Paundraka Vāsudēva was a king appearing in

Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; , , ) is one of the two major Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epics of ancient India revered as Smriti texts in Hinduism, the other being the ''Ramayana, Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the events and aftermath of the Kuru ...

and

Bhagavata Purana The ''Bhagavata Purana'' (; ), also known as the ''Srimad Bhagavatam (Śrīmad Bhāgavatam)'', ''Srimad Bhagavata Mahapurana'' () or simply ''Bhagavata (Bhāgavata)'', is one of Hinduism's eighteen major Puranas (''Mahapuranas'') and one ...

. According to it, he was the king of

Pundra Kingdom Pundravardhana or Pundra kingdom (), was an ancient kingdom of Iron Age India located in the Bengal region of the Indian subcontinent with a territory that included parts of present-day Rajshahi and parts of Rangpur Division of Bangladesh a ...

. Some sources state he was an ally of both

Jarasandha Jarasandha () is a king featured in the Hindu Mythology. He is the powerful monarch of Magadha, and a minor antagonist in Mahabharata. He is the son of the king Brihadratha, the founder of the Barhadratha dynasty of Magadha. According to popu ...

, the king of

Magadha Magadha was a region and kingdom in ancient India, based in the eastern Ganges Plain. It was one of the sixteen Mahajanapadas during the Second Urbanization period. The region was ruled by several dynasties, which overshadowed, conquered, and ...

and

Shakuni Shakuni (, , ) is one of the antagonists of the Hindu epic ''Mahabharata''. He was the prince of the kingdom of Gandhara when introduced, later becoming its king after the death of his father, Subala. He was the brother of Gandhari (Mahabharata), ...

, the king of the

Gandhara Kingdom Gandhara () was an ancient Indo-Aryan people, Indo-Aryan civilization in present-day northwest Pakistan and northeast Afghanistan. The core of the region of Gandhara was the Peshawar valley, Peshawar (Pushkalawati) and Swat valleys extending ...

. He was a major enemy of

Krishna Krishna (; Sanskrit language, Sanskrit: कृष्ण, ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme God (Hinduism), Supreme God in his own right. He is the god of protection, c ...

. He imitated Krishna, believing himself to be Vāsudeva, or God. Later he was killed by Krishna in battle. According to some scriptures, Paundraka was Krishna's doppelganger. He is considered to be an incarnation of the demoniac King Vena as per some sources. There is also a reference that he was allies with king Kashiraja (king of

Kashi Kashi or Kaashi most commonly refers to: * Varanasi (historically known as "Kashi"), a holy city in India Kashi may also refer to: Places **Kingdom of Kashi, an ancient kingdom in the same place, one of the sixteen Mahajanapadas **Kashi Vishwana ...

)

Declaration to be God

Some versions of

Srimad Bhagavatam The ''Bhagavata Purana'' (; ), also known as the ''Srimad Bhagavatam (Śrīmad Bhāgavatam)'', ''Srimad Bhagavata Mahapurana'' () or simply ''Bhagavata (Bhāgavata)'', is one of Hinduism's eighteen major Puranas (''Mahapuranas'') and one o ...

, states that he was the son of Vasudeva (not to be mistaken with

Vasudeva Vasudeva (; Sanskrit: वसुदेव ), also called Anakadundubhi (''anakas'' and ''dundubhis'' both refer to ''drums'', after the musicians who played these instruments at the time of his birth), is the father of the Hindu deities Krishna ( ...

, who was the father of Lord Krishna) and Sutanu, the princess of Kasi. As the son of Vasudeva, he was named Vāsudeva. He became the king of Kasi, because his maternal grandfather had no sons. Vāsudēva could not enjoy the childhood of Paundraka, being held captive by Kansa.Bhagavata Purana Skandha X Chapter 66, Motilal Bansaridass Publishers Book 4 Appendix (66A) pages 1884- 1885, additional verses in Vijaya-dhvaja's Bhagavata Purana, Chapter 69 Paundraka collected taxes from several kings. He foolishly believed the words of his friends, who said Paundraka was God. During the absence of Balarama in Dwarka (Srimad Bhagavatam, Canto 10, Chapter 65), Paundraka sent a message to

, stating that the symbols used by the latter belonged to him, such as the flag of

Garuda Garuda (; ; Vedic Sanskrit: , ) is a Hindu deity who is primarily depicted as the mount (''vahana'') of the Hindu god Vishnu. This divine creature is mentioned in the Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain faiths. Garuda is also the half-brother of the D ...

. He declared he was the real Vāsudēva (God) and not Krishna, who is considered the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He ordered Krishna to stop using "his" identity. Then, Krishna waged war against Paundraka and killed him.

Death

According to the 66th chapter of Canto 10 of Srimad Bhagavatam, when Paundraka sent a message to Dwaraka, stating that he was God, Krishna declared war against him. Paundraka's chariot was made similar to Krishna's, even with a flag of Garuda, after giving many warnings to leave his false claims of pretending. As Vāsudēva, Krishna killed Paundraka by beheading him with the

Sudarshana Chakra The Sudarshana Chakra (, ) is a divine discus, attributed to Vishnu in the Hindu scriptures. The Sudarshana Chakra is generally portrayed on the right rear hand of the four hands of Vishnu, who also holds the Panchajanya (conch), the Kaumodak ...

. The son of the king of Kashi, Sudakshina, created an evil demonic spirit using black magic to destroy Dwaraka, with the help of some corrupt priests. However, Krishna's Sudarshana Chakra set fire around

. The whole kingdom was burnt and Sudakshina and all his priests were killed.

Declaration to be God

Death

See also

References

Further reading