Nirayavali Sutra · Varga 1 · Chapter 4

Krishna Kumar (कण्ह कुमार)

Varga 1 · Chapter 4 — The Name of the Great Hero — and the Arrow That Does Not Care

Prince Krishna Kumar — son of King Shrenika's queen Krishni — bears the name of the most celebrated figure of his era. The fourth adhyayan shifts from the "kāla/dark" series to the "kaṇha/Krishna" series of names. The name that made Vasudeva Krishna a legend does not protect this prince from Chetaka's arrow. The fourth hell awaits regardless of whose name you share.

तं कण्हा ण कण्हं कुमारं, णो चेव णं तुमं कण्हं कुमारं जीवमाणं पासिहिसि ।

"Krishni — Krishna Kumar is gone. You will not see Krishna Kumar alive." — Lord Mahavira

About This Chapter

Krishna Kumar

The fourth chapter marks a shift in the naming series — from the "dark" (kāla) brothers to the "Krishna" brothers. Six more Krishnas will follow.

The fourth adhyayan shifts from the "Kāla" (dark/time) name-series to the "Kaṇha" (Krishna) name-series. "Kaṇha" is the Prakrit form of "Krishna" — meaning dark, or the dark one. It is also, of course, the name of Vasudeva Krishna, the great soul who was both Mahavir's contemporary and the most celebrated figure in the non-Jain traditions of the same era. Krishna Kumar bears this famous name. The Nirayavali gives it no special treatment.

The fourth chapter also carries the weight of the three before it. The listener who has followed all four chapters now knows, before the sutra begins, what will happen. This foreknowledge is not a spoiler — it is a lens. Through this lens, the story of Krishna Kumar becomes not just a narrative but a question: knowing what we know about karma, about war, about the arrow that never misses — why does anyone still go?

10
Sutras

5
Parts

10 Sāgaropama
Hell Duration

Gautama
The Inquirer

Nirayavali · Varga 1 · Adhyayana 4

The 10 Sutras

Each sutra is presented with the original Ardhamagadhi Prakrit, English translation, commentary, and a contemplative prompt.

Part I — The Setting

4.1

The Ground That Does Not Change

तेणं कालेणं तेणं समएणं रायगिहे णामं णयरे होत्था । रिद्धिथिमियसमिद्धे वण्णओ । गुणसीले चेइए वण्णओ । असोवरपायवे वण्णओ । पुढविसीलापट्टे वण्णओ ।

At that time, at that period, there was a city called Rajagriha — prosperous and thriving [description as in the Aupapatika Sutra]. There was the Gunasila garden [description likewise]. There was a foremost Ashoka tree [description likewise]. There was a stone slab upon the earth [description likewise].

The fourth chapter opens on the same ground as the three before it. By now this opening carries accumulated weight — three stories already told, three sons already gone to the fourth hell, and yet the ground remains the same. Rajagriha does not change. Gunasila does not change. The stone slab endures. This constancy of the sacred setting against the backdrop of repeated tragedy is itself a teaching about what endures. The suffering of ten families is enormous — and the stone slab of Gunasila is unchanged by all of it. The truth is not shaken by the accumulation of tragedy. The setting that opens each chapter is not callous; it is simply reliable. It will be here for the tenth chapter too.

The simple version: The same opening: Rajagriha, the Gunasila garden, the Ashoka tree, the stone slab — steady and unchanged as the fourth story begins.

What in my life endures while everything around it changes — and do I give that enduring thing enough attention?

RajagrihaGunasila GardenWhat EnduresAccumulated Weight

4.2

Sudharmashvami Arrives — The Chain Holds

तेणं कालेणं तेणं समएणं समणस्स भगवओ महावीरस्स अंतेवासी अज्जसुहम्मे णामं अणगारे जाइसंपण्णे कुलसंपण्णे जहा केसी जाव पंचहिं अणगारसईहिं सड्ढिं संपरिवुढे पुढवीं चरमाणे गामाणुगामं दूइज्जमाणे जेणेव रायगिहे णयरे जाव अहापडिरूवं उग्गहं ओगिण्हित्ता संजमेणं तवसा अप्पाणं भावेमाणे विहरइ । परिसा णिग्गया । धम्मो कहिओ । परिसा पडिगया ।

At that time, Arya Sudharmashvami — accompanied by five hundred monks, wandering village to village — arrived at Rajagriha; accepted suitable lodging; dwelt through restraint and austerity. The assembly came out. The teaching was given. The assembly returned.

