and annexed the region to the Chaulukya kingdom. Karna's victory appears to have been achieved during the reign of the Kalachuri king Yashah-Karna, as suggested by a verse of the Gujarat poet Someshvara. This verse talks about how the rivalry between the legendary heroes

Karna Karna (Sanskrit: कर्ण, IAST: ''Karṇa''), also known as Vasusena, Anga-raja, and Radheya, is one of the main protagonists of the Hindu epic '' Mahābhārata''. He is the son of the sun god Surya and princess Kunti (mother of the ...

and

Arjuna Arjuna (Sanskrit: अर्जुन, ), also known as Partha and Dhananjaya, is a character in several ancient Hindu texts, and specifically one of the major characters of the Indian epic Mahabharata. In the epic, he is the third among Panda ...

resulted in Arjuna's ''yashah'' (fame) being driven away. It appears that Karna lost Lata to one Trivikramapala within three years, but the region was recaptured by his son

Other campaigns

The

invaded the Chaulukya kingdom during Karna's reign. According to their Sundha Hill inscription, the Chahamana ruler

Prithvipala Prithvi-pala (IAST: Pṛthvīpāla, r. c. 1080–1090 CE) was an Indian king belonging to the Naddula Chahamana dynasty. He ruled the area around Naddula (present-day Nadol in Rajasthan). He achieved military successes against the Chaulukyas, th ...

defeated Karna, and his successor

Jojalladeva Jojalla-deva (r. c. 1090–1110 CE) was an Indian king belonging to the Naddula Chahamana dynasty. He ruled the area around Naddula (present-day Nadol in Rajasthan). The Chahamana records claim that he invaded the Chaulukya kingdom, and occupied ...

occupied the Chaulukya capital

by force. It is possible that the Naddula Chahamanas raided the Chaulukya capital while Karna was busy at another place. According to a '' Ras-Mala'' account based on the writings of the 14th century chronicler Merutunga, Karna defeated the

Bhils Bhil or Bheel is an ethnic group in western India. They speak the Bhil languages, a subgroup of the Western Zone of the Indo-Aryan languages. As of 2013, Bhils were the largest tribal group in India. Bhils are listed as tribal people of the ...

and the

Kolis The Koli is an Indian caste found in Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Karnataka, Odisha and Jammu and Kashmir states in India. Koli is an agriculturist caste of Gujarat but in coastal areas they ...

. The two tribes lived between the

Rann of Kutch The Rann of Kutch (alternately spelled as Kuchchh) is a large area of salt marshes that span the border between India and Pakistan. It is located in Gujarat (primarily the Kutch district), India, and in Sindh, Pakistan. It is divided into ...

and the Sabarmati River, and plundered the Chaulukya territories. As a result, Karna led a series of expeditions against them. In one such campaign, he defeated a Bhil chief named Asha (Āśā), who lived at Ashapalli. According to Merutunga, Karna established the city of Karnavati after this victory. Karnavati is identified with modern

by some, but this is not certain.

Bilhana Kaviraj, Kavi Bilhana was an 11th-century Kashmiri Pandits, Kashmiri poet. He is known for his love poem, the ''Caurapañcāśikā''. According to legend, Bilhana fell in love with the daughter of King Madanabhirama, Princess Yaminipurnatilaka, ...

's poem ''Karna-Sundari'', which presents Karna as a hero, claims that he conquered

Sindh Sindh (; ; ur, , ; historically romanized as Sind) is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the southeastern region of the country, Sindh is the third-largest province of Pakistan by land area and the second-largest province ...

. But this claim is historically inaccurate. Two relatively late texts suggest that Karna was defeated by the

king

Durlabharaja III Durlabharaja III (r. c. 1065-1070 CE) was an Indian king belonging to the Shakambhari Chahamana dynasty. He ruled the Sapadalaksha country, which included parts of present-day Rajasthan in north-western India. Early life Durlabha-raja III, ...

. The 14th century text ''

Prabandha Kosha ''Prabandha-Kosha'' (IAST: Prabandhakośa) is an Indian Sanskrit-language collection of '' prabandha''s (legendary biographical narratives). It was compiled by the Jain scholar Rajashekhara Suri in 1349 CE. It describes the lives of 24 people, incl ...

'' claims that Durlabha defeated the

Gurjara Gurjaradesa ("Gurjara country") or Gurjaratra is a historical region in India comprising the eastern Rajasthan and northern Gujarat during the period of 6th -12th century CE. The predominant power of the region, the Gurjara-Pratiharas eventual ...

king, brought him to the Chahamana capital

Ajmer Ajmer is one of the major and oldest cities in the Indian state of Rajasthan and the centre of the eponymous Ajmer District. It is located at the centre of Rajasthan. It is also known as heart of Rajasthan. The city was established as "' ...

in chains and forced him to sell

yogurt Yogurt (; , from tr, yoğurt, also spelled yoghurt, yogourt or yoghourt) is a food produced by bacterial fermentation of milk. The bacteria used to make yogurt are known as ''yogurt cultures''. Fermentation of sugars in the milk by these bac ...

in a market. The 15th century ''

Hammira Mahakavya ''Hammira Mahakavya'' (IAST: ''Hammīra-Mahākāvya'') is a 15th-century Indian Sanskrit epic poem written by the Jain scholar Nayachandra Suri. It is a legendary biography of the 13th century Chahamana king Hammira. While not entirely accurate f ...

