Shloka 46
कर्णवधार्थं धनञ्जयस्य प्रतिज्ञा — Arjuna’s resolve for Karṇa’s defeat
तत्र युद्ध महच्चासीत् तावकानां विशाम्पते । शूरेण बलिना सार्ध पाण्डवेन किरीटिना,(जित्वा तान् न्यहनत् पार्थ: शत्रूज्शक्र इवासुरान् ।।
sañjaya uvāca |
tatra yuddhaṁ mahac cāsīt tāvakānāṁ viśāmpate |
śūreṇa balinā sārdha pāṇḍavena kirīṭinā |
(jitvā tān nyahanat pārthaḥ śatrūn śakra ivāsurān ||)
Sañjaya sprach: O Herr der Völker, dort entbrannte für deine Heere eine gewaltige Schlacht gegen den heldenhaften, mächtigen Pāṇḍava—Arjuna, den Diademträger. Nachdem Pārtha jene Feinde besiegt hatte, streckte er sie nieder, wie Śakra (Indra) einst die Asuras vernichtete.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse uses a traditional ethical-cosmic comparison—Indra defeating the Asuras—to present Arjuna’s battlefield success as not merely tactical but emblematic of the righteous side prevailing over hostile forces. It highlights the Mahābhārata’s recurring idea that a warrior’s duty (kṣatriya-dharma) can involve fierce action when aligned with a larger moral order.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that a great clash occurred between the Kaurava forces and Arjuna (the diadem-wearing Pāṇḍava). Arjuna overpowered the opposing warriors and killed them, likened to Indra’s destruction of the Asuras.