greek, sanskrit and tamil: comparison between ion

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Greek, Sanskrit and Tamil: Comparison between Ion 1

(Euripides) and Karna (Mahabharat) on the 2

Mythological Theory of Binary Opposition 3

4 Ion is a Greek play authored by Euripides depicting the story of Ion. The 5 Mahabharata is the epic written in both Tamil and Sanskrit languages. The 6 story of Karna is one of the sub plots in this epic. In the Greek play, Creusa 7 who is impregnated by Apollo, the Sun God keeps Ion in a casket together 8 with a breast plate for his protection. In the Tamil myth, Kunti who is 9 impregnated by the SUN god places her son Karna in a casket and lets it 10 afloat in a river to conceal the birth of the child. Regarding the breast plate 11 in this story it is shown that Karna was born with the breast plate glued to 12 his breast. Creusa, the mother of Ion has had an illegal son born to her 13 before marriage and remains with no children after getting married to 14 another person. Kunti too gives birth to a son before marriage and remains 15 with no children after her remarriage. The offsprings of Ion are related with 16 the ancestors of Asians. Thus the Greek myth of Ion related with Asia has 17 resemblance with Karna, the Asian myth. 18 19 Keywords: Ion, Karna, Myth, Sanskrit, Tamil 20

21

22

Introduction 23

24 Myths are mostly seen as imaginary literatures. Some times myths have 25

also links with history. ‘Ion’, a Greek play written by Euripides consists of the 26

myth of ‘Ion’. The author relates this myth of Ion with the history of the 27

Ionians and Asians. Here the Asian myth, Karna has some resemblances with 28

the myth of Ion. Further, both the myths can be looked with the background of 29

mythological theory called binary opposition. 30

Ion – Play 31

Iōn - Ἴων is an ancient Greek play written by Euripides between 414 and 32

412 BC. It talks about an orphan Ion who was in search of his origin. Some 33

scholars lay their emphasize on saying that the myth of ‘Ion’ is not only a 34

simple play, but it shows the search of identity of the race of the origin 35

(Jonathan Hall 1997) 1 (Meltzer 2006)

2. This play highlights many myths of 36

Ion, among which one of the myths of Ion has resemblance with the myth 37

related to Karna of Mahabharata. 38

39

1Although Ion is a relatively obscure mythological figure, Euripides does make several

innovations which bring together the two competing versions of Athenian identity. One

foundation story highlights the Athenians as Ionians, who were one of the main (but less

noteworthy) migratory Greek peoples. 2The story provides convenient justification for Athenian domination over the largely Ionian

empire..

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The Myth of Mahabharata 1

2 Tamil is an ancient classical language which has its first available 3

literature called the Sangam literature. One of the poems of the Tamil Sangam 4

literature mentions about the Mahabharata war as the war between five 5

brothers versus hundred brothers (Tamil Virtual University 1995). 6

7 Greatness who gave unlimited food, until those hundred men wearing 8 golden thumpai flower garlands had seized the land and perished in the 9 field fighting furiously against the five whose horses wore swaying plumes! 10 Puranānūru 2, Poet Muranjiyūr Mudinākanār 11

Sang to Chēramān Perunchōtru Uthiyan Chēralāthan 12 13

Thus this reference mentions about the war that took place between 14

hundred men and five brothers. There is a reference that the Tamil king 15

Chēramān giving food to both the armies. It means in a way that the war has 16

taken place near his kingdom. This Tamil king Chēramān is denoted as 17

‘Κηπροβότρου - Cerobothra’ in Greek (Wilfred 1912). Besides, another Tamil 18

king Pāndiyan also took part in the war. He is denoted as ‘Πανδίονος – 19

Pandion’ in Greek (Wilfred 1912). He fought on the side of the five brothers 20

(Tamil Virtual University 1995). 21

22 The five brothers praised your war skill 23

Line 775, Mathuraikkānji 24 Poet Manggudi Maruthanar, 25

Sang to Pandion Nedun Chezhiyan 26 The war bull of five brothers 27

Puranānūru 58, Poet Kāviripoompattinathu Kāri Kannanār 28 Sang to Pāndiyan Velliampalathu Thunjiya Peruvaluthi 29

30

Thus these references are the proof for the relation of the historical Tamil 31

king tradition called Pandion (Πανδίονος) with the myth of Mahabharata. This 32

myth was then written as an epic by a Tamil poet ‘Baratham Paadiya Perun 33

Devanar’ with 12,000 verse, in which only about 830 remains now. ‘Baratham 34

Paadiya Perun Devanar’ means a great poet who had written the epic 35

Mahabharata. He was in black in complexion3 so was he called Krishna and 36

because of his relation with water bodies he was called as Dwaipayana. The 37

other name is Vyasa meaning the divider or arranger of text. So, when he wrote 38

the epic in Sanskrit he was denoted as Krishna-Dwaipayana or Vyasa (Kisari 39

Mohan Ganguli 1896). 40 The sage Krishna-Dwaipayana completed his work in three years, raising from 41 bed very early in the day and purifying himself and performing his ascetic 42 devotions, he composed this Mahabharata. 43

Section LXII, Adivansavatarana Parva, 44 Book I, The Mahabharata 45

3Normally Tamilians are black in colour

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1 And the child of Parasara so born of me in my maidenhood hath become a great 2 Rishi endued with large ascetic powers and known by the name of Dwaipayana 3 (the island-born). That illustrious Rishi having by his ascetic power divided the 4 Vedas into four parts hath come to be called on earth by the name of Vyasa (the 5 divider or arranger), and for his dark colour, Krishna (the dark). 6

Section CV, Sambhava Parva, 7 Book I, The Mahabharata 8

His Sanskrit work consists of over 100,000 śloka or over 200,000 9

individual verse lines and about 1.8 million words in total. It also ensures the 10

thoughts of Tamil Sangam literature (Tamil Virtual University 1995) (Kisari 11

Mohan Ganguli 1896). 12

13 Pandya, who dwelt on the coast-land near the sea, came accompanied by troops 14 of various kinds to Yudhishthira, the king of kings. And, O king, when all these 15 troops had assembled, his army, finely dressed and exceedingly strong, assumed 16 an appearance pleasant to the eye. 17

Section XIX, Udyoga Parva, 18 Book 5, The Mahabharata 19

20

This reference ensures that the historical Tamil king Pandion or Pandyan 21

(Πανδίονος) fought on the side of the five brothers where he fought against a 22

king called Karna (Kisari Mohan Ganguli 1896). 23

24 Pandya at the time was slaughtering the army of Karna. That force, swelling with 25 cars and steeds and teeming with foremost of foot-soldiers, struck by Pandya, 26 began to turn round like the potter's wheel. Like the wind dispersing a mass of 27 congregated clouds, Pandya, with his well shot arrows, began to disperse that 28 force, destroying its steeds and drivers and standards and cars and causing its 29 weapons and elephants to fall down. Like the splitter of mountains striking down 30 mountains with his thunder, Pandya overthrew elephants with their riders, having 31 previously cut down the standards and banners and weapons with which they 32 were armed, as also the foot-soldiers that protected those beasts. And he cut down 33 horses, and horsemen with their darts and lances and quivers. 34

Section XX, Karna Parva, 35 Book 8, The Mahabharata 36

37

This Karna who is one of the warrior in this myth has some resemblances 38

with the myth of Greek Ion. These resemblances can be seen based on the 39

mythological theory of binary opposition. 40

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Binary Opposition 1

2 Binary Opposition is a mythological theory which deals with how the 3

opposite units operate a myth (Aimukhambet 2017, p.13)4. High born versus 4

Low born, Immediate child birth versus having no children for the long time 5

are some of the binary opposition. These can be seen in the myths of Ion and 6

Karna. 7

8

Ion and Karna – Characterization 9

10

Ion, who is the son of Apollo is the main character in the play. 11

Euripides naming his play as ‘Ion’ shows the important place he has given to 12

this character. 13

14

Ion

1476. …. Mother, who was my father?