'' claims that Karna was killed in a battle against Durlabha. However, this claim is historically inaccurate: Durlabha died around 1070 CE, while Karna lived until 1092 CE. Moreover, the earlier Chahamana records (such as ''

'') do not mention any such conflict. It is possible that Durlabha achieved a minor military success against Karna, which was magnified into a major victory by the later

panegyrist A panegyric ( or ) is a formal public speech or written verse, delivered in high praise of a person or thing. The original panegyrics were speeches delivered at public events in ancient Athens. Etymology The word originated as a compound of grc, ...

Personal life

Karna married Mayanalla, a daughter of the Kadamba king Jayakeshi I (r. c. 1050–1080). The various legends provide contradictory accounts of how this marriage happened. According to Hemachandra's 12th century ''Dvyashraya'', Mayanalla was an extremely beautiful Kadamba princess. She once saw Karna's painting by a

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

artist. Enamoured by Karna's looks, she rejected all other suitors, and resolved to marry him. With the approval of her father Jayakeshi, she sent an artist to Karna's court with her own portrait. The Kadamba king also sent gifts for Karna, including an elephant. When Karna went out in the garden to check out the gifted elephant, he found the princess waiting for him. He verified her identity by asking certain questions, and then married her. According to Merutunga's 14th century '' Prabandha-Chintamani'', Mayanalla-devi was an ugly princess of Karnata. One day, she remembered her past life. In that past life, she was a devout

Shaivite Shaivism (; sa, शैवसम्प्रदायः, Śaivasampradāyaḥ) is one of the major Hindu traditions, which worships Shiva as the Supreme Being. One of the largest Hindu denominations, it incorporates many sub-traditions rangin ...

, who had planned to visit the Somanath temple in Gujarat. However, she was stopped at Bahuloda for being unable to pay a pilgrim tax imposed by the rulers of Gujarat. When Mayanalla recalled this incident from her past life, she decided to marry the king of Gujarat and waive this unfair tax. At her insistence, her father Jayakeshi sent a

marriage proposal A marriage proposal is an event where one person in a relationship asks for the other's hand in marriage. If accepted, it marks the initiation of engagement, a mutual promise of later marriage. It often has a ritual quality. Traditional propo ...

to Karna, but Karna rejected the ugly princess. Mayanalla then came to Karna's court with her eight female companions, and threatened to commit suicide. Karna still refused to marry her, but unable to witness their deaths, Karna's mother Udayamati declared that she would die with the girls. As a result, Karna had to relent. He married Mayanalla, but kept neglecting her. Ultimately, she was able to win him over with help of a minister. Later, she convinced their son

to waive the pilgrim tax. This is also attested by another chronicler. The Kashmiri poet

also appears to allude to this incident. He stayed at Karna's court for sometime, and composed the poetic drama ''Karna-Sundari'', which presents Karna as a hero. According to this work, Karna dreamt of the princess (called Karnasundari, or "Karna's beautiful woman"), and decided to marry her. His jealous queen attempted to get him married to a boy disguised in Karnasundari's dress. However, Karna's clever minister foiled her plan by replacing the boy with the real Karnasundari. Although Bilhana was a contemporary of Karna, his account is the least accurate one, because it is intended to be a drama. Nevertheless, his account is helpful in estimating the date of this marriage. Bilhana probably left Karna's court somewhere between 1072 and 1078 CE. Assuming that Karnasundari is same as Mayanalla, Karna's marriage to her would have taken place sometime before this. It is difficult to determine whether Mayanalla was beautiful (as claimed by Hemachandra and Bilhana), or ugly (as claimed by Merutunga). Both Hemachandra and Bilhana wrote under Chaulukya patronage, so they had a vested interest in portraying Karna's queen in a positive light. Merutunga was not under any such pressure, but his account is fanciful and full of historical inaccuracies. For example, he claims that Jayakeshi's father was Shubhakeshi (it was actually Shashthi II). Merutunga further provides an absurd account of how Shubhakeshi chose to die with a tree in a

wildfire A wildfire, forest fire, bushfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fire in an area of combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire may be more specifically identi ...

, because he was grateful to the tree for having given him shade during a journey.

Religion and constructions

File:Modhera SunTemple.JPG, ''Rangamandapa'' and ''

torana ''Torana'' ( sa, तोरण; '' awr-uh-nuh') is a free-standing ornamental or arched gateway for ceremonial purposes in Hindu, Buddhist and Jain architecture of the Indian subcontinent. Toranas can also be widely seen in Southeast Asia and ...

