[Advaita-l] A question about Kumbhakarna

[V Subrahmanian]

Thanks Ryan for the response.  It does make sense and settles my curiosity
about Kumbhakarna's misdeeds.

This ch of the Bhagavatam gives the story in short:
श्रीमद्भागवत महापुराण/स्कंध ०७/अध्यायः ०१
https://sa.wikisource.org/s/qdv

//Kamsa and Sisupala//  The duo are Dantavara and Sisupala.

warm regards
subbu


On Tue, Dec 27, 2022 at 8:48 PM Ryan Armstrong <ryanarm at gmail.com> wrote:

> Namaste All
> I have just (last week) finished re-reading the Ramayana.
> The story there is that Kumbhakarna, from birth already, would devour
> everything he could get hold of.
> This included ascetics rich in pennances and firm in their vows, innocents
> as well as various animals.
> Even on the battlefield, he caused mass confusion by devouring large
> portions of the monkey army.
> The story says that after he and his older brother had practised severe
> austerities and pennances he received a curse from Brahma as well as a boon.
> He was condemned to sleep for months at a time - so that he would not end
> up devouring the entire creation.
>
> I will also need to check the Bhagavatam (it must be about 20 years since
> I read the story) but therein (I think this is what you are referring to)
> Jaya and Vijaya were cursed by Sanatkumara when they barred his entry to
> Lord Vishnu at Vaikuntha.
> If I recall, they were both to be reborn 3 times and each time to be
> killed by Lord Vishnu himself.
> The incarnations were:
> Hiranyaksha and Hiranyakasipu
> Ravana and Kumbhakarna
> Kamsa and Sisupala (Here my memory may be wrong!)
>
> As with all things, his destruction was previously ordained.
>
> As an aside, I have always seen an allegory that Ravana and Kumbhakarna
> represent the chiefs of our desires.
> In the case of Kumbhakarna it seems he represents Greed and Slothfulness.
> As such, the Lord within needs to slay these desires in order to bring
> peace to the being.
>
> Regards
> Ryan
>
> On Tue, 27 Dec 2022 at 14:26, V Subrahmanian via Advaita-l <
> advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org> wrote:
>
>> We hear that Ravana and Kumbhakarna where the same Jaya and Vijaya and had
>> to be killed by Rama.
>>
>> ततस्तौ राक्षसौ जातौ केशिन्यां विश्रवःसुतौ ।
>>  रावणः कुम्भकर्णश्च सर्वलोकोपतापनौ ॥ ४३ ॥  Bhagavatam
>>
>> This verse says that both of them were extremely troublesome. We hear a
>> lot
>> about Ravana but what kind of trouble did Kumbhakarna cause to the world
>> at
>> large? So is the question with regard to Dantavakra in the Mahabharata.
>> Was
>> it so serious so as to deserve death in the hands of the lord himself?
>>
>> Om
>> subbu
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> --
> Regards
>
> Ryan Armstrong
> +27 82 852 7787
> ryanarm at gmail.com
>