Shloka 48
कर्णेन व्यूहविधानम् — Karṇa’s Battle Formation and the Pāṇḍava Counter-Plan
Adhyāya 31
ब्रद्मक्षत्रस्य विहिता: सूता वै परिचारका: । न क्षत्रियों वै सूतानां शूणुयाच्च कथठ्चन
brahmakṣatrasya vihitāḥ sūtā vai paricārakāḥ | na kṣatriyo vai sūtānāṃ śuśrūyāc ca kathaṃcana ||
Śalya sprach: „Für Brāhmaṇas und Kṣatriyas sind die Sūtas als Begleiter und Diener eingesetzt. Dass aber ein Kṣatriya den Sūtas dienen sollte—davon hört man niemals, auf keinerlei Weise.“
शल्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse asserts a hierarchical social norm: Sūtas are portrayed as appointed attendants to Brahmins and Kshatriyas, and it is presented as improper or unheard-of for a Kshatriya to be subordinate to a Sūta. Ethically, it reflects how appeals to status and duty (varṇa-dharma) are used to define honor and legitimacy.
In the Karṇa Parva, Śalya speaks sharply in the war setting, using social-status arguments to belittle and unsettle Karṇa (often associated with Sūta identity in the epic’s polemics). The statement functions as psychological pressure and rhetorical provocation amid battlefield counsel and conflict.