'' at

Sun Temple, Modhera The Sun Temple of Modhera is a Hindu temple dedicated to the solar deity Surya located at Modhera village of Mehsana district, Gujarat, India. It is situated on the bank of the river Pushpavati. It was built after 1026-27 CE during the reign ...

File:Brahmaji Temple of Khedbrahma2.jpg,

Brahma Temple, Khedbrahma Brahma Temple or Brahmaji Mandir is a Hindu temple dedicated to Brahma in Khedbrahma, Gujarat, India. It is built in third quarter of the 11th century. History The temples dedicated to Brahma are uncommon in India. According to M. A. Dhaky, it ...

File:Nilakantha Mahadeva Hindu Temple, Sunak Gujarat.jpg, Nilkantha Mahadev temple, Sunak File:1885 photo of Hindu temple ruins at Dilmal, Gujarat, India.jpg, Limboji Mata temple, Delmal Like his predecessors, Karna was a

, and is said to have built three temples. According to the 14th century chronicler Merutunga, he built a temple dedicated to the goddess Kochharba at Ashapalli after defeating its Bhil chief Asha. He also established the Karnavati city nearby, where he commissioned the Karneshvara and Jayantidevi temples. He also built the Karnasagara tank at Modhera and Karnavati. In his capital Anahilapataka (now Patan), he erected the Karnameru temple. He is also ascribed a ''

vapi Vapi (IAST: vāpī,), is a city and municipality in Valsad district in the state of Gujarat, India.It is situated near the banks of the Daman Ganga River, around 28 km south of the district headquarters in the city of Valsad, and it is s ...

'' at Bhadravati ( Bhadreshwar). According to

, Karna repaired a temple of the goddess

Lakshmi Lakshmi (; , sometimes spelled Laxmi, ), also known as Shri (, ), is one of the principal goddesses in Hinduism. She is the goddess of wealth, fortune, power, beauty, fertility and prosperity, and associated with '' Maya'' ("Illusion"). A ...

, and prayed her for a son; as a result of the Lakshmi's blessings,

was born to him. His minister Shantu built Shantu Vasatika at Karnavati, Patan, Vanka and Nihala. His another minister Munjala built Munjala Vasati at Patan somewhere before 1900 CE. Saliga Jinalaya or Sagal Vasatika was built in

Khambhat Khambhat (, ), also known as Cambay, is a city and the surrounding urban agglomeration in Anand district in the Indian state of Gujarat. It was once an important trading center, but its harbour gradually silted up, and the maritime trade moved ...

before 1094 CE. None of these temples survives. According to ''Bhaktamara-stotra-vritti'', Shreshthi Chanaka built Adinath temple at Patan. Minister Dhavala, nephew of Vimala, constructed Revanta-prasada. Vayatiya Vasati at Ashapalli probably constructed in early years of Karna, existed before Udayana arrived there. Udayana-vihaea in Karnavati was completed in 1093 CE. The temple is discussed in Mahendrasuri's ''Vadasthala'' and its rejoiner ''Prabodhyavadasthala'' by Jinapatisuri as it had raised controversies in 1192 regarding its sanctity due to its consecration by a ''Chaityavasi'' abbot. Based on style-critical analysis, the ''rangamandapa'' and ''

'' at

is ascribed the early years of Karna's reign. The extant temples built during this period include the Brahma temple at Khedbrahma, the Limboji Mata temple at Delmal, Nilkantha Mahadev temple at Sunak, the completely ruined Vishnu Temple on the bank of lake at Ganja, Dugdheshwara Mahadev temple at Madrodpur in Kheralu Taluka of

Mehsana district Mehsana district (alternate spelling "Mahesana") is one of the 33 districts of Gujarat state in western India. Mehsana city is the administrative headquarters of this district. The district has a population of over 1.8 million and an area of ...

. Shantinatha Jain temple of the group of temples at Kumbhariya belongs to this period. Lakulisha Temple at Pavagadh is stylistically attributed to this period. Karna was also tolerant towards

Jainism Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current time cycle bein ...

, as evident from Rajashekhara's 15th century commentary on Sridhara's ''Nyaya-Kandali''. One legend claims that as Karna became a disciple of Vardhamana Suri, but this is historically inaccurate since Vardhamana Suri had starved himself to death at an earlier date.

In popular culture

The story of Karandev (Karna), Minaldevi (Mayanalla) and their son Siddhraj (Jayasimha Siddharaja) is depicted in the

Gujarati Gujarati may refer to: * something of, from, or related to Gujarat, a state of India * Gujarati people, the major ethnic group of Gujarat * Gujarati language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by them * Gujarati languages, the Western Indo-Aryan sub- ...

historical fiction '' Patan ni Prabhuta'' (The Glory of Patan) by Kanhaiyalal Munshi.

Notes

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * {{Chaulukya dynasty 11th-century Indian monarchs 12th-century Indian monarchs Chaulukya dynasty History of Ahmedabad City founders