Shloka 22
Aśvatthāman’s Arrow-Screen and the Confrontation with Yudhiṣṭhira (द्रौणि–युधिष्ठिर-संग्रामः)
ब्राह्मणैः कथिता: पूर्व यथावद् राजसंनिधौ । श्रुत्वा चैकमना मूढ क्षम वा ब्रूहि चोत्तरम्,मूर्ख शल्य! स्त्रियाँ, बच्चे और बूढ़े लोग, खेलकूदमें लगे हुए मनुष्य और स्वाध्याय करनेवाले पुरुष भी दुरात्मा मद्रनिवासियोंके विषयमें जिन गाथाओंको गाया करते हैं तथा ब्राह्मणोंने पहले राजाके समीप आकर यथावत् रूपसे जिनका वर्णन किया है, उन गाथाओंको एकाग्रचित्त होकर मुझसे सुनो और सुनकर चुपचाप सह लो या जवाब दो
brāhmaṇaiḥ kathitāḥ pūrvaṃ yathāvad rājasannidhau | śrutvā caikamanā mūḍha kṣama vā brūhi cottaram ||
Karna said: “These accounts were formerly recited by Brahmins, in due and proper form, in the presence of kings. Listen to them from me now with a single, focused mind, O deluded one; and having heard, either endure them in silence—or give your reply.”
कर्ण उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical weight of speech in a royal and martial context: authoritative tradition (Brahmins speaking ‘properly’ in court) is invoked to legitimize a public challenge. It frames a choice—either patient forbearance (kṣamā) or reasoned rebuttal (uttara)—as the proper responses to provocative speech.
In the Karna–Shalya exchange, Karna asserts that certain well-known accounts—previously recited by Brahmins before kings—will be spoken again. He demands Shalya listen attentively and then either endure the words silently or respond, setting up a confrontational, rhetorical contest amid the tensions of the war.