Shloka 52

अजिशीर्षे प्रातःसंध्यायां संग्रामवर्णनम् / Dawn-Transition Battle at Ajiśīrṣa

Chapter 161

Devanagari script

तमापततन्तं वेगेन वैकर्तनमजिह्ागै:

Transliteration

tam āpatatantaṁ vegena vaikartanam ajihāgaiḥ

Translation

Sañjaya sprach: Als Vaikartana (Karna) mit gewaltiger Geschwindigkeit nach vorn stürmte, wurde er von schlangenartigen Geschossen—wie Schlangen—empfangen und aufgehalten, die im Zorn der Schlacht geschleudert wurden. So zeigt sich: Im Krieg trifft selbst den Mächtigsten Gegenkraft und List.

Word by Word

• तम्: him
• तम्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• आपतन्तम्: falling/charging down (upon)
• आपतन्तम्: Karma
• Type: Verb
• Root: आ-√पत्
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular, शतृ (present active participle)

• वेगेन: with speed, by force
• वेगेन: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: वेग
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Singular

• वैकर्तनम्: Vaikartana (Karna)
• वैकर्तनम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: वैकर्तन
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• अजिहागैः: with (his) arrows (lit. 'tongueless/without-tongue'—a poetic epithet for arrows)
• अजिहागैः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: अजिहाग
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Vaikartana (Karna)
• serpentine missiles/weapons (snake-like arrows)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores a recurring Mahābhārata ethic of warfare: prowess alone does not guarantee victory; every advance invites resistance through skill, counter-weapons, and circumstance, reminding the listener of the limits of human power amid fate and strategy.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya narrates that Karna (Vaikartana) is charging forward at great speed, and in response he is confronted by snake-like missiles—suggesting a fierce exchange of specialized weapons as the battle intensifies.