Shloka 123
कर्णेन युधिष्ठिरानीकविदारणम् / Karṇa’s Breach of Yudhiṣṭhira’s Battle-Line
युद्धे हायं रुद्रकल्पस्त्वं च ब्रह्म॒समो नये । तस्माच्छक्तो भवाउजेतुं मच्छत्रूंस्तानिवासुरान्,यह कर्ण युद्धक्षेत्रमें रुद्रके समान है और आप भी नीतिमें ब्रह्माजीके तुल्य हैं; अतः आप उन असुरोंकी भाँति मेरे शत्रुओंको जीतनेमें समर्थ हैं
yuddhe hāyaṃ rudrakalpas tvaṃ ca brahmasamo naye | tasmāc chakto bhavaujjetuṃ macchatrūṃs tān ivāsurān ||
Bhīṣma sprach: „Im Kampf ist Karṇa wie Rudra selbst, und du bist in Staatskunst und rechtem Rat Brahmā gleich. Darum vermagst du meine Feinde zu überwinden, wie die Götter einst die Asuras bezwangen—mit Kraft, die von weiser Strategie geführt wird.“
पितामह उवाच
Educational Q&A
Martial power alone is not enough; victory in war is framed as the union of fierce strength (Rudra-like prowess) and wise counsel or policy (Brahmā-like nīti). The verse praises strategic intelligence as an ethical and practical force that can direct power toward decisive outcomes.
Bhīṣma (Pitāmaha) is speaking, assessing the battlefield qualities of Karṇa as terrifyingly powerful, and simultaneously praising the addressee’s excellence in nīti (statecraft/strategy). On that basis, he urges the person addressed to be confident and to conquer Bhīṣma’s enemies, likening the conquest to the gods’ overcoming of the asuras.