Creusa

1482. By the nightingale's rock, Apollo—

(Potter Robert 1938)

Ἴων

1476. ……..μῆτερ, πόθεν;

Κρέουσα

1482. παρ᾽ ἀηδόνιον πέτραν

Φοίβῳ —

(Murray Gilbert (1913)

Karna 15

16

Karna is the sub-character in the myth of Mahabharat. He is picturized as 17

son of Sun God (Kisari Mohan Ganguli 1896). 18

19 Karna, …. Begotten by the Sun himself,…… And that foremost of eloquent 20 men, the offspring of the Sun. 21

Section CXXXVIII, Sambhava Parva, 22 Book I, The Mahabharata 23

24

Here Karna is the son of Sun and Ion is the son of Apollo. Phoibos is the 25

surname of Apollo. Phoibos means ‘the shining or brilliant’, which is 26

frequently applied to Sun. Thus Ion and Karna both are sons of Sun God. In 27

this way both have resemblances in their myths and its shown in the Figure 1. 28 29

4The binary opposition in modern works of art originates from the system of mythical thinking

has been proven in the analysis of the relationship of knowledge mythical and poetic thinking,

guided theoretical research. The fact that the binary opposition in contemporary works

originates from the system of mythical thinking has been proved, guided by theoretical studies,

in particular, the works of the scholars like F. Sossur, C. Levi-Strauss, F. Nietzsche, D.

Norman, V. Naidysh, A. Maslov and others, in the course of analyzing the continuity of

mythical cognition and poetic thinking.The motives of mythical consciousness show that the

dyadic unity of concepts and phenomena of binary-oppositional character is the basis of their

relationship with each other.

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Figure 1. Sons of Sun God – Ion and Karna 1 2

3 4

Background of the Birth - Ion 5

6

Even though Ion is the son of Apollo, his birth is not a legal birth, he was 7

born by the abuse of her mother Creusa by Apollo. 8

9

Creusa

O my soul, how shall I be silent? [860] But

how shall I reveal the hidden bed, and depart

from shame?


Κρέουσα

ὦ ψυχά, πῶς σιγάσω;

860 πῶς δὲ σκοτίας ἀναφήνω

εὐνάς, αἰδοῦς δ᾽ ἀπολειφθῶ;

(Murray Gilbert 1913)

Thus the birth situation of Ion is related with illegal, religious and forced. 10

Here there is a need to see the background of the birth of Karna. 11

12

Background of the Birth – Karna 13

14

Even though Karna is the son of Sun God, his birth did not take place 15

under legalised situaton. His mother Kunti gave birth to him before her 16

legalised marriage. For this reason she had a boon given by the religious 17

people and was put to test for the boon (Kisari Mohan Ganguli 1896). 18

19 'Thus addressed by the Brahmana, the amiable Kunti (Pritha) became curious, 20 and in her maidenhood summoned the god Arka (Sun). And as soon as he 21

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pronounced the Mantra, she beheld that effulgent deity--that beholder of 1 everything in the world--approaching her. 2

Section CXI, Sambhava Parva, 3 Book I, The Mahabharata 4

O fortunate one, with thee! By this mantra (that I am about to give thee), thou 5 shall be able to summon (to thy side) whatever celestials thou likest. And, by 6 their grace, shall thou also obtain children.' Thus addressed, the girl (a little while 7 after), seized with curiosity, summoned, during the period of her maiden-hood, 8 the god Surya. And the lord of light thereupon made her conceive and begot on 9 her a son who became the first of all wielders of weapons. 10

Section LXVII, Sambhava Parva, 11 Book I, The Mahabharata 12

13

Thus Kunti tested for the worthiness for granting her the boon, she had a 14

baby from the God without legitimate marriage. Thus the birth situation of 15

Karna is related with religious, illegal and acceptance. In this way, Ion and 16

Karna both have resemblances with some slight variation. The resemblances 17

can be looked based on the binary opposition mythological theory. 18

19

Ion and Birth – Binary Opposition 20

21

Ion was born to Apollo as his son. This birth is considered to be very high, 22

but was illegal. The people living around do not know about his father Apollo. 23

So his birth was illegitimate in the eyes of common man and this is mentioned 24

in several places in this play. 25

26

Ion

Alas! I am low-born. Mother, who was my

father?


Ἴων

1477, αἰαῖ: πέφυκα δυσγενής. μῆτερ,

πόθεν;


27

Ion

309. I am called the slave of the god,

lady.

Ion

[325] Perhaps my birth is some woman's

wrong.


Ἴων

309. τοῦ θεοῦ καλοῦμαι δοῦλος εἰμί τ᾽, ὦ

γύναι.

Ἴων

325ἀδίκημά του γυναικὸς ἐγενόμην ἴσως.


Ion

….. my father a foreigner, and myself of

bastard birth. And with this reproach, if

I am insignificant,


Ἰων

582……..πατρός τ᾽ ἐπακτοῦ καὐτὸς ὢν

νοθαγενής.

καὶ τοῦτ᾽ ἔχων τοὔνειδος, ἀσθενὴς μὲν ὤν

—


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Here there is a binary opposition because of illegal birth given by God 1

though his birth is considered high by relating with God but cursed by people 2

around as illegitimate child portraying his birth as very low.. 3

4

[580] you will not be called ill-born and

poor, but well-born and rich.


580δυοῖν κεκλήσῃ δυσγενὴς πένης θ᾽ ἅμα,

ἀλλ᾽ εὐγενής τε καὶ πολυκτήμων βίου.


In practical, a human born as a son of God is hard to believe. So here it is 5

argued that he is said to be the son of God only to hide his illegal birth. 6

7

—an affliction that happens to girls;

[1525] and now you are ascribe the blame

to the god and attempt to escape the

shame of my birth by saying that you bore

me to Phoebus, when your lover was not a

god?


μὴ σφαλεῖσ᾽ ἃ παρθένοις

ἐγγίγνεται νοσήματ᾽ ἐς κρυπτοὺς γάμους,

1525ἔπειτα τῷ θεῷ προστίθης τὴν αἰτίαν,

καὶ τοὐμὸν αἰσχρὸν ἀποφυγεῖν

πειρωμένη,

Φοίβῳ τεκεῖν με φῄς, τεκοῦσ᾽ οὐκ ἐκ

θεοῦ;


8

Karna and Birth – Binary Opposition 9

10

Karna’s birth is considered high because he was born to sun God. But his 11

birth is unlawful and the people around cannot accept that his father is sun 12

God. So his birth was treated as being low. It is mentioned in several places in 13

this myth (Kisari Mohan Ganguli 1896). 14

15 ‘O mighty-armed one, thou too must tell us thy lineage and the names of thy 16 father and mother and the royal line of which thou art the ornament.’ 17

Section CXXXVIII, Sambhava Parva, 18 Book 1, The Mahabharata 19

20 Thus the lineage of Karna was questioned in the assembly of the Kings. 21

The facial expression of Karna is shown as follows. 22 23

Karna's countenance became like unto a lotus pale and torn with the pelting 24 showers in the rainy season. 25


even as a dog doth not deserve the butter placed before the sacrificial fire. 28 Section CXXXVIII, Sambhava Parva, 29

