शिशुपाल

Definitions

• ‘child-protector’.
• N. of the king of the चेदिs inhabiting a country in central India, probably the same as Bundelkhand (» चेदि ; he was son of दम-घोष, and is also called सुनीथ ; his impiety in opposing the worship of कृष्ण is described in the सभा-पर्वन् of the महा-भारत ; when युधि-ष्ठिर was about to perform a राजसूय sacrifice, numerous princes attended, and भीष्म proposed that especial honour should be paid to कृष्ण, who was also present, but शिशु-पाल objected, and after denouncing कृष्ण as a contemptible person challenged him to fight, whereupon कृष्ण struck off his head with his discus ; the विष्णु-पुराण identifies this impious monarch with the demons हिरण्य-कशिपु and रावण ; his death forms the subject of माघ's celebrated poem called शिशुपाल-वध)