768:, only to see Vishvamitra already present there. The sage demanded the donation that the king had promised him. Harishchandra pointed out that there was still some time left in completion of one month. The sage agreed to come back at the next sunset and departed. As his hungry son cried for food, Harishchandra worried how would he be able to make a donation to the sage. His wife Shaivya suggested that he sell her to get some money. After some hesitation, Harishchandra accepted the proposal and sold her to an elderly man. Their child would not let go of his mother, so it was decided that he would accompany his mother (and an extra payment was made for him).
246:
812:, a part would be given to the local king, and the rest would be Harishchandra's remuneration. Harishchandra started living and working at the cremation ground. One day, he dreamed about his past lives, and realized that his current condition was a result of his past sins. During this nightmare, he also saw his queen crying before him. When he woke up, he saw his queen actually crying before him. She held the dead body of their son, who had died of a snake bite. Thinking of his misfortune, Harishchandra contemplated suicide, but realized that he would continue to pay for his sins in his next life.
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745:. The king asked him what he wanted in payment. In response, Vishvamitra said "Give me all that you have except yourself, your wife and your child." Harishchandra agreed to the demand. He let go of all his possessions – even his clothes. As he readied to leave his palace with his family, Vishvamitra demanded another donation. Harishchandra said that he did not have any possession left, but promised to make another donation within a month.
203:) was born to the king. After his birth, Varuna came to Harishchandra and demanded that the child be sacrificed to him. The king postponed the sacrifice multiple times citing various reasons, but finally agreed to it when Rohita became an adult. Rohita refused to be sacrificed and escaped to the forest. An angry Varuna afflicted Harishchandra with a stomach illness. Rohita intermittently visited his father, but on the advice of
819:
But
Harishchandra refused to go to heaven without his public who have lamented over his departure from his kingdom. He believes that they are the equal sharer in his merits and that he will only go heaven when his people also accompany him. He requested the king of devas, Indra to allow his people to
748:
Harishchandra started living in penury with his wife and his family. His loyal subjects followed him. When
Vishvamitra saw the king with his subjects, he started cursing Harishchandra for taking along his subjects (who were a part of the kingdom donated to the sage). The king then decided to leave
815:
Meanwhile, the queen readied to cremate their son's cadaver. But, Harishchandra told her that he would not let her do so without paying the fee. Meanwhile, all the deities appeared led by Yama and accompanied by
Vishvamitra. They praised Harishchandra for his good qualities, and invited him to
771:
Soon after, Vishvamitra appeared again and demanded the donation. Harishchandra gave him all the money he had received from the sale of his wife and son. However, Vishvamitra was unhappy with the donation, and demanded more. Harishchandra then decided to sell himself. An
706:. Once, while on a hunting expedition, he heard the cries of a woman asking for help. Armed with a bow and arrow, he went in the direction of the sound. The sound was an illusion created by Vighnaraja, the lord of the obstacles. Vighnaraja was trying to disturb the
1042:. Also, in popular colloquial usage, Raja Harishchandra is synonymous with absolute adherence to the truth. A person is often chided as being "a Raja Harishchandra", if he tries to cling to truth even to the detriment of those related to him. In 1985, a
909:(king-sage), and the only earthly king who finds a place in the assembly of gods. According to Narada, Harishchandra was a powerful emperor, and all the kings on earth accepted his suzerainty. He performed the
211:
in the human sacrifice. Sunahshepa prayed to the
Rigvedic deities, and was saved from the sacrifice. Harishchandra's illness was also cured because of Sunahshepa's prayers; Sunahshepa was adopted by the sage
871:. It starts with Vashistha – the sage of Harishchandra's royal dynasty – praising the king's honesty and noble character. Vishvamitra objects to this, pointing out that Harishchandra was ready to sacrifice
731:
When
Harishchandra came to his senses, he realized that the sage was extremely angry with him, and apologized. He promised to fulfill any of the sage's desires to get rid of his guilt. Vishvamitra demanded
199:
for a son. Varuna granted the boon, in exchange for an assurance that
Harishchandra would make a sacrifice to Varuna in the future. As a result of this boon, a son named Rohita (or
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would not allow this. He instead offered to be
Vishwamitra's slave. Vishvamitra agreed, but then declared "Since you are my slave, you must obey me. I sell you to this
168:. According to this legend, Harishchandra gave away his kingdom, sold his family, and agreed to be a slave – all to fulfill a promise he had made to the sage
1009:
1020:
was the third Indian and first South Indian film to be digitally coloured. The coloured version, released in April 2008, was a commercial success. The
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of twelve years. He learned of what had happened to
Harishchandra during these years. He quarreled with Vishvamitra, but was ultimately pacified by
1364:
702:. He was an honest, noble king. His subjects enjoyed prosperity and peace. He had a queen named Shaivya (also called Taramati) and a son named
753:
saw this, they condemned
Vishvamitra. The sage cursed them to be born as human beings. These guardian deities were born as the sons of the
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the kingdom with his family. To make them go away sooner, Vishvamitra started beating the queen with a stick. When the five
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go to heaven at least for a single day. Indra accepts his request, and he along with his people ascend to the heaven.