Book 1, The Mahabharata 30 31

Thus in several places Karna was disheartened. His victory was also 32

rejected due to his low birth, his wishful bride also rejected him as a suitor in 33

marriage. 34

35

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But seeing Karna, Draupadi loudly said, 'I will not select a Sutra for my lord.' 1 Then Karna, laughing in vexation and casting glance at the Sun, threw aside the 2 bow already drawn to a circle. 3

Section CLXXXIX, Swayamvara Parva, 4 Book 1, The Mahabharata 5

6 O mother, I was abandoned by thee as soon as I was born. This great injury, 7 involving risk to life itself, that thou didst me, hath been destructive of my 8 achievements and fame. 9

Section CXLVI, Udyoga Parva, 10 Book 5, The Mahabharata 11

Thus in several places Karna, a high born, faces humiliation as a low 12

born. Both Ion and Karna, though high born face the disrespect of low born. 13

This resemblace based on the binary opposition of ‘High X Low’ is seen in 14

both these myths as shown in Figure 2. 15

16

Figure 2. Binary Opposition – High X Low Born 17

18 19

In this way Ion and karna have similarities in that the Sun God had 20

fathered both of them but of unlawful birth and this we see as mythological 21

theory of binary opposition. 22

23

24

Child and Casket 25

26 Birth of the child is an event to celebrate and enjoy. All the relatives of the 27

child such as the mother, father, grand mother and grand father happily 28

celebrate the memorable occasion by sharing and spreading the happiness to 29

others. This is not seen to occur in illegal births. That situation is surrounded 30

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only by sadness and fear and try to hide the event. This situation is also seen in 1

the myth of Ion. 2

3

Ion and Casket 4

5

Creusa unlawfully eloped with Apollo and gave birth to Ion. This unlawful 6

incident leads to another situation. 7

8

[30] of glorious Athens, for you know the

city of the goddess; take the new-born

baby from the hollow rock, with his cradle

and baby-clothes; bring him to my shrine

at Delphi, and place him at the very

entrance of my temple; [35]


30 κλεινῶν Ἀθηνῶν — οἶσθα γὰρ θεᾶς

πόλιν —

λαβὼν βρέφος νεογνὸν ἐκ κοίλης πέτρας

αὐτῷ σὺν ἄγγει σπαργάνοισί θ᾽ οἷς ἔχει

ἔνεγκε Δελφῶν τἀμὰ πρὸς χρηστήρια,

καὶ θὲς πρὸς αὐταῖς εἰσόδοις δόμων

ἐμῶν.35


9

Creusa, in order to hide the new born son from the eyes of her father 10

packed up the new born child in a casket and left that place. 11

12

Karna and Casket 13

14

Birth of Karna is related with celestials. It was hard to believe at that time. 15

So Kunti, the mother of Karna was afraid of her parents and so she wants to 16

hide the child born to her . (Kisari Mohan Ganguli 1896). 17

18 And Kunti cast the handsome child into the water. But the child thus thrown into 19 the water was taken up by the excellent husband of Radha and given by him to 20 his wife to be adopted by her as their son. 21


And after the birth of this child, the illustrious Tapana granted unto Pritha her 24 maidenhood and ascended to heaven. And the princess of the Vrishni race 25 beholding with sorrow that son born of her, reflected intently upon what was then 26 the best for her to do. And from fear of her relatives she resolved to conceal that 27 evidence of her folly. And she cast her offspring endued with great physical 28 strength into the water. Then the well-known husband of Radha, of the Sutra 29 caste, took up the child thus cast into the water, and he and his wife brought him 30 up as their own son. 31

Section CXI, Sambhava Parva, Adi Parva, 32 Book 1, The Mahabharata 33

34

Thus Kunti kept her new born child safely in a casket and made it to float 35

in the river. Thus myths of Ion and Karna have similarities called parallels in 36

situation such as their father being God, situation of birth and hiding the child 37

in a casket. This resemblances seen in both of these myths is shown in Figure 38

3. 39

40

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Figure 3. Casket – Ion and Karna 1

2 3

4

Casket and its Chattels 5 6

To protect the baby from the surroundings and as a mark of his forerunners 7

of the origin some specific materials were placed along with the baby in the 8

casket. It is also seen in the myth of Ion. 9

10

Ion Casket and its Chattels 11

12

Due to the illegal birth, baby Ion was kept in a casket with some chattels. 13

14

Ion

1412. Is this vessel empty, or does it cover

something?

Creusa

1413. Yes, your clothes, in which I then

exposed you.


Ἴων

κενὸν τόδ᾽ ἄγγος ἢ στέγει πλήρωμά τι;

Κρέουσα

σά γ᾽ ἔνδυθ᾽, οἷσί σ᾽ ἐξέθηκ᾽ ἐγώ ποτε.


Thus clothes were kept in the casket along with the baby Ion. There were 15

some other chattels kept along with the baby Ion. 16

17

Creusa

1421. A Gorgon in the middle threads of

the robe. (Potter Robert 1938)

Κρέουσα

Γοργὼ μὲν ἐν μέσοισιν ἠτρίοις πέπλων.


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Thus Gorgon was related with the cloth of Ion. 1

2

Creusa

1423. And, like an aegis, bordered with

serpents. (Potter Robert 1938)

Κρέουσα

κεκρασπέδωται δ᾽ ὄφεσιν αἰγίδος

τρόπον.


3

As mentioned in the play, here a special type of garment called aegis 4

bordered with the picture of serpents was found in the casket along with the 5

baby. 6

7

Ion

1426. Is there anything else besides, or are

you lucky in this only?

Creusa

Serpents; an old gift of Athena, in gold; she

tells us to rear children, in imitation of

Erichthonius of long ago.

Ion

[1430] Tells you to do what with the gold,

how to use it? Explain it to me.

Creusa

1431. Necklaces for the new-born baby to

wear, my child.


Ἴων

ἔστιν τι πρὸς τῷδ᾽, ἢ μόνῳ τῷδ᾽

εὐτυχεῖς;

Κρέουσα

δράκοντες: ἀρχαῖόν τι παγχρύσῳ γένει

δώρημ᾽ Ἀθάνας, ἣ τέκν᾽ ἐντρέφειν λέγει

—

Ἐριχθονίου γε τοῦ πάλαι μιμήματα.

Ἴων

1430τί δρᾶν, τί χρῆσθαι, φράζε μοι,

χρυσώματι;

Κρέουσα

δέραια παιδὶ νεογόνῳ φέρειν, τέκνον.


8

Along with the above mentioned things, necklaces were kept along with 9

the baby Ion (Kovacs 1999) 5

. In addition to this some other things were also 10

present near the baby Ion. 11

Ion

They are here; I long to know the third thing.

Creusa

I put an olive crown around you, from the

tree that Athena first brought out of the rock;

[1435] if it is there, it has not lost its green,

but flourishes, born from an immortal olive

tree.


Ἴων

ἔνεισιν οἵδε: τὸ δὲ τρίτον ποθῶ μαθεῖν.

Κρέουσα

στέφανον ἐλαίας ἀμφέθηκά σοι τότε,

ἣν πρῶτ᾽ Ἀθάνα σκόπελον

εἰσηνέγκατο,

1435ὅς, εἴπερ ἔστιν, οὔποτ᾽ ἐκλείπει

χλόην,

θάλλει δ᾽, ἐλαίας ἐξ ἀκηράτου γεγώς..


12

5The golden necklace represents the snakes Athena put in Erichthonios’ basket and such

necklaces were still given to Athenian children as a token of their identity.

