Shloka 34
Nara-Nārāyaṇa Precedent and Bhīṣma’s Counsel on Kṛṣṇa–Arjuna; Karṇa’s Reply
यदयं कत्थते नित्यं हन्ताहं पाण्डवानिति । नायं कलापि सम्पूर्णा पाण्डवानां महात्मनाम्
yad ayaṁ katthate nityaṁ hantāhaṁ pāṇḍavān iti | nāyaṁ kalāpi sampūrṇā pāṇḍavānāṁ mahātmanām ||
যে লোকটি নিত্যই গর্ব করে বলে—‘আমি পাণ্ডবদের বধ করব’, তার এ কথা ফাঁকা। আমার মতে, সে মহাত্মা পাণ্ডবদের ষোড়শাংশেরও সমান নয়।
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse critiques empty bravado: moral and practical worth is measured by proven excellence and character, not by repeated boasts. It implicitly warns that pride and loud claims in a dharmic conflict do not substitute for true capability and nobility.
In the Udyoga Parva’s pre-war setting, Vaiśampāyana reports a judgment about Karṇa’s habitual claim that he will kill the Pāṇḍavas, dismissing it as futile talk and asserting that Karṇa does not match even a small fraction of the Pāṇḍavas’ greatness.