The wife of Harishchandra in a previous birth.
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Kshattha (1)
Another name for Vidura.
Kaushika (6)
A sage who once lived in Kurukshetra. His sons Swasripa, Krodhana, Himsra, Pishuna, Kavi, Vagadushta, Pitrvritti went to Garga for their education. Kaushika died soon after and the sons fell into poverty. A famine struck and once, when Garga had sent them to graze his cow, the brothers decided to kill and eat it. The youngest – Pitrvritti -said that if they used the meat for shraadh, then they wouldn’t be sinning. He killed the cow and began his shraadh. He also sent two of his brothers for devapuja and three for the pitr rites. Thus they began the shraadh and consumed the meat. They informed Garga that the cow had been eaten by a tiger.
Later, they died and were reborn in Dashapura as butchers (vyadhas), but because of their pitr rites, also had the knowledge of their past life. They were repentant and after conducting upavasas in holy places, gave up their lives in public and were reborn as animals in Kalanjaragira. Since they were repentant and had fallen from the mountains, they were then born as birds in Manasarovar. They were named Sumanas, Kusuma, Vasu, Chitradarshi, Sudarshi, Jnata, Jnanaparaga. They were devoted to each other and because of their actions, became pure. Three of them lost their spiritual ability due to distractions. When they saw the king of Panchala, who had accumulated a lot of wealth and was frolicking with women, one among them Pitrvritti desired to become a king. Two others desired to become powerful ministers.
Thus Pitrvritti was born as Brahmadatta, the prince of Vaibhraga and the two others were born as Pundarika and Subalaka, sons of ministers. Brahmadatta was anointed king of Panchala at Kambilya. He was devoted to his father, brave, spiritual and compassionate. He married Sannati, the daughter of Sudeva. She was the incarnation of the cow that had belonged to Garga. Since she was used for a pitr rite, she was born with the wisdom of a brahmin.
Once, when Brahmadatta and Sannati were in the garden, they saw two ants. They were husband and wife and fighting with each other and as the king and queen watched, the fight eased and their love resumed. The king watched them, smiling. He knew the language of all living beings on account of his past lives’ deeds. Sannati asked him why he was smiling. He answered her but she didn’t believe him and felt he was teasing her. She asked him how he knew it and he said that it was difficult for him to answer that.
The other four birds had been reborn as the sons of a poor brahmin. They had knowledge of their previous lives and were known as Dhritiman, Sarvadarshi, Vidyachandra and Tapodhika. They wanted to go away to meditate but their father was reluctant, so they told him the story of their previous lives as a shlok and asked him to tell this to the king to get rewarded. Brahmadatta meanwhile, had still not answered Sannati and was one day preparing to go out with his ministers. The old brahmin reached there then and told him the shlok. Brahmadatta fainted on hearing it, and so did the two ministers, and on regaining their consciousness lamented the loss of their spiritual powers. Brahmadatta rewarded the old brahmin handsomely and after making his son Vishwaksena king went away to Manasarovar to meditate. All three of them attained salvation as per Padmapurana Part 3 Chapter 10.
Kripi
Kripa’s sister. See Kripa for details.
After growing up in Shantanu’s palace, she was married to Drona. Their son was Ashwathama as per Mahabharata Adiparva Chapter 130. She wept when Drona died in Kurukshetra as per Mahabharata Sriparva Chapter 23 verse 33. She was also known as Sharadwati, gautami.
Kritavirya (2)
The chandravanshi king Ahamyati had a shwashura named Kritavirya as per Mahabharata Adiparva Chapter 95 verse 15. He had a daughter named Bhanumati.
Kumbhakarna
Antecedents: Vishnu – Brahma – Pulastya – Vishravas – Kumbhakarna.
The prajapati Pulastya took Havirbhu (Manini) as his wife. Their son was Vishravas. Vishravas married Ilibila and their son was Kuber. Once Vishravas looked at Kuber angrily and in order to placate his father, Kuber appointed three maids to serve him – Raka, Malini and Pushpolkada. Vishrawas sired Ravana and Kumbhakarna from Pushpolkada, Vibhishana with Malini and Khara and Shurpanakha with Raka according to Mahabharata Vanaparva Chapter 275 verses 1-8. But as per Uttararamayana , Ravana, Vibhishana and Kumbhakarna were born to Vishravas and Kaikasi. According to Agnipurana, Pushpolkada and Kaikasi are the same person.