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Further, an olive crown was kept along with the baby Ion. To sum up, the 1

following things were found to be kept along with the baby. 2

3

1. A robe with a Gorgon, 4

2. An aegis - bordered with serpents 5

3. Necklaces for the new-born baby 6

4. Olive crown 7

8

These are shown in the Figure 4. 9

10 Figure 4. Baby Ion with the Chattels 11

12 13

14

Karna Casket and its Chattels 15

16 Due to the illegal birth, baby Karna was kept in a casket with some 17

chattels (Kisari Mohan Ganguli 1896). 18 19 And on coming to the river Ganga, she beheld a box drifting along the current. 20 And containing articles capable of protecting from dangers and decked with 21 unguents, that box was brought before her by the waves of the Janhavi……. And 22 then he beheld a boy resembling the morning Sun. And the infant was furnished 23 with golden mail, and looked exceedingly beautiful with a face decked in ear-24 rings. 25

Section CCCVII, Vana Parva: Pativrata-mahatmya, 26 Book 3, The Mahabharata 27

28 ….that child who had come out with ear-rings and coat of mail. And he was 29 gifted with the beauty of a celestial infant, and in splendour was like unto the 30 maker of day himself. And every part of his body was symmetrical and well-31 adorned. And Kunti cast the handsome child into the water. 32


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1

Thus baby Karna was seen in the casket with ear-rings and coat of mail. 2

Here it is note worthy that these ear-rings and coat of mail were strongly 3

attached with the body of the baby Karna. So it was thought the baby Karna 4

was born with these ear-rings and coat of mail. This coat of mail is equal as 5

breast plate or aegis as in the myth of Ion. It is shown in the Figure 5. 6

7 Figure 5. Baby Karna in the Casket with Aegis 8

9 10

In the myth of Karna born with these ear-rings and coat of mail fixed in 11

the body of the baby protected the baby and if he removed would cause danger 12

to his life. Thus the babies Ion and Karna were placed in the casket soon after 13

their birth with some chattels. In the myth of Ion there is necklace and in the 14

myth of Karna were found ear-rings. In both of these myths a special type of 15

breast plates. In the myth of Ion the breast plate was kept with the baby in the 16

casket and in the myth of Karna the baby born with ear rings and the breast 17

plate fixed with its body which is shown in the Figure 6. 18

19 Figure 6. Breast Plate in the Myth of Ion and Karna 20

21

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In the myth of Karna the garment is seen to save his life and if it removed 1

would cause danger to life (Kisari Mohan Ganguli 1896). 2

3 And Indra desirous of benefiting his own son Phalguni (Arjuna), assuming the 4 form of a Brahmana, approached Vasusena on one occasion and begged of him 5 his natural armour. Thus asked Karna took off his natural armour, and joining his 6 hands in reverence gave it unto [paragraph continues] Indra in the guise of a 7 Brahmana. And the chief of the celestials accepted the gift and was exceedingly 8 gratified with Karna's liberality. 9


12

Thus here the breast plate relates with the binary opposition between life 13

and death. So there is a need to see the aegis - breast plate in the myth of Ion. 14

15

Aegis 16

17

Aegis was kept with the baby Ion in the casket. There was a description about 18

this aegis in this myth which follows. 19

20 Creusa

987. Listen, then; you know the battle of

the giants?

Tutor

Yes, the battle the giants fought against the

gods in Phlegra.

Creusa

There the earth brought forth the Gorgon, a

dreadful monster.

Tutor

[990] As an ally for her children and

trouble for the gods?

Creusa

Yes; and Pallas, the daughter of Zeus,

killed it.

Tutor

[What fierce shape did it have?

Creusa

A breastplate armed with coils of a viper.]

Tutor

Is this the story which I have heard before?

Creusa

[995] That Athena wore the hide on her

Κρέουσα

987. ἄκουε τοίνυν: οἶσθα γηγενῆ μάχην;

Πρεσβύτης

οἶδ᾽, ἣν Φλέγρᾳ Γίγαντες ἔστησαν

θεοῖς.

Κρέουσα

ἐνταῦθα Γοργόν᾽ ἔτεκε Γῆ, δεινὸν

τέρας.

Πρεσβύτης

990ἦ παισὶν αὑτῆς σύμμαχον, θεῶν

πόνον;

Κρέουσα

ναί: καί νιν ἔκτειν᾽ ἡ Διὸς Παλλὰς θεά.

Πρεσβύτης

ποῖόν τι μορφῆς σχῆμ᾽ ἔχουσαν ἀγρίας;

Κρέουσα

θώρακ᾽ ἐχίδνης περιβόλοις ὡπλισμένον.

Πρεσβύτης

ἆρ᾽ οὗτός ἐσθ᾽ ὁ μῦθος ὃν κλύω πάλαι;

Κρέουσα

995ταύτης Ἀθάναν δέρος ἐπὶ στέρνοις

ἔχειν.

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breast.

Tutor

And they call it the aegis, Pallas' armor?

Creusa

It has this name from when she darted to

the gods' battle.


Πρεσβύτης

ἣν αἰγίδ᾽ ὀνομάζουσι, Παλλάδος

στολήν;

Κρέουσα

τόδ᾽ ἔσχεν ὄνομα θεῶν ὅτ᾽ ᾖξεν ἐς

δόρυ.


1

Thus this aegis was defined as Pallas' armor – breast plate. Athena wore 2

this breast plate when she fought with Gorgon. At that time the blood of 3

Gorgon was obtained. The myth explains the extraordinary power of the blood 4

drops. 5

Creusa

Two drops of blood from the Gorgon.

Tutor

And what power do they have over

mortals?

Creusa

[1005] One is deadly, the other heals

disease.


Κρέουσα

δισσοὺς σταλαγμοὺς αἵματος Γοργοῦς

ἄπο.

Πρεσβύτης

ἰσχὺν ἔχοντας τίνα πρὸς ἀνθρώπου

φύσιν;

Κρέουσα

1005τὸν μὲν θανάσιμον, τὸν δ᾽

ἀκεσφόρον νόσων.


6

Thus Gorgon blood was used to kill Ion. In this way the blood of Gorgon 7

related with Pallas' armor – breast plate that was used to kill Ion. Among the 8

two drops of blood collected from Gorgon, one drop of blood is deadly and 9

another drop heals disease. 10

In the myth of Karna the breast plate itself is related with the binary 11

opposition of life and death. In this way except for Gorgon blood, the other 12

incidents seem to resemble in both the myth. This binary opposition seen 13

between life and death shown in Figure 7. 14

15

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Figure 7. Binary Opposition of Breast Plate 1

2

3 4

Binary Opposition (Skill) – Land and Sky 5 6

Land and sky are binary oppositions. This oppositions seen in the myths of 7

Ion and Karna. 8

9

Ion – Land and Sky 10

11

Ion is very efficient in archery, he has the unique skill of shooting a bird 12

flying high in the sky. 13

Ah, ah! Already the birds of Parnassus

have left their nests,

(155) and come here. I forbid you to

approach the walls and the golden house. I

will reach you with my bow, herald of

Zeus, though you conquer

(160) with your beak the strength of all

other birds. Here comes another, a swan, to

the rim of the temple. Move your crimson

foot elsewhere! Phoebus' lyre, that sings

with you,

(165) would not protect you from my bow.

Alter your wings' course; go to the Delian

lake; if you do not obey, you will steep

your lovely melody in blood.

(170) Ah, ah! what is this new bird that

approaches; you will not place under the

cornice a straw-built nest for your children,

will you? My singing bow will keep you

off. Will you not obey?


ἔα ἔα:

φοιτῶσ᾽ ἤδη λείπουσίν τε

155. πτανοὶ Παρνασοῦ κοίτας:

αὐδῶ μὴ χρίμπτειν θριγκοῖς

μηδ᾽ ἐς χρυσήρεις οἴκους —

μάρψω σ᾽ αὖ τόξοις, ὦ Ζηνὸς

κῆρυξ, ὀρνίθων γαμφηλαῖς

160. ἰσχὺν νικῶν.

