Shloka 186
शेते विनिहतो वीरो देवेन्द्रेण इवाचल: । जैसे देवराज इन्द्रके द्वारा वज़से मारा गया पर्वत पृथ्वीपर पड़ा हो, उसी प्रकार मित्रोंकी अभय-दान देनेवाला वह महाथनुर्धर वीर कर्ण अर्जुनके हाथसे मारा जाकर रणभूमिमें सो रहा है
dhṛtarāṣṭra uvāca |
śete vinihato vīro devendreṇa ivācalaḥ |
قال دِهْرِتَرَاشْتْرَا: «إنّ ذلك البطلَ مطروحٌ صريعًا، كجبلٍ صرعه إندرا. وكذلك كَرْنَةُ—ذلك الرامي العظيم الذي كان يمنح رفاقه الأمانَ من الخوف—قد صُرِعَ بيدِ أَرْجُونَةَ، وهو الآن ملقىً في ساحة القتال».
धृतराष्ट उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the tragic certainty of war’s outcomes: even the mightiest fall. By comparing the fallen hero to a mountain struck down by Indra, it highlights impermanence of power and the ethical weight of kṣatriya conflict—valor and generosity do not guarantee survival when destiny and battle converge.
Dhṛtarāṣṭra, hearing the report of the battle, reacts to the news that Karṇa has been killed by Arjuna. He describes Karṇa’s body lying on the battlefield, using a grand simile—like a mountain felled by Indra—to convey the magnitude of the loss.