Ravana and Kumbhakarna were the incarnations of the devas Jaya and Vijaya. Jaya and Vijaya were Vishnu’s gatekeepers. Once when a few sages including Sanaka came to visit Vishnu, they were stopped and direspected by the two. The sages cursed that they would become asuras, but they pleaded with Vishnu who said that the curse would be lifted if they were killed thrice by Vishnu. Their first incarnations were as Hiranyaksha and Hiranyakashipu. Vishnu killed Hiranyaksha in his varaha avatar and Hiranyakshipu in his narasimha avatar. Hiranyaksha was reborn as Ravana and Hiranyakashipu as Kumbhakarna. Both were killed by Vishnu in his Rama avatar. Ravana was reborn as Shishupala and Kumbhakarna as Dantavakra. Both were killed by Vishnu in his Krishna avatar. Jaya and Vijaya then returned to Vaikuntha as per Bhagavata Saptamaskanda.
Kumbhakarna spent his childhood in Vishravas’ hermitage in the Gandhamadana mountain. This was when Kuber was made the lord of the yakshas. He was also gifted many items like the pushpak. Kumbhakarna and his other brothers were envious of this. They went away into the forests and prayed to Brahma, standing on one leg, for a thousand years. Brahma didn’t appear and they stopped eating food. Khara and Shurpanakha took care of their siblings during this time. Brahma didn’t appear even after another thousand years passed. Ravana began sacrificing his ten heads into the yajna fire. Brahma finally appeared, gave him back the heads and blessed that he wouldn’t be killed by gandharvas, devas, daityas, yakshas, rakshasas, nagas, kinnaras and bhutas, and only a humna would be able to kill him. The devas were shocked and thought that if Kumbhakarna too got a similar boon, they would be in peril. They sent Saraswati to somehow twist Kumbhakarna’s boon. Saraswati began dancing on Kumbhakarna’s tongue, twisting his words and getting him a boon to sleep for six months a year. Vibhishana got the boon of remembering dharma in the face of danger and the ability to invoke the brahmastra without learning the mantra. Ravana then defeated Kuber and took over Lanka, staying there with his siblings, as per Mahabharata Vanaparva 275 and Uttararamayana.
In the war with Rama, Kumbhakarna defeated Sugriva, his ministers, Lakshmana and all the major warriors who fought for Rama. He finally fell to Rama’s arrow as per Ramayana Yudhakanda Chapter 67 verse 170. But as per Mahabharata Vanaparva Chapter 287 verse 18, he was killed by Lakshmana. But Valmiki’s version seems true since the Bhagavata Saptamaskanda confirms Kumbhakarna as an incarnation of Jayavijayas and since their release from the curse was subject to Vishnu killing them, it must have Rama who killed Kumbhakarna.
When Rama crossed the ocean into Lanka, Ravana called a meeting of his advisors to decide on the course of action. Then Kumbhakarna told Ravana that he had not abducted Sita after asking his advisors, and thus they could not be held responsible for what would happen next. But he said that since Ravana was his brother, he would do all to protect him, and that would include fighting Rama, as per Ramayana Yudhakanda Chapter 12.
Kalaha
The wife of a brahmin named Bhikshu in Saurashtra. She used to do the exact opposite of what her husband told her. So the brahmin told her things accordingly. But once he forgot that when the offerings for a dead person were to be floated in the Ganga river. She threw it in the excretion pit, and was thus forced to be born of a pisacha. Later Dharmadatta used the Dwadashakshari mantra in the month of Karthika to get her redemption. They were both later born as Kausalya and Dasaratha, as per Anandaramayana Sarakanda and padmapurana Uttarakanda. See Dharmadatta
Karnapravarana (3)
An attendant of Skanda as per Mahabharata Shalyaparva Chapter 46 verse 25.
Aisheeka
A chapter in the Mahabharata.
Aila (2)
A member of Yama’s court as per Mahabharata Sabhaparva Chapter 8 verse 16. He remained a vegetarian all his life as per Mahabharata Anushasanaparva Chapter 115 verse 65.