ὅδε πρὸς θυμέλας ἄλλος ἐρέσσει

κύκνος. οὐκ ἄλλᾳ

φοινικοφαῆ πόδα κινήσεις;

οὐδέν σ᾽ ἁ φόρμιγξ ἁ Φοίβου

165. σύμμολπος τόξων ῥύσαιτ᾽ ἄν.

πάραγε πτέρυγας:

λίμνας ἐπίβα τᾶς Δηλιάδος:

αἱμάξεις, εἰ μὴ πείσῃ,

τὰς καλλιφθόγγους ᾠδάς.

170. ἔα ἔα:

τίς ὅδ᾽ ὀρνίθων καινὸς προσέβα;

μῶν ὑπὸ θριγκοὺς εὐναίας

καρφυρὰς θήσων τέκνοις;

ψαλμοί σ᾽ εἴρξουσιν τόξων.

οὐ πείσῃ; χωρῶν δίναις


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Thus Ion attacked the flying birds accurately from the land with this 1

special skill in archery. This is also seen in the myth of Karna. 2

3

Karna – Land and Sky 4

5

Karna is a great warrior using his bow and arrow. He can even shoot the 6

arrow towards the moving object hanging on the sky by seeing the image of it 7

being reflected in the water on the ground. 8

9 Causing some machinery to be erected in the sky, the king set up a mark attached 10 to that machinery. And Drupada said, 'He that will string this bow and with these 11 well-adorned arrows shoot the mark above the machine shall obtain my daughter.' 12

Section CLXXXVII, Swayamvara Parva, 13 Book I, The Mahabharata 14

15 "And (some amongst) those kings in exerting with swelling lips each according to 16 his strength, education, skill, and energy,--to string that bow, were tossed on the 17 ground and lay perfectly motionless for some time. Their strength spent and their 18 crowns and garlands loosened from their persons, they began to pant for breath 19 and their ambition of winning that fair maiden was cooled. Tossed by that tough 20 bow, and their garlands and bracelets and other ornaments disordered, they began 21 to utter exclamations of woe. And that assemblage of monarchs, their hope of 22 obtaining Krishna gone, looked sad and woeful. And beholding the plight of 23 those monarchs, Karna that foremost of all wielders of the bow went to where the 24 bow was, and quickly raising it strung it and placed the arrows on the string. And 25 beholding the son of Surya--Karna of the Suta tribe--like unto fire, or Soma, or 26 Surya himself, resolved to shoot the mark, those foremost of bowmen--the sons 27 of Pandu--regarded the mark as already shot and brought down upon the ground. 28 But seeing Karna, Draupadi loudly said, 'I will not select a Suta for my lord.' 29 Then Karna, laughing in vexation and casting glance at the Sun, threw aside the 30 bow already drawn to a circle. 31

Section CLXXXIX, Swayamvara Parva, 32 Book I, The Mahabharata 33

34

The above said structure of archery competition is shown in the Figure 8. 35 36

37

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Figure 8. Karna and His Archery Competition 1

2 3

This skill of karna made him a great warrior with special skill and talent in 4

the myth. It shows that this myth belonged to the era of archery (Pugazhendhi 5

D 2021, p.15)6. Even though Karna was master in archery the brides refused to 6

marry him due to his illegal low birth. Thus both Ion and Karna have 7

resemblances in the skill of arrow shooting. This has an important place in the 8

myth of Karna but it is considered as one of the incidents and not given much 9

importance in the myth of Ion. The arrow shooting from the land to the object 10

of the sky is a binary opposition between the land and sky, that which is seen in 11

both these myths. 12

13

6There are numerous developments in the history of war weapons. Stones and bones were first

stage, metal sword were the second stage. The sword can attack the enemy nearby. The third

stage in the development of the war weapon was the invention of bow and arrow. It can attack

even enemies far off. The development of war weapons such as archery is reflected in the

myths of Herakles……… This clearly shows that both the myths belonged to the era of

archery. In both the myth the archery competition determines the life partner. At this point of

the myth there seems to be a main difference between them. Even though Herakles emerged

victorious, Eurytus did not keep up his word and refused to give his daughter to Herakles as a

prize, whereas in the myth of Rama, the father of the bride accepted to give her daughter as a

prize for the winner in the archery competition.

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Binary Opposition – Rich and Poor 1

2 Rich and poor are binary oppositions. In the play ‘Ion’ introduces the son 3

of God, Ion as homeless and very poor. Later Ion becomes a king. 4

5

where his scepter awaits you, and

abundant wealth; although you suffer

from one of these two conditions, [580]

you will not be called ill-born and poor,

but well-born and rich.


οὗ σ᾽ ὄλβιον μὲν σκῆπτρον ἀναμένει

πατρός,

πολὺς δὲ πλοῦτος: οὐδὲ θάτερον νοσῶν

580δυοῖν κεκλήσῃ δυσγενὴς πένης θ᾽

ἅμα,

ἀλλ᾽ εὐγενής τε καὶ πολυκτήμων βίου.


6

Thus the binary opposition between rich and poor are seen in the myth of 7

Ion. This should be searched in the myth of Karna. 8

9 one who is not a king, I will install Karna as king of Anga.' 10


13

Thus in the first part Karna lived a life of a son of charioteer and then 14

become a king. In this way the binary opposition between rich and poor seen in 15

the myths of Ion and Karna. It is depicted in the Figure 9. 16

17

Figure 9. Binary Opposition – Rich and Poor 18

19 20

Thus Ion and Karna, both have similarities called as parallels in both of the 21

myths with the binary oppositions such as 1. High born versus Low born, 2. 22

Life versus Death, 3. Land versus Sky and 4. Rich versus Poor. Some of these 23

are related with their birth. Birth is related with mother. So there is a need to 24

research about the characterization of mother in these myths. 25

26

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20

1

Mother 2 3

Mother has a main role in the life of all living beings. This characterization 4

is seen in both these myths. 5

6

Mother in the Myth of Ion 7

8

The mother is a main character in the play Ion. The name of the mother 9

character is Creusa. There are many binary oppositions that are seen in the 10

making of this character. 11

12

Binary Opposition – Human versus Copula 13

14

Creusa is a normal woman. But she has illegal relationship with God. Thus 15

a binary opposition, Human versus God is seen in the mother characterization 16

of the Ion myth. Kunti is a normal woman. She has illegal relationship with the 17

Sun God. Thus a binary opposition, Human versus God is seen in the mother 18

characterization of the Karna myth. Thus both Creusa of Ion myth and Kunti of 19

Karna myth have the resemblances in the binary opposition of Human versus 20

God. This illegal connection leads to another binary opposition. 21

22

23

Binary Opposition – Legal, Hidden Bed 24

25 Marriage has an important role in fulfilling the purpose of woman being a 26

legitimate wife. Some times man and woman have illegal relationship without 27

the knowledge of their parents and society. Mostly it is not welcomed by their 28

parents and society. The same has also happened in the life of Creusa and she 29

was worried about her hidden bed which is not known to their parents. 30

31

Creusa

O my soul, how shall I be silent? [860] But

how shall I reveal the hidden bed, and

depart from shame?


Κρέουσα

ὦ ψυχά, πῶς σιγάσω;

860 πῶς δὲ σκοτίας ἀναφήνω

εὐνάς, αἰδοῦς δ᾽ ἀπολειφθῶ;


Creusa

when I was silent on this union, silent on the

lamented birth.


Κρέουσα

868 σιγῶσα γάμους,

σιγῶσα τόκους πολυκλαύτους;


Creusa

I will no longer conceal this bed,


Κρέουσα

874. οὐκέτι κρύψω λέχος,


32

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1

Creusa

[880] ungrateful betrayers of the beds

they forced.