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with delicacies, gave them what they wanted and gifted them jewels. For this reason, he finds a place alongside
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It is also said that
Harishchandra was a truthful man, who never lied in his life and is therefore also called
103:
808:. He directed Harishchandra to collect fees for every body cremated there: a part of the fee would go to the
662:
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mentions him as the father of Sagara and grandfather of Badaka, and contains a legend about his descendants.
837:. Brahma explained to him that Vishvamitra was only testing the king, and had actually helped him ascend to
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Original Sanskrit Texts on the Origin and History of the People of India, Their Religion and Institutions
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was released based on the life of King Harishchandra. This film was directed by Ardhendu Chatterjee.
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Nearly a month after leaving his kingdom, Harishchandra arrived in the holy city of
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in disguise) offered to buy him, but Harishchandra's self-respect as a high-caste
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Indian Mythology: Tales, Symbols, and Rituals from the Heart of the Subcontinent
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the king's body and started abusing Vishvamitra. This disturbed Vishwamitra's
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contains a detailed legend about his life, narrated by wise birds to the sage
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Harishchandra has been the subject of many films in India. The earliest is
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is a very popular and acclaimed epic on the life of Harishchandra.
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Harishchandra and his family are separated and sold into bondage
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A temple of Harishchandra is situated in Harishchandra Pimpri,
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162:. The most famous of these stories is the one mentioned in the
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1008:, the film was awarded the President's silver medal for the
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as the lead roles. The film was later remade under the name
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mentions him, but does not describe his life in detail. The
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The Firsts of Indian Cinema: Milestones from 1896 to 2000
827:– the sage of Harishchandra's royal dynasty – ended his
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paid the sage, and took along Harishchandra as a slave.
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yajna. After completing the rituals, he gratified the
138:, who appears in several legends in texts such as the
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contains a story similar to the one mentioned in the
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The Hungry God: Hindu Tales of Filicide and Devotion
1123:. Inner Traditions / Bear & Co. 24 April 2003.
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1182:. University of Chicago Press. pp. 87–105.
984:, making it the first double-language talkie of
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1150:. University of Chicago Press. pp. 81–82.
1034:-language Hindu mythological film, directed by
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1391:Film and Television Producers Guild of India
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1176:"Sunahsepa: The Riddle of Fathers and Sons"
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879:. The rest of the story is similar to the
804:employed Harishchandra as a worker at his
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1246:(2 ed.). Trübner. pp. 379–387.
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992:was based on 12th century Hoysala poet
968:, was also based on his life, starring
859:, but also contains a reference to the
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1059:(one who always speaks the truth).
950:from 1913, written and directed by
863:legend. This legend is narrated by
219:A similar story is narrated in the
185:According to a legend mentioned in
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883:version, with minor variations.
793:in exchange of gold coins." The
716:. When he saw Harishchandra, he
698:King Harishchandra lived in the
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1216:. University of Chicago Press.
823:After his ascension to heaven,
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260:, Harishchandra is the son of
104:Harishchandra (disambiguation)
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1422:Characters in Hindu mythology
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241:Harishchandra and Vishvamitra
134:) is a legendary king of the
1427:Mythological kings of Kosala
1010:Best Feature Film in Kannada
7:
1317:. Diamond. pp. 84–86.
1290:. Diamond. pp. 71–72.
1263:. Diamond. pp. 19–28.
1144:David Gordon White (1991).
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751:guardians of the directions
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10:
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539:Personalities of the Epics
251:Harishchandra and Taramati
229:instead of Harishchandra.