The fourth arrival of Sudharmashvami — each time the same monk, the same five hundred, the same teaching, the same assembly streaming out and returning. This consistency is the counter-image to what the chapters keep telling us about the princes: the princes' consistency is tragic (the same war, the same arrow, the same hell). Sudharmashvami's consistency is redemptive — the same teaching, the same dharma, the same offer of liberation. Both are consistent. Both are patterns. The difference is in what the patterns produce. The pattern of violence produces hell. The pattern of dharma produces liberation. The chapters place these two patterns beside each other — not to moralize, but to make the choice visible.

The simple version: Sudharmashvami arrived again at Rajagriha, taught, and the crowd went home — the fourth iteration of the same faithful arrival.

What patterns am I building through repetition — and which of them are moving me toward liberation, and which toward something else?

SudharmashvamiTwo PatternsDharma vs ViolenceRedemptive Consistency

Part II — The Inquiry

4.3

Jambu's Inquiry — The Frame That Contains All Ten

तेणं कालेणं तेणं समएणं अज्जसुहम्मस्स अणगारस्स अंतेवासी जंबू णामं अणगारे ... उज्जुं जाणू अहोसिरे जाव विहरइ । तए णं से जंबू जायसड्ढे जाव पज्जुवासमाणे एवं वयासी — उवंगणं भंते समणेणं भगया महावीरेणं जाव संपत्तेणं के अट्ठे पण्णत्ते? एवं खलु जंबू ... उवंगणं पंच वग्गा पण्णत्ता, तं जहा: णिरयावलियाओ, कप्पवंसियाओ, पुप्फियाओ, पुप्फचूलियाओ, वण्हिदसाओ ।

Jambu, seated near Sudharmashvami in reverential posture, asked: "What meaning did Mahavir set forth in the Upanga Sutra?" Sudharmashvami replied: "Five sections: the Nirayavali, the Kalpavamsika, the Pushpika, the Pushpachulika, and the Vrishni Dasha."

The fourth asking. The fourth answer. The names of the five sections arrive again, and with them the reminder: the Nirayavali is not just one story. It is a section within a larger map of karmic consequence. The Vrishni Dasha — the last section named — contains the story of the Vrishni warriors, who include figures related to Vasudeva Krishna himself. In a chapter whose subject is a prince named Krishna, this juxtaposition is not accidental. The Nirayavali and the Vrishni Dasha together show the same truth from different angles: even those who lived closest to greatness, who shared the names and lineages of great souls, could not inherit liberation. Karma is not inherited. It is generated, accumulated, and experienced by each soul individually.

The simple version: Jambu asked again about the Upanga's five sections, and Sudharmashvami named them — including the Vrishni Dasha, whose subjects share the name-world of this chapter's prince.

Do I believe I can inherit spiritual merit — or have I understood that liberation is generated fresh by each soul's own choices?

Jambu SwamiFive SectionsVrishni DashaKarma Is Not Inherited

4.4

The Ten Named Again — The Shift to Krishna

एवं खलु जंबू समणेणं भगया महावीरेणं जाव संपत्तेणं उवंगणं पढमस्स वग्गस्स णिरयावलियाणं दस अज्झयणा पण्णत्ता । तं जहा — काले सुकाले महाकाले, कण्हे सुकण्हे तहा महाकण्हे । वीरकण्हे य बोध्दव्वे, रामकण्हे तहेव य ॥ पिउसेणकण्हे णवमे, दसमे महासेणकण्हे उ ॥

Mahavir set forth ten adhyayanas: Kala, Sukala, Mahakala, Krishna, Sukrishna, Mahakrishna, Virakrishna, Ramakrishna, Piusena-Krishna, and Mahasena-Krishna.