Κρέουσα

880 λέκτρων προδότας ἀχαρίστους.


Thus Creusa censured about her secret marriage. After certain period of 2

time enemies defeated her country and the victorious king married her. 3

4

Creusa

Taking me as the dowry of war and the prize of

his spear.


Κρέουσα

298. φερνάς γε πολέμου καὶ δορὸς

λαβὼν γέρας.


5

Thus there are some sexual incidents seen in the life of Creusa before and 6

after legal marriage. This binary opposition shall be used in situations between 7

before and after marriage that which is seen in the myth of Creusa. 8

9

Unlawful Marriage of Kunti 10

11

Kunti had illegal connection before her legal marriage. 12

13 Hearing this, Kunti said, 'O slayer of foes, a certain Brahamana gave me this 14 formula of invocation as a boon, and, O lord, I have summoned thee only to test 15 its efficacy. For this offence I bow to thee. A woman, whatever be her offence, 16 always deserveth pardon.' Surya (Sun) replied, 'I know that Durvasa hath granted 17 this boon. But cast off thy fears, timid maiden, and grant me thy embraces. 18 Amiable one, my approach cannot be futile; it must bear fruit. Thou hast 19 summoned me, and if it be for nothing, it shall certainly be regarded as thy 20 transgression.' 21


And the Rishi said, 'Those celestials that thou shall summon by this Mantra shall 24 certainly approach thee and give thee children.' 'Thus addressed by the Brahmana, 25 the amiable Kunti (Pritha) became curious, and in her maidenhood summoned the 26 god Arka (Sun). And as soon as he pronounced the Mantra, she beheld that 27 effulgent deity--that beholder of everything in the world--approaching her. 28


31

Thus the binary opposition related with legal and hidden bed seen in the 32

myth of Kunti. In this way both Creusa and Kunti have resemblances in this 33

binary opposition, legal versus illegal. 34

35

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Binary Opposition – Son and Sonless 1 2

Giving birth to a son transforms the woman from being a wife to become a 3

mother. The motherhood of a woman is portrayed high only if it happens after 4

a legal marriage. Contrarily in the illegal relationship which leads to secret 5

marriage, the woman if she conceives creates problems. It is also seen in the 6

life of Creusa. Soon after the secret marriage Creusa gave birth to a son. But 7

after the legal marriage she had no children born to her for a long time. This 8

binary opposition operates the play Ion. 9

10

Though married a long time [65] they are

childless; so they have come to this oracular

shrine of Phoebus, in longing for a child.


χρόνια δὲ σπείρας λέχη

65ἄτεκνός ἐστι, καὶ Κρέουσ᾽: ὧν

οὕνεκα

ἥκουσι πρὸς μαντεῖ᾽ Ἀπόλλωνος τάδε

ἔρωτι παίδων.


11

Chorus

I see tears and mournful cries and attacks of

groaning when my queen knows that her

husband is blessed with a child, [680] while

she is childless and deprived of children.


Χορός

ὁρῶ δάκρυα καὶ πενθίμους

ἀλαλαγὰς στεναγμάτων τ᾽ ἐσβολάς,

ὅταν ἐμὰ τύραννος εὐπαιδίαν

πόσιν ἔχοντ᾽ εἰδῇ,

680 αὐτὴ δ᾽ ἄπαις ᾖ καὶ λελειμμένη

τέκνων.


12

This reference shows the childlessness of Creusa after her lawful marriage. 13

But she had a lawless child before her lawful marriage. 14

15

Ion

O my dearest mother! I see you with joy, I

am held to your joyful face.They embrace.

Creusa

O child, o light dearer to your mother than

the sun [1440] —the god will forgive

me—I hold you in my arms, unexpectedly

found, when I thought you lived in the

world below, with the dead and

Persephone.


Ἴων

ὦ φιλτάτη μοι μῆτερ, ἄσμενός σ᾽ ἰδὼν

πρὸς ἀσμένας πέπτωκα σὰς παρηίδας.

Κρέουσα

ὦ τέκνον, ὦ φῶς μητρὶ κρεῖσσον ἡλίου —

1440συγγνώσεται γὰρ ὁ θεός — ἐν χεροῖν

σ᾽ ἔχω,

ἄελπτον εὕρημ᾽, ὃν κατὰ γᾶς ἐνέρων

χθόνιον μετὰ Περσεφόνας τ᾽ ἐδόκουν

ναίειν.


16

Thus there is a binary opposition seen between giving birth very soon and 17

not having any children for long time related with illegal and legal marriage in 18

the characterization of Creusa in the myth of Ion. This is to be researched in 19

the myth of Karna. 20

21

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Kunti - Son and Sonless 1

2

Kunti had a son immediately with the Sun God before her illegal marriage. 3

After the legal marriage she remained with no children with her legal husband. 4

Thus the characterization of myth of Kunti has binary opposition related with 5

having children and not having children related with illegal and legal marriage. 6

In this way both Creusa of Ion myth and Kunti of Karna myth have binary 7

opposition related with giving birth and not giving birth and that is shown in 8

the Figure 10. 9

10 Figure 10. Giving birth versus not giving birth 11

12 13

Binary Opposition - Leave and Reclaim of the child 14

15

Creusa had an illegal son before her legal marriage. Afraid of her parents 16

she abandoned her child. 17

18 Creusa

She exposed out of doors the child that

she bore.

Ion

(345) Where is the exposed child? Is it

alive?

Creusa

No one knows.This is what I am asking

the oracle.

Ion

Κρέουσα

τὸν παῖδ᾽ ὃν ἔτεκεν ἐξέθηκε δωμάτων.

Ἴων

345ὁ δ᾽ ἐκτεθεὶς παῖς ποῦ 'στιν; εἰσορᾷ

φάος;

Κρέουσα

οὐκ οἶδεν οὐδείς. ταῦτα καὶ μαντεύομαι.

Ἴων

εἰ δ᾽ οὐκέτ᾽ ἔστι, τίνι τρόπῳ διεφθάρη;

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If it is no longer alive, how was it

destroyed?

Creusa

She expects that wild animals killed the

unfortunate one.

Ion

By what sign did she know this?

Creusa

(350) When she came to the place where

she had exposed him, she could no longer

find him.

Ion

Was there a drop of blood in the path?

Creusa

She says not. Although she went back

and forth over much ground.


Κρέουσα

θῆράς σφε τὸν δύστηνον ἐλπίζει κτανεῖν.

Ἴων

ποίῳ τόδ᾽ ἔγνω χρωμένη τεκμηρίῳ;

Κρέουσα

350ἐλθοῦσ᾽ ἵν᾽ αὐτὸν ἐξέθηκ᾽ οὐχ ηὗρ᾽

ἔτι.

Ἴων

ἦν δὲ σταλαγμὸς ἐν στίβῳ τις αἵματος;

Κρέουσα

οὔ φησι. καίτοι πόλλ᾽ ἐπεστράφη πέδον.


1

It happened that, as the sun rose, the

priestess entered the god's prophetic

shrine; she saw the baby and marvelled

that some girl of Delphi had dared [45]

to cast her secret child into the house

of the god; she was eager to take it

away from the shrine; but she let the

harsh intent gave way to pity—and the

god worked with her, so the child might

not be hurled out of his house—she took

up the child and raised it.