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1341:The Mahabharata, Volume 2
1006:13th National Film Awards
712:(meditation) of the sage
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195:, he prayed to the deity
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1311:B.K. Chaturvedi (2001).
1284:B.K. Chaturvedi (2002).
1257:B.K. Chaturvedi (2004).
921:(the king of the gods).
905:that Harishchandra is a
16:King in Hindu literature
1412:Legendary Indian people
1344:. Penguin. p. 95.
952:Dhundiraj Govind Phalke
1287:Shrimad Bhagwat Purana
695:legend is as follows:
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1338:Bibek Debroy (2015).
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937:from 12th century in
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159:Devi Bhagavata Purana
1387:19 July 2011 at the
1147:Myths of the Dog-Man
102:For other uses, see
1314:Devi Bhagwat Purana
1240:John Muuir (1868).
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998:Harishchandra Kavya
990:Satya Harishchandra
988:. The Kannada epic
964:(1932) directed by
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738:(donation) for his
292:Part of a series on
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1369:The New York Times
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925:In popular culture
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398:Padma Purana
378:Shiva Purana
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1100:Suryavamsha
1090:Chandrahasa
1078:Maharashtra
1038:starred by
1027:Harichandra
974:Durga Khote
894:Mahabharata
887:Mahabharata
714:Vishvamitra
403:Vayu Purana
335:Mahabharata
214:Vishvamitra
170:Vishvamitra
147:Mahabharata
131:Hariścandra
120:हरिश्चन्द्र
95:Suryavamsha
1401:Categories
1106:References
1030:is a 1968
994:Raghavanka
980:(1932) in
931:Raghavanka
873:Sunahshepa
869:Janamejaya
781:(actually
704:Rohitashva
700:Treta Yuga
552:Saptarishi
209:Sunahshepa
201:Rohitashva
156:, and the
85:Rohitashva
1057:Satyavadi
1004:. At the
1000:starring
996:'s work,
825:Vashistha
787:Kshatriya
627:Lakshmana
582:Vashistha
531:Kartikeya
511:Saraswati
468:Manidvipa
458:Vaikuntha
453:Satyaloka
414:Cosmology
262:Trishanku
227:Ambarisha
125:romanized
63:Trishanku
51:Genealogy
1385:Archived
1365:Overview
1210:(1993).
1174:(1993).
1084:See also
1072:taluka,
1002:Rajkumar
915:Brahmins
911:rajasuya
907:rajarshi
816:heaven.
810:chandala
802:chandala
795:chandala
791:chandala
778:chandala
774:outcaste
759:Draupadi
755:Pandavas
740:rajasuya
735:dakshina
612:Pandavas
607:Kauravas
577:Kashyapa
486:Trimurti
463:Kailasha
330:Ramayana
222:Ramayana
116:Sanskrit
81:Children
76:Taramati
65:(father)
1095:Bharata
1070:Wadwani
1063:Shrines
877:tapasya
830:tapasya
726:tapasya
722:tapasya
718:entered
709:tapasya
632:Hanuman
602:Krishna
597:Bharata
587:Agastya
572:Gautama
526:Ganesha
521:Parvati
516:Lakshmi
506:Tridevi
477:Deities
438:Prithvi
423:Brahman
344:Puranas
321:Itihasa
313:Sources
278:Jaimini
258:Puranas
256:In the
127::
91:Dynasty
56:Parents
1348:
1321:
1294:
1267:
1220:
1186:
1154:
1127:
901:tells
899:Narada
839:heaven
835:Brahma
562:Angira
557:Bhrigu
496:Vishnu
491:Brahma
448:Naraka
443:Patala
433:Svarga
280:. The
264:. The
197:Varuna
193:Narada
176:Legend
150:, the
73:Spouse
1046:film
1032:Tamil
1022:Tamil
982:Hindi
929:Poet
919:Indra
865:Vyasa
766:Kashi
743:yajna
592:Pitrs
501:Shiva
205:Indra
40:Texts
1346:ISBN
1319:ISBN
1292:ISBN
1265:ISBN
1218:ISBN
1184:ISBN
1152:ISBN
1125:ISBN
972:and
849:The
800:The
783:Yama
757:and
689:The
637:Wars
622:Sita
617:Rama
567:Atri
933:'s
891:In
867:to
1403::
1232:^
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