Karna Rejects Drona's Advice and Tells the Parable of Ambuvicha
Karna attacks Drona and Bhishma's counsel to share the kingdom, accusing them of hypocrisy. He argues that all outcomes are preordained by destiny, illustrating his point with the story of a king who kept his throne despite being utterly incompetent and robbed of everything else.
Drona's words hung in the air, advocating peace, sharing, and recall. Karna stood to answer. He began not with policy, but with an accusation of personal betrayal.
These two — Drona and Bhishma — had always been sustained by Dhritarashtra's riches and honour. What could be more surprising, Karna asked, than that they should now offer advice that was not for the king's own good? How could the wise accept counsel that seemed good but came from a man with malice in his heart, hiding his true intentions?
He presented a fatalistic worldview. In times of adversity, friends could neither do good nor cause harm. A man's misery or happiness depended on destiny alone. A wise man, a fool, an old man, a child — anyone could find anything anywhere, governed by fate.
To prove it, he told a story. In earlier times, there was a king named Ambuvicha who ruled Magadha from Rajagriha. He was a king with no abilities. All he did was breathe air in and out. All his affairs were in the hands of his ministers.
One minister, Mahakarni, became the sole authority and began to dishonour the king. The fool appropriated everything that belonged to the king: his objects of desire, his women, his jewels, his riches, all his power. But having obtained all this, his avarice only grew. Having taken everything else, he coveted the kingdom itself.
The king had no abilities. He only breathed. Yet despite all Mahakarni's attempts, he could not take the kingdom away from him. There was no human endeavour in Ambuvicha. The kingdom was his through destiny.
Karna applied the parable to Dhritarashtra. If this kingdom is yours through destiny, it will remain with you without a doubt, notwithstanding the enmity of all the worlds. But if ordained otherwise, it will never remain with you, no matter how much you try.
His final advice was not about action, but about judgment. You are learned, he told the king. Therefore, remember all this. Judge the honesty and dishonesty of your advisers. Weigh the advice of those who have spoken for the good and those who have spoken for evil.