κυρεῖ δ᾽ ἅμ᾽ ἱππεύοντος ἡλίου κύκλῳ

προφῆτις ἐσβαίνουσα μαντεῖον θεοῦ:

ὄψιν δὲ προσβαλοῦσα παιδὶ νηπίῳ

ἐθαύμασ᾽ εἴ τις Δελφίδων τλαίη κόρη

45 λαθραῖον ὠδῖν᾽ ἐς θεοῦ ῥῖψαι δόμον,

ὑπέρ τε θυμέλας διορίσαι πρόθυμος ἦν:

οἴκτῳ δ᾽ ἀφῆκεν ὠμότητα — καὶ θεὸς

συνεργὸς ἦν τῷ παιδὶ μὴ 'κπεσεῖν δόμων —

τρέφει δέ νιν λαβοῦσα. τὸν σπείραντα δὲ


2

At the end of the play Creusa reclaimed her child. 3

4 Creusa

[1490] I fitted around you these baby-

clothes, the work of my flying shuttle,

done when I was a girl, in secret from my

mother. I did not offer you milk, nor a

mother's nourishment from the breast,

nor did I wash you; you were cast out on

the deserted cave, [1495] a victim of the

beaks of birds, and a feast for Hades.

Ion

Mother, you dared to do terrible things.

Κρέουσα

παρθένια δ᾽ ἐμᾶς λάθρα ματέρος

1490σπάργαν᾽ ἀμφίβολά σοι τάδ᾽ ἐνῆψα,

κερ-

κίδος ἐμᾶς πλάνους.

γάλακτι δ᾽ οὐκ ἐπέσχον, οὐδὲ μαστῷ

τροφεῖα ματρὸς οὐδὲ λουτρὰ χειροῖν,

ἀνὰ δ᾽ ἄντρον ἔρημον οἰωνῶν

1495γαμφηλαῖς φόνευμα θοίναμά τ᾽ εἰς

Ἅιδαν ἐκβάλλῃ.

Ἴων

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Creusa

Bound down by fear, my son, I cast your

life away; [1500] unwillingly I killed

you.

Ion

And I was about to kill you!

Creusa

Ah! dreadful was my fortune then,

dreadful these things also; I am whirled

here [1505] and there to misery, and back

again to joy; but the wind is changing.

Let it remain; the past evils are enough;

now let there be a favoring breeze, after

troubles, my son.


ὦ δεινὰ τλᾶσα μῆτερ.

Κρέουσα

ἐν φόβῳ, τέκνον,

καταδεθεῖσα σὰν

ἀπέβαλον ψυχάν:

1500ἔκτεινά σ᾽ ἄκουσ᾽.

Ἴων

ἐξ ἐμοῦ τ᾽ οὐχ ὅσι᾽ ἔθνῃσκες.

Κρέουσα

ἰώ: δειναὶ μὲν τότε τύχαι,

δεινὰ δὲ καὶ τάδ᾽: ἑλισσόμεσθ᾽ ἐκεῖθεν

1505ἐνθάδε δυστυχίαισιν εὐτυχίαις τε

πάλιν,

μεθίσταται δὲ πνεύματα.

μενέτω: τὰ πάροιθεν ἅλις κακά: νῦν δὲ

γένοιτό τις οὖρος ἐκ κακῶν, ὦ παῖ.


1

Thus the binary opposition of abandoning the child and reclaiming the 2

child later is seen in the characterization of Creusa in the myth of Ion. It 3

should be searched in the myth of Karna. Karna’s mother Kunti left her baby in 4

the river. That baby was brought up by a charioteer. When the baby became an 5

adult Kunti reclaimed him. 6

7 Kunti said, 'Thou art Kunti's son, and not Radha's. Nor is Adhiratha thy father. 8 Thou, O Karna, art not born in the Suta order. Believe what I say. Thou wert 9 brought forth by me while a maiden. I held thee first in my womb. O son, thou 10 wert born in the palace of Kuntiraja. O Karna, that divine Surya who blazeth forth 11 in light and maketh everything visible, O foremost of all wielders of weapons, 12 begat thee upon me. O irresistible one, thou, O son, wert brought forth by me in 13 my father's abode, decked with (natural) ear-rings and accoutred in a (natural) 14 coat of mail, and blazing forth in beauty. 15

Section CXLV, Udyoga Parva, 16 Book 5, The Mahabharata 17

18

Thus both the myths of Ion and Karna regarding their mothers Creusa and 19

Kunti have the binary opposition of leaving and reclaiming their child. This is 20

pictorized in Figure 11. 21

22

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Figure 11. Leave X Reclaim 1

2 3

Thus the mothers in both these myths have parallels in the binary 4

oppositions - 1. Human versus God relationship, 2. Lawful versus Hidden 5

Bed, 3. Giving birth versus not giving birth, 4. Abandoning versus Reclaiming 6

the child. In this way the resemblances seen between these two myths can be 7

seen as in Table 1. 8

9

Table 1. Comparison 10

S. No. Ion Karna

1. Highborn - Son of Apollo Highborn

2. Son of Apollo, the Sun Son of Sun

3. Mother kept the newly born

baby in the casket and leave Mother kept the newly born baby in

the casket and leave in the river

4. Athenas breast plate along

with the baby’s casket Baby with the breast plate in the

casket

5. Life and death depends upon

the breast plate Life and death depends upon the

breast plate

6. Knowledge of archery Named for his extraordinary skill in

archery.

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7. Grown as poor and at the end

attain kingship Grown as poor and at the end attain

kingship

1

Mothers 2

3

S.

No. Creusa Kunti

1. Unlawful connection with

Apollo, the god Unlawful connection with Sun, the

god

2. Immediate birth of child in

unlawful marriage Immediate birth of child in unlawful

marriage

3. Childless with the lawful

husband Childless with the lawful husband

4. Kept the unlawful baby in the

casket and leave Kept the unlawful baby in the casket

and leave in the river

5. Recovered the baby in a grown

up age Recovered the baby in a grown up age

4

The resemblances seen between the two myths can be categorized as 5

parallels and influences. If the resemblances are occasional and there is no 6

contact between these two then it can be called parallels. If there is any 7

connection in the occurrences between these two then it is called as influence. 8

Here there is a need to search the influential factors in these myths. 9

10

11

Mythological Theory of Influence 12

13 The Greek play ‘Ion’ mentioned about the possibilities of influence. The 14

myth of Ion is not only related with Greek, but also with Asia. 15

16

Priestess

(1355) Now take them and find your

mother.

Ion

I will go over all Asia and the boundaries

of Europe.


Προφῆτις

1355. λαβών νυν αὐτὰ τὴν τεκοῦσαν

ἐκπόνει.

Ἴων

πᾶσάν γ᾽ ἐπελθὼν Ἀσιάδ᾽ Εὐρώπης θ᾽

ὅρους.


17

This reference highlights the relationship of Asia in this myth along with 18

Europe. Apart from this few, some of the races also had influences in this 19

myth. 20

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Creusa, take your son and go to the land of

Cecrops; set him on the royal throne. For he

was born from Erechtheus and is fit to rule

my land; (1575) and he will be famous

throughout Hellas. He will have four sons,

from one stock, and they will gave names to

the land and the tribes of people who

inhabit it. Geleon will be the first; then

second . . .

(1580) Hopletes and Argades, and the

Aegicores will have a tribal name from my

aegis. Their sons in turn, at the appointed

time, will settle in the island cities of the

Cyclades, and the lands along the shore,

which will give strength to my land; [1585]

they will colonize the plains of the two

mainlands, Asia and Europe, on opposite

sides; they will become famous under the

name of Ionians, in homage to this boy's

name. (Potter Robert 1938)

λαβοῦσα τόνδε παῖδα Κεκροπίαν χθόνα

χώρει, Κρέουσα, κἀς θρόνους

τυραννικοὺς

ἵδρυσον. ἐκ γὰρ τῶν Ἐρεχθέως γεγὼς

δίκαιος ἄρχειν τῆς γ᾽ ἐμῆς ὅδε χθονός,

1575ἔσται τ᾽ ἀν᾽ Ἑλλάδ᾽ εὐκλεής. οἱ

τοῦδε γὰρ

παῖδες γενόμενοι τέσσαρες ῥίζης μιᾶς

ἐπώνυμοι γῆς κἀπιφυλίου χθονὸς

λαῶν ἔσονται, σκόπελον οἳ ναίουσ᾽

ἐμόν.

