Karna and Arjuna are the two greatest warriors of the Mahabharata. The contrasting personalities and mutual antagonism of these two titans is one of the main reasons for the striking power of the Mahabharata storyline. It is the final war between Karna and Arjuna which is the most cataclysmic and awesome of the great epic. The warriors on the battlefield and the Devas in Swarga watched the battle in speechless amazement and terrified admiration of the strength and skill of these greatest of the Atirathis. An Atirathi was a warrior capable of fighting with 60000 men at the same time and defeating them. At the time of the Mahabharata there were only five Atirathis on the face of the earth and they were-Bhishma, Drona, Krishna, Karna and Arjuna.
It is extremely interesting and instructive when we see the different roles of these two Heroes of the Mahabharata. Karna deserves our sympathy when we see the cavalier and shabby way in which he is treated by most of the other personalities especially his own mother.
Though really born as a divine prince, he is reviled as a suta putra all his life. What prevented Kunti from acknowledging the radiant Karna as her long lost eldest son when he appears as a majestic youth at Drona’s arms exhibition? Then although he is among the mightiest of warriors he is underestimated and insulted by Bhishma, Drona, Kripa and Ashwathama.
Karna carried this bitter wound of unrecognized greatness in his heart all his life. The many insults he had to bear because of his supposedly low class birth led to a lifelong quest for recognition as the mightiest Kshatriya of his age and this fuels his feats of great heroism, his bitter rivalry with Arjuna and his ultimately self destructive daanveerta. That was also the reason why the blazing sun Karna was among the dark clouds of the Kauravas.
Unfortunately for him, he could never win any battle against his supreme foe Arjuna. It was as if the curse of his guru Parashuram dogged him throughout his life. The wheels of his life were stuck in misfortune much before the wheels of his chariot stuck in the bloody quagmire of Kurukshetra. Karna however is worthy of the greatest respect and admiration for his glorious personality and indomitable courage, his undisputed might and skill as a warrior and most of all for his never say die attitude to life.
The tragedy of Karna should not detract us from the greatness of Arjuna. Arjuna is the ultimate hero of the Mahabharata being an incarnation of Nara, the heroic masculine power of Lord Vishnu . King Pandu and Kunti purified themselves by severe austerities to Indra for one year before he was born. No other birth except Krishna’s was celebrated by the devas, sages and apsaras.
However his real achievement lies in his pursuit of perfection all his life. Though born into the great Bharata race he is not content to rest on the strength of his family fame and exerts himself until he becomes the greatest warrior on earth. He is the embodiment of Kshatriya manhood . His status as the pre eminent warrior is emphatically established by his single handed defeat of Bhishma, Drona, Karna , Kripa and Ashwathama in the terrible battle of the Viratas. He bears all the injustices of the Kauravas with courageous fortitude and yet hesitates to kill them when they are arranged before him for war.
It is this purity and kindness of heart which makes Arjuna truly great. As C Rajagoplachari puts it, he never abuses his immense power and ever shrinks from an unworthy act. These qualities make Krishna choose him as his dearest friend and disciple. Arjuna is the role model for the young man aiming at perfection and he achieved ultimate victory in both the material and spiritual battlefields of his life with the Lord Himself as his Guide.
