Shakuntala seeks Kanva's blessings before departing
Kanva orKanwa (Sanskrit:कण्व,IAST:Kaṇva) was an ancientHindurishi[1] of theTreta Yuga, to whom some of the hymns of theRig Veda are ascribed.[2][3] He was one of theAngirasas.[4] He has been called a son of Ghora, but this lineage belongs to Pragatha Kanva, a subsequent Kanva of which there were many.[5][6] However,Puranic literature has other different lineages for him, one as the son of Apratiratha and grandson of KingMatinara, 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.[6][7] This last seems to be the modern consensus.[6][8] He is sometimes included in the list of the seven sages (theSaptarishis).[1]Kanva had a son Medhatithi.[7][8] Kanva is also mentioned in Mahabharata as the adoptive father ofShakuntala.
Kanva (Karnesh) is also the name of a founder of a Vedicshakha of the Shukla Yajur Veda, and hence the name of that theological branch of Hinduism, theKanva Shakha.[9][10]
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 kingVasudeva Kanva (1st century BCE).[11]
The Kanvas are also a class of spirit, against whom hymn 2.25 of theAtharva 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.
^Arya, Ravi Prakash; Joshi, K.L, eds. (1866).ऋग्वेद संहिता [Ṛgveda Saṃhitā] (in Sanskrit). Translated byWilson, Horace Hayman. with Bhāṣya of Sāyaṇācārya.Motilal Banarsidass.ISBN9788171101382.Archived from the original on 24 December 2024. Retrieved20 January 2025.घ्नन्तो वृत्रमतरन्रोदसी अप उरु क्षयाय चक्रिरे । भुवत्कण्वे वृषा द्युम्न्याहुतः क्रन्ददश्वो गविष्टिषु ॥{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
^Macdonell, Arthur Anthony;Keith, Arthur Berriedale (1912).Vedic Index of Names and Subjects. Vol. 1. London:Motilal Banarsidass. p. 134.ISBN9788120813328.Kaṇva is the name of an ancient Ṛṣi repeatedly referred to in the Rigveda and later. His sons and descendants, the Kaṇvas, are also often mentioned, especially in the eighth book of the Rigveda, the authorship of that book, as well as of part of the first, being attributed to this family.{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
^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.
