Book 8 of 18 · The Mahabharata

Karna Parva

कर्ण पर्व

Karṇa Parva

The Book of Karna

What is the Karna Parva?

The Karna Parva (कर्ण पर्व) is the eighth of the eighteen books of the Mahabharata. Its name means “Book of Karna”, and this site tells 46 stories drawn from it.

Karna Parva Summary

Karna commands for two days with Shalya as his unwilling charioteer, and the war narrows to the duel the whole epic has been building toward. Bhima corners Dushasana and fulfils the oath he swore over Draupadi's loosened hair. On the seventeenth day Karna's chariot wheel sinks into the earth, the curses of Parashurama and the brahmin fall due together, and Arjuna kills him as he struggles to lift it. Between the fighting the book holds Krishna's teaching on the subtlety of truth and the legend of the burning of the three cities.

What This Book Is About

  • fate
  • curses
  • loyalty
  • oaths
  • tragedy

Sub-Books (Upaparvas) of the Karna Parva

The Mahabharata divides itself into one hundred upaparvas; one of them belongs to this book.

  1. Karna-vadha ParvaThe Slaying of KarnaSub-book 73 of 100

Stories from the Karna Parva

46 stories on this site are told inside this book, in canonical reading order.

  1. Kurukshetra Day 16: The Sun-Born CommanderKarna Keeps His Word to Kunti
  2. Karna and ShalyaThe War of Words on the Chariot
  3. The Blood VowBhima fulfills the oath sworn over Draupadi's hair 10 min
  4. The Gandiva QuarrelArjuna Nearly Kills His King
  5. The Truth That KilledRigid truth without compassion becomes sin 10 min
  6. The Burning of the Three CitiesShiva, the Ender of Tripura 10 min
  7. The Death of KarnaThe chariot wheel, the curses, and the fall of the sun 11 min
  8. The Fallen SunKarna's life is the greatest tragedy of the Mahabharata. 20 min
  9. The Fallen SunKarna's story is the Mahabharata's deepest meditation on the cruelty of fate and the power of loyalty. 28 min
  10. Kurukshetra Day 17: The Earth Takes the WheelKarna's Last Morning to Karna's Last Hour 21 min
  11. The Word Brought to HastinapuraSanjaya rides through the night with the news of Karna 21 min
  12. Arjuna Against the Preceptor's SonThe duel Ashvatthama could not win twice 16 min
  13. Pandya of the Malaya HillsThe southern king who thought himself greater than Bhishma 16 min
  14. The King Against the KingYudhishthira brings Duryodhana down and Bhima stops the blow 17 min
  15. The Calf and the WheelKarna tells his charioteer the curse that will kill him 16 min
  16. Karna Spares the KingThe armour cut away, and a hand laid on Yudhishthira's shoulder 17 min
  17. The Brothers Bhima CountedDuryodhana's kin fall in handfuls on the seventeenth day 16 min
  18. The Bhargava WeaponKarna spends his teacher's last gift on the Pancalas 17 min
  19. Ashvatthama Asks for PeaceA hand on Duryodhana's wrist while the gods watch 16 min
  20. The Field After the Sun FellShalya counts the dead and the Kauravas walk away 18 min
  21. A Thousand Lamps Around KarnaYudhishthira rises from his bed to look at his enemy 16 min
  22. The Duel the Gods ApplaudedAshwatthama and Bhima fight to a standstill and are carried off senseless by their own drivers 14 min
  23. Sahadeva Against DushasanaThe quiet twin puts one arrow through the man Bhima had sworn to kill 11 min
  24. The Old Preceptor and the Slayer of DronaKripa freezes Dhrishtadyumna until his own driver turns the car and runs 11 min
  25. The King Names the PairsYudhishthira assigns each Pandava his enemy as Karna's array comes on 16 min
  26. The Son Bhima BeheadedBhima cuts down Karna's son Bhanusena while Karna fights his way toward Yudhishthira 14 min
  27. Ashwatthama Breaks the King's GuardA roof of arrows over Yudhishthira, and the insult the king threw back 18 min
  28. The Elephant Standard Comes DownDhrishtadyumna leaves Duryodhana without horses, driver, weapons or banner at noon on the seventeenth day 18 min
  29. Ashwatthama at Dhrishtadyumna's ThroatThe vow he very nearly kept on the seventeenth day 16 min
  30. How Parashurama Won Shiva's WeaponsYears of penance, a war fought with empty hands, and the arsenal that reached Karna 17 min
  31. The Night After DronaThe sleepless camp, four men in a tent, and the thread tied round Karna's wrists 14 min
  32. The First Duels of the Sixteenth DayBhima kills a king off an elephant, Satyaki kills two brothers, and Draupadi's sons kill two more 17 min
  33. Dandadhara of MagadhaTwo brothers on elephants, and the field Krishna made Arjuna look at 19 min
  34. The Kings of the East FallSatyaki, Sahadeva and Nakula break the elephant corps of the eastern kings 11 min
  35. Sutasoma and the Broken ScimitarYuyutsu and Uluka trade blows, and Bhima's son fights Shakuni on foot with half a sword 13 min
  36. Karna and Satyaki ClashOne Vrishni holds the Kaurava army, and the sixteenth day ends in dust 14 min
  37. The Price on Arjuna's HeadKarna offers everything he owns to any man who will point out Arjuna 13 min
  38. The Prince Who Went In for ShikhandiKripa strips Shikhandi on the seventeenth day, and a young ally buys him a way out with his life 12 min
  39. The Gates of Heaven Stand OpenDuryodhana tells his kings that dying well is winning, and Krishna drives Arjuna through what that costs 20 min
  40. Satyaki Unhorses ShakuniThe seventeenth day breaks into single combats, and the gambler of Gandhara is carried off the field by his son 14 min
  41. Arjuna Rides Out for KarnaThe car is yoked again, the omen birds go on ahead, and the field between Arjuna and Karna breaks into duels 23 min
  42. Arjuna Cuts His Way to KarnaAn army ordered to tire one man before Karna kills him 21 min
  43. The Vows Before the Final DuelKarna, Shalya, Krishna and Arjuna each say what they will do when the other man dies 24 min
  44. Karna's Tales of the MadrakasThe abducted woman's curse, the rakshasa's ranking of dirt, and a driver who cannot get off the chariot 21 min
  45. Vrishasena, Heir of AngaWar's arithmetic visits the children
  46. The Serpent in the ArrowA grudge that waited a generation for one shot

Where This Book Sits

The Karna Parva is book 8 of the eighteen parvas. It follows the Drona Parva, the book of drona. The Shalya Parva, the book of shalya, comes next.

See all eighteen parvas of the MahabharataFollow the epic as a timeline