The verse turns a corner here: after three "Kāla" names (dark, good-dark, great-dark), the text pivots to "Kaṇha" — Krishna. In the gāthā verse, this is a natural rhythmic transition: "Kāle Sukāle Mahākāle, Kaṇhe Sukaṇhe tahā Mahākaṇhe" — the two trios rhyme and echo each other in their structure. But the content of the pivot is theologically significant. "Kaṇha" is not just another word for dark — it is the name of the most celebrated soul of the age. The Nirayavali's use of this name for one of the hell-bound princes is a deliberate reminder: a name is not a guarantee. Six of the ten princes bear the name "Krishna" in some form. None of them are the Vasudeva. All of them go to hell.

The simple version: The verse is recited again. This is where the chapter series shifts from the "dark" (Kāla) names to the "Krishna" (Kaṇha) names — Krishna Kumar is fourth.

Have I borrowed spiritual identity from a name, a lineage, or a tradition — mistaking proximity to greatness for being great myself?

Name-Series ShiftKrishna — Not the VasudevaIdentity vs RealityTen Adhyayanas

Part III — Krishna Kumar

4.5

Queen Krishni and Prince Krishna Kumar

एवं खलु जंबू तेणं कालेणं तेणं समएणं इहेव जंबुद्दीवे दीवे भारहेवासे चंपा णामं णयरी होत्था । ... तत्थ णं चंपाए णयरीए सेणियस्स रण्णो भंजा कूणियस्स रण्णो चुल्लमाउया कण्हा णामं देवी होत्था, सूमालपाणिपाया जाव सुरूवा । तीसे णं कण्हाए देवीए पुत्ते कण्हे णामं कुमारे होत्था, सूमालपाणिपाया जाव सुरूवे ।

Thus, Jambu — in Champa, King Konik ruled. Also in Champa was Queen Krishni (Kaṇhā) — a niece of King Shrenika and step-mother-side aunt of King Konik — beautiful, with delicate hands and feet. Her son was Prince Krishna Kumar, handsome and delicately formed.

The name "Kaṇhā" is the Prakrit feminine of "Kaṇha" — the Dark One, Krishna in the feminine. Queen Krishni bears the same name as the most celebrated figure of the era, only in its feminine form. Her son carries the masculine form: Kaṇha Kumar, Krishna Kumar. In the same era that Vasudeva Krishna performed his great cosmic role, this other Krishna — a prince of the same royal bloodline, a nephew of the same great King Shrenika — goes to the same war and meets the same arrow. The text is not making a theological comparison. It is making a karmic statement: proximity to a great name, a great soul, a great family — these do not substitute for one's own actions. Krishna Kumar is not Vasudeva Krishna. He is a prince with the same name and a different life, with different choices and their different consequences.

The simple version: In Champa, one of King Shrenika's queens was named Krishni — "the dark one" — and her son was the handsome Prince Krishna Kumar, bearing the famous name.

What famous name, great lineage, or powerful identity am I relying on that is not actually mine by virtue of my own practice?

ChampaQueen KrishniKrishna KumarName vs Karma

4.6

Krishna Kumar Goes to Battle

तए णं से कण्हे कुमारे अण्णया कयाइ तिण्हं दंतिसहस्सेहिं, तिण्हं रहसहस्सेहिं, तिण्हं आससहस्सेहिं, तिण्हं मणुयकोडीहिं, गडलवूहे एक्कारसमेणं खंडेणं कूणिएणं रण्णा सड्ढं रहमुसलं संगामं ओयाए ।

Then, on a certain day, Krishna Kumar — with three thousand war elephants, three thousand chariots, three thousand cavalry, and three billion foot soldiers — set out in garudavyuha formation, as the eleventh division of Konik's army, to fight the Rathamushala battle.

The fourth prince descends into the same battle with the same army. The Jain texts about Vasudeva Krishna describe him as the Narayana — the greatest human warrior of his era, whose prowess was unique and extraordinary. This Krishna Kumar is not Vasudeva Krishna. He commands three thousand elephants and three thousand chariots — exactly like his brothers, exactly like the other seven Krishnas who will follow him. There is no special army for the one with the special name. Karma does not furnish you with extra elephants because your name is celebrated. The war is the same. The arrow is the same. The name is different — and it makes no difference at all.

The simple version: Krishna Kumar led the same enormous army as the three brothers before him and marched to the same great battle.

Is there a situation I am walking into — carrying the confidence of a celebrated identity — where I would be just as vulnerable as anyone else?

Rathamushala BattleSame ArmyName Confers No ProtectionKarma Is Equal

Part IV — Krishni Rani

4.7

Krishni's Night of Grief

तए णं तीसे कण्हा देवी अण्णया कयाइ कुडुंबजागरियं जागरमाणीए अयमेयारूवे अज्झत्थिए जाव समुप्पजित्था — एवं खलु मं पुत्ते कण्हे कुमारे तिण्हं दंतिसहस्सेहिं जाव ओयाए । से मण्णे किं जिस्सइ णो जिस्सइ, जीविस्सइ णो जीविस्सइ, कण्हे णं कुमारे अहं जीवमाणं पासिस्सं ? ओहियमण जाव झियाइ ।

Then, on a certain night, Queen Krishni — lying awake keeping vigil over her household — had this thought arise: "My son Krishna Kumar has gone to the Rathamushala battle. Will he win? Will he live? Will I see Krishna Kumar alive?" Her mind grew heavy and she fell into deep grief.

Four mothers. Four nights. The Nirayavali by now has assembled a kind of chorus of grief — each voice distinct in its name, identical in its cry. What does it feel like to be the mother of Krishna Kumar, the one with the famous name? The text does not speculate. It does not suggest that Krishni grieves with any special poignancy because of her son's name. She grieves with the exact same words, the exact same weight, the exact same questions as Kali, Sukali, and Mahakali. The famous name does not make the grief more celebrated. The simple name does not make the grief more ordinary. Love's anxiety does not grade by social standing.

The simple version: Queen Krishni lay awake at night worrying about her son in battle — the same fear, the same grief, the same words as the three mothers before her.

Does the status of the person I love change the quality of my fear for them — or is love's anxiety the same regardless of whose name the beloved carries?

Maternal GriefLove's Anxiety Is EqualChorus of MothersVigil

4.8

Krishni Journeys to Lord Mahavir

तेणं कालेणं तेणं समएणं समणे भगवं महावीरे समोसरिए । परिसा णिग्गया । तए णं तीसे कण्हा देवी इमीसे कहाए लद्धट्ठाए समाणीए ... समणं भगवं महावीरं तिक्खुत्तो आयाहिण-पयाहिण करेइ, वंदइ णमंसइ, पंजलिउडा पज्जुवासइ ।

At that time, the venerable Mahavir had alighted in Champa. The assembly came out. Queen Krishni, hearing this news, resolved to go attend him — prepared herself, traveled to the Purnabhadra garden, arrived at Mahavir, circumambulated three times, bowed and paid homage, and sat reverently before him with joined palms.

The fourth mother makes the fourth journey. Krishni arrives at Mahavir's feet through the same sequence: hearing the news, resolving to go, preparing herself, traveling through Champa, descending from the chariot, walking to the teacher, circumambulating, bowing, sitting. The text notes that she came "not knowing what she would hear" — yet she came. This is the act of faith that the Nirayavali celebrates in each of the ten mothers: the willingness to approach the truth without knowing whether it will comfort or devastate. The ten mothers are not saints before they arrive. They are women in grief. And the act of going to truth in grief — without a guarantee of what truth will say — is itself a form of practice.

The simple version: Mahavir arrived in Champa. Krishni prepared herself, traveled to the garden, and sat reverently before Mahavir with joined palms, ready to receive whatever was true.

Can I approach a teacher, a difficult conversation, or a hard truth without knowing in advance whether it will give me comfort — and still go?

Journey to the TeacherFaith Without GuaranteePradakshinaGrief as Practice

Part V — The Teaching and Its Fruit

4.9

Mahavir Teaches — And Tells Krishni the Truth

तए णं समणे भगवं महावीरे कण्हा देवीए, तीसे य महिमहालियाए परिसाए धम्मं परिक्काहेइ ... एवं खलु भंते मम पुत्ते कण्हे कुमारे तिण्हं दंतिसहस्सेहिं जाव रहमुसलं संगामं ओयाए । से णं भंते कण्हे णं कुमारे अहं जीवमाणं पासिस्सं ? तव पुत्ते कण्हे कुमारे ... चेडगस्स रण्णो एगाहिचं कूडाहिचं जीवियाओ वावरोवेइ । तं कण्हा ण कण्हं कुमारं, णो चेव णं तुमं कण्हं कुमारं जीवमाणं पासिहिसि ।

Mahavir gave the full teaching to Queen Krishni and the vast assembly. Krishni asked: "My son Krishna Kumar has gone to the Rathamushala battle. Will I see him alive?" Mahavir replied: "Your son Krishna Kumar was killed by King Chetaka with a single fatal blow. Krishni — Krishna Kumar is gone. You will not see Krishna Kumar alive."

For the fourth time, Mahavir speaks the same truth with the same completeness. The name "Krishna" does not soften the delivery. The arrow that killed Krishna Kumar did not know whose name he carried. And Mahavir, delivering the news, does not preface it with "I know this is especially painful given his name." The truth is spoken plainly: he is gone. In the Jain view, the omniscient sees each person as they actually are — not as their names suggest, not as their families hope, but as the soul they are, carrying the karma they have accumulated, experiencing the consequences that were set in motion by their own actions. Mahavir sees all ten sons exactly the same way. He reports on all ten exactly the same way. The teaching is: the omniscient is not partial.

The simple version: Mahavir gave his teaching, and Krishni asked about her son. Mahavir told her plainly: Krishna Kumar was killed in battle by Chetaka's single arrow. He is gone.

How do I respond when someone I respect sees me not as my name or my aspirations suggest, but exactly as I actually am?

Omniscient TruthChetaka's ArrowNo PartialityAs We Actually Are

4.10

Krishni's Acceptance and the Fourth Hell

तए णं सा कण्हा देवी ... महया पुत्तसोहणं अप्फुण्णा समाणी परसुणियत्ता विवम्पगलया धरणीयलंसि सव्वंगेहिं सण्णिवाडिया । तए णं सा कण्हा देवी मुहुत्तंतरेणं आसत्था समाणी उट्ठाए उट्ठेइ, एवं वयासी — एवमेइयं भंते तच्छमेइयं भंते सच्चे णं भंते एसंठे — धम्मियं जाणप्पवरं दुरुहेइ, जामेव दिसं पाउब्भूया तामेव दिसं पडिगया । भंते त्ति भगवं गोयमे एवं वयासी — कण्हे णं भंते कुमारे चेडएणं रण्णा जीवियाओ वावरोविए समाणे कहं गए, कहं उवउण्णे ? गोयमा त्ति समणे भगवं महावीरे एवं वयासी — एवं खलु गोयमा कण्हे कुमारे ... चउत्थीए पंकप्पभाए पुरवीए हेमाभे णरए दससागरोवमट्ठिइए सु णेरइए सु णेरइयत्ताए उवउण्णे ।

Then Queen Krishni — overwhelmed by the great grief of her son's loss — fell to the ground with all her limbs. After a moment she recovered, rose, bowed to Mahavir, and said: "It is so, venerable one. It is true. It is exactly as you have said." She mounted her chariot and returned. Then Gautam asked: "Where was Krishna Kumar reborn?" Mahavir replied: "Krishna Kumar was reborn in the fourth earth, Pankprabha, in the Hemabha abode, for ten ocean-measure time units."

Four collapses. Four recoveries. Four acceptances. Four departures. And four times Gautam's question receives the same answer: fourth hell, Pankprabha, Hemabha, ten sāgaropama. The famous name "Krishna" rests now in the fourth hell alongside his three brothers — the dark one, the auspiciously dark one, the greatly dark one. The Nirayavali has now established the first half of its pattern: four sons of Shrenika, four queens, four identical karmic trajectories. Six more to come. The teaching is not complete. The repetition is not finished. But by the fourth iteration, any remaining hope that the next chapter will be different has been dissolved. The text is not building to a climax — it is refusing one. The consequence is what it is, every time.

The simple version: Krishni collapsed, recovered, accepted the truth, and went home. Gautam asked where Krishna Kumar was reborn — and Mahavir answered: the fourth hell, for ten ocean-measure lifetimes.

When I encounter a pattern that has repeated four times already, what does it take to stop expecting a different outcome — and to accept what the pattern is actually telling me?

Fourth Collapse and RisingPankprabhaNo ClimaxThe Pattern Is the Teaching

॥ अध्ययन-४ सम्पूर्ण ॥

End of Chapter 4 — Krishna Kumar — Nirayavali Varga 1

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