Γελέων μὲν ἔσται πρῶτος: εἶτα

δεύτερος….

1580Ὅπλητες Ἀργαδῆς τ᾽, ἐμῆς τ᾽ ἀπ᾽

αἰγίδος

ἔμφυλον ἕξουσ᾽ Αἰγικορῆς. οἱ τῶνδε δ᾽

αὖ

παῖδες γενόμενοι σὺν χρόνῳ πεπρωμένῳ

Κυκλάδας ἐποικήσουσι νησαίας πόλεις

χέρσους τε παράλους, ὃ σθένος τἠμῇ

χθονὶ

1585 δίδωσιν: ἀντίπορθμα δ᾽ ἠπείροιν

δυοῖν

πεδία κατοικήσουσιν, Ἀσιάδος τε γῆς

Εὐρωπίας τε: τοῦδε δ᾽ ὀνόματος χάριν

Ἴωνες ὀνομασθέντες ἕξουσιν κλέος.


You and Xuthus will have children

together: [1590] Dorus, from whom the

Dorian state will be celebrated throughout

the land of Pelops. The second son,

Achaeus, will be king of the shore land

near Rhion; and a people called after him

will be marked out as having his name.


Ξούθῳ δὲ καὶ σοὶ γίγνεται κοινὸν γένος,

1590 Δῶρος μέν, ἔνθεν Δωρὶς

ὑμνηθήσεται

πόλις κατ᾽ αἶαν Πελοπίαν: ὁ δεύτερος

Ἀχαιός, ὃς γῆς παραλίας Ῥίου πέλας

τύραννος ἔσται, κἀπισημανθήσεται

κείνου κεκλῆσθαι λαὸς ὄνομ᾽ ἐπώνυμος.


1

These references ensure the influences of certain races like Geleon, 2

Hopletes, Argades, Aegicores, Ionians, Dorians and Achaeus on this myth. 3

Apart from this, the influence of the myth of Karna also needs to be studied. 4

For this the knowledge about the trade relationship between Greeks and 5

Tamilians is to be known. 6

7

8

The Trade between Greeks and Tamilians 9

10 Trade took place between Greeks and Tamilians from the ancient times 11

(Pugazhendhi 2020). Greek ships travelled to the Πανδίονος - Pandion or 12

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Pandyan kingdom who fought with Karna and the Κηπροβότρου - Chēramān 1

kingdom who gave food to the soldiers of this Mahabharata mythical war. 2

3

Βασιλείας δ ἐστὶν ἡ μὲν Τύνδις

Κηπροβότρου, κώμη παραθαλάσσιος

ἔνσημος· ἡ δὲ Μουζιρὶς βασιλείας μὲν

τῆς αὐτῆς, ἀκμάζουσα δὲ τοῖς ἀπὸ τῆς

Ἀριακῆς εἰς αὐτὴν ἐρχομένοις πλοίοις

καὶ τοῖς Ἑλληνικοῖς· κεῖται δὲ παρὰ

ποταμὸν, ἀπέχουσα ἀπὸ μὲν Τύνδεως διὰ

τοῦ ποταμοῦ καὶ διὰ θαλάσσης σταδίους

πεντακοσίους, ἀπὸ δὲ τοῦ κατ αὐτὴν

εἴκοσι.Ἡ δὲ Νέλκυνδα σταδίους μὲν ἀπὸ

Μουζιρέως ἀπέχει σχεδὸν πεντακοσίους,

ὁμοίως διά τε ποταμοῦ (καὶ πεζῇ) καὶ διὰ

θαλάσσης, βασιλείας δέ ἐστιν ἑτέρας,

τῆς Πανδίονος· κεῖται δὲ καὶ αὐτὴ παρὰ

ποταμὸν, ὡσεὶ ἀπὸ σταδίων ἑκατὸν

εἴκοσι τῆς θαλάσσης.

— παράγραφοι 53-54,

Περίπλους της Ερυθράς Θαλάσσης

Tyndis is of the Kingdom of Cerobothra; it

is a village in plain sight by the sea.

Muziris, of the same Kingdom, abounds in

ships sent there with cargoes from

Arabia, and by the Greeks; it is located

on a river, distant from Tyndis by river and

sea five hundred stadia, and up the river

from the shore twenty stadia. Nelcynda is

distant from Muziris by river and sea about

five hundred stadia, and is of another

Kingdom, the Pandion. This place also is

situated on a river, about one hundred and

twenty stadia from the sea.

Periplus of the Eritheranian Sea (Wilfred

1912)

4

These descriptions are mapped in Figure 12. 5

6

Figure 12. Tamil Nadu as mentioned in Greek Text 7

8 . 9

It ensures the ancient contact of Greeks with Tamilians. It may also be 10

noted that the ancient Greeks knew about the ‘Κηπροβότρου - Cerobothra’ 11

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and ‘Πανδίονος – Pandion’ who were directly related with the myth of Karna. 1

So through this sea trade the myth Ion and Karna might have transformed 2

between Greek and Tamil lands. This shows that the resemblances between 3

these two myths are not occasional or parallels, but influencial according to the 4

mythological theory of influences. 5

6

7

Conclusion 8

9 The myth of Ion is seen in Greek. The myths of Mahabharata and Karna 10

seen in Tamil and Sanskrit languages. There are some parallels seen between 11

the myths of Ion and Karna. The ancient trade relation between Greeks and 12

Tamilians ensures the influences of these myths with one another similar to so 13

many other myths (Pugazhendhi 2021). 14

15

16

References 17

18 Aimukhambet Z A (2017) The Poetic Interpretation of Binary Opposition in the 19 Structure of Myth. Rupkatha Journal on Interdisciplinary Studies in Humanities, 20

(IX.1). 21 Jonathan Hall (1997) Ethnic Identity in Greek Antiquity. Cambridge: Cambridge 22

University Press, 46-54. 23 Meltzer Gary S (2006) Euripides and the Politics of Nostalgia. Cambridge: Cambridge 24

University Press. 25 Kevin H Lee (1997) Introduction to Euripides' Ion. Warminster: Aris & Phillips Ltd. 26 Kovacs David (1999) Euripides’s Ion. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. 27 Potter Robert (1938) Euripides’ s Ion. New York: Random House. 28 Pugazhendhi D (2021) Greek, Tamil and Sanskrit: Comparison between the Myths of 29

Herakles (related with Iole and Deianira) and Rama in Hinduism. Athens Journal 30 of Philology 8(1): 09–36. 31

Pugazhendhi D (2020) The Greek root word ‘Kos’ and the trade of ancient Greek with 32 Tamil Nadu, India. International Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences 33 14(3): 185–192. 34

Murray Gilbert (1913) Euripidis Fabulae. Oxford: Clarendon Press. 35 Tamil Virtual University (1995) Sangam literature. Tamil Nadu, India: Government 36

of Tamil Nadu. 37 Kisari Mohan Ganguli (1896) Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa’s The Mahabharata. India: 38

Sacred.com. 39 Wilfred H (1912) The Periplus of the Erythraean Sea. Green, and Company, New 40

York: Longmans. 41

greek, sanskrit and tamil: comparison between ion

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