KanvaorKanwa (Sanskrit: कण्व káṇva), also called Karnesh, was an ancient Hindurishi[1] of the Treta Yuga, to whom some of the hymns of the Rig Veda are ascribed.[citation needed] He was one of the Angirasas.[citation needed] He has been called a son of Ghora, but this lineage belongs to Pragatha Kanva, a subsequent Kanva of which there were many.[2][3] However, Puranic literature has other different lineages for him, one as the son of Apratiratha and grandson of King Matinara, and another as the son of Ajamidha, who was a descendant in the ninth generation of Tansu, the brother of Apratiratha (Atiratha), or Ajamidha who was a contemporary of Matinara.[3][4] This last seems to be the modern consensus.[3][5] He is sometimes included in the list of the seven sages (the Saptarishis).[1]
Kanva had a son Medhatithi.[4][5] Kanva is also mentioned in Mahabharata as the adoptive father of Shakuntala.
Kanva (Karnesh) is also the name of a founder of a Vedic shakha of the Shukla Yajur Veda, and hence the name of that theological branch of Hinduism, the Kanva Shakha.[6][7]
Kanva (Karnesh) is also the name of several princes and founders of dynasties and several authors.[citation needed]
The Kanvas (Karnesh) are the descendants of king Vasudeva Kanva (1st century BCE).[8]
The Kanvas are also a class of spirit, against whom hymn 2.25 of the Atharva Veda is used as a charm.[citation needed]
^ abDowson, John (2000). "Kanva"(PDF). A Classical Dictionary of Hindu Mythology & Religion (D. K. Printworld second ed.). New Delhi: D. K. Printworld. p. 154. ISBN81-246-0108-9. Archived(PDF) from the original on 19 May 2020.
^Patton, Laurie L. (1996). "Pedigree Narratives: Parents After the Fact". Myth as Argument: The Brhaddevata as Canonical Commentary. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter. p. 270. ISBN3-11-013805-0.
