Jarasandha birth

Jarasandha was the king of Magadha during Mahabharata time.

He was killed by Bhima upon the instruction of Krishna in a wrestling fight.

His mysterious birth made Jarasandha very powerful.

Brihadaratha was the father of Jarasandha.

He had two queens but no sons.

A Rishi called Chanda Kaushika blessed him and gave him a mango.

This mango was supposed to be eaten by his queen to conceive.

Brihadratha was impartial.

He gave one-half of the mango to each of his wives.

They both conceived.

But since each one had eaten only half the mango, each delivered half a baby.

That too with no life.

The bodies were abandoned.

One Rakshasi called Jara saw the bodies.

She wanted to take them away for eating later.

She bundled them together.

Suddenly, it became alive.

The infant was very strong and started roaring loudly.

The king and the queens came by hearing the commotion.

They realized what had happened.

Jara gave them the child.

Since he was born when Jara joined the two halves together, the child was named Jarasandha - जरया सन्धा कृता अस्येति जरासन्धः

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Knowledge Bank

Why are the Rishis asking for the essence of all Shastras?

Kaliyuga was approaching. In Kaliyuga people will be less intelligent. They will not have the capacity to differentiate between right and wrong. They will become cruel. They will not be interested in the Supreme truth. They will be only concerned about their own gains and physical pleasures. Their lifespan will be less. Nobody will have the time and interest to learn all the Shastras. If the essence of the Shastras is given to them, then there is a chance that they might use it for their own benefit.

What do you mean by Arthashastra?

Arthashastra is a book written by Kautilya (Chanakya) about administration, economic policy, and military strategy. It was written in the 3rd century BCE. Kautilya was the guru of Chandragupta Maurya. The book deals with 180 topics in 150 chapters. The topics include - the need for law and government, the roles of kings and officials, how checks should be maintained on administration, causes of poverty, causes of unrest, the judicial system, laws of marriage, forests and wildlife, manufacturing, mining, war and peace, spying, propaganda, and taxation.