Born Protected
Kunti was young and unmarried when the sage Durvasa taught her a mantra to summon any god. She tested it on the Sun. Surya appeared and gave her a son — Karna — born fully armored, with golden kavach fused to his skin and golden kundala in his ears. He was radiant and invincible.
Frightened, Kunti set the infant afloat on a river. He was raised by a charioteer named Adhiratha and his wife Radha.
The Warning
As Karna grew into the greatest archer of his age, the gods knew the problem: Arjuna could not kill Karna while he wore that divine armor. It was impenetrable.
Indra, Arjuna's divine father, decided to act. He would go to Karna as a beggar and ask for the armor.
Surya, the sun god, appeared to Karna in a dream and warned him. "Indra will come. Do not give him what he asks. Your life depends on your armor."
The Gift
Indra came. In disguise, as a poor Brahmin. He asked Karna for the kavach and kundala.
Karna smiled. He had been warned. He knew exactly who was standing before him, and he knew exactly what it would cost.
He peeled the armor from his own flesh, bleeding, and gave it to Indra. He removed his earrings and gave those too.
Indra, shamed by this generosity, gave Karna a boon: one unstoppable divine weapon, the Shakti — to be used exactly once.