Shishupala
Encyclopedia
Shishupala or Sisupala ' onMouseout='HidePop("27648")' href="/topics/IAST">IAST
: Śiśupāla) was son of Damaghosha, king of Chedi
, by Srutadeva, sister of Vasudeva
. Therefore he was not only cousin of Krishna
, but also Krishna's implacable foe, because Krishna had carried off Rukmini
, his intended wife. He was slain by Krishna at the great sacrifice of Yudhishthira in punishment of opprobrious abuse.
The Mahabharata
states that Sisupala was born with three eyes and four arms. His parents were inclined to cast him out, but were warned by a voice not to do so, as his time was not come. It also foretold that his superfluous members should disappear when a certain person took the child into his lap, and that he would eventually die by the hands of that same person. Krishna placed the child on his knees and the extra eye and arms disappeared indicating Shishupala's death was destined at the hands of Krishna.
In the Mahabharata, Shishupala's mother was given a vow by Krishna, her nephew, that he would pardon his cousin Shishupala a hundred times before he decides to kill him. When Yudishthira decided to make the Rajasuya Yajna. At that time Shishupala insulted Krishna as a cowherd and worthless to be honoured as a king. On an earlier instance he felt humiliated when Krishna rides away with Rukmini, his beautiful bride to be and marry him. Shishupala who happens to be a great friend of Rukmini's brother Rukmi
.
The Vishnu Purana
contributes an additional legend about him. "Sisupala was in a former existence the unrighteous but valiant monarch of the Daitya
s, Hiranyakasipu, who was killed by the divine guardian of creation (in the Narasimha
Avatar
). He was next the ten-headed (sovereign Ravana
), whose unequalled prowess, strength, and power were overcome by the lord of the three worlds (Rama
). Having been killed by the deity in the form of Raghava (Rama), he had long enjoyed the reward of his virtues in exemption from an embodied state, but had now received birth once more as Sisupala, the son of Damaghosha, king of Chedi. In this character he renewed with great inveteracy than ever his hostile hatred towards Pundarikaksha (Vishnu
), and by consequence was slain by him. But from the circumstance of his thoughts being constantly engrossed by the supreme being, Sisupala was united with him after death, for the lord bestows a heavenly and exalted station even upon those whom he slays in his displeasure."
His death forms the subject of the celebrated 8th century poem Shishupala Vadha
.
IAST
The International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration is a transliteration scheme that allows a lossless romanization of Indic scripts as employed by the Sanskrit language.-Popularity:...
: Śiśupāla) was son of Damaghosha, king of Chedi
Chedi Kingdom
Chedi kingdom was one among the many kingdoms ruled during early periods by Paurava kings and later by Yaduvanshi Rajput kings in the central and western India. It falls roughly in the Bundelkhand division of Madhya Pradesh regions to the south of river Yamuna and along river Betwa or Vetravati...
, by Srutadeva, sister of Vasudeva
Vasudeva
In Hindu itihasa , Vasudeva is the father of Krishna, the son of Shoorsen, of the Yadu and Vrishni dynasties. His sister Kunti was married to Pandu. He was a partial incarnation of Rishi Kashyap....
. Therefore he was not only cousin of Krishna
Krishna
Krishna is a central figure of Hinduism and is traditionally attributed the authorship of the Bhagavad Gita. He is the supreme Being and considered in some monotheistic traditions as an Avatar of Vishnu...
, but also Krishna's implacable foe, because Krishna had carried off Rukmini
Rukmini
In Hinduism, Rukmini is the principal wife and queen of Krishna at his city of Dwarka. Krishna heroically kidnaps her from an un-wanted marriage at her request . Of Krishna's 16,108 queens, Rukmini is the first and most prominent...
, his intended wife. He was slain by Krishna at the great sacrifice of Yudhishthira in punishment of opprobrious abuse.
The Mahabharata
Mahabharata
The Mahabharata is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India and Nepal, the other being the Ramayana. The epic is part of itihasa....
states that Sisupala was born with three eyes and four arms. His parents were inclined to cast him out, but were warned by a voice not to do so, as his time was not come. It also foretold that his superfluous members should disappear when a certain person took the child into his lap, and that he would eventually die by the hands of that same person. Krishna placed the child on his knees and the extra eye and arms disappeared indicating Shishupala's death was destined at the hands of Krishna.
In the Mahabharata, Shishupala's mother was given a vow by Krishna, her nephew, that he would pardon his cousin Shishupala a hundred times before he decides to kill him. When Yudishthira decided to make the Rajasuya Yajna. At that time Shishupala insulted Krishna as a cowherd and worthless to be honoured as a king. On an earlier instance he felt humiliated when Krishna rides away with Rukmini, his beautiful bride to be and marry him. Shishupala who happens to be a great friend of Rukmini's brother Rukmi
Rukmi
Rukmi was the ruler of Vidarbha according to the epic Mahābhārata. He was the son of king Bhishmaka and elder brother of Rukmini. Krishna married Rukmini by abducting her from the Vidarbha kingdom, though Rukmi wanted to give her as bride to Chedi king Shishupala. He fought with Krishna, but was...
.
The Vishnu Purana
Vishnu Purana
The Vishnu Purana is a religious Hindu text and one of the eighteen Mahapuranas. It is considered one of the most important Puranas and has been given the name Puranaratna...
contributes an additional legend about him. "Sisupala was in a former existence the unrighteous but valiant monarch of the Daitya
Daitya
In Hinduism, the Daityas are a clan or race or Asura as are the Danavas. Daityas were the children of Diti and the sage Kashyapa. They were a race of giants who fought against the Devas because they were jealous of their Deva half-brothers...
s, Hiranyakasipu, who was killed by the divine guardian of creation (in the Narasimha
Narasimha
Narasimha or Nrusimha , also spelt as Narasingh and Narasingha, whose name literally translates from Sanskrit as "Man-lion", is an avatar of Vishnu described in the Puranas, Upanishads and other ancient religious texts of Hinduism...
Avatar
Avatar
In Hinduism, an avatar is a deliberate descent of a deity to earth, or a descent of the Supreme Being and is mostly translated into English as "incarnation," but more accurately as "appearance" or "manifestation"....
). He was next the ten-headed (sovereign Ravana
Ravana
' is the primary antagonist character of the Hindu legend, the Ramayana; who is the great king of Lanka. In the classic text, he is mainly depicted negatively, kidnapping Rama's wife Sita, to claim vengeance on Rama and his brother Lakshmana for having cut off the nose of his sister...
), whose unequalled prowess, strength, and power were overcome by the lord of the three worlds (Rama
Rama
Rama or full name Ramachandra is considered to be the seventh avatar of Vishnu in Hinduism, and a king of Ayodhya in ancient Indian...
). Having been killed by the deity in the form of Raghava (Rama), he had long enjoyed the reward of his virtues in exemption from an embodied state, but had now received birth once more as Sisupala, the son of Damaghosha, king of Chedi. In this character he renewed with great inveteracy than ever his hostile hatred towards Pundarikaksha (Vishnu
Vishnu
Vishnu is the Supreme god in the Vaishnavite tradition of Hinduism. Smarta followers of Adi Shankara, among others, venerate Vishnu as one of the five primary forms of God....
), and by consequence was slain by him. But from the circumstance of his thoughts being constantly engrossed by the supreme being, Sisupala was united with him after death, for the lord bestows a heavenly and exalted station even upon those whom he slays in his displeasure."
His death forms the subject of the celebrated 8th century poem Shishupala Vadha
Shishupala Vadha
The Shishupala Vadha is a work of classical Sanskrit poetry composed by Māgha in the 7th or 8th century. It is an epic poem in 20 sargas of about 1800 highly ornate stanzas, and is considered one of the six Sanskrit mahakavyas, or "great epics". It is also known as the Māgha-kāvya after its author...
.