Kanva Maharishi :

=========================================================================

Friday, 19 May, 2023. 05:30.

Ancient Rishis of Bharatham

Kanva Maharishi :

=========================================================================

Maharishi Kanva was an ancient Rishi of the Treta Yuga, to whom some hymns of the Rig Veda are ascribed. One of the Angirasas, he was also referred to as a son of Ghora. He is sometimes considered to be one of the Saptarishis (seven most powerful sages).

Kanva features prominently in Kalidasa's work, Abhijnanashakuntalam. He is the head of the ashrama (hermitage), which is the setting of the play's first few acts. He is also the protagonist, Shakuntala's, foster father. At the very beginning of the play, he is absent, as he is in penance, trying to please the Gods on Shakuntala's behalf. When he returns, he is delighted to know that King Dushyanta proposed to Shakuntala and so, sends her to his palace, accompanied by ascetics and seers.

Plot of the Play :

The main female lead of Abhijnanashakuntalam, Shakuntala, is the daughter of Sage Vishwamitra and the apsara Menaka. Abandoned at birth by her parents, she is raised in the secluded hermitage of Sage Kanva and grows up to be a fine maiden.

Once, Kanva and the other elders in the ashrama left for a pilgrimage, leaving her alone there. At that time, King Dushyanta, the ruler of Hastinapura at the time, came hunting into the forest. While pursuing game, he chanced to come upon the hermitage. Captivated by Shakuntala's beauty, he courted her in royal style and married her secretly. He then had to return to his kingdom. But before leaving, he gave her his royal ring as a token of his love.

After his departure, Shakuntala was daydreaming about him and missed to notice Rishi Durvasa having arrived there. Angry, the latter cursed her that her lover would forget all about her existence. When she repented and apologized for her folly, he relented and told her that her lover would remember her when she showed him the signet ring he gave her.

By that time, Shakuntala realized that she was pregnant. She decided to go see Dushyanta and reunite with him. Unfortunately, as she crossed a river, the signet ring slipped off her finger. When she arrived at the palace, Dushyanta refused to recognize her and said that he had never ever met her. He had lost his memory of her, due to Durvasa's curse. A crestfallen Shakuntala then returned to the hermitage, where she gave birth to her son, Bharata.

Later, the ring was discovered by a fisherman inside the belly of a fish. He took it to Dushyanta, who immediately remembered all about Shakuntala and the times he spent with her. He went to the ashrama, told her all about what had transpired and brought her back to the palace along with their son.

Bharata went on to become a powerful Emperor and the ancestor of the Pandavas and the Kauravas in the great epic, Mahabharata. It is after him that India was named Bharat or "Bharatavarsha", the "Land of Bharata".

Other References

Kanva Maharishi was the first grammarian of the Telugu language

Kanva or Karnesh is also the name of a Vedic Shakha of the Shukla Yajur Veda

Kanva or Karnesh is the name of several princes and founders of dynasties, as also of several authors

The Kanvas are descendants of King Vasudeva Kanva of the 1st century BCE

A class of spirit, against whom some hymns of the Atharva Veda are used as a charm, are called Kanvas

Some families with the surname Kanva or Karnesh, living in the Pahasour village in Haryana, claim to be descendants of the Maharishi. Apart from Pahasour, there are Kanva families living in Bhadani village as well.

Maharishi Kanva Ashrama

Considering that Kanva was a part of Kalidasa's play, the question comes to mind whether he was a real person or just a mythological figure. While this matter is debatable, there is a beautiful Maharishi Kanva Ashrama, situated on the banks of River Malini in Uttarakhand.

Though one can find several other Kanva ashramas in India, this is believed to be the original place, where the ashrama was once established. The birthplace of Emperor Bharata, it is also said to be the locale where Chandrakiran Maharaj, a sage of the twentieth century, made his own base.

Another Maharishi Kanva Ashrama is situated on the banks of River Girna, outside village Kanalda, a little away from Jalgaon City in Maharashtra. Some versions of the legend narrate that it was here that Kanva had set up his ashrama and also the place where he found the abandoned baby Shakuntala